Ayre C-5xe-mp v Sony XA5400ES

Correct Zd542, he doesn't a single manufacturer, but he does name (indict) several retailers selling mass produced gear from overseas that was designed to be replaced "only a few years down the road."

Magazines have to fill pages and Dudley filled four of them comparing the demise of the Victorian age and the inception of the Arts and Crafts movement with the modern state of hi fi, and implying the consumers have finally become smarter and fed up with marketable, mass produced, but poorly made gear so they are about to revolt against buying such gaudy but cheaply made products, causing the offending companies to fall like dead leaves from a tree and to be replaced by artisan craftsman hand building heirlooms. He does name gear from several companies deemed to be worthy.

I find the rant interesting coming from a magazine who for years has shunned many of the very artisan manufacturers Dudley is promoting, by refusing to review their gear - because they don't have a "dealer network." The other thing I find interesting is that I have no trouble finding hi fi gear crafted by exceptional artisans. As for the offending, mass-produced gear, as long as people buy stuff, people will sell stuff. I think it is more a matter of "different strokes for different folks" - thankfully we have a variety of manufacturers and gear to choose from.

In looking at photos taken at the Newport Beach show on the Asylum web, especially those of turntable and speakers, I wondered if there is a market for that stuff or are they vanity products much like books written to satisfy the authors' ego. Artisan or vanity, I wonder.

My original post was about the Ayre C-5xeMP, a product that seems to have been produced in sufficient quantities to have a track record on the used market, and that the editor of Stereophile still uses in his system. Is John Atkinson duped by a fancy case, Tarp38, or does the Ayre really sound as good as the reviews suggest?

Is John Atkinson duped by a fancy case, ... or does the Ayre really sound as good as the reviews suggest?

Yes, it is a very good sounding disc player and no, the case is actually not that fancy.

the case is actually not that fancy

The case appears less fancy that that of my Sony XA5400ES, so I hope the sound is sufficiently superior to compensate for such a plain-jane appearance. I expect to experience that sound myself if I find one for not over $3K -- I'll divert my eyes when playing it.

db

Mitch2,

Thanks for the excellent response above to the Stereophile issue.

"06-11-14: Dbphd

the case is actually not that fancy

The case appears less fancy that that of my Sony XA5400ES, so I hope the sound is sufficiently superior to compensate for such a plain-jane appearance. I expect to experience that sound myself if I find one for not over $3K -- I'll divert my eyes when playing it."

Really? To me, the XA5400ES looks a lot like my old 9000ES. Very nice, but I wouldn't say as nice as the Ayre. The one thing I can tell you for certain is the actual build quality on the Ayre is as good as anything I've seen. I have a pair of V-5 amps (part of the same line as the C-5) and when I put them next to my Rowland amp and look at the quality differences, inside and out, the Ayre is better.

"Both of these players have received A+ ratings from Stereophile. I have the Sony and wonder if the sound of SACDs played on the Ayre would be a worthwhile upgrade. Anyone have the chance to compare the sounds of the two?"

Also, after reading your original post again, I think you'll notice just as big a difference from Redbook CD's as you will from SACD. Maybe even bigger.