Best analog sounding cd player under 5K

Where is it written that the AA units are poorly made and breakdown a lot? I've read about problems here on A'gon but certainly no more than other players. And many of the problems have been about the transport, which can hardly be attributable to AA. Then of course there is the problem about no current representation in the states and the fact that AA does not return emails. Legitimate problems, but I still think the rap AA has taken is a bit overblown. I've owned 2 AA players over the last 7-8 years (I still own my Capitol) and never had an ounce of trouble with either one. Bottom line is they are wonderful players IMHO, very musical, have as much detail as I need, and are about as close to analog as you will get with digital. And with the bad rap they have taken, very attractively priced these days. I have no affiliation with AA, I’m just a happy AA owner.

SMW - I haven't listened to the Ayon players and have only read about the PS audio perfect wave DAC. I have auditioned the Electro EMC and this is a warmer sounding player (vs. traditional digital sound). I had been tempted by this player and would agree that for those looking for the addition of some "warmth" that this would be a good audition/consideration. I have listened to this at about the same time I listened to a Lector and to be honest, due to time and neither in my system, I have a difficult time differentiating which was which. I think both are worth a listen and I also think both can be had at pretty decent prices used. This opens the possibility to buy and re-sell for little to no loss if done carefully.

My recollection about these players was that they were warmer, slightly less detailed. Bass reproduction gave the impression of being a bit looser, but not flabby. Nice midrange and female vocal reproduction with what seemed like somewhat rolled of highs (which I think is common for "warm" leaning players).

Now it should be noted that I am not a fan of warm sounding players over the long term as I am of the opinion that if I want to warm things up, I'd rather do it later in the chain. Since I generally prefer detailed and neutral versus forgiving and warm, I usually find that a copper or certain type of IC or SC is a better means for me.

I also have a tough time categorizing something as sounding "analog", which in my mind has its own pros and cons (I associate analog with records and the weakness of that medium - ie. noise/distortion/etc).

I am a little bit skeptical of PS Audio, I get the sense that they are a little bit gimmicky. I own their power generation and "filtering" components but have not honestly listened to any of their other stuff to offer any impression at all. My gimicky comment is maybe undeserved. It also concerns me that their dealers seem to be selling stuff one year after its introduced for 50% off, meaning to me that its used value is only about 25% of new list price!

I would read carefully the reviews on the Ayon stuff herein and I would be real interested to contact people that made ownership comments of some time prior and then to contact them outside of the posting to see if they still own this stuff or whether posts were made out of pride vs. reality. I think the "main" dealer for this stuff is a good marketer - take that for what it's worth.

On a final note, there are a couple of internet professional "review" sites, which I won't bother to name. I find their reviews even more questionable than the paper rags. Having actually purchased an item directly from the review process of one of these reviewers. The item arrived to me, after receiving a glowing review. The item didn't function properly and the mfg. said it was defective and the defect could not have had anything to do with shipping damages. Yet this defective product, which sounded awful to me in 5 minutes got a glowing review from the internet-only professional reviewer!

Jaffeassc, It is written above, by me. My Capitole has broken down twice, but not the transport. The entire STARS system needed to be replaced ($2K). It is currently not working, won't even power up. When I first started having problems I contacted the authorized US repair shop (after talking to Jody at Globe - distributor at the time). I sent the unit to Texas or Arizona, who couldn't do anything but change the tubes, anything else required it go to France - so off it went.

I also spoke with the former "authorized" service center for AA in the USA. Since I have purchased other products from him, I figured maybe he would be willing to help me out, at least take a look at it or give me the schematics. I was informed by him that they won't touch these units with a 10 foot pole. They are unreliable, difficult to fix (too many problems) and that to get a unit fully back to spec isn't worth the money as it will cost a lot!

They sound "beautiful" when they work, but anybody who doesn't already own one, should think long and hard about buying one (and I own one that will get repaired and eventually sold! unless of course somebody wants to buy a broken one with a brand new STARS system and brand new tubes). I guess they are designed for the same type of people that like Jaguars - nice to look at but best kept in the garage! With the primary goal being that they are kept in the owners garage at least as much as in the dealers garage. I guess that's why they are available for super cheap once the warranty runs out - just like the AA stuff.

Luxman D-05

bel canto cd2 dac 3.5 vbs. When you hear a cd front end that gets out of the way and actually lets you hear whats on the recording, you wont need a warm or whatever sounding cd player to compensate for deficiency's in lesser playback or flaws in your system.