Is a dedicated transport justified?

The Theta Data II can be a tricky transport to use (I have one in a box in my office, don't ask!). It is a modified Philips LV400 laserdisc player. When it works it sounds fine, but mine rejects loading of most of the CDs. Even when it loads them, it takes 17 seconds to engage play. Theta have not been helpful in supporting service for this model. I currently use a Theta Data III (a modified Pioneer CLD-704 laserdisc player) and even it gets CDs jammed once in a while. When it does, I have to lift it out of the rack (at 45 lbs., it ain't trivial), remove 16 screws to remove the cover, and manually push (hard!) the laser assembly toward the spindle. I am looking for a reliable one box solution, instead of a separate transport/dac combo, hopefully from an OEM instead of an aftermarket modifier.

You might be able to find a one-box player that beats your current three box combo for $500. DACs have advanced significantly at lower price points. The discontinued $120 ART DI/O beat the Theta Pro Basic II (a 15 year-old design) in my comparisons.

One other thing to consider: Theta "rewards" customer loyalty and original purchasers, i.e., Theta punishes second-hand owners by charging them higher rates for repairs and upgrades than to customers that have original proof-of-purchase.

Gmood1,

I can corroborate AVguygeorge's observation that the Theta Data III is a bass slam monster (OTOH, PRAT it ain't got), even compared to the Data Basic II. I do not understand the underlying mechanism. In another system of mine, a Toshiba DVD player with a Toslink output has much more bass impact (and just plain sounds better) than a Pioneer CLD-704 with coax digital output, both used as transports with digital outputs fed into a Monarchy DIP SuperDrive, then S/PDIF to a EVS Millennium II DAC.