Analogue / Vinyl sounding Digital Source - Page 2

I would have to agree that tubes, either in a cd player or a dac, would be the way to go. I would avoid the idea of a tube buffer because of the extra cables involved. Right in your budget range is either of the Decware dac or Cd player. Maybe the new Eastern Electric dac?

I was high on tube buffers for a while, but I think I wasted my money.  I have to agree, after more careful listening, that they hurt, not help.  They took what was good about some SS amps and simply added noise and distortion, not the euphonic tube warmth of my tube gear.

 

And the extra interconnects and such don't help, as other posters have said.

 

Stats, Lo Z Dynamics, Hi Z Dynamics x tubes, SS = you need 6 amps.  Plus one for the K1K and/or your speakers.  And a portable.

 

Only kidding.

 

Not.

http://www.morningstaraudio.com/shop/item.asp?itemid=12  Eastern Electric Mini Max Tube DAC . Fantastic DAC! I have one pumping into LCD2's right now and it is the best combo I have ever heard. 

It's out of your current budget, but if you could really save up there's a Reimyo CDP-777 available on Audiogon right now for $5500, which is pretty cheap when you consider the original retail was $17k. I paid $9.5k to mine, and with the exception of EMM Labs top players and setups, the Reimyo is STILL the best digital front-end I've ever heard. In fact, it's the only one that has ever managed to make me forget I was listening to CDs because the music sounded so much like music. If you could get it modded by The Upgrade Company it would take it to a level that very few ever get to experience in audio.

If you're looking for an ease of presentation and a pleasing sound, pick up one of the original Rega Planet CD players. They're around $300-$350 these days. The price might not impress others, but they have the sound you're looking for. The Planets are very reliable and have a wonderful cast aluminum case. I keep mine around - can't bear to part with it - and it's nice to have a spare player for meets. If it interests you, a Planet might make a very nice transport for your new DAC.

Also, you might want to give vinyl a try. I was going to tell you to grab a Planet, then spend the rest on something like a Rega Planar 3/P3. You could pull those off for $1,300 if you bought used. Don't worry about not having a record collection - LPs have a way of accumulating once you have a deck.

^ Actually, The Regas are an excellent mention and they do have a really "analog-like" stock sound. The only problem is that they're somewhat sludgy and requires really good amplification to the get the most out of them and it would be preferable to combine them with some fast, detailed, high resolution phones.

Between the time this thread started and now, I purchased an Audio Note Kit DAC 2.1. Some people say Audio Note DACs are very "analog" and like no other DACs. Audio Note usually conceives of "simpler as better." Their DACs are so simple, that in an engineering sense they are broken. They take the stair-step output of the DAC and do no digital filtering and no analog filtering other than a gentle rolloff from an I-V transformer. Therefore they emit supersonic energy which is an aliased copy of the audio signal. Any engineer would tell you this is simply broken. But many people say it achieves a natural result that is unequalled with any other approach.

 

So I purchased one. I'll report on it once I get it built.

 

Bring it to the next meet 

I'm also very interested in this dac. I have an old Audio Note Dac1 that I picked up years ago off Ebay . You're absolutely right about the sound.  I've had this kit on my "wish list" for years. Would love to hear it. Please keep us posted.

There is absolutely no contest, Analog setup properly conquers digital hands down!

 

1) Not as bright

 

2) Less fatigue

 

3) Much better seperation

 

4) More liquid

The person who recommended finding a Marantz CD63 CD player was SPOT ON (I still rock my CD63SE in the bedroom system, with an EAD T-1000 DAC).

Getting a digital source w/ a "vinyl" sound is tricky - but I also recommend you look at legacy products for this sonic venture.

 

There was a company called Pentagon years ago that made a KILLER CD deck that sounded very analog to my ears (think it had a tube output stage).

You could also find a used Lector CD player for around 2k, and Audio Note is another KILLER reco made here in this thread.  I have an Audio Note tube headphone amp and it sounds so silky I get lost in listening - most of the time the wifey has to give me a shake to wake me from my sonic bliss..