Creek CD43 v. Linn Genki v. Cairn Fog v. Cary 308

TIC - I have seen you on audio circle too, from what I have gathered you have tried a lot of gear. I was thinking about the quad, but some said it was kind of soft and not really a PRAT machine. Some mixed reviews there. The same problem I have found on reviews of the Linn Genki. It seems to be very finicky with cables to get it to sound good? TIC could you also explain more of the sonic character of the quad?

Jh2os - I have not heard anything but praise for this player, but it seems to also be the least well known. Could you elaborate on its characteristics, I heard it has kind of sparkling highs and is quite warm/dark and analouge sounding. Yet it still does PRAT well? Also do you have the upgraded HD 24/192 chip? Does this make a big difference?

Greg,

It is true that I've owned a lot of equipment. I've owned about 10 different CD players or DACs and most of them had built-in volume control because it makes logical and economic sense in a single source system. Heck, with the money most people would save by not having to buy a pre-amp, they could get a much upgraded digital front end.

That said, I'm not really sure I can answer your question. Does the Quad have PRaT? I'm not sure, but I do know that my foot is tappin' away when listening to it and that doesn't happen with my other rig that uses a moderately priced DVD player for spinning CDs.

When I bought the Quad, I also owned the Musical Fidelity CD/Pre-24 and the Resolution Audio Opus 21. IMHO, the Quad killed the MF sonically, but gave away some features (that I didn't need), but it was not quite the equal of the Resolution Audio Opus 21. And it shouldn't be. The RA Opus 21 cost $3500 new. However, of the 3, I kept the Quad. It was easily the best value of the lot and it was really inexpensive used ($850).

What I really like about the Quad is that it is not at all fatiguing on the top end, it has wonderful midrange and the bass is very good. The Quad makes it very easy to follow bass lines that were obscured with some of my other players.

Really, for the used price of the Quad, you could buy it, try it and resell it at little or no loss if it is not your dream player. They typically sell for $800-900 and the cheapest I've ever seen one was $675 for one that was pretty obviously beat up.

Disclaimer: At some time in the future I may be selling my Quad CD player. I'm trying to build a house and my audio addiction is distracting me. However, I would certainly reconsider buying one in the future and I will be recommending the Quad even if I don't still own one in the future.

Enjoy,

TIC

TIC,

Have you heard the Cairn Fog v2? Another idea I had was getting a muse. I cant remember the model but it is a dvd player?

Any one else have any comments on these two players?

Greg,

I have not heard the Cairn.

I like the idea of a DVD/multi-function player, but the slow loading is kind of a turn off.

Later,

TIC

Greg, the Cairn seems to portray the music almost in a 'live' presentation - a you-are-there sort of way. It is a very exciting and emotional experience. It retrieves so much detail while going nowhere near sounding bright or harsh in the upper end. It has a 'warm' sound to it, but not overly tube-warm. It presents bass with a heft in lower octaves and human voices that makes them seem visceral. It does have PRaT, but it builds on that and adds Power to the Pace, Rightness to the Rythmn and will have you Toe-Tapping with the Timing. I've heard the upper 2% and lower 2% done better, but never something as right everywhere in between with the other 96% of the spectrum. In one word - Emotional, and for me that is the most important. You may be able to find more accurate, but you would be hard pressed to find something that draws you into the music as much as this player does at the price level. At least in my humble opinion and in my set-up.