2. digital
  3. 1104997830

How Important Is The Cdp?


Hi,

My current set-up includes PSB Stratus Mini's speakers, Cambridge AZUR 540 A and a Toshiba 3950 DVD which i use for cd playback only. I know this is a mismatch of gear, but i originally hadnly planned on using this equipment with each other, then shortly after had some money troubles so im stuck with this gear for awhile.

My system sounds OK at times, its somewhat musical but alot of the time the sound is jsut too harsh and fatuiging- guitar harmonics are especially grainy and shimmery, vocals seem to be yelling at me way too much and overall the sound seems unfocused and veiled.

My room is pretty small, about 10x10 with an open closet and Jon Risch acoustic treatments directly behind each speaker, side walls arent really treated at all. I know my room isnt the greatest, but somehow i get the sence that the room isnt the main problem im having, sure it could use alot of improvement but the bad sound seems to be coming directly from the speakers.

Im sort of confused on what is causing the harshness, some people say its my cdp, others say my amp and then theres a few who think its my speakers interacting with the room.

This brings me to the question on how important is the cdp? Ive heard many people say that the cdp makes very little to no difference and wont tame the harshness i speaker of. Others say the source is most important and that what im hearing is my speakers producing the crappy sound my cdp is feeding them.

Would a better cdp, or say a 1000$ DAC improve my system to the point where the harshness i speaker of will be mostly eliminated, or will it just show more weaknesses of my amp. Or will a better cdp just make my system only slighty less harsh by only taming some of the digital glare of cdp's?

What do you guys think? cdp causing the harshness, or is it the amp?
dave123456

Showing 2 responses by howie

howie
230 posts
 
The recordings themselves are causing you the majority of the problems. In SOTA systems, bad recordings tend to be more listenable but there are some that will sound harsh in any system. Try moving the acoustic treatments that you have directly behind the back of the speaker to the first reflections and see if it improves anything. Also, try placing something absorbtive behind you. Treatment directly behind the speakers really isn't too important if at all in the room treatment scheme of things.

If I'm not mistaken the Cambridge is a receiver? If so, the preamp section is probably causing you the most problems. In general, the preamp section in integrated amps and receivers are their greatest weaknesses for 2ch music. I started out upgrading my 2ch system by adding amps. While that brought an improvement, adding a preamp really allowed the system to come together. In terms of price/performance, CD players and amps are generally better than preamps.
howie
230 posts
 
Making wise decisions are much more important than money spent. It's hard to generalize. I don't believe in price ratios as much I think it generally ends up pretty close to the suggested ratios when most of us have finished building our systems.

If I have a dream system in mind, I believe in obtaining components to build around. If there's a $1000 DAC that you really like (and I think you can get one that won't embarass itself in any system), then it might not be a bad idea to get it and build around it. Of course nobody knows what's going to happen in the future and with technology moving along, perhaps achieving a balance and constantly upgrading rather than establishing cornerstone pieces may be the way to go. Depends on what you want to do.

Marakanetz, you're still talking about price ratios here. Keep in mind that a $500 CDP is 5X the price of a $100CDP whereas a $1000 CDP is only 2X the price of a $500CDP so you should expect the performance leap to be less. However, the same can be said about a $100 speaker vs a $500 one and a $500 speaker vs $1000 speaker. Take $2200 for example (the list price of your speakers). Spending an extra $1000 probably won't buy you as much extra performance as spending $1600 rather than $600 on the source (given that wise choices were made at all price points). Then again, I probably would spend it on amps or speakers if I think my source is good enough, especially since digital technology moves quicker than amps and speakers in general. IMO there are a few sweet spots along the price structure of each component. Speakers and amps tend to be higher in price that's all.
More to discover