Wadia 861 SE or 581 SE.

In a test between my 581se and a 861 (non se), the winner was 581se. But it's a very different sound between this 2 machine!

861 (non se):

• older (from 2001)
• unreadable display
• plastic remote
• Typical Wadia sound (big sound and punchy in bass section. A more blur sound.

581se:

• New (from oct. 2007)
• You can read the display from a distance
• A loooong loading time (between 15-20 sek.)
• Nice aluminum remote
• Big sound, but a lot more output in the middle range and NOT the typical punchy Wadia bass
• More dynamic, bigger sound, better control,
• It simply produced a better sound in any way!

@ Bombaywalla:

Yes, the remote to this 861 were made of plastic.

In a direct A-B test between this two machine, the 861 sounded blur.