Creek CD43 v. Linn Genki v. Cairn Fog v. Cary 308

Greg, the Cairn seems to portray the music almost in a 'live' presentation - a you-are-there sort of way. It is a very exciting and emotional experience. It retrieves so much detail while going nowhere near sounding bright or harsh in the upper end. It has a 'warm' sound to it, but not overly tube-warm. It presents bass with a heft in lower octaves and human voices that makes them seem visceral. It does have PRaT, but it builds on that and adds Power to the Pace, Rightness to the Rythmn and will have you Toe-Tapping with the Timing. I've heard the upper 2% and lower 2% done better, but never something as right everywhere in between with the other 96% of the spectrum. In one word - Emotional, and for me that is the most important. You may be able to find more accurate, but you would be hard pressed to find something that draws you into the music as much as this player does at the price level. At least in my humble opinion and in my set-up.

I can only respond to the Creek CD43. I am one of those people looking for that unit too. Darn hard to find used, wonder why:) I had a Rega Planet 2000 and was going to upgrade. Some of the CDPs that I listened to were the Creek CD43, CD53, Arcam 73 and Rega Jupiter 2000. While I use to have a Creek 5350SE, I never bothered to listen to the Creek CDPs before I bought the Planet 2000. I was really surprised how much better the CD43 was compared to the Planet 2000 for the same price. Had I listened to it before buying the Planet, I don't think that I would have upgraded any time soon. Having said that, the CD43 and CD53 as well as the Arcam did not sound as good as the Rega Jupiter 2000 which I bought and still happily own. Just a quick plug for the Jupiter: Very musical, Fairly detailed, Great rhythm and pace, and Flat out fun to listen to for extended periods of time. I am still looking for a CD43 for around $500-600 for a bedroom system in case anyone has one for sale.

I can only comment on the Cairn.
For a month now I've been using the Cairn Fog v2.0 24/192.
It has replaced a Jolida JD 100A which has been in my system longer than anything else
( 1 1/2 years ).
The Fog is more detailed, yet smoother. Bass is quicker without rounding out the notes so much, which gives it a better sense of timing. I can hear the tone of the bass notes better also. Not a bad player at all and well worth the used price.
Only quibble is the way the remote opperates..sometimes I have to push it twice to turn the unit on and the numbers are backwards..