Imaging, detail retrieval, tightness, build quality

Dissapointing remote (even for this price)

Combined with the Musical Fidelity A3 Integrated, this player "wowed" me like nothing else I've yet heard in my system, or in most high-end salon systems. I was shocked at how much I had been missing, as well as how much better this combo sounded than other equipment I've listened to... In detail, in textural resolution, in imagine specificity, in integrity, and yes, even in SOUL. Indeed, everyone else who has heard this system has agreed.

In light of the phenomenal bargain that this unit is, to say that its remote sucks is really a nit-pick. However, given the "look" of the rest of the current MF pieces, the remotes included with these units are a let down (they could have forgone the brass touches and given me a decent remote and I wouldn't have complained!). The tiny buttons and overall "cheap plastic" feel don't impress. But when you're listening to music, that's really not important.

Overall, there's not much I dislike about the unit, and musically, there's really nothing at all. Those complaining about bass need better amplification or speakers... it's all there in spades.

For the price... or even twice the price, I couldn't be more pleased. Happy listening.


(My ancillary equipment includes Maggies, an HSU Research Sub powered by a Parasound dedicated amp and Paradigm x-over, all connected with Kimber and given juice by Audio Power. Bright Star Audio provides the foundation)

Similar Products Used:

Various NAD, Sony ES and Marantz units

The clarity,pure instrumental notes.

none

i bought this CD Player for a high price $250000 .
But i dont feel bad about that cause the player is a magnificient one
The Notes are so clear that i have not heard these notes in my old sony.
The bass is good and the delivery is very great.
Its pure analog.
I love this system very much and i am not bothered about the price i paid.
thank u
david.

Similar Products Used:

sonyES, NAD.

exellent

none that i noticed

I purchased this unit 7 months ago as a stand bye for a better unit.but i came to like it very much.and decided to keep it.apart from the beutifull sonics it produces,the build character is exellent,solid and attractive.i have it hooked up to all "CHORD" electronics.with a pair of B&W naut. 802 speakers.i dont think you can get a better CD player for the price,from any other source.

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denon

Detail, Detail, and um . . . Detail. Clean like you can't believe.

No soul.

First off, I think that this CD player is THE player for Audiophiles on a budget. This thing has more detail and clarity than the any of the above players. In fact, it approaches the detail of the Moon Eclipse (by the way... everyone should hear the Moon before they die). I was blown away by the clarity and detail of this thing.

But . . .

It sounds sterile. Like the epitome of digital sterile. Those of you who have ever heard the difference between a tube guitar amp and a solid state - this is solid state. Clean, detail, but no life to it. I really wish I could have bought this thing. Especially since I wound up with the more expensive arcam FMJ CD23. But I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

If you're in the neighborhood for a player in this price range, and you're put off by the unit's sonic disposition, I recommend an Alpha 9. Rumour has it that arcam is discontinuing this player (i.e. you can get it cheap!) Or, if you think the alpha line is ugly (you conformist!) wait for the DiVA line. They look almost as good as the FMJ stuff and the CD players will be cheaper.

I would definitely recommend a listen to this thing though. It is worth ordering it from Audio Advisor, just to check it out (only like $15 shipping each way if you decide to return it). It has the detail and clarity of the most expensive players I've heard. It may save you a lot of money.

I've heard it in the following Systems.

MF A3CD
HT Truthlink Interconnects
Moon I-5 or I-5080
Van den Huul CS 122 Hybrid Spk. Cable
Soliloquy 5.0 loudspeakers atop soliloquy custom stands or
PSB Stratus Silvers or
Totem Model 1 Sig. Atop Target R series stands.

Similar Products Used:

Arcam Alpha 9/FMJ, Linn Genki

Build quality. Good Looks. Handles dynamic peaks well
Base extension

Doesn't demonstrate pace and excitement of my 7 year old $400 rotel CD-945ax with certain recordings.

I was really excited about its arrival, because I own and love the A3cr combo. Furthermore, it arrived the same day as a package of new CDs. After ripping the box open and displacing my Rotel CD-945ax, I inserted the CD I last listened to the night before. At first I didn't have any sound out of the left channel. I couldn't believe it. I thought AA sent me a bad unit. After rotating the rca connection at the Cd player, I got sound. After 45 minutes of various cds which included Fleetwood Mac's Greatest hits and Abby Road by the Beatles, I wasn't impressed with the sound. In fact I had difficulty becoming involved with any of the CDs I listen to. I also smelled a strong oder coming from inside the unit everytime I opened the drawer. I called Chris at AA and he said it is very possible that it wasn't broken in. I realized that it was possible that the unit wasn't broken in even though it was a demo that I had purchased. I must say that untill now I was somewhat skeptical regarding breaking in of non tube electronics. I proceed to put in a jazz cd and leave playing in repeat mode overnight and all the next day. When I arrived home I notice an improvement in the sound. Mainly, the upper midrange was not as bright. It is possible that there was some condensation inside the unit??
It arrived on a wet rainy day. That evening I exchange alot of CD back and forth between Rotel and the MF. I had to repostion my speakers because of the increased bass response I was getting with the MF. It rattled loose the spike nuts on my speaker stand. It also was producing a larger and deeper soundstage which became most notably larger after moving the speakers out away from the wall. (5feet vs 3feet). Fortunately, I have big enough room to accomadate this.
After inserting a new 20 bit CD Dave Brubeck's Solo piano. I did't have any sound out of my right speaker. Again after rotating the RCA connection, I got sound. This was a different set of interconnects, although both were straight wire chorus. I really lacked confidence in this unit at this stage. Perhaps it was a fluke. After 3 days it has not happended since. The jury is still out on this player. I am not sure that it exceeds the performance of my Rotel enough to warrant the 850 dollars. At times I can't help but feel that it lacks pace and excitment of my Rotel. Sometimes I find I am not involved with the CD and it sound uninteresting. Other times I am thrilled! This has nothing to do with resolution; this unit produces tons of detail. This CD player images well and is very transparent. It appear to have a very substantial build quality. I must say that when I read the review of someone below. I thought he was bashing this player when he said it lacked soul. I must apologize to him, I can relate to what he is saying. Certainly, when I first started listening to this player, I agreed with him completely. I almost returned the unit the next day. Now I only agree with him some of the time. Is it possible that this unit needs even more breaking in? To summarize, I think that the A3cd player is very good. It sounds great at times with the right recording. It appears to have excellent build and It looks great if that should matter. I definitely think it is worth an audition(I might have a less than perfect unit...I purchased a demo, it was returned by someone else.) Because I have not compared this to other CD players such as Sony SACD and ARCAM that the previous reviewer loves, I will base my opinion soley on the camparison with my little Rotel which I am used to. It is entirely possible that digital just doesn't get much better at the present time. I am considering returning this player and trying the Perpetual Tech DAC that everyone is hyping, but with that you still need a good transport. And at 7 years of age my Rotel may not be up to the task much longer.

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none

Really visually stunning and beautiful. Comes with remote, high end features such as shutting of the display or dimming it. Index navigation etc..

I have had this cd player for 3 days now. It's like I have a new cd collection. That's how much more detail I experience when listening to this player. Besides from being really beautiful (It looks like a gold trimmed Lexus LS430) the sound is what really matters.

I listen to a lot of extreme metal and when the musicians blast out in sonic chaos my other cd player (cheap one) was just unable to handle the detail. Instead of hearing each instrument doing something I would hear distorted blasts of music. With this MF A3CD there is nothing distorting. The bass guitar, drums, guitar and vocals are all there seperate from each other but working together to create wonderful music. Another thing I noticed is that it's no longer painful to listen to cds. Radiohead's KID A is not as harsh as it was my other cd player. I can hear so much detail now, like singers breathing, lips cracking, drumming I never heard before (like drummers tapping and other new sounds I never even knew were on the disks).

The bass is really tight and fast. Vocals are sweet and accurate. Acoustic instruments sound like they are right there in the room. Everything about this player is great. Plus it matches my Musical Fidelity A300 integrated.

I am using Audioquest Coral interconnects with this player, it does also come with optical out (which will come in handy when digital amplifiers and preamps become cheaper). I can't say enough, so if you have read the reviews and are thinking of trying it out, there's really nothing to lose by just listening to it in your home for a few days. I am not sending this player back and I have only listened to it for 3 days, I am really impressed.

Here's my system.

Integrated Amp - Musical Fidelity A300
CD player - Musical Fidelity A3CD
Speakers - Polk Audio Reference Theater 16
Interconnects - Audioquest Coral
Speaker Cable - Analysis Plus Oval 12

Detailed sound, handles complex music with ease

Cold sounding treble, lacks air and ambience

I purchased this product because I liked the A3CR preamp so much and was searching for a player that could extract a little more from my CD collection. This player is certainly capable of extracting detail but ultimately (in my system at least) the overall presentation leans towards being bland and lacks air and ambience compared with my reference Meridian and even lags behind my Sony DVD player in the enjoyment stakes. The reason for this IMO could be to do with the 5 pole analogue filter that's enployed. Although phase linear whithin the audio passband it could be that it's adding a little bit of extra 'ringing' on transients because the treble is somewhat reminiscent of eary generation players of the 80s. I would like to see MF re vamp this player and incorporate some of the same electronics that they employ in their A3CR preamp which is positively sweet and engaging in stark contrast with this player. After 3 weeks of listening and no signs of any further 'burning in' I have taken this player back to the store and blindly ordered a Marantz SA-14. It's more than I would like to spend at this point and a high risk considering the uncertainty of SACD/DVD-A but here's hoping the Marantz can at least provide the the CD performance in still in search of. I'll submit a review of the player including it's SACD capabilities in a few weeks.

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Meridian 506.20