Biggest soundstage in a CD Player ?

KRELL- bright in your face. Analytical
MERIDIAN- smooth & polite sounding loose bottom end
WADIA- excellent detail high volumes can get bright and analytical
ACCUPHASE- neutral sounding great detail,good base & good soundstage width & can sound a little compressed
LEVINSON 39- best depth and width I have heard yet. I draws you into performances. bass extension is great. Mids have a liquid like texture. And the unit is very natural grain free. STEREOPHILES Review states" the 39 produces music on the most exalted level" also "fine ability to place musicians in space surrounded by air" also " what was noticed most was being drawn into performances-hearing passion where it had not previously revealed itself to me... I just dont think cd standard can get much better than this"...

Just because stereophile loved it doesnt mean you will. It depends on the associated equipment your using. You have some good players to pick from and you will have the final word. All we can do is offer our opinions to you from our exsperiences with the above mentioned gear. I own the 39 and I love it but thats me and my taste. As you can see I have tried a few before buying the 39 just to make sure I wouldnt have any regrets. I have had the 39 for about a month and a half and I dont see myself buying anything else for many years to come. You can also use it as a preamp. I run mine direct to my amp.It has inputs for two additional peices of gear. Well I hope I was of help? Sorry I didnt know about all of the above mentioned.
associated equipment: levinson 335
levinson 39
martin logan ascents

if you bought a Marantz SACD player it sounds good as long as you feed it sacd when you listen to a regular cd you have a regular marantz cd player. Thats a no brainer. Good Luck

I have also compared the Levinson 39 to a sony sacd player that was 5k and even when they used a sacd disk the 39 still sounded better.

MASSVM, I found the Levinson to have more sonic stability than the sony. The sony sounded good when playing sacds but once we switched to redbook cds it sounded aweful in comparison. The dealer was shocked he didnt know what to say. He had asked me to bring my 39 in he never heard one. needless to say he is trying to take on the Levinson line as we speak.

If those where your thoughts why bother to ask me. If I struck a nerve Iam sorry Marantz is Marantz and sony is sony and Levinson is Levinson. Deal with it

guys. Iam sorry the sony is good and so is the Marantz. I did a comparison at a dealer and those where our findings. Badwisdom WANTS a redbook cd player not sacd so why are so many people offering something he is not looking for? I offered the best player that I found and simply forwarded my thoughts and opinions. There are MANY great cd players out there it is all about synergy within a system and the 39 works very well with my 335. I would not buy an SACD until software is as available as redbook software.(and who knows if it ever will be they are already talking about dieing out in a few years as laser discs did. There is a small market of people who will spend alot on a stereo let alone $25 on a cd) So with that in mind and also the fact that redbook cds dont sound high end through the SACD thats where I am coming from. Sorry if I affended anyone.