Comparison Cary 306, Wadia 581, EMM Labs CDSA

Arthur,

I will post my impressions in Reference DAC thread - it will be a longer writeup, which just takes time to write.

In short, MBL have had a certain forwardnes in the upper midrange/lower treble, which I did not notice at first, but made me sell the player eventually.

Both CD-7 and DP-78 also have much better resolution than 1531 (I'm talking about HF-air, delicacy and extension here) and deeper soundstage. Be warned though, that CD-7 takes awfully long to break in. I alsmost gave up on him. It really takes off after ~400h. Before that, it sounds like crap - muddy, diffused and grainy.

Thnaks, I look forward to reading your impressions!

Megan, Might wanna recheck your stats. Consumer response has been so bad for the CDSA that EMM will make ANYBODY a dealer, even you. Just to turn a unit. Let's forget about the recall of the ENTIRE first batch. Mr EMM is a SOTA guy, not too good at the price point thing. Yet. Tell me again how many Cary Pros you've seen listed? I can see by your feedback that you have tried them all! Keep your Civic and please stay out of the deep end. Z.

i won't comment on the cary as i've not heard it. but let me chime in on the following:
1) i covered EMM's build quality in my review on dagogo. that said, i've never had a problem, its just not built to the same standards as esoteric or wadia. its also $6k cheaper than esoteric, and has a better track record than wadia (i've not heard the 581, but owned the 861se, which was not comparable to the EMM).
2) wadia had LOTS of problems w/ 1st gen 581s, which is why you saw so many for sale. the later rev's seem to be fine though. shame some buyers became beta testers though---but that's for wadia to sort out. ---this is the first time i've heard the same accusation leveled at EMM, ever.
3) the EMM is a very high-selling player (i'd have to go back to shahin at Emm to get exact vol's, but i want to say it was > 5k). no wonder some are for sale.
4) no evidence whatsoever that EMM makes "anyone" a dealer.
5) at this time, the only major player in pro digital that also goes audiophile is EMM. think the studios use junk?

now, nowhere was i willing to promo or bash the sonics of these fine players; meagan was right--at this level, its personal preference. but for zieman to come down hard on EMM without evidence sure smacks of an agenda.

Rhyno, If you think you are tight with Shahin, ask him, point blank. I did, over dinner at CES. It is no secret. Both the reliability issue as well as the dealer issue. EMM ads on this home page speak volumes. One phone call does the rest. That is why he was hired! Every player mentioned has had teething problems. We all know about the SACD Standard as well. Remember those being "dumped" six months ago? The original question was about a used player. I stand behind my advice. My "adgenda" has been unearthed! I have a bit of trouble with you comparing redbook, (861SE) when again the original request was for advice on SACD players. No, the 861 can't touch the CDSA on SACD!