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How can I improve my system

I have cobbled together quite a nice system over the years and have heard quite a few far more expensive systems that did not sound as good to my ears as what I have. However, I recently walked into a showroom and their setup blew mine out of the water, despite not being "ultra high-end". So now I'm wondering where I should upgrade to take my setup to the next level. The showroom system was all (expensive) Krell (10K pre, 10K power, 12K source), yet modest 10K Thiel speakers. I have source: heavily modified Denon 3910 + upgraded Audio Note 1.1 DAC, McCormack MAP1 pre (used mostly in "surround" mode). Odessey Stratos Mono Extreme Power and Silverline Audio LaFolia speakers. Misc. high quality cabling. I think my weakest link may be the Silverlines or the McCormack. I always liked the Revel Studios so this could be an options. Modding the MAP1 is also an options. Any suggestions are welcome.
edorr
tvad
9,467 posts
 
I disagree about what you consider to be your weakest link. As a Silverline Sonata III owner, and as one who has gone through several amps for these speakers, I can say they are extremely revealing of what is upstream.

IMO, your weakest link is the Odyssey Stratos Mono Extreme amps (I have owned them). The Silverlines will respond like exotic sports cars with more refined amplification. Alan Yun recommended Belles and Pass Labs to me, and I have to agree with him after owning both. The Odyssey amps are excellent, but the Belles and Pass Labs are a step up in transparency. You'll have to hear them to understand what I'm describing, but once you do I believe you'll agree.

That said, it's almost impossible to sway someone from making a change once they have decided to make it. Generally, I have found that folks seek opinions that reinforce the changes they are considering.
shadorne's avatar
shadorne
7,333 posts
 
I suspect that the biggest difference in what you heard at the showroom was the speakers and room. I am not sure if that helps...
tvad
9,467 posts
 
I agree with Shadorne's room comment. A dialed-in, acoustically tuned audio showroom will likely outperform the majority of audiophile's rooms.
eldarado
381 posts
 
I am on board with Shad and Tvad. Before you go chasing your tail by replacing components, look at your room. Do you have any type of treatments currently? Have you tried changing the placement of the speakers? IMO, the room is the most important thing if you have good to great equipment. You can drop $50k on a system and if it is in a bad room or setup incorrectly it will not sound good.
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