Audiolab 6000CDT CD Transport

[LostnAmerica]

Thanks. I wrote to AA them and they agreed to send it for $65 USPS. That is about right, as the price has gone up in the last few years. That makes the Amazon cheaper w/free shipping. I noticed that the silver ones were going for almost $100 more than black. My two favorite amps are silver as is my PS dac. I do have a black Altier. I guess for $100 I shouldn't be picky.

Nice move on your part. You won’t be disappointed, mine sounded great out of the box, with only about 5 hours so far and expected increase in performance (slight, that is)should also be in the works. Enjoy the Music...
Cheers

 

[KevinCorr]

Audiolab cdt arrived in a huge double box. Shipping free from World Wide Stereo in PA. Sounds great but not even warmed up yet. With Belles Aria and Border Patrol SEi Dac. Thanks for the recommendations!

I am stopping for now with speaker upgrades since I will be moving. Not topped out on this system with the Spender A6. Dream speakers include DeVore, and of course Harbeth etc.

 

[kray]

Got my 6000CDT couple weeks ago from HifiHeaven. Originally grabbed an open box unit for $429 with free shipping but they called me and asked if I wanted a new in box unit for only $479 so went ahead with that.

My main reasons for a cd transport was
1. Wanted to compare CD’s from a good player with my Gumby DAC vs Roon+Qobuz streaming to DAC
2. CD’s are dirt cheap right now. I scour thrifts, etc and get them for $1-2ea
3. I have a feeling CD’s will make a comeback in years to come like vinyl did (and to some extent cassettes! The cost more than CD’s now!)

so far I’m happy and the audiolab is here to stay. Amazing sound quality. I was skeptical it could sound better/different than my streaming setup but I’ll be damned. Several CD’s I have have a bit more detail coming out of the transport vs stream. It’s not night and day but the benefits of having a dedicated CD player are worth it. So I’m set with lossless streaming and physical CD’s.

also we do tons of video streaming at my house so that with streaming lossless all day my bandwidth hit its “top” from Xfinity, 1000GB, and I got a nasty gram saying if I go over 1 more time the I have to pay $10 for ea 50GB extra.

Playing CD’s cost me $0

 

[Spektre]

Art, I just bought one of these transports and I'm pretty excited to hear it, I have a Schiit Modi coming just to fill the gap whilst I save for a better DAC. I like Audiolab products and will end up matching it with the M-DAC + as I've heard the Sabre chip inside my old Audiolab 8200 CD, this all in one player was streets ahead of the Line Magnetic LM-215 when I listened to them side by side. Its a more architectural 3 dimensional sounding player with deeper bass, whilst lacking some of the fun factor of the 215 it had enough rhythmic drive to satisfy me.

Incidentally, I bought the 6000 CDT after your recommendation not because you are a professional reviewer or someone with a YT channel, been seeing what you have to say on these forums for years and I trust your judgement.

 

[Art K.]

Thank you, Gavin. I wish we could have arranged a visit when you lived in Eugene. You are one of the few people on these boards that I would like to meet.

 

[lightcapture]

For me the obvious question is how the Audiolab compares to the Cambridge Audio cd transport.
I'm using Marantz cc4001 5-cd player feeding a Schiit Audio Modi3 DAC and I'm thinking of taking it to the next level w/ a cd transport.

 

[Spektre]

The Modi arrived today and I hooked it up to the Audiolab CDT, straight away I was met with a huge and weighty 3 dimensional sound that I'd only ever experienced via my old Audiolab CD 8200. In some respects its better, more precise, more separation between the various musical strands and good layering front to rear. The Modi seems to be a very smooth sounding DAC, right now its missing some bite in the treble. If you are the kind of person that finds digital harsh and love vinyl warmth, this could be a combination that won't have you gnashing your teeth. That warmth is not something I really care for, every high end turntable and phono stage combination I've owned has been closer in presentation to digital replay. Anyway I part exchanged my old LM215 CD player for the 6000CDT and because it was mint/ boxed I only ended up paying $70 for the transport.

Even with my reservations its a far better player that the one I just sold, Art you were totally right. Now I just have to wait and get a much better DAC than the Modi. By the way, its not that I dislike the Modi, I think its an audio bargain, I'm just used to a little more sparkle at the top.

 

[lightcapture]

Give you Schiit Modi3 time to break in. I find mine that I've had for 7 months nothing like your describing. My player/dac w/ a tube amp is dynamic w/ tight bass and clear airy highs.

 

[Spektre]

I've heard that the Modi changes character but its just a placeholder until I can buy the M DAC +, I think this transport deserves a better DAC than the Modi as a final destination.

 

[Frank Sol]

As if I needed something New

Order one from Hifi Heaven just now...

 

[Frank Sol]

Art

with which sort & brand of cable are you connecting the Transport to DAC

(Please... No cable war)

 

[Art K.]

Art

with which sort & brand of cable are you connecting the Transport to DAC

(Please... No cable war)

I'm using a Black Cat cable. It's really excellent. I also have a Wireworld Starlight 7 and a Audience Ohno. I love the Ohno interconnects and speaker cable but the Black Cat sounds way better than the Ohno digital cable. The Wireworld is a great sounding cable for super cheap.

 

[Frank Sol]

Thanks

 

[Frank Sol]

FWIW

H H shipped already... or at least they email me a tracking #

 

[lightcapture]

I'm using an XLO digital coaxial cable from cdp to DAC. I'm not sure it makes much difference as long as it's good quality one.

I'm still wondering how the Audiolab slot loader compares to the Cambridge Audio drawer loader transport.

 

[Art K.]

It makes a lot of difference.

 

[Art K.]

I'm still wondering how the Audiolab slot loader compares to the Cambridge Audio drawer loader transport.

There is a thread elsewhere where a poster really captured the difference. The Cambridge carries their house sound. Lighter and brighter with a hair more detail. The Audiolab has more meat on the bones. A fuller sound which to me sounds more like real music. Then again, I don’t like the Cambridge house sound.

 

[lightcapture]

Maybe the difference in high quality digital cables is subtile at best.
The Cambridge cxc gets glowing reviews though.
Here's interior photos of the 6000cdt and CXC

 

[Art K.]

Nothing subtle about the differences in my experience. About like the differences in just about every other component except speakers.

 

[Spektre]

I'm using an XLO digital coaxial cable from cdp to DAC. I'm not sure it makes much difference as long as it's good quality one.

I'm still wondering how the Audiolab slot loader compares to the Cambridge Audio drawer loader transport.

The slot loading mechanism is supposed to come from a car audio CD transport, as such its meant to be able to handle vibration caused by road surfaces. I can't remember where I read this but it was probably in relation to the 8300 CD that shares the same mechanism.

I have to say to my ears this is the first time I've heard CD live up to the "perfect sound' claims when it was first launched, this transport is a game changer.