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Meitner DCC2 vs. Analog - Opinions Please

I have been been contemplating the move to analog for a year or two, and have collected about 70-80 discs in preperation. I also have 600 or so CD's and a smattering of CD/SACDS.

I was thinking along the line of VPI HRX (7k or so used), a Shelter 90X cartridge (2.7k), and a phono-stage such as an ARC REF used (4.5k?) or Aesthetix Callisto (4-5k?) and interconnects ($500 or so). I would also need to reconfigure my rack and maybe get longer interconncets for my amps, but lets leave that out for now. That would add up to about 17k or so if I threw in a VPI 16.5.

Now, it seems I can get (new) the Meitner DCC2 and CDSD for the same 17K, less about 8-9k I could free up by selling my ARC REF2 MK2 pre and ARC CD3, for a total outlay of about 8 - 9k. I could also sell one pair of my Audioquest Diamond X3 (might not do this, I really like them) and I would not have to change my rack.

Can anyone comment on how close the Meitner gear might be to a rig such as I described? It seems like upgrading my CD player and adding SACD would be more cost effective than spending all that money to play less than 100 discs.

Also, can anyone comment about the pre-amp section on the DCC2 vs. the ARC ref2mk2?

Thank you all in advance for your thoughts.

Ron
rlips
cincy_bob
270 posts
 
My analog rig is the VPI TNT, JMW-10 arm and van den Hul Frog cartridge, which I am running into the Manley Steelhead phono stage. I am also running the EMM Labs CDSD into the DCC2. The DCC2 doubles as a preamp for my analog rig. The Meitner gear is the best digital sound I have personally experienced. It approaches the sound of analog, but, in my opinion, does not match the performance of my analog rig. The differences are most apparent with large scale orchestral music. If I was not a classical music fan, however, I suspect I could live without my analog front end. Since I am a classical music fan and since I own thousands of LPs, I intend to continue to run a high end analog rig in the foreseeable future.

In response to you question about the quality of the preamp in the DCC2, I found that it matched and, in some respects, slightly exceeded the performance of the Lamm L2 I was previously using as my line stage. While I have no personal experience in comparing the DCC2 to the ARC Reference line stage, I would expect the DCC2 to be very competitive.
audio999
178 posts
 
Hooper,i bet you didn't heard those analog set-ups in your system !

Happy listening.
hooper
396 posts
 
I should add this: At the level of performance we're talking about, no one format (or playback device) does everything the best. There are things that, for example, the SME Model 30 does that the Meitner gear doesn't do quite as well (that utterly analog sense of ease and flow, for one thing--though the Meitner comes close in this respect), while the opposite is also true. On some recordings, the Meitner will excel; on others a great turntable will be preferable. You can't lose either way, IMO.
hooper
396 posts
 
Audio999: Actually, I have heard the SME Model 20 in my system within the past year, and I still went with the Meitner. I've heard the Rockport, Model 30, and Walker Proscenium AT LENGTH in the systems of friends of mine . . . and I still went with the Meitner. Again, the Meitner and a great analog rig will do some things the other won't, but it doesn't necessarily make one or the other definitively better. I just happened to like the overall sound of the Meitner better in my system.
rlips OP
105 posts
 
What great responses, thank you all. I heard a SME30 - clearaudio insider - boulder set up just blow away the DCS stack about 18 months ago, so I know how good analog could be. However, from what i hear, the meitner gear surpasses the DCS stack and, in my price range, the sme30 et al are not a consideration.

It seems as this may very well be a case of different, not better. I also will probably get a chance to A-B to DCC2 pre section to my ARC ref2Mk2, which should be interesting.
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