Lithojoe[also known as the "old flaming fart"], if you want a serious answer by using your own ear's go audtion DACS or CDP from the following manufacturers: 1) Accustic Arts 2) Meitner 3)Zanden 4)Bel Canto 5) Reimyo. Just like analog front ends that offer different sonic virtues that met your personnal taste and synergy with the rest of your system. The days of sounds like analog vs digital is very similar to the old days of tubes vs solid state, the best pieces sound more alike than different compared with the old days. |
Depends on the level of your digital and analog setups. :) |
Agree completely with Dvavc.
Quality of the product and set up is everything. Possible to get great sound with both formats, possible to get crap sound out of both. |
I agree with all the above posters. I own the Meitner DCC2/CDSD, and have heard the Reimyo, Accustic Arts, and Zanden rigs, and IMO the best of digital today offers the same level (but VERY diferent presentation) of performance that the best analog does. Analog still does some things that digital doesn't and probably never will do, but I can say the same for digital vs. analog. For me, it comes down to what type of presentation you prefer--just as is the case with solid state vs. tubes. The diehards will continue to spew their rhetoric one way or the other, but for me, at the uppermost level, you can't lose either way. |
The diehards will continue to spew HeHe, you said "spew" |
Digital gave analog a bloody nose with a right hook. I'm pretty sure it's broken. Analog put down digital with a sucker-punch to the groin, and kicked'em while he was down. There is no clear winner, just a lot of cleaning up to do. For God's sake, will someone mop up that blood!
Marco |
i wouldnt go that far....
the vpi scoutmaster is pretty darn good ($3000 with cart)... i dont think there is digital unit within a reasonable $$$ amount |
Hey Mike, I'm an analog guy all the way (look at my system). Truth is though, bad phono, bad set up and / or bad cartridge and a high end digital and the roles can be reversed.
One of my best friends in my audio group has a CEC TL1X and an Audio Note 4X balanced. While his Aesthetix Io and Callisto are being worked on he is pinch hitting with VTL 5.5 (?) preamp.
Believe it or not, with that set up the digital is about even with the analog. When the Aesthetix stuff comes back the digital will improve greatly and the analog will walk away from it. I know this will be the outcome because until the Aesthetix was returned to be upgraded to latest, I heard this rig a hundred times.
Funny how much gear effects the end results. |
i enjoy both formats and recent advances in my total system performance have likely moved digital a little closer to the vinyl in overall performance. seems that my GP rack has had a more positive effect on the emmlabs than the Lamm LP2 phono stage.
yesterday, for the first time in a couple of years, i got out the Furutech demagnatizer. then i pulled out two unopenned cases of Auric Illuminator. for the next few hours i painted the black felt marker on CD edges, cleaned CD's and then de-mag'd um. (i have an Audiodesk trimer on the way too).
i did this to about 15 of my most played CD's......listening to one while i 'did' another. this was a similar approach that i have taken with vinyl in the past.....kinda theraputic.
this process made a big performance difference.....more than i really expected to hear. the emmlabs already had as good digital performance as i have heard.....and this improved it even more (at least for redbook....i didn't tweak any sacd's). i look forward to what the Audiodesk can do.
my point is that when approaching digital there are ways to optimize it to get closer to what vinyl can do. resonance control, all kinds of disc tweaks, power cords, even CD-R methodologies......all are wringing a little more out of those silver discs.
digital has come 'closer'......but in most ways is not really close. when i put on one of my 'really good' Lps......game, set, match.....to vinyl. |
Hi Joe,
I'm a dyed in the wool analog guy as well but recently I found a cd player that I believe will rock the digital world. It's a Chinese player called the Original Cd and this model is thier 5th year anniverary special called the Leonardo. It has changed everything I ever thought about digital. I haven't heard the Zandens or Meitner units but if they're better than this then it must be live. The most transparency I've heard from digital, you can get up and walk around the players in your sounstage it's that delineated. The biggest soundstage I've had in my system with width that envelopes around to the sides with real density to instruments not just sounds eminating from somewhere. The depth is better than I've been able to get with my analog. This is the first cd player I have owned that has been in the same league with my analog. I wont say it beats up on analog but we've got a fair fight for a change. By the way my analog rig is Micro Seiki 8000 tt, Air Tangent arm and I go between the Music Maker mm to a Cardas mc. The phono stage is something most people haven't heard of called the Electron Images which is another sleeper product. Also the retail on the cd player is $7000.00 and I know they just got a US distributer but I'm not sure who it is. Good luck Joe and I'm still enjoying my Scott tuner!
Rusty |
i had a great experience with japanese red book CDs that do sound better than same album vinyl made in japan. |
As I stated above, I think digital has evolved to a point where it's largely a matter of DIFFERENCES between the two formats. Sure, analog does some things better than digital, but digital also does some things better than analog. The best of the two formats are overall pretty equal in my book. In my time as an audiophile, I've either owned or heard the best turntables and digital playback devices out there, and I don't agree that, with a good LP, analog "walks away" from digital. A well recorded CD played back on a quality digital rig can compete with equivalent analog any day of the week. It's mostly a matter of what type of sonic presentation you value. I own an EMM Labs setup now, and I could've easily bought a SOTA turntable, but I didn't feel that the difference in presentation I'd get was worth the hassle. The EMM does everything (and more) that I need it to. Just my opinion. |
i dont think there is digital unit HeHeHe... you said "unit" |
Has digital come close to or beat up analog yet ?
NO
How do you get a smoother analog wave with straight lines?
|
"Beat up?" Well, no. "Provide at least as good music as?" Yup. The best of even redbook CD digital now is good enough that the rest of the system including the room and speaker placement are more important than "silver discs vs. black", IMO. And if the point of the exercise is listening to lots of recent releases, well, I'll take CDs any day. Of course, with my front end I would say that, wouldn't I? |
thats a crazy looking cd player, glider. does it sound good ? |
i meant "crazy" in a good way, you know, like wacky, etc. i wasn't trying to put down your cool cd player. |
Readster,
It sounds remarkable - pure and natural, just like music. I have yet to hear one better, though I haven't heard the Meitner stuff. |
i have the same money into my vinyl setup as in my cd, and the cd is gaining ground with me. i got a frest lp yesterday and really enjoyed it, but lps have deteriorated badly with only a couple dozen plays;at least they play where the cds don't always.
i set up a stereo for a party in a 24' diam. canvas yurt 2 days ago. i put extremely efficient openbaffles right next to a large window so the back wave would not be heard or cancel out the front wave (mostly in the bass). a yamaha 1010 midfi int. amp was hooked up to a cheap sub, then after a filter gave the sub eveything from 150 hz and lower, the band above that was handed to the mains. neither the amp nor this method of setting it up was deemed satisfactory in my home stereo. 10 cent interconnects were employed as well as thick monster braided speaker wire. the source was a cheap dvd toshiba which predated the 3950 and did not even display the tracks. THE SOUND WAS BETTER THAN MY REGULAR STEREO, AS GOOD AS MY FRIENDS APOGEE/ROWLAND/CAL SETUP! all because of the window baffle, the dead listening room, and the huge deep-cycle BATTERY POWER than fed the AC sockets.
I ain't lyin. |
