Can any player challenge Audio Aero Prestige SE ?

There is a new player that has captured my attention and may be one of the best players ever built!The AMR cd player retails for 8000.00 and uses some of the best parts;the transport,dac ,and output tubestage are custom made for this player.It has a build quality that is top shelf and is a gorgeuos to look at.I am using a highly modded Wadia dac and trans wired directly to my amp,but this player may have me considering getting a preamp or Ultimate attenuators just so I can hear this new monster.Apparently,Darren says that it beats every player he has heard and these include DCS,Zanden,Essoteric,Wadia,Reimyo.My friend in Vancouver is going down to CES to hear this payer and may buy one if it is as analog as Darren says it is.This player looks on the website as a technology tour de force since it addesses every facit of digital.Good hunting Dennis

how can a component have high resolution, transparency and musicality ? musicality is a term refering to the qualities of instruments, mainly timbre and harmonics.

a component can't have transparency and musicality as the latter implies coloration and the former implies a lack of coloration.

i will try to explain. suppose a recording has been equalized, creating gross inaccuracy of timbre. when played back on a transparent component, the inaccurate timbre will be evident. if the component is "musical", the timbre of the instrument may sound closer to the real thing. certainly, the timbre of the instrument will sound different when played through a component which has "musicality", compared to another which is transparent.

by the way, "bloom" is a quality usuually associated with musicality but not with trasnparency.

YES: GNSC Ref. Level modded Wadia 581 beats the hell out of the AA Prestige SE - we made an extensive two weekend shoot-out with several top notch players. The AA came in 3rd. after the DCS P-8i and the Wadia.