mostly Audio Research now i need digital help? ? ?


ithanks for reading, i have started collecting a system that i think is both musical, potent and kinda high on the "wife acceptancy factor scale". it consists of:
audio research ph3-se phone pre black
audio research dac7 d/a converter black
audio valve Eklipse linestage pre-amp black with gold trim
conrad johnson evolution 2000 amplifier gold-ish
a dvd player i am using as a transport that i am even- ashamed of.
no turntable yet as well.
truth be told i will buy a real turntable in the next year or two but my quandry surrounds the transport area of my system. to continue my system with both high fidelity AND the "wif acceptancy factor" i was thinking of trying to find a deal on something black and audio research and i have never heard one, then again i hadn't heard the dac7 before making that purchase. perhaps someone might have an idea of a good match for my situation, i have ben pondering from ARC the cdt-1, the cd3-ii, the ref cd7 and know i can't afford the ref cd-8 so that is out. should i buy the cdt-1 or cd-3ii or cd-7 and connect to my dac7? should i buy the ref cd-7 and get rid of my dac? really could use an educated and helpful opinion....thank you for reading, paul.
soundshotter
Just a reminder that proper use of upper-case letters is a mark of courtesy to your readers. Though it involves a bit more work, it makes for much easier reading.

-Bob
if you want DVD and CD there have been some relative bargains in Meridian transports which will do both here on AudiogoN ... there was a Classe model I looked at as well which plays both

if cd only is your interest the AR transport would be perfect
Well I sold my CD3 mkii and bought a Dac7 and a Olive 4HD server.
I feel it sounds better than my friends upgraded CD7.(the Dac7 has the same dac chip used in the CD8) and I've put all my CD's and Hi rez files on the Olive.
CD players are a thing of the past.
I have a Ref CD7 and it is an excellent CD player. If it were me I would buy a CD7 and sell the DAC. Make sure it has the power supply upgrade. The CD3 mk2 is a nice player but not in the same league as the CD7. The problem with the CDT, CD1, or CD2 is availability of replacement parts for the drive mechanism.

I would also consider changing out the amp. I auditioned the CJ Evolution 2000 many years ago when it first came out. It was my least favorite of all the amps I auditioned at that time. I ended up buying an Audio Research Classic 60.