High End Audio - Searching for my CD player

There is much discussion on the phases of audio equipment acquisition. For those with unlimited financial resources, just buy the entire system in one foul swoop. For the rest of us, we need to acquire different components in stages. I reasoned that I should start with the sound source first and possibly proceed down the chain which is only as strong as the weakest link.

The sound source component possibly has the biggest influence on the type of sound coming from an audio system, especially a high-end audio system where the refinement of components is very revealing of source imperfections. I was also surprised that I experienced different pacing of sound from different CD playback systems. Some sound more polite (slow pace) while others sound more upbeat (energetic). What causes this is beyond me. I have read theories ranging from distortion levels to jitter control.

CD playback systems in the high-end domain come as integrated units or as separate transport and DAC (digital-to-analog converter) components. I had the opportunity to audition many CD playback systems including products from Meridian, Sonic Frontiers, Rotel, Denon, PS Audio, Monarchy, EAD, Counterpoint, Resolution Audio and Kinergetics.

I settled for the Kinergetics KCD-40 CD player which has its own volume control such that I could feed the CD player directly into the amplifier. I figured fewer components in the chain would allow better fidelity. I have been a happy owner of the Kinergetics KCD-40 since 1991 and have had much satisfaction with the music reproduction of CD recorded material.

The biggest issue with the KCD-40 is that in recent years, it has developed a tendency to skip on CD playback. I figured it is due to the transport section of the CD player. I am not able to get service from Kinergetics since the company no longer exists. I hazard to take the unit in for someone to fiddle with. Since it plays okay for the most part, I have left the problem as is. A replacement of my sound source component is in my plans for the future.

I would like to get a disk-based system where my CD collection can be resident on a hard drive (or flash memory when it becomes pervasive and cheap enough as a disk replacement). Software would be in place for me to call up any track of any CD at my choosing, without having to physically find the CD to load into the player. I have had my DAW connected to my high-end audio system to listen to my piano music creations, so I know such a setup is more than feasible. The manifestation may be do-it-yourself as opposed to buying a commercially packaged finished product.

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