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Musical Fidelity A5 CDP

Does this machine still cut the mustard? There are so many new players to choose from now including the new Tri CD4SE (sounded very nice to my ears), Cambridge Audio C840, Astin Trew 3000 & 3500 and the beautiful Raysonic 128 & 168. Should I just look at the others or is the A5 still worth a listen too? They can be had for the same price as these others now.
omegaspeedy
brianmgrarcom
1,317 posts
 
I believe I am a bit in the minority as many people really like this CDP, but I never liked it; I replaced it with a Meridian G08.
aball
2,016 posts
 
I compared the A5 head-to-head with an Ayre CX7e in the same system and the Ayre had better body in the midrange and more potent bass with no brittle tendency in the highs. Imaging and soundstaging were similar in the relatively short amount of time I had for comparison. This was with Sophia 2 and a CJ CA200 (awesome amp). But the Ayre does cost more....

I am dying to hear an Astintrew A3500 but so far they aren't imported into the USA. In the meantime, I am super happy with my Audio Aero. I personally feel that it is easier to get great sound out of a CD player if there are tubes in its output stage.

Arthur
omegaspeedy OP
11 posts
 
I've heard nothing but good things about the Ayre CX7e. I just wish we had a dealer here in sheepland (NZ)! the price of an A5 is still dead cheap so I might still give it a listen and see how old school it sounds. It might be a nice surprise. Are there any owners out there who consider them still a worthy choice when buying a new CD player? I read somewhere that the A5.5 sounds the same and it has only just been released, so the A5 still would be great value/performance. Also how does the A1008 compare because there are some very good promotions here also?
kiwi_1282001
312 posts
 
05-14-08: Brianmgrarcom
I believe I am a bit in the minority as many people really like this CDP, but I never liked it; I replaced it with a Meridian G08.

Well, you are not alone. I never really warmed to this player either. Somethings not quite right with the PRAT.

Things have moved on. The A5 is outclassed today by more recent valve stage products which have improved resolution and timing - such as Astin Trews A3500.

greeni
92 posts
 
Look elsewhere.

The A5 is actually not in the same league as MF's older but more expensive models of Nu-vista and Tri-vista, but like Kiwi I never really warmed up to the $5,500 Tri-vista. The reliability of this player is another issue.

I recently purchased the Reference Audio Mod Oppo 980 universal player (full mod version) which at 1/3 of the price completely outcasted the MF Tri-vista.
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