Naimed

Maybe its the spin up. Some chassis have tighter grip and some have a not-so-tight-fit. I need to press down on the casing and it will detect correctly. If your USB casing uses a single USB connector for tapping power, the comp might have difficulty detecting the partition. Mine comes with an additional keyboard socket so I can tap that as well (double power connections work all the time). I also assume your comp is USB 2.0 compatible.

1) $1000 CDP + $1360 cables? or 2) $2300 CDP + $60 cables? Ceteris paribus, I will go for 2). I wont go for expensive cables until I know I've maxed my source/s (budget wise).

Yes, a Naimee. The Naim CDPs that I have heard extensively (at least a couple of hours at a single sitting) are: CD3-5/Hi, CD5, CD5/Hi, CDX, CDX2, CDS, CDS2 - either in full-Naim context or otherwise. Naim's CDPs dont do that hifi thing (soundstage, depth, smoothness...etc) so well, but they play good music. Their presentation may not be everyone's cup of tea but it certainly is engaging/involving enough for me to sit up and listen. Just pop by Absolute Sound at Singapore Shopping Centre. I'm sure you can listen to some Naims there. Incidently, I sold my CD3-5/Hi to a guy who owns a A3CD.

I've heard the EMC-1 but not long enough to comment objectively. Off the top of my head...the EMC-1 does many things better than the A3CD. The A3CD crucially needs proper matching down the chain. Anyhow, if you are in the market for an usedS$2-3k CDP, try to look around a bit and listen to a lot more. Good reviews doesnt mean its hand in glove for you. A friend of mine let go of his EMC-1 to be digital-less for a while because it wasnt crucial to him. Any CDP worth its salt should sound their best with adequate stands. If they dont, look elsewhere.

On price differential, it depends. Not all Reference series gears are priced higher than the Olive. On modification of Naim gears, I have no experience. If I like certain aspects of a particular piece of gear, I won't want to change it.

It states on the Headline page that : "The Headline must be used with an external power supply such as a Flat-Cap 2 or Hi-Cap, using a special interconnect, type SLIC." This may be a little misleading as the Headline can be powered with a NAPSC. The NAPSC comes with a captive 2-pin plug. Also, there will be a slight price increase for the Headline2 over the Headline.

What is the 'in' genre currently? They dont even use 'Alternative' to describe indie these days. Its all 'Modern Rock'. If a band is not diversify enough, they hardly move on (unless they are Led Zep or Pink Floyd). One exception - Metallica with St Anger. Gorillaz is experimental music that allows Albarn the necessary avenue to do what he doesnt in Blur. This is just my observation, you might not agree.When I heard Think Tank, its recognisable Blur. How is it 'way off'? I like Blur's music but I am not a true blue fan. Members leaving is a common thing in bands. For RHCP, even with a high guitarist turn-over, they are still focus. They have a few good singles from every album release. Something that is similar to your observation of Blur - Jason Newsted leaving Metallica? I believe a lot of Metal fans will scream 'sell-out' when the Black album was out but I also believe the same fans went and bought a copy AND enjoyed it. ...Justice sold a couple of millions and so did Black. Mod edit: OK OK enough about the Think Tank thing. We agree to disagree. Both have very valid points.

Dont think Think Tank is commercialised. The style and directions are definitely different (Gorillaz and various projects) and thats about it. Some of the older albums are as, if not more radio friendly. Would you term Nirvana's "Smell Like Teen Spirit" as commercialised? I think they just made some great tunes and it got alot of people involved in the music, hence the high volume of sales. Is Beck commercialised when he got nominated for a couple of Grammys? Dont think so either. Eminem? I have not seen the terms 'commercialised' and 'sell-out' in use for a very long time. Maybe the masses' taste is evolving...

The sum of all parts. Good implementation of the circuit designs with the 'right' parts. Sonically(SQ), output from that amp is then subjective to the individual listener.

If you want a 'rougher, faster and brighter' edge sound in the 12AX7 family of pre tubes, you can try the RFTs. http://www.tubeman.com/item10.htm YMMV.

Interesting stuff here. I guess you guys had fun while I was baking in the sun and feeding the sandflies on a beach in Sibu... About the headline - what source? Sony? I believe the potential of the headline is limited by the PSU(napsc) and phones more than the source at this point. I've swopped sources on it and didnt find the difference staggering ($350 pioneer dvdp and the cdx2)... The hicap is a dual rail 24v psu and is meant to power a single component(only the FC2 is capable of powering 2 components without grounding issue). Older preamps like 32/42 are single rail and the 32.5/42.5 can accept dual rail power. I think you should be able to tap a single rail out of the hicap to power the pre if its of the older generation and the remaining rail for the headline (ala Napsc), but I think it will look messy!! The issue now is with grounding - as all grounding are done at the PSU in the chain. I've had the opportunity to try the hicap and supercap on my sistem(not on the headline) and yes, you need nothing less than a SC! The SC supplies both 24V and 18V so you can use a SNAIC from the 24V to the pre and SLIC from the 18V to the headline. The bottom line is, $6k for a PSU is not sane and you still get a performance hit hooking up 2 components to the SC. Maybe 2 HCs is a better choice but the SC is really something special. BIGOT...Before I Go OT

You will reach a stage where even Stereovile is readily ignored. Your ears are your best reviewers. Trust them instead.

My vote goes to the old Rega Planet if you can find one in good condition for $500.

The 202 uses 12AX7 for the pre and 12AT for the driver. Have you experience significant sonic improvements with the swop from 12AX7 to 12AU7 (gain factor 19?)? I find the 5751 ( gain factor 70) to be a good replacement due to the lower gain and smoother mid-range. A favourite 5751 of mine - Raytheon windmill getter, double mica black plates. Swop out those caps to Jensen PIOs or Auricaps - they are worth the money. I also use Kiwame resistors on the 202. Since I've sold my Spendor...the 202 has lost it's 'soul' and she taking the back seat.

True...BUT, you can; 1) skip tracks on the CD12 2) finish the album without getting up to flip sides The CDS3 is not in SG yet if I'm not outdated...

Heard the 1) MX500 2) EX71 3) ER6 If driven from a portable, the EX71 is only slightly better that the MX500 with better 'air' and 'presence'. I did not find the EX71 to be too bassy. The MX500 has more prominent mids (which most music is coming from), so it tends to sound good. I also find the bass from the MX500 satisfactory. The ER6 is a big leapppp, both in performance and in price. I got the MX500 in the end because I am not very particular about portable music and the ER6 is too expensive. I'm a earbud person by the way, when it comes to music on the move.

I find the desoldering wick harder to work with so I use a solder 'sucker' instead. Maybe I have bad soldering skills...

I wouldnt worry too much about a few percent of silver solder in my sistem. Its good to have but nothing to over sleep over.

Mackie. I heard a Bedini'd CD briefly and it has similar benefits of the Statmat. Personally I feel the improvements of both are obvious but at the same time, it is also minor - like a sunscreen at the back of the car. If the $100 can go towards funding a better source, that would be more beneficial. They are probably more for people already at the end of the road...with nothing else to upgrade. ;P

I have the Statmat CDi Blue. The most obvious difference of the Statmat is the lower noise floor, which means you hear more details (micro-dynamics). On Stephanie Sun's 'Kite', during the intro - the howling of the wind is more prominent and doesnt actually sound like a distant train. On the other properties like soundstaging, imaging...I did not notice any difference. Anyway, if your transport is not very sturdy to begin with, the Statmat can be a pro or a con. Pro - for thinner CDs which the transport has a hard time trying to read, it might help. Con - for weak transport, the Statmat can cause disc reading failure due to slippage between Statmat and the CD. I recommend the Statmat for CDPs that comes with a puck - it works better in those. If you are looking at a demagnitising agent, you may want to look at the Bedini CD Clarifier.

I will try not to get anything from Avit Link unless I am really desperate. Check out the prices between them and Hung Bros. Probably 50% difference. I wont fault AL for their services but their cables are over-priced.

Dont worry, I wont nai...maim you for that!

No smiley doesnt mean I'm sulky all the time. I'm nicer than what I would believe...

Actually AHF Art Audio.

You can get some 'Wonder Solder' from Wellaudiolab across SLS at Burlington Square or Ahfartaudio behind People's Park. Call before going down.