AudioMeca vs. AudioAero vs. Electrocompaniet

I've heard both. Personally, I didn't like the Mephisto. I thought it sounded too soft, too lush. It definetly didn't have the weight or focus of the Electrocompaniet. As far as detail, soundstage, and decay- it doesn't get much better this side of SACD than the Electro. Plus, it seems to be an open window to the delicacy and weight that well recorded music offers. If the recording isn't good however, don't fool yourself. You can only polish a turd so much. Save your bucks, get the EC and go for the upgrade as soon as you can afford it. You can thank me later.

Hey Patmatt if you go to audioreview and look up EMC1 you'll find 33 beautiful gut-soul-praises of this unit.(and i think these are about the MK1 model). But are you sure about the Mephisto's performance? Most important here in this case, what were the speakers amp cables and how many cd's did you listen to? How's the Capitole? But its $8K!!! I think what you are trying to convey is, go EMC1 and i'll be very happy for a very long time.

I bought a used Prima for the system in my study (Rogue Tempest Magnum, Spendor S3/5s) and liked it so much that I bought the Capitole for the main rig. Haven't heard the Keops or EMC so I can't give you a comparasion.

BTW, seem to recall seeing Bwhite has listed his Mephisto for sale, so I guess he broke the tie.

You can read lots of threads and many have said wonderful things about the EMC-1, Aero Capitol, Accuphase, and Mephisto. I would also place the BAT VK5 SE and Arye in this arena. If you are like me and price is a definate factor, it is my opinion that the EMC-1 is a quality player for the money (much less than the other cdps that are mentioned in the same breath). The EMC-1 has been around for awhile and is generally liked by many.

Just to let you know that I attended CES 2002 and saw new cdps that will be introduced by Gamut and Arye for under $3K retail. These are both 24/192.

I forgot to mention that I bought some pucks and pods from Audiolabhawaii.com that worked wonderfully under my EMC-1 cdp. These pucks and pods are inexpensive isolation devices that are better than other isolation devices that I have used (much superior than Black Diamond Racing Cones). I believe these devices will work well under most cdps, pre-amps, and amps.