CAIRN FOG V2.0 CD PLAYER

Typical Sterophile where they don't offer any comparisons to other untis in the same price range. I also read the review but my gut tells me you get what you pay for and you would probably be better off buying a used $5,000 player that now sells for $2K (start with beter parts and a good desing and get better sound)than trying to find a budget component that out performs so of the higher rated older models.

Is it just me? I find "Fog" a wierd name for an audio product, especialy one that uses a laser. Brings to mind lost ships and fog horns.

The Cairn FOG player was being sold at a local high-end audio store here in Canada. Despite some quirky display and functionality issues it sounded quite good, and better than anything else in it's price group per se. One caveat however; early versions had transport drawer problems and repair personell for this player are few, if you buy, get a money back guarantee as the warranty for 30 days or pass.

I also read Sam Tellig's recent review of the Cairn Fog, and it struck me as contemporary Sam: this is his current "flavor of the month". Once upon a time, back when Sam first started his column and was actually focused on audio bargains, his column was generally reliable. Unfortunately, Sam got bitten by the "more expensive is better" bug, and is now just another "Will Rogers" reviewer -- i.e., he never met an audio component he didn't like.

Hence, his advice may or may not be valid. I'd wait until at least several other audio reviewers write about the Cairn Fog before making any buying decision.