MUSE Erato II - Anyone using this player?

I've come to this a bit late but I had an Erato at home for a few weeks earlier this year. The reasons for not purchasing were purely practical. I found it beguiling and now that I have an Emm Labs CDSAse I'm not 100% sure I did the right thing. It seemed to have a natural character that when I think back drew me in more so than I've experienced before or since. The system I run now is better but not neccessarily in a natural way certainly more hifi, greater resolution etc. The likelyhood of trying it again and comparing is slim but I'd definately love to.

Thanks Defride, for weighing in - any information is helpful. I have been considering the Erato II in order to simplify my system by running all solid state equipment that should better serve my erratic listening habits. I have been curious about how few folks here own MUSE equipment even though their gear has been universally well-regarded. I have been told, MUSE has a larger following overseas than here. In the Stereophile review of the MUSE Polyhymnia, they concluded the Polyhymnia was basically at the same sonic level as the Ayre C5XeMP, but with a slightly different sound of it's own, and MUSE considers the Erato II [sonically] "the better of the two devices," when compared with the Polyhymnia. HiFi+ considered the Erato II basically equivalent to the very highly regarded (and much more expensive) AR CD-7, and called the Erato II a "digital benchmark." Therefore, based on those reviews at least, the Erato II is a very well-regarded player.

Another reason this has been a tough decision for me is that my Lector CDP 7TL MkIII still sounds great, and IMO beats the Thalia/Nine (that I purchased as a back-up) by providing a more realistic portrayal of wood, brass, and strings, and better micro dynamics (the Lector is simply more fun to listen to). Therefore, I am taking it on trust that the Erato II is a large step up from the Thalia/Nine and will be at least the equivalent to my Lector (and hopefully much better). Kevin at MUSE and I are working out final details and I am sending the Thalia/Nine in for the upgrade this week. I must also add that after owning MUSE equipment on and off for years, and going through several upgrades to their digital units and preamp, IMO a person would be hard pressed to find a better company (along with Ayre and a few others) to work with based on their responsiveness and commitment to upgrading existing products while still staying on the cutting edge of new developments, year after year.

Mitch, I'm glad to hear you're taking the action with Muse. You won't be dissatisfied. Let us all know how it works out.

Hi Mitch, good luck with the Erato assuming you do get one it'd be very interesting to hear what you think. You mention the Hifi+ reviews, I had them to hand when I had the player and felt they offered a pretty fair reflection of what I heard. The player had an uncanny way of at first sounding a bit ordinary and at the same time very natural. I ended up listening through entire albums where I'd usually skip through some of them.

DeFride..saw your response about teh Erato. I was curious why your system and its makeup sound better now. I own the Erato and love it. Any info about how to select rest of system to compliment its strengths would be appreciated. Thanks, RKochies