+1 @jymc
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It is crystal clear that many of the "experts" above are proud to tout their favorite brands with all the superficial emotion of hitting the lotto jackpot. To those looking for guiding advice prior to making a substantial purchase, hopefully you will forego the preceding biased self-absorbed nonsense, and instead, add an inexpensive plane ticket to the cost of your purchase and visit a reputable dealer to audition whatever brand you may be considering....a smart added cost associated with a $20k CD player purchase. |
No one mentioned Yamaha? I have owned my Yamaha CD-S2100 for some six years now and it has operated and sounded flawlessly. I expected it to sound fantastic with SACD but wasn’t prepared for how it reproduced Red Book CD. It may not weigh as much as an Esoteric at 35+ pounds, but then it “only” costs $3000 currently directly from Yamaha. My listening is done through a Luxman L-590AxII Class A integrated and a lovely set of Sonus Faber Maxima Amators and a good set of balanced interconnects. With the savings you can buy an awful lot of discs. Or a very nice turntable 😆. |
I own the folling Oppo BDP 83 - old but sound great Oppo BDP 105D Plays everything but 4K Blue Ray Movies -Sound and looks amazing. A Sony 1000 ES player - Also great sounding Also A Sony 9000ES for you vintage Guy But the most interesting on is the Alesis Masterlink ML 9600 High Difination Master Disk recorder - - It has a built in hard drive recorder and a CD Disk burner - so you can make copys of a friend cd that you would like to have. And finaly the surprise of them all the lowly Gemini CSMP 1500 cs player that has a pitch control and cues the cd to the start of siginal - It sound remarkably good - I would say crazy good for the lowly price of 219.00 brand new on Amazon I also owned a 4 box DCS cd system - the happiest day of my audio life was when I got it and even better when I sold it -GO FIGURE. After listening to all kinds of esoteric players - I decided to pay more than 2K for a SACD pllayer is insane. |
I have personally owned the Totaldac Triunity Dac and Metronome Calypso Reference Transport combo prior to downsize to the Esoteric K-01XD and extremely happy with the musical performance of the unit. The new redesign transport and dac in the Esoteric XD are absolutely amazing with warmth and precise that any previous generation including the Grandioso K1 can’t even compete. IMHO purchase the K-01XD and happy for life! |
I have the Esoteric K-01X. I directly compared it to the top of the line Marantz, and the dCS SACD player, which I think was the Puccini, or Rossini. The Marantz and the dCS were awful by comparison, although I don’t remember exactly in which ways. I really enjoyed the sound quality from the Esoteric….until I upgraded my vinyl. Now the Esoteric sounds awful by comparison to my vinyl set up. I haven’t even listened to CD/SACD in a couple of years in my home system. |
K01x owner here. Sounds great, happy. No desire to change it. Disadvantage of Esoteric. 1) Constant planned obsolescence, every 2 years a new model which devalues the “older” players 2) only 1 service center in US (Los Angeles) 3) Repairs are expensive. My player did not read discs right outside warranty = new transport and $3.5k in repairs. |
@rbyington71 "A CD is a spinner and a laser so what does a 12k Esoteric do that a $1,200 Marantz doesn’t." I’m not going to waste any time explaining the differences in specific components and the fact that there are a plethora of machines that I haven’t listened to or maybe not even heard of as there are components that either do not or rarely ever make it to our shores(I have a Romanian audio buddy who fills me in on that stuff who really knows much more about that kind of equipment). Kind of like being mildly a car buff; knowing about Ferrari, what a 911 GT3 is, and then finding out that there is a world of Koenigsegg’, Pagani’, Fractal mathematics used in design(Rimac), and a host of other small independent companies or even large businesses, Volkswagon, Ford utilizing small teams of creative engineers pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in auto design, so in audio. The same passion exists in audio, actually almost anything in life you can say that about where someone out there has a better way of expressing that kind of passion. My $80.00 CD player gives me some part of, some flavor of, a taste if you will, even if it’s a minuscule bit of what a top tier component can do, but it is not the same thing. In some ways it betters, well sort of, kind of my mid-level machine that’s much more than the eighty-buck player. But that’s a whole other discussion and I’d be typing all day. I know that it might be difficult to be able to listen to a wide range of systems, and products in parts of the country and given enough time auditioning them to get a real handle on what’s what. I have been into this hobby since high school, that would have been the seventies and even in the last few years I still am learning new things. Some of the most important things I learned was to be a better listener; not just to music but people as well. Also to trust my own instincts. My initial reaction to a product tends to be the right for me, even if I figure it out later. I always liked Linn and Naim's audio advice to sales staff doing demos of any equipment. You do the best demonstration you can and if the customer doesn’t hear those differences in components you’re demonstrating, don’t try to shove it down their throats! |
There's more to making music than making the little silver disc spin around and pointing a laser at it. The quality of the transport matters, and most importantly, what happens to the bits and bytes after they are read by the laser matters the most. The digital bits need to be converted to an analog signal, which is what separates the wheat from the chaff. |
Rbyington711 "A CD is a spinner and a laser so what does a 12k Esoteric do that a $1,200 Marantz doesn't." I own Esoteric's P-05/D-05 set up as well as a P-0s. I also have a Theta Jade. The Theta is really good, but at its' best, maybe 85% of the Esoterics. So, if you have to ask, you'll never know. |
Rbyington711 "A CD is a spinner and a laser so what does a 12k Esoteric do that a $1,200 Marantz doesn't." I own Esoteric's P-05/D-05 set up as well as a P-0s. I also have a Theta Jade. The Theta is really good, but at its' best, maybe 85% of the Esoterics. So, if you have to ask, you'll never know. |
Marantz and Esoteric players aren’t in the same league. Marantz is great at their asking price or is great for the money and most of Marantz CD/SACD players can be had for $3k and under with the exception of their Reference series SA-10 player. Esoteric players are in completely different league and completely different price points. Esoteric’s entry level CD/SACD player one box machine starts at least around $10k ++ or more. Their flagship models are well into six digit figure $$ such as the Esotetic Grandioso stacks : CD/SACD transport, master clock, mono DACs. So no comparison between Marantz and Esotetic. Esoteric units are comparable to those offerings from DCS, MSB, EMM Labs, Ypsilon and other ultra high end brands. Even Luxman and Accuphase players are way superior compared to those of Marantz players. They are also not in the same leagues. Higher end Luxman and Accuphase models are comparable to Esoteric, EMM Labs, Bricasti, DCS. Also highly consider the latest PS Audio DirectStream Mkii DAC (new model) and its CD/SACD transport combo. They are phenomenal. PS Audio also has the Airlens, which is a streamer or sort of network bridge that is meant to be connected to Roon to stream Tidal and Qobuz because the Airlens itself doesn’t have built-in streaming apps. You can also connect the Airlens to their DirectStream Mkii DAC for streaming. They are all awesome sounding combos. |
Like restaurants, I like a great cheap eats place that's BYOB and the same with higher priced offerings, where the food and presentation are more refined, I like to find that really special (at least to me) audio component that is both reasonable, dirt cheap if I'm lucky and those products that at this stage of my life I simply want. I have three very different CD, CD/SACD players as I write this, one I paid $80.00 for recently and am enjoying quite a bit. It's an unmodified version of the first CD player I owned and was a modified from a long defunct company, "The Mod Squad" at Music by the Sea, a Steve McCormak and partner business. The CD player was stored away well for decades and looks and operates like the day it was built in 1986. I just never seen one in this condition and working. In a lot of ways, I enjoy it almost as much as anything I have owned. Like when I found an unopened complete Wagner Ring of the Solti/Vienna 58-65 recordings. I mean, what's the odds? I'll say this though about the Esoteric Audio machines; They're simply in a different league. They sound like a master tape. And every step up in the line I can hear the differences. So if I had the "scratch" for their top tier stuff, if you ask me if I think it's worth it, I would say yes. I also think the Spectral SDR-4000 whatever iteration it's at now is an incredible machine. I don't know if SACD is necessary with these top tier devices, recently compared Dire Straits "On Every Street"(a great disc in every way) from a CD I paid four bucks for to the Mofi recent SACD issue, and I prefer the CD more. And I'm finding I like many standard issue CDs more or the differences are not enough to spring for the SACD counterparts. Also an acquaintance who is much more audiophile than I am just took delivery on a Ypsilon CDT-100 CD player that are built to order (eight months). I've heard great things about this machine and can't wait to hear it. |
Not to forget the Marantz SA-10 SACD is an upsampling player and DAC that can be used via coax. The circuitry is unique and does not use an off the shelf chip. The circuitry is so unique it is hard to compare but a did a very deep internet dive and thought it was the closest thing to the PS Audio approach which at the time had just been discontinued. The SA-10 is kind of like an alternative to a FPGA DAC without the resistor approach or the ability to program and I only say that because it does not use a chip. Neither Absolute Sound nor Stereophile reviewed the SA-10 nor did any of the world's major publications that I could find. I got mine open box for a good price a few years ago after looking at what was available for not crazy money. One of the attractions was that if I got into streaming I could use the DAC without buying one, so I got the ifi Zen Stream and it sounds great; not SACD quality when I compare the same music, but close. I have not been able to compare it to a different DAC and I haven't read about anyone else doing that either. I had a Sony XA-5400ES before the SA-10 but never compared them. Now, with something like the Eversolo A8 I am considering I could hook my amp up to two balanced or unbalanced sources and to coax and route the streamer and SACD's in various ways to compare the Eversolo A8 chip DAC to the Marantz approach as well as compare the streamers. That might tell me how good the Marantz approach is to a decent AKM chip DAC without breaking the bank. |
personally, i'd get a separate transport + dac (which will be upgradeable) before dropping $10k on a cdp, but it's your dough. if you do want a single box, the denon dcd a110 is a helluva good sounding piece. i also saw the yamaha s3000 for less than half price at accessories4less, but i haven't heard it. |
Luxman makes outstanding SACD players such as the D-10x and D-07x. What about Accuphase - they make several models that are comparable to Luxman's offerings. Though Luxman and Accuphase compete at similar price points in the Japanese market, sadly Accuphase is overpriced in the US market compared to Luxman. That said, how do Accuphase SACD players compare to Luxman? |
That is what I do. I get DSD and PCM out of my Oppo ($200) and into my DACs. I have tested with Benchmark DAC3B and the Schitt Yggi+ OG and LIM. Amazon.com: GeerFab Audio - D.BOB Digital Breakout Box : Electronics They sell this unit at very high-end audio shops like Upscale Audio.in LA. I wrote about this in other threads.
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good point about repairs, I bought a belt kit and this being available helped me decide Complete xa5400es Laser Assembly Knowing you could buy another used one if it breaks, still hard to beat it's sound, and a few around $1k each add up to far less than your budget. I bought a spare remote control when 1 popped up with low price. |
I highly recommend a used Cary CD 306 SACD player (professional version) if you can find a used one which is rare today. This is an older and statement flagship CD/SACD player from Cary Audio circa 2008 thru 2015/2016. It did retail for $8k when it was first released in 2007/2008 and was in the same price range as other high end units from Esotetic, EMM Labs, DCS from the same era. This is a professional version or the upgraded version of the highly acclaimed CD 306 SACD player back then. Sonically it’s a highly musical sounding player with its natural organic analog like sound. I AB compared this player to a new current model Marantz Reference SA-10 CD/SACD player (current retail $7500 new) and this Cary is better sounding in all areas than the SA-10. No contest. Again this unit runs very warm cause it is a class A design circuitry - its output stage runs in class A, not some cheap op amps. Make sure that you leave a lot of space around. Cary Audio is still supporting this model, so if you need a new laser assembly for the disc drive you can send it in to Cary for a new laser assembly or for any issues you may have. I sent mine in to Cary last year to get a new laser. |
Several Oppo successors have emerged over the last couple of years, but despite sounding promising on paper, they haven’t had much of a profile in the stereo-audiophile press. They’re more often reviewed in home-theater magazines. Most promising is Magnetar’s UDP800 universal player, which received a rave review in the current (June-July 2024) issue of Sound & Vision. It boasts an Oppo-like interface & form factor, excellent build quality, similar CD/DVD/BD/SACD/whatever disc compatibility, & 2024-class format support (including 4K UHD video). Downside is no phone app & a lack of multi-channel analog outputs. But, as you suggest, the latter may not be a dealbreaker in this age of HDMI & reasonably priced external DACs. And the pricing is pretty reasonable, similar to that of the higher-end Oppo models back in the day. When one of my Oppos finally dies, this may be the first replacement option I consider. |
