The Sound of Science - audiolab 6000 Series and beyond!

Looking forward to your impression of the CDT. Iā€™m going back and forth between the 6000 and the Cambridge Audio CDT. About the same price. What dac are you using?
 
OMC said:
Looking forward to your impression of the CDT. Iā€™m going back and forth between the 6000 and the Cambridge Audio CDT. About the same price. What dac are you using?
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I thought I had heard that Cambridge tends to use really cheap parts but could be thinking of some other brandā€¦ @HiFi Guy might know?

Iā€™d assume @Hollywood is using the DAC in the Audiolab 6000-A? Everybody is getting CD players lately! Maybe I have to keep my eye out for oneā€¦
 
Congrats. Someone told me it's the choice until the Hegel Integrated Amps which are much more.

The Rotel CD-11 Tribute is a great cdp as well.
 
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MikeH said:
I thought I had heard that Cambridge tends to use really cheap parts but could be thinking of some other brandā€¦ @HiFi Guy might know?

Iā€™d assume @Hollywood is using the DAC in the Audiolab 6000-A? Everybody is getting CD players lately! Maybe I have to keep my eye out for oneā€¦
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No from what I gather youā€™re right, their stuff supposedly sounds great but they supposedly scrimp on key electrical components.

The only thing that makes me slightly nervous about the audiolab is a slot loading mechanism, I really donā€™t like them and Iā€™ve had issues with them in the past.

If I was getting a CD player at that level right now Iā€™d go for the marantz/denon family. The marantz cd mechanisms are supposedly excellent at all levels and theyā€™ve got a nice solid tray lol.
 
MikeH said:
I thought I had heard that Cambridge tends to use really cheap parts but could be thinking of some other brandā€¦ @HiFi Guy might know?

Iā€™d assume @Hollywood is using the DAC in the Audiolab 6000-A? Everybody is getting CD players lately! Maybe I have to keep my eye out for oneā€¦
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Iā€™ve read that about CA gear too. Must say, though, that my wifeā€™s office system has a 20 year old CA 500 CD player, I think, that still works fine. Being ā€œonlyā€ a transport CA CDT has a minimum of parts compared to an integrated amp, say, and it does have a pretty good track record. Like Joe Mack, slot loading is something of a drawback for me but not a deal breaker. Iā€™m sure Hollywood will really like it and it will be great with the matching integrated. šŸ‘
 
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Joe Mac said:
No from what I gather youā€™re right, their stuff supposedly sounds great but they supposedly scrimp on key electrical components.

The only thing that makes me slightly nervous about the audiolab is a slot loading mechanism, I really donā€™t like them and Iā€™ve had issues with them in the past.

If I was getting a CD player at that level right now Iā€™d go for the marantz/denon family. The marantz cd mechanisms are supposedly excellent at all levels and theyā€™ve got a nice solid tray lol.
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I shall report back later on the CDT and its front loading mechanism šŸ˜Ž
 
OMC said:
Iā€™ve read that about CA gear too. Must say, though, that my wifeā€™s office system has a 20 year old CA 500, I think, eh hat still works fine. Being ā€œonlyā€ a transport it has a minimum of parts compared to an integrated amp, say, and it does have a pretty good track record. Like Joe Mack, slot loading is something of a drawback for me but not a deal breaker. Iā€™m sure Hollywood will really like it and it will be great with the matching integrated. šŸ‘
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Yeah it totally wouldnā€™t be a deal breaker either. Itā€™s one of those that Iā€™d pick the best sounding one but if it was neck and neck Iā€™d likely end up with the one with the tray. These calls really can be splitting hairs sometimes!
 
Joe Mac said:
No from what I gather youā€™re right, their stuff supposedly sounds great but they supposedly scrimp on key electrical components.

The only thing that makes me slightly nervous about the audiolab is a slot loading mechanism, I really donā€™t like them and Iā€™ve had issues with them in the past.

If I was getting a CD player at that level right now Iā€™d go for the marantz/denon family. The marantz cd mechanisms are supposedly excellent at all levels and theyā€™ve got a nice solid tray lol.
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Iā€™d do what @Hollywood did and get the matching CD and amp. They look real slick together.
 
MikeH said:
Iā€™d do what @Hollywood did and get the matching CD and amp. They look real slick together.
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Yeah Iā€™ve gone so far down the line of stuff by manufacturers that seem to specialise on one bit in particularā€¦ lol!

If PS Audio made a Stellar level CD transport/steamer with the I2S connection into my pre/DAC then Iā€™d be all over that long term. As it is Iā€™m not paying ā‚¬6,000 on the only SACD they do, itā€™d be the most expensive component in my system for a medium I rarely use šŸ˜‚
 
MikeH said:
I thought I had heard that Cambridge tends to use really cheap parts but could be thinking of some other brandā€¦ @HiFi Guy might know?

Iā€™d assume @Hollywood is using the DAC in the Audiolab 6000-A? Everybody is getting CD players lately! Maybe I have to keep my eye out for oneā€¦
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CA uses the cheapest junk the can get their hands on as far as internal parts. It sounds fine, while it works. Most of their gear isnā€™t worth paying to have repaired.

Not that inexpensive parts are always bad: NAD uses inexpensive filter caps in the power supply of the C316BEE V2. Itā€™s reliable and sounds great regardless. That said, if I owned one, Iā€™d be tempted to buy a couple of Panasonic or Nichicon caps and upgrade the stock caps.
 
HiFi Guy said:
CA uses the cheapest junk the can get their hands on as far as internal parts. It sounds fine, while it works. Most of their gear isnā€™t worth paying to have repaired.

Not that inexpensive parts are always bad: NAD uses inexpensive filter caps in the power supply of the C316BEE V2. Itā€™s reliable and sounds great regardless. That said, if I owned one, Iā€™d be tempted to buy a couple of Panasonic or Nichicon caps and upgrade the stock caps.
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Iā€™ve used NAD and CA gear for decades with great results. I have a 15 yr old CA Azur CD player that has been rock solid, but I have used it only as a transport for the past ten years or so. Iā€™d happily buy a CA transport if the need arose.

My NAD preamp is 30+ years old and still going strong. I had it ā€œrefreshedā€ in 2020 to update semiconductors and capacitors for age alone. Would also happily buy another NAD; I also have 3 other pieces of NAD gear.
 
Angsty said:
Iā€™ve used NAD and CA gear for decades with great results. I have a 15 yr old CA Azur CD player that has been rock solid, but I have used it only as a transport for the past ten years or so. Iā€™d happily buy a CA transport if the need arose.

My NAD preamp is 30+ years old and still going strong. I had it ā€œrefreshedā€ in 2020 to update semiconductors and capacitors for age alone. Would also happily buy another NAD; I also have 3 other pieces of NAD gear.
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NAD is a solid brand with an excellent reputation for its fantastic-sounding products at an affordable price.
 
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