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What gives? CD’s, Solid State?

I have recently acquired Rega’s upper-end equipment (Saturn, R-7 speakers, Cursa Pre and Exon Monblocks) and am NOT that impressed with the overall listening experience when playing CDs.

Some years back I had Conrad Johnson Pre and Power and listened to vinyl. How sweet, full and warm that sounded. I realize that was tube equipment and now I’m with solid state, but still…

So, I’m trying to trouble shoot here – Is it the CD medium (I wish I had a turntable to do an A-B comparison) or is it the solid state components that sound a bit edgy, dry and less than full bodied? Would my listening experience improve much if I acquired Rega’s P7 or P9 TT and used that as my source?

Thanks,
Randy
rbschauman
elizabeth
6,726 posts
 
Ferrite beads.. you need some Ferrite snap-on gizmos for your interconnects from the CD to the pre or pre to amp. They scut a bit of the digital grung. Radio Shack snap on are about $10? Some 'audiophile' types are $30 to $40
Back in the day when all digital sounded like dodo, the ferritte filters were all the rage. If you are stuck with bad digital sound.. a cheap way to improve it a bit is with the ferritte.
sidssp
1,077 posts
 
Listen to Elizabeth.

A good source to buy those ferrite cores is Parts Express. Don't pay extra for "audiophile" type. They don't work better except they cost many times more.
jult52
153 posts
 
Randy - I'm starting to believe that first impressions about audio equipment are quite close to the final opinion. You are having a very negative reaction to what should be a good system. With that level of negative feelings, break-in isn't going to matter.

Here's my recommendation - there's a Nixon TD2 DAC (tube) for sale on Agon right now. Snap it up. A remarkable piece of equipment. The warmth and richness of this unit needs to be experienced.

But that would only be the first step in what looks like a system overhaul.
mapman's avatar
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mapman
15,679 posts
 
"I'm starting to believe that first impressions about audio equipment are quite close to the final opinion."

I think that's debatable at best. Peoples impressions change over time with familiarity and so does the sound of new equipment.
elizabeth
6,726 posts
 
Agree with mapman. Sometimes (also) the problem is elsewhere. you may have crummy A/C power. You may have a computer nearby sending out giant clouds of RFI creating havoc with you audio equipment. Your next-door neighbor may have an illegal shortwave setup. The list is long, and all these things may be the problem. BUT: the problem may ALSO just be in your equipment.
Anyway..try the feritte. It's cheap, and a 'classic' fix.
I still use ferrite stuff in a lot of places..
(and I have about 20 of the Rat Shack claps sitting on a shelf from past usage.)
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