French CD players' sound ?

The Vecteur Players are very nice if you don't mind putting up with poor name recognition on reslale and spotty distrubution and support. They really are outstanding, nice integrateds to.

Everybody I have talked to wants the Audio Aero Capitole 24/196. I would also take a look at the Metronome products ie CD 2V.

Hello
I also have a Micromega (Stage 3) that I truly enjoyed until I had mechanical problems. My question is if anyone knows some place in the US that is still doing warranty work. I would like to get it working again (for free ideally or cheap) and at least give it to one of my daughters.
Thanks

Rayhall- interesting comments/judgement on the Capitole, considering you have not heard it. I own it, and the bass is extremely satisfying, and of course, other system contributors will have an effect on this.

That being said, your friend is partially correct in that if we extrapolate that there ARE other CD players that may carve even tighter bass. I can attest to this, as my previous player (I feel world-class in its own right) had the best/tighest/biggest bass if ANY CDP- partially due no doubt to its incredible transport- the Sim Audio Eclipse. I sold it only because I was able to replace 3 boxes with one- Goodbye Eclipse; DCS Purcell upsampler; and ARC preamp, and hello Capitole- one box solution with analog volume control and a palpability to the vocals that beat the Eclipse.

All that being said, I would LOVE to compare the Eclipse (again, I feel probably one of the best transport sections around) with a top-level 24/192 upsampling outboard DAC, such as Mephisto II; A. Aero Prima; etc. Now THAT would be interesting...

Macdonj, you really should try to get hold of a Capitole for home audition. It is probably just what you are looking for, if you are already comfortable with a more "tube-style" sound. I auditioned a 24/192 Capitole extensively in my home. It reminds me of putting a good tube preamp into my otherwise solid-state system. Overall it gives a very pleasant, relaxed presentation, especially nice for classical music. The mids are full, warm, and very palpable (as Sutts notes above). The highs are super sweet and non-fatiguing, even if not the most extended possible. The bass has considerable weight, but is not among the tightest available. The bass is slightly on the "ripe" side of reality, typical of tube gear IMO, but still quite satisfying if you are familiar with that style. I must admit I have not heard the other tube-output CD players, but they would have to be superb to beat the Capitole. So in summary, I think the Capitole will be a great one-box front-end solution for those already leaning toward the "organic" camp of musical reproduction.