Which is the best CD-Player up to $ 10k ?

bar81,

I was skeptical that a cd player could sound much better than the emm labs but this the playback design is amazing cd/sacd/server unit.

Some things cannot be home tested. A ferrari can be tested at the dealer only. Hey you can come to Los Angeles and hear it at my house and I am just a lowly customer and audiophile. I am sure Jonathan would let you hear it before you buy it just that he can't loan it to you. There are many people who know own playback that would be happy to let you hear it.

I cannot imagine anyone who is looking for a cd player that would not be mesmerized by this cd player. Only someone with a tin ear or someone who only listens to vinyl and is biased against any other form of music playback in my opinion would not be impressed by this player. I have not heard the dcs puccini but that is $20k for the stack. There are some players that I have not heard but I have heard many pricey ones and this is remarkable and heck mine has only 50 hours on it so it will get even better.

I didn't ask to just listen to it, I offered to deposit half the cost of the player up front and assuming it's as good as he claims it is, I would pay the second half upon purchase. He refused. And comparing test drives of cars to audio products is inappropriate as one has nothing to do with the other.

I'll hopefully be in-home auditioning the dcs puccini, the Linn Klimax DS and the Spectral SDR-4000S over the next month and will make my decision amongst those and my current Wadia.

If you like a soft, pleasing sound, with more body that what was recorded go for the AMR. If you like to hear what is exactly written on the cd (WITHOUT BEING HARSH) go for the EMM LABS CDSA.

Audiohifila,

I've bought products over the years based on others' opinions. I've also auditioned many in my home before purchase. Your car analogy doesn't work for me. If I drive a Ferrari around a dealer's "neighborhood", it's going to drive the same way in other places (at least if I drive it on a highway, a neighborhood street, check out it's acceleration, handling, etc) It's quite a different story with audio components. If I heard your system and liked it better than mine (or less than mine), for example, I wouldn't know if it was because of component A, B, C, D...or the synergy among the components...or your room, etc.

I'm not saying the Playback Designs isn't spectacular - or even "the best". I'm only saying $10,000 is too much for me (and some others) to spend on a product I'm not *certain* I'll love in my system.

08-05-08: Argyro
If you like a soft, pleasing sound, with more body that what was recorded go for the AMR. If you like to hear what is exactly written on the cd (WITHOUT BEING HARSH) go for the EMM LABS CDSA.

You may want to write IMHO (In My Humble Opinion) after a statement like that Michael. I've heard the EMM Labs CDSA, and IMHO it is harsh. I'm not saying it isn't accurate, as digital is a format prone to harshness, that's why I prefer analog.

However, whether one chooses a smoother sounding CDP (AMR) and uses more revealing cables (Nordost, Stealth, etc) and/or speakers (Wilson) or one uses a more revealing CDP (EMM Labs) while using cables/speakers to smooth out the sound (PAD/Verity) is up to that individual.

There are many ways to accomplish good sound.

Cheers,
John