In college, I majored in physics, but I took a lot of theater courses. Not acting—I never had any affinity for that—but all the other aspects of theater: set design, directing, theory of performance, playwriting. One professor, a playwright himself, offered some advice to his students that has served me well ever since: To learn the craft, observe your response first, then look to the text to figure out what about it caused you to respond the way you did.
It was an important…
The transport part of the player is even easier to nail, this thinking goes, because all it needs to do is extract the data accurately, something any box-store CD…
Description: CD/SACD/MQA-CD player/transport supporting "Red Book" CD, CD-R, CD-RW, MQA CD, hybrid and single-layer. 800 × 480, 24-bit AMOLED display. User control via dual-concentric rotary knob with push function, CH Control Android app, and remote control. Digital outputs: CH Link HD (proprietary) supporting high-definition uncompressed audio and control; data rates: 16/44.1 or 24/88.2kHz (CD, MQA CD); 1 bit/2.8224MHz (SACD); AES3: 16/44.1 or 24/88.2kHz (CD, MQA CD); 24/44.1, 88.2, 176.4kHz or 1/2.8224MHz DoP (SACD); S/PDIF (RCA) 16/44.1 or 24/88.2kHz (CD,…
Digital sources: Intel NUC computer with SSD drive running Roon Optimized Core Kit, Roon Nucleus+; Denafrips Avatar CD transport; Synology DS918+ 4-bay Network Attached Storage device with 16TB; TP-Link 8-Port Gigabit network switch (unmanaged); dCS Rossini DAC.
Preamplification: Pass Labs XP-25 phono preamplifier, Pass Labs XP-22 line preamplifier.
Power amplifiers: Pass Labs XA60.8 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio Specialties Alexx V.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Carbon & Cinnamon & Coffee, Comprehensive Connectivity DXLRP-…
I tested the CH Precision D1.5 SACD/CD player/transport with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system. As the D1.5 doesn't have digital inputs, I assessed its performance, using its own power supply and internal clock, with a Sony test SACD and a CD-R with 16-bit test signals.
I used the Pierre Verany Digital Test CD, which has gaps of various lengths in the data spiral, to check the D1.5's error correction. The Compact Disc Standard requires only that a player cope with gaps of up to 0.2mm in length, but the D1.5 played the tracks with gaps up to 2mm without…
We would like to thank Jim Austin and John Atkinson for conducting such an in-depth and exhaustive review of our D1.5 CD/SACD player/transport.
John Atkinson's measurements are completely correct in identifying the early rolloff on CD replay, and Jim is also correct in suggesting that this might well be atypical. The measured results suggest that the machine is using a minimum-phase apodizing filter rather than the proprietary PEtER spline filter that should be engaged.
It seems that the software in the (preproduction) D1.5 supplied for review has…
Bill Callahan and Bonnie Prince Billy—the latter is a stage name for Will Oldham—did not set out to make an album together. They were just trying fill the long pandemic months with music. In 2020, they started singing other people's songs together, broadcasting them to fans via Zoom. They recorded the tracks, choosing a different guest musician to…
Despite all that the PH-1000 can do, and all that you can do with it, you'll never get lost in nested-menu dysfunctionality, thanks to what Gold Note calls "SKC" (Single Knob Control)—but before getting into control, let's explore the PH-1000's features and configurability.
The…
Big screen, complete control
As previously mentioned, a single rotary/pushbutton knob facilitates feature selection and control, aided by a generously sized, well-organized TFT LCD color screen. You can make changes without interrupting playback, although there is a momentary pause as the relays kick in.
The first button push puts a rectangle around the…