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Who has found happiness giving up cd player?

My system consists of Amati Anniversario speakers, Boulder 865 integrated amp, and Esoteric X-03 player. I like it. But I want to move to computer based sources. And if I do that, I'd like to go completely computer based, trade in my X-03 while my dealer will still give me full credit for it.

I've explored a lot of options. I know about the options with Mac or PC, through XLR or asynchronous USB or firewire, but I still don't know what to do. Go with something relatively cheap like the Ayre QB-9, and wait for the SOTA to advance? Invest in a dCS dac, upsampler, and clock, and expect to keep that for a long, long time? I like the idea of investing for the long term, but I don't want to end up enjoying my ripped CD's less than through my X-03.

It doesn't help that auditioning opportunities are somewhat limited, especially with my speakers and amp. Or that my dealer is adamant that I won't be happy replacing my X-03 with any computer based source, for redbook.

So my question is, has anyone found happiness replacing a mid range player like mine (or better) with an entirely computer based source? Anyone miss their transports?

Thanks!
Daniel
daniel_a
aplhifi
515 posts
 
My efforts extracting the most out of computer audio started some years ago. I have several computers that I use for audio (desktops and laptops), various professional audio PCI cards with S/PDIF and Firewire outputs. Other hardware includes Transporter, SB Duet, Sonos, Hiface USB. Also a large variety of software for ripping, editing, mastering, burning, playback, etc. Many CD/DVD-ROM drives, HDDs and memory were evaluated for best results.

Not that I’ve given up yet but, so far, the Esoteric VRDS-NEO transport is unbeatable, and by far, IMHO! As best as I could have obtained from computer audio (nice sound indeed), it still sounds "machine-like" to my ears; it fatigues me.

The other thing is; I haven’t been able to outperform an original CD with a copy of any sort (disc, HDD, Memory, etc.), not to talk about internet downloads which are far from the original sound, IMO!

This kind of reminds me about “CD vs. Vinyl” when audiophiles gave up quality for convenience. So history repeats, I guess. :-)

Best,
Alex Peychev
www.aplhifi.com
rgs92
974 posts
 
You know, I kind of enjoy that different CDs sound different from each other. The Beatles 9/9/09 box is just pure joy after all the tinny recordings before it. And the SACD Rolling Stones discs are also superb. So are some DCC/MFSL discs (Stevie Wonders Innervisions). It's nice to hear the variety of presentations with different discs, as it was in my old vinyl days. I'm not sure you can have that kind of fun and discovery with iTunes.
srwooten's avatar
srwooten
694 posts
 
"I'm not sure you can have that kind of fun and discovery with iTunes."

Why not? I think it is actually easier. I have different issues of the same CD on my computer and can compare them without getting up, instantly, from the same source and DAC. This does not work with SACD, but does work with hi-rez downloads.
bar81
791 posts
 
Any recommendation of the SA-50 and its usb input should be tempered by the review here:

http://www.avguide.com/buyers-guide/the-absolute-soundhi-fi-guide-disc-players-dacs-music-servers
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drubin
3,274 posts
 
To the OP's question about starting inexpensive or going all out, I recommend the former. IME, part of "going" computer audio is finding not only the best sound for you but figuring out the right system topology and user experience for you. You need to live with it for a while to know if it's right for you --and there's no substitute for personal experience. So I recommend jumping in low cost before committing to anything truly expensive.
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