4 Stück, Y Kabel, Klinke 6,3 Stereo, auf 2 x Klinke 6,3 Mono, Ypsilon Kabel.

4 Stück, Y Kabel, Klinke 6,3 Stereo, auf 2 x Klinke 6,3 Mono, Ypsilon Kabel.

4 Stück, Y Kabel, Klinke 6,3 Stereo, auf 2 x Klinke 6,3 Mono, Ypsilon Kabel.

4 Stück, Y Kabel, Klinke 6,3 Stereo, auf 2 x Klinke 6,3 Mono, Ypsilon Kabel.

4 Stück, Y Kabel, Klinke 6,3 Stereo, auf 2 x Klinke 6,3 Mono, Ypsilon Kabel.

Ypsilon CDT100 cd player ex demo Ypsilon CDT-100 is intended to be used as a CD transport in combination with DAC-100 D/A converter. But probably for the ones who would not be able to afford the two, it comes equipped with a modest (?) internal DAC unit so that it can be used as a stand-alone CD player as well. Contrary to the market trends, CDT-100 reads red book CDs only. It is not an easy task for a reviewer to describe the external and internal designs of CDT-100 separately since its construction is an extension of the top loading disc drive, the good old and highly acclaimed Philips Pro-2, a rarely found mechanism, modified due to the construction needs. I don’t know if Ypsilon supplies this unit directly from Philips or from some intermediary dealer who holds a stock. All I know, using rare devices in the circuits is something very typical of the brand and they have enough of everything in stock and if you consider the very limited amount of production, this is not a big deal. The Pro-2 disc drive is mounted on massive sandwich assembly made of aluminium and stainless steel which carries the vibration and resonance of the mechanism to the pillar like feet with spikes, located at the corners. Beneath the stainless steel feet are four matching spike dampers again in massive stainless steel. Attached underneath the drive block, a rectangular aluminium box houses the electronic circuit and the power supply. On the front side of the aluminium box, a thick acrylic window display is mounted. In the back panel there is an IEC socket with power switch, an S/PDIF output terminal, a Neutric 5-pin output terminal (to use with DAC-100 D/A converter) and a pair of RCA analogue output terminals. That’s it. No control buttons, no nothing –you should control functions using the heavy solid aluminium remote. This is how the CDT-100 is constructed and how it looks. The outlook is an integral part of its mechanical and electronic design. It looks simple and pristine except the heavy milled aluminium lid on top that you have to lift to place the CD. This wouldn’t bother me if my wife, who is also a chef, hadn’t made fun of it saying that it looked like the lid of those cast iron pans she used in the kitchen. She asked me laughingly if I needed a torchon to grip it. Funny ha? In fact you need to have a space on your rack to place the lid during loading your CDs as you also have to place an aluminium magnet weight on the CD before you operate. Inside the electronic box there is a custom made toroidal transformer; a simple circuit board to control the drive mechanism; and next to it the D/A converter section comprising of two Burr-Brown PCM 1704 24-bit chips acting as a ladder network. Digital to analogue conversion is done with no oversampling and up-sampling, thus accepting 16-bit signals and no digital filters are used. Demetris Backlavas claims that digital filters that are done by oversampling in a DAC or decimation in A to D are the cause of so called “digital sound”. The sound produced by non-oversampling high quality multi-bit DAC chips has an “analogue like” character compared to the sound produced by an over-sampling DAC. Sounds very simple and straightforward ha? Not that easy actually. Since 1704s do not carry any voltage, two in-house built C-core transformers coupled with single low noise J-fet gain stage feed the Mundorf power supply caps that form the output stage of the CDT-100. In short, CDT-100’s DAC section is one good example to Ypsilon’s “simpler is better” philosophy but at the cost of expensive parts and labour for the sonic edge it provides. Overall, either in terms of mechanical or electronic design approach, CDT-100 is a retroactive drift towards the basics, the good old days when the industry had not chosen the path of avoiding costly operations like trimming of internal resistors for high accuracy of ladder networks (i.e. R-2R) and so on. Business wise it may not seem logical to be an opponent to the mainstream design approaches but Demetris Backlavas has a solid argument against Sigma-Delta modulator DACs dominating the market as sonic performance is concerned and it sounds convincing, at least in theory. He says, “Even the swanky 32-bit Sigma-Delta modulator DAC chips of today are internally 1-bit in fact. Sigma-Delta DAC’s sound more processed most probably because of the non linear (digital) feedback involved in the modulator itself. The length of the data (24-32) has nothing to do with the mechanism which is responsible for the sound character.” So the fuss about high digit bits seems to stand for creating a marketing edge rather than a sonic one as my listening sessions inarguably proved. LISTENING Recommended burn in time for CDT-100 is a frustrating 1.000 hours and I strongly recommend not judging its performance before 400 hours of playing time. My impression during the first serious listening session in the distributor’s demo room was quite disappointing. When it arrived for review it had already spinned 400 hours and I spent another 200 hours with it, just playing music in the background. So this review is written on its performance approximately after 600 hours of playing time. If there is one thing to emphasize on the CDT-100’s sonic performance, it is the “out of the digital” listening experience that it provides. It plays with a graceful authority, attracting the listener to its presentation from the first moment of listening. Its transparency and timbral accuracy are of a standard to be associated with the analogue of the very high echelon; and so is the soundstage that it creates. Underneath the rich and finely woven sonic texture lies thrilling dynamics with deep and articulate low end. However, CDT-100 has absolute control on instant ascents, so nothing slaps on your face, but rather touches deep into your heart, so you don’t feel harassed at all. How can a CD player perform relaxed and immediate at the same time without a single hint of harshness or stress? My prejudice on digital playback aside, it is a quality that you can rarely experience even with high-end analogue playback. I guess it is because of its speed revealing the inner detail and micro dynamics of the recording. And it is also the air that comes infused into every single note. This may be a result of its straightforward and no-nonsense circuitry as well as the pains taken with controlling the mechanical vibrations. Whatever the reason is, the sound produced by CDT-100 flows with profound ease and authority on music. Listening to Mahler’s Symphony No.5 (Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra conducted by Riccardo Chailly, DECCA) made it clear how skilful the CDT-100 is to reveal the space between every pulsation of musical notes. Dynamics come without any hint of strain, crescendos raise with thrilling reality. Micro dynamics and inner detail are exemplary. CDT-100 portraits the cymbals in a crystal clear way, especially with the harsh strokes in fortissimos where most CD players fall short. The music comes with a rich texture, palpable nuances and an enveloping sound stage. Reflections in the recording environment are subtly revealed providing a more believable musical experience. Presentation of double basses has depth, articulation and a sense of “thereness”. But CDT-100 never attracts your attention to all these attributes, unless you try to analyse what’s going on as there. It just lets you to listen to music only. Yon Sun Nah’s Bitter Ballad, one of my favourite songs of her, appears both in vinyl (Voyage) and CD (as a bonus track in The Same Girl), so it was a good opportunity for me to test the performance of the CDT-100 against my analogue front end, which comprises of a Thorens TD-550 turntable-Ikeda IT 407 tone arm and ZYX Omega Premium Gold cartridge feeding Ypsilon step-up transformer and VPS-100 phono stage. Through the CDT-100 the music came with more energy, more timbral reality and better articulation in the bass region. Actually the sound was so captivating that through the end of the track I gave up with the comparison test and switched to the CDT-100 to continue with the rest of the album just to listen to music. It was that good! In the track Peace, the acoustic bass was enchantingly rich in harmonics and I got the feeling that only a pair of speakers with matching harmonic richness (i.e. Raidho D level to my experience) would do justice to its presentation. Another side by side comparison I made was with the MSB Universal Media Transport-Platinum Signature DAC IV-Signature Power Base combo from 2013. MSB has upgraded the components to series V a while ago (Universal Media Transport is still built around an OPPO disc drive mechanism though) except the Signature Power Base and this combo costs EURO 42.000 currently. I saw no harm to compare the CDT-100 with the older version of the MSB combo since the CDT-100’s launch already dates back to 2009 (it was introduced as a transport only in 2006) and to my knowledge nothing has changed in its circuitry since then. I listened to the same tracks one after the other on both. Well, as being convinced with the Ypsilon’s musical performance during the early review period, I was expecting it to perform quite close to the MSB, but I was surprised with what I heard. Ypsilon not only did perform better, but it also outclassed the MSB combo in terms of emotional impact. The difference was so evident, evident as dead and alive. So what is the reason for such intriguing distinction? MSB’s DAC unit seems to be based on a similar principle in design as the Ypsilon’s, even carrying it to a step further (in theory of course). Should we therefore blame the transport rather than the DAC? Well, not easy to guess as I did not try the MSB DAC separately with the CDT-100. Even if I did, it wouldn’t make much sense because I wouldn’t be able to use the Ypsilon’s recommended 5-pin output (see next paragraph). To my understanding, a significant portion of Ypsilon’s sonic edge comes from the care taken to minimize the noise caused by electromagnetic and mechanical resonance. Less function means less circuitry, hence less resonance. Same principle is valid for the rock solid mechanical design. And this in practice seems to be working. Ypsilon CDT100 cd player ex demo      Ypsilon CDT-100 is intended to be used as a CD transport in combination with DAC-100 D/A converter. But probably for the ones who would not be able to afford the two, it comes equipped with a modest (?) internal DAC unit so that it can be used as a stand-alone CD player as well. Contrary to the market trends, CDT-100 reads red book CDs only. It is not an easy task for a reviewer to describe the external and internal designs of CDT-100 separately since its construction is an extension of the top loading disc drive, the good old and highly acclaimed Philips Pro-2, a rarely found mechanism, modified due to the construction needs. I don’t know if Ypsilon supplies this unit directly from Philips or from some intermediary dealer who holds a stock. All I know, using rare devices in the circuits is something very typical of the brand and they have enough of everything in stock and if you consider the very limited amount of production, this is not a big deal. The Pro-2 disc drive is mounted on massive sandwich assembly made of aluminium and stainless steel which carries the vibration and resonance of the mechanism to the pillar like feet with spikes, located at the corners. Beneath the stainless steel feet are four matching spike dampers again in massive stainless steel.                                                                                              Attached underneath the drive block, a rectangular aluminium box houses the electronic circuit and the power supply. On the front side of the aluminium box, a thick acrylic window display is mounted.  In the back panel there is an IEC socket with power switch, an S/PDIF output terminal, a Neutric 5-pin output terminal (to use with DAC-100 D/A converter) and a pair of RCA analogue output terminals. That’s it. No control buttons, no nothing –you should control functions using the heavy solid aluminium remote.           This is how the CDT-100 is constructed and how it looks. The outlook is an integral part of its mechanical and electronic design. It looks simple and pristine except the heavy milled aluminium lid on top that you have to lift to place the CD. This wouldn’t bother me if my wife, who is also a chef, hadn’t made fun of it saying that it looked like the lid of those cast iron pans she used in the kitchen. She asked me laughingly if I needed a torchon to grip it. Funny ha? In fact you need to have a space on your rack to place the lid during loading your CDs as you also have to place an aluminium magnet weight on the CD before you operate.             Inside the electronic box there is a custom made toroidal transformer; a simple circuit board to control the drive mechanism; and next to it the D/A converter section comprising of two Burr-Brown PCM 1704 24-bit chips acting as a ladder network. Digital to analogue conversion is done with no oversampling and up-sampling, thus accepting 16-bit signals and no digital filters are used. Demetris Backlavas claims that digital filters that are done by oversampling in a DAC or decimation in A to D are the cause of so called “digital sound”. The sound produced by non-oversampling high quality multi-bit DAC chips has an “analogue like” character compared to the sound produced by an over-sampling DAC. Sounds very simple and straightforward ha? Not that easy actually. Since 1704s do not carry any voltage, two in-house built C-core transformers coupled with single low noise J-fet gain stage feed the Mundorf power supply caps that form the output stage of the CDT-100. In short, CDT-100’s DAC section is one good example to Ypsilon’s “simpler is better” philosophy but at the cost of expensive parts and labour for the sonic edge it provides.            Overall, either in terms of mechanical or electronic design approach, CDT-100 is a retroactive drift towards the basics, the good old days when the industry had not chosen the path of avoiding costly operations like trimming of internal resistors for high accuracy of ladder networks (i.e. R-2R) and so on. Business wise it may not seem logical to be an opponent to the mainstream design approaches but Demetris Backlavas has a solid argument against Sigma-Delta modulator DACs dominating the market as sonic performance is concerned and it sounds convincing, at least in theory. He says, “Even the swanky 32-bit Sigma-Delta modulator DAC chips of today are internally 1-bit in fact. Sigma-Delta DAC’s sound more processed most probably because of the non linear (digital) feedback involved in the modulator itself.  The length of the data (24-32) has nothing to do with the mechanism which is responsible for the sound character.” So the fuss about high digit bits seems to stand for creating a marketing edge rather than a sonic one as my listening sessions inarguably proved. LISTENING           Recommended burn in time for CDT-100 is a frustrating 1.000 hours and I strongly recommend not judging its performance before 400 hours of playing time. My impression during the first serious listening session in the distributor’s demo room was quite disappointing. When it arrived for review it had already spinned 400 hours and I spent another 200 hours with it, just playing music in the background. So this review is written on its performance approximately after 600 hours of playing time.  If there is one thing to emphasize on the CDT-100’s sonic performance, it is the “out of the digital” listening experience that it provides. It plays with a graceful authority, attracting the listener to its presentation from the first moment of listening. Its transparency and timbral accuracy are of a standard to be associated with the analogue of the very high echelon; and so is the soundstage that it creates. Underneath the rich and finely woven sonic texture lies thrilling dynamics with deep and articulate low end. However, CDT-100 has absolute control on instant ascents, so nothing slaps on your face, but rather touches deep into your heart, so you don’t feel harassed at all. How can a CD player perform relaxed and immediate at the same time without a single hint of harshness or stress? My prejudice on digital playback aside, it is a quality that you can rarely experience even with high-end analogue playback. I guess it is because of its speed revealing the inner detail and micro dynamics of the recording. And it is also the air that comes infused into every single note. This may be a result of its straightforward and no-nonsense circuitry as well as the pains taken with controlling the mechanical vibrations. Whatever the reason is, the sound produced by CDT-100 flows with profound ease and authority on music.                                          Listening to Mahler’s Symphony No.5 (Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra conducted by Riccardo Chailly, DECCA) made it clear how skilful the CDT-100 is to reveal the space between every pulsation of musical notes. Dynamics come without any hint of strain, crescendos raise with thrilling reality. Micro dynamics and inner detail are exemplary. CDT-100 portraits the cymbals in a crystal clear way, especially with the harsh strokes in fortissimos where most CD players fall short. The music comes with a rich texture, palpable nuances and an enveloping sound stage. Reflections in the recording environment are subtly revealed providing a more believable musical experience. Presentation of double basses has depth, articulation and a sense of “thereness”. But CDT-100 never attracts your attention to all these attributes, unless you try to analyse what’s going on as there. It just lets you to listen to music only.              Yon Sun Nah’s Bitter Ballad, one of my favourite songs of her, appears both in vinyl (Voyage) and CD (as a bonus track in The Same Girl), so it was a good opportunity for me to test the performance of the CDT-100 against my analogue front end, which comprises of a Thorens TD-550 turntable-Ikeda IT 407 tone arm and ZYX Omega Premium Gold cartridge feeding Ypsilon step-up transformer and VPS-100 phono stage.  Through the CDT-100 the music came with more energy, more timbral reality and better articulation in the bass region. Actually the sound was so captivating that through the end of the track I gave up with the comparison test and switched to the CDT-100 to continue with the rest of the album just to listen to music. It was that good! In the track Peace, the acoustic bass was enchantingly rich in harmonics and I got the feeling that only a pair of speakers with matching harmonic richness (i.e. Raidho D level to my experience) would do justice to its presentation.  Another side by side comparison I made was with the MSB Universal Media Transport-Platinum Signature DAC IV-Signature Power Base combo from 2013. MSB has upgraded the components to series V a while ago (Universal Media Transport is still built around an OPPO disc drive mechanism though) except the Signature Power Base and this combo costs EURO 42.000 currently. I saw no harm to compare the CDT-100 with the older version of the MSB combo since the CDT-100’s launch already dates back to 2009 (it was introduced as a transport only in 2006) and to my knowledge nothing has changed in its circuitry since then. I listened to the same tracks one after the other on both. Well, as being convinced with the Ypsilon’s musical performance during the early review period, I was expecting it to perform quite close to the MSB, but I was surprised with what I heard. Ypsilon not only did perform better, but it also outclassed the MSB combo in terms of emotional impact. The difference was so evident, evident as dead and alive. So what is the reason for such intriguing distinction? MSB’s DAC unit seems to be based on a similar principle in design as the Ypsilon’s, even carrying it to a step further (in theory of course). Should we therefore blame the transport rather than the DAC? Well, not easy to guess as I did not try the MSB DAC separately with the CDT-100. Even if I did, it wouldn’t make much sense because I wouldn’t be able to use the Ypsilon’s recommended 5-pin output (see next paragraph). To my understanding, a significant portion of Ypsilon’s sonic edge comes from the care taken to minimize the noise caused by electromagnetic and mechanical resonance. Less function means less circuitry, hence less resonance. Same principle is valid for the rock solid mechanical design. And this in practice seems to be working.        Images sell! Get Supersized Images & Free Image Hosting Attention Sellers - Get Templates Image Hosting, Scheduling at Auctiva.com.