Help!

I'm listening to Traffic - The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys on my PC speakers.
(ligitech z407 satellite-sub pc speakers, streaming from Amazon Unlimited via a Dell Inspiron 16). Sound is amazing. Over Bluetooth no less! Of course I am about 2 feet from the speakers, spl is between 65 and 80 dB. I suspect these speakers have a v shaped frequency response so maybe I like a party sound?.

My point is, this setup sounds better than my main system, a WiiM Ultra streamer feeding a WiiM Vibelink amp (100 Watts RMS Class D) and a pair of Vanguard Scouts with a 10" Vanguard sub. I was streaming the same album from the same service. So my main system should sound better. And maybe it does sound more accurate. But I find the Logitech experience more enjoyable.
Base has more punch. I hear more detail. (There is plenty to hear on this album.) Sound stage is MUCH more stable. Not as accurate in voicing of most instruments though.

So what is the weak link in my main system. Is it the DAC in the WiiM amp (known to have poor clocking)? Is it lack of wattage or current to the Scouts (84.5, so not super efficient.) These speakers are known to lean warm and the designer was going for an easy to listen to, fun speaker. But maybe they can't cleanly produce the SPL I'm looking for in my open main listening room.

Do you have any thoughts about what I should think about upgrading first as I migrate my main system to something with more body, more punch, more air, and a smoother sound in the upper mids and highs? Keep in mind my description of my experience with the Logitech/PC setup?
External DAC? (Say a Schiit Mimir or a Geshelli Labs J2S)
Better amp? (Say a Cambridge Audio MXW70 or maybe an AudioSource AMP310VS)
Speakers? I am leaning toward something from Elac like a Debut Reference or Starke Sound Beta series. Or am I a Klipsch guy?
Different streamer? (I doubt this would make a big difference.)

All will ultimately be upgraded. But I want to take care of whatever will make the biggest difference first so I can make better choices on the rest of the gear.

 

I don't have any current pictures from my current house, but these are from my last house after I tiled our fireplace and made my own mantle that was also a center channel speaker.





I had some help in crossover design, but it was quite the beefy, extreme slope crossover.



I also refinished and upgraded a set of Heresy's.






Two houses ago, I finished the basement and made a theater.

 

Are those La Scala's behind the Heresy's? Everything looks fantastic. Love the crossover pic.

Fun fact: We used to live in Greenwood...Mississippi. I don't recommend it.

 

Active speaker will generally have boosted eq curve at lower volume, gives the effect of a fuller sound at low volume. You’re also really close to the speakers, even at low volume they’re “louder” as they’re in your face. I have the same situation at work with my pc speakers, they sound good at any volume as I’m so close to them.

Loudness button back in the day helped with low volume listening, new stuff doesn’t tend to have that button anymore.

Amps all sound different, speakers all sound different and mixing one speaker you thought sounded good will sound different on another source. It’s complicated, and I don’t get it.

@oth is pretty clever and knowledgeable about this stuff, maybe he could shed some light.

 

Mike, the obvious answer is your ears.
I'm not being a wiseass. We're old, and those things on the side of our head don't work so well anymore.

Music audio has a wide frequency range. from real low bass ( 20-30 hz) to almost bat frequencies ( 20 khz)
Even in our acoustic prime, Our ears do not perceive all frequencies equally.
The perception also varies with volume. you may not hear low or high frequencies at low levels but will pick it up at higher volumes.
So as Sam said,powered little speakers can have a preprogramed EQ curve built in and your ears like it.
My Onkyo receiver has a function to automate the process with a frequency generator and calibrated microphone.

Another factor is transition punch, it is not frequency but speed of dynamic range.
I had a customer who wanted a big LOUD sound but loved stravinsky's firebird,
It had a section in the first few minutes it had dramatic impulses of soft to loud crescendo's.
It would dump the amp and clip the shit out of it.

 

A good link about what I was saying earlier.
Most of the signal path has no effect on audio performance.

https://www.headphonesty.com/2026/01...ifi-streamers/

 

Yes, they are La Scala's. I hate how big they are, but they sound good, even at low levels.

I've lived in MS a few times over my life... Can't say I've been to Greenwood. Fun fact from me: I am only a couple hours away from where both of these sets of speakers were originally made.

 

Jerry, you are correct. I meant to ask, what is the weak link in my system OTHER THAN MY STUPID EARS. After all, I can't swap out my ears for a new set.

However, with that said, I believe I can get more out of my music. My hearing is actually quite good up to 4khz and only rolls off near 5khz, My hearing aids extend that upper range a bit.

So that covers the primary frequencies of most instruments and vocals. Sure I am missing all the harmonic overtones, but my system currently has two flaws: Distortion at higher volumes (say around 85 dB and up) and poor sound stage stability. My little desktop speakers in near field listening do not exhibit either issue with SPL up to 90 dB or more. And, yes, I understand that the Logitech system probably has a good bit of low and high end boost. But when I use the WiiM Ultra's 8 band eq to mimic that response curve and play at the same volume (around 70-80dB) the main system lacks the impact and the instrument separation and sound stage stability of the little desktop/sub setup.

BTW, my listening position in the main system is only about 4" from the speakers which are about 4' apart and toed in.

 

Sam, I thought I sent a request for help to oth, but looking at my sent messages this morning I don't see anything. I suspect the issue is a loose nut behind the keyboard.

Regardless, thanks for the tip and I will try again after breakfast.

 

In theory, if you fed a 40 hz sine wave into a system it would only produce 40 hz.
Frequently the bass of little systems is a double or quad of the true bass frequency, i.e. the upper harmonics.
The human ear is very gullible, so you may hear that 40 hz bass note as 80 hz.
Your bigger system may be accurately playing the bass of the system and not doubling but you don't hear it.
Another element is how the spkr system presents mixed tones, called intermodulation distortion.

You mentioned soundstage stability. oh boy, a lot to unpack there.
My video gamer son refers to the uncanny valley. it regards the perception of regenerated reality.
We comfortably accommodate errors in reproduction until it gets close to reality then we reject it.
Your desktop speakers may not 'get' each detail right but you're ok with it.
Your other speakers recreate smaller signals cleanly and mess up the perception of acoustic placement.
Having spent a lot of time in the rarified air of money no object systems, the pursuit of perfect is tough.

what is your source as well. MP3's aren't lossless, they use tricks to compress the storage size of the music.
Streaming sources tend to use compression to maximize available bandwidth.