"tube" cd players?

I think the Granite Audio tube'ed output is excellent with a warm fuller sound with bloom..I listened to it at CES and really enjoyed it

I think it also has digital out also

I like the Heart players for the $$$. They modify a Marantz player. The US distributor is www.fsaudioweb.com if you want to take a look. I'm not great at using all the adjectives to describe sound but I like it and if you generally like the sound of tubes I think you will too.

I remain,

Joeb, Not sure how much you want to spend or anything; but I might suggest buying a used CD player and trying it in your system. If it doesn't sound good you can resell it and try some else. Just a thought! The Cary CD301 has tubes and are had here every so often, or possibly Sonic Frontiers? Hope this helps, Charlie

Sonic
Frontiers
SFCD-1
excellent!

I am a dealer for Audio Aero and have carried many other brands. They make the finest tube CD players that I have heard. The differences between the top selling cd players and the Audio Aero are clear... most sound like hifi while the Audio Aero sounds like music. I have taken in dCS, Levinson Reference, Wadia Reference and quite a few other digital company's product in trade and my customers could not be happier with their choice.

There is currently a huge back log on the Audio Aero Capitole. The product is in very high demand for a great reason... they are terrific.

Another tube dac which is pretty good is the Audio Logic.

The BAT VK5SE is an excellent cdp that is very expensive at retail. You can buy one used for around $2,700. Another good cdp is the Metronome I or II. You can buy a used Metronome I for around $1,200 or a used Metronome II for roughly $2,000.

Ah! Tjoeb: made in Netherlads out of a Marantz chassis.

Audio Aero Capitol is one of the best if not the best tube CD player available.

The Audio Matiere Tube CD Player was really good. It was designed by the same person, who designed the Audio Aero Tube CD Player. Also, the Cal Tempest 3 was very good.

Hi Joeb-
The best sounding tube CD player I've ever heard was a Cal Audio Labs Tempest II SE. It was manufactured in 1989-1990. 18 Bit O/S Burr-Brown DACs and a Philips CD-4 drive mechanism - my favotite drawer of all time. It's kinda hard to find one used, but if you see one for less than $700-800 or so, I'd grab it as long as you could hear it. They were $4000 new in 1989 (gasp!), but were commonly considered one of the best ever made. It's a large (very!) two-box unit, with the power supply in one chassis and the drawer & electronics in another. Caution - it does not have digital out, so you can't use it as a transport - but why would you want to? I owned one for years, and heard one just a few weeks ago, and it's very musical. Non-fatiguing digital - what a concept! BTW, Cal Audio Labs still supports service on that model - they're actually still proud of it!
Good luck,
Ed

the California audio lab player mentioned above isn't in the same universe[much less the same league]as the Audio Aero Capitol

If this post makes it past the moderator, and offends someone, I apologize in advance. :-)
To Mejames: Are we (The AudiogoN Community) to infer from your post that you have owned both the AAC and CAL units, heard them in your home, and thus can comment on their relative merits? If that is true I most certainly would like to hear the AAC, since I've heard the CAL and think it sounded pretty good. If it isn't, upon what are you basing your opinion? I'm certainly open to anyone's opinon, but I hope it wasn't based upon something you heard or read. When you see a post above my name, it will be based solely on my familiarity with that subject, or piece of equipment. I don't jump into threads about equipment that I've never heard; although reading them certainly has provided me with a lot of ideas for possible future purchases. I take no stock in reviewers, since they don't own what I do and can't tell me how something might sound in my home, with the rest of the system. Because of that, I've tried lots of equipment - which is the fun part of the hobby - although, sometimes I've purchased something blind that turned out to be not very musical - the not fun part of the hobby. An example: A friend of mine was recommending that I try out an amp. He directed me to an on-line review which praised the amp very highly. Upon checking the reviewer's ancillary equipment used for the review, I noticed that he was using a set of speakers that I've heard, and thought sounded dreadful - absolutely flat dynamics until you turn them up REALLY loud. So, am I to assume that A. The reviewer plays his music at room shaking levels, or B. That he simply doesn't listen the way I do. Remembering Occum's Razor: In light of all the facts as you know them, the simplest answer tends to be the correct one, I chose B. I may try the amp someday, but I'll make my own decision, thanks.That is what I advise to all of my hi-fi friends - hear something in your home, in your system, before you make up your mind. And don't put down anyone else's preferences - I've heard very musical systems assembled from components that I swear wouldn't work well together.
Sorry for the long rant, but that's the way I feel.
Biting my tongue,
Ed

sorry didn't mean to offend you. Heard the California audio lab player many occasions at a dealer when in production way back years ago, dealer replaced with Theta pro basic II which totally killed the California player. Owned the Theta until bettered by EAD-700 and 700 II, bettered by Encore Piramid, bettered by Wadia 27 bettered by Audio Aero Capitol.

Nope-Sorry if I offended you. Your post sounded to me like some young kid trying to justify his recent purchase. It just gets my hairs up when someone tries to turn our hobby into a pissing contest. Obviously you do have a basis for your opinion, and I would like to hear this AAC unit at some point to form my own.
Have a great day!
Ed

well, thanks to you guys who provided feedback, food for thought,
joeb

Hello,
Try out Shanling tube cd player. It is beautiful build and sound good too. You already have good gear from Classe audio, why not try their cd player? I own a Classe cdp.3 entry level and it is sound alot better than lots of high end cd player cost more its price in the market. There are some units of Classe cdp player for sell in this site. The cdp.5 is also a good one.

Good luck