ESOTERIC K-07X VS Mcintosh MCD 550 Which is better ?

Better? No not better Different is the word, typically the Esoteric sounds very fast, cool, articulate and dynamic very "digital" sounding. The Mac will sound warm, beautiful, very musical with proper tone, and dynamic and a more analogue type sound.

Matt M

I'm coming from an Oppo 95 player so I think either one of these players will be a big improvement for me .

I have an Esoteric UX-3 in one system and a McIntosh MCD301 in another system.  I much prefer the Esoteric as it seems truer to the music, but the McIntosh  is very smooth sounding and even poor recorded cd's sound listenable.  It's a toss up and either player you mentioned will be a big step up from the Oppo.

I am a McIntosh person, have two Mac power amps, two Mac preamps and a Mac tuner, but when it comes to digital I would not consider Mac, there are better choices out there and for a lot less cost.

Thanks for posting that . Im using two Mcintosh  MC 252 amps  through a Krell KCT pre Amp with B&W 800D speakers and I was thinking the same thing . I like Mcintosh for their amps but not so much for their digital products . I bought the  Mcintosh MCD 700 player when it first came out in the eighties then purchased a Mcintosh MVP 851 later on and my oppo 95 sounds better than the MAC .
Ive also had tons of problems with my Mcintosh players . They have not been trouble free for me over the years .
Im still deciding between the two players Mcintosh MCD 550 or the ESOTERIC 7X