new updates in transports or are they obsolete ?

Kana - I have been using a heavily modded Sony DVP-S7700 with the same DAC. It performs better than anything stock, including CEC, which I also mod.

Reprince,

Do you have any info on how the Forsell sounds more like analog playback?

I can see that a DAC's analog output stage can be tuned to sound "analog". But for a transport to have this effect, the bit stream would have to be modified or "good jitter", if there is such a thing, be introduced into the bit stream.

Kenn 39, I agree with your thinking in theory; I have no idea how Peter Forsell did it, and it certainly doesn't make any sense to me as to how it could happen either, but his transport consistently has had more of the analog-like "bloom" with individual images in the soundstage and a much wider and deeper overall soundstage than other transports I have tried in my system, particularly in its first version (when I had it upgraded to Mk. IV, it gained a little more focus, though not enough to make it sound like a Levinson or Wadia); in addition, I could always play it louder (something you can always do with analog) than other transports I tried, as the digital edge you sometimes get when listening at higher volumes is not there. I am not an engineer, so I can't explain how it was done, but it is noticeable. I do know he used particularly good parts in the building of the unit, hand-chosen for the sonic signature he wanted to achieve, that likely is the main part of the explanation. I'll also note that this transport is particularly affected by isolation devices, which shouldn't in my mind make a big difference in ones and zeros either but does.

"Kana - I have been using a heavily modded Sony DVP-S7700 with the same DAC. It performs better than anything stock, including CEC, which I also mod."

Mahalo. Now I understand the improvement.

Rcprince wrote:
"I'm interested in hearing whether a CD stored in the hard drive via the Forsell transport vs. the unit's own transport mechanism sounds different, both from each other and from direct playing through the Forsell."

Huh? Maybe you do not understand how the computer works. When the data is stored on the hard-drive, it is only the data, no timing information. As long as there is an error-free data read of the CD, it does not matter what CD reader that you use or how fast it is read. It's only data. The timing information is added back at playback from the hard-disk/memory of the computer by either the add-in card or the external converter.