transport for Chord DAC64

I have the DAC 64 and use several transports with it. The main one is the Electrocompaniet player but used as a transport. Greatest sound from this combo. I also use a Pioneer megachanger and it really elevates its capabilities. I also use a Pioneer PDR 05 with great success. It is a stable platter unit which also records. Very similar to the Pioneer 65 player which is also a great transport. The DAC 64 is a great unit and much more money would have to be laid down to better it. Right now it is my favorite DAC.

My experience with the DAC64 was that it sounded great with anything that I used as a transport. It is at its' best with the maximum (four second) buffer engaged.

CEC TL2X, vecteur D2.2.

I agree with the Vecteur 2.2
You cannot beat this transport for the money

dudeaudio

I run the DAC64 with a German Audionet Art V2 CD-transport, to good results. When the Audionet was away for a repair,however, I hooked up a ten-year-old T+A CD-player - and was amazed that the difference to the Audionet-supported combination was noticable, but much smaller than I had expected. The Chord lifted the T+A to another league. Otherwise, I second the CEC-transport, older TEAC-models, the T+A transport or the Italian North Star transport, to name but a few. The cable between the transport and the Chord and your preamp is very important, too. I started with a Siltech-cinch, and upgraded to LAT International, with excellent results.

CEC and Vecteur may be two of the best transports, but the question is: Will Doc_stereo's DAC64 really benefit from them, compared to cheaper transports?

Why not just use your Audio Research CD2 as a transport? It's an excellent CD player and I think would make a very good transport, particularly since the DAC is not very transport dependent. Whatever you do end up doing, best of luck.

Thanks everyone for replying. Martian_23 hit it on the head: will any (relatively speaking) CD/DVD player do, or are there substantial improvements in going with a CEC or Vecteur product?

Jond: I actually sold my CD2 - it was a great a player.

YES, transports make a HUGE difference. They all have different sounds and will impact the sound more than you ever thought possible. They are a major factor and I have tested this personally using my DVD out then the transport, then comparing transports. Truely night and day, even to the layperson who is not into audio can tell the difference (I tried this on a non audio friend).

I played the transport game a while back and found that they made a very big difference...CEC very liquid and analog sounding, somewhat limited in dynamics but the best midrange this side of vinyl....vecteur...more balanced and almost the perfect compromise. Bottom line, listen for yourself to decide which transport but trust me it is every bit worth the investment!

Fatcataudio...

...I know that transports can make a huge difference. But given that the Chord has a 4-MB buffer and is reported to be very transport-insensitive because of this, it makes sense to rely on people who have heard the effect from different transports on this special DAC.

AFAIK, 'CD drive' in CDP is one of the major jitter generators, since almost none of them is able to read 100% data 'on the fly', the really good reading is possible with approach of several attempts and then comparison (CRC, whatever). Reclocking DAC would 'approximate' the lost information, but it's not as good as a better transport that would loose less.

Fatcataudio, you're right on the money about the CEC transport, I just got a mint (rare black) TL-2X and could not be happier, except a good turntable of course !