Hi all, I choose the best universal player for CD, DVD-A, SACD. May be read SACD-R on DVD-R. My list is: Esoteric SA-60 Esoteric UX-1 Marantz UD9004 Accustic Arts SP1 Bladelius Freja Ayre C-5xeMP Meridian 800 DAX (only DVD-Audio) Meridian 808.1 and 808.2 (CD, DVD-A)
The Esoteric UX-1 uses the Burr Brown Pcm1704 R to R Ladder Dac which IMHO is one of the best sounding dac chips out there. I personally have an Esoteric UX-3 with the same dac and it is definitely a keeper.
NowI useMarantzUD9004in one systemandBladeliusFrejain the second.MarantzUD9004very musicalplayer,but very slowand noisy, as thisBlu-ray. I want to trythe AyreC-5xeMPand theMeridian808.1or 2. Starting with the808.3was removed support DVD-Audio.I burn DVD-Audioinstereo24\192, and a 32\192 from HDtracks.
It is also interesting OPPO Modwright without video.
A fine list indeed....there is another version of the Esoteric UX-1, the 'Limited' upgrade version (I had the UX-1 then paid Eso for this upgrade) that sounded even better than the stock UX-1. If you only needed CD and SACD, I would suggest the X-01/Limited as it had 2x the number of DACs per channel (4 versus 2) over the UX-1 and sounded even better....the UX-1 Limited excelled at SACD and DVD-V and DVD-A though its RBCD/XRCD playback were excellent.
It's hard to pick the "best" universal player. You don't specify your price range so I guess that the sky's the limit. Dollar for dollar, you would be hard pressed to beat the Oppo 105D (it plays everything). If that's too mundane for you, then I guess that dcs stack will look pretty attractive to you. It does to me, too. Your list isn't bad either!
The c-5xeMP is going to be discontinued, according to an Ayre dealer in Chicago that I spoke with yesterday. It will be replaced with a 2 chassis unit, which sounds like a separate transport and dac, and will sell for around $10K
Just bought a modified Oppo from John Tucker at Exemplar Audio. Compared it to a Esoteric SA player. It slammed the Esoteric player. At $3500.00, it's a no brainner.
Hmm pekelola, I just added an Esoteric SA-60 for 5.1 to go with the Ayre C5xeMP I use for stereo. The SA-60 sounds pretty good to me. The SA-60 goes through the 7.1 analog bypass of a Bryston SP3; C-5xeMP goes through an analog Parasound JC 2 BP.
I've always stayed away from modified players/gear in general for 2 reasons; (1) the original manufacturer's warranty is voided when you open the unit and start changing/adding things and (2) most of the mod'ers I've talked to seem to have 'their latest revision/flavor' of the modification in mind with a history of having the next great mod just right around the corner. I could be wrong here given today's market and offerings but I've looked into this extensively a couple years back (2-5) and the story seemed to always be the same with respect to the two points above.
Depending up which Oppo player is being referenced above, comparing it to an Esoteric SA-60 is definitely not a fair comparison as the SA player is quite a few years old in design (2006-2007 I think) and was not the high point of the line by any means though it did sound very good at the time...
Also,...to the best of my knowledge, none of the DCS players or the stack is a 'universal player' platform; at most, they support any RBCD format and SACD.
While I chose 3 leaders - Marantz UD9004, Ayre C-5xeMP, Bladelius Freja. UD9004 - very warm nice sound (AK4399). Ayre and Bladelius similar in sound (both DSD1792)
I picked up a Esoteric DV60 recently...with the right connecting cable it is a real keeper. Plays DVD A,SACD and Redbook with tremendous musicality and transparency.
knyazhm Thank You for the update. Ayre is a very fine spinner. I had considered the Marantz SA-10, but could not find a demo here in the southeast U.S. The Pioneer PD-70AE looks sweet as well, however, this company has a history of not continuing parts and support for it's players. Keep me posted should you take audition of the Marantz or Pioneer. Happy Listening!
@jafant Great question. I have gone through a few cables with the DV60...it does seem to react well to cable changes. Right now, I am using the incredible Black Cat Coppertone ic. Will soon be going up line a little with the Black Cat Silverstar. The Coppertone easily bested cable from Audience, Synergistic and Cardas on this player. I totally love what the Coppertone does with the Esoteric...so much more controlled imaging placement and extension at both ends of the frequency spectrum. The air around instruments has to be heard to be believed! I also use a PS Audio power cord,I have not experimented much with that aspect, although the PS audio seems to work well.
daveyf Thank You. Black Cat has quite a following out there.I auditioned this player in Dallas TX a few years ago w/ John Fort Audio.The DV-60 was in a Pass Labs / TAD / Silent Source system.The power cable (PC) was Wireworld Electra Silver 7. We changed out (2) other PC from Signal Cable and Silent Source. The Wireworld (WW) sounded best. Let me know how the Silverstar performs.
jafant, I recently acquired one of the Black Cat Silverstar power cords. I placed it on my big Rowland amp...it was an incredible transformation! Literally like getting a new more resolving and powerful amp! I am usually not one for hyperbole, but the Black Cat pc was a stunner. I was able to hear so much deeper into the sound stage and to hear minor details that had been lost in the mix before. This aspect is rare IME. So, since Chris’s new Silverstar pc is such a tremendous piece, i thought the ic would be nice potential upgrade. Not that the current Coppertone are bad at all! But you know how we a’philes are! IF the Silverstar ic can beat the already superb Coppertone, that would really be something, i shall report back. BTW, it doesn’t really surprise me that the Wireworld PC sounded best in that group. Question is whether it could hold up to the Black Cat pc’s...something i very seriously doubt.
Thank You for the brief. I find cables and power cord(s) fascinating in form and function. Pretty cool to connect one into your system and discover passages/textures not previously appreciated.
@chipdelacalada I have now been listening to the new Silverstar ic between my Esoteric and the preamp. It is a superb cable with no faults that I can hear. Slightly more capable in the dynamics department and very slightly more able to portray bottom end definition than the still excellent Coppertone. I think the Silverstar might be preferred in some applications. Nonetheless, the Coppertone is still a tremendous cable and unbeatable IME at anything near its price range.
@jafant Thanks, I really highly recommend Chris's hand made Black Cat cables to anyone who is looking into new cables for their system.
I have found the Esoteric branded Acrolink to be the best cables for my Esoteric UX-3. I use an Acrolink power cord, interconnect and digital cable. It was my first holy cow moment when I inserted their interconnects into the system.
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