DCS Puccini and/or Soulution 740 players? Anyone??

Nolitan, no you can't, that's a two box player ... we're talking one box here. Nothwithstanding that, the Accuphase cannot do ALL music well anyway, such as rock, metal like the Dcs and Soulution can, even their top combo. I've tried.

Expanding the above would be with ie APL NOW 3.0GO, maybe the Spectral or the BOW and ofcourse (and I'm biased in this) the Playback Designs MPS-5!

Funny that no big name company would feature in the absolute best one box list ... that's because some of the best audiophile geniouses of the world are self employed or small companies.

You can also add the Accuphase 800/801 transport & dac combo to that list.

Ted, agree on you with the Puccini, the Soulution really can sound like one of the best though...

I have listened to all Soulution system in Munich, and the sound on Transrotor TT was overly bright. With CDP it was allmost unlistenable, but problem was I think in silver plated IC cables.
dCS is cold sterile and not musical at all, listened to Puccini on best new VTL preamp, S 400 amps, Wilson Maxx2 and top of the line transparent cables MM2

It's tough to compare unless you do it in your own system that you know very well, and needs to be very resolving. And even then there is the "magic matching" of certain brands and others that do not ... match.

I heard the Dcs Puccini in a Spectral/MIT/Avalon system, and I was not impressed at all, yes it sounded good, but not spectacular at all. It seemd to me all a bit too clean, too cold, too controlled and too veiled. But the room also was not top...

Recently I heard an all Soulution chain incl the CDP 740 on Magico V3's and cabled by PAD's. The room was awful and killed the highs and over emphasized the lows. But there was magic, easily the most musical sound of the whole show. I came home and listened to some of the same songs on my own system ... and smiled !

A used Verdi/Purcell or Verdi Encore ahead of a Scarlatti DAC is a nice way to evolve toward Scarlatti separates. It's what I currently use and, frankly, I'm in no hurry for a Scarlatti transport. If one has a sufficiently high quality transport/digital cable, the Scarlatti DAC could be a nice fit, though DSD upsampling ahead of the Scarlatti DAC does sound best to my tin ears.

Did you get a chance to compare versus the Spectral SDR-4000S one box?

MAXX,

If you could afford it ,you should really get the dcs puccini.I had A long listening sessions using the full dcs Scarlatti combo and dcs Puccini.The combo was better but not by much.

The Puccini is certainly better than the following based on my personal listening sessions:
1]Reimyo latest seprates.Very close to puccini but can't get near the Scarlatti.Quite impressive.

2]Spectral latest saperates..The details are there but the notes seems to lack heft.

3]Emm labs seperates.

5]Wadia 581se.

It is easily the best single box player that I have ever heard.The best thing about the dcs? lots of details but very musical at the same time.My next upgrade..

I have heard both in differents systems, one all soulution with Hansen king speakers, only one word : FANTASTIC, and the dCS with ARC ref3, CAT JL3 and Magico mini, : excellent, I think that both have a great sound, perhaps soulution a little more towards LP sound.