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Post by puffin on Oct 7, 2020 8:01:02 GMT
I have used a Pioneer DV717 as a transport and it was very good. You used to he able to get then for £20 - £30. I also have one of the original Cambridge DiscMagic transports that is not too shabby. At the moment I am using a heavily modified Marantz CD63 as a transport which is also very good.
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Post by ajski2fly on Oct 7, 2020 9:07:01 GMT
I know streaming is effectively good value with TIDAL or Qobuz, but SWMBO resents the monthly cost of it I bet if you stopped buying CDs and LPs that would more than cover the £15 monthly cost of HiRez Qobuz. Most of the LPs you show in the classical 'what's playing' section are available streamed. Ah yes but personally I prefer listening to vinyl as I like the pop and crackle so much. Actually I find some digital stuff harsh, and edgy, on whatever medium it is, maybe its my equipment but even with a Meridian 508 CDP I found certain CDs plain irritating.
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Post by jandl100 on Oct 7, 2020 9:46:30 GMT
Hmm, well. I don't hear digital that way. If it does sound like that then there is something wrong with the playback gear imo.
Mind you, I was in a record shop about 15 years ago (Ben's Collectors Records in Guildford, anyone know Ben?) and there was another customer saying he couldn't listen to CDs as he always hears a high pitched whistle in the background. That still baffles me now! We all hear things differently.
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Post by John on Oct 7, 2020 9:49:04 GMT
I think it requires a bit of work to get rid of the digital glare.
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Post by ajski2fly on Oct 7, 2020 11:28:16 GMT
I think it requires a bit of work to get rid of the digital glare. Yes that is I come to conclude over the years having investigated and read quite a bit about it, hence my return to vinyl (not that is perfect either). However digital at CD res levels and above does offer some good and practical listening choices, certainly for casual listening IMO. When I was was purely CD and some digital files I found that I bargain to listen less and less to music. This was because every time I did I found that after a couple of hours I would find it a dissatisfying and tiring experience, so the system went into mothballs, then was sold off and replaced with an average surround sound system, and I looked to other entertainment. After 8 years hardly playing any music CD at home my interest was re-kindled when I purchased a Dual 505 and 35 vinyls from a friend who was selling his LP's off. So I have now a rather nice system built primarily for analogue/vinyl which is very transparent and clear in reproduction, not perfect but what system is, but which I can occasionally use for digital. The above still holds true I have to say, I have tried spending 3-4 hours listening to CDs or digital files as apposed to vinyl and I find it is just plain fatiguing. So what ever digital solution I use it will be as cost effective as possible without spending an arm and leg on DACs, fancy CD players, streamers and so on.
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Post by ajski2fly on Oct 7, 2020 11:32:05 GMT
Hmm, well. I don't hear digital that way. If it does sound like that then there is something wrong with the playback gear imo. Mind you, I was in a record shop about 15 years ago (Ben's Collectors Records in Guildford, anyone know Ben?) and there was another customer saying he couldn't listen to CDs as he always hears a high pitched whistle in the background. That still baffles me now! We all hear things differently. Ben's a great chap, I remember when he set up his first shop in Farnham, now that was a few years ago. I lived near Alton from the age of 7 until 35, so know the area very well. When I visit a very good friend near Dorking we often meet up at Ben's shop in Guildford. I was playing to see him this weekend but have decided to put that on hold with the CV19 rise around here and generally.
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Post by John on Oct 7, 2020 11:53:30 GMT
Martin wrote a article about how to get the best from digital playback on the forum that is well worth a read Adrian A basic summary Good power supplies Good isolation Remove ground plain noise as much as you can Reclock Good cables Good DAC Good transport
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Post by gazjam on Jan 12, 2021 19:01:08 GMT
Good question Adrian! From recent experience, Look into an Audiolab 6000CDT. To me, its a future classic. Still had a few hundred CDs left over from "the Cull" after I when I discovered streaming media back in the day, so wanted to put in place something that would do justice to the ones that were left. That took me down the road of looking for my "last disk spinner", and I opted for an Oppo 203. Modded the heel out of it (all the usual CD player tweaks + Linear psu, i2s output board, silver wiring and more) and I called it done. Until I seen Paul Rigby's review of the Audiolab. DAMN! Not mega pricey at £379 so took a punt. Over coax digital into the same Dac, better than the modded Oppo 203. Even over the Oppo over i2s into the same Dac. WAY better... Everything that's said in the review I agree with 100%. I've went that extra step I guess and tried it with a better Dac. Like Paul, I STILL don't know how good it is. Wasn't sure how good it would be over the Oppo when buying it, so didn't go mad with a coax digital cable, and currently loving the Wireworld Starlight 8 (hundred quid) I hook it up with to my Dac. Was listening to Johnny Cash earlier and I'd never noticed how he whistles through his teeth sometimes when he's in the middle of a thing you can tell he's getting really into singing. It's a detail monster, but never to the detriment of the emotional message of the song, which I'm hearing better than ever. Having lived with the Audiolab transport for a couple of Months now, I'm happy to go ahead and source the absolute best coaxial digital cable I can find (and afford!) to hook it up to my Dac, because genuinely I feel as if I don't know how good this thing is yet. Had a Black Cat Silverstar Mk1 from Chris Sommovigo (He knows his digital), so something from his Stable will be where I go. A £379 transport, just know I'm gonna use a digital cable that's 4 times its price... Seriously. The Audiolab is THAT good.
Adrian, get one of these. Seriously.
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Post by julesd68 on Oct 9, 2021 16:48:47 GMT
A friend of mine is wondering whether to change his cdp to just a pure transport to use with his external DAC.
In terms of sound quality, what can make one transport sound different to another?
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Post by MartinT on Oct 9, 2021 18:34:37 GMT
The same as with any digital streamer: jitter, phase noise and grounding.
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Post by ant on Oct 9, 2021 18:50:26 GMT
I use an arcam delta 170.3 cd transport from 1992, ive had one before which is why i bought another one. The transport had alot of work put into the power supplies and output board. Quite frankly it is a ton better than all of the streaming options i have. Playing direct cd rips through the streamed options compared to the actual cd itself is eye opening. There is life in cd yet
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Post by Slinger on Oct 9, 2021 19:00:20 GMT
The Cambridge CXC CD transport seems to get a lot of love too. I must admit, I've been tempted by it myself.
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Post by julesd68 on Oct 9, 2021 19:48:03 GMT
Or the Audioflab!
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