cdp suggestions please

D Hi, re the tube dampers I am in the process of ordering some, I just need to liase with Mr park, regarding the most useful sizes, re the dacs and transport, with the three dacs I prefer, lavry MSB and Stahl-Tek I found no difference between an expensive transport and my little tascam, but I onlt had the two to try, so hardly conclusive, I am hoping that my new dedicated 'audio' pc will sound beter than any optical transport, Keith.

 

Source a s/h Audio synthesis transcend +audio synthesis DAC - a discrete if you can stretch to it otherwise a Decade - couple about at the moment. Blows everything else out of the water.

 

Hi coops

I have tried using a hard drive as a transport i.e Yamaha hd1300 and a Yamaha music cast server . These were really quite good except for the noise and vibration from the hard drives . My system sits beside me so everything has to be quite ,and the amount of vibration put into the rack either sat on would mandate a table or wall shelf for it .

For your tube dampers i guess 6sn7,300b,el34,kt66,kt88,6550,
ecc83,ecc88,845,6c33,as a start .Some of these have similiar bases.

I am not much of a computer guy ,so i can't see me using a pc/mac as a source but this area of things is very interesting ,as long as sound quality doesn't suffer . A dedicated Audio computer may work very well and offer advances over an optical drive unit;time will tell .

Many companies that make Dac's now have worked in a lot of anti jitter technology so the difference in transports is a bit less than it used to be but still makes a difference.

Regards D Louth

 

I'm now listening to a CEC TL51XR on loan from definitive audio. In a stright comparison to the Opus 21, it sounded less dramatic but more relaxed, with bags of details and a really delicate vocal/piano reproduction. Very impressive indeed, and probably a keeper for me, particularly as its sub £2k.

 

can I put in a suggestion for the leema antila, british made and very very good.

 

I'd be interested to try some of those out too

 

It played cd-r OK but Audionet tell me that not all cd-rs are strict redbook standard.

My initial problem was skipping - on all cds - and gradually getting worse.

When I got it back I started having problems with the microswitch on the door. It would start to spin the cd before I closed the door, (sometimes before I could put the puck in place) or not recognise that the door was open/closed etc.

It sounds so incredibly good, though, that I really want to keep it, or something very like it.

 

I have just got it back from Audionet and they have replaced the loading mechanism ( and I know not what else may have been done to it) and I can say this:

It now sounds even better than it ever did before! It is truly amazing.
The pity is that I have to disconnect it soon because of moving house next week. I can honestly say that I have absolutely never heard anything to match it.
This is not to say that I will not change - especially if I have any further problems - and the prospect of listening to some other machines is still intriguing.

 

Update.

Well, since moving house there have been other priorities! We moved to a small flat and had initial problems with it. A new floor in the kitchen, and new tiling; then a whole new bathroom with walk-in shower, fully tiled, new suite etc, while the hifi sat in boxes waiting patiently to be set up.
Then finally the moment of truth when the system was unboxed. Immediate problems were that the Dynaudio Focus 220s, which sang so beautifully in the large spacious lounge at our previous flat, were boomy and the bass was really overpowering in the small lounge we now have. There is simply not the space to position them correctly - so a major rethink was needed.

A major rethink was done! Change of speakers and power amps followed and first problems resolved. Now beautiful PrimaLuna valve monoblocs and Tannoy Stirlings grace the lounge and work beautifully with the Audionet preamp. The sound is glorious.
Next - the upgrade of the cd player. We opted for a new Audionet ART G2 - the successor to the V2 - and traded in the V2! We waited three weeks for it to be brought from Germany for us, and was duly installed two days ago. It failed out of the box! It would not read a disc - any disc. So yesterday the cd players were reversed again, and I am back with the V2 and think again of what to change to.
I have reread this thread and thank you all for your suggestions which I shall consider carefully. Feel free to add anything else into the mix! Budget has shrunk a little after recent expenditures on kitchens/bathrooms/speakers etc. but I would think £2.5k to £3k is about right.

Life is certainly an adventure! But one I wish were a little less dramatic in my state of health and at my age! Still, my old mum used to say: "Old age comes to us all - if we live long enough!"

 

I still believe you would get a better sound for less outlay if you just added a really good dac to the current cdp, it has digital out that is, did the dealer not check the new player before despatch? Keith.

 

Evidently not, Keith. I left the player all day to acclimatise, as it was very cold outside, and only tried it in the evening after the dealer was closed.

I tried the V2 into a modified bel Canto dac 2 (modded by Coherent audio, I believe) and regard the internal dac as superior to that.

It has rca, AES balanced and BNC digital outputs.

 

Art Audo G2

Hi Check Chris

Sorry to read of your problems. If your G2 was supplied new and is not very old, and from what you write it sounds new, then you have the legal right to your money back. Don't accept a repair as this will weaken your rights in consumer law. Get your money back. For one person to have had so many issues with one make does IMO suggest a poor quality of build or quality control. I think that I would move on from Art Audio. I should add I have no axe to grind or indeed direct experience with Art Audio but your problems do concern me. However some CDp are sensitive to the cold and do need the room to be warmer and the machine at the same temp(normal room temp). When in the trade I found this with Musical Fidelity players first thing in the morning during the winter months it would take MF players an hour or so after switch on and the shop warming up to play and read discs. Very frustrating if you had an early morn demo. This was when I first encountered the problem, how embarrassing for the player not to work. (sorry just read your post again ignore this comment, in your situation but for others who ignore instructions about acclimatisation, this applies).

As to Cdp in yor budget since this thread was started a new boy is on the block. Have a listen it a CDMP from Electrocompaniet it was about £3500 just before I was made redundant(price may have gone up, since then). It a very nice, top loading player but is quite large in size. Go on to Electrocompaniet's web site for a look(they only make 3 CDP'S and this is the only top loader).

Regards D Louth

 

The Esoteric XO5 Cd/Sacd has gotta be worth a demo, and its in your price range. I don't think you would be disappointed with the performance anyway.

 

Appreciate your comments, D Louth. The G2 was brand new out of the box - left to acclimatise for about 6 hours before even trying to play it. The problem remained the same even the next morning. I am getting a full refund on the machine - no problem there.
The dealer offered to get a replacement sent express from Germany, but both my wife and I were so disappointed by the failure (and the previous problems) that we have lost confidence in the manufacturer.

I had been looking at the Electrocompaniet on the website, coincidentally. It certainly looks interesting. Now I have to find someone who can demo it at my home!

 

Is it really in my budget range? I thought it would have been way beyond it.

 

Chris Hi, why not try a lavry DA10, Andy at 'sound tools' will lend you one I am pretty sure, it is only £650ish I would be interested to hear what you think of that, or I have a Weiss Mnerva here, which is really good , you are welcome to borrow that, regards Keith.

 

Thanks for the kind offer, Keith, but the player itself has to be replaced too. I know it is a long time ago (and there is no sense of rebuke implied in this) but in my original post I mentioned niggly problems with the V2 - mainly transport problems - which led to dissatisfaction with the machine. Adding a dac to it, while potentially improving the sound, will not address that problem too.

Griffy, I realise now that I was thinking of the Esoteric X-03 which is more than my budget. The X-05 (in the current financial climate) may be brought within budget! Thanks.

 

Chris I thought the original machine was repaired?

 

H Chris

Hi Chris I forgot about the new Esoteric. This is what happens when you forget what you have read in the current magazines. One thing you should check out is the noise from Esoterics when playing SACD's there is a bit of a high pitched whistling from the mech(mentioned in many reviews of these players. Perhaps not in the new one.). The only SACD player that never did this was the SONY 777es and SCD1(now long out of production). My Marantz SA7 is not bad and better than my Marantz SA11 which was so noisy I had to get rid of it and it was my second machine as i thought the first was faulty.
My gear sits beside where I sit so I need everything to be silent. If your gear is across the room it will not be a problem but I would check anyway.

Regards D Louth 77