Tier Lo · Intimate (listening philosophy, open architecture)
Costs appear only as signed percentages against each tier’s (unpublished) baseline; absolute prices are not shown.
Forward (source-first)
| Slot | Component |
|---|---|
| Cartridge | van den Hul The Frog |
| Tonearm | Linn Arko |
| Turntable | Technics SL-1500CS (with cart) |
| Phono stage | Rega Fono MC Mk4 |
| Preamplifier | NVA P50 MKII |
| Power amplifier | NVA S80 Stereo |
| Loudspeakers | Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 |
| Chain cost vs tier baseline | −0.6% |
66.9
node quality
5.77
edge synergy (raw 5.77, 6 edges)
0.00
drive delta (drive 2.50x)
power
architecture
Feasible; no blockers.
Architecture competition
| Architecture | Quality | Synergy | Cost vs baseline | Feasible | Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| integrated | 67.2 | 4.42 | +0.9% | yes | |
| power | 66.9 | 5.77 | −0.6% | yes | ✓ |
| mono | 66.2 | 4.78 | −1.5% | yes |
Costs appear only as signed percentages against each tier’s (unpublished) baseline; absolute prices are not shown.
Aft (speaker-first)
| Slot | Component |
|---|---|
| Loudspeakers | Falcon Q7 Complete@Home |
| Monoblocks | Sugden Masterclass MPA-4 (pair) |
| Preamplifier | NVA P50 MKII |
| Phono stage | Rega Fono MM Mk5 |
| Cartridge | Rega Nd3 MM |
| Tonearm | ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO) |
| Turntable | Pro-Ject Debut Pro (with cart) |
| Chain cost vs tier baseline | −0.3% |
66.5
node quality
4.90
edge synergy (raw 4.90, 6 edges)
0.00
drive delta (drive 7.26x)
mono
architecture
Feasible; no blockers.
Architecture competition
| Architecture | Quality | Synergy | Cost vs baseline | Feasible | Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| integrated | 67.2 | 3.05 | −1.6% | yes | |
| power | 67.1 | 4.79 | −0.2% | yes | |
| mono | 66.5 | 4.90 | −0.3% | yes | ✓ |