Turntable or go into SACD, Simon Yorke vs EMM Lab

I'm sorry,i just do not believe that Meitner "SMOKED" your $30k vinyl rig !!

I heard Meitner 3 times (at shows only though) in 3 different rooms and systems, it's just not even close to good Analog set-up sound.

Well put Raul,

If Meitner products are as good as mentioned then why are we having a format war, and why are people still purchasing TTs. If the Meitner can make CD sound better (or extremely close) to any other format available, then all the problems are solved. SACD is a moot point. No more format war. Analog has finally been surpased, and is a dead product finally after over 100 years. Thanks to Meitner products.

I don't buy it, but if they came up with a way to soften the digital edge then that's great. And I am looking forward to more improvements to redbook since that is the last hope before mp3s become standard.

If you don't think Mp3 s and other digital none disk formats are the future than you are in a fantasy world. Just look at the trends. CD sales as opposed to I Pod sales CD going down -- I pod and other players are selling like mad. What non audiophile is going to say "gee, I guess I'll trade this little thing that holds 1000+ songs that I can swap on the internet for free or get for a buck a song for a bulky CD player at $15 each to hear 2 songs on a CD I like?

Rob

Hi Raul- I agree completely with your analyisis- in it's entirety! It takes an enormous ammount of experience, time, patience and money to fully and regularly realize the FULL potential in vinyl playback. This a very specialized pursuit for extreme hobbyists. I greatly admire those with the patience to, initially set up and subsequently maintain a vinyl playback system capable of CONSISTANTLY BEATING the Meitner rig. I didn't have that level of constant dedication and, clearly, lacked the requisite knowledge to know I had a cartridge/tonearm mismatch. I guess I find the convenience and the consistent 95%+ performance of the Meitner rig (with 100% being the perfected vinyl setup)to be an acceptable concession.

I am waiting for the arrival of the Meitner DCC2 Dac/Preamp to join my recently received Meitner CDSD Transport. The preliminary reports on the performance of the CDSD suggest an improvement over the Meitnerized Philips SACD 1000, which, with the DAC 6, was my Meitner reference. If, in fact, the new Meitner gear exceeds the performance of the old- might that 5 percentile differential narrow further??

Dear Fbhifi: All in this life is a trade-off issue, and the trade-off in LP reproduction is the know-how that we have to have and the dedication for the analog system is always at full potential.
The quwstion is: what are we looking for ?, which trade-off we choose?.
If any one is looking for the best music reproduction then it has to go for the analog solution. You choose for the digital solution ( it is up to you ) and it is ok, but you have the analog solution in your hands and a very good one.
Regarding the 95% performance of the Meitner....., well this is your point of view and this issue is totally subjective, other people can think 98% or 90%, who has " the word ".
BTW, as I already told the Meitner rig is a big step on CD reproduction, but any CD digital product can and never will 100% because the limits of the CD digital ( native ) technology: 16 bits. Now if we think about 24 bits technology that is another history.
Regards and always enjoy the music.
Raul.

Wow, this thread is still going after Dgad made his move and it keeps getting better! Thanks to Dgad for asking a tough question and making a tough decision. Thanks to Ceol, Fbhifi and Rauliruegas for their extensive insights. Listeners with real knowledge and experience at this level of performance are pretty rare.

Ceol, please don't be put off by challenges from those who are merely expressing personal enthusiasms. You have opened quite a few eyes and minds on this thread, e. g., Cello's and mine.

Raul, you and I enjoy tussling on threads where the level of playback being sought or discussed is at lower levels, but on this thread I bow to your vast experience (as always) and to your uncompromising insistence on, "only the best". Like Ceol's, your posts on this thread have been authoritative and immensely educational. I'm still climbing the analog ladder and enjoying the journey. (New Triplanar VII gets mounted tomorrow, Schroeder Ref... some day!)

Cello, I'm impressed by your honest account of your friend's Meitner. Obviously I know exactly how much you love your new analog rig, justifiably of course. For you to praise the Meitner gives me renewed hope for our collection of 1000+ RBCD's, few of which have left the shelf in the last 5 years. Your Electrocompaniet certainly stuffs our little Arcam CDP, but even it can't compare with our vinyl setup, let alone yours.

Fbhifi, thanks for sharing your Meitner experiences as well. I've been thinking about them for months and you've given me even more interest. I concur with most of Rauliregas' comments on your analog rig's strengths and weaknesses. (I don't know the Dyna so I can't speak to that, but everything else Raul said echoes my experience.)

Robm321, I was able to help you out on your cartridge loading thread because I had experience. Where I lack experience, as with the sound of a Meitner, I find it more productive to read than to type. This does not mean reading uncritically or accepting all claims. Far from it. But challenging what Fbhifi heard without having heard it yourself was unhelpful and antagonistic. Rauliruegas was better positioned than you to analyze what Fbhifi heard because he's heard it himself. His analysis helped Fbhifi advance his understanding of his system. Your thoughts on the possible dead-ending of hi-rez discs by downloadable formats were insightful. That confirms the wisdom of what Ceol, FBhifi and Rauliruegas all advised, "Buy a Meitner if you want to revitalize your RBCD collection. SACD is just a bonus."

Keep the good info coming guys, thanks again.