i want a dull, caramel colored cd player any ideas

>>"BTW, he does own a very nice turntable with a Grado cartridge."<<
[Reb1208]
>>>>>>>>>

Well, imho, that would rule out my suggestion of using Mullard tubes in his preamp. The combo of the warm sounding Grado cart and the Mullard tubes would be so soothing he might fall asleep.....

Still might be worth the effort to try the Mullard tube in his CDP.
===============

Mrtennis, the reason I asked your age was because of what I perceived you were trying to say in your thread. I am glad to hear I am not the only one out there who finds harsh bright high pitch sounds hurts my ears. I guess it is all part of the aging process.
Jim

Cruz, the problem with blankets (I've tried) is they might work great for the midrange, but they'd be too heavy for the for the treble and to light for the bass. I tried some blankets that were alpaca & cotton blends and they tended too wooly on the bass.

Natural fibers like silk worked to the treble, but did nothing to caramelize the midrange. Once when i was caramelizing some onions I used butter, so I spread butter on the midrange of my MBL speakers. This did not solve the problem, so I sold them here on AudiogoN The buyer told me they had a very liquid midrange, but I was going for caramel.

As it turned out heavy rayon worked for the midrange, but Cashmere was the only thing to do the trick for the bass. It has to be three ply cashmere though, Landsend and other cheap stuff will not do the trick.

I hope this helps. If it doesn't work, I would still suggest getting some crappy cables to make the CDP sound it's worst. I suggest a DIY CAT 5 if you really want something rolled off, dull and lifeless. I know those characteristics are not really caramel colored, but you might have to make do, with what you can get!

Best of luck!

You have to love them blankets. Sometime ago I recall a preamp shipped to me wrapped up in a dirty blanket, it arrived in perfect condition. I'm hoping on my next audio purchase to receive a set of king size sheets. Anyway it could be that sheets are the ticket as opposed to blankets for the desired sound as they may be slightly more neutral.

Mrtennis in all due respect it would of been far better to ask opinions on a warmer sounding CD player rather your intial choice of words. My first reaction to your thread was that this was either a troll or you were just being funny which in turn diminished your sincerity in my opinion. I can say one thing for sure, with all prejudice set aside, this has been a very entertaining thread & could be that some of us have misunderstood your true intentions.

Mrtennis, aside from the entertainment value of this post, I'll bite and consider your statements as being sincere.

You are certainly entitled to the listening experience that you might enjoy most. I believe your quest has landed you in the right place. With that I propose you subscribe to the cliché "one man's junk...". Now utilizing your particular sound attributes as keywords in an Audigon discussions search I believe you will find an enormous wealth of gear bashing discussion that would certainly identify just what you might be looking for. There is one caveat however - there is always the chance that such discussions will lead you to that extremely dull sounding CDP and once you buy one based on these posters "in depth analysis", you may find that after listening for yourself it is actually very dynamic and detailed, perhaps even very musical with great soundstage and separation. Now that my friend would be very disappointing, wouldn't it?

phd, i thank you for your understanding.

at this point let me try to put things into context.

i have listened to many components which have been described as warm sounding , balanced, not irritating, etc.

i have been to 12 CES shows, numerous stereophile shows in NYC and i have been a member of an audio club for 20 years.

i admit that my preference is quite different than most "audiophiles".

i felt that in order to attain a sense of an organic full bodied sound, i would ask for suggestions for a "dull" presentation, figuring that if i found acd player with that attribute, i could live with it.

i also admit that i have not considered the sensibilities of other people and could have worded my request differently.

i suppose i came accross as provocative and challenging the way others like to listen to music.

so, i have been duly chastened and perhaps deserved some of the criticism.

i apologize to those whom i offended.

i have been speaking to scott nixon about modifying his tube dac to soften it a little, and hopefully that will come to pass.

i have the CAL Alpha and Delta and have been using NOS tubes. it's not a bad combination.

i found a line cord by DCCA audio which i like, which is on the warm side and hopefully with a little tweaking, can realize a sound that comes close to my Audionote CD2 with a GE 5751 black plate.

again, thanks for your understanding.

all of these postings have taught me a valuable lesson in life--don't be a bull in achina shop.

I have the same tastes in frequency response but I am always afraid to voice it because of the obvious reactions.

I finally found the older Grado cartridges and was in heaven until the CD arrived. I have thrown thousands of dollars at my system trying to replicate that sound with CD with no success. I can listen to the newer cds from the last two or three years but not most of the 2000 older cds in my collection.

I actually gave in and put an equalizer in the tape monitor loop so when my ears hurt I hit the switch.
Not the same as the Grado but at least bearable.

Please let me know if you find an answer.
Thanks, Ed Lanway, DC

i'm considering a bat vk d5. i have a post requesting opinions about the sound of this cd player. the post may not appear for 4 to 8 hours.

i may have to make a decision tomorrow.

i would appreciate any ideas.

Get all PS Audio Prelude power cords and put 4 vibrapods under every component. These should dull the sound like nothing else. Get all Audioquest copper cables, their mid line, like Jaguar. Get Zu Cable Libtec speaker cables. Get RGPC power conditioners for your cd player and the pre-amp. All this combined should get you the results you're asking for. Bat player is a good machine, but last time I heard it, I do not recall that it sounded dull.

did anyone mention dipping the current cdp into a tub of maple syrup?

i have settled on a cd player.

it may not be dull, but according to recommendations, may be one the warmer players out there and gives me the opportunity to change spectral balance by finding a suitable 6922.

the player is the BAT VK D5.

I mentioned the problem may be elsewhere in your system, so let me elaborate on that, especially since you think the BAT may not be the final solution.

I would first recommend that you replace your receptacle with an unplated unit like the Porter Port and eliminate any silver that may be in your system, be it power cords, spkr. cables or interconnects.

I'm not after the same sonic presentation that you are but I can't stand any harshness or brightness and have tried many combinations. As a result of my experimentations, I would think something like the HT Truthlink would work well for you in the IC dept. If you use balanced connections, simple pro audio cables will do the trick. These rec's are the first two I thought of.

PC's can play a big factor too, so those are worth examining. If you've upgraded your PC's, you might want to revert back to stock, although some aftermarket PC's can alter the presentation to the point of dulling the sound.

BTW, it took me about three yrs and ~75 cable changes to get where I am today. In the last 4 yrs, I've basically stayed with the same IC & spkr. cable manufacturer while continuing to mildly experiment w/DIY and aftermarket PC's.

Finally, the biggest contributor to your sound is probably the room itself. Definitely worth looking into, although sometimes, there are no options available to work with, eg the WAF.

No, you have to wait three years & 10 months before you sell.

I have a totally different system now.

get a vintage old JBL speaker

Mr Tennis, in another thread (just deleted by Audiogon I assume because it deteriorated into a pissing contest) you told us you were an audio reviewer. Is this the player you intend to use in your reference system for reviews?

I think it would be nice if you identify yourself so if I run across one of your reviews I can factor in your unusual preferences stated above.

hi herman.

i have not found such a player. i don't think such a player exists.

whenever reading a review, the reviewer states his/her reference system and you would note all of the components which were included as part of the review.

the only reason for you to be concerned about my unusual preference is in the event, you were unaware of a component.

however, in any review it is possible that there is at least one component which you have never encountered or heard of.

i would prefer to put the cart after the horse.

if you read a review and you are unfamiliar with a component, just ask me about it. my vast experience attending ces and other shows may be of help to you.

at this time, given the "controversy" that has ensued as a consequence of my many threads and posts, i chose not to divulge my name.

i feel i am in good company, because i am not aware of the names of other reviewers who frequently post on audiogon, who have admitted to being reviewers.

one more thing about reviews: given the nature of what a review is being aware of reviewer preferences does not help you because a professional reviewer does not let his preferences interfere with his task, which is honest reporting.

reading a review will not help you avoid a mistake. i don't take reviews seriously. they are just entertainment.

i enjoy and am challenged when i write them, but i don't take them too seriously and you shouldn't either.

sorry i can't be of more help, but i must protect myself from over zealous, dogmatic individuals who may cause trouble.

your understanding is greatly appreciated.

>>i would prefer to put the cart after the horse<<

But won't that block our best view of you?

hi tvad, are you 9rw's clone ?

again it is easier to catch a fly with honey than with vinegar.

it's up to you to find out who the other reviewers are. it doesn't matter to me who is or is not a reviewer. being a reviewer is no big deal.

if you take reviews too seriously, that's your problem.

i respect your opinion, you are entitled to it. i'll leave it to your judgement what reviews are or are not suitabl;e reading material for various endeavors.

by the way do you have an anger management problem ?

you come accross as very hostile. have i offended your sensibilities ?

didn't your mother tell you, "if you have nothing good to say, be quiet" ?

by the way tvad, you seem to be rather full of yourself.

the way you order people around, you should have been a construction boss.

fortunately for me, you are not my boss, not my teacher, and not my parent. i suggest you lighten up.

you take audio and this forum much too seriously.

hi tvad. i guess it's my fault. i can't tell when you're kidding or being serious.

in the future, i will assume you are joking and therefore won't take offense.

read my next thread . perhaps you'll find it interesting

Mrtennis: As you can see, other people are curious about your claim that you're a "reviewer." This has nothing to do with any of us being angry. It has to do with integrity -- and you're the one who brought it up. What were you hoping to achieve?

Regardless, what are some of the components that you have reviewed? Is that top secret, too? Thanks!

I want exciting, revealing, jaw dropping sound. Is that too much to ask?

9 rw, i have reviewed the following interconnect cable:

synergistic research, audioquest, soundstring and lefenburg by capativa

i have reviewed sound fusion sound busters anti resonant devices, sim audio eclipse cd player, minimax cd player and the channel islands audio dac.

i have also written feature articles covering such subjects as synergy, neutrality, the purpose of a stereo system, accuracy and musically and knowledge, opinion and the audio experience.

currently i am in the process of reviewing sunny cable technology cable, dcca cable and solitone cable.

i have temporarily replaced my quad 63s with magnepan 1.6s because oone of the quads requires a replacement of at least one panel and the possible cost may exceed my purchase price.

by the way please read my latest post regarding the thread "adaptation level theory and component evaluation" .

following your suggestion, i have attempted to "come clean".