Various Wadia players.. can someone order them


There are so many different Wadia players around, and so little info on the net about them. Would anyone be willing to put the following players in order of time/value?

* 6i
* 830
* 850
* 21

God help me sorting through them... What would you buy if you were buying an older Wadia (I'm considering other offerings as well, but lets keep the thread to Wadia stuff - might be useful to someone else like me down the road).

-Adam
Ag insider logo xs@2xakimball
One note of caution, when I was looking for a used wadia I talked to the factory and was advised that the transport in the 6 is obsolete and cannot be replaced if it ever breaks. Of course, that's pretty unlikely, but it's something to think about. The guy I talked to also seemed to think that of these choices, the best bang for the buck was the 830. (Although the 850 is better if you can afford it). I don't know about the 6i, as stated above, probably best to call Steve Huntley.
check their site - they had info on the -i upgrades last time I looked. Agreed the 16 is a nice one-box player, perhaps one of the best one box players around. The 7/9 combo is also very nice but a bit more $ than the others mentioned.

-Ed
He could be right, or at least close to it. Wadia does/did have a habit of upgrades keeping things relatively close. Calling a 3rd party like Great Northern Sound or Wadia might give you the correct answer.
Interesting.. the seller of the 6i maintains that the 6 is quite an old player but the i upgrade makes it essentially a 650. True, not true?

-Adam
Hi, I have owned several Wadia separates and they were all incredible. But for your question, the oldest is the 6i, then the 21 and the 830, 850 were produced during the same period. If I am not mistaken the 6i, 21 and 850 all use TEAC based transports, the 830 has a PIONEER STABLE PLATTER (reversed label). The difference between them is the resolution power 18 to 22 bits I think.

As far as buying an older model, I would recommended the 16 (not in your list) or 850/860, they were the top machines made by Wadia in the past.

You could also contact Steve Hunley at Great Northern Sound, he used to be with Wadia and now upgrades/services them. He has great knowledge of the older products and is a very nice person to deal with.

Good luck

Serge