FWIW, I had an Esoteric K-03X for awhile.
It was a bit too lean and clinical, IMO. I much prefer the T+A unit. |
Thanks for the feedback thus far.
I was quite specific in my question because I currently have both a Berkeley Alpha Ref 2, and a T+A PDP 3000 HV in my main rig. I don't intend to throw away my CD collection. I am looking for a one-box CD solution to drive a headphone rig on a different floor of my home. |
Hey George,
I have never had the opportunity to hear a Linn or a Naim. I had an Esoteric for awhile. I found it both amazingly good, and too analytic. Is the Linn or the Naim more "analog" sounding?
John |
-yohimie-
Do you live in Colorado? Lol Too many blunts? Lol. I get you. The music over hardware. But, for the most part, well chosen, more money buys better sound reproduction. |
I will be 55 years old in September. I go to work. Half of my job is dealing with computers. Will not connect to internet. Over. And over again. Where is the Tech Support guy? Password. After password after Password. I can’t remember them all. When I get home, the Last thing I want to feel is that I’m at the discretion of a computer. I want to spin a disc. Large or small. Relax. Close my eyes. Relax.
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We ought to be on Broadway, Al. We’re hilarious! Posting this, using my smart phone. Lol
John |
George, or anyone else: What do you know about a Naim CDS II with external power supply?
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FWIW, I've decided to buy a lightly used Audio Research Reference CD8. I buy quite a bit of used equipment. If I don't love it, I can usually resell and not get bitten too badly. I do want to hear a Hegel Mohican. When I find one at a discount, I'll give it a spin.
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Thanks jafant! Here's my logic, since all players I've heard about I haven't heard. I'm buying blindly. 1. Marc Mickelson at The Audio Beat gave it a very favorable review. I trust Marc's judgement. 2. I own an AR Ref6 preamp. It sounds Great, especially paired with my D'Agostino S-250 amp. 3. I had an aftermarket tube arc and blow up my Ref6 about 6 mos. ago. ARC fixed it for Free. Free. Even though I bought it used, and I decided to try an aftermarket tube. 4. ARC has the reputation for offering complete service on obsolete components. And 5. Both the company and the unit have a strong enough reputation that if I don't Love it, resale should not be difficult.
Now here's the problem. You Know when it comes I'll have to hear what it sounds like in my Big Rig. Then, what If I Love it? Then I'm back in the market for a CD player. Lol |
I do have an opinion on the Esoteric K-3X, since I did own one for awhile. My overall impression of its sound is very detailed and musical, but can be a bit clinical. The sound can be tailored with variable sample rates and digital filters. The disc drive was in No way like a cheap computer disc drive. It's function was solid and inspired confidence. When used as a drive, the analytical sound transferred to the DAC. When used as a DAC, and fed by my reference PS Audio DirectStream transport, the sound was fuller and more analog, very much like my reference Berkeley Alpha Reference 2 DAC. So, as a DAC, I found the Esoteric more musical than what it was used as a CD player or a transport. SACD reproduction was stellar. Very, very close to my reference T+A PDP 3000 HV.
When looking for a one-box CD player, I saw a used Esoteric K-3X at The Music Room, an on-line audio dealer. I think they listed it at $7500?? At this price, Is consider the K-3X a bargain. |
2psyop, I was open to suggestion, and still am. The CD8 made sense for the reasons I detailed earlier. But I still have not heard the unit, and that's what matters. If, for some reason, I don't like the CD8, I will sell it and again be in the market for a CD player. Besides, I think its been an interesting discussion thus far. |
I've heard a lot of good things about Luxman. Mike at Suncoast Audio tried selling me on a Luxman D-08u. Said it was the most analog unit he's ever heard. I settled on the more detailed T+A unit. But Luxman should be a brand for consideration. |
Believe it or not, there's a CD playback system called the dCS Vivaldi 2.0 that costs $120K. Google it. |
I've owned the Audio Research Reference 8 CD player for a couple weeks now. I figured I should at least give a few words on how I think it sounds.
First I dropped it into my Big Rig to get a feel for how it performs. It is highly musical and does nothing offensive. The highs are a touch restrained over my beloved Berkeley Alpha Reference 2 DAC. There's not quite as much air or three-dimensionality as with the Berkeley. The mids are smooth and a bit more pronounced than the Berkeley. The biggest difference is in the bass, where the AR gets a little wooly and not as tightly pitch defined. So, as an absolute, it would not displace my Berkeley DAC. But if the Berkeley is a 10, I'd give the Reference 8 a solid, um, 8.5.
But in my headphone rig, where if a recording is too hot on top, it'll blister your ear drums, the Ref 8 filters out a lot of that, resulting in a more enjoyable performance. I find it just about perfect for headphone listening. Musical and quite accurate.
And a word on tube testing. I test ALL tubes with a Hickok 6000A tester before use. One of the triodes within one tube that came with the AR had a Significant loss in transconductance, about half output of the others. I had a spare 6h30 tube and used it. I don't know how much degradation in sound that one tube would have had. But it couldn't have possibly been positive. |
@monkandmozart. Why the dissection of the Reference 8?? Why not? I think the most important aspect of a component is how it Sounds. And I thought there might be some who would like an opinion on how the Ref 8 sounds. Otherwise, we can just all sit around and chat about bits and microchips. |
