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Confusion re Esoteric X-01 Limited and X-01D2

Does anyone know the differences between the Esoteric X-01 Limited and the recently-released Esoteric X-01D2? The information may be there on the Teac website but I'm afraid I can't read Japanese.
crossinn
crossinn OP
6 posts
 
Thanks for the replies. I did find online one short comparison piece (which appears to support the statements above regarding the superiority of the X-01D2) but unfortunately it's written in Japanese and the online translation tools make it hard to decipher.
tboooe's avatar
tboooe
1,009 posts
 
I wonder if the differences between the D2 and P5D5 has more to do with the inferior transport versus the dacs? I personally believe the transports can have a huge impact on the sound. This is why I got the P3 transport instead of the P5 transport. It would be interesting to ask Teac if they have compared the P3D5 combo versus the D2. That being said, I would have probably got the D2 but I wanted to also use the DAC as an input for the digital music server.

Before I got my P3D5 I did own the X-03se which is of course several steps down from the D2. The P3 uses the same transport as the X03se. I found the P3D5 to be much better at separation than the X-03se. I also heard more detail.
frankg
176 posts
 
Digital is always moving forward with better dac's/other components, enginering etc. I haven't really compared the new units to the older one's but I'm sure they sound better.
However I would like to note that the new versions of the VRDS transports are not as good as the one's they replace. In an effort to reduce manufacturing costs, the new units are made of cheaper components. The transports in the X-O1 and UX-1 are too expensive to manufacture and thus we have the new "improved" models. Despite that I still think they're the best on the market.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
FrankG, what transports for which models exactly are you comparing?
tboooe's avatar
tboooe
1,009 posts
 
frankg, I have heard the same thing. The VRDS NEO in its various incarnation is inferior at least from the materials point of view to the original VRDS used in the X-01. Now, whether or not this makes a difference is another matter. I believe this is why APL chooses to use the X-01 as its foundation for its line of cdps. The transport used on the new P-05 is definitely inferior. I believe it uses some sort of ABS plastic as well as other cost saving measures.
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