How am I going to audition all of them in my system? Are you going to give me the money? Truth is, most of us can only go on the reviews and comment of others as a starting point. If you are going to ask, then expect to have many different responses. At the price level you are contemplating, you HAVE money. If you spent $1200 on travel to hear the various items mentioned it would be far better then making a $10,000+ mistake. OT/Rant Nothing makes me laugh harder than a tightwad audiophile. Spend thousands on a fragile delicate piece of equipment and then choke on the difference between ground shipment and far safer/faster air shipment. OT/Rant/OFF Best, Paul :-) |
RMaidenberg
It is a "flavor" thing but IMO you chose the better flavor. |
Essentialaudio,
As I said, I haven't had the chance to hear the Reiymo yet, but have heard many good things about it. For now I am not in that market yet.... so it is somewhat f a mute point. |
If there is a "best", which I do not for a moment concede, then there must be an objective way to make that determination. While we may be able to come close in that endeavor, we cannot (or at least to date have not) reach that destination. As such, we are only left with flavor choices. What sounds best to me may sound mediocre to another.
FWIW, I have A-B'd the dCS stack against the EMM stack on two occasions at two different locations. Each time I preferred the dCS stack by a slight margin. If money were no object, I'd be an owner. Since money is an object, I bought the EMM stack. |
IUJONA, you should add the Teac Esoteric X-01 to your short list. I agree completely with TJ. . . at this level of performance it will be largely a matter of personal preference.
It is likely you won't go wrong with any of these boxes. I purchased the X-01 based on personal preference over DCS single player and stack, Accuphase DV77, Bel Canto PL1A, Bermester 001, ARC CD3 Mk. II, AA Capitol II, APL 1000.
I am enchanted by its staging, imaging, nuanced detailing and extreme grace. Won't categorize it as warm, and yes, it is merciless with bright etched recordings. Either way, make sure CDPs are well broken in before evaluating them. X-01 is only now starting to come into its own after about 300 hrs of continuous play. I imagine most other units of this caliber behave similarly. It is said for example that the AA Prestige will keep improving for the first 1500 hrs of playing time.
By the way, one of the reasons I bought the X-01 is Teac's stellar reputation for long term reliability. |
Kennyt, if I had to choose between the EMM and the dCS, I would agree, but fortunately there are others available, and to my ear and others' the Reimyo is superior to both, being much more analog sounding and involving. Disclaimer - I sell the latter, so take that with a grain of salt, but do go hear it for yourself when you get the chance. |
I have owned too many to count but in all my years in this hobby, the Meitner stack bests anything in the market today even the Dcs stack. The Meitner is so good that it is the reason I have not gotten back into vinyl. It is as close as the real thing. |
I remembered seeing some things out there about the Audio Aero Prestige when I was reading show reports, so I went baack and found it. The Prestige is apparently still very new, with only a few owned as yet. It appears to be a "Contender". They are already comparing the Prestige favourably with the EMM, and the Prestige is not even broken-in yet. (less expensive also)
From a dealer that handles both EMM & Audio Aero:
http://www.audiofederation.com/blog/ (Prestige amps too)
http://www.audiofederation.com/hifiing/2005/RMAF2005/official-report/index.htm |
I haven't heard the Reiymo, but have A-B's the EMM vs the DCS stack and to my ears their was no comparison, the EMM was far superior. Haven't yet heard the AA Prestige, but if I had the $$ I would buy the EMM Labs without hesitation... Unfortunately I bought Kitchen this year instead. |
I have had a chance to compare head-to-head, in the same system EMM DCC2 + CDSD vs dCS Verdi LaScala / Elgar Plus for over two weeks (both on loan for home audition), and to my ears, the latest dCS stuff clearly outperformed EMM on Redbook CD.
Note #1. I didn't have a chance to compare their SACD performance - I have no software, and do not really care about SACD.
Note #2. I have heard that older dCS stuff is nowhere near as goog as DSD upsampling Verdi La Scala, so my expirience and an expirience of other AudiogoNers that tried older dCS stuff may differ.
Note #3. dCS stack was 50% more expensive.
Note #4. dCS worked perfectly, wheres EMM didn't (it has some static noise probnlems, also reported by other users)
Note #5. You can further improove dCS performance with an external Verona master clock.
Just my 0.02c worth. |
Iujona, the short answer is no, there is no the "BEST" but many fine reference pieces in high end audio. If your interested a thread that I started entitled, Reference DACS:An overall perspective, will give information on the DACS you are curious about. Much of this wonderful hobby ends up in "EGO" battles over who's toys are the "BEST" in the world. It real boils down to personnal taste and system synergy, so different flavors appeal to different folks. On a final note, no offense to Jtinn, I don't know about your "STATUS", so it most not be very obvious, what ever that's suppose to mean anyways, but to be "ADAMANT" about anything means rigid/dogmatic not a very compilmentary position to to oneself in. If you mean that you believe strongly that for your ear's that the EMM DACS are the best for you, does not make that digital front end the "BEST" in the world for everybody else. I love the sound of my digital front end, auditioned the Meitner gear and did not think it sounded as good as what I finally purchased, but that doesnot prove its the "BEST" in the world. There are many great flavors to choose from, that's what makes this hobby so much fun, if you don't get your ego involved. |
Iujona, visit or call your local dealers. They should let you try the stuff at home if you ask, and if they won't, don't do business with them. I say this as a longtime audiophile first and a dealer second. I sell what I find to be best, but you must listen for yourself and decide. I repeat myself, do not much stock in what you read online. |
How am I going to audition all of them in my system? Are you going to give me the money? Truth is, most of us can only go on the reviews and comment of others as a starting point. |
My experience is the same as Jtinn's. |
i would add zanden, esoteric, meridian, spectral, and 47 laboratory (PiTracer). |
I haven't had the opportunity to compare directly, but I'd still put the Audio Synthesis DAX Discrete on your shortlist. Audio Synthesis |
It is the best I have heard on both CD and SACD. My status is obvious, but those who know me, know I am adamant that I have not heard better. |
Please search the archived messages here. This topic has been covered many times, with no clear consensus. I urge you to audition several in your own system and trust your ears, not what you might read online. |
