I went through a similar problem recently. I wanted a U.S or N. American unit, or a
non-Chinese sourced unit.
I considered the Sim Audio unit, but was not sure what CD mechanism
it used. I wanted a transport that used
a dedicated audio CD drive, not an adapted computer drive. I also wanted a unit for which I could easily
get a spare drive, in case it failed. I
looked at the Japanese CEC TL05 drive,
but the U.S. distributor did not respond back to me. I considered buying on E-bay, but was unsure the unit could be adapted to U.S.
voltage without affecting the sound quality.
I then started looking at European units, and considered the
Atoll (French) and Van Medevoort CT360D (Dutch). Both the units used a > $100 Teac
5020 audio only CD drive, which is a robust unit of newer design. and easily
found. The Van Medevoort could not be sourced in the U.S.. So, I contacted the U.S. Atoll distributor,
who was very responsive to my questions.
The unit can be serviced in the U.S., I believe by Nick Gowan at True Sound. The
components in the unit are largely of French manufacture. I picked up a spare drive when I purchased the unit for a modest cost.
I am not certain if an in-home demo is available. Perhaps if you have a nearby dealer? I took a bit of a leap-of-faith by purchasing
before hearing. But, I had read a number
of European reviews and reviewed the internal design and construction, which appeared
to be sound.
The Tascam 200 uses the same Teac 5020 drive. The Atoll
has a significant number of enhancements over it as a transport, but I’d
bet the basic character is there. They
can be sourced fairly cheaply, and perhaps that might give you enough insight
on what a Teac 5020 based unit sounds like? And
the transport build quality? Perhaps a Tascam 200 might even sound good enough
as a transport to suit your needs?
The Bryston BCD-3 uses a Blue Tiger JPL-2800 transport,
which appears to be a good quality drive.
However, if you’re not going to use the DAC, I’d say you’ll get more value
buying a dedicated CD transport.
That Primare CD35 also uses a Teac 5020 drive. From what I can tell, a number of higher end
transports are using the Teac drive.
Just some info I thought I’d pass along.
