It took me three decades as a resolute pro analog guy to find a cdp that totally satisfies me, the Eera Tentation I bought in 2014.
In the time I've owned my Eera that was likely beating my analog when it was first installed, I've taken that analog rig (Trans Fi Salvation rim drive tt w Terminator LT air tonearm and Soundsmith Straingauge cart), and abs maxxed it out (bespoke LPSs to tt motor and Straingauge energiser, SOTA Stacore Adv 93kg passive isolation platform under tt, upgraded Terminator arm, mag lev tt bearing and tt footers etc). My Eera cdp is still abs compelling as one of the few digital pieces that nails analog-like flow and tone density, but my analog rig has leapfrogged it...in terms of presence, timbral accuracy, tonal differentiation, and a heavenly combination of heft and speed...the rim drive Salvation tt is the iron fist, the Terminator air arm/Straingauge cart is the velvet glove.
I'm currently listening to the John Coltrane "Selflessness" live lp on original Impulse label, and there is so much going on in terms of transients, polyrythmns, cascading twin horns, and crashing percussion, yet despite this organised chaos, the vinyl sounds totally vital. The cd I've heard here on my Eera is more organised, but more polite and decluttered, losing energy and spirit.
I'm in the happy place of total zen calm w my cd replay after three decades cursing digital Lol...but my really well blended and executed analog front end just reveals more magic, and the bottom line is, it's more compelling in a way digital cannot match let alone exceed.
In the time I've owned my Eera that was likely beating my analog when it was first installed, I've taken that analog rig (Trans Fi Salvation rim drive tt w Terminator LT air tonearm and Soundsmith Straingauge cart), and abs maxxed it out (bespoke LPSs to tt motor and Straingauge energiser, SOTA Stacore Adv 93kg passive isolation platform under tt, upgraded Terminator arm, mag lev tt bearing and tt footers etc). My Eera cdp is still abs compelling as one of the few digital pieces that nails analog-like flow and tone density, but my analog rig has leapfrogged it...in terms of presence, timbral accuracy, tonal differentiation, and a heavenly combination of heft and speed...the rim drive Salvation tt is the iron fist, the Terminator air arm/Straingauge cart is the velvet glove.
I'm currently listening to the John Coltrane "Selflessness" live lp on original Impulse label, and there is so much going on in terms of transients, polyrythmns, cascading twin horns, and crashing percussion, yet despite this organised chaos, the vinyl sounds totally vital. The cd I've heard here on my Eera is more organised, but more polite and decluttered, losing energy and spirit.
I'm in the happy place of total zen calm w my cd replay after three decades cursing digital Lol...but my really well blended and executed analog front end just reveals more magic, and the bottom line is, it's more compelling in a way digital cannot match let alone exceed.