Does the Transport make a significant difference?


Had been running a squeezebox with my Audio Note 2.1 Dac. Tried my basic Oppo dvd player as a transport and yikes what an improvement - even over my $3,000 invested Modwright Sony player (a little rough round the edges but dynamic and live-ly sounding). So wondering if the mantra of having a great source is the best place to start ... ie matching the Dac to a quality transport say CEC TL 51 or open the vaults and spring for a quality Audio Note, Esoteric, or even dcs transport will be worth the investment. How does this compare with say upgrading your amp or speakers or even cables? I know I should listen for myself but any good experience out there to draw on before I start getting crazy about checking out the used adverts?
ladavid

Showing 1 response by tricka

Hi there
The SB3 in stock form is a fairly average transport and improves a great deal with a simple pulse transformer mod to clean up the RF. I prefer my modded SB3 as a transport to my Transporter (although AES out is very close).
Equally important is a good cable - not necc expensive but good in terms of a match. I use a $5 cable which sounds better than some $300 IC's I tried.
No question that Transports designed to work with a purpose built Dac eg Esoteric, dCS etc will give you significant improvements in resolution - the issue is whether the rest of your system will let you hear it.
Cheers
Andrew