The Best? What means the Best. None are or can be all things to all. If we agree that the aim is reproducing the nearest thing to the original sound, then this is also conditional on the type of music to be enjoyed. A system that can reproduce four or five electric instruments successfully might fail completely with a full 100 seat orchestra. I can only speak for the latter where most high-end players fall down very badly on timbral accuracy of string instruments. I have owned and auditioned most of the top players and in my experience, SACD far surpasses RBCD as a reproduction medium for classical music, conveying the 'you are there' experience in a way that utterly eludes RBCD. So, don't waste your money on a high-end RBCD player as only the importers and retailers will be happy - I guarantee you will not be! For the same money a SACD player will provide far more long lasting satisfaction.
In the same way as most RBCD users look down on MP3 so the gulf between SACD and RBCD is similar, they are all approximations based on sample rate and word length on the same ladder. SACD is best at the moment.
OK if you must buya RBCD player and classical is your thing then Combak's Reimyo 777 combo is so far ahead of anything else for realism that there is only one choice.
But what is the best player? Well, it's got to play SACD and RBCD for starters which the Reimyo can't do. The three main contenders are the Esoteric X-01D2, Krell Evolution 505 and Marantz SA7-S1. Of these, go for the Marantz.. it is the BEST 'CD player yet by a country mile and don't just take my word for it, ask Alvin Gold. Apart from it's price - by luck it is the least expensive of these - it offers real insight and emotion to the playback experience without sacrificing detail, dynamics, PRT and all the other hi-fi descriptors that get bandied about. Or to put it more simply it just plays music accurately and effortlessly and with great integrity.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by hiredfox
