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Esoteric K03

Good Day,
I've chosen to replace my mod Primare CD31 with the Esoteric K03 after a lengthy audition (an order has been placed!).
The K03 was chosen not only for their CD/ SACD capabilities but also for their Digital input DAC.
However, I'd like to listen to others' experiences on the K03 in term of their sonic characters, reliabilities and whether it is the best bang for your bucks player (32 bits, CD/SACD, DAC, Clock Input, etc).
Will USB cable affect the overall computer playback sounding?
What brand of USB cable do you use?
My system:
Wilson Sophia 3
McIntosh MC501
Audio Research Ref 3
Mod Primare CD31 is out. Esoteric K03 is in
Linn LP12, Dynavector 17D3, Ittok, Lingo
Linn Uphorik
Grover Huffman Sx SCs
Nordost Quatro Fil ICs
LessLoss Sig. PCs on mono blocks fed by Weizhi PRS6
Stefan Audio Art PCs on CDP and Pre fed by Shunyata Hydra 2
TG Audio Black & White 9awg to feed into Weizhi and Shunyata
Vibra Pods & cones on CDP, Pre and TT
Custom Hifi stand using thick mdf and steel rods!
Music pref. mainly Jazz and classical
Thanks
primare_cd31!!!
primare_cd31
fplanner2010
283 posts
 
I have an APL NWO-4 Master CD/SACD player, which is a highly modified Esoteric with a UX-1 transport. THERE ARE SEVERAL DISCS I HEAR NOISE ON - ITS NOT THE PLAYER, IT YOUR DIScS!!

BW- If the noise happens on every disc you own, then maybe you have loose bearings in which case Esoteric can replace them. I also thought it was the player at first - glad it wasn't - their transports for the most part are pretty bulletproof. The fact that you are getting the same poor result with multiple players also points to bad discs. Try a friend's discs in your machine and see what happens.... just a thought that could save you a bunch of $$$$ and frustration :-)
badwisdom
145 posts
 
Look guys, i appreciate your experience and willingness to defend Esoteric and try and find an explanation...

I wasted 6 months of my life trying to identify the problem on my MPS5: it wasn't bad discs, it wasn't bad luck, it was just a shitty OEM transport.

I could write a book about how they switched the transport several times over, measured the DB in the room, etc.. My machine made several trips to and from engineers in germany who couldn't find a fault anywhere !

The conclusion was: "normal operation". Nothing to see, move along.

Only explanation is that some people are less sensitive than others to mechanical noise, but then if thats the case, god help us all because all this online talking is like the blind leading the blind.
badwisdom
145 posts
 
Well, another person is complaining about transport noise in the "Best Sounding CD / SACD player under 15K" thread.

What player ?

You guessed it, Esoteric (K01).

Never again as far as i am concerned, because even in the most optimist scenario, it shows such inconsistency that you have 50/50 chance getting a noisy version of their transport.
audiofeil
4,011 posts
 
Bottom line for any user with a problem is to contact your local Esoteric dealer or Esoteric directly.

Their customer service is as good as I've experienced.
mike60
275 posts
 
Unless i am mistaken, it is not 'another person'. It's the same person as in this thread. Read the posts carefully and draw your own conclusion.
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