I own the A5 (so take anything I type with a grain of salt) and find it to be an excellent CDP. Perfect for everyone? Heck no, and thank goodness for different tastes. But it is very resolving and the soundstaging is especially excellent.
I know this is a lame description, but I find it sort of "elegant sounding." It is not as thick and full bodied as two less expensive tubed CDP I have tried in my system, a Njoe Tjoeb with upsampler and the Jolida, both with NOS tubes. In my system, the A5 was better than both of those (perhaps not surprising given in costs twice as much); it was also a bit more shy in bass and had less body in the mids -- both of these tube players were pretty thick through the mids.
So I would not call it the most full bodied player I have ever heard, but it is highly resolving and well balanced -- again, in my system. So judging by your goals, it may not be your ideal CDP. Again, in my opinion, the A5 is a very good CDP overall, just perhaps not exactly what you might be looking for.
Good luck.
Bob
I know this is a lame description, but I find it sort of "elegant sounding." It is not as thick and full bodied as two less expensive tubed CDP I have tried in my system, a Njoe Tjoeb with upsampler and the Jolida, both with NOS tubes. In my system, the A5 was better than both of those (perhaps not surprising given in costs twice as much); it was also a bit more shy in bass and had less body in the mids -- both of these tube players were pretty thick through the mids.
So I would not call it the most full bodied player I have ever heard, but it is highly resolving and well balanced -- again, in my system. So judging by your goals, it may not be your ideal CDP. Again, in my opinion, the A5 is a very good CDP overall, just perhaps not exactly what you might be looking for.
Good luck.
Bob