First off. Mark Levinson 39 cd player will sound more musical more detailed liquid mids and bigger overall presentation. I tried alot of players and I love my 39 I will never sell it I will just upgrade it to the 390s. You can pick one up for around 3,000. I had the theta miles prior to buying the 39 and the theta is a great cd player for the money. the theta is smoother than the wadia 830 by far. Heres why. The Mark Levinson and the Theta Miles both have an analoge volume control which is very important when driving an amplifier direct. When you turn the volume down you dont lose bits of information it just gets softer.Wadia makes great gear but I have found that when you turn them up they can souns somewhat analytical. So if you have your heart set on wadia you will need to match your cables accordingly. Out of all the above the 39 is superior in my eyes but everyone is diffrent. Read the reviews on the 39 and it will sell it self. Plus for 3,000 you cant buy a player to come close to it. Also the theta miles is no longer in production so you may want to consider that also. Remember. Analoge volume controls equals a smoother sound when running direct. good luck if you need help you can email me and I will be happy to give you my number and answer any questions you may have
XA7ES, Miles, Cary 301, ARC CD-1?? Direct to amp..
Hi all!
I know that this topic has been BEATEN to death and I HAVE looked through the archives, but still have questions.
I need a CDP that'll connect directly to my amp. I've seen many recommendations for the Theta Miles...is it really that good?
The Sony XA-7ES seems like a hell of a piece for the money. It also seems that there are many people using it w/o a pre with good results.
Finally, I'm intrigued by the Audio Research CD-1. Anyone have any experience with using the remote volume capability?
I'm sure that each of these players is good in its' own right, but what I'd like to know is which one (or maybe another?) would do the best job of driving an amp directly?
BTW - I'm trying not to spend much more than about $1K used. $1,300 would be the absolute MAX.
Thanks everybody!
I know that this topic has been BEATEN to death and I HAVE looked through the archives, but still have questions.
I need a CDP that'll connect directly to my amp. I've seen many recommendations for the Theta Miles...is it really that good?
The Sony XA-7ES seems like a hell of a piece for the money. It also seems that there are many people using it w/o a pre with good results.
Finally, I'm intrigued by the Audio Research CD-1. Anyone have any experience with using the remote volume capability?
I'm sure that each of these players is good in its' own right, but what I'd like to know is which one (or maybe another?) would do the best job of driving an amp directly?
BTW - I'm trying not to spend much more than about $1K used. $1,300 would be the absolute MAX.
Thanks everybody!