Upgrade B&W speakers or CD source???

[uncle_dito]

Hello all,
I am wondering on what will make the most impact on sound quality when upgrading my system.
a) To upgrade speakers from B&W804S to B&W803D
b) To upgrade CD source from Musical Fidelity A5CD to maybe Audio Research CD3MKII or Esoteric X03SE, or Marantz SA-7S1

Do you think that unless I do both I won´t notice the difference, that is, that I need a balanced system, otherwise the weakest part will determine the final sound?

I listen to a wide range of music, classical, pop, rock, big bands...

Unfortunately I don´t have the chance to listen to a similar system with the mentioned upgrade candidate products to make the comparisons and judgements.

By the way, my current hifi consists of Musical Fidelity A1008, MF A5CD, B&W804S and REL Strata 5. I listen in one half of a moderately large room which is 5mx7m.

Look forward to your comments.

[dmccombs]

The speaker upgrade will have a more noticable impact by far.

[Tommy]

I upgraded from a Marantz SA8260 to a McIntosh MVP871 (difference of ~$3500). This upgrade yielded more improvement than when I was comparing 804S to 802D (difference of ~$4500) at my dealer using Classe' electronics.

[Tommy]

Oops!
The difference in price between 804S and 802D is ~$9500 NOT $4500 (I was thinking about 804S and 803D). My bad!

What I was trying to say was that from my experience, speakers don't always make the biggest difference. It really depends. I was surprised that the difference between 802D and 804S wasn't as big as the difference between my Marantz and McIntosh.

[Mark_NZ]

Probably the 803D

Hi,
I recently upgraded from 804S to 803D. I have two CD sources, Sony XA555ES (modified) and Marantz SA14v2.
In comparison the 803D vs 804S difference is much more significant "to me" as compared to differences with these CD players.
The 803D is smoother, better integrated, but most significantly provides the bass quality & quantity I crave that did not get with the 804S in my room.
The differences in CD source tends to resolve to subtle tonal differences, the Marantz ultimately proving to be more natural sounding.
I do believe that the source quality is of utmost importance, but less so than speaker/room matching.
Ultimately you want a balanced system - have you considered getting both the 803S and Marantz SA11S2 as alternative options?
Regards
Mark

[DM3000 Owner]

The Musical Fidelity A5 shoudl be an excellant CD player. You are not upgrading from a $400 or $500 CD player, you are starting very high up the chain.

[Mig17]

I think you should upgarde the cables

[Briz vegas]

Is home demo an option?

You need to try as many options as you can at home. You are playing with pretty big money now. 803D is worth just under 2 sets of 804s, which is not cheap to start with.

I have spent alot on cables of various sorts and it my system that gave very signifcant improvements to get the best out of my current gear. Upgrading is not really on the cards as I pushed the limits very hard to get where I currently am.

But if you have the money for the 803D and you love them then go for it - you need to know what you are getting first - that means home demo.

[uncle_dito]

thanks to all for you inputs.
regards