ML 39 w/Bryston amp and Thiel 2.3?

well I can tell you this dweller, I live in North Haven Connecticut and Madrigal is only 20 minutes from my home. And I have a good freind who works there and That is not a reported problem with the 39. You may have had a problem with yours. It happens. My point is the 39 is not only the most versitile cd players on the market but it has a sound that is hard to beat. Sorry to hear you had a problem with yours but me and 5 other audiophiles that I know love it. Good luck

Yes, I most certainly did have a "problem" with my unit which I purchased new from an authorized dealer (consistently voted among the "top 10" in the country by some magazine or other). I contacted the dealer within a day of purchase which is when I was informed of the "known problem". I also personally contacted the customer service dept. of Madrigal who, if not repeating the "known problem" mantra (this was about three years ago -give my memory a break), did not tell me to return the unit to the dealer for a new one (which I'd have done in a heartbeat). My rational for not returning the unit was to sacrifice common sense at the alter of "audiophile (audiofool?) suffering for the ultimate sound" B.S. that pervades this hobby. The clowns making money off this stuff think nothing of taking $6000 and then shining you on with the "known problem" line instead of fixing what's wrong. I am simply using this forum to relate my experience, when asked, to fellow hobbiests. The #39 was a good sounding unit (not the best I've heard) and, in the main, performed reliably. I'd still audition the MSB Platinum with its upsampling, radically new balanced DAC architecture, and interpolation (for 50% of the Levinson's $6000) first.

dweller, Iam sorry but there is nothing wrong with my unit. Maybe its because mine is newer than yours was? I deal with Madrigal directly with a few things I have going on and they wouldnt sell units that dont work in an unsuffient manner.They didnt get there name by doing such things. The 39 has been tested on the bench with much more supireor cd players than the msb and has beaten them out by a noticable margin. I like what ever sounds good to me and I dont care who makes it. Thats the name of the game. Its all about the music and how close will that peice of equipment bring me to the real thing. So in that I rate the 39 as top quality from sound to build quality. All the reviews by magazines and people who have owned it are always great ones. I have the final word and I agree it is one amazing cd player and very hard to beat.

Interesting points about reliability...but can anyone answer the question?

Rsuminsby, I owned the 3B-ST and then moved to the 4B-ST with the Thiel 2.3. Then I moved to the 7B-ST with the Thiel CS-6. The Bryston/Thiel combination is a bit bright and can lead to some upper mid congestion, depending on room acoustics -- but it can also sound so live, it can be fun. The right speaker cable (e.g., MIT) can go a long way to smooth things out as reporting in numerous prior posts (I took that advice and, holy cow, there's a huge difference). I've worked with a couple of different digital front ends, the latest being the Perpetual Technologies, and haven't noticed a lot of difference in the brightness but did notice a big difference in the detail, smoothness, soundstage and musicality. I'm sorry I have no experience with the 39 but would suggest that the "laid back" vs. "brightness" issue is less affected by the front end then it is with the total system. And again, the MIT goes a long way to help that out. IMHO. Hope that helps. Cheers!