[Eric]

I am looking to upgrade my transport. Here is mys system:

Amp:         Bryston 4BSST
Preamp:     Bryston BP-20
Transport:  Arcam FMJ-23T
DAC:         Dodson DAC-263
Dejitter:     Camelot Dragon Pro-2 MkII
Speakers:  ACI Jaguar / LFM
IC's:          Audience Au24
SC's:         DH Labs Q10
PC's:         TG Audio SLVR
DC's:         I2digital X-60
Isolation:   Symposium Svelte Shelves and Rollerball II
Power:      Monster HTS-3500 on everything but amp

Any suggestions that would be an improvement on the Arcam CDP as a transport?

[Marbles]

You might want to have Steve Nugent mod your Arcam.

I'd email him to discuss it.

[PhilNYC]

If you're open to modding, I'd also recommend doing something with Steve Nugent (Empirical Audio), although having been familiar with the Arcam FMJ-CD23 (owned one for just under 3 years), I'm not sure if it's a good candidate for modding given how compact everything is inside.  I use a modded Sony S7700 from EA with the Dodson DA-218 (and have used it with the DAC-263) with excellent results.  Note that even with the Dodson's reclocking, the turbomod and SuperClock2 options on EA's S7700 mod do have an effect.

If you're not into modded gear, but are willing to try used, you might want to try out a Sony SCD-1 or CEC belt transport (forgot the model).  I tested the DA-218 with the CEC and was impressed with the results.  Have not heard it with the SCD-1, but Ralph Dodson himself uses the SCD-1 as his reference transport...he feels that DVD players and SACD players read data off the CD better (because DVDs hold so much more data, the tracking needs to be much better...and he also said something about the angle at which SACD data is burned into a disc also makes for better tracking), and as long as the SPDIF output section is of high quality and true 75ohm, it should be ok.

If you're looking for something you can buy new, I'm not sure how much I can help; I'm delivering a DAC-263 to a customer on Saturday who will be using a Sony DVP-NS999ES as a transport, so I will have an opportunity to evaluate that.  

Just curious...how long is your digital IC?  Per Steve N's recommendations, without the EA mods I'd make sure you're using at least 1.5m...I recently had the chance to A/B the same cable (Acoustic Zen Silver Byte) with a 1m and a 1.5m on an unmodded S7700 transport with the DA-218, and the 1.5m was a clear winner (validating for me Steve's explanation of why it makes a difference)...

[Eric]

Phil,

Thanks. My digital cables are 1.5 meters. I am going to contact steve


Eric

[PhilNYC]

Eric, I just noticed that you listed the Camelot as part of your rig.  Have you tried using the DAC-263 both with and without it?  I'm curious about how much effect it has.  The DAC-263 was just reviewed in Bound For Sound this month, and the reviewer noted that he thought the Camelot brought a lot to the table...

[Eric]

Phil,

I found tht as well. It widened the soundstage and added some depth and fullness as well.

[bubba966]

Eric,

Is your HTS3500 stock?

I've got a pair of HTS3500's (too much crap to run off just one... ). I found that when I replaced the cheap outlets in them with 20A hospital grade outlets, and the 14awg stranded aluminum wire with 10awg solid copper everything was greatly improved.

Audio was cleaner & tighter. Video was sharper, blacks were better, and colors were more vibrant.

Granted that's a really quick rundown of the improvements. But it gives you some idea of what to expect.

At $10 a piece for the Eagle/Cooper IG8300RN outlets at Lowes, and a few bucks for the 10awg Romex, it's an upgrade that's more than worth doing.

Oh, and I did try 20A industrial grade outlets as well. And found the grip not as good as the hospital grade outlets, and as such the results weren't as good. And 10awg Romex is a little overkill (not to mention a pain in the ass to use), but I had it on hand. 12awg or 14awg Romex would still work fine and be a great improvement over the 14awg stranded aluminum that's installed at the factory.

[Eric]

Mine is stocke. Is the work itself that difficult?

[JoshK]

Mine is stocke. Is the work itself that difficult?

It really shouldn't be diffucult on the 3500.   I owned one of these, although I wasn't a DIYer back then.  Just crack it open and take a long look around the inside and you'll usually convince yourself it is doable.

[bubba966]

Mine is stock. Is the work itself that difficult?

Replacing the outlets is extremely easy.

Replacing the hot & neutral wiring is still pretty easy, but will take a little longer than the outlets. It was a bit of a pain in the ass when I did it, but that was because the 10/2 Romex (good for 30A) is verrrrry stiff. If you use 12/2 Romex (good for 20A) it'll be much easier to work with.

Replacing the ground wiring is a slight bit more of a pain in the ass than the hot/neutral wiring. But it's still relatively easy.

[zybar]

Mine is stock. Is the work itself that difficult?

Replacing the outlets is extremely easy.

Replacing the hot & neutral wiring is still pretty easy, but will take a little longer than the outlets. It was a bit of a pain in the ass when I did it, but that was because the 10/2 Romex (good for 30A) is verrrrry stiff. If you use 12/2 Romex (good for 20A) it'll be much easier to work with.

Replacing the ground wiring is a slight bit more of a pain in the ass than the hot/neutral wiring. But it's still relatively easy.

Any pictures?

Maybe I will attempt this on mt HTS5000 I use in a secondary system...

How advanced do my soldering skills need to be?

George

[bubba966]

I'll see if I can borrow a camera from someone.

You don't need to solder anything to do what I've talked about. The onlt thing that's soldered is the ground wire to the ground post that's through the chassis. and you don't even need to solder that if you replace that wire. Granted, it'd make it look cleaner if you de-soldered the ground wire, and re-soldered it ack to the same place (I didn't 'cause I didn't feel like pulling the iron out).

[sys1]

Stello CDT200