Mini Hifi

SachaJ

Hi guys,

I'm looking for a mini hifi system to pair with my Monitor Audio RX1's that I got from you when they were on sale. I know due to budget I won't be getting a system to do these speaker justice.

So two caught my eye on the ".com" site due to pricing for VIP members (I'd love a DM39 but unfortunately that's too expensive unless you have some ex-display units coming up). This will be used for a kitchen and I'd like it to have a CD player, FM radio (DAB would be nice but not sure if we use that in the south yet), Bluetooth for A2DP from iPhone/Android and stereo in for a Raspberry Pi (cheaper than a Sonos Connect).....

So the two I saw on the ".com" site are:

PIONEER XCHM51 (preferred)
http://www.richersounds.com/product/mini-hi-fi/pioneer/xchm51/pion-xchm51-blk

TEAC CRH260IDAB
http://www.richersounds.com/product/mini-hi-fi/teac/crh260idab/teac-crh260idab-sil

Do you guys have either of these in stock? Opinions?

Richersounds.ie: John

SachaJ wrote: »

Hi guys,

I'm looking for a mini hifi system to pair with my Monitor Audio RX1's that I got from you when they were on sale. I know due to budget I won't be getting a system to do these speaker justice.

So two caught my eye on the ".com" site due to pricing for VIP members (I'd love a DM39 but unfortunately that's too expensive unless you have some ex-display units coming up). This will be used for a kitchen and I'd like it to have a CD player, FM radio (DAB would be nice but not sure if we use that in the south yet), Bluetooth for A2DP from iPhone/Android and stereo in for a Raspberry Pi (cheaper than a Sonos Connect).....

So the two I saw on the ".com" site are:

PIONEER XCHM51 (preferred)
http://www.richersounds.com/product/mini-hi-fi/pioneer/xchm51/pion-xchm51-blk

TEAC CRH260IDAB
http://www.richersounds.com/product/mini-hi-fi/teac/crh260idab/teac-crh260idab-sil

Do you guys have either of these in stock? Opinions?

Sacha,

those RX1's are really a great speaker! There are actually some good options to the DM39 now and that Teac CRH260 is really excellent, unfortunately its now a finished line but I have one ex-demo unit that I would clear at £124.95 and its in really excellent condition - the XCHM51 is not as good a system as the Teac but at £99 its excellent value ( Boardie price) http://www.richersounds.com/product/mini-hi-fi/pioneer/xchm51/pion-xchm51-blk we are just out of stock of it locally but we have lots in our main UK warehouse so delivery isn't an issue - we do have the DAB version which I can do at £169.95 for you.

If you want something completely different like the Sonos Connect you suggest - Id wait though and opt for the stunning new Heos link or Heos AMP from Denon - truly amazing products! http://usa.denon.com/us/heos

Thanks again and keep us posted

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

SachaJ

Hi John,

Appreciate the speedy reply. I've read about the Teac and the reviews seem quite average stating that its not the most intuitive system. This is really for my wife so I'll probably discount that.

So I'll probably take the Pioneer. DAB is not really necessary as an FM tuner would do. No deals on the DM39 coming up? If not, will I PM Dave with my details and get him to take the order?

Thanks.....



 

Richersounds.ie: John

SachaJ wrote: »

Hi John,

Appreciate the speedy reply. I've read about the Teac and the reviews seem quite average stating that its not the most intuitive system. This is really for my wife so I'll probably discount that.

So I'll probably take the Pioneer. DAB is not really necessary as an FM tuner would do. No deals on the DM39 coming up? If not, will I PM Dave with my details and get him to take the order?

Thanks.....



 

The Teac isn't the easiest to use but I think it sounds way better than the pioneer TBH - the DM39 at £175 is pretty much as cheap as I think it will ever go and its a cracking deal at that price - its almost €290 in the ROI ( that's the cheapest price I can find) - if you ever wanted to expand the system to give you a multi room system then the DM39 is probably the best option of you can stretch to it as it integrates with the HEOS system, allowing you to control the DM39 remotely from the HEOS app...

Keep us posted and thanks again for the posts,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

SachaJ

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

SachaJ wrote: »

Hi John,

Appreciate the speedy reply. I've read about the Teac and the reviews seem quite average stating that its not the most intuitive system. This is really for my wife so I'll probably discount that.

So I'll probably take the Pioneer. DAB is not really necessary as an FM tuner would do. No deals on the DM39 coming up? If not, will I PM Dave with my details and get him to take the order?

Thanks.....



 

The Teac isn't the easiest to use but I think it sounds way better than the pioneer TBH - the DM39 at £175 is pretty much as cheap as I think it will ever go and its a cracking deal at that price - its almost €290 in the ROI ( that's the cheapest price I can find) - if you ever wanted to expand the system to give you a multi room system then the DM39 is probably the best option of you can stretch to it as it integrates with the HEOS system, allowing you to control the DM39 remotely from the HEOS app...

Keep us posted and thanks again for the posts,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

Hi John, thanks for that.

Not too concerned at this stage with the HEOS/Sonos multiroom stuff as a PC running Logitech Media Server and remote Raspberry Pi's (running SqueezeLite player) can achieve the same thing for now.

Do your DM39's have the firmware update for the iPhone 5's?

Thanks.....

Richersounds.ie: John

SachaJ wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

SachaJ wrote: »

Hi John,

Appreciate the speedy reply. I've read about the Teac and the reviews seem quite average stating that its not the most intuitive system. This is really for my wife so I'll probably discount that.

So I'll probably take the Pioneer. DAB is not really necessary as an FM tuner would do. No deals on the DM39 coming up? If not, will I PM Dave with my details and get him to take the order?

Thanks.....



 

The Teac isn't the easiest to use but I think it sounds way better than the pioneer TBH - the DM39 at £175 is pretty much as cheap as I think it will ever go and its a cracking deal at that price - its almost €290 in the ROI ( that's the cheapest price I can find) - if you ever wanted to expand the system to give you a multi room system then the DM39 is probably the best option of you can stretch to it as it integrates with the HEOS system, allowing you to control the DM39 remotely from the HEOS app...

Keep us posted and thanks again for the posts,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

Hi John, thanks for that.

Not too concerned at this stage with the HEOS/Sonos multiroom stuff as a PC running Logitech Media Server and remote Raspberry Pi's (running SqueezeLite player) can achieve the same thing for now.

Do your DM39's have the firmware update for the iPhone 5's?

Thanks.....

I'm not familiar with any firmware upgrade available for the DM39 for the iPhone5 - I do know that it works 100% with the iPhone5 no problem - our DM39's are just in within the last 10 days straight from Denon Europe so they will have the latest Firmware - the Firmware on the DM39 isn't upgradable by the user (AFAIK)

Keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

SachaJ

Thanks thanks for that John. I'm going by the below thread in relation to the iPhone 5 update. Being that the thread is quite old, I'd expect current Denons are shipping with the firmware.

http://www.avforums.com/threads/denon-rcd-m39dab-iphone-5-problem.1699331/

Richersounds.ie: John

SachaJ wrote: »

Thanks thanks for that John. I'm going by the below thread in relation to the iPhone 5 update. Being that the thread is quite old, I'd expect current Denons are shipping with the firmware.

http://www.avforums.com/threads/denon-rcd-m39dab-iphone-5-problem.1699331/

Sacha,

this is completely a legacy issue from the initial period when Apple released the 5 with the new lightning connection ( which of course was a complete surprise to everyone including manufacturers who had developed 30 pin products ready for release!) Luckily the DM39 uses a USB input and was updatable via firmware, this has now been integrated into the standard firmware and all newer DM39's work with current iPhones and iPads but of course there is no absolute guarantee into the future that any product will work with future versions of Apple products.

Thanks again and keep us posted if we can assist,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

SachaJ

Just a quick follow up to say the DM39 arrived and has been installed with my Monitor Audio RX1's.... First up I put the wife's new Pharrell Williams CD in and it sounded awful. Was worried for a while but then remembered that the first CD I played in my Arcam separates system sounded brutal too (The Go! Team). 

Tried a few more CD's in the DM39 and was absolutely blown away by the sound and so was the wife. It really is an amazing little system. The RX1's are a little boomy as they are walled mounted so only a few inches of a gap. The DM39 allowed me to turn down the bass which fixed that instantly.

I was looking at the cheaper models such as the Pioneer above but in the end as this is a kitchen system, I'll probably be using it for the next 5 or 10 years so it's worth paying that little bit more. Next task is to configure a Raspberry Pi with piCorePlayer and connect to the DM39 through a USB DAC which will hopefully give me smartphone controlled audio streaming.

All in I'm delighted I plugged for the more expensive system and I'd advise anyone sitting on the fence to do the same. The DM39 may not have all the same tricks as the Teac or Pioneer but it sounds so so good. 

Richersounds.ie: John

SachaJ wrote: »

Just a quick follow up to say the DM39 arrived and has been installed with my Monitor Audio RX1's.... First up I put the wife's new Pharrell Williams CD in and it sounded awful. Was worried for a while but then remembered that the first CD I played in my Arcam separates system sounded brutal too (The Go! Team). 

Tried a few more CD's in the DM39 and was absolutely blown away by the sound and so was the wife. It really is an amazing little system. The RX1's are a little boomy as they are walled mounted so only a few inches of a gap. The DM39 allowed me to turn down the bass which fixed that instantly.

I was looking at the cheaper models such as the Pioneer above but in the end as this is a kitchen system, I'll probably be using it for the next 5 or 10 years so it's worth paying that little bit more. Next task is to configure a Raspberry Pi with piCorePlayer and connect to the DM39 through a USB DAC which will hopefully give me smartphone controlled audio streaming.

All in I'm delighted I plugged for the more expensive system and I'd advise anyone sitting on the fence to do the same. The DM39 may not have all the same tricks as the Teac or Pioneer but it sounds so so good. 

Sacha,

many thanks for taking the time to post - much appreciated!

If you are thinking of linking Audio streaming up to the DM39 - seriously you should have a look at the new Denon Heos Link - ok again its going to cost a little more than the Raspberry Pi solution, but its literally made for the DM39 and will allow you in-app control of the DM39 including powering on and volume - it also has digital inputs, 3.5mm inputs and USB input - this will form the core of a multi room system and can be linked with any other Heos products - the system is just plain superb!

The link is out next week and its a cracking product - have a look at the Heos site here:
http://heosbydenon.denon.com/uk


It comes with a 90 day refund option if you are not delighted and we also do 20% off your second Heos purchase ( and you get 60 day Spotify premium free!)

Thanks again and keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

SachaJ

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

SachaJ wrote: »

Just a quick follow up to say the DM39 arrived and has been installed with my Monitor Audio RX1's.... First up I put the wife's new Pharrell Williams CD in and it sounded awful. Was worried for a while but then remembered that the first CD I played in my Arcam separates system sounded brutal too (The Go! Team). 

Tried a few more CD's in the DM39 and was absolutely blown away by the sound and so was the wife. It really is an amazing little system. The RX1's are a little boomy as they are walled mounted so only a few inches of a gap. The DM39 allowed me to turn down the bass which fixed that instantly.

I was looking at the cheaper models such as the Pioneer above but in the end as this is a kitchen system, I'll probably be using it for the next 5 or 10 years so it's worth paying that little bit more. Next task is to configure a Raspberry Pi with piCorePlayer and connect to the DM39 through a USB DAC which will hopefully give me smartphone controlled audio streaming.

All in I'm delighted I plugged for the more expensive system and I'd advise anyone sitting on the fence to do the same. The DM39 may not have all the same tricks as the Teac or Pioneer but it sounds so so good. 

Sacha,

many thanks for taking the time to post - much appreciated!

If you are thinking of linking Audio streaming up to the DM39 - seriously you should have a look at the new Denon Heos Link - ok again its going to cost a little more than the Raspberry Pi solution, but its literally made for the DM39 and will allow you in-app control of the DM39 including powering on and volume - it also has digital inputs, 3.5mm inputs and USB input - this will form the core of a multi room system and can be linked with any other Heos products - the system is just plain superb!

The link is out next week and its a cracking product - have a look at the Heos site here:
http://heosbydenon.denon.com/uk


It comes with a 90 day refund option if you are not delighted and we also do 20% off your second Heos purchase ( and you get 60 day Spotify premium free!)

Thanks again and keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

Hi John,

I was actually reading about the HEOS Link from your post earlier in the week (I think). I'm still a bit confused by it. Is it essentially a Sonos Connect but with the additional Denon brand Amp control?

So the Link connects to the DM39 to use it's amplification and speaker outs. But does the DM39 also connect back into the Link to share it's CD player and radio to other HEOS units throughout the house?

PS: in my post above I mentioned that a CD sounded awful on the DM39. It's not a fault of the DM39 but I expect a poorly authored CD. Good music systems often highlight poorly authored CD's (as I found with my Arcam).

Richersounds.ie: John

SachaJ wrote: »

Richersounds.ie: John wrote: »

SachaJ wrote: »

Just a quick follow up to say the DM39 arrived and has been installed with my Monitor Audio RX1's.... First up I put the wife's new Pharrell Williams CD in and it sounded awful. Was worried for a while but then remembered that the first CD I played in my Arcam separates system sounded brutal too (The Go! Team). 

Tried a few more CD's in the DM39 and was absolutely blown away by the sound and so was the wife. It really is an amazing little system. The RX1's are a little boomy as they are walled mounted so only a few inches of a gap. The DM39 allowed me to turn down the bass which fixed that instantly.

I was looking at the cheaper models such as the Pioneer above but in the end as this is a kitchen system, I'll probably be using it for the next 5 or 10 years so it's worth paying that little bit more. Next task is to configure a Raspberry Pi with piCorePlayer and connect to the DM39 through a USB DAC which will hopefully give me smartphone controlled audio streaming.

All in I'm delighted I plugged for the more expensive system and I'd advise anyone sitting on the fence to do the same. The DM39 may not have all the same tricks as the Teac or Pioneer but it sounds so so good. 

Sacha,

many thanks for taking the time to post - much appreciated!

If you are thinking of linking Audio streaming up to the DM39 - seriously you should have a look at the new Denon Heos Link - ok again its going to cost a little more than the Raspberry Pi solution, but its literally made for the DM39 and will allow you in-app control of the DM39 including powering on and volume - it also has digital inputs, 3.5mm inputs and USB input - this will form the core of a multi room system and can be linked with any other Heos products - the system is just plain superb!

The link is out next week and its a cracking product - have a look at the Heos site here:
http://heosbydenon.denon.com/uk


It comes with a 90 day refund option if you are not delighted and we also do 20% off your second Heos purchase ( and you get 60 day Spotify premium free!)

Thanks again and keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

Hi John,

I was actually reading about the HEOS Link from your post earlier in the week (I think). I'm still a bit confused by it. Is it essentially a Sonos Connect but with the additional Denon brand Amp control?

So the Link connects to the DM39 to use it's amplification and speaker outs. But does the DM39 also connect back into the Link to share it's CD player and radio to other HEOS units throughout the house?

PS: in my post above I mentioned that a CD sounded awful on the DM39. It's not a fault of the DM39 but I expect a poorly authored CD. Good music systems often highlight poorly authored CD's (as I found with my Arcam).

In some respects its really similar to a ZP90/Connect, but with lots of additional functionality - of course the main advantage is that within the Heos app you will just see your DM39 as a 'HEOS Zone' and you will be able to switch the DM39 on and change volume seamlessly within the Heos App - you can stream music from whatever device you are using, any NAS drive, a USB Thumb key in the Link or of course Spotify, Deezer, Tune-in etc ( it will even sniff out any other devices in the network that have music sharing enabled and make them available across all devices to upload to any Heos device!!!!

If you wanted to take an OUTPUT from the DM39 you would have to go via the 3.5mm h/Phone output, which may kill the local speakers? the Link has a 3.5mm local input which can digitise any analogue input and it makes that input available across the Heos network..

Its an extremely clever little box and the App is the simplest app in the universe - we have really just had the product in this week and we are discovering new things every day with it!

Have a look here:
http://usa.denon.com/us/heos-link

Keep us posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew