GRANITE 657 CDP anybody heard it?

Hi

just want to let everyone know that we have tested everal universal remotes with the granite audio cd players and yes they work fine ....have a customer who is using his dennon universal remote for his reciever..dvd..and granite audio cd player

Good listening
Stephen
Quest For sound

Stephen> I was hoping someone in the know would address this issue. It is a pleasant surprise and welcomed information.
Art

I have personally heard the Granite 650 in Stephen's home. Related components were Granite monoblocks(with KT88 output tubes), Sunfire preamp(HT, I believe), and Osborn Eclipse(I think) loudspeakers.

It was a very musical player. I would agree with the assessment that the sound can be characterized as warm and forgiving, as opposed to analytical and detailed. I give it about as high a grade as it gets. In my opinion, this is what most people who are searching for an analog sounding player are in the market for.

At the time, he informed me about the upcoming(657). Tube output, and what we believed would be upsampling to 24 bits(it is actually 20). The price turned out to be higher than I anticipated, although still cheaper some of the competition.

As I have not auditioned it, I am obviously not certain of the level of improvement the 657 offers. However, based on my experience with the 650, and the extra development put in by this fine company, I would expect big things. As it is, I definitely recommend either player.

I do believe that if the statement above regarding that they are basically the same player, with the 657 incorporating a tube output stage, it would increase my need to audition the two against each other. If this is in fact the case, a question of value would arise. To the best of my understanding(please correct me if I am wrong), if an external DAC(very common as the technology moves forward, as we all know) was employed, a tube output in this type of player is bypassed, possibly mitigating what the increased cost of the circuit offers. Of course, as in any audio purchase, a careful audition can never be replaced.

Back to my impressions... Unlike the Rega Planet/Planet 2000, the Granite does not slow down or thicken the sound. I have been been around the Electrocompaniet CD player a good bit, and listened to the Audio Aero Capitole at NY HiFi 2001. Both of these players also give the type of sound that we have all been hoping for from the digital medium. I put the Granite 650 in the same boat. No, I have never A/B'd any of these players, but all three could make it into my system any day.

Trelja-

Give the #657 an audition, I feel it is in an entirely different league than the #650 that you need to re-audition it. I listened to the output stage for the #650 just for fun one day, and I quickly switched back. The difference is that dramatic, and I'm not saying that the #650 doesn't sound good. However, the difference in sound is so substantial that I now understand why there is a price difference between the two players.

I completely agree with the sentiments that the Granite Audio CD player is warm and forgiving, but not slow. Nothing bright or analytical sounding about it. Very much analog lover's CD player. It blends in well with the rest of my system.

Regards,
Eric

Valid point, Racerx90.

I am not in the market for a CD player in the price range of the Granite 657. However, if the opportunity ever presented itself for me to audition the player, I would certainly take advantage of it.

My opinion is that over the past two years, it has been the fruition of the promise of CD that has been realized. Not the anticipated ascendance of either SACD or DVD-A. Players that I have mentioned in my previous post have demonstrated superior sound to me than SACD from Marantz, Philips, and Sony, as well as DVD-A from Toshiba and Technics I have come across. Further, as the DVD-A format requires a tv in the loop in order to program it, I think the audio world should turn its back on it in kind.

The point I am taking too long to make is that it appears upsampling offers much of what we have all sought out. To date, the lion's share of the upsampling equipment have been more upmarket in terms of price. But, technology always runs downhill. I am predicting that over the next two years, the "it" that makes these special players so special will be infused in the forthcoming generations of players in the sub - $1K price range.

In the meantime, the player at hand, the Granite 657. At the suggested price range Tweekerman is working in, this player definitely needs to be on the short list. In any system up to one that verges on the overly warm and sweet, I feel it would probably make its owner very happy. I would also include the Electrocompaniet. YBA players have also struck me as magical, although their current lineup is seriously long in the tooth, and is in need of an injection of all that has happened over the past 3 - 4 years.