Rega Apollo vs Naim CD5i vs Arcam CD73T

I've listened to higher-end Naim's and the Apollo and there's a difference. The Naim seemed to have a bit more articulation with the upper frequencies and the silences were quieter. I was listening to one of their high-end ones with separate power supply.

The Apollo sounded very good to me. People often use the phrase laid-back to describe it and I'd agree with that characterization. I bought the Apollo and honestly I'm tickled pink. I love the sound. It was a huge upgrade over what I was using. I just finished listening to Rachmaninoff and was pure bliss. I just sat there and relaxed like I hadn't in a long time listening to music.

At this moment I'm a big Rega fan. BTW they're amps have the same sort of sound.

Arcam CDP I'm not sure about. I've A/B'ed their amps and they're a bit too "left brain" for me. By that I mean the sound is very clear, detailed, and definitive but lacks warmth. As an engineer I appreciate what they're doing but as a music fan, I'm not that thrilled with the sound.

Thanks for the response. I was hoping to get more, but I guess not than many are familiar with these units.

Your thoughts on the Arcam is what I have heard from others, including my dealer who sold me my Arcam AVP-700. I still haven't heard the Apollo, but have heard the a Naim CD5X with the outboard power supply and absolutely loved the sound.

The CD5i was actually more than I wanted to spend, but I went ahead and ordered because deep inside I knew this was the one I really wanted.

I just hope it sounds similar to what I heard from 5X and I hope I don't hear the Apollo only to find I spent the extra bucks for nothing. But, we'll see.

Thanks for the response.

Hi Jack,

The 5X and the 5i sound pretty different from each other. I bought a 5i because I love it's lively sound and drive. The 5X falls a lot closer to the conventional "audiophile" sound. It's just a matter of preference, but there's not a lot of family resemblance between the two.

Jack, what do 5i's run? I heard the 5x and the S3. I think the dealer wanted $1700 for the entry level 5x which was a good bit more than the Apollo and a bit more than I was wanting to pay for the difference in sound. Plus I listened to it with the separate PS which would have just been more.

The 5x didn't really blow me away but but S3 was part of a complete high-end Naim system - monoblocks and power supplies everywhere. The high-end system - the guy must have had $60k in it - just blew me away. I won't forget how good it sounded for a very long time if ever. Of course my budget was nowhere near that. But it was nice to establish a reference memory.