Cambridge 740c or Rega Apollo with Linn and Sonus

Gbmcleod, yes but not all at once. Apollo was lean sounding to me. Like so many other players at this price point, these are nice players but none really stand out of the bunch. I then settled for a quad cdp-2 which I liked after trying the Marantz 8001. I thought it was the best of the bunch. Recently, I wanted to get a nice dvd/sacd player so I bought the Sony 999es. Much to my dismay, the 999es was more enjoyable than the Quad. The Quad is a bit more open in the midrange and projects vocals nicely. The 999es however is more dynamic, has better bass and is equally smooth. I am now trying some DAC options with the sony. Again, replacing the NAD in this case is a sideways move.

Rotarius, I'd agree with your conclusion about the Apollo, although I'd call it less 3-dimensional rather than lean. In my system, it has other appealing aspects,such as a cleanness and low noise floor. And it does play music, not merely sound.
I'm not at all sure I'm in agreement about the Cambridge player, though. (Incidentally, I see the poster mentioned the 740, and I have the 840C, so...). It differs from the NAD to my ear, in that the NAD has a very immediate presence, but not quite the same degree of inner detail. For example, while it has great microdynamics, it doesn't quite sound as though it's being played by a person. What I mean is, it doesn't reveal the "human" touch in the way that, say, an Arcam FMJ 23, which, whatever its faults, sounded as though instruments were being played by a human being. For me, that is more important than "good bass" (not that you said this), or good highs. I want to hear music made by human beings, and many components give one great sound, but without it sounding as though there's a person attached to the instrument. It is almost as though a spell was cast on the instruments, causing them to simply "play." The Cambridge, which, at 2 days, is slooooooooooooow to unfurl its abilities, sounds as though a person is touching keys, blowing, stroking, striking, and, in general, making music. Hard to quantify, but I heard live music several days a week (piano and flute) for years, and I observe a big difference between "sound-making" and "music-making." Of course, it's too early to tell, but the Cambridge has those aspects, if one listens to live music often. I'll just need to see if it increases in that ability. Time'll tell!!!

Day 6.... The Cambridge finally, FINALLY showed some break-in....it's akin to glacier movement... the presentation is relaxed and the tonality of instruments makes it easy to sseparate oboe,clarinet, flute,piccolo and bass clarinet from each other in a composition. Sounds rather unlike either a NAD or an Apollo to me, but furthur break-in (at least 48 hours more) will be allowed.
What I found interesting is instruments previously buriend or not at all apparent with an Apollo or NAD, such as in Lt. Kije, movement 1 around 2:52 - 2:56. There is an instrument doubling the strings. It's a piccolo, which I hadn't heard before -- even with vinyl. And it's presented with some air around the piccolo, not just a "sound in the back." Around 3:05 or therein, a player sneezes. I had heard this many years ago with my WATTS and vinyl, but have never heard it with CD (Not that I'd ever bothered to buy a $10,000 rig, but I had reviewed a CD player or two and never even noticed its there). Also,this is heard with the Arcam FMJ A-22, never, in my mind, a champion of low-level detail.
The most impressive thing is the timbre: this is NOT the timbre of a standard CD player. The Apollo does not have this fidelity to timbre, although it IS musical. When you can pick out instruments by how their sound is made, that's a different ballgame. Most players just make the sound and one happens to know what it is from memory (i.e., played it a thousand times before).
Lets see what else time reveals.

I don't know if this is instructive because there are probably few parts in common, but my Cambridge Azur 640C v2 was still presenting new musical perspectives after many months of playing. Sometimes I would put in a disk and go "Wow! It didn't sound like that before". More detail, smoother leading edges and more nuanced decay. Your mileage may vary... Curious that some components seem to take longer to "bloom" than others.

Knownothing...you know plenty!

It's approaching the end of the first week, around hour 150...this player is astounding!

The player's ability to breathe music makes you laugh...just for fun, I played with the spikes on the stand under the (Usher) speakers. Of course, this says something for the whole system, Arcam FMJ A-22, Transparent MM cables, Nordost Valkryja, Shunyata Phython Helix VX and King Cobra V2 power cords, Usher 718s on 24-inch stands (very solid, but forget the manufacturer), a Finite Elemente Spider rack, Shunyata Dark Field Elevators (too new to analyze) and a highly acoustically tweaked room (ASC Walldamp, tube traps (16", 16" quarter rounds, 11 inch and 9 inch as well as sound panels,with a half round on the ceiling), the flutes would bloom into space with as little as 1/4 turn of the spikes, and lower instruments (contrabassons, bass clarinets, etc.) display a halo of air around them. And musically...just mesmerizing. One HEARS the composer's vision, not the imaging, the bass, the soundstaging, the "highs. You forget about those, although you can hear that if you choose to. I wonder what they'll sound like with the Hurricanes and ASL preamp or Modulus.

I hear what Mr. Harley means when he calls it "organic." If I read him correctly, it is less nubby cotton fibers: more a tapestry of finely-woven threads. Just beautiful.

And the Apollo? A terrific player, but not truly in the same category, nor is the NAD. The NAD sounds like very good digital, the Rega is more oganic, but the Cambridge makes your head swivel, even while reading a book ( a conscious way of "hearing" without listening, the same as closing your eyes in a concert hall. One still hears everything, but, generally, amazement is not a trait when hearing live music, unless the musicians are having a fantastic night. One does not expect "better" than live, although a great hall, like Carnegie, while sitting in the balcony, CAN bring tears to your eyes).

The Cambridge 840C, even at this stage of break-in, is a rare component that beathes the (genuine) sound of music. Listening for other than that misses the point. For all that, the bass is great, dynamics very good (as Harley said, not astounding, but, as somewhat who loves microdyanmics AND fortissimo passages, I'm still in love). Imaging is good, not yet killer, although on Dionne Warwick's cut of "The Windows of The World," when she sings "when men cannot be friends/their trouble often ends/but some have to die..." the word "cannot" comes out with a full aspiration as "CAN-notttt" instead of 'cahnnot," the hard "c" of "cannot sounding like a K as in "KICKKKKK." The consonants do not get lost or softened as they do with so many sound-reproducing devices. With many players it almost sounds as though they (the singers) are "swallowing" the hard consonant down in the throats the way it would sound if one was trying to talk with one's mouth full.

At this price, it's the same as being the millionth customer walking thru the doors of an establishment and finding out you're the winner of the grand prize...