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Confused By A Transport Upgrade

Dear Forum Members:

I just got a used Theta Pearl CD transport on monday. The change in sound from my previous transport[CD player actually] is so dramatic, I don't know what to make of it. In the course of trying to building a nice musical system I've experimented with different speaker cables and interconnects and isolation tweaks, but nothing has made such a dramatic change as adding this transport.

My system is comprised of Sim Audio Moon I-5 integrated, Musical Fidelity E60 CD player, Bel Canto DAC 1.1, Sonus Faber Concertinos and ProAc Tablette Signature 50s. I have added these pieces incrementally starting with the MF E60 three years ago, then the Concertinos a year and a half ago. The Moon I-5 arrived last August. I just received the Bel Canto and the ProAcs last month.

Since the beginning my system has always been on the bright side. In order to combat this characteristic I have experimented with different interconnects and digital cables eventually settling on the relaxing Cardas Golden Cross and L-15. I also upgraded DH Labs Silversonic T14 speaker cables to Analysis Plus Oval Nines. These changes have helped somewhat, but still the occasional nasties remained.

The Theta Pearl is a solid piece of gear using the Pioneer stabile platter mechanism with the CDs inserted label side down. Before hooking it up, I played 3 CDs I'm pretty familiar with through the MF just so I could have a fresh taste of the 'ol transport before getting down to business with my new toy. When I started playing the first CD in the Theta I was shocked at the Jekyll and Hyde difference between the two players. In comparison to my MF E60, the Theta is leagues softer, and fuller in the midrange, almost to the point of sounding muffled. CD after CD I kept thinking to myself that I had lost a ton of detail and information.

Now here's my question. Have I become so accustomed to a thin sounding, overly bright, and falsely detailed system so much so, that a well regarded transport such as the Theta Pearl sounds, dare I say wrong to me? I've been searching for a non-fatiguing system for so long, and now that I have it, I yearn for the lifelike energy that some of my CDs exhibited when played through my $500 MF. While it was often thin and bright sounding, it sometimes created spookily real instrumentation and voices.

I'm now contemplating a reverse change in my interconnects, speaker and digital cables. I have a run of Kimber Illuminations D60, so I'll see what that does. Will it restore some life in my system? Maybe all the Cardas are wrong in this setup. Should I change the AP Oval 9s to Silver Ovals?

What have I done wrong? Help!!
gunbei
whatjd
1,139 posts
 
The cable need not be part of your stereo to cause sonic
problems. If the cable has DC voltage on it's ground..and
they use your AC systems ground..usually a conduit or
sometimes a water pipe...it can place this DC voltage on
every AC plug ground in you home..so, all you have to do
is plug an item in to a socket..to then have this DC voltage
in your system... Again, get help...wish I was there to help
but I'm not...so don't do anything that you are unsure of..
but it is worth checking. Easiest way is to have someone
that knows what they are doing check the ground of your
wall plugs to see if there is DC present..using a VTVM..
but AGAIN,...have someone qualified do it. VTVM stands
for vacuum tube volt meter....
whatjd
1,139 posts
 
For what it's worth I had started a thread some time back
warning about the concern of cable ground DC voltage getting
into/on your sound system..didn't go much of anywhere, which
is too bad. The advent of all of these home theater systems
and cable and dish receivers..etc.. has seriously degraded
the sound of many(most?) peoples systems..and they don't
even know it. I believe many people spend much time and
money trying to get better sound...and are swimming upstream
because of a large system handicap.. It may be worth some
other member(s) to try to spread the word...
dekay's avatar
dekay
5,630 posts
 
Hi Jim: It just dawned on me that the outlet that I am using at this time tests as having an open ground (which is none at all I think). We have another line going to the living room that also is not properly grounded. I have not gotten around to checking all of the outlets yet to see if it is just a loose connection (down the line including the breaker box) or if there is an actual break in the line itself (in this case a new one will have to pulled from the electrical panel). The last electrician that we had over (hired by the landlord) did not fix diddly (as my testing of his work with a RS line tester showed). One of the outlets that he installed was just hooked up wrong and did have a ground when I wired it correctly. We do need a "good" electrician as the wires are either all white or are the wrong color for what they are supposed to be and I will heed your advise as far as pro help goes (I have one outlet with 5 leads, two red and three white, for crying out loud).
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