Build your system.

Three questions, one answer — the system we would actually build at your budget, in your room. No scores, no pressure. If the cheaper pick is the right pick, that's the one you'll see.

The guided walkthrough needs JavaScript, which this browser isn't running. No matter — these are the three systems we recommend most, one per path. The full ladder lives on the Wall of Sound.

02 — Premium · Headphone rig

The First Serious Headphone System

  • Sennheiser HD 650 $379.95

    Warm, detailed, comfortable for hours. Listeners have been building setups around this presentation for twenty years.

  • Schiit Modi 5 $129

    Accurate, quiet, priced right. A clean step up from your computer's built-in audio.

  • Schiit Magni Unity $149

    Clean, quiet, built to last — and it gives the HD 650 the amplification it actually needs.

About $660 all in. This is the system we point most people to first, and nothing in it gets replaced out of embarrassment later.

02 — Premium · Vinyl setup

Vinyl Starter

  • U-Turn Orbit Plus $399

    Made in Massachusetts, upgradable over time, and it sounds better than the price suggests.

  • Schiit Mani 2 $129

    A dedicated phono stage that outperforms built-in options — and it stays with you when the table upgrades.

  • Audioengine A2+ $308

    Powered speakers with real sound in a small footprint. No receiver, no separate amp, nothing else to buy.

About $836 all in. Every piece here upgrades independently — nothing gets thrown away later.

03 — Reference · Desktop speakers

Apartment Listening System

  • KEF LSX II LT ~$999 (approx)

    KEF's concentric driver and a full streaming system inside two compact speakers. This is where powered speakers stop being a desktop category.

  • WiiM Ultra ~$329 (approx)

    A proper display, room correction, and every source you're likely to add. It runs the system so the speakers can just be speakers.

Around $1,330 all in — a complete system. Nothing else to buy.

Want a second opinion?

Tell me what you listen to. The answer gets better with specifics — artists, rooms, budgets, what you own now.

Tell me what you listen to Get Liner Notes — one record, one piece of gear, one listening note. Monthly. →