Theta Delta Basic II Transport Opinions.

Redvolt: Just in case you were being discreet to spare my feelings, that 'other' Theta transport wouldn't have been a Pearl (or a Jade, their other Stable Platter-based design), would it? Nahhh...bet it had to be the one that played Laserdisks! ;^)

Funny story: I was actually planning to buy a Basic II originally, but at that time Theta's customer rep suggested that since the Philips mechanism it had been based around was no longer in production, future repair would be more difficult, and so recommended I try the Pearl instead. I didn't regret doing that from a sonic standpoint, but soon after my getting it, Pioneer discontinued production of the Stable Platter mechanism, which effectively put Theta out of the CD-only transport business (not that they weren't already headed firmly in the DVD direction by then). Oh well - the unit's never given me a lick of trouble anyway. Although I've heard both transport models through Theta DAC's (the DSPro Basic IIIa is my own Pearl's dancing partner), it's been in different systems at different times, so I've never compared the two head-to-head.

Zaikesman: Nothing wrong with the Pearl, I almost bought one at one point. It wasn't laserdisc, it was dvd transport. The repair issue is always a strong consideration for new gear.

...And less strong of a consideration for used gear, which is how I bought my Pearl. (Theta were very helpful no matter that I wasn't purchasing new - possibly in part because they don't make anything in this catagory anymore - but to me it's just smart business practice all the way around, and I commend the company for their enlightened approach to an area that causes some manufacturers paranoid heartburn.)

Some have commented negatively on the fact that the Stable Platter mechanism employs a plastic superstructure, as opposed to metal in the older Philips-sourced units. However, its internals actually seem quite sturdy in comparison with the typical mass-market jobs that the word 'plastic' may conjure up images of, and I wouldn't be surprised if the thick molded-ABS with truss-type reinforcing ribs isn't at least as rigid as many using folded thin metal-sheet, and quite possibly better-damped as well. Besides, the actual Stable Platter concept, with its aluminum turntable, integral damping mat, automatic disk clamping, and evidently good laser and servo, definitely sounds like it's a notch above most other drawer-style mechanisms (provided you can get used to loading your disks in label-side down).

[Other by-the-way tidbits, for what they're worth: I use a Monarchy DIP 24/96 jitter-reduction unit between the Thetas (probably not necessary for a Jade transport, which features built-in jitter reduction), and both transport and DAC respond well to balanced-AC and voltage/waveform-correcting PLC's. After having previously used both copper and silver, my digital IC's of choice aren't either copper *or* silver, but carbon: van den Hul The Second XLR and The First Ultimate RCA (they're my analog IC's as well). I recommend that anybody interested in reducing the impression of 'digitalness' to the sound and restoring a natural smooth coherence try vdH carbon as digital IC (see linked articles on the vdH website containing theories about this topic; my own suspicion is that carbon sounds better here because it might induce less jitter-producing time-smear at mHz frequencies than metal wires do). Digital PC's are HT Pro AC 11, the decent-est moderate-cost option out of several I've tried for this system position, though I don't use them elsewhere.]