• 04-29-2004, 05:50 PM
    analog2004
    Review of Audionet "ART" CD Player
    Absolutely impressive cd player! I have been looking for the perfect cd
    player for about the last two years. The Audionet ART is not perfect but
    very close. First, what I don't like: It's not balanced and the remote
    doesn't feel as sturdy as I would like to see it in a player for $4k. It
    could be a tad more forward in the soundstage. But what it does extremely
    well: It's fun to listen to cds again! It sounds remarkably analog, with

    a very wide soundstage and a very realistic tone. The construction is
    german, it's built like a tank though it looks like it was designed by the
    folks at Bang and Olufsen - the visuals are superb! I would be hard
    pressed to name one other player under ten grand that sounds that musical!
    The nearest competition comes from Audionet: My next purchase will be the
    audionet dvd player (tongue in cheek called VIP) which I heard at
    Blinkhighend in Cambridge. Sad to say, even the cds sounds a tad better on
    that one, but it also costs considerably more.
  • 05-01-2004, 12:22 PM
    woodman
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by analog2004
    Absolutely impressive cd player! I have been looking for the perfect cd
    player for about the last two years. The Audionet ART is not perfect but
    very close. First, what I don't like: It's not balanced and the remote
    doesn't feel as sturdy as I would like to see it in a player for $4k. It
    could be a tad more forward in the soundstage. But what it does extremely
    well: It's fun to listen to cds again! It sounds remarkably analog, with

    a very wide soundstage and a very realistic tone. The construction is
    german, it's built like a tank though it looks like it was designed by the
    folks at Bang and Olufsen - the visuals are superb! I would be hard
    pressed to name one other player under ten grand that sounds that musical!
    The nearest competition comes from Audionet: My next purchase will be the
    audionet dvd player (tongue in cheek called VIP) which I heard at
    Blinkhighend in Cambridge. Sad to say, even the cds sounds a tad better on
    that one, but it also costs considerably more.
    Are you perhaps a shill ... pimping for this AudioNet company? $4K for a CD player? That is totally absurd, and anyone that actually KNOWS anything about electronics manufacturing would have to agree with that statement.
  • 05-01-2004, 04:01 PM
    E-Stat
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by woodman
    Are you perhaps a shill$4K for a CD player? That is totally absurd, and anyone that actually KNOWS anything about electronics manufacturing would have to agree with that statement.
    Or choice "B", cares little about sonic performance.

    rw
  • 05-01-2004, 04:15 PM
    N. Abstentia
    There's just no way in h-e-l-l that player sounds $3700 than say a used Adcom/Arcam/Cambridge/Rotel player.

    And I SERIOUSLY doubt it sounds $3900 better than a 5 disc Sony from Best Buy to 99.9% of normal humans. It may sound better, but $3900 better? No. I'll put another $100 with the first $100 and pick up a used Arcam.
  • 05-01-2004, 04:27 PM
    E-Stat
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by N. Abstentia
    And I SERIOUSLY doubt it sounds $3900 better than a 5 disc Sony from Best Buy to 99.9% of normal humans. It may sound better, but $3900 better? No. I'll put another $100 with the first $100 and pick up a used Arcam.
    I would definitely agree with your statement concerning the masses with their mid-fi HT systems.

    It all depends upon your priorities and level of exposure. I find it very amusing for all the folks here who speculate on equipment that is outside their experience.

    rw
  • 05-01-2004, 05:23 PM
    plextor guy
    a fool and his money...
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by analog2004
    Absolutely impressive cd player! I have been looking for the perfect cd
    player for about the last two years. The Audionet ART is not perfect but
    very close. First, what I don't like: It's not balanced and the remote
    doesn't feel as sturdy as I would like to see it in a player for $4k. It
    could be a tad more forward in the soundstage. But what it does extremely
    well: It's fun to listen to cds again! It sounds remarkably analog, with

    a very wide soundstage and a very realistic tone. The construction is
    german, it's built like a tank though it looks like it was designed by the
    folks at Bang and Olufsen - the visuals are superb! I would be hard
    pressed to name one other player under ten grand that sounds that musical!
    The nearest competition comes from Audionet: My next purchase will be the
    audionet dvd player (tongue in cheek called VIP) which I heard at
    Blinkhighend in Cambridge. Sad to say, even the cds sounds a tad better on
    that one, but it also costs considerably more.

    blah, blah, blah..
  • 05-01-2004, 05:49 PM
    Poss
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by N. Abstentia
    There's just no way in h-e-l-l that player sounds $3700 than say a used Adcom/Arcam/Cambridge/Rotel player.

    And I SERIOUSLY doubt it sounds $3900 better than a 5 disc Sony from Best Buy to 99.9% of normal humans. It may sound better, but $3900 better? No. I'll put another $100 with the first $100 and pick up a used Arcam.
    At that kind of money I would look for a previously loved Levinson/Wadia/Audio Research/Sonic Frontiers and so on ( yes, people sometimes "upgrade" from this level of performance).

    New stuff from Naim/ Classe and others just as ilustrious could be had somwhere around this kind of money and they would at the very least be built as any $4000 fetching CD player should.

    Just my two cents ( now that doesn't buy much eh?)

    Peace!