Need recommendations on high end audio.

Vincent, given his budget, let him roll with a standalone CD player for now. Unless he is committed to lossless digital sources. I know there are some highly regarded, relatively cheap outboard DAC, but every penny is going to count. As others have already said, a nice little integrated amp might do the trick, depending on the speakers and their efficiency, there are some interesting tubed units. Unless absolutely necessary, ****-can the tuner for now, or add a funky old Scott or the like later, for cheap. The gives him some budget for some decent loudspeakers. I'd also pass on power conditioning for now- I know there are settings that virtually require it, but the AC problems should be sorted first, rather than using a band-aid. (I was able to eliminate all the Shunyata boxes after I got to the bottom of my AC problems at home).
Cable- I wouldn't be stupid about it, and there are some bargains to be had, including, once again, in the used cable department.

 

A power conditioner may not be necessary at all. I do need one because I get a ridiculous 135-145V, but if your AC is fine just skip it.

I stopped believing that speaker cables make a noticeable difference when the audio salesman refused a blind listening test because "the cables aren't broken in yet, you need to break them in first". Breaking in a cable? Please.

 

I am going to make a couple of qualified product recommendations to the OP:

Magneplanar 3.6R loudspeaker, should be around 3,500 US, used,

with a relatively high powered tube amplifier from Audio Research or Conrad Johnson-

the ARC VT 100 mk II - should be gettable for under 2,000 US, used, with fresh tubes

I know this eats up almost your entire budget, but you could buy a cheap CD player to start, and then upgrade, eg, the Rega Apollo, less than 1,000 US new, or something more elaborate, used.

Appropriate interconnects and cable for this system would require more research and you will still need a line stage (although I suppose you could run the CD player straight in, if it has a volume control). I can do a little digging on a transparent line stage for cheap, e.g., the Manley "Shrimp."

This is a true high-end system, in the same way that a Ferrari gives you an entirely different experience than driving a Lexus or standard production MB. It will require more effort and attention, but will yield far more pleasure in the process of using it. And, while you cannot just buy equipment like this at a mass market retailer, and will have to seek out a specialist dealer to work with you, or buy through user-posted classifieds on Audiogon, if you are willing to take the time to sort through this, you can reap huge benefits over standard black box appliances.

There are of course, a million other pieces of equipment in the 'high-end' and no one approach is going to be absolutely 'better' than another. But the combination outlined above-- subject to some discussion with the manufacturers to ensure compatability (ARC and Magnepan used to be affiliated companies that worked closely together and Eva Manley can be reached directly by email) could give you a level of music reproduction that I'm willing to bet, you have never heard before.

It might pay for you to do a little Internet searching on these pieces to get a sense of what the audio community has said about them.

 

Vintage Mc is two general categories- solid state and tube. The tube stuff is collectible and in some cases sounds great. The older solid state stuff is not really worth the trouble, sonically (although the one I bought to loan my friend didn't sound bad but it was at least 2 grand, used, and I think you could do better sonically- he just needed something that was completely bulletproof). The Mc tuners (not receivers with built-in amp and preamp, but just the radio section) from the tube era are pretty cool too. I would not spend the premium for the older Mc tube stuff:- if you are serious about tube amplification, you can do better on sonic performance from a number of well respected companies, particularly by buying used. Audio Research and Conrad Johnson are two names that immediately come to mind, there are also a host of UK companies as well (a cottage industry there for a long time) and if you decided to go the high efficiency speaker route, eg, horns, you could use a very low-powered tube amplifier from a number of sources. (Some of the most highly regarded tube amps come from Japan, although mine were built by a crazy Russian in Brooklyn, NY).

 

Quite welcome. Let us know what you hear and like.

 

Don't forget cables. An old friend owns this company. He can also answer any questions you have about high end audio. Ask for George.

http://www.cardas.com/main.php

 

"George's" cables are highly regarded and he is no small, unknown manufacturer by any means. He has made superb, and not overpriced, interconnect and speaker cable (along with connectors, and a variety of related products) for years. I have used his products with pleasure.