The best CD Player for the money

Audiohobby1, I live the San Francisco Bay Area. I'de be happy to compare the two. My system is not optimally setup, so it might be better in your 3930's system. One thing bothers me. All by itself, Alex's 3910 sounds fantastic! I know this sounds like heresy, but I'm not completely convinced that comparisons yield the best results. I also want to mention that AKM dac's, tubes, and Alex's use of the Esoteric transport are considered upgrades on my APL 3910. I also think that replacement of the Denon 3910's power cord with the Volex 17604 is a no-brainer. This last statement are for those that still have the standard power cord. I'm sure there are better power cords out there, but for less than $20, who can argue?

Dbld, I see you had an Esoteric in the comparison. From what I've read, just that transport puts my 3910 at a disadvantage.

>>I know this sounds like heresy, but I'm not completely convinced that comparisons yield the best results.<<

Huh???

Mmakshak - My idea above was a "get-together" not a "shoot-out". I think those two descriptions are self defining. Besides agreeing with your idea that a one time side-by-side comparison is probably not ideal, I really don't like the idea of having someone come to my home, eat and drink what I provide and then crap all over any of my gear the moment they get to their computer. I know there are many very passionate folks around here, but this tone can be ruthless and unwarranted...IMO of course.

BTW, I too wish I could edit or even delete some of my posts. There have been several times when I have written something that I shouldn’t have. I really don’t think there is anything wrong with what you wrote above. I certainly wasn’t offended. I just think some folks may have misinterpreted/over-interpreted it.

The bottom line is this, I like my player. I like what Schulte has done with it and how he has treated me as his customer. I may not have a lot of experience with this sort of thing, but at least he is NOT the first “modder” I have dealt with, so I do have a little experience. Others may not feel the same way as I do on any of these points, and that is just fine.

Also, FWIW, TUC, APL, and even RAM, to the best of my recollection, have all made posts that have been what I would consider confrontational in there tone. But, this is their livelihood and I can now understand how they can get their feathers ruffled by what some people write. Especially when people imply facts about gear they have never heard. I’d get PO’d too!

The fact that you are reading this [all of you!], in my book, defines you as a bit geeked out on audio. So we all really need a little Psychological help. I know my player is not the absolute best of the best. I never meant to imply that it is. But, it is the best I can do for now. I feel I would have had to spend a boatload of money, and time, to get to this point buying off-the-shelf players.

One last thing, the Esoterics I referred to above do not have the VRDS outfitted transports. My “antiquated” DV-50 has a pioneer transport. From what I understand, the Denon transport can do a great job, but there is much more to it than just the transport…as always…so I am told [nice disclaimer - huh].

Jp1208, my solid state Denon 3910 sounds really nice but is not nearly as good as the AKM/Tubed one. Tvad have heard them both in his system so he may want to provide some feedback about the differences. Since my long discontinued AKM/Tube Denon 3910 was all-single ended design, it is possible to sound a tad slow/romantic compared to a solid state design but the level of naturalness, realism and soundstaging properties can not be matched with solid state.

All of the current APL Hi-Fi AKM/Tubed products are featuring fully differential design.

Since we are also offering 3930 (see our website) which is all solid state design using the original Burr-Brown DACs and MOSFET output, it would be fair that David Schulte's 3930 is compared to that one. I am willing to submit an APL 3930 machine to anyone who'd like to compare it to Schulte's. Doing so with the AKM/Tubed NWO-2.5, NWO-M1 and even the discontinued APL 3910 would not be fair for David Schulte, not APL.

Regards,
Alex