Gabriel Gold IC's are they really this good?

The dog got his knee and is running like his little inner puppy is set free. My chrysalis is parting and I am emerging ready to take wing with the new year. Thanks for your thoughts, John, they helped for sure.

So, the AMR CD77 took the Ayon CD2 to the mat and the Ayon never got back up. A great player for all the reasons above, but the AMR has all the dynamics, micro detail, spacing, staging, etc that the Ayon offers (which is substantial) but also adds a bit warmth to the sound and more 3-d roundness to the images into the mix that I personally REALLY like! It is, in short, and IMHO, a more human and lifelike presentation. Absolutely thrilling.

And, the USB input is reclocked right away to remove jitter and sounds pretty much indistinguishable from the CDP itself.

More details and in depth description later. The chrysalis, she calls.

I await reports on the new Reflection ICs. Should be interesting!

So, auditioning the Reflection...why not, eh?!

The Reflection offers everything the Rapture does that been desevedly ballyhooed in a long and splendiferous parade of comments in a number o threads: clarity, detail, speed, accurate pacing, huge soundstage, lovely timbre, midrange to live in, well laid out transients and tonal balance......well, here's where the difference starts.

The overall tonal balance is improved by giving all the players and the notes they play more presence so you can listen raptly to any and/or all of them individually or as a whole. The 'non-main event' players and notes are more present and given more their due as part of the piece.

The bass is deeper and tighter by a fair margin, but most astounding is the highs and the impeovement in the decays of individual note and the accuracy of the transient...they slap you when they oughta' and carress when they should! The highs are improved in extension by not rolling off at all
and the decays fade slowly and delicately into deep listening space oblivion.
I honestly didn't notice that comparative shortcoming in the Rapture previously. Although it was pointed out to me by jmcgrogan2 when directly compared to the Jade Gold Hybrid, I still preferred the Rapture for its other strengths.

That extension is especially noticeable with cymbals.

And, the breath at the end of vocal. Actually, I think it is the breath. The Reflection just breath life into the music.

All the detail of the Rapture is there, but improved with more inner separation of notes....like different cowbells or percussion blocks right next to each other are obivous. The microdynamics are more revealed and you can just see more deeply into the recording.

Honestly, I feel a bit chagrined with myself for once again calling one of Gabriel Gold's cable the best I have heard....but there it is. I really love the Rapture, but the Reflection is the next step towards actually leaving the atmosphere and floating in space. I'll have to live with myself. And with the Reflection. You might think about inviting it into your home, too.

In the end when taken as a whole it offers an emotional experience and becomes ineffable. You are just inexorably drawn into the center of the music like a molecular swerve.

My wife who has much better ears than I do actually said: "If anyone asks you why you're and audiophile, make them listen to this." ("Always listen to the woman."-Wesley Snipes in White Men Can't Jump). This "this" was The Dave Matthews Band's playing Pay for What you Get from Under the Table and Dreaming. And it was trasporting. Mesmerizing.

I really haven't been able to stop listening to that song.....

More later....I gotta' get back to the tunes!

Oh, yeah, I also auditioned them with the Rapture R speaker wire. I have a pair of Reflection IC's and a set of the R SC's on order! Comments on the SC's to come.....

Budburma,
Thanks for the report. I had an opportunity to audition these but unfortunately Steve only had RCAs available and I use XLRs. 8^(

Rja-
I don't think you'll look back, my friend....I remembered someone's quote on this thread about the Rev2 being like clear glass and the Rapture being clear air which is why I went with a space theme. The clarity is pure, clear space. Only music. The Reflection is a marked sonic step up. And, at just a little more given the intro price, it is hard to resist....and if you can reach it, you should just do it. No question.
Enjoy the tunes!