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CD player to compete with my vinyl rig?

Greetings,

I find that I have stopped buying CDs, which I regret because there is so much great new music out there.

My player is a Cambridge 640c and listening to it just doesn't do the 'suspension of disbelief' thing. It has all the right stuff: black backgrounds, dynamics, PRAT, detail, air, frequency extension, but as soon as the orchestral strings well up or the horns start, I want to turn it off. The timbral qualities are weird (especially massed strings, voices) and the sense of real people playing instruments isn't there. There's a sheen and confusion to the soundscape. My vinyl rig offers by far the more realistic experience. I have multiple copies of Mahler's 2nd Symphony on both CD and vinyl, and I never listen to the CDs any more.

I would like to find a CD player that makes me want to listen to CDs as much as vinyl!

I'm looking at reviews of the Rega Apollo R, the Teac PD H600, Audiolab 8200CD and the Decware Zen triode player. (Yes, around $1000 budget).

My rig: Pro-ject 2 Xperience/Shure V15-IV, Jico SAS, Cambridge 640c, Rogue Cronus Magnum/KT120 tubes, LS3/5a speakers, Kimber, Zu cabling.

Music tastes: Sibelius, Mahler, Bruckner, Bach, fifties torch singers.

I would love to hear suggestions from members!
Thanks
sumaato
sumaato OP
52 posts
 
I meant CDP!
timrhu
2,778 posts
 
I think you are looking at this the wrong way. My experience tells me the sound/flavor/character of a cdp is in the design/implementation of the analog output section much more than in the data conversion section. Not saying the conversion is unimportant but you can find three cdps using the same dac chipset with totally different sounds. Where does the difference come from? I say the analog output stage.
As stated above, I have used several different cdps, many of them were well reviewed, high quality players but they did not meet my criteria for smooth, listenable, non-fatiguing sound.
gfcf424892
74 posts
 
A used Neko Audio D100.
sumaato OP
52 posts
 
a Neko Audio D100 might be very attractive, paired with my 640c. I wonder how it might compare to the Rega DAC, which is described as having a similar soundscape?

In a DAC-CDP configuration, how important is the mechanical player in contributing to the overall sound, compared with the contribution from the DAC?
gfcf424892
74 posts
 
There is a comparison between the Rega DAC and the Neko over at the Neko forums.

Transports shouldn't be a problem with the Neko as it has excellent jitter reduction via the Wolfson receiver. I have tried a few with mine and prefer a Sony DVP-S999ES as the transport. It just sounded the best to my ears; I think Sony makes solidly built transports. I also own the 640C and it's very flimsy, I'd avoid using it as a transport if you can.
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