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Can Someone Explain This?

I just got my new EMC-1 24/192 about a week ago and absolutely love it. As a relative 'newbie' to this hobby, I have little experience or frame of reference in high end gear, and did not really fully understand how or why someone could describe a CD player as having an 'analog' sound. Now I do.

However, last night I experienced something that had me experimenting for hours and finally left me scratching my head in bewilderment. I was listening to one of my favorite CDs and a particularly beautiful acoustic track on it. For some reason, it didn't sound quite right. Something seemed to be "missing." After listening to this track over and over, I determined that part of the "plucking" of the guitar (specifically the higher notes) WAS missing. Just to be certain that I wasn't cracking up, I plugged in my old CD player, the Ultech (which sounded harsh and strident next to the water smooth EMC-1), and--sure enough--the information was restored.

I have not noticed the EMC-1 doing this with any other CDs, although I am obviously still getting acquainted with it.
I confess I am completely baffled with this turn of events. Does anyone have a clue what I might be experiencing or why?
Do I have a defective player? If the same CD plays perfectly on another player, the computer CD-Rom drive, and my car CD player, shouldn't it also play on the EMC-1?

I will send a box of chocolates to anyone who can help me solve this problem.:-)

Happy Valentine's Day to all.
128x128waltersalas
famaraca
38 posts
 
Hi Walter

I had the same bad experience with my Accuphase DP-65V(compared with my old Pioneer PD-91),but after two weeks all the details(without harsh),come back.Your EMC-1 is great!Wait and Enjoy!
cornfedboy
1,645 posts
 
walter: you've already gotten a number of good suggestions. permit me to attempt an ordering of possible fixes, including a couple of my own. first, i agree with famaraca that you should give your cdp a bit more time to break in. when i got my boulder 1012 pre/dac just before christmas, i ran it continuously for >200 hours before doing any critical listening. since then, its run at least another 600 hours while i’ve listened and broken in cables/ic's/pc's. it continues to improve. if the sound of your emc-1 doesn't improve after longer burn-in, you might try some different ic's and/or pc's; these can greatly affect the sonic presentation, even rolling off some frequencies, as you may be experiencing. third, send your unit back while it's still under warranty, particularly if the first two "fixes" don't work. fourth, live with the fact that your player's dac uses sampling algorithms as abstract7 describes, which may not be optimal for your tastes. finally, do not, under any circumstances, give into the pathetic ploys of the tireguy and send him any more chocolates; my sources say he already eats on average 8 pounds per day of m&m's (blue only). -cfb
amwarwick
40 posts
 
I have an EMC-1 with MK11 upgrade and although probably not much of a help, my player seems fine. I think cornfedboy is on to something telling you to give it time to break in. I don't know about the chocolates, but I wouldn't mind some of Tireguy's M&M's.
tireguy
1,964 posts
 
Oh my now the cat is out of the bag, we're all in for it, Kelly you said you wouldn't tell! ;)
waltersalas's avatar
waltersalas OP
581 posts
 
Thanks, everyone. I think I am relieved mostly because this scenario seems plausible to those of you in the know. I suppose I should have mentioned that I am burning in two new amps (Bel Canto EVO 200.2), new ICs (Homegrown Audio Silver Lace), along with an almost new pre-amp (First Sound Presence Deluxe MK2), in addition to the EMC-1. I realize now that this is an idiotic approach to upgrading one's system, but I just decided I needed more from my system and got a little carried away. I still have speaker cables on the way.

I have been playing the system more or less constantly for the past few days (except when I'm sleeping) waiting for it to burn in. I did consider the relative newness of the components as a possible reason for the problem, but then thought it must be something else since all the other CDs SEEMED to be playing all right. I mean, it is clear that the overall sound of the system is improving by the day, but I haven't had any similar experiences of completely losing details in the music until last night.

I am considering buying a CD from Purist Audio that is supposed to significantly speed up the burn in process and tune up the whole system. Does anyone have any experience with or opinions about such a device?

I've been so preoccupied pondering the thought-provoking theories you've so kindly provided that I've eaten half the chocolates already. Sorry, Tireguy.

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