First time separate’s,retro help needed’

[Speedywurzel]

Back in the 90’s had a couple of mates who were into their home audio and both had quite a setup but I had a young family and funds were low so had to go without.
I did say tho that one day I would join them,and the time is now! The only proviso is that the speakers have to be mission 753’s or TDL rtl3’s.(it’s what I promised myself back then!)
What separates would match and compliment these speakers preferably from the 90’s I remember one of my mates and the hi fi mag raving about marantz cd63 ki back then,also need a decent amp and record deck.
The front room is fairly large as well.

[NDA]

The Musical Fidelity X-A200 Monoblock amps would probably partner with the speakers quite well.

I have a pair of these amps, although no longer used since I changed my system at home. They're very good.


https://www.petervis.com/hi-fi-info/musical-fideli...

[Lucid_AV]

I think I'd be tempted to see which set of speakers you manage to score first, then work on an amp to drive them. We're also getting to the point where '90s speakers with ferrofluid in the tweeters are starting to have problems. The liquid in the voice coils may well have helped the tweeters handle high power or the odd bit of clipping without burning out, but like oil in an engine, there's only so long it will go before getting so thick that it starts to affect the high frequency performance.

The Missions are 'fast' which is a way of saying they're a touch forward and energetic, so you could temper that with amps that lean a little more on the bassy side. NAD comes to mind first. Maybe some of the ARCAM stereo amps? The TDLs veer a little in the other direction; a bit more bass heavy and needing a fairly large room if they're to stay clean and precise lower down. Something neutral but powerful, or maybe even on the lighter/faster side. Roksan fits the 'neutral with power' bill, and IMO is somewhat overlooked as a brand. Rega tips a shade lighter.

Record deck: That very much depends on your budget and whether you're looking at new or used. A used Rega Planar 3 is hard to beat, but you might have to budget for a cartridge replacement or new stylus plus a drive belt.

[OutInTheShed]

Surely anything with so many driver units needs more than one amp per side?

[Lucid_AV]

OutInTheShed said:

Surely anything with so many driver units needs more than one amp per side?

Check out the sensitivity figures (dB/W/m or dB @ 2.83V, same thing). This will tell you how loud in dB for a single Watt of power. These dinky little bookshelf speakers at say £150 that you think would be a doddle to drive might be rated at 84dB.

The larger stand mount speakers, still two drivers, but a much bigger bass driver; 87dB. The floorstanders with 4 drive units a side; 90dB.

Each 3dB increase is equivalent to the effect of doubling the power of the amp. Those little 84dB bookshelf speakers might be running with a 30W amp. The same amp with the larger standmouters will sound like a 60W amp, and withbthe floorstanders like a 120W amp.

Before you get too excited though, amp Watts aren't what most people expect. The way our hearing works, to make something that the average person would say is twice as loud requires 10x more power.

What this info about sensitivity does do is throw a spotlight on amp and speaker pairings at various budget levels. Those little bookshelf speakers need a lot of juice. They should have the 120W amp. Who though can afford a 120W amp when they're buying a budget system?

[Panamax]

Speedywurzel said:

Back in the 90’s ..... the speakers have to be mission 753’s or TDL rtl3’s.(it’s what I promised myself back then!

The world moves on and old speakers get tired unless expensively refurbed. Or get yourself some modern gear. There's stunning stuff available these days at not-too-crazy prices.

The likes of mainstream Richer Sounds will sell you an amp from Roksan (check out the K3 range) and some speakers from Dali or Focal that will do the business.

Or if you're splashing some serious cash there's all sorts to choose from. Bang in the up-market mainstream you can have some Naim amps and Focal Sopra speakers but you'll be looking at a pretty serious wedge.

[glennjamin]

Back in the 90's I bought Denon separates amp, dvd ,tuner, tape deck and mission speakers all still working now linked to Sonos. Great bit of kit !!

[T5GRF]

I bought new in circa 1997 Arcam 9 and 9p and Mission 753 speakers teamed with a Marantz cd63ki signature CD Player, I loved the sound of this system, my dad now has my Arcam amps teamed up with some TDL 3’s and they still sound great.
I still have the oak finished 753’s powered by a Marantz SR 7015 receiver running Mission 752’s as rear speakers in my lounge it sounds really good.
The mission speakers are really excellent, they’re very well made, look lovely in oak and sound so good. I have a large garden room running a sr7015 with a Q accoustics 3050i package and whilst it sounds good the near 30 year old Missions are way better.

[Boom78]

Another thumbs up for mission, I’ve got 772s and the previous comment about energy/fast is bang on. They’re brilliant for what I listen to; electronic, house, disco stuff.

I got 4 of them in mint condition locally about 5/6 years ago for £100. I like retro stuff so they’re linked up to a 1978/79 pioneer SA blue line amp, technics sl1200 and Bluetooth receiver. They all work very well together.