Universal Players vs. Dedicated CD/SACD Players

Many Thanks! lynott-

I am in the market for a SACD spinner. I have heard several Esoteric players. I really liked what I heard in the Esoteric. Additionally, I have an interest in Marantz, especially any special edition or limited edition, by Ken Ishiwata (KI).

Hello Jafant
If you go with the Esoteric players you will want to get into one of the"X" versions. They are a step up from the older ones. K-O1x or like in the product line. The Absolute Sound just gave the K-O3x high marks.

Agree the new X series looks sweet, but the K-05 that are listed now are at very reasonable price. It may be worth the time compare them, it's a shame that Esoteric does not allow an upgrade path for existing owners. 

Quote:

"....
12-17-2015 12:02pm
In my experience, dedicated CD players have better redbook performance than similarly, or even somewhat more expensive multi-format players..."

"....initforthemusic
17 posts
01-29-2016 8:05am
No contest. A quality dedicated CD player will annihilate the Oppo/Cambridge universal players on redbook playback...."

+1


I have the ARCAM FMJ Blu-Ray player for multichannel (movies and audio)
I have the REGA ISIS Valce cdp for 2-channel.

Verdict: As good as the ARCAM is, the performance superiority of the REGA for 2-channel red book cd audio is  not even close: the differences  are not subtle.