What integrated to go with Paradigm studio/60's???


Hi guys, I'm new to the audio game and am kind of disappointed with my current system. The sound is all there but without the realism they had at auditioning. Vocals tend to be hidden or mushed into the intstruments making them sound unclear. Also, whenever my system tries to really rock out with complex peices it sounds confused and lacks any coherent clarity. My system is:

NAD T531 DVD player
Music Hall MMF 2.1 w/Grado Gold cartridge
Rotel RQ 970BX phono preamp
NAD T752 reciever
Paradigm Studio 60's

My sound isn't what I heard from my speakers when I auditioned them leading me to believe there's a mismatch upstream. I think I'd like to switch my receiver for an integrated amp around $1000. Does anyone with these speakers or similar ones have any suggestions?

Thanks,
Keith
thebeave250
I agree that you should consider ditching the DVD for a dedicated CDP. I think then you would be more likely to find a substantial improvement, even with a modest integrated.

If you acquired, say, a Rega Planet and a Rotel or Creek integrated, I think you would be pleasantly surprised. As for the Krell, it's a pretty good value on the used market, but I have not heard it paired with any of your other components.

And don't skip on speaker cables and ICs - many have fallen victim to the folly of trying to save $$$ that way.
Try a Plinius 8150 or 8200 if you are lucky you may find one for about $1200. I do not think you would look back as these are very nice with excellent tone, detail and control.
I have a pair of Paradigm studio 60 v2 speakers. My previous system was: Marantz receiver 7200 and a no brand DVD player (digital output). I was very disappointed about the quality of the sound.
I then decided to buy a cdp. I listened to Rega, Jolida, Macintosh, and Primare. The previous three didn't impress me at all. But Primare D20 (or D30) really made a BIG difference even with my Marantz receiver. It is clear that the DAC in the cdp is orders of magnitude better than that in the receiver. The sound has incredible clarity, richness and strength. When I played Eric Clapton's "Unplugged", the system sounded much better than the much more expensive systems that I auditted in audio shops. You'll feel that your heart vibrates strongly with the guitar strings.
I would therefore highly recommend the Primare cdp.
I'm also looking for an amp to exclude the receiver from the stereo. Please visit my recent thread in amp/preamp. There're many valueable advices.
Good luck!
One more thing: the cable makes an audible difference. I used Audioquest ($150), it's much better than the no brand cable ($30) that I used before.
Thanks for the help guys. I do know the value of decent cables and am quite happy with my cables from Frank at SignalCable here on Audiogon. I've also just upgraded my crappy Audioquest optical interconnect. I'll definitely look inot a dedicated CDP in the future. I started out wanted a home theatre setup (which is why I bought the receiver) but now just want a really good stereo setup. Any more suggestions would be fantastic.

Keith