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Looking for comparisons between CD transports

I'm still a disc-spinner, having a pretty large collection of CDs across a range of genres, though mostly classical. About 2 years ago I bought an Audiolab CDT6000 and lived with it for about a month before deciding it wasn't my cup of tea and selling it off. While its clarity and soundstage were impressive, there wasn't sufficient heft to the music, and it seemed to favor the music's component parts rather than portraying a cohesive whole. 

I'm considering the Audiolab 9000, the Schiit Urd, and possibly the Primare DD15. That's the budget range I'm comfortable with. (Despite the glowing reviews, Jay's Audio is kind of out or range for me at this point).  I'd be grateful to hear opinions on how these transports stack up against each other from those of you who have heard one or more of them. It will be running through a Sonnet Morpheus DAC, if that info is helpful. Thanks!

 

 

cooper52
cooper52 OP
182 posts
 

Thanks, everybody, for the information. The S.M.S.L. player looks intriguing, and I might add that one to the list. I don't know if the PS Audio Perfect Wave player is that much better than their Direct Stream player, but I did own the latter for a short time several years ago and really disliked it--the sound was bright and in-your-face forward, not at all pleasant to listen to. Still, if anybody has experience with any of the 3 players I mentioned in my original post, I'd love to hear about it. 

wharfy's avatar
wharfy
320 posts
 

@cooper52 -

I had the Urd for a short time. It was just ok. Nice sounding BUT, skimps on detail/resolution. I think that will be noticed with your DAC. At your price point, what are your thoughts about the Cambridge CD transport?

David

cooper52 OP
182 posts
 

Thanks, David--that is very useful information. In a sense, I already HAVE a Cambridge Audio transport, that is, my CA CXU referred to above which I'm using as a transport. It's actually pretty good but I think for redbook CDs other transports might be better. One thing that attracted me to the URD is its AES/EBU output, which corresponds to the only available input in my current DAC. The rest (optical, coax, USB) are already occupied. 

Do you think the CXC is significantly better than my current disc spinner?

pindac's avatar
pindac
2,864 posts
 

 

wharfy's avatar
wharfy
320 posts
 

@cooper52 -

The CXC does not have an AES/EBU output, so that sounds like a non-starter. I may have overlooked that in your previous posts.

FWIW, I had the Urd during trial period because it had AES/EBU output, along with a USB-C input, and I liked the idea of running my Aurender music server into the Urd, and then going from the Urd to my DAC (Musutec 005) via AES/EBU. And through the AES/EBU the Aurender sounded really good.

Since the rest of my system is ARC and ProAc, it's possible the revealing sound qualities just didn't mate well with the Urd, which is why I thought it didn't have resolution and detail I look for.

I'm sure you know that Schiit has a trial period, giving you the opportunity to try it out in your own system.

David

 

 

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