Considering a change. Avantgarde for Wilson.

For all you wonderful responders, I have a belated up-
date: Still have the AV Duos. After auditioning the
passive Placette remote volume control and heard its
wonderful transparency, I realized that my "front end"
was where I was finding my fatique. Traded my cdp and
got the Raysonic CD 128. Clear improvement. Finally
relented and went for better interconnects and power
cords. All revealing and confirming their worth. Yes,
wire does make a difference. Lamp cord just does not
deliver! Well engineered CDs sound great. Trash still
disappoints. It still holds true: You get what you
pay for. BG

Bgordon,
I had the Raysonic 128.. Great player! Very good and dynamic midrange without fatigue.. I suggest replacing the 6922 tubes in that unit if they are stock, 5 times better using a vintage philips or like RCA, even Mullard 6922... They can be had between 40 and like 80 bucks a matched pair, they will be far more smooth, bass, sound stage etc... They will be as effective or more than cable upgrades, and the raysonic deserves a good power cable, I liked Copper designs best, and shielded might be an advantage but I did not experiment enough.

Bgordon, FWIW I agree with Undertow re changing out the tubes in the 128. Initially the EH's are impressive (big bass) but I found the tube lacking in bass resolution and the highs a bit too much. I ultimately chose EI6DJ8's, but realize that tube selection is as much a system synergy issue as anything else. I also liked Amperex Bugleboys as well. Anyway, do take the time to explore this - it really makes a big difference.

the glass is probably a bigger issue than your cdp, that's just my opinion.

As much as a better CDP or preamp or amp can improve things, they can't begin to compare to getting the speakers to "play the room" with the components you currently have.

Buying more or better components without first fully addressing the potential of a speaker's interface with the room is - if you'll allow one more opinion - a near total waste of money.

That goes for Wilsons, Avantgardes, Magneplanars, Quads, or really any speakers.

Just my two euros...