My faithful PSA Lambda died last month. That set me on a dizzying search for another transport. All the used players in my budget class up-sampled except one. That was the 47 Labs Flatfish. I bought one off Audiogon. I couldn't be more pleased with my purchase.
This little slab of aluminum on three spindly legs really lets all the CD info through to my kick ass Audio Note DAC. My amp builder suggested I buy it. I had my doubts as my listening room has a 100 year old suspended wood floor. That means it bounces. The Flatfish has no sprung suspension. It is coupled directly to the floor through the audio cabinet. I had to devise a devilishly simple base for the player. It thoroughly guards the player from any vibration. So far, there has been no skipping.
The PSA Lambda I had been using to spin my CDs had been reworked miracles with 11 new diodes. It was certainly a winner. Still, the bare bones Flatfish runs circles around the Lambda. Whereas the Lambda was a great trotter. The Flatfish is a spirited thoroughbred; It is so crazy fast. The bass is prodigious. all the while being ultimately musical. Mids are warm, and fully animated. Highs are fanned out into beyond hearing. The CDs that I am running through this new transport are entertaining me with their full use of minute to major dynamics.
This player can do the slow melody thing too. WindHam Hill, "Thanksgiving," is playing a soft melody now. I feel wonderfully relaxed.
I like using the phrase, "Fanned out," because so often i hear systems clump the highs. That produced the spike that give CD players a bad rap. Of course, this doesn't mean bright CDs don't sound bright.
The Flatfish is tiny. I would say it is 7 inches by 10 inches and two inches deep. The CD spins on top of the player. I have to screw on a plastic nut to the CD. The player is suspended by three free legs. I have to balance all three so they are vertical. The leg is topped with a ball that inserts into the aluminum slab's three cupped receptacles. When you have a digital cord hanging off the back the balancing can get quite troublesome. The heaviness of the cord needs to be nullified. I let the digital cable arc over a stack of unused CDs.
I have made three other changes to my system. I still have a H2O Fire preamp, but this one is special. I have the same H2O amps. My own speaker cables are the cat's meow. Speltz does all the rest of the cabling. His new triple shielded digital cable is an ear-opener.
This 47 Labs Flatfish and Humpty power supply is a keeper. If the laser gives out I have been assured a replacement laser is readily available. An update by the company would be around $500.
