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Silly Question...does a transport have a "sound" ?

I'm thinking of upgrading to a dedicated transport (like an Accustic Arts Drive I, AM Mephesto II.X or even a ML 37) from the Sony DVP-9000es I'm using now. I'm locked in on my dac (Kora Heremes II), which I love.

My question is, do transports from different manufacturers have significantly audible "sonic signitures" that I should consider when deciding what to mate to the Kora? (e.g., hifi-ish/fast/cold/analytic vs. analog-like/polite/bloomy/warm).

To go even further down this slippery slope, are there discerable differences between, say, a Teac VRDS 3.2 mechanism and a Phillips CDM Pro2 or a C.E.C. belt drive?

I've read a lot of posts here and on AA that've provided some clues, but was wondering if anyone with significant experience with multiple brands of transports could share some of their experiences.

In other words, is the transport "sound/signiture" something worth paying a lot of attention too, or should I just worry about mechanical things like stability, isolation, etc. Thanks.
garyk
rockvirgo
587 posts
 
Regarding the "no physical reason" argument, a short story:

Alfred Einstein liked his pipe. One time he digs into his pocket and displays a wooden kitchen match. He shows it around and asks everyone to describe it. The listeners note it has mass, molecular composition, color etc. Then A.E. breaks the match in two. What's different about it now? he asks... The moral: the same match, broken and unbroken, exists in time...

So OK, back to those pesky electrons, ignoring any physical reason for transports to sound different, hows about a temporal one?
danlib1
819 posts
 
Kjg & Pabelson-

I respect your opinions, but there's a lot more to what a transport does than you've described.

HOW the encoded data is retrieved and processed, protected from vibration and electrical anamoloies, etc. does indeed make a difference. Trust me, the various transports I've employed were not defective, and the differences between units was audible.

Of course, I also heard diffences in swapping out power cords on some transports- more voodoo in the minds of many I'm sure!
sean
6,231 posts
 
Jafox: Why am i expected to provide points of reference when those that present a "negative" aren't? Isn't this somewhat of a double standard or are you making this statement because it was i that made those comments and not someone else? While i understand that was i said was rather bold and confrontational, isn't someone saying that there are no differences or that if there are any differences, that they are "broken" just as bold and confrontational? I'm being serious here.

Why don't you ask Hovland to tell you about their experiences with transports, both "inexpensive" and "mega-dollar"? If you want me to tell you the story, i can do that. Just let me know. I'll even use product names too, but some folks are going to get pissed because they'll find out that they spent their money on brand & reputation rather than performance and sonics. Then again, one would have to assume that Hovland was also pissed when they spent many thousands of dollars only to find out that their "budget" transport was far superior, both sonically and electrically. Sean
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nrchy's avatar
nrchy
2,124 posts
 
There is not transistor, triode, tube, PC board or wire that is sonically neutral. Why would and piece of gear be neutral?

It is impossible for anything not to leave a sonic signature! Even the best gear is sometimes discribed as have the least signature a reviewer has ever heard, but it is still there.

Sean is right again!
garyk OP
30 posts
 
Yikes! Thanks for all the recent responses, but we seem to be straying more to the philosophical than practical side of my original question.

I understand no two components are going to "sound" exactly the same, even transports. But I'm still interested in whether "family traits" exist between VRDS, CDM Pro, Sony or belt-drive transport mechanisms that are somewhat transportable across brands.

For example, would a belt-drive C.E.C. which is reputed to be somewhat "lush/relaxed" be too much of a good thing for a tube-based dac like the Hermes II?

Or would a more "incisive/analytical" VRDS transport be a better match of yin and yang? (Or could I simply tune the sound with PCs and ICs to correct for any transport-dac imbalances...oh, the permutations!).

I know I'm characterizing things with a very broad-brush. And I'm not looking for posts like "you should try [insert name], it's great!" (which are easy enough to find by searching the archives).

But I'm still looking for some directional insights that would help me narrow the field (sorry if I'm being obtuse, but any advice would be greatly appreciated).
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