[JCC]

I burned out a tube in my Phono Preamp. The new ones are are on the way, but now I am listening to CD's. As I go through my CD's I notice a certain sterility that I did not have on vinyl.

Occasionally I find a CD that is as good, but most are missing something. The funny thing is that when I have conducted  A/B tests between vinyl and CD, I often can't hear the difference. But now that I am stuck with one medium, I miss that certain something. CD's in most cases sound comparatively dead with missing resonance and fullness of sound.

There are some outstanding CD's, such as "Kind of Blue" and "Tous les matins du monde" but most, to me are missing a certain liveliness.

Am I crazy, or do any of you have a similar impression?

[Mag]

It's been awhile since I had my TT setup. I don't have a place for one in my stack. I have three in the closet and I know one is in working order.

Anyway I think I understand what it is you don't like about cd. Your typical cd even on an above average player is missing instrument harmonics. Which analogue captures to a better extent but still not to live standards.

Fortunately I discovered the enhancer feature on my Yamaha av/receiver. This seems to fill in the missing harmonics on cds. The drawback is it adds quite abit of loudness to the music. So I have to turn the volume way down or I'll wreck my ears at what was my normal volume setting.

With the enhancer IMO, the harmonics of cd's to my ears exceeds that of sacd that I have heard.

[TheChairGuy]

As I go through my CD's I notice a certain sterility that I did not have on vinyl.

Occasionally I find a CD that is as good, but most are missing something. But now that I am stuck with one medium, I miss that certain something. CD's in most cases sound comparatively dead with missing resonance and fullness of sound.

There are some outstanding CD's, such as "Kind of Blue" and "Tous les matins du monde" but most, to me are missing a certain liveliness.

Am I crazy, or do any of you have a similar impression?

As you posted at the Vinyl Circle, you're apt to have folks tell you that you ain't crazy in what you hear.

For me, without rediscovering vinyl after 3+ years without it when I ditched my last deck for a pricey CD set-up...I'd have long given up my audiophool credentials and packed it in long ago

CD simply doesn't measure up in sonic enjoyment; DVD-A is closer, but still no prize.  SACD still sounds freaky to me...I get the 'enhanced' resolution part, but it ultimately doesn't sound right to me (phase issues I have read, but I have no way to measure this)

CD players are uniformly good over the last 5 years.  So that now listening to them I don't think my time is completely wasted listening to them for musical cues. Try a Dakiom Feedback Stabilizer to improve playback, btw.

John

[SET Man]

I burned out a tube in my Phono Preamp. ....

Hey!

    Can you tell me how did it die? And how old was it? Any sign or symptoms?
 
    As a tube user I always want to know about this.

Take care,
Buddy

[TONEPUB]

You just need a great CD player....

If you have a good CD player, it depends on the mastering.  Some sound great, some
do not.

Personally, I'd rather have great digital than mediocre analog.

Unless you are buying remasters of old albums recorded in analog, any new
vinyl you are buying today was recorded digital.  A perfect example of this is the
Fleet Foxes album.  The CD sounds great and the LP is kind of flat.  Metallica's
Death Magnetic sounds equally dreadful on LP or CD.  THe recent Nine inch Nails
LP sounds flat and compressed, but the 24/96 downloads sound awesome.

So making a blanket statement that "digital just sounds bad" or "digital doesn't measure up"
just means you don't have a good digital setup.  It's out there.

[orthobiz]

You just need a great CD player....

Unless you are buying remasters of old albums recorded in analog, any new
vinyl you are buying today was recorded digital.

Perfect points! I really like my Rega Saturn but love playing records on the Linn. I think a big part of it involves original recordings done in analog played back in analog. I also buy new records, but partly 'cause I gotta have 'em and sometimes I buy the CD as well. Hey, it's more than a hobby, it's a SICKNESS.

I have the new AC Newman album coming on both CD and vinyl. Maybe I should do a little report soon.

For me, CD's in the car, vinyl at home.

Paul

[orthobiz]

Try a Dakiom Feedback Stabilizer to improve playback, btw.
John

What is that?

Paul

[rajacat]

Maybe your digital would sound better if you ditch the CD player and use your computer for playback via a modded Squeezebox, Transporter or one of Empirical Audio's devices? My Bolder modded Squeezebox sounds a lot better than my CD player.

-Roy

[TheChairGuy]

What is that (Dakiom Feedback Stabilizers)?

Paul

BoneyPaul

I've been preachin' the virtues of these wee Dakiom's for quite some time.  The RCA stabilizers almost universally work wonders on CD players (except those with tube outputs I believe the manufacturer recommends).  Between them and significant AC conditioning (I found a $40 isolation transformer is as good or better than any other tried), state of CD playback has really advanced for me.

I have found the amp units (non-rca's) to not (near) universally work.  But, the RCA versions are pure gold in my book 

'Ballsier' bass will only come from beefier power supplies....so the Dakiom's won't improve that if you have an inexpensive player....but it makes virtually unlistenable CD/DVD players (like my old modded-for-mostly transport duty Sony DVP-S7700 and old Pioneer 563 that I have upstairs) very, very nuanced and listenable now.  The better the CD to begin with further Dakiom's take them in listenability.

I just bought a Cambridge DVD99 universal player (CD/DVD/DVD-A/SACD), hooked the top-of-the-line Dakioms to it (MR273 I think...18" long IC's with integrated mono Dakiom's on them...I saved the cost of the old IC's as my Cambridge is stacked on top of my tuner/preamp) and it sounds fantastic to me. 

It's a helluva' $218.00 value to my ears....along with the cheap isolation transformer.....gets me almost the musical richness and joy of vinyl.  No matter what it lacks the 3 dimensionality and total naturalness that harkens back to the original even.  But, it's damn closer than I ever thought digital could get, frankly - and I am a really picky SOB for naturalness.

There would be far less DAC's sold if more folks knew about these Dakiom's I swear to ya'.  I have bene hooked, swindled and boondoggled by so many audio worthless toys over the years (and a few that have indeed worked, of course), but I rate the Dakiom's as the real deal.

Don't mind the odd/fire-and-brimstone writing style of the owner, Dr. Dao....his English is still more polished than my or your Korean likely is

http://www.dakiom.com/

John

[TheChairGuy]

I never see them resold on Audiogon, but see one now at a discount: http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?cablintr&1237937175&/DakiOm-MR-273-Audio-Feedback-S

You gotta' read some more fire-and-brimstone stuff from Dr. Dao, too....he leaves his best rips for Audiogon crowd, I think: http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?cablintr&1237749465&/Dakiom-Mr273--The-Best-of-Best

John

[JCC]

Can you tell me how did it die? And how old was it? Any sign or symptoms?

I was listening and then got noise. The unit was sensitive to touch on two 12AU7 tubes. In addition I got a strong metallic sound. I could hear the music that had suddenly gotten brittle.

[JCC]

You just need a great CD player....

If you have a good CD player, it depends on the mastering.  Some sound great, some
do not.

Personally, I'd rather have great digital than mediocre analog.

Unless you are buying remasters of old albums recorded in analog, any new
vinyl you are buying today was recorded digital.  A perfect example of this is the
Fleet Foxes album.  The CD sounds great and the LP is kind of flat.  Metallica's
Death Magnetic sounds equally dreadful on LP or CD.  THe recent Nine inch Nails
LP sounds flat and compressed, but the 24/96 downloads sound awesome.

So making a blanket statement that "digital just sounds bad" or "digital doesn't measure up"
just means you don't have a good digital setup.  It's out there.

For the record I have modified Marantz DV9500, which many feel is among the best. So I have an excellent CD/SACD/DVD-A player. Overall, I have a high-end system both for CD's and Vinyl

I have a mix of CD's many recommended by TAS or Stereophile, and I agree that some sound pretty good, and a few are close to equal. For the most part, however, I find that CD's are lacking, especially after building a high-end vinyl system. 

[JCC]

I've been preachin' the virtues of these wee Dakiom's for quite some time.  The RCA stabilizers almost universally work wonders on CD players (except those with tube outputs I believe the manufacturer recommends).  Between them and significant AC conditioning (I found a $40 isolation transformer is as good or better than any other tried), state of CD playback has really advanced for me.

I have found the amp units (non-rca's) to not (near) universally work.  But, the RCA versions are pure gold in my book 

There would be far less DAC's sold if more folks knew about these Dakiom's I swear to ya'.  I have bene hooked, swindled and boondoggled by so many audio worthless toys over the years (and a few that have indeed worked, of course), but I rate the Dakiom's as the real deal.

Thanks for the tip!! Like you, I have fallen for many a worthless tweak. If the Dakiom interconnects work, it would be great. 

[TheChairGuy]

Sure, please don't slay me if for any reason they don't work for you ...I cannot account for the difference different folks hear.

But, to me, the advance on CD playback is HUGE with them.  It didn't work with my old MSB Gold Link III DAC, however.  But it worked so well with my $59 COBY CDP that I ended up selling the pricey DAC and transport ($4500 invested in them) and listened contently only to the COBY for the past 2 years (now just replaced with the Cambridge DVD99 Universal Player)

John

[TONEPUB]

So these DakiOm things are an RC network that just rolls off the high end?

That would make an inexpensive CD player sound more pleasing.....

Hmmm.

[TheChairGuy]

So these DakiOm things are an RC network that just rolls off the high end?

That would make an inexpensive CD player sound more pleasing.....

Hmmm.

Listen for yourself smart guy .....the treble is far better and more analog-like than prior to using them.

They won't and cannot extend the 19Hz theoretical extension of Redbook...but they make what is there FAR more palatable.  Treble has always been the area I find CD/Redbook to be most 'fake' sounding so the effect of the Dakiom is most welcome.

They are no panacea for better/beefier power supplies and voltage regulation...but, their effects otherwise are remarkable.

I got no pony in the barn on this one...I'm just a very satisfied user.

John

[Niteshade]

When listening to something, do most people find the high frequencies more objectionable than mids or lows? Are the high frequencies most likely to become 'annoying' with sources or reproduction gear?

So these DakiOm things are an RC network that just rolls off the high end?

That would make an inexpensive CD player sound more pleasing.....

Hmmm.

[JCC]

They won't and cannot extend the 19Hz theoretical extension of Redbook...but they make what is there FAR more palatable.  Treble has always been the area I find CD/Redbook to be most 'fake' sounding so the effect of the Dakiom is most welcome.

They are no panacea for better/beefier power supplies and voltage regulation...but, their effects otherwise are remarkable.

John - Your comments on Redbook are interesting, however, I am wondering about the effect of the Dakiom on SACD or DVD-A? I would not mess up the other mediums.

[TheChairGuy]

John - Your comments on Redbook are interesting, however, I am wondering about the effect of the Dakiom on SACD or DVD-A? I would not mess up the other mediums.

I've used Dakioms on a Pioneer DVD/CD/DVD-A player for years with positive effect (the old R103 model).  2 weeks ago I bought a Cambridge DVD99 (replacing my $59 COBY) and use the MR273 pair on it.  It sounds great...and I've played all 3 audio formats on it in the past 2 weeks already.

If it improves CD, it will only improve DVD-A and SACD on the same player...only with the higher resolution of the newer formats in tact.  Again, my contention is that SACD is completely FUBAR'ed from the start and totally sounds weird to me (tho I get the enhanced resolution that it has)

John

[TONEPUB]

Have you heard SACD on a player that does straight DSD playback?

Many don't and use a variety of different conversion techniques.  That might
be part of it.  Also, just because something is recorded at a higher resolution,
if the mastering is lousy, it will still sound lousy.