I have the BDP-1 and the BDA-1 and very much like the sound. I am not using exotic cables or fuses. My amplification is Parasound JC1/2.
I have been amazed at the detail and sonic information that the Bryston combo has restored from my CDs, particularly mid 80's pressings I had pretty much given up on with prior CD players (Cambridge Audio 840 and PS Audio PWT). In fact, I used the BDA-1 with both the CA 840 and the PWT, so much of the improvement is related to the BDP-1. It has restored detail that I thought was gone forever, particularly when recalling comparisons to vinyl of the same recording.
I bought the BDP-1 prior to selling my PWT, so I had a chance to directly compare them with identical CD sources. I used dBpoweramp for ripping to flac, and then set both the BDP-1 (playing the ripped flac file) and the PWT (playing the source CD) to coax digital inputs on the BDA-1. I thought I would get a very close to "can't tell" type comparison, but was very surprised to find the BDP-1 significantly better than the PWT in most sonic respects.
The product is not perfect, however, but the problems are usage/software related and not sonic in nature. I have had the BDP-1 lock up at times, where the playback menu freezes and does not update back to my laptop. Refreshing the browser screen usually restores function, but not always. I have had one case where one specific album (React by The Fix) where the menu gets corrupted and the current playback cannot be controlled once started. The user technical information is not up to date and the info in the user manual is not correct for current operation.
All this might be a real negative if it were not for Bryston's superb customer support. Cris has been fantastic at helping me resolve most of these issues, and there are very few companies where you can speak with the main product designer on a tech support phone line. He is helping me, for example, get a firmware update for the Fix album problem by file download to a memory card (since my system is not internet connected). I am also impressed by Bryston's willingness to listen to my "bug" discovery and react positively to get things resolved.
Much better than my experience with PS Audio when I was having operational issues with the PWT.
I have been amazed at the detail and sonic information that the Bryston combo has restored from my CDs, particularly mid 80's pressings I had pretty much given up on with prior CD players (Cambridge Audio 840 and PS Audio PWT). In fact, I used the BDA-1 with both the CA 840 and the PWT, so much of the improvement is related to the BDP-1. It has restored detail that I thought was gone forever, particularly when recalling comparisons to vinyl of the same recording.
I bought the BDP-1 prior to selling my PWT, so I had a chance to directly compare them with identical CD sources. I used dBpoweramp for ripping to flac, and then set both the BDP-1 (playing the ripped flac file) and the PWT (playing the source CD) to coax digital inputs on the BDA-1. I thought I would get a very close to "can't tell" type comparison, but was very surprised to find the BDP-1 significantly better than the PWT in most sonic respects.
The product is not perfect, however, but the problems are usage/software related and not sonic in nature. I have had the BDP-1 lock up at times, where the playback menu freezes and does not update back to my laptop. Refreshing the browser screen usually restores function, but not always. I have had one case where one specific album (React by The Fix) where the menu gets corrupted and the current playback cannot be controlled once started. The user technical information is not up to date and the info in the user manual is not correct for current operation.
All this might be a real negative if it were not for Bryston's superb customer support. Cris has been fantastic at helping me resolve most of these issues, and there are very few companies where you can speak with the main product designer on a tech support phone line. He is helping me, for example, get a firmware update for the Fix album problem by file download to a memory card (since my system is not internet connected). I am also impressed by Bryston's willingness to listen to my "bug" discovery and react positively to get things resolved.
Much better than my experience with PS Audio when I was having operational issues with the PWT.