Budget sound setup

ishamy · 9 May 2011 at 23:44

Hi all, looking in to getting a budget sound system. At the moment I'm using a 2.1 dell system.

What iv seen and fancy is a Cambridge audio A1, and a set of Mordaunt-Short MS-902's.

I'm not wanting to spend too much and second hand is good for me. Will be used for music, tv and ps3.

Thanks

Marsman · 10 May 2011 at 02:13

A stereo amp and some bookshelf/standmount speakers is certainly a good idea. CA A1 is a good budget starter amp, but for around £100, you can get something better 2nd hand. I have an Audiolab 8000A, which cost me just under £100. Granted it is old, but it's built like a tank, and it still sounds great. New it would have cost about £350. That's the great thing with decent hi-fi gear, older stuff still sounds great today. There are probably quite a lot of really good amps to be had for about £100, maybe less. If you didn't want to pay up to and around a £100, then a 2nd hand CA A1 would probably be around £40-£50, although for the extra £50, you will be able to get something quite a bit better.

Mordaunt Short 902's are nice speakers, and are certainly worth considering.

ishamy · 10 May 2011 at 13:43

Thanks for that.

My budget really is roughly no more than £100 to buy Amp + Speakers.

I really just need a good sounding (better thank what I've got) set-up that allows me to connect 2 or more devices to it.

Would Mordaunt Short 904 (Floor standing version) be much better than the bookshelves, what is the difference between floor standing and bookshelves? More Bass?

Thanks

Marsman · 10 May 2011 at 14:55

I think the 904's use the same drivers as the 902's, so the only difference is the bigger cabinet. Bigger cabinet usually means more bass, but I don't know how they compare to the 902's. Putting the same drivers in a larger cabinet can alter the sound, but unless you can get some opinions from people who have compared them, then it's anyones guess as to which provides the better sound.

If you can get either for a good price, then either will provide decent sound quality. Just depends which type of speaker you want.