2. digital
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Old Vs New ..... Transport and dac.

Hi All,
I've been putting together a Vintage system based around a pair if Altec Lansing 604 duplex speakers in their big cabinets 620a , and a pair of Leak pre and power amps from the 50's / 60's.... Now, I was going to go for a turntable front end, but then I got to thinking I might put a decent digital front end together for a change. Ive been buying 50c second hand cd's lately like they are going out of fashion (which they are I suppose) Any way I was thinking of getting the latest shanling CD transport ET3 and a Denafripps mid range Dac. Like the Pontus or te one up from there. I thought that woudld be a decent attempt. BUT THEN... A local Transport and dac came up for sale for around the same money (3k) .... A Reimyo CDT - 777 Transport & Reimyo 999EX Limited Edition DAC. The Transport is running flawlessly and the dac was updted to this spec backi n 2018 by Kuichi San at Combak Harmonix in 2017 I thnk.

I lusted after then back when they came out, I love the form factor, the fact it's a SOTA classic transport and dac etc and the Tonal focus of Japanese design in audio( I know this is a horrible generalisation, but you know what I mean).

Soooooo. My question is do you think that the Japanese pair with their engineering / design and of course sound quality , would stand up to the more modern Chinese pairing. I'm more excited about the Reimyo Transport and Dac, than the Shanling and Denafripps. 

My main front ends have all been Vinyl in the past so this is something new for me. I enjoy a focus on Tone and overall performance in my systems, rather than the spotlighting and the search for the ultimate detail.

Anyway, I'd appreciate your thoughts on the above... Thanks for your advice and Help.  

 

borg7x9

Showing 1 response by mitch2

mitch2
4,342 posts
 

The Reimyo stuff was very highly regarded for sound quality and I suspect it would hold its own on CD level digital files even now.  I believe the DAC uses the Burr-Brown PCM1704U chip, which is very well-regarded and generally considered to be quite musical.  Can you listen to it first?  Also, you might want to check into servicing options in the event you might ever need to have it fixed.  You may have seen this (link) review.

From AI:

  • Sound Characteristics: Reviewers and enthusiasts often describe the PCM1704U as having a "natural," "organic," and "smooth" sound that is "easy on the ears". It's praised for its ability to convey the "richness," "depth," and "detail" in music, presenting a "wide soundstage" and "clean bass". Some even describe its sound as having a "valve-like sweetness".
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