Can I hire you as my personal shopper. Holy crap.

The 801 S2s are amazing speakers and you aren’t doing them justice with what you are powering them with. I would focus on improving your amplification long term as those are better than the speaker in my $40k system.

For an inexpensive table I like the Music Hall MMF 2.3. That with the best cartridge you can afford up to about $250 like the ClearAudio MM or the Ortofon 2M Blue would be outstanding.

I believe you will need a phono stage. If you have the money, the Vincent Pho-8 for $299 is amazing: if not, pro-ject makes nice units that are less expensive.

For those speakers, to maximize performance with current setup you should bi-wire them off of the Denon. There should be two sets of binding posts in back. Take the connectors off and there should be settings on the Denon to send a second set of channels out with the front. More power will improve the sound.

IMO...I do not like Yamaha equipment. I find it bright. Paired with B&W speakers, it seems like it would be very fatiguing. I would look to see if you could get a used Rotel or Naim gear to match with B&W. They go very well together.

jayflhr wrote:

I have been looking into your suggestions. The MMF 2.3 is a bit more than I wish to spend on a turntable at this point (Since I am just getting into vinyl). I think I am going to purchase the Fluance rt-81. I have looked at numerous reviews and they all seem to be happy with this device, and I really like the clean wood look. I will most likely get the Ortofon Red, but I do like the Blue better. Who knows, I may wait to purchase the Blue. The comparison between the Red and Blue was striking; Blue won that battle hands down!

I have also been searching for a clean vintage table in my area, but they are anywhere to be found here. I wish I still lived in NY.

I think I am going to set up two systems in my theater room. One for movies, leave the Denon on that, and one for vinyl. I would really like to find a McIntosh for the B&W 801s, but I'm not sure what to look for.

Again, I am open to any suggestions or direction since I don't much experience using this type of equipment. I am having fun learning!

The receivers you have are not going to give you one-tenth of the performance that is available from your excellent speakers.

It is kind of like trying to tow a 30-foot RV trailer with a Fiat 500; a total mismatch.

My suggestion would be that you get a Musical Fidelity M6si integrated amplifier. The improvement in performance will be astounding. It is an excellent amp with a lot of power and outstanding sound quality, and it is only $2999.

If you don't want to spend at least that much money on an adequate amplifier, then you will never hear how great those speakers can sound.