Building The Perfect Hi-Fi System
If you are looking to put together the perfect Hi-Fi system for your home, you are going to want to find the ideal package to suit your needs while still fitting within your budget. The way that a Hi-Fi system is constructed, using separate parts means that each setup can be tweaked in order to upgrade and develop your equipment as new technology is released or your circumstances change.
What parts do I need for my system?
The perfect Hi-Fi system for you will depend largely on what you need it for. The perfect system for listening to music, for example, may not be the same as that for providing the soundtrack for a home theater system, which is often built with surround sound in mind. As most music is mixed and delivered to the consumer in stereo, only two channels are required for this sort of setup.
In addition to your sound sources, which these days range from digital streaming sound sources to a turntable, CD player and radio, your perfect setup should consist of a preamplifier, a power amplifier and at least two speakers. When it comes to speakers, full-range array cabinets can provide a great sound, which will be enhanced by the addition of a subwoofer.
What does a preamp do?
A preamplifier takes the relatively weak signal delivered by your sound source and boosts it so that it can be ramped right up by your power amplifier. Purchasing an integrated amplifier will provide you with both of these amplifier phases in one box, which will work very well for you if space is limited.
How big should my power amp be?
When you are thinking about the perfect sized power amp you may need for your home, you will first need to consider how big your rooms are, as well as what exactly you want your Hi-Fi to do. If you want to listen to music on your own in a fairly small room, your power amp is likely to need to be a lot smaller than it would if you were looking to provide the soundtrack to a big party.
A bigger room is likely to need more power than a small room to fill with sound as the vibrations in the air will dissipate faster, resulting in lost sound if there is more space.
A power amplifier such as the Marantz MM7025 2 Channel Amplifier provides 140W of power per channel at 8 ohm, with the ability to drive even the most demanding speakers. The design of this power amplifier provides consistent and precise power when needed.
Matching the speakers
No matter which amplifier or amplifiers you select to build your perfect Hi-Fi system, you will then need to find some excellent speakers in order to hear your setup in action.
When purchasing speakers, you will need to look at the power output of the power amplifier and match it to the speakers. The Marantz amplifier above delivers channel with 8-ohm impedance. You should therefore look for speakers with the same impedance. Thankfully, this is a fairly common power rating for speakers, with 6-ohm and 4-ohm speakers far more rare.
A full range array of speakers with at least 4 or 5 separate speaker cones helps you to deliver the full frequency range accurately, getting the best out of your music. A great 2-way speaker is going to do a far better job at reproducing sound than a poor 4- or 5-way speaker.
The Triton Seven-Floor Standing Speaker from Golden Ear brings you a brilliant 7 different speaker cones and crossover hardware to boot in order to provide you with shimmering highs and thunderous lows.
A rumble down under
For certain styles of music, as well as if you are using your Hi-Fi alongside a home theater system, a subwoofer is absolutely necessary to provide additional definition to the bottom end of your sound source.
The Martin Logan Dynamo 400 8" Subwoofer provides dramatic bass detail and attack, extending the range while delivering enough power to shake your room!
There is no single perfect Hi-Fi setup that will suit all people. Each different listener will need to adjust their own system in order to create the best sound reproduction possible to suit their own needs and their own space. This customization is the reason that Hi-Fi has remained popular throughout the years as people have the opportunity to build a setup that works for them.