RMAF 2008 - Your impressions,...

Dcstep, there has been an ongoing argument about digital versus vinyl for at least twenty years. while I certainly would agree about the best of vinyl reproduction being better than the best of digital reproduction, I find there has been a very great improvement in digital in the last several years. I suspect, however, that there is little agreement as to which companies now represent the best digital and even whether the best digital is to be found in CDPlayers or in music servers. I personally am a recent convert to digital off hard drives. There is also the question of sacds versus redbook. Here I still favor sacds, although I find there is a tradeoff between greater dynamics on redbook formats such as XRCD and a great sense of realism in the soundstage of sacds.

I also recent heard a demonstration of mono records at the RMAF that resulted in my buying a mono cartridge and mono versions of some classics that were originally available in both mono and stereo. I already have about 200 mono recordings, somewhere. Yet another format to have access to.

Finally, the Tape Project pulls me back to having tapes as a source. Here I will not give in. Tapes are the best but are just too much of a pain.

I suspect that very soon we have access to many recordings in 24/96 or even 24/192 are higher and that this may further improve digital.

When I first entered audio, ones choices were fm or vinyl. It was years before I heard a quality tape recording. I rejoice in my choices although storage and equipment are an issue.

A lot has happened in 20-years Tbg. Digital is finally maturing, with upsampling strategies and hard drive server-based systems. I haven't done hard drive yet, but I will within the next year or so. Playback Designs will soon have a separate DAC and ADC. I expect to use the ADC to convert my D2D LPs to digital and move my high rez digital to a server with terabytes of storage. The next generation of HDs will likely close the gap.

I've got CD, SACD, DVD-A and analog and find that they're finally converging in quality.

Dave

Dave, I just can't believe that the only cd players worth their weight are ones that cost $10,000+ and that there are only three that make the grade. If your ears say so then, that's ok by me. I just know, to my ears there a plenty of much much cheaper cd players that sound excellent, the Arcam T192 for Instance.
I would love to hear your player if only to drool over a cd player that is for me unobtainable.

I have heard one of the UK's most respected hi-fi reviewers personal system on more than one occasion and I must say it brought tears to a glass eye.

Gawdbless,

Out of curiosity - What were the components in this system?

Shadorne; I have mentioned this before in other posts, the speakers since 1989 have been Impulse H1's made by the Same chap that makes the Aspara Acoustic speakers, the H1's have been (I believe) been modified a number of times over the years, but remain constant with the addition recently of the Townsend Ribbon tweeter, and two small Rel Q subs, all the other ancillaries I have no clue as to what was plugged it was like a treasure trove of exotica, and down to earth stuff also. I can only attest to quality of sound I was hearing whether it be any cd played or vinyl, simply music. In my old system I used to blame the cd's for sounding terrible, then as I said I heard this system and what it could do with cd's, I changed my point of view that if a cd sounds bad then its the speakers or other items in the chain. Only my view, but I have heard with my own ears.
I would wager (If I were a gambling man) that his systm with a middle of the road cd player like the Arcam 192T versus
say the VA Mahlers with a 10,000+ player this would be no contest, I have heard the Mahlers and they for instance are not in the same league H1's, to my ageing ears, all IMHO, naturally.
Interestingly Shardorne your Speakers cost $14,500 and your cd player cost $480, whereas Dcstep's Speakers cost $3,500 and his cd player cost $15,000. Two diverse schools of thought there in heading for hi-fi nirvana.