Folks, you are commanded to talk about your rigs, let us know in exquisite detail how you are all foaming at the mouth after a truly rewarding listening session with Aspen products. 
I've actually just completed a major upgrade to my system. The first for nearly five years and pretty much the most expensive single investment in hi-fi to date.
For quite some time I have recognised that my sturdy old NAD 502 CD player was not an ideal CD source in this day and age. However, being so reliable (unlike so many players these days) I had no great motivation to let it slide. Except for the right product.
Through an Oz based hifi forum, a couple of recent 'for sales' caught my eye. The first was for a Rega Apollo, a top loader CD player derived from the Rega Planet (a CD source I had long desired) which was being offered at about half local retail value - unfortunately efforts to attract the attention of the vendor weren't that successful and I missed out. Shortly after, a much better offer came up - this time for an Australian made source and a much more practical one at that.
What I managed to score (again at abut half the local retail price) was a Redgum RGDAC5. A digital-analogue converter. Made in Melbourne, on the other side of the city from Hugh, by Redgum Audio
www.redgumaudio.com, a company that also seems to have a very singular approach to hifi....
The RGDAC5 is the top spec Redgum DAC. There is also a CD version which differs by having a computer DVD drive inserted in the box along with the power supply and remote control circuits to drive the thing. It differs from the RGDAC2 in that each channel has a discrete DAC circuit based around the Burr-Brown PCM1702 20bit DAC whereas the RGDAC2 has a single Burr-Brown PCM1710U Dual 20 bit DAC.
Once it turned up in the Post from North Queensland (in factory packing that looked nearly bullet proof) it was quickly inserted in the system........where big changes were wrought.
If anyone remembers what it was like when they first heard their GK-1.......then that's what this DAC did. Unfortunately, my GK-1 isn't in play at the moment....so I've got the pre portion of a Yamaha integrated doing the duty. No matter....the result was pretty special. Big lift in detail especially in the mid range. Enourmous lift in clarity which has given a greater sense of space between notes. But the single greatest most noticeable change happened in the lower frerquencies - the bass notes have gone from a 'boom' to a 'bam' - tighter, faster and much less bloom. Now I really like bass and my first impression was that the DAC had taken the energy out of the bass but that proved not to be true - the energy is still there but without the wild wobble - which after this long living with it is taking some getting use to.
It hasn't all been roses. The digital input chip, a Cirrus Logic CS8412, decided on the first night that it didn't like the change of climate and left on a permanent holiday.....leaving the DAC in silence. I suspect that my stand-in IC (not a dedicated digital IC) may have had a hand in the journey but I can't be sure. After talking to Redgum (who correctly diagnosed the problem over the phone) I tried to source another chip locally....and failed. The CS8412 is a long defunct chip (being only 2 channel) and the larger CP version of it (as fitted to the DAC) is akin to rocking horse manure. I unwittingly purchased a smaller CS version for SMD mounting but another forum member has recently volunteered his steady hands to fit it up to an adapter. I ended up sourcing the right package from Redgum at a fairly spectacular price but it was still cheaper than sending the whole box back down to Melbourne and back. A quick flick and we are back in business.
So the DAC sounds wonderful and was a really useful addition. Now though there's another project. First is to replace the distinctive Redgum timber fascia with one of my own - like the one on my N100+. The next is to permanently fix the fascia to the metal case (the timber fascia folds down to reveal the power switch - it's pretty but not practical) and front mount the power switch. But only after I sorted out the GK-1!!
