Esoteric DV-50: Any cdp's Significantly better?


Is there are anyone out there who has compared the Esoteric DV-50 to a number of dedicated red book only players (or other universal's) and found one that is SIGNIFICANTLY better?

I stress significantly because in my humble opinion the redbook playback (if comparison unit is just a cd cd player only )must be significantly better to justify losing DVD-A, SACD and DVD-Video capability.

I keep hearing there are better one box solutions and being a die hard 2 channel fan I would sell my DV-50 if I found a player in the same price range that sounds significantly better. But every time I do an AB comparision to other well respected units the DV-50 has slayed each and every one.

So far, it has eaten the lunch of the Classe CDP-10, Ayre CX-7, Linn Ikemi, Cairn Fog Vers. 2, Cary 306/300, Arcam DV 27A and CD 33T, Myryad CD 600, etc. It even betters a Sony SCD 777ES/MF Tri-Vista 21 transport/dac combo that I previously owned. I'm only comparing the DV-50 to single box cd or universal players, but I just wanted to mention the Sony/MF combo. I'm sure there are some dac/transport combo's that will handily beat the DV 50.

Some may say that the DV 50 should beat all the above because the of price point ($5,500 vs. average price of $3,000 for the above players). But I disagree since conventional wisdom says that stand alone players (especially with the pedigree of those mentioned above) should produce better redbook than a universal player trying to be a jack of all trades. Only the DV 27A does video plus audio. By the way, I was very impressed with the 27A as just a cd player. Of all the above I would say the Ayre was the best.

Next on my list is the Electrocompaniet EMC 1UP and the Resolution Audio Opus 21. However, I must tell you I am really impressed with the DV 50 and all the great reviews are absolutely true. I've noticed that many people who are using it or comparing to other players are using the RCA analog outs instead of the balanced outs. There is a significant improvement in sound if you use the balanced outs and I'm only interested in hearing comments from people who have compared it against other players using the balanced outs on the DV-50.

My system components are as follows:

B&W N803's speakers & HTM-1 center
Cary Cinema 5 (5 x 200) amp
Anthem D1 Statement pre/pro
Esoteric DV 50
Acoustic Zen Satori Shotgun speaker wire
Nirvana SX balanced interconnects from DV-50 to Anthem
Acoustic Zen Matrix reference II interconnects from D1 to Cary
No after market power cords or isolation equipment

My system sounds great! Those who comment please make sure to specify what specific improvements you heard over the DV 50 and what cdp were you comparing it against.

AVGURU
avguru
Hi, Peter here Guido's friend. I have yet to hear a DV50. I'm still thinking about the Sony SCD-XA9000. Last December, Atkinson gave it a great review. Others have proclaimed it wonderful on SACD, but maybe showing some compromises on Redbook. I'd love to hear theMarantz SA-11, but I was at the Marantz dealer today and he didn't have one. I did get to hear the DV-9500 and also the Linn 2.1. The 9500 was quite good, but I felt lost its focus to an unreasonable degree with Redbook. The Linn 2.1 was very dimensional, focused and detailed. Some have reported that the Linn sounds "dry." This was not my experience. It had great extended highs. Perhaps, some have felt that its bass is lean. To me, the bass was tight and very fast. The Marantz, with which I did a side by side comparison had more bass extension for sure, but it tended to be muddy sounding next to the Linn. I use an LP12 turntable, so I may be just spoiled by that tight Linn sound.
Another player that has gotten stellar reviews, but hasn't been mentioned is the Accuphase DP77. Has anyone heard it? List is $8500, I believe. I don't know that I can go that much on a new front-end, but I'd like to get something very good for the money. That's why I'm quite anxious to hear first-hand reports on the $3k Sony and the $3K Marantz SA-11.
As Guido mentioned, I have a Denon 2200. He was kind in his paraphrase of my opinion. In reality, it's a real stinker. It's actually pretty acceptable on Redbook, but sounds bright and glarey with SACD and unnaturally balanced toward the bottom with DVD Audio. I bought it mainly on the basis of a quite positive mention in TAS 149 relative to some other players that cost more, but I failed to read between the lines enough to realize the level of compromise I'd be making.
On a side note, I was at the dealer today to picj up my newly modded LP12 with its brand new Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood cartridge and even with no break-in it smokes most other music sources with which I'm familiar!
Can anyone else chime in on their experience with the DV50 as a transport only. I have an outboard DAC(Audio Note 2.1x bal).
I'm going to replace my Proceed PMDT soon and I'm strongly considering the DV50 along with the Ayre DX-7. Video wise, the DV50 might be a little better but I'm concerned about CD playback 'cause the Proceed's an excellent transport.
Jose21 - I auditioned a DV-50 in my system to see if it would be a suitable candidate to replace my player-DAC combination (it wasn't). Anyway, I used it as a transport into my DAC, and it worked quite well for that purpose; however, it was not quite as transparent-sounding to my ears as my current player/transport.

If I didn't have the ability to do a direct comparison, I think I would have been quite satisfied with the DV-50 as a transport.