no difference between 4k meridian & 400 DVD?

I started out with some very modest gear. Would add something here somthing there and it just sort of grew. B&W 803 speakers, seperate amps, better player all seemed to be OK. However I was still runnig a receiver as my PRE-AMP, just using the pre outs. Then I purchased a true PRE-AMP. Did no shopping no trying to decide, Just got it (liked how it looked). Took it home expecting to maybe hear a slight gain, but really not expecting much change as evering thing had been real slow (so far) no real thoughts on what I would hear. Installed it and turned it on WOW I mean night and day, Just unreal sound.

The point here is that I knew the sound I had been listening to, but what I heard now was not expected. I knew then and know now how much better it was, no guessing no looking no thinking, what I should here (did not know enough).

In all test that will have any meaning you need to listen to the samething while you are reading, walking around just setting, get to know it by heart and I mean by heart. Then change one thing and one thing only. If you do not know it within the first few minute (this is better or worse), then there is nothing left to say.

I have found that no swithching back and forth waiting for OH what did I hear will ever work. You just start looking to here somthing second guessing what you hear or what you want to here.

I firmly believe to many people spend way to much time chasing a never ending circle of what they think they should hear.

I once came in from a day of being out in the wild country (in Alaska) and being right on top of some totally wild bears and a person said boy you are excited, with out thinking I said if I wasn't it would not have been worth doing and it would be time to quit.

This stereo quest is the same if you can not hear, feal it move you or find the difference, you have lost the excitement of it. Hopefully you will not get tied up in the never ending chase and not be able to just hear what is there.

When you reach a point you are spliting hairs. If it does not move you, then a person has to decide, what am I going to do with this. Me I choose to let it be, as what it was time spent. I will know when I here the next thing that really grabs me until then enjoy what you have. You must have like what ever it was that got you to that point.

By the way my system has grown to a fairly complete system. CJ LS16 MK2 Pre-Amp, Jadis JD-1 Transport, Jadis JS1 MK2 DAC, Sony 9000ES Lexicon MC-1 B&W 801N front mains and 804N rears, HTM1 Center and SCM8'S side speaker, great cables most of the Misc conditioner and such. I am real happy with it.

However as a hobby I will try that next item. I just will not be trying to make it a matter of it has to make it better. I will either like it or will not. Then I will sit back and listen to the ever so great sound I have Until something else jumps out at me.

When something gets OH SO GOOD (to your likes), big changes are much harder to find.

I know the differnce between my 37 36 combo from levinson and the theta miles was huge. No comparison that the levinson rig was better. It actually almost made the theta unlistenable. So i know there are differences..... thats for sure. There have been other times when i a/bd the denon 1650 AR a very good class B budget player to an old sony 5 disc cd changer and could tell no difference at all. Now the system i was using was pretty bad and that could be an issue. Also speaker wires are very important in showing the differences. Once i upgraded my wires differences were much more apparent. You might want to do the same and compare again. - Ian

geez...look at the controversy i've created!

a few follow-up points:

(1) i realize that i should have used two origianls or two CDRs to make the test completely fair BUT...the DVD player doesn't read CDRs and i didn't want to spend $20 on another original CD just for this. that said, i highly doubt it would have mattered anyway since they sounded identical and i doubt that would be the case if the CDR was inherently inferior.

(2) to those who suggested my ears are broken, why is that NO ONE publishes the results of any legitimate DBX testing with two digital sources, cables, etc.? i think docwarnock is right...the industry prefers to avoid such experiments as 'they' probably know the results would be inconclusive most of the time.

(3) why do people like 'natalie' feel the need to attack me for being honest? maybe i am naive but i thought we were here to share information that might benefit each other. in other words, get a life natalie.

(4) as for the meridian being '"overpriced", well, that seems to be the consensus among those who bought other players and want to justify their decisions. i highly doubt that the meridian is substantitally more overpriced than any of the supposedly high-end players at that pricepoint....and i am starting to wonder about all of them.

i had hoped to start an open discussion about the reality of digital versus the hype..instead i get a bunch of semi-personal attacks and useless flag waving. let's try to stay on topic, ok? thanks.

S2:

I predicted the flames. It is the only response that the "true believer" is capable of when presented with contradictory evidence.

I've had the same experience, took out my cd player which lists for $5000 and sounds great and replaced it with a $79 apex ad1500 dvd player!!!! I listened to 'On Every Street' by Dire Straits I swear the apex was every bit as good my music cd player on the first 2 tracks. But on the 3rd track 'When it comes to you' my cd player vindicated itself, with the apex the rhythm and pace was off almost as if the song was playing in slow motion, it just didn't sound 'right'..is it really worth it to pay 10-20 times more for a component for a small incremental gain in performance, that depends on your finances..But anyway I learned a lesson from now on I only buy products for which I can hear audible diffrences so for me that would be speakers & preamps, amps I won't be paying extra for digital or cables since I can't hear the difference....of all the comments here I concurr the most with Docwarnock