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[audiojerry]

Bill O'Connell offered to let me try the EE Minimax tubed cd player, which I gladly accepted, since I have been so impressed with my Minimax linestage. My life has been intensely busy lately due to a new job assignment, so I haven't had much opportunity to enjoy music, but I feel I have a responsibility to at least share my impressions since Bill was so generous to send me a unit to try.  The cd player arrived last week, and I burned it in for 200 hours using the XLO burn-in cd.. I deliberately set aside some time this weekend to do some serious listening, Unfortunately, I cannot take the time I'd like to write a more thorough review, but I will try to be succinct and cover as much as possible.        

To begin, the Minimax has excellent build quality. It is quite handsome with a very solid look and feel. Ditto for the remote, which has great ergonomics and features. It's fairly intuitive to operate without having to look at it, making it easy to use in the dark. The remote will open/close the drawer, and has buttons to dim the display panel, Scan, Recall, Mute, Repeat, Time, Random, and Program. It also has a 'Space' button, but I didn't learn what it does. It has a very nice feel and fits nicely in my hand. The front panel also has a light to indicate an HDCD recording, but it's not needed (I'll explain later). Based on its features and appearance, the Minimax gives the impression of being an expensive high-end component.

Sound? It's superb. Exceptional detail retrieval with a deep and wide soundstage. It is better than any one box cd player I've ever had in my system. With the stock Sovtek 6922's, the overall character was precise, snappy, and rhythmic, with precise image placement. I liked what I was hearing, but there was a trace of hardness.It was not a sound that suited my tastes completely. I enjoy a more relaxed and airy sound.

I replaced the Sovteks with a pair of Amperex 6DJ8. Now that was more like it!  Like the Minimax preamp, rolling tubes makes a considerable difference - even more so with the cd player. The sound was much more to my liking with the Amperex, providing a smoother and warmer sound. It wasn't as crisp as the Sovtek sound, but it was less digital and sounded more like my analog rig. With many cd's, I could not tell I was listening to a cd at all. I'm sure other tubes would result in a completely different personality.

That's what is so great about both Minimax's, you can customize the sound to suit your tastes,  while the Minimax retains its exceptional high resolution and transparency. However, a high quality power cord and interconnects is an absolute must. The stock power cord leaves much to be desired.

Additionally, the HDCD decoder is amazingly good. I've owned other cdp's with HDCD in the past, but none sounded as superb as the Minimax. When I played tracks from my Reference Recordings cd's, the quality was the best digital I've ever heard. I mentioned that the Minimax had an HDCD indicator on the front panel, but once I pushed the "play" button I didn't need an indicator to know I was listening to something very special.  I don't see how SACD or DVD-A could sound any better.  

If I had not assembled the far more expensive digital playback system I'm currently using, I'd get the Minimax in a heartbeat. Anyone building a system would be making two very intelligent choices in the Minimax preamp and cd player. I'd love to try the Minimax amp some day. Thanks Bill!  

[nature boy]

Audiojerry,

Thanks for the review.  I did not think it would compete head to head with the digital set up you have in your reference system (see below).

Classe CDT-1 transport. Modwright Level 2 P-3A, P-1A, and Monolithic Power Supply. All 3 were further modded by Tritium  

Any comparisions with other single box set ups you might have listened to lately?  

NB

[Carlman]

I hope you don't mind but, I thought I'd post my review of the Minimax CDP as well.  Mainly because I don't want to repost all the same info about the features and such.. (However, if you DO mind, I'll split my comments to a new topic.)

My goal was to find a CDP that was an all-in-one solution that combined the transport and DAC situation for almost the same price I paid for my own.  Space is a real premium in my room... and I want a simple, uncluttered system.

I just had an audio gathering and one of things we demo'd was various digital rigs... The comparisons were:
Pioneer DVD 656A w/ level 2 mods and Bybee digital out as transport;
Bel Canto DAC2, (w/Pioneer transport) (aka 'my rig')
Museatex Bitstream, upgraded to 'Data II' (w/Pioneer transport)
Eastern Electric MM; (used as a CDP, its own internal DAC)
And an audio PC.... (functioning as a CDP on its own).

I too, rolled into the Amperex tubes but with slightly different reasons.  I thought the sound was a little thin all around.. the soundstage and musical reproduction were too brittle.  Maybe that's the same as AJ was describing as 'digital'...  The new tubes were a very nice improvement and provided a better benchmark to test against the other big dogs in this comparison.

I will encourage others to reply with their thoughts but, I will say that when I'd listened to it a few days before this comparison, I felt the sound was OK but, still a little lacking in reproducing as convincingly as my normal digital rig.  Before people arrived, I was testing to make sure it would work as it should and found it to be better than I'd remembered.  So, I think a little warmup or break-in is a good thing.  Also, I didn't think it sounded fantastic out of the box... tube rolling and burn-in are going to be necessary.

How did it compare to my own rig?
Listening back to back, the Minimax does imaging and warmth with a smooth, controlled sound that the others did not.  The details are there, the attack is immediate but in an analog way.  When a note is plucked or keyed, the full harmonic balance is there.  The overall character of the sound is analog.  It doesn not sound like a CD player but more like a record.  

The way it presents sound is more rounded and the soundstage is deeper.  Instruments are placed well around the stage.  

So, why am I not rushing to send Bill the $1300 or so for this player?  The ONLY place where I felt the Minimax did not trump my own rig is in convincing me that the sounds were actual instruments.  This is a fine-splitting hair but, this was a clencher for me.  Most of the comparison differences were fairly small on this so, it's not like it was bad at all, just not as good as what I have in this one (important to me) area.

The Bel Canto combined some of the qualities of both the Minimax and my rig and would be my first choice for a DAC if used with a tube preamp or other tube gear in the chain.  Without tube gear in the chain, the BC2 was a little too crisp or aggressive for me.

When using the Minimax CDP with the Bel Canto EVO2 which is a digital amp, there was magic that was breath-taking.  So, at this point, if I had to choose between my own system and something else, I'd probably pick the BC integrated with either the EE Minimax CDP or possibly the Audio PC.  It worked very well together.

The EE provides details.  However, they are presented in a somewhat mellow way.  If you put this CDP with a somewhat aggressive sounding preamp/amp, you will have great sound.  If you put the Minimax with preamp of the same name, coupled with a fast amp like my AKSA, you get a beautiful combination that is warm with deep and wide imaging... but, you'd have to roll tubes to get the balance you want for the way you want the details presented.  In my case, an aggressive tube in the preamp for the warmer sound of the CDP would probably net the convincing sound I'm getting now.  I haven't rolled tubes to get there, though..

So, that summarizes my experience with the great CDP.  I think it warrants its cost and based on the build quality, far surpasses most of the players out there in the same price range.  The build quality puts this player in a league of its own.  I would highly recommend this player.

-Carl

[earlmarc]

Carlman, if I understand you, you would recommend using EEMM CDP with agressive amplifiers like the Bel Canto and Carver. Do you feel that adding a tube preamp to the chain is not recommended as much as a solid state preamp. I ask this because I am buying the EEMM CDP. I ordered NOS Phillips Tubes this evening for it. I'm send Empirical Audio my ZR-1600 amplifier tommorrow for mods. The area where I'm undecided is with the preamp. I was sold on Ray Samuel's Emmeline CA-2 solid state preamp until I came across Space Tech Lab's tube preamps. I hesitate now with the tube preamp because the EEMM CDP has tubes. I'm thinking that the combination of a tube preamp and a tubed CDP may be overkill with the ZR-1600. The CA-2 preamp has been described as tonally accurate and smooth with exceptional definition but does not have the 3D palpabilty of a fine tube preamp. I hoping that the EEMM CDP would provide warmth and 3D palpabilty without the need for a tube preamp. This way I don't sacrifice bass and inner resolution. Carlman what do you think?

[Carlman]

Carlman, if I understand you, you would recommend using EEMM CDP with agressive amplifiers like the Bel Canto and Carver. Do you feel that adding a tube preamp to the chain is not recommended as much as a solid state preamp. I ask this because I am buying the EEMM CDP. I ordered NOS Phillips Tubes this evening for it. I'm send Empirical Audio my ZR-1600 amplifier tommorrow for mods. The area where I'm undecided is with the preamp. I was sold on Ray Samuel's Emmeline CA-2 solid state preamp until I came acro ...

I think as long as the preamp gets out of its own way you'll be fine.  What's more is I'd recommend this CDP regardless... It's just my preference to sacrifice some of the benefits of the EEMM for the one quality I admire in my own rig.  

If the Space Tech is known for being warm or in any way colors the presentation, you may get more tubeyness than you may have wanted.  Aggressive may have been the wrong term to describe the perfect partner to the EEMM CDP.  'Resolving and uncolored' would be a better way of putting it.

I am not familiar with the preamps described but I think the Carver will be excellent paired with this CDP.  The only way you'll know is to try.  Your opinion of aggressive or warm may be very different than mine.

-Carl

[nature boy]

Thanks for the additional insights into the EEMM CDP!

NB

[Mad DOg]

AJ and CM,

thanks for sharing your impressons on the EE MM CDP...i brought some cables over to John Casler's place this Sat. to compare so i had an opportunity as well to hear the EE MM CDP...btw, John's system driving the VMPS 626R FSTs sounded better than i've ever heard them sound w/ the addition of the EE MM CDP and the cables i brought over for him to hear...

it is certainly a very nice looking piece...how did it sound? very good...but like Audiojerry, i too thought the MM was a bit hard sounding w/ the stock toobs and stock PC in place...since John didn't have any other toobs, i was unable to hear how much better it could sound w/ some toob rolling...

in a brief a/b comparison to John's Denon 2200 universal player, the MiniMax CDP w/ stock tubes was quite a bit less digital sounding in presentation. this allowed the MM to sound more musical and engaging. the one thing that the Denon seemed to do better was bass control. other than that the 2200 sounded a bit thinner across the frequency spectrum. but then again, the Denon 2200 retails for around $800 which is substantially less than the $1350 MM CDP...having heard the difference that upgraded tubes made in the MM linestage, i feel confident that the CDP will see similar improvements in leaps and bounds w/ some tube rolling.

another thing that i highly recommend replacing is the stock PC...when we swapped the stock PC out with the aftermarket PC that i brought over with me, John and I both heard substantial improvements across the board. big improvements in smoothness, bass, detail, soundstage depth, focus, clarity, background blackness...

thanks John for giving me the chance to hear the MM CDP! kudos to Bill for offering another fine sounding product that can be had w/o having to bust open the reserve piggy bank!

[DARTH AUDIO]

EarlMarc, What kind of sound are you looking for? Tube warmth? SS Detail? A little of both? If you are looking for warmth with detail you should look at the MiniMax preamp. I have listened to the MiniMax in my system before (very nice preamp). I have the Spectron Musician III Digital Amp, a tubbed phono stage and tubed CD player. For me, this is a great combo. It's like having a very "Dynamic Tube System" . It has the warmth I like, but Mega Dynamics. A lot also has to do with your speakers, Cables, you know the rest. The best thing you can do is get the equipment in your own room, in your own system. You be the judge, Not Audio Circle.  

[earlmarc]

I seek analog smoothness with 3D palpabilty without sacrificing macro/micro dynamics and inner resolution. Warmth is ideal as well as good low end definition. I want to feel a lively musical flow. Grainless. I decided on the EEMM CDP with NOS Amperex Holland 6922 tubes to accomplish the sound I'm seeking from a CDP. Since I have Magnapan MG1.6QR speakers, I felt the the revealing nature of the speakers with the EEMM would serve a sweet, warm, and revealing combination. I like the way the Carver ZR-1600 amplifier handles the Maggies. They have good synergy together. I hope to tame the sizzle of the Carver amp and improve its musicality with the Empirical Audio mod. I am very happy with my cable. I use Wasatch Cableworks RCA-104U interconnect and the LC-540 Biwire speaker cable. The Wasatch cable is well balanced from top to bottom with a natural and revealing nature that fits well with what I'm trying to accomplish with my set-up. My question really is with the preamp. I don't necessarily think with the above components that I would benefit more with a tube preamp than a solidstate design. Using a tube preamp would likely take away some bass performance whereas a good solidstate wouldn't. I mentioned Ray Samuel's Emmeline CA-2 preamp because I believe there is no solidstate preamp at or near its price of $695 that betters it. I am well aware of the other solidstate preamps mentioned on this forum and I think that Ray's preamp is better. I have considered tube preamps, but only those with a solid state power supply rather than a tube power supply. I will do some comparisons myself between the Ray Samuel's preamp and the EEMM. I ruled out the Space Tech preamp for now. I don't want to sacrifice bass with two tubey components.