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Musical Fidelity X10-D
Hello,
I enjoy reading your site which I found very interesting. So, I decided to write you few words. Last year I bought second hand Musical Fidelity X10-D, missing link, which made a big improvement in my system (Marantz PM66OSE, Sony CDP 930, Mission 702e, Kimber). So, after one year, I decided to make some improvement and replaced original valves Philips ECC88 with EINIŠ (Yugoslavia) ECC85. After about two days of "running in", the smile on my face started to get bigger and bigger. Why? Because the sound finaly became incredibly natural, with crystal clear highs and mids, and with deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep, powerfull lows. So, if any owner of that little magic box really wants to improve the sound of the system, I suggest that valves, you would be not dissappointed.
Thank you.
Damir Hlobik - E-mail: Damir.Hlobik@pliva.hr

LC
Dear Damir,
thanks for the tip. Tubes are nice because they make any upgrade so easy. Just change valves and you're done.
I'm not a X-10D fan, have you tried to remove it from your system? I know a guy who sweared by the improvement the X-10D did to its system and, after having removed it, he realized he was missing something (Music, that is :-)). Now he has sold it :-)
Just an idea,
Lucio Cadeddu

Flexy also makes a fantastic vinyl rack!
Hi,
I've had a terrible time finding record racks. Either they are ugly, expensive, or bend under the weight. Flexy to the rescue! I don't use the rubber rings, instead I cinch it down tight. Its about 5 ft (1.7 meters maybe) long with 6 rods, 5/8 inch. Anyhow, they are the strongest vinyl racks I have, and even my wife likes the looks!

My wife wants a pair for her art room, and I'm going to make another for my vinyl, and another for my turntable and equip. I was thinking of making one with a floating top plate (using springs) for my turntable. How is the design of your 'table flexy going?
Thank you!
Daniel McLaughlin - E-mail: howl@sonic.net

MC
Daniel,
first of all thanks a lot for your appreciation! It's our only reward for us here at TNT and it's always welcome; the idea of a "flexy vinyl rack" is very attractive. I've seen flexys used as racks for compact disks & dvd, tv set, VCR's, playstations, even telephones, but not yet for our beloved black vinyl records.
If yours has a cool look, why don't you take some pic and send them to me? It could be a useful add-on for the article about the table on TNT.

For what it concerns the TT shelf, it is aborted. The problem is that it wasn't a good tweak for every kind of turntable. It wasn't simple to build either. I quickly describe it to you:
2 shelves (1 MDF and 1Marine grade laminated) of the same dimensions - 1 sheet of self-adhesive tar (2-3mm) - 1mt. of that kind of fabric in strips used for car seatbelts.
In correspondence of the legs make 3 (or 4, it depends on legs) holes of 4cm. diam. on both MDF and laminated, then cover the holes with the strips of seatbelt. Glue it strong (or put some nail too) to mdf. Cover the MDF with the adhesive bitumen. Using black silicon, glue the marine laminate and leave everything under a heavy weight to dry for 24 hours. Fill with silicon any space left.

Once finished the shelf should go on the top of your flexy and the contact point will be the seatbelts with the top of the legs.

I hope that my description is clear enough. If you want to know more just drop me a line and I'll send you a sketch of it.
Thanks again for the good idea,
Later
Mimmo Cacciapaglia

Damping Room Wall Resonances
Lucio,
I am building a small listening room and want to eliminate the 70 Hz resonance of the drywall (wall board, gypsum board). I am going to use resilient channel (a flexible metal strip that attaches to but isolates the wallboard from the studs), but I still need to damp the resonance of the wallboard.

ASC sells WallDamp, which is supposed to be an elastic material, 1/16" thick sheets glue both sides, that when applied between 2 surfaces (like 2 sheets of drywall) will absorb any vibrational energy and convert it to heat through shear stress. I'm sure it works well but it's *very* expensive.

So, I'm looking for an alternative. I though using sorbothane to isolate things might work, but that's very expensive too. My guess is that Walldamp is just some sort of asphalt/tar product.
That's where your web site got me excited. I saw your review of Noise Killer and the tar sheets, both of which I have never seen. The Noise Killer sounded perfect until I read that it got hard, I'm thinking I need something that will stay pliable (or do I, could I get enough Noise Killer on a wall to suppress the vibrations?).
The tar sheets sounds like they might work ok too, except that they might be a bit heavy to hang between 2 pieces of drywall (if that's really necessary).

Any comments or suggestions anyone can make would be very much appreciated. Once I get my room done I won't have to wait until everyone goes to bed to listen to music!
Cheers and thanks in advance,
Joe - E-mail: jmayo@magpage.com

LC
Dear Joe,
sound waves propagate through any media, except vacuum :-) so it is hard to isolate your "Music" from the outside world. Anyway, you can try to minimize resonancies. The tar sheets seem the way to go, they are fairly pliable (not too much), self-adhesive, easy to find and pretty cheap. You can even search for damping panels normally used by car stereo installators, such as Dynamats and stuff like that.
Noise Killer won't work and putting several layers of it will cost an arm and a leg, especially if the surface to treat is big.
Keep me updated!
Lucio Cadeddu

Your site and Geoff Husband
Lucio,
my Musical Fidelty P270 power amp blew a channel just before Christmas. I live in Bahrain, Middle East and the local agent (in Saudi Arabia) couldn't help.
While looking for a solution I found your site and since then Geoff Husband has been a source of incredible advice and guidance. He has spent hours helping me and I want you to know what a great job he has done, all free of charge.

I've just got the repaired amp back from UK and while I was waiting I bought a second-hand Musical Fidelty MVT pre-amp, as recommended by Geoff (replacing a passive pre-amp). The sound is much improved but, as he warned me in his first e-mail to me, it's now absolutely clear my speakers aren't up to the job so I'm now looking at changing those. Naturally I'm looking at your recommendations there !

In summary, your site is great, your contributors are excellent, keep up the good work. Thank you.
Best regards,
David Malloch - E-mail: david_malloch@alfalak.com

LC
Dear David,
we try to be as helpful as we can, considering this is done as a pure Labour of Love, during our precious spare time. Hence, your satisfaction is Music to our ears.
Lucio Cadeddu

CD magic...hype
I can understand how interconnects can affect sound quality, as the electrical signal is modified/weakened/maintained by the material that carries it.
But how can a disc conditioning solution change the timbre of the recording?
The information on the CD is a bitstream of 1s and 0s...digital information is either sent or it is not. If the full bitstream is sent, there is no possibility of the signal degrading until it is converted to electrical impulses. Conversely, if the bitstream is incomplete, there will be audible holes in the recording.
If the solution repairs scratches, then it is improving a damaged, sub standard recording, which is very good but not the same as your statement "the Auric Illiminator produced audible differences (I mean, improvements) even in the bass zone. I was shocked, to say the least, because I was phsychologically ready to experience the already known effect (brighter, sharper sound) and nothing more than that."
How does the Illuminator change the quality of digital recording without changing the DAC process?
A scientific explanation (idiot's guide) would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Emery Damon - E-mail: edamon@mindspring.com

LC
Dear Emery,
a short answer would be "I dunno". A more articulated one would involve things like improved readability of the stored data and reduced antistatic charges.
You see, there's nothing much scientific here, since a CD player should be able to read - without relevant errors - any CD disc. There are correction circuits designed for this purpose.
Anyway, one could say "the less they work, the better the sound". Also, it seems static charges can affect the way the player (or its servo circuits) read/treat the data. But, again, no scientific proof for this mumbo-jumbo.
So while I can hardly find a scientific proof for what I hear (and the difference is STUNNING) let me remind you that Audio is supposed to be fun. So, let's avoid wasting our time trying to solve scientific problems, I can assure you the ones I have to solve at work (I'm a researcher in the field of partial differential equations) are hard enough for me :-)
Instead of wasting time discussing, give the thing a try. It's inexpensive and, if it doesn't work (for your ears), you'll be left with a wonderful CD cleaning solution, at least!
Let me know,
Lucio Cadeddu

Great review of Atoll integrated
Dear Lucio,
I would like to thank all your crew at TNT for the great job!! The TNT pages are really very good. Your review of the integrated amp from Atoll, the model IN-50 is so interesting. Great work!!
TNT magazine and all your work / incl. design of TNT pages, high level of your reviews is a big inspiration for us in AMP Czech.
Groovy work! Have a nice day.
Milan CERNOHORSKY - Editor of AMP, High-End zine of Czech Republic - E-mail: milan.cern@email.cz

LC
Dear Milan,
thanks for your kind words. I wonder if the guys at Atoll think the same :-)
As for your magazine: keep up the good work, especially the English edition, the Web needs more HiFi mags/sites, better if of the non-profit kind :-)
Lucio Cadeddu

Manger stuff
Hi there!
I read your interview with Daniela Manger. Manger's travelling wave transducers certainly seem interesting from a theoretical and technological point of view. I can't find much on the web in terms of reviews of Manger's complete speakers or people who have undertaken to diy build one of their products.
Seems like a distinct opportunity for a TNT listening test/diy project article :) Any chance of this in the near future? I, and I expect many others, would be particularly interested to hear your findings.
Rgds,
Mark Hanagan - E-mail: Mark.Hanagan@nokia.com

LC
Dear Mark,
we are both currently testing Manger loudspeakers AND about to test some DIY design using Manger drivers. So, stay with us!
Lucio Cadeddu

Regarding your Klipsch RF-3 review
What electronics did you use during the test? In my (acoustically damped) room the bass is far from "thunderous" - in fact it's very lean...
Tor Atle - E-mail: Tor.Atle.Lunde@fellesdata.no

LC
Dear Tor,
you're the first one to complain about the bass performance of the Klipsch RF-3. I've tested 'em with 5 different amps: two solid state, 1 hybrid (the Pathos Classic One and two single-ended triode tube amps (DIY). The bass performance was excellent with any amplifier used.
Perhaps, either your amp or your room affect the bass performance of the RF-3. Many TNT-Audio readers own or have already listened to the RF-3's and could tell you their opinion.
Lucio Cadeddu

Rotel tweaks
Dear Lucio,
tnt-audio is one of my favorite sites in the web. It is always a pleasure to browse and read the articles. I do have small experiences with your advices: I built the TNT Flexy, cool design (stainless steel) inexpensive, exclusive and it is improving the sound.
Most of all for my phonopre and amp. My LP 12 is still on a special board (made in italy!) on the wall. In the letters from the last week you compared a Marantz cd player with a Rotel. You wrote about some tweakings on the Rotel. Which one? How is a Rotel to tweak? And are the tweakings possible and reasonable for the current models of Rotel?
Best wishes from Germany
Claus Friedewold - E-mail: claus.friedewold@gmx.de

LC
Dear Claus,
here's briefly what you can do:

1. Put some damping compound inside the cabinet
2. Change the mains cord (one of our DIY designs would get the job done)
3. Change the feet. Use Vibrapods (or similar), Superspikes or TNT StoneBlocks depending on your taste
4. Put a TNT Press on the cabinet.

Turntable
Dear Sir,
I am considering to buy a phonostage and a good cartridge, could you give me any advice please?
I own a rogue tube amplifier, terrific sound, wasn't very pleased with the CD-sound so I bouhgt a Pro-ject 2.9 turntable with a Pro-ject phono-amplifier and a Pro-ject cartridge, the sound I was looking for didn't appear, the music is slow etc etc.
Changed the Pro-ject phono-amp for a X-LPS from Musical Fidelity but I am still not very pleased with it. Used to have a ERA turntable, SME 3009 tonearm and a Shure v15 cartridge, the sound wass more lively and emotional.
So my question is what would bring the Black-cube in my system, can't hear it in The Netherlands because there isn't an importer or a dealer. And what kind of cartridge is the best solution?
The amplifier is a Rogue-Audio all Integrated Tube, my speakers are Audio-Physic Virgo. I like all kind of music from Bach to Jimi Hendrix.
Hope you can help me.
Thanks,
Ton - E-mail: ton@alpaca-buitensport.nl

LC
Dear Ton,
it seems a problem of correct set-up. Have you properly aligned the cartdrige? Is the VTA correct? Is the tracking weight what it should be?
If yes, then you probably need another cart, try the Shure V15 MR for example, since it seems you loved that cart so much.
Hope this helps,
Lucio Cadeddu

Your February editorial
I just read the piece on last issue and it frankly left me quite surprised and disappointed.

Let me first briefly introduce myself as an audiophile: I'm not owner of high - end stuff even if I wish I could one day bring home some of those wonder boxes. I'm a music lover & happy owner of (to me) well sounding medium-end system carefully chosen and settled .

I always appreciated (and still) TNT editorial line I Think it is a great project a very clear, helpful and professional job handled by professional people and given for free to the international audio community getting in change only success (hey guys you are getting a huge lot). I personally thank TNT for this, being one of the thousands happy people who have learned to subordinate their wallets to their ears.

The point is that I found your piece is lacking the sense of independence and market/editor/audience/freedom I'm accustomed to feel reading TNT pages

I was also surprised to read such a take of position in regards of the karan but then I felt happy ear someone (of your weight) making clear comparison between brands and state a clear verdict.

I have no reason to doubt of your personal experience with celebrated high-end stuff and I'd have liked some names but, ok this would have had my curiosity satisfied and put yourself in a wasps nest and furthermore one should take advantage of the classic TNT advice (use your ears) in order to avoid robbery but, and this is a general principle, you cannot go to police and denounce a robbery without telling them the name of the thief (if you well know him) better keep your mouth shut otherwise you might be blamed of complicity.

Then going to caso 4 I feel you are completely wrong.
IMO if you accept a given to test equipment you should revise it even if you dislike the sound of it. This would be a sign of respect to the brands you have revised before and also to your affectionate readers. After all under a review you put a well known and reputed sign, but everybody of us know that behind the most reputed sign there still is a man with two ears and a heart.
Better (still IMO) would have been review the equipment freely express you opinion (as you usual do as far as I know) and leave the door open to other professional reviewer rather then occasional to amend your opinion.

For what concerning valve sound well I learned also from TNT that well sounding equipment are well sounding whether tubes or transistors same for bad sounding units, aren't they?

I hope you will accept above critics since coming from an affectionate and grateful reader and will answer if you like.
Mario Rocchetti - E-mail: aleymar@hotmail.com

DVV
I'm sorry to hear that - so far, you are the only one, everyone else who wrote me from Italy was very happy about it.

"Found it lacking" - How so? I would have thought that such a view would be very rare in a world where most people stand impressed by name plaques and expensive price tags. Yet what one is offered unfrotunately is less and less good sound and more and more negineering, especially the casework.

"...making clear comparison between brands and state a clear verdict." Why so? I think it's an absolutely outstanding product, and I have made it very clear that my opinion is good only regarding those units I have heard, and can therefore compare it to. Some I clearly stated I had not heard, such as newer models by Spectral, and I am sorry about that, as I think they are an outstanding company.
Or Italy's AM Audio, I never heard anything from them, but I have a nagging feeling they make some great stuff. But somebody has to be on top. Today, it's Milan Karan - it's as simple as that. Sooner or later, a better product will surface, and ultimately, Karan himself will go on to make even better stuff.

Regarding Case No.4 - I'm sorry, but I disagree. You see, Lucio and I feel that just by writing about a product we are in fact highlighting it. I am not a callous man, I do not want to write a really bad review of anybody.
I am a professional free lance journalist, I publish texts, have my own radio show and have extensive experience with TV (I signed 272 one hour TV shows, and am going back on air i April for more), all on audio. All this in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, where I live.
Now, experience has taught me some things. I have never in my life accepted any "gifts" from anybody precisely because I wanted to have complete freedom to write whatever I think is right. With PC hardware, it's easy, because you can test it and show your results and draw your conclusions - and, most important, those results are repeatable, every time, to the known tolerance of the test, which is +/- 1%.
With audio, it's much harder, since so much of it is subjective. You hear in your own way, I hear in mine - what may be great for your may be terrible for me, and vice versa. Now, if I write a terrible review and publish it on TNT, I am in fact doing both the manufacturer and the reader potentially great damage.
The manufacturer because I'm blaming him for his own view of how music should be reproduced, and the reader because I'm telling him not to listen to that product, when the reader may in fact completely disagree with me, but will never know, because he took my word for it.
I said i would not test it - but that doesn't mean nobody will test it, other guys working for TNT are perfectly free to test it all they like and write whatever they feel needs to be written. No problem. But I will not because I think that is a junk unit. I think it's a bad product and I will not have my name associated with it - that's all.
If you like it, fine, guy it, I'll certainly never tell you I think you're mad for buying something I think is bad.

"For what concerning valve sound well I learned also from TNT that well sounding equipment are well sounding whether tubes or transistors same for bad sounding units, aren't they?"
Yes they are, but here, we have a travesty, a Frankenstein. Somebody is desperately trying to turn a Maserati into a Fiat Millecento, to use an analogy, just to obtain what they feel is a vintage sound. The problem is that I believe you as a potential customer are being misled - you are told it has 120W, when in fact it has so much less. You are not told explicitly that it has 120W 20Hz-20kHz, true, but you are led to believe that is what you are buying. This is called guided logic and many do it, some better, some worse.
I cannot stop it, but I refuse to go along with it, because I feel it is basically less than honest, shall we say.

Mario, I think you don't quite see the point. Let me try to help. Find somebody who has an integrated amp with tone controls. Take your favorite music, put it on, then rotate the treble control to approximately 8 o'clock and the bass control to approximately 10 o'clock by the watch. Then sit back and listen to your favorite music. And tell me what you think of what you hear - because that's what I was facing. The effect is exactly that. Tell me that's normal, let alone very faithful sound, and tell me what would you do with a product like that.
Dejan V. Veselinovic

LC
Just few lines to add on my own here. I fully respect any TNT-Audio reviewer's point of view, as this is a truly independent magazine :-)
We all have different attitudes towards HiFi reviewing. I, for one, have no problem to write a negative review about a product. But I always state clear that anyone should judge with his own ears. DO NOT take the reviewers' words as gospel. Either when we rave or trash a product.
Lucio Cadeddu

Kudos!
Excellent website!! Obviously, the concept of doing a website without advertising, and hence without a vested interest in any manufacturer's equipment, by itself makes your site unique.

But that alone wouldn't do it for me. It's the attitude. Even when reviewing "cheap" equipment, the enthusiasm you and your other reviewers have for the topic is refreshing.
We can't all afford to spend $5,000 on a CD player. The amount of money a person has to spend on gear is no measure of the love that person may have for the music. And that's why we're doing all this.

Some audiophile publications and websites (and many audiophiles in general) can be arrogant to the point of absurdity. To me, sometimes a song can even sound good on an old car radio, if it's the right song and the right circumstances. Sure I aspire to build a stereo that reproduces the "I'm there" experience. And I can well appreciate a finally crafted instrument, well-suited to that purpose. But what would a stereo be without CDs or vinyl to play on it, eh?
So again, kudos for a fine endeavor.
Doug Paull - E-mail: dpaull@tec-engrs.com

LC
Dear Doug,
thanks a lot for the appreciation! You caught the point, we are crazy Music lovers, first of all. A good CD or LP can excite me more than any cold piece of electronics. For this reason we firmly believe everyone should be able to enjoy his favourite Music even without spending an arm and a leg.
Hence, this is why 1) we publish listening tests of basic budget HiFi components and 2) try to propose "cheap tricks" that work (see our DIY department).
Thanks for your appreciation!
Lucio Cadeddu

Marantz CD 5000 and anti-RFI filters
Hello,
EXCELLENT SITE! It is the best I have ever seen. I read your article on the cd-38. I have a newer version. Actually a newer bigger brother, the CD-5000.
I have dampened the chassis internally and pulled the mute resitors out. I also bought some Vibrapods for it.
My question is, when you used the vibrapods on the CD-38, did you use three in a triangular fasion (two in the stock locations and one midway in the back, or did you use 4 model ones in the stock locations?)
My unit is about 3.5 to 4 kilos now that I have dampened internally with neoprene. I am experimenting with three and four, but it is a troublesome because it is on a rack. Any other tweaks you might suggest for it?
I do not know where the op amps are located. I was thinking of replacing them, but I dont know what they look like so i cannot start the tweak. I cannot make a new mains cable because this player does not have an IEC socket.
I also have a Rotel rcd 971 that should be coming in in the near future that I accuired from a trade. How will this perform against my Marantz in terms of plain old CD's, NOT HDCD's. I enjoy the sound of the marantz player now that it is broken in. I use all Silver interconnects.

I was wondering if these anti-RFI filters are necessary if you already have a power conditioner like the Panamax 1000+. If the Panamax already attenuates rfi by 50db, by installing the filtered socket, would it make it 100 db of attenuation? Can a system have too much filtering?
Sorry for the long email. Thank you for you time.
Michael Weingarten - E-mail: ElRey78@aol.com

LC
Dear Michael,
I've used the Vibrapods as the manufacturer recommends, that is, 4 of them, instead of 3.
As for the IEC socket, you can change the mains cable even without using the socket. Just change the cable internally. Regarding op-amps, if you are not able to locate them, perhaps it is better to leave 'em where they are :-)
Finally, in my humble opinion, the Rotel 951 - with the same tweaks - will outperform the Marantz CD 5000.
Thanks for your appreciation!
Lucio Cadeddu

Listening tests
I wrote to say that I found your writers choices for listening tests very interesting and informative.
I have a suggestion of my own too, both American bands Who belong to a genre sometimes called "post-rock" for some reason, many of them from (vaguely) the Chicago area.
The first could be either the cd or the lp or "Surrender to the Night" by Trans Am (Quarterstick Records). Extremely diverse styles and the recording actually includes a warning that all sound are intentional and that the listener should not worry about their audio equipment.
The second should definitely be a vinyl copy of "At Action Park" by Shellac. This is the band of whom Steve Albini, analog recording genius is a member.
His recording style is apparently pretty much "use the absolute finest quality microphones possible, record straight to desk, no effects, all reverb natural, etc." He has the lp's pressed in the old style 180gram dye-blackened "virgin-vinyl".
I don't know if that hails back to the days of '78 records but the lp's this band produces are very noticably HEAVY. They have another two worth listening to, very loud, "Terraform" and "1000 Hurts".
I enjoy TNT very much but I haven't noticed much new stuff recently.... I hope you continue it!!!
"Misanthrope" - E-mail: kill_humans@privacyx.com

LC
Dear "Misanthrope" (did your parents hate you or what?) ;-),
though I HATE anonymous e-mails and unreachable E-mail accounts, I thank you for your suggestions. As for "not much stuff on TNT recently" perhaps you need to read more carefully our What's New section. You will - PERHAPS - notice we publish A LOT of stuff every week. If THAT isn't enough for you, go elsewhere, thanks.
Thanks for your concern,
Lucio Cadeddu

Oil use on compact discs
What is so special about Claire oil as opposed to other oil's, I'm not being nasty, I'm just asking a simple question, and as the old saying goes, you never learn unless you ask. Please tell me more thank you your friend
Gary - E-mail: t51gash@aol.com

LC
Dear Gary,
perhaps you misspelled "Claro". Anyway, it is not olive oil, that kind you can put on your favourite salade. It is something that makes the CD surface smoother and optically transparent, so the laser beam can read it easily. Anyway, if you're in for CD treatments, I suggest you to try the Auric Illuminator. THAT one makes a REALLY BIG difference.
You say: you never learn unless you ask but I prefer to say: you never learn unless you TRY ;-)
Claro? :-)
Lucio Cadeddu

Puccini SE Remote
Hi Lucio,
Thanks for the well written review on the < href="../ampli/puccini-se_e.html" target=top>Audio Analogue Puccini Se Remote. I agree with all your remarks.
I demoed one a while back with my Totem Sttafs and Rega Planet 2000 and was so impressed with it that I had to have one. I did think the imaging was slightly blurred as well but I also heard some placements that I never heard before. A few examples: A few songs vocals from background singers sounded as if they were literally standing a couple feet behind the speaker.
When listening to the Moby cd I thought I had surround speakers as sounds filled in behind me. Classical pieces also displayed a deep and rich presence like I hadn't heard before. Of course the majority of my listening has been with a NAD C340, but never the less I was completely blown away.
I have been impatiently waiting for one to arrive for close to 3 months now. I was told that the delay is due to the Puccini getting a new face and it is being worked into production.
It was displayed at CES 2001. Any chance you might have any additional info? Any internal mods done? I was quite surprised to hear this as this unit was just revamped, maybe a year ago or less, into the unit you did your review on. Thanks for the great website and for any comments you might be able to give.
Best regards,
Steve Domark - E-mail: SDomark@swan-vision64.com

LC
Dear Steve,
the Audio Analogue staff says there's NO new version of the Puccini (talked to them on the phone this afternoon), so there should be some kind of misunderstanding. The latest Puccini is the one I've reviewed.
It is ready the new Donizetti power amp, instead. This time it has been split into two monoblocks, each one being 100 watts per channel. I should test these anytime soon (they were ready to ship 'em, I wasn't ready to test 'em yet :-) ).
Cheers!
Lucio Cadeddu

NAD C520 cd player
Dear Direttore
have just bought the above player, due to lack of choice where i live, reasonable price (on special @ AUD$375) and last, but not least, sound quality for the price.
I have read, with interest, your piece on the "Prodigy" Fat of the land, a copy of which i have.
I have a few questions: to get the most/best possible performance/sound of my new player: would it be beneficial to "burn-in" my player with running this cd (or any other) on repeat for a while?
Is there anything else i should or should not do wrt running/burning in of player? Greatly appreciate any advice you may offer!
A frequent hitter of your site
Feiko Ruedisulj - E-mail: Feiko.Ruedisulj@dcilgps.qld.gov.au

LC
Dear Feiko,
yes, you can burn-in your CD player with the "Fat of the land" as well as with any other CD. Put it on repeat for a while and then listen to it again. You'll problably notice a more open and detailed sound (don't expect night/day differences, though). Don't be afraid to exploit it! CD players are meant to...PLAY!!! (what else?) :-)
If you want to experiment a little bit more, try changing the stock feet with some of the accessories we have tested here on TNT-Audio. And use a decent interconnects cable (see reviews or DIY designs here on TNT-Audio).
Let the Music play!!!
Lucio Cadeddu