Originally Posted by
spook
A while back I was looking for a Pass Labs X1 Pre and whilst looking into it I came across an Ayre K-1xe which I bought and have been very impressed with. So much so, I am considering trying an Ayre C-5xe CD/SACD player as a possible replacement for my dCS front end. I'm not honestly expecting the Ayre to be a significant improvement over the dCS but sometimes a change of presentation can be refreshing. If it as good as the preamp I will be very happy. As an aside I can move on the dCS kit and be a little 'up on the deal' cash wise which I could do with for other things.
Has anyone here owned or had a good listen to the Ayre? I have read very good reviews and hardly any negative comments but sometimes reviews can be inconsistent. The font of knowledge that is AOS would, I feel, be helpful in forming an informed opinion. I am seeking neutral, not excess blossom, nor dry and sterile. Any comments from those who are familiar with this player would be welcomed.
Thanks.
Have a chat with MartinT over on The Audio Standard forum.
AC POWER
Hardwired 10kVA balanced mains powering entire system
AMPS
Meridian 557 power Amp (Modded) / PS Audio BHK Preamp (Modded)
SPEAKERS
Wharfedale Evo 4.4
DAC
PS Audio Directstream (Modded)
TURNTABLE
Pro-Ject X8 balanced output via XLR / Ortofon Quintet Blue cartridge
PHONOSTAGE
Pro-Ject DS3 B balanced Input (TT and Phonostage powered by Pro-Ject Power box RS2 linear psu)
DIGITAL
OPPO 203 (Modded: Linear PSU, i2s output to Dac) - Roon Endpoint, HDMI input used for all things Streaming/ PS5 /AppleTV ... also good for movies apparently?
MUSIC PLAYBACK
Tweaked AP-Linux based Roon Server into Oppo 203 as Roon endpoint
Ipad Roon Remote.
Apple Music/ YouTube via AppleTV, fed to Dac via Oppo HDMI input/i2s output to Dac.
SPEAKER CABLES
Biwired: Duelund DCA10GA (Bass) Duelund DCA16GA (mid & treble) Duelund 12DCA used as jumpers (On "Blackcat Cable" Chris Sommivigo's advice - yup, even with biwire it sounds better - and it does)
INTERCONNECTS
All Balanced: Ghost+ recording studio XLR cables