Hi-fi

[sarahJ]

I am looking to buy an amplifier and some speakers. Can anybody reccomend a good place to go?

A while back I remember seeing a shop (maybe in kad suan kaew) selling cool looking unusual speakers but have been unable to find it since.

[Rasseru]

Neo Entertainment Gallery, on the fourth floor of Airport Plaza.

[tigerbeer]

Neo Entertainment Gallery, on the fourth floor of Airport Plaza.

sorry rasseru but i find them totally overpriced and have some very rude staff. dont go there. what are you willing to spend on a hi-fi system? would be able to give you an idea of where to buy it then ..

they claim their dvd's to be legitimate stuff. i think otherwise.

[Maejo Man]

I have a pair of 300W Yama speakers that are nearly new, and going for 1200 baht. (One cover removed for photo) Also a Technics 300W amp that is going for 500 baht

All part of the Maejo Manor spring clean PM's if interested.....

[Rasseru]

Neo Entertainment Gallery, on the fourth floor of Airport Plaza.

sorry rasseru but i find them totally overpriced and have some very rude staff. dont go there. what are you willing to spend on a hi-fi system? would be able to give you an idea of where to buy it then ..

I cannot comment meaningfully on their prices. I know only that they have surprisingly good audio equipment and that all their staff with whom I have had dealings have been extremely nice. That said, I would be delighted to have from you the idea you offered to share with the OP, either here or in a PM.

[tigerbeer]

Rasseru, Power Buy has an extensive range of good systems. Especially at their Central KSK branch. for not bad enough sound systems, may i recommend your regular Carrefour or Big-C.

For cheaper stuff, you can buy some good amp and speakers at Amorn. ICON plaza.

Neo carries a lot of higher end stuff but at higher prices.

[Rasseru]

Rasseru, Power Buy has an extensive range of good systems. Especially at their Central KSK branch. for not bad enough sound systems, may i recommend your regular Carrefour or Big-C.

For cheaper stuff, you can buy some good amp and speakers at Amorn. ICON plaza.

Neo carries a lot of higher end stuff but at higher prices.

Thanks, tigerbeer. In fact, I am interested in high end stuff, for which I expect to pay higher prices. Do any of the places you mention carry equipment that is as high end as what Neo has, or is it all less-high end stuff at less-high prices?

[pilou]

Hi...

Chiangmai is not the best place for Hifi freaks... Try CD Green, they stock Marantz and Mordaunt Short, not Hi end stuff, but the system I bought them last year is still surprising me, specially the small MS 902 i speakers. They have moved to the street immediately after Lanna Hospital, about one kilometer down that street, on the left side,they also have a small restaurant and a wine shop...

If you are into 2nd hand , try ST Audio on Mani Nopparat, near the Samsung service center, they sometimes have good items... Neo has more expensive equipment, and they have always been nice to me, even I never bought anything from them. Conice stocks NAD and are on Sriphum road. Niyom and Saha also have showrooms, but I have never found any qualified sellers who can really advise you..

Hopes this helps.

Phil

[john b good]

Neo Entertainment Gallery, on the fourth floor of Airport Plaza.

sorry rasseru but i find them totally overpriced and have some very rude staff. dont go there. what are you willing to spend on a hi-fi system? would be able to give you an idea of where to buy it then ..

they claim their dvd's to be legitimate stuff. i think otherwise.

I purchased some Sennheiser wireless headphones a little whiles back from NEO and found the service was very good.

I was back in a couple of days and spoke to the proprietor (his wife is usually in the shop) about a small problem in connecting the HP's to A Sony Home Theatre.

He couldn't have been more helpful.

And they certainly have some good top end kit with Denon and Bose just being two.

I cannot speak for the staff although they look OK

[mickmac]

The other options is to take a quick trip down to BKK, and have a look around there. I know there are quite a few HI-FI shops in the Siam Paragon centre. There will be more choice there for sure, but I cannot vouch for the prices.

[elektrified]

The other options is to take a quick trip down to BKK, and have a look around there. I know there are quite a few HI-FI shops in the Siam Paragon centre. There will be more choice there for sure, but I cannot vouch for the prices.

I am an audio engineer by profession and can wholeheartedly recommend KS Sonsgroup Co., LTD in BKK for high-end, hifi equipment, including McIntosh vacuum tube amplifiers, top of the line speakers, etc. Expensive? Yes - paang mahk mahk, but you get what you pay for. I was only there one time but I think they are as mickmac pointed out, located in Siam Paragon Centre. www.kshomeplus.com

[Steve2UK]

Hi...

Chiangmai is not the best place for Hifi freaks... Try CD Green, they stock Marantz and Mordaunt Short, not Hi end stuff, but the system I bought them last year is still surprising me, specially the small MS 902 i speakers. They have moved to the street immediately after Lanna Hospital, about one kilometer down that street, on the left side,they also have a small restaurant and a wine shop...

Another vote for CD Green - the guy in there speaks excellent English, knows his stuff and is plainly in love with Hi-Fi without being the least bit pushy. I'd actually say that their gear is mid to high-end - certainly several cuts above the gimmicky systems you'll see in Carrefour, Niyom/Saha Panich etc [and I echo Pilou's point about finding zero information from the staff in those places]. Definitely worth a visit to CD Green if only to help identify the kind of thing you want to get. When you see Lanna View Hotel on the right of Sookasem [the first road left after Lanna Hospital], look for the next corner to the soi on the left - CD Green is there.

[aussiecollin]

I am looking to buy an amplifier and some speakers. Can anybody reccomend a good place to go?

A while back I remember seeing a shop (maybe in kad suan kaew) selling cool looking unusual speakers but have been unable to find it since.

Have a look at pricejapan.com. Excellent service

[Jefferson]

Out of curiosity, in what way does a mid-to-high-end system sound better than that 2000W Pioneer set you see at Carrefour?

I also wonder if you'd even hear the difference in a place like Thailand with all the background noise from fans, aircons, cars, etc, etc.

[Rasseru]

Out of curiosity, in what way does a mid-to-high-end system sound better than that 2000W Pioneer set you see at Carrefour?

I recommend that you test listen to a range of systems. No one should spend more money to buy an expensive system if he or she cannot tell the difference between it and a cheaper system.

I also wonder if you'd even hear the difference in a place like Thailand with all the background noise from fans, aircons, cars, etc, etc.

Best to find or make a listening space that is insulated from any such noise.

[tigerbeer]

quality and make of speakers plays the most important role. not so much the amplification. at far as using them in households are concerned !

[pilou]

When I bought CD Green some speakers a few years ago ( Acoustic Energy ), I actually took 3 pairs of speakers home for which I had to leave a deposit, I quietly installed them home with my amplifier and CD player ( Sansui and CEC at that time..), played my favorites records with all 3 setups, and finally brought back the 2 pairs of speakers I did not want and got back my deposit...At least, bring some of your favorites tunes to the shop if you want to buy some speakers and take your time..

That is why I went back to them to buy my last Hifi set, they are really good and patient, you can listen and test as long as you want, definitely a great place for service ( he even took the time to deliver my components immediately after sale with his personal car and helped me rig it up..), and they speak good english... Note that you can also do that at ST Audio, I have spent hours there listening music and comparing speakers...

The difference between 2 pairs of speakers can be spectacular ( unlike between 2 amplifiers or CD player, or even cables..) , so only let your feelings decide for you ( hair rising on your arms or neck is a good sign...) Do not be blinded by flashy designs , brands, gimmicks or even prices, what really matters is the hours of bliss you will get back home at the sweet spot...

I hope you will let us know about your choices later.. Good luck and happy listening..

Phil

[Steve2UK]

Out of curiosity, in what way does a mid-to-high-end system sound better than that 2000W Pioneer set you see at Carrefour?

I also wonder if you'd even hear the difference in a place like Thailand with all the background noise from fans, aircons, cars, etc, etc.

As others have said/implied, I would also say primarily the speakers. Nowadays most people are playing their music from CD (conceivably also DVD) and most reasonable decks will produce a good "performance" that most people will find next-to-indistinguishable from one deck to another - with or without background noise. Similarly with amplifiers - reasonable ones generally produce a decent sound that varies mainly according to their power rating ("real power", that is - a whole can of worms in itself, so let's not go there).

Speakers fall into a much more subjective area and the reviews are full of terms like bright, clean, real, mellow, warm, rich etc - according to the characteristics of a specific model. One person's "clean" or "bright" is another's "harsh"........ and one person's "mellow" or "warm" is another's "muddy".

IMO, with most of the Pioneer/Sony/Panasonic etc systems, the emphasis is on style and electronics (often with a bewildering array of feature functions that you'll use maybe once if at all). The all-important speakers rarely get much attention/investment from the manufacturers - who prefer to add "super-bass, X-bass" boost options and the like. I'm far from being a purist let alone a HiFi freak/geek, but I'm with those who hold that a good set of speakers should be able to handle most if not all kinds of sound you choose to play through them - with maybe a tweak-to-taste of the amp's treble & bass controls (or graphic equaliser if you're really into it) for very different styles of music.

On your last point, I'd go so far as to say that good speakers in a reasonable system will actually cut through most background noise - and without turning up the volume way high.

BTW, I have here examples of both a near top of the range Pioneer CD/DVD 6-speaker system (bought in Carrefour) and my 10-year old original (more mid than high end) mix'n'match audio set-up brought over from the UK. As objectively as I can compare them, the sound quality from the Pioneer system compared to my old system is pants...............

Totally agree with Pilou about the hair-rising test - takes me back to when I was auditioning my system for the first time in the London shop.

Edited May 7, 2008 by Steve2UK

[pilou]

In addition, if you are into serious listening, you also have to consider the actual place where you system will be installed. I believe the listening room is one of the most important link of the chain and is often neglected, hence the importance of a test in your own place, what you hear in the hifi showroom might be completely different of what you will hear in your living room . Carpets, large windows, furniture, curtains, speakers positions,all that will affect the final sound of your system.

I agree with Steve2UK, speakers evaluation is very subjective, and short of being an accomplished musician and have golden ears, or going to concert on regular basis, who can tell what the true sound of a system should be ? Not me I am afraid, I will never own a 100.000 $ system ( even if I just bought a Quad 44/405 system on eBay, an old dream..) and am happy with my modest 40.000 bahts Marantz system...

May I recommend the book " The ultimate guide to audio bliss " ( sorry , forgot the name of the author) to those who wants to go more in details into the Hifi maze ?

I am not in Chiangmai at the moment, but I would be delighted to share my limited knowledge ( and exchange ideas and tweaks ) with other enthousiasts. PM me... I also have a good collection of CD's and of single malts whiskies...

Cheers...

Phil

[traveller5000]

Bring a good selection of well recorded audio along with you to test the dynamics, detail balance etc of the speakers if you go into a showroom.

The atomic blast from the beginning of Terminator 3 will test the bass extension.

and so on.

[chiangmaiexpat]

Maejo Man,

Those blasters look frightening. Suitable for sharing your musical predilections with the rest of the moo baan, I suppose.

Cheers, CMX

[bergen]

I agree that speakers are the most important, and it could be worth paying a little extra!

I bought a pair of Infinity Reference 60 in 1991 and brought them with me to Thailand in 2004.

One of he bass elements in both speakers recently started to make some unwanted noice, and I had them sent to the Infinity dealer/agent in Bkk for tests and repair. I got them back after 4 weeks and they are now as good as new again! I paid a total of 3990,- baht for new bass elements and transport, and I'm very happy.

[Maejo Man]

Maejo Man,

Those blasters look frightening. Suitable for sharing your musical predilections with the rest of the moo baan, I suppose.

Cheers, CMX

You better ask Fiscalist what his neighbours think of his music now, as he is the picked them up the other day

[Maejo Man]

Sounds good! My neighbors don't dare to complain, they are Thai.

No kidding, I hate loud music. Oh btw Maejo, teh amp is cleaned and sounds great!

Glad you are happy with it

[chiangmaiexpat]

Sounds good! My neighbors don't dare to complain, they are Thai.

No kidding, I hate loud music. Oh btw Maejo, teh amp is cleaned and sounds great!

They look a bit like those used by the village headmen in the country for the morning sermon.

Cheers, CMX

[Old Horhay]

Would anyone happen to have an e-mail address or phone number to contact the CD Green shop...I want to check out his current stock

Thanks

[julesdick]

Can somebody explain to me the difference in watts?

I mean in the forgotten past, when I bought 100 watt, I could really dry my hair in front of the bass. Now we speak about 300 and even 1000 watts and more. What has changed? How to convert?

You talkin about 1000 Watts PMPO?

http://www.mark.lineisp.co.uk/rants.htm

[Steve2UK]

Would anyone happen to have an e-mail address or phone number to contact the CD Green shop...I want to check out his current stock

Thanks

Try 053 240999. That's the number of their adjacent restaurant [Green Mill] - same people.

[Steve2UK]

Would anyone happen to have an e-mail address or phone number to contact the CD Green shop...I want to check out his current stock

Thanks

Try 053 240999. That's the number of their adjacent restaurant [Green Mill] - same people.

Update - the numbers are 053 212400 & 053 212338.

Ask for Khun Nirat (speaks excellent English).

[johnh101]

post removed................temporary insanity and inability to read previous post.

Edited June 13, 2008 by johnh101