What was your most disappointig purchase for your audio system?

[E-Stat]

So what was your most dissapointing purchase for your system?

The AR Integrated amp back in '72. I confess that I purchased it on looks and good reviews by the mediocre reviewers at the time. It sounded reasonably good driving Advents, but only at high levels. At lower levels, resolution disappeared. How could that be? This was a good learning experience for me at age 15 in that I realized early on that Julian Hirsch was deaf and that distortion figures are useless in determining real world performance. I even had the distortion measured and confirmed by Dave O'Brien himself at a McIntosh clinic and was handed the official results. What a joke!

Second in line was a Crown D-150 amp...

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[squeegy200]

My most disappointing purchase was a Denon AVD 2000 Digital Multi-channel processor.
I happened to have three 2CH amplifiers, a center channel speaker, and a powered subwoofer so I thought I would take the plunge into multi-channel audio/video.

With great anticipation, I promptly went to the store and bought multi-channel DVDs and Music Videos hoping to experience the multi-channel surround sound that seemed so popular. I compared models and discovered this one had such favorable reviews.

I was very familiar with the soundstage and detail that my current speakers and amps were capable of producing. SO it was with high anticipation that I extend these very same speakers into multi-channel nirvana. If two was good, then five would be better. No?

I was sorely disappointed in how the digital processor took the high fidelity out of my digital sources and my speakers were reduced to singular flat planes. The once pleasing sound stage was replaced with 2-dimensional music emanating from five distinct points in the room.

I made a valiant attempt to reconcile my expectations but after several months of tweeking, I just could not endure the clinical presentation of the Digital processor. I converted back to analog and sold the processor on eBay.

[Worf101]

It's not exactly "audio" but my first DVD player was a Pioneer progessive scan POS that died 4 months in and caused me to spend the next 8 months in Pioneer Service Hell. It was a pile of crap that should never have been sold the only thing worse was Pioneer's non-existant customer service department. I finally got a refund after siccing the California Attorney General and Better Business Bureau on them. The of course have never received another penny from me since.

Worf

[scrivens]

Phillips CDR775...just coz Phillips invent 'em, don't mean they work right...should have got the Marantz (how phillips is supposed to be)

[Ajani]

Phillips CDR775...just coz Phillips invent 'em, don't mean they work right...should have got the Marantz (how phillips is supposed to be)

I totally forgot about my Philips CDR... It's the only device I ever returned for a full refund... total POS!!!! It only worked (occasionaly) with a few specific CD brands... I replaced it with a TDK CDR which worked with anything I could throw at it...

[LeRoy]

The NAD 545 CDP simply sounds so drab even though it looks pretty cool in comparison to past NAD products. After about 5 months of ownership the 545 simply started skipping to the next track while playing. I sent it back to the dealer who was able to arrange for a new replacement unit...once I got the new unit I checked to make sure it was working I then gave it as a present to #1 Nephew.

I replaced the 545 with the Musical Fidelity XRAY.

[RoyY51]

I've had three:

An Onkyo receiver, model something, something, something. Sterile, mechanical sound that made my normally robust MA B2's sound like Bose.

A Nad T762 receiver. More quality control issues than I care to enumerate. After sending it back for warrantied repairs TWICE, I traded up to the T763 and have had no problems since.

My wife. When I married her, I thought she was into music. Turned out, she was into musicians.

Damned good thing she can cook.

[jrhymeammo]

jrhymeammo, the HCA-2 isn't exactly a bright-sounding amp, so with the 8001, which I would also consider on the warm side, I can understand the dissapointment. Or was your experience with these in separate systems? Can you elaborate on what you didn't like?

Hey NF,

My experience with HCA-2 was only about 6 months. HCA2 was paired with BAT VK3i and a CDP with volume control. HCA2 with BAT sounded a bit dark and muffled. From my brief experience with the amp, I could tell why some people associate the sound with tube amps. The boby sounded a bit soft and was forgiving, but it didn't have the quality of tubes on edges of sound. To me, it sounded restrained. Same for the SA8001, I still have the player and I've been thinking about replacing it for long long time, but I haven't been focusing on my digital front end. Both units are forgiving, but do not offer open sound.

[the hand of boredom]

A short while back you posted on options for the sub... did you get one?

[dexxas]

Kef Cresta 3 loudspeakers.

thought they were awful for a couple of years. Then i changed my Amp and the sky engineer said they need driving have you tried, turning them up in volume?

By goodness Gracious me what a difference. Trouble is we in a flat and We can not listen to music that loud.

[dexxas]

Only two HiFi products I've bought have dissapointed me:

NAD C352 Integrated Amp - Boring sound with my Mission Speakers at the time, boring looks and a pain in the @$$ remote volume control...

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NAD C521BEE CD Player - I didn't find the sound to be a substantial upgrade from my sub $100 Panasonic DVD player or my mac mini.... Plus it had all manner of issues reading discs (that my old Technics CD player never did)... and of course it looked equally boring to match the C352 amp....

Im so Glad You wrote this. I honestly thought it was only me who felt this way about the Nad. I had The 340 amp I bought it from Richer sounds because it had such a high acclaim From what hi fi Thought well!!!! got to be good... It was at first but that's physiological Because You have to justify in your mind abound spending 250 quid. So no matter if its not great your going to kid yourself over and over for a while it is.

Yes i agree i thought the sound was dry unexciting i went from there To a Musical Fidelity x-80 what an amp for bass neighbours hated it.. I now got a Yamaha Ax 396 which im more than happy with and a Rotel Ra 810 a which is not well at the moment its owner um .. well touched metal while fiddling with the speaker wire I'm hoping to god it has an in line fuse and that's whats gone on the left hand channel