This is definitely the best vacuum tube CD player I've ever heard. The sound is warm and crystal clear, and the bass and mids especially benefit from the ingenious construction of this player. Having variable outputs means I don't have to use a preamp for volume control, and I like that. I tried it with a pair of Sennheiser 600's and I can honestly tell you I've never heard a better sound from a CD player. When I use an HDCD, the quality improves even more! Priced at over $1000, I expected a middle-of-the-road player, and instead I got one that sounds better than most players in the $300 range! Definitely 5 stars.

I haven't heard this player yet, but thought you might like to know that it sells for under $600 in J&R Music World.
5* for cost (you have to put something)

Best Bass in a cd player. Direct variable output, 20-bit, hdcd

none

I have spent over $50k in stereo equip. in two years. I have owned $5k cd players... this CD player is a friggin' joke... it's better than ANYTHING i've had in my system, Levinson, you name it. I don't know why. I don't care why... but at $499 delivered from jandr.com this is pure robbery... Best bass in a cd player, warm, HDCD, 20-bit, variable output, means no preamp needed... remember, adding a component can never make your system sound better, and if it does, it means it's coloring the sound, which means distortion, which is means it actually sounds worse. email me with questions... this unit is no joke.

richie

Similar Products Used:

levinson, resolution audio cd50, sonic frontiers

Construction: Solen and wima capacitors,thick circuit board and heavy copper traces, Gold RCAs, dollar value, overall sound

noisy transport. Green to red light should be red to green

Its unfortunate that some poeple cannot get over a Name or are blind to value because of it. Dynaco makes Kits not audiophile quality components! Well maybe 25 years ago that was the case. Dynaco's last run of tube gear puts its competitors to shame. Handsdown. The sound is at least as good (with minor differences of course) but the price was unbelieveable. Unfortunately, the "if it doesnt cost a lot it must not be good" theory killed Dynaco's last gasp into the tube market. Thier new products are transistor mediocrity. The CDV 2 and the CDV Pro are simply unbelieveable both from a construction standpoint and sonic value. Ive had the opprotunity to hear a lot of different CD players in my home because I'm a tech/audiophile. I wouldnt have any other in my system. The player says that the owner is refined in hearing but fashionably frugile. Intelligent. Money to save toward a good preamp or amp. Upon hearing one for the first time even my non audiophile friends commented on how good the system sounded when they never commented before. Warm? You want warm? Johnny Cash was in my house last night. His rough and aging voice put a small tremour in our walls. Thats warm! Definition beyond belief. Bows moving across low strings come out like no other player. The top end is ever so slightly pinched but does not detract from the music experience. I've heard players that were more sonic on the top end and as a result bright and harsh. Kind of Blue was kind of real like I had never heard before. The darkness that some complain about is the quality that is lost in other players. "Dark" is a quality of music that many CD players don't do. There has to be a happy medium and the Dynaco CD players have it. Nose in the air audiophiles don't. And that makes me laugh!
Do yourself an extra favor and buy the PAS 4 tube preamp. It puts competitors to shame as well. Especially at $475. Contact me at soundbug1@aol.com
I got a few. You should have one too.

Similar Products Used:

CAL Aria and Aria II.

This player isn't just good, it's damn good. It sounds a hell of a lot better than any other player in its price range.

The stock Philips ECG JAN 6922 tubes aren't that good 6922's. You can pick up some nice Sovtek 6922's at www.triodeel.com for $9 a pop.

Note: This review refers to the Dynaco CDV-2.

Three words: G-O B-U-Y O-N-E!!!!

This CD player can kick the Marantz and Sony changer's asses so hard they'll have heat sink compound coming out their RCA jacks. The CDV-2 has none of that "harshness" that most people think of when they think of digital recordings, yet it doesn't sound excessively warm. Acoustic instruments and sound uncannily natural, like the players are right in front of you. When an electric bass or guitar starts playing, it sounds like the amps are sitting there in the room with you. This is one of the best deals in new hi-fi equipment available today.

On a side note, if you have a universal remote (I use the one that came with my Scientific Atlanta Explorer 3000 Digital Home Communications Terminal - a combination analoug & digital cable box, and WebTV clone), it is possible to control the CD player's volume digitally (the analogue knob on the front can be used in conjunction with the digital control. I found this very strange, seeing as there's nothing in the documentation about it and you can't control it from the player's front panel or the included remote.

Reference system:
Dynaco CDV-2

Duct Tape Audio custom 12db/octave 2500Hz line-level 2-way Active Crossover (I built it myself, and figured the name Duct Tape Audio fit it pretty well :~P )

Woofer amp - Stock Dynaco ST-70

Tweeter amp - Duct Tape Audio custom SE EL84 using power and output transformers from a General Electric RC 1616A integrated system

Speakers - Dahlquist M-905's (8" Vifa PVA (poly-vinyl acetate) laminated woffer, 1" Vifa dome tweeter) with the passive crossovers removed and the drivers directly attached to separate 5-way binding posts on the back

If you have any questions about anything audio-related (the CDV-2 tube amps, etc...) feel free to send me an e-mail.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz 4000 OSE ($500 list)
Sony CDPCA80ES (also $500 list)