2. digital
  3. 195490-9961

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
pindac's avatar
pindac
3,248 posts
 

The latest design of the Topping D90 is seen in the Link. 

The New Design will win admirers as it has a option where there is a user interface and there are adjustments that can be done to suit the users preferences.

These adjustments might come in quite useful if an Interface with a supporting device is one from a Vintage era, and needs a little extra sent through it to get it up to par when used in a particular assembly of a audio system.

 

https://shenzhenaudio.com/products/topping-d90-iii-discrete?srsltid=AfmBOooA1n5gIo67x6Qd1utWs8Kuf632LdkCabvczQ6KZhVKYx-Oq0_6

borg7x9 OP
102 posts
 

Hi pindac… that certainly looks like mega flexible device. And could certainly be usefull in bridging components and in tweaking the sound so it works well in your environment. Interesting. 
 

thanks for the cool idea.

yoyoyaya's avatar
yoyoyaya
958 posts
 

Hello Borg 7x9. Thanks for your reply. For context, I'm an audio consultant and I get to hear a lot of systems of all kinds. I completely appreciate the positive qualities you find in SET amplification and vinyl playback. BTW, the Concept is a fine turntable. Just as a PS, it is possible to have highly resolving playback that is not analytical sounding - possible but not necessarily easy...

lou_setriodes's avatar
lou_setriodes
716 posts
 

@borg7x9 

So much of our hobby, practically all of it, is subjective, purchases can be purely emotional, and the process experiential.  You’ll be taking a 7 hour road trip, with hopefully nice scenery along the way (experiential part) to listen to and buy something you lusted after for some time (emotional part) that will fit nicely and aesthetically with your classic Leak gear (subjective part).  Sounds like a winning combination all the way around.  
 

If I can suggest something to enhance the day even more.  On the way back, go for a nice long hike somewhere along the way, download the All Trails App if you don’t already have it.  That way you won’t get tired on the long ride back.


Several years ago, I was selling a top of the line Laser Disc unit with a bunch of laser discs for a friend.  I ended up having to transport it 4 hours away.  I was close by an audio friend who I never met before, so I connected with him afterwards and we traded some audio gifts.  On the way back, I took a different route and ended up taking a beautiful hike in Central PA that I would have never gone to if I hadn’t done this road trip.  
 

Keep us posted and let us know how the road trip went.

Lou

borg7x9 OP
102 posts
 

@lou_setriodes 

Hi Lou, I know this drive very well. Until recently, I lived near where the seller is. It's  a beautiful part of the country ( i'm in New Zealand) . I get to drive through Tongariro national park. Which was used for filming parts of the Lord of the rings films. This time of year there will be snow on the mountains. It will be beautiful . I had a good long chat with the guy selling and he seems like a very good natured enthusiast. I love a road trip and to make it more enjoyable, I will travel there, spend a lovely evening listening to the system, and chatting, drink some local wine (in moderation of course)....book a hotel room for the night, and travel back the next day. It will be a beautiful adventure. I will return a different way which has a great walk up to a waterfall. It wasn't part for my original plan, but now you have me thinking that I should do the hike ( about 2 hours all up, what a great idea ). Weather permitting of course.

You are absolutety right, It's not all about absolute measured performance. A lot of what we love in music is the soul and intangible beauty of it all. I think the Combak Reimyo fits very much into this Artisan, lovingly created category.

When anyone asks me what piece of Hi-fi I've enjoyed the most , my answer is always the Yamamoto A-08s , Tube power amp( 2 watts per channel) that I bought new, directly from Yamamoto san in Japan. When it turned up it was a thing of beauty. Beautiful cherry wood, top and sides, ebony feet(all hand finished), hand wound transformers and it sounded amazing... I loved that thing. So much Tone and nuance, flow and presence. It really got to the heart of the music. Of course this is subjective....

Anyhow, thanks for your thought provoking input. I will enjoy the process as well as the end result.

Take care. B.

 

 

 

 

More to discover