I had an email from a long-term What Hi-Fi? reader a few days ago, and it got me thinking. The person in question has been improving their system for many years, and has ended up with a stack of boxes that includes vinyl, CD and streaming sources, a phono stage, preamplifier, outboard power supplies and a power amplifier, along with a pair of speakers, of course.
The person is happy with the way things sound, but is now getting tired of all the clutter. They want to simplify things by reducing the box count without a commensurate drop in sound quality.
