Warm relaxed digital coax

Given your system, interesting decision on Teac transport. Are you testing the waters with Teac transport before you upgrade to Esoteric top tier CD transports like K-01XD or Grandioso K1X SE.

@lalitk

this is a bit involved...sorry for the long winded story but it’s not simple.

since i got the Wadax Ref Dac and Server early in 2022 and i heard it in my room, in the back of my mind i was musing about a way to be able to listen to my 4000 silver discs again through this amazing Wadax Ref Dac. i have a connection to those discs. i had ripped about 75% of them, but knowing where something is on the shelf is a different more personal experience than remembering the exact name of a particular file and calling it up. and i missed that.

but over the last couple of years my focus and funds were focused on upgrading the Wadax, and my other sources (turntables and tape decks), and the obvious transport matches for my Wadax were just too spendy to seriously think about. then this spring Wadax introduced the Wadax Studio Player and system. a lower level of Wadax, with lots of trickle down tech from the big boys. and in a year or so, there will be a dedicated transport released which could be a fit for me. so it seemed more something i might be able to do.

https://landing.wadax.eu/studio-player/

then i saw this TEAC transport, it had the VRDS, and was a front loader. i was concerned that it did not do SACD’s, but the more i thought about that, most of my SACD’s are hybrids, and most SACD’s are sourced from PCM, so that issue is not very significant in reality. so this was something in terms of dollars i could do now. and so i did it.

yes; the big boy Esoteric transports did catch my attention, but they are in the same price range as the Wadax Studio series, and the interface would not have worked for SACD with my Wadax.

it came down to going low and living with the coaxial S/PDIF, or waiting. i had no idea about my clock and whether it would really work since i could not connect my Wadax dac to it. but that turned out to be the huge surprise.

when i first heard the TEAC in my system on Tuesday, i was let down a lot. it was very digital and so i was prepared to not like it. then i connected the clock and i was blown away. and these last couple days i’ve been visiting old friends on my shelves and i have to be careful not to get too carried away until i have a chance to play this hand out. it’s really good, but just how good is that? stay tuned.

it’s possible this TEAC transport + Esoteric G1X clock +full blown Wadax Ref Dac with Akasa DC cables is as good as it gets. i don’t really expect that to be the case, but before i move up to a better transport, i will find out.

I’m using a DH Labs Mirage from my streamer to my DAC and couldn’t be happier.  They’re nice people to deal with to.

I find it a very strange addition to a request to be informed of a Cable that has a detectable Richness of Tone. Where there is a reference to a CDT costing short of $3K and then suggest there is a need for a upgrade part costing shy of $12K.

The OP prior to such a post has been clear a Cable Brand is of interest that does not go anywhere near the price of the products that are being added to the discussion later down the line.

Where is the Richness of Tone theme within the $215K Digital system being referenced. 

@pindac

the point of my first post was to comment that my inexpensive transport (a little over $2000 new) and inexpensive cable (under $1000 used) were boosted a lot by adding the clock, and my final comment was that likely a clock less expensive than mine would still make a big difference. that it's hard to properly judge a transport or cable without a clock added. there are cheap quality clocks out there and if one wants a very listenable digital performance, you are going to need a good clock somewhere in your signal path.

so my actual advice was relevant to the price range of the OP. i brought up my dac as full disclosure and mentioned that even expensive dacs can find happiness with the right cheap complimentary pieces. they are ’good enough’.

@mikelavigne A thread on Clocks might prove to be a very good reference point for learning about how Clocks can influence the end sound in System using a CDT or CDP? as a Source.

I would be keen to learn of such equipment that is seen to within my own budget for making improvements.

Are any DIY Build Clocks known about, especially ones proven as a go to Kit design ? The only device in my system to date that is not substantially modified or built from scratch is the CDT Source.