Advice/views re replacement CD & amp

[Tangerine_Rick]

Hi all, my kit (in sig) is about six years old, and to be fair has certainly not been overused in that time. However, the CD element of the Solo started to skip on the first track or so. I have tried cleaning the lens and drive assembly, but to no avail. I emailed Arcam, asking what the CD unit was and how difficult is it to replace, but no answer.

I had been thinking of the Marantz PM6005 & Marantz CD6005 combo, which are available for about £540 (plus cables etc.). However, would appreciate any views/comments re alternatives (I could up the budget to around £1k).

The advantages of the above would seem to me to be that they should be a good match to each other, build in DAC, phono stage etc. at a very reasonable price. I assume that they should work ok with my Monitors?

Reading the blurb that came with the speakers, it recommends that these should be bi-wired, which I hadn't done - would this give any noticeable improvement ?

Thanks!

 

[cannibal_ox77]

Hi Rick,

I'd recommend spending more on the amp if you are willing to stretch the budget - you need a more powerful amp than the PM6005 to get the best out of the RS6. I tried my old PM6010 with the RS6 in between amps and it struggled with a fair amount of clipping when pushed. If you like the sound of Marantz you'd be better off looking around for the PM7004 or waiting for the new PM7005 which will have a built in DAC. For sound quality & features I think the Pearl Lite is fantastic value for money although wouldn't provide the DAC. Alternatively the Arcam A19 for around the same price as the pearl lite will get more out of the RS6.

Not sure about bi-wiring the RS6. I had them bi-amped off an AV receiver which made a positive difference, but since replacing with the stereo amp i've used single runs of better cable instead (odyssey) with definite improvement.

 

[Tangerine_Rick]

Hi thanks for the reply - I tried making a post, but it disappeared - sorry if this post twice!

I had seen other's comments about the Pearl Lite (is this still generally available or been replaced by something else?) and the Arcam - I did wonder if the extra might be worth it. I will try to get to listen to them.

Re the DAC - as I only expect to link up my ipod, I assume that this could be achieved by using the USB connector on the CD6005 - or an I missing the point :doh: ?

If I went for the Arcam or the Pearl Lite - would the CD6005 be reasonable? Also I noticed that the Pearl Lite is classed as a power amp - do I need something else as well, or is this ok with the CD & Speakers?

 

[rainsoothe]

hi.

As far as i understand, MA speakers are a bit on the bright side, so they partner warmer sounding amps better - unless you like that sizzling bright-as-the-sun sound. Of the warm sounding amps in your price bracket i heard, the Creek Evolution 50A stands out. Also, coming soon (or already out, not really sure) is the partnering cd player, the Creek Evolution 50CD, which also has a dac section which also has a USB input. The combination might be a little bit over your budget (by like 200 quid or so), but if the previous Evolution series is of any indication, it should be really awesome for your speakers, for the money and for the music

 

[cannibal_ox77]

I had seen other's comments about the Pearl Lite (is this still generally available or been replaced by something else?)

Yes, it hasn't been discontinued just yet (the PM8005 is the model to replace it) and you can get them from around £645 new, down from £990 on launch

Re the DAC - as I only expect to link up my ipod, I assume that this could be achieved by using the USB connector on the CD6005 - or an I missing the point :doh:

If I went for the Arcam or the Pearl Lite - would the CD6005 be reasonable? Also I noticed that the Pearl Lite is classed as a power amp - do I need something else as well, or is this ok with the CD & Speakers?

Correct, you can plug your iphone straight in. The 6005 is very capable, a friend has it partnered with the pearl lite and MA bx5 and can't fault it really.

The Pearl Lite is an integrated amp so you only need cd player and speakers but it has both power amp inputs and outputs so can be used as a dedicated pre-amp or power amp to provide a fair bit of flexibility for future upgrades (adding a pre-amp or integrating into a home cinema setup). It is rated as 70w/100w into 8/4ohms but in reality it has been measured as 100/150w (hifi news sept 2012 review). It is basically a lot of the same components used in the £2,500 KI Pearl amp put in a cheaper casing for mass production, but made in Japan alongside their reference models rather than using cheaper labour overseas. So it's very solidly built and luxuriously finished for the price.

The Creek mentioned above is getting rave reviews, I couldn't get to demo it unfortunately.

 

[radiorog]

Rega brio r

Ca 351a and ca 351 c

NAD 326bbe

Go audition ;-)

 

[Tangerine_Rick]

Many thanks for the comment so far - much appreciated.

Doing plenty of researching at the mo!