What Sonically is the Difference between a $1,500 CD Player and a $10K-$25K One?

jbrrp1

I love all the folks that assure you that there can be no difference of any import. Try some auditioning at an audio salon, and I'm pretty sure you will then know the answer.

Agreed. It amazes me how in a hobby based on listening, some will ask others to tell them what they should expect to hear. There's no substitute for listening and deciding for yourself.

... you can get some very real, sonically significant and musical improvements as you go up the food chain. But the folks pointing out the diminishing returns with greatly increasing price certainly on to something ...

Oh yes, there are diminishing returns, no doubt. That's why every audiophile must decide the value proposition for themselves.

You don’t have to be too swift 🏃‍♂️to chase electrons since they barely move at all. 🐌

On the Kalahari you don’t have to be the swiftest wildebeest, you just have to be swifter than the slowest wildebeest. 🐆 

Once in a while a great piece of gear "falls from grace" and loses its appeal. Sometimes for poor reasons. In the case of PS Audios PerfectWave Dac, when the newer Directstream Dac came out, reviewers sited the new unit as superior to the old. Thus a Perfectwave Dac can be bought for in the low teens. I bought one and I think I paid $1200.00 or so. Coupled with even a CD transport or player, I was blown away by the sound. To me it sounds like a $15,000 rig that I paid $2000.00 for. I can't believe that PS Audio will gut a Perfectwave to update to a directstream model. I also bought a directstream DAC so I can A/B the two of them. (I haven't gotten around to it yet). My two cents.

The sound of cash leaving your wallet.