Aurender Music Server and CD Transport comparison

@8th-note 100% correct concerning the PS Audio transport. While PS Audio has great customer service, this is a piece of junk I tried DVD players and CD players (15) when I first got a DAC four years ago and PS Audio was awful sounding, worst of all. Great concept ruined by a terrible transport (to start with).

I intend to purchase the Jay’s Audio CD3 MK3 as well. In the meantime, I’m using a radically upgraded Arcam Delta 250 transport with rebuilt boards, power caps, etc. Even the resistor fuse was upgraded. It uses a BNC out. An amazing unit with the famous CM9 transport (I have two backup drives). Due to purchasing a Von Schweikert VR9 SE MK2 this week, I will wait to purchase/try the Jay’s. My audio equipment dealer said if it isn’t adequate for me, he would pay full price from me for it. I don’t want to purchase the Pro-Ject because it is so chintzy requiring a separate power supply to achieve high end quality. I now have 14,500+ CDs and 28,000 LPs. Love both formats. Stream only to sample recordings I don’t own.

PS Audio's "newer" model transport the Perfectwave sacd does not use the same Oppo Digital cd drive. Because Oppo Digital stopped producing them. Kind of hard to honor a warranty when the replacement parts no longer exist. The newer transport uses a Phillips drive, a Sound United LLC who bought D+M Group then goes back to Marantz buying Phillips in 2001. 

I "heard" that PS Audio was to release a brand new transport, but for some reason that was put on hold. That sounds strange considering their latest version is only 3 or maybe 4 years old?

I own the "older" version of their transport  with the Oppo drive and from what I've read here I guess I'm very lucky because I've had no problems what so ever. Maybe because I don't use it daily. I used a PS Audio DAC for a few years the DrectStream original DAC not their latest the MK2. For the past 2 years I've been using a Terminator Plus DAC. I was curious about the R2R DACs, so I picked one up. I'd also like to try the Mola Mola DAC from what I've read and heard it's top notch for it's price.

The PerfectWave Transport that I owned used an off-the-shelf computer grade drive. I forgot what brand it was but this information is available on PSA's forum. If you were willing to take the unit apart you could replace the drive with a standard $15 CD drive from Amazon. I don't know if other PSA models used an Oppo drive but the PerfectWave Transport certainly didn't (unless Oppo used an off-the-shelf rotgut computer drive that is not designed to spin music CDs). I may be wrong about this but I'm pretty sure that Oppo didn't make their own drive. There are only a few companies that manufacture CD drives that are designed for playing music. Phillips, Teac, Marantz, and a couple others. Most of the companies making CD players and transports source their drives from one of these manufacturers. The fact that PSA bought the cheapest drive they could find - one that was designed to spin up, read data, and spin down - instead of playing music for hour after hour, is unforgivable..

When PSA would no longer support the unit I decided to replace the drive myself (three drives had failed by then). The procedure was clearly spelled out in a PSA forum thread but it required the use of all-thread screws which you could get from PSA. I wrote an email but got no answer so I called and the guy told me that they no longer supported this model. I told him that I would put a new drive in myself but I needed the all-thread screws. He told me that they no longer had them. I said, "OK, then just tell me the specifications of the screws and I will buy them myself." He refused to even give me the specs on the screws.

Needless to say, I will never purchase anything from PS Audio again. Ever.

Just a follow up to my original post. Those who say upgrade the DAC have no clue what the NAD M2 amplifier is. It is a DAC on steroids. It is purely digital built in collaboration with Diodes Zetex. Since it only sold for one year, I doubt anybody here has actually heard it.

For @2psyop  the Audiogon detective go to my Instagram and look at the photos of my two systems. Satisfied? I had the Herron/Tetra in my condo but took it to my cabin where there is more room and sounds a lot better. The smaller system is now in my condo. I did try the transport in my cabin system but I already have an Audiolab CD player and my Rega RP7 turntable.

In the end I purchased a Primare DD35. I am still on the fence if I like it. The build quality is top notch but the sound is different than my Aurender. It is a little bass heavy that I am not fond of. A/B testing between the CD and a FLAC file is quite noticeable. In hindsight I think I needed to put more money into a transport to better the Aurender. Live and learn.

A lot of you seem to be using products that have Oppo transports. Is it the same drive as used in the Oppo 103/5 203/5 blu-ray players?

If so I highly suggest checking out Oppomod.com as they sell a stabilizer plate mod kit for those drives. The improvement was pretty incredible with disc playback.

It’s a fully cnc machined kit that just bolts onto the top frame of the drive, which usually is easily accessible in most transports.