CD Transports

[Chefren]

As CD transports sound so different, does it not follow that the HDDs used in streaming systems should sound different?

They do - better buy SSDs as those are silent!

They seem to be doing the same job.

Well not really, I've never run across a HDD with an audio output or a HDD which has to/is able to manage scratched or dirty disks etc. So no matter how tempting, it's not a valid comparison.

 

[Paja]

...
Regardless of its sonics it will be great to be able to chuck a CD in it without having to fire up a laptop to rip it. I've also noted the benefit of being "encouraged" to listen to whole albums - much as vinyl does.

I'm beginning to see "streaming" (either from local NAS of ripped CDs, or via Spotify etc.) as a resource to be used with care.
...

I am glad you are satisfied - expected nothing less
My experience shows that many audiophiles didn't even try very good cd players/transports...

 

[Mescalito]

They do - better buy SSDs as those are silent!



Well not really, I've never run across a HDD with an audio output or a HDD which has to/is able to manage scratched or dirty disks etc. So no matter how tempting, it's not a valid comparison.

A CD transport has no audio output. If it has an audio out put, it is a CD player.

And like a CD, a HDD purely stores data.

They are exactly equivalent to a CD transport. The data ripped from a scratched/dirty CD & stored on a HDD will in all likelihood be a correct copy of the original, undamaged CD. Good ripping software allows for multiple attempts at reading the data, unlike a CDP.

Chris

 

[Chefren]

A CD transport has no audio output. If it has an audio out put, it is a CD player.

The OP states that he is looking for something "To be used with the Young DAC I recently acquired.".

This means in the context of this thread a CDT is then essentially a CD player with digital audio outputs (I guess S/PDIF? Not familiar with the Young). Analogue audio outputs are not mandatory.

So I'm not sure why a CD transport cannot have an audio output. If it wouldn't, you would need an additional component between it and the DAC to decode the raw binary data into PCM audio data.

They are exactly equivalent to a CD transport. The data ripped from a scratched/dirty CD & stored on a HDD will in all likelihood be a correct copy of the original, undamaged CD. Good ripping software allows for multiple attempts at reading the data, unlike a CDP.

I'm sorry but if you rip data from a scratched dirty CD with a CD-ROM drive to get a correct copy, that is a) Not something a CDT is able to do since it has to get it right the first time and b) the HDD still doesn't have to deal with the scratched disk. All it gets is the restored data in a WAV file all nice and tidied up.

 

[ItemAudio]

The mk2/3 Meridian 500 transports are nice IMO. The mech's are still available for these as well. However, whilst the mk1 mech's are not available, people have told me they were the more reliable with many still going strong.

Available for around £250-300 and you won't lose money on it at that really.

These sound uniformly great - and will doubtless lift the performance of the Young DAC. Your other alternatives are a better USB-equipped DAC, or a similar amount spent on an SPDIF converter for a disc-equipped laptop.

 

[Purité Audio]

The Young like all properly designed products is agnostic to input, it sounds the same through them all.
Keith.

 

[ItemAudio]

Forgive my world-weary cynicism, Keith, but we've heard that before. Remember the 'immune' Benchmark DAC1? Superceded by the 'whiter than white' DAC2?

Remember Weiss?

It is refreshing to see more and more DAC manufacturers like Auralic, Wadia and dCS - all of whom make proper DACs, too - acknowledging in advance what owners invariably discover for themselves once units land in front rooms - that DACs are anything but agnostic.

As dealers, I think we have to be really careful about not making claims for our products' heroic invulnerability to avoid egg on face down the line, and maintain some credibility - a hard enough job as it is, given the legacy of snake-oil salesmanship handed to us by previous generations!

 

[Purité Audio]

Benchmark mark one wasn't great, Weiss is equally immune to input, all well designed equipment should be, really simple concept.
Keith.

 

[ItemAudio]

Sadly, too simple to be true.

 

[ItemAudio]

@ Vital: if you can snag a Meridian in good condition (the drawer mechanisms get sticky and if it's on its original laser, it might be on its last legs), let us know how you get on with it. If you come across a TEAC mech with a Trichord or other clock upgrade, they're a good bet, too.

Maybe let us know if all those SPDIF transports sound identical!

 

[john dolan]

I ripped my CDs to lossless flac that I have on my pc also my nas and run pc to usb on my Young dac also Cyrus stream coax out into the Young and Cyrus CDXTSE transport optical out into the Young.

To my ears usb sounds better from pc with win7 and jriver software next and close but no cigar is StreamX coax in then 3rd is CD transport optical in.

Don't want to fight but my kit my ears ect.

 

[Paja]

CDT20R arrived yesterday. A very nicely made piece of kit it is too. The drawer slides in and out with a smoothness and solidity that's a pleasure!
...

Please read post other wrote!
As you can see, Vital bought TagMcLaren CDT20R...

 

[eisenach]

The Young like all properly designed products is agnostic to input, it sounds the same through them all.
Keith.

That wasn't my experience of the Young.

The Tag DVD32R (RCA output only) sounded noticeably more "solid" than the Tag CDT20R (RCA / BNC / XLR outputs) when using the RCA inputs on the Young. Only using an XLR cable brought the CDT20R closer to the DVD32R, but the latter was still better.

 

[Paja]

....
Only using an XLR cable brought the CDT20R closer to the DVD32R, but the latter was still better.

You mean AES/EBU cable?

 

[john dolan]

That wasn't my experience of the Young.

The Tag DVD32R (RCA output only) sounded noticeably more "solid" than the Tag CDT20R (RCA / BNC / XLR outputs) when using the RCA inputs on the Young. Only using an XLR cable brought the CDT20R closer to the DVD32R, but the latter was still better.

I had my Sony bl-ray into the rca and Cyrus StreamX into the bnc after reading your post I just swapped them over and the rca sounds has more punch than the bnc connection.

 

[eisenach]

You mean AES/EBU cable?

Same thing, isn't it ?

 

[Paja]

Think not...
XLR is connector, Aes/ebu is digital audio standard

 

[eisenach]

Think not...
XLR is connector, Aes/ebu is digital audio standard

Splitting hairs, methinks !
An XLR cable is one that has XLR connectors !

 

[john dolan]

the Young has a AES/EBU digital input.

I don't have a front end with this to test it.

 

[ItemAudio]

To my ears usb sounds better from pc with win7 and jriver software next and close but no cigar is StreamX coax in then 3rd is CD transport optical in.

Don't want to fight but my kit my ears ect.

That wasn't my experience of the Young.

The Tag DVD32R (RCA output only) sounded noticeably more "solid" than the Tag CDT20R (RCA / BNC / XLR outputs) when using the RCA inputs on the Young. Only using an XLR cable brought the CDT20R closer to the DVD32R, but the latter was still better.

Thus spake the users. It certainly doesn't imply the Young is a bad DAC (at least not for that reason) and it shouldn't come as a surprise. Really, how could it be otherwise?

Some dealers and manufacturers appear nervous about 'admitting' it, for fear it might reflect badly on the product. But it doesn't: the spin does.

In the case of SPDIF (of which AES/EBU is a flavour), it's almost impossible for the transport not to make a difference. Granted - it's harder to explain as precisely, in every case, where USB transports differ, but (again) from experience, they do. If you want to get the best from your DAC, it's something you have to look at. If you're not - relax and stick any old source up it: it will still play a tune.