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Musical Fidelity A3.2 v. tubed CD players

Hey-
I have recently made some changes to my system & have moved from seperates to an integrated. I now have a McIntosh MA 6900 and a Musical Fidelity A3.2 CD Player. I used to have a Rogue 66 tube pre & Conrad Johnson MF 2500 amp. Now that I no longer have tubes in my system i've realized the 3.2 is a little too bright - dont get me wrong, its a wonderful & detailed player, just a little too harsh for my tastes. So now im beginning to ponder getting a tubed CD player, i've checked out the Jolida JD100 and that looks like a nice unit... My goal is to eliminate some brightness without losing much detail. Id like to saty under $2K and would prefer a unit with a sliver face. The new Cary 303/300 tube & SS outputs looks sooo tempting! Any suggestion on some warm CD players?

Musical Fidelity A3.2 CD player
Tara Labs ic's
Mcintosh MA 6900 integrated
Luminous Audio Renaissance speaker cables
B&W N804 w/ Sound Anchors

i've swapped the Tara Labs ic's for some various Luminous Audio ic's and havent noticed too much difference between the two...

thanks for reading!
jclyle
reb1208
518 posts
 
MF A5 is extremely refined, never sounds harsh. Even through a passive pre. Has plenty of tube warmth IMO.
Cary 303/300 goes way too far in the direction of warmth, from both the SS and tube output IMO.
maineiac
649 posts
 
You may consider auditioning some different speakers with the A3.2 as well. I have found the 804s to be a bit bright.
jburidan
803 posts
 
I love my Cary 303/300, but it's not warm by any means. Formerly, I used an AH! Njoe Tjoeb 4000 with upsampling, and it can be warm depending on the tubes one uses. Also, I understand the Cary 308T is warm, but I haven't owned it.
Jay
jaybo
4,478 posts
 
your mac has the finest tone controls in the industry. use them
jclyle OP
35 posts
 
jaybo-
yes, i know the mac has tone controls, but i know a case of upgraditis will catch up with me after the holidays :)
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