I'm in the stuartk camp. I have an AA transport now and want something similarly chunky and substantial the next go round. I'd be all over a Jay's with the SU CD Pro 8
Aqua 'La Diva' ($9k) or Gryphon 'Ethos' ($39k) versus. Pro-Ject CD Box RS2 T ($3k)?
What sensible rationale is there for buying either of the two above-mentioned VERY COSTLY CD spinners (Aqua ’La Diva,’ a CD-only transport, and the Gryphon ’Ethos,’ a CD player with built-in DAC) when we can get the same pure Red-Book CD digital output from the Pro-Ject CD Box RS2 T for FAR less money?
What is a potential buyer getting for their significantly increased expenditure other than fancy packaging and possibly a boost to their egos from ownership of a prestige brand-name item? The one component (and a crucially-significant one at that) which all three of these products have in common is the new Philips-based Stream Unlimited CD Pro 8 CD player mechanism. Aside than that, what one appears to get with the two far-higher-priced components is little more than pure window-dressing, not substantive gains in performance over the CD Box RS2 T.
It is little wonder that one reviewer of the RS2 T thinks of it as nothing less than a "giant killer," in that it makes it nearly impossible for any level-headed purchaser, even one with the means to spend lavishly, to rationalize spending thousands of dollars more on these two competing products (or on others like them) when one can get the same sonic results (which from most reports are splendid) from the humble little CD Box.
Any thoughts? Do we audiophiles finally have good reason to come to our buying senses? To me, Pro-Ject Audio Systems may have struck a true winning vein with their CD Box when prospecting for gold.
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@ acresverde: Which version of the Accustic Arts CD transport do you have, and how long have you had it - plus, of course, how do you like it? For a CD transport costing USD$18k, if that is the version you own, it seems to me that it ought to offer its owner more than just one optical and one COAX digital output. An i2s HDMI port seems to be logically the next best additional digital-out option made available, but perhaps because 1), there IS no standard configuration for i2s HDMI ports, and 2), because so many of the i2s ports that ARE included on CD transports are useful ONLY with a proprietary DAC made by the same company, I can see why your AA machine doesn’t include one. AES/EBU is nice to have but sounds no better or worse than COAX. Do you other participants on this thread find that i2s HDMI ports are an overblown feature which most of us can quite happily live without? |
I believe that those are the primary issues with i2s. There are 4 different (Possibly more) iterations in use and the intent seems to be, use with a sibling -companion product. Good quality S/PDIF input/outputs and cable are proven capable of providing superb CD playback sound quality. Charles |
@erictal4075 I have the AA CD transport Drive 1. I bought new from Galen Carol at least 15 years ago. It has never had a service or a failure. I love it's substantial feel and heft. At 25 lbs., it's a chunk. And it has always delivered the goods sonically. I'd buy the new Ref Drive II in a heartbeat if not for the insurmountable cost factor. The Drive I has been a rock for me. |
@ acresverde: Yours is the best tribute I can imagine anyone giving a piece of audio equipment they have owned and used for as long as you have, your AA CD Drive 1 - with no problems whatsoever! Says a lot about the quality of your transport and the excellence of its design, as well as the care you’ve given it. I suppose at this point your transport won’t have much trade-in value against the cost of a new CD Drive 2 - but the fact that it still performs as well and sounds as great as it does is a huge plus. Now we are all waiting with bated breath for charles1dad to give us his report on how his Pro-Ject CD Box RS2 T sounds since he received his new linear power supply for it! I’m sure he’s giving it time to break itself in before he says anything about the difference it makes to the sound compared to that from his original "wall-wart" switching power supply. |
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