EMM Labs CDSA SE vs DCS Puccini

Hi Dctom

Yes, of course, I know Andreas Koch because as you said he was working with EMM labs a couple of years...
In 2013 he has developped for Nagra their new dsd Dac,It's not nothing !

The inside parts of the PBD MPS 5 are very similar as in the Emm Labs Xds1 as well as the implementation of various circuits. So, I think they will have a very close sonic signature. Althought the MPS 5 seems to sound a bit more like vinyl than the EMM labs. this is what I have understood by reading the various comments on the PlayBack Design. Like you I prefer a one box cdp.
Now I am comforted in my choice for my next cd player, I think I will stay with EMM Labs with the XDS1.

Thank you Dctom

The Paganini has a lot of " the usual" rave reviews but when I listened to it, I thought it sounds boring. More or less like 50 other - cheap - Players. Well, I had dCS before, they were quite good but I think something happened ... the former superiority is history. I went for CDSA-SE, it is not colored sonically, excellent with normal discs...there is worse out there...

Hi ours13
I managed to borrow a Puccini+USB clock, for a couple of days to compare to my then ARC CD5. The Puccini was better but it was marginal and I did not buy it.
I ended up with the playback MPS 5 second hand it is very good, the side by side improvement over the CD5 was obvious straight away - unfortunately it had some issues the seller managed to hide.

It is now fixed fixed and it does sound fantastic. It has a very natural sound, much more so than the dcs. I also had a very long demo over 2 days of the 3 box dcs Paganini. I was not able to compare it directly with the PBack. However on re-listening to the MPS 5 back at my home I much preferred the PB presentation of music. Although the dcs Pag sounded detailed it seemed to lack warmth and weight in the bottom end.

I think the dcs gear sounds a bit digital compared to the playback and I do not like all the extra, dac, clock & up-sample, devices you have to use with dcs. I much prefer a one box solution. The PB is much simpler to operate.

As I expect you know Andreas Koch worked with EMM labs before developing the MPS 5. There are similarities in the physical design of the 2 brands. I have never heard an EMM labs machine but I suspect the sound would be neater to the playback than the dcs sound.

Thank you Rcprince for your help!
I love the EMM Labs sonic signature too, because it sounds very natural and realistic.
I will certainly buy an XDS1 on the second hand market but before I wanted to have opinions of the users of Puccini. Because I never had the pleasure to listen to it but I know that it is a good cd/sacd player too. I know that at this level of performance, the choice between one or the other will be more a matter of taste.
I know Playback Design but it is very difficult to find on the used market, and the prices in France are very high ( bought new it costs 19700 euros or more than 27000 $ !!!) as well as for the XDS1 ( 25000 euros more than 35500 $ ! ) but more easy to find on second hand market with more approachable prices.

So I will be patient !
Again thank you for your participation, it's very kind of you.

Thank you for your answer Jon2020.
I am actually an owner of a CDSA SE, with the last transport (not Philips). I know that there were some problems with the Phillips transport.
My CDSA SE is on sale.
The Puccini uses an Esoteric UMK5 transport.
I just want to know about the sound quality differences of the Puccini compared with the CDSA SE.
Thank you for your help Jon2020, I will have a look on the Trivista.
Regards

While I love the EMM Labs players, I agree with Jon 2020 on his point about the Philips transports. The CDSA, and the CDSD transport, have had some reliability problems (my transport initially had problems, and the same with a friend's CDSA), and parts for their repair may be hard to get. I wound up getting an EMM Labs XDS1 principally for the Esoteric transport mechanism, though the sonic improvements were notable as well. However, I understand, from the Stereophile review, that the Puccini uses the Esoteric mechanism as well (the prior one-box player from dCS, the P8i, did not, and was trouble-prone, as the Stereophile review of the Puccini notes). For that reason, while I have preferred the EMM Labs players sonically, between the two players you mention the Puccini would be the choice. I would also suggest that you consider a used EMM Labs XDS1. My experience with the two brands is that they are both excellent, but I always felt that the EMM Labs house sound was more natural and believable to me, particularly with respect to dynamics (I felt the earlier dCS sound from their Elgar and other DACs and the P8i were just a little "polite" in that regard, though I admittedly haven't heard the Puccini). Others who have bought the dCS gear will probably disagree; at this level of performance it's hard to go wrong. One other potential player you might want to consider and hear is the Playback Designs player, which I have heard and with which I was very impressed.

It would be better to stay away from these two players with Philips transports if you are buying used with expired warranties.
See the latest thread on the MF Trivista SACD player.