WADIA / dCS / AA Capitole - the ultimate CD ??? .

Are you running these units all through a preamp or direct?

My experience with all of them, which has been quite extensive, is that the Audio Aero was the only digital front-end that I could listen to continuously in place of my vinyl setup.

As a dealer for Audio Aero I have had the opportunity to do the comparisons prior to committing to the line. The Wadia was never a factor at all. I was about to take on dCS, but when I put them head to head with the Capitole, I could no longer enjoy listening to the dCS gear. It is like a choice between Roseanne Barr and Shannon Elizabeth. :)

There is no such thing as THE BEST.
It always depends not only on your system (cables, pre-yes/no, amp-tube/ss) but also on your room(!) and first of all on your preferences in listening to music. Like in a concert hall - as the late Glenn Gould stated there are only up to 5 seats where he could reach the listener in a way he wanted to and subsequently stopped playing in public - all the mentioned solutions have their pros and cons and they all are sure AMONG the best available. Beware of the hype around so called "new" solutions, though. Some of thenm are pretty old yet still valid. So if you listen to one of the mentioned units and feel: "that's it"! then stop looking further and be happy ever after. I have listened to all these units extensively and my real "high end" choice is the Wadia 270/27ix.
Good luck!

I would suggest you also give the Sim Audio Eclipse a listen.

I had originally decided on the Wadia 861 and placed an order with my local dealer. While I was waiting for the Wadia to arrive, I came across a number of strong reviews for the Sim Audio player and decided to give it a listen (also carried by the same dealer).

The Sim Audio player has stunning resolution and rhythm and also has an attractive industrial design. It is about 50% less expensive than the Wadia and would appear to be very upgradeable as future technology develops. It also has the same transport as the Oracle.

While I have not heard either the dcs or AA Capitole, I bought the Sim Audio last month and have been very pleased with it.

There continue to be threads about the very best digital. I have heard everything mentioned above plus the EMC 1 with 24/192, and I have the latest future version of the EMC 1 now which will available in several months. The AudioMeca Mephisto 2, the Accuphase 75, the Sim Eclipse, the Levinson 39S, the Audio Aero, Wadia 861. We have done comparisons with all of them.

Here is a summary. The Audio Aero and the EMC 1 sound more alike than any of these players. The difference is that the EMC 1 has better bottom end. But then the EMC 1 has better bottom end control than any player mentioned. With the new future upgrade it exceeds the Audio Aero but then a new Audio Aero is about to be released which I have not heard. My guess is those 2 players will stay comparable. The EMC 1 having the edge in looks and bottom end the Audio Aero having the volume control. How good is the volume control? It is good as long as you don't compare it to a really great preamp like a First Sound, Red Rose, Joule Electra etc. We of course did all our comparisons using the same preamp, powercords, etc.

I am a dealer for the EMC 1 and the Audio Meca Mephisto 2. the Mephisto 2 is my favorite player because it is the most seductive and delicate of all the players mentioned. If I was going to purchase one player that would be the player for me but not everyone. None of these players is. There is no bests. Once you have reached the level of these players you cannot go wrong. These are so good that while you are listening to any of these players at that moment that is as good as it gets. You can almost just choose the one you like the looks of the best and you will be pleased.

My personal feeling about separates is that one box players have gotten so good that you will spent as much in cabling alone to get as good a sound out of separates as it would costs you for a new one box player. When we tried the Audio Meca dac and transport against the one box Mephisto 2 we had to put a Vahalla digital cable $2000, plus a Genghis Khan powercord $4500 on Dac and Transport to have it sound just a touch better than the Mephisto 2 and the Khan. So we had already put in thousands more in separates of the same brand and then another $6500 for a subtle improvement. Why?

Had a Wadia 861, tried the 270/27ix combo at home, considered and researched (alternative to audition at home which could'nt do) the DCS and Linn gear, tried the Audiomeca, Electrocompaniet and Capitole. Making a desicion like this unavoidably involves certain compromises which should be greatly influenced by musical preferences and budget among other factors. In my case I wanted the most musical and analoglike presentation with the most controlable budget. Settled with the Capitole and since it's price was half or less of it's closest competitors, I cheated and send the unit to Steve Huntley of GNS for a modification package including dissabling the volume control and substituing it with a Placette pasive unit. I still was way under the competition in cost and sonicaly IMO way ahead. This was my experience which I present as and alternative that may help you forget about front end digital changes and new formats for a very long time, yikes! it may even may you forget vinyl front end (God forbid).