Is the EMM DAC6e or DCC2 /CDSD the best out there?

How am I going to audition all of them in my system? Are you going to give me the money? Truth is, most of us can only go on the reviews and comment of others as a starting point.

If you are going to ask, then expect to have many different responses. At the price level you are contemplating, you HAVE money. If you spent $1200 on travel to hear the various items mentioned it would be far better then making a $10,000+ mistake.

OT/Rant

Nothing makes me laugh harder than a tightwad audiophile. Spend thousands on a fragile delicate piece of equipment and then choke on the difference between ground shipment and far safer/faster air shipment.

OT/Rant/OFF

Best,

Paul :-)

RMaidenberg

It is a "flavor" thing but IMO you chose the better flavor.

This thread is for constructive comments on EMM Labs CDSD and DAC6e and not for you to air your bad experiences with shipping whatever to whoever.

My comments are valid. Unless I have $60k handy to buy and test out all the top quality transports and DAC's, the starting point would be reviews and other people's findings and comments.

Lets keep discussions to the thread's title PLEASE.

Iujona, why would you have to spend $60k to try some of the players suggested? I wouldn't expect to have to buy a car just to take a test drive. Perhaps some dealers in NYC where you are charge a fee for a home audition, but that's entirely different from requiring you to buy it.

Personally I definitely prefer Meitner over Esoteric and dCS. Esoteric does excel on inner detail, but Meitner is far better in terms of transparency and just a general sense of openess. In way it sounded if Meitner had a larger sound stage, both left to right and front to back. Also better at transients & decay. Esoteric was v good at resolution, inner detail, dynamics but lacked that sense of naturalness if you will. dCS goes even further in terms resolution, detail to my ears but again lacks the special air around the instruments or color of timbre. In a way, I guess Esoteric and dCS sound like GREAT digital but Meitner approxiametes analogue LPs. At least that has been my own experience so far.

Zanden, Reimyo, I have not tried but hear great things about them: however they do not provide SACD capability, which of course may not matter to you. Zanden though if you want the full set up will cost you!

I also think that not only is the Ayre 5xe (2 channel universal) very very good indeed, but among all the high end players best value for money. Personally prefer it over Esoteric. I already have the Meitner gear, the Ayre is my top choice for second system I am considering building.

Whatever the case, you really need to audition them yourself. At this level, all are exceptionally good, and a lot depends on your own tastes.