I cannot get Tidal Master to sound as good as my CD.

@@ruger6049 MQA is snake oil and actively degrades quality. I'd highly suggest watching Golden Sounds' video on the subject. It's committing all the same sins as MP3, and more.

Absolutely, and we are the winners! Many transports have emerged recently. Great quality, sound, and price! Look around, look around!

Same here. Love my 6000cdt.

In

Replied elsewhere!

Audiolab don't make CD players any more. Transports only so you might have to buy an external DAC.

May I ask if there was maybe a specific reason you chose to connect with a Coax cable (instead of Optical) ?

Audiolab did a bit of anti-noise work on the coax socket itself so the sound is improved via this one.

okay, thanks. It's because on paper optical seems to be the logical choice because of it's nature, but I see a lot of people connecting their player with coax instead. Some newer transports don't even have optical anymore.@@TheAudiophileMan

2 upgraders in Germany at 200EU, add to a mint CDT60000??

@@TommyTCGT What are you on about?? Explain please.

I agree that the 6000cdt is a great sounding transport connected to the Schiit Audio Bifrost 2/64 DAC.

It's hard to knock the 6000 as it's a great sounding device, it's also fantastic value for money but the 9000 is certainly a tempting upgrade.

This is where I become skeptical. A CD transport shouldn't take on a sound "character". It can't sound "fun", it can't sound "authoritative". It either has more jitter and noise, or less jitter and noise. I believe in the benefits of reducing jitter and noise, but I think with comments like this, you're kidding yourself.

Well, thanks for your uninformed opinion, having never heard, yet alone owned an Audiolab 9000, nor had four other CD transports to compare to, like I have. But please, feel free to pontificate about that which you actually know nothing about. You see, I try hard not to be like so many people today, who love to throw about online opinions from behind a keyboard and tell complete strangers their business. Me? I actually base my opinion on direct knowledge. I actually brought an Audiolab 9000 on a home demo and directly compared it to my 6000, which I still have, and then against a Trichord Research-modified Pioneer transport and a Teac T1 transport that friends brought around. That's where my opinion came from. And that's why I kept the 9000. Now, you could just assume that maybe I have a point, based on direct experience, and perhaps learn from what I'm saying. Or you could do even better. You might even try out an Audiolab 9000 and compare it to whatever you have, to learn first-hand. Then your opinion would actually mean more than just an expression of your ego. Perhaps you might be as surprised as I have been at how those pesky zeros and ones, going down a coax cable, through a SPDIF interface, can really influence sound. You may evolve your knowledge, based on direct experience and experimentation, they way that all of the best knowledge is learned. Perhaps you might realise how wrong you were and learn the wisdom of being a bit less opinionated, until you actually have a similar level of experience to the person you are casually dismissing. You know, I've met so many like you. I used to sell high-end hi-fi back in London, in the nineties. I remember opinionated customers ( who hadn't heard one-tenth of all the gear I had come through the shop ) try to sneer and tell me that 'cables can't make a difference' or 'accurate mains regulation can't make a difference' or 'vibration control can't improve sound.' Well, those know-nothings were soon proven wrong when I challenged them to blind listening tests and showed those factors all made a difference. Some were humble enough afterwards to listen to my experience and, by God, did I make their systems better. I've got an idea for you to try, if you want to actually 'walk the walk' rather than just 'talk the talk.' This is a way to KNOW what a superior transport achieves. Find a store stocking the Audiolab 9000, which costs £1000 and pair it with a £500 DAC. That's a £1500 front end. Then compare, in that store, directly against a £500 CD player being used as a transport, feeding a £1000 DAC. You would have two options costing the same and can ask yourself which one sounds right; the dedicated transport with inferior DAC or the superior DAC being fed badly by a poor, noisy CD player being used as a transport? How about you actually try it? Write back to me when you know something. I'm sincerely interested in whether you are blown away. i suspect you might be. And then you might have learned a few things about both hi-fi and about the worthlessness of being opinionated without knowing what the hell you are talking about. But you won't, will you? Instead, you'll probably just let your ego do the talking and write back something competitive. Of course, it's much easier to pretend to know something rather than go out of your way to actually find it out. Our community has always been filled with people who know only WHAT THEY THINK and it's one of the reasons why audiophile progress is as slow as it is. The market is often slow to respond to true innovation because so many think it's clever to be skeptical. It's certainly an excuse to be arrogant, which is why so many love to tell people what's what. Hope you listened and heard me. Valuable lessons for both hi-fi and life.

Interesting observation and I am looking for a CD/CDT and Ive had some demo's of the CDT6000 and I think the 7000 is a moderate improvement - not sure - I have to add on the costs of a reasonable DAC and thats going to cost circa €750/1000 - or my other option is something the caught my interest in recently - Marantz CD60 -- yes I love my silver discs and my vinyl - and the Sugden A21 is well capable for my needs - but do I go CD (Marantz maybe) or CDT 7000... is the difference really that noticeable - so many varying factors / room / acoustics / speakers etc etc - and down the rabbit hole we go

I would buy the 6000 and put the difference in price on the dac instead.

Its the British way.... :)

Sorry I was writing this for another podcast that you did and it changed on me. Cheers

Did the same but its anoying to always have to have my computer on, nowdays i use a nas with 2 x 4tb disk and the streaming i do directly to a blusound node or to my amp, controlling everything with my phone, way better setup and no computer and the sound is better to.

I'll certainly make a note re. the Cyrus, John.

​@@TheAudiophileMan by the way; for this review, what coaxial cable did you use? 😊 U mention right at the end that one should buy the best coaxial cable they can afford... With that being said; I'll buy the coaxial cable that u personally used in this review. Please tell me what it was. Thank you!

I’ve put in a review request. Fingers crossed!

If you haven't seen it, you should look at Paul's previous video for the Audiolab 6000CDT. It's very good. Obviously not as good as this model, but is under £400.00 and doesn't have the tray.

@@bobby666666 My understanding from a pro hifi uprader is for general reliability slots are by far the worsed, tray much less problimatic, top loader is king. conjecture a rega with upgraded psu and clock might be a cost effective, high quality, reliable solution.

@@bobby666666 I hate slot loaders even more.

@@robh9079 yeah I considered that but prefer the Exposure xm over the Rega. But at Exposure prices you start to get into used high end transports territory. Problem is justifying the expenditure to myself.

Same. The review I think we both saw on here, sparked the same question. He was a.bit Meh with it on a lower priced Dac, which didn't really say much about itnas a Transport? Loved it from its balanced outs tho using internal Dac. My problem is my dac, Wouldn't want a transport not running into it, even a 3K player. Comes down to implementation of the two digital outs I guess,.both Spdif. Woukdnexpect the 3K Lyngdorf to inject less noise into bitstream from noisy power supplies,.but Audiolab here looks top notch too. Primare DD35 is on the radar too, But proofs in the listening I guess? Or take a Punt on the lower priced Audiolab 9000... Love.my 6000CDT, and if the 9000's even better, well.

Indeed, what about it, eh? In short, I've no idea because, as far as I'm aware, review samples are not available just yet. I'll keep my ear to the ground (although obviously not anywhere that might be at all busy).

@@TheAudiophileMan I do thank you Sir!

You didn't make a comment about whether these marks actually effect the sound or playability.

@@geo.037 They won't straight away as we know CDs take quite some hammering/time before they start to skip or struggle to play across various players. But when buying the CDs for 3rd time in 3 decades and wanting to keep them 'mint'..... it would be nice if the slots in these Audiolab players didn't cause scratches anywhere. I was tempted for 7000CDT knowing this will be a better loading option, but it's left a bad taste! It's been a while since I made these comments - I'm currently looking at the Yamaha CD603 CD Changer! (With USB in for WAV etc). Whilst I'm here - the Audiolab 7000N....DTS Play-Fi is one awful bit of software! Can anything else be used to control it? To make a playlist would be nice! The Onkyo NS 6130 works way better with it's in-house software!

Agree. AES output would be great.

I am just looking for transport and primare dd35 is on my sight. I have qutest dac and unison research s6 and i wonder which transport will be more natural sounding? Do you have any experience with primare?

@@Spierdalajyoutube I don't have direct experience but from reviews and youtube demos, Primare is solid brand in the CD transport area. However main feautres of the DD35 are low resonance drive and ultra low noise digital output which the Audiolab 9000CDT also has. BUT the Audiiolab also has a TXCO clock which the Primare does not. And if you use a synchronous connection such as coaxial, "All AES types - inc. SPDIF - are synchronous by nature, meaning the level of jitter is dependent upon the clock in the sending device." So in other words a good clock in the Transport is likely to be a key advantage.

The 6000CDT is an excellent transport.

@@stonefree1911 I have the 6000CDT and agree how Great it is.

After the 6000cdt review by Paul, I bought it within a week. Iv never looked back. Awesome for the price. Sounds great. But while I never looked back, this review has me looking forward.

I own the 6000CDT and love it. I don’t think you will regret it if you buy it. Sounds great. Never had a problem with it. My best. Dan

I kind of did this with the 6000CDT review, comparing that (as was) £300 machine with integrated priced at something like £1500. And the 6000 was superior. I expect that to scale upwards for the 9000.

I haven't so I must that on my list. Thanks.

Between the 6000 and 9000, Paul? They use the same remote control.

@@TheAudiophileMan OK thanks in the review the 9000 one looks like brushed aluminium.

In the same boat! - been speaking to a upgrade service for research, advice is to avoid slot load at all costs. Researched Roksan - apparently very unreliable and suspect it doesnt have anything on cambridge cxc. an option i have been thinking of is a rega top loader cd player and having transport and clock upgrade. top loading is best by far. schiit is bringing out the 'urd' transport soon which i think will be a little more expnesive tyhan A/lab

This one pops up now and again so allow me to repeat. I've been doing this sort of thing a long time. It's my job. Like anyone who practices, I'm good at it because I'm at it all the time (so to speak ;) ) Blind tests are a stunt, used to supposedly make you look good in front of the public. To give you that impartial, 'Wisdom of Solomon', 'let's be totally fair about this, guys' image. Blind tests are for those who don't trust their ears. Blind tests are for those who have no listening strategies. Blind tests are for those whose personal bias swamps their objectivity. If critics out there need blind tests for others to trust them then good for them. Although I worry about their self confidence. If you trust me as a critic then great and I talk about that very thing here: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/Y7SHqKhelt-qemw.html Anyone who has an issue with my comments here should view that video first before shouting at me :) If you don't trust me as a critic then find another. And I don't say that out of malice or bitterness. Again, I advise this in the video above. You need to filter trusted critics. As for me? I don't do blind tests, I don't use machines, I don't set up listening panels - I use my ears. Ultimately, so should you.

@@TheAudiophileMan Thanks, I appreciate you taking the time to reply. I'll watch the video you've linked. Again, thanks for the content & the time you put into it. 👍

Depends on the implementation. Coaxial sounds better than optical from my streamer. As for sub £500 DAC, Mojo 2. No contest.

@@pauln6803 you better read up on the issue with gitter. A known problem already from the dawn of digital audio.

Think of Mad Scientist.. graphene.. diff. Tech.

​@@pauln6803 coax always sounds better than optical . Why? I don't know it just does .

Look at this DAC and peruse Tellurium Q for the coax: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/rs1olrl63tixkps.html

I’ve never had the pleasure of listening to that particular transport, Clarence. I would recommend, if you’re considering a 9000CDT, talking to a friendly dealer (High St or online) who would agree to a home demo. Then you could compare the two.

Hi, I heard the 8000CDM a few times, back in the day, and own a 6000CDT. I would say that the 6000 is superior to the 8000CDM, in terms of performance if not build quality. If memory serves, the 8000 doesn't deliver quite the same detail or weight as the 6000. If the 9000 really is an improvement over the 6000, as Paul claims, then it should be a step up from the 8000CDT. I liked the 8000 back in 1996, even though I brought a Trichord-modified Pioneer transport, instead, at the time. I felt the Trichord got very close to the 8000 and was cheaper. My 6000 is distinctly better than my old Trichord transport. HTH.

@@leeandrewclarke That's very interesting feedback - many thanks.

I owned an aging 8000CDM transport as well for many years and upgraded to a 6000CDT a couple of years ago. Although build quality is lightweight by comparison and the time to read the ToC is slow compared to an old CD mech, the sound quality was noticeably better with the 6000CDT. Plus it plays every CD I've thrown at it including some scratched ones, the old 8000CDM was much fussier with less than perfect discs.

​@@stewstube70 The 6000CDT benefits greatly from CD player mods (did on mine) of damping the case, better isolation feet and 'doing a Darko' putting a weight on top to add mass. It all adds up, Be playing with more mods on mine going fwd, RFI treatment and the likes.

Dittto that recommendation

Absolutely!

The matching 9000A also lacks AES and I2S, inputs.

Read Rob Watts on the subject at Head-fi. He is the designer of the Chord DACs (Mojo, Qutest, Hugo, Dave). He says a proper implementation of SPDIF in a DAC should mean there is no, technical, measurable or audible advantage to AES or ITS inputs. In fact he says that the addition of an HDMI socket on a DAC introduces all sorts of electrical interference. He recommends using optical where possible (i.e. CD rate data 16/44.1 not HD) as this removes all possibility of introducing electrical noise at the digital input. For HD audio he has implemented galvanic isolation on the USB.

@@oneofthelastmen5873 As ever, "it depends" :) Implementation is everything, so given how good the 6000CDTs coax out is (I have one into a very good dac) no doubt the 9000 is too.

I tested the 9000CDT with a very basic DAC and a relatively low-cost coax to see how it faired with the 6000CDT and tested the latter with the same ancillaries and I heard a big improvement from the 9000 so no, I don't think they're factors.

@@TheAudiophileMan Thanks Paul. Good to know.

I had the same question

Or the Primare DD35?

A tough question, Mr Singh because I returned that unit to Luxman a loooong the ago. Saying that, from my dodgy memory - and that's all I can give you - I'd go with the separate transport and DAC.

@@TheAudiophileMan yes I think you are right - keeping the transport separate will give better results if it’s well made . For my most recent upgrade I was toying with the idea of buying the pro Ject rs2T transport into an ex demo dCS vivaldi dac ( to replace my meridian 808v6 CD player and my dCS bartok streaming dac ) but i ended up ordering the dCS Rossini player apex as a one box compromise .

There's pros and cons for both products. Saying that, at £999, to state that pros and cons are even a consideration for the 9000CDT is quite remarkable. If bass is important to you and is a priority then go for the Heed. I do feel that bass is better integrated into the rest of the frequencies by the 9000CT though and I do prefer the latter's focus and rich presentation. If you plump for the Heed, you won't be disappointed, it's a superb player and well worth the award-winning rating I gave it. Even so, I am swayed by the 9000CDT.

@@TheAudiophileMan Thanks, I will now have to demo this unit as well before making my decision:)

I used the Benchmark DAC and I'd say the transport is 50% of the equation. Although I would only upgrade the DAC to improve the sound once the 9000 is purchased. The 9000 has the capacity.

Depends on your budget, Chris. I'd look at QED if you're counting pennies but if you can splash the cash, take a close look at Tellurium Q's coax cables.

@@TheAudiophileMan is Coax the same as a Digital RCA/BNC cable?

And that's fine, Daniel. And nor should you buy expensive cabling if you can't hear the difference. Trust your ears, which you are doing. Similarly, you shouldn't buy the 9000CDT if you can't hear the difference between it and a £50 portable. And some people can't. And that's also fine. Thing is though, I can. So I will continue to report the differences I hear in the future.

@TheAudiophileMan Hi, yes I agree, I can hear the difference between speaker cables and interconnect cables of which mine are quite expensive- in line with the shawline i mentioned however, with the digital transfer cables i cannot, the reason i mention this is because logically we shouldn't be able to, as long as the impedance is 75ohms at each end then 1's and 0's should care not for the copper and shielding it is carried in, we must be careful of conformation bias when listening here, i just think that before we automatically price up a cable in our heads to purchase, I'd encourage people to buy the amazon cable i mentioned as well as an expensive one and return the expensive cable if you cannot hear the difference, as I said, the quality of this cable may surprise you, it's a far cry from the freebies that are sometimes provided for less than £10. Looking forward to next review. 😀

@@danielbrown2715 Well, I've gone on and on about this on numerous occasions in the past but the issues with digital cables are not the core tech but the parasitic noise that tags along for the ride which cocks up timing and just gets in the way of the sound. That's the issue with all cables, analogue or digital. Doesn't matter what the tech is, third-party rubbish can mask info or interfere with signal transfer. Again, if you don't hear the diffs then great. You've saved yourself some dosh :)

I used the super expensive Silver diamond because I wanted to remove the cable from the equation and didn't want it to be a factor in sound testing. The company's Blue and Black digital cables are top notch, though.

@@TheAudiophileMan That makes sense, and thanks very much for the reply. Mr Sircom loved it too, the TQ Black may make more sense in the context of the 6000, possibly even the 9000 I wonder?

Why? It’s a digital transport. What would balanced (or RCA, for that matter) outputs bring to the party?

The current disappointing sound from your 9000CDT may be a symptom, a sign post of other issues elsewhere. Sometimes quality kit can highlight long-standing issues in other parts of the system. There may be a million and one reasons why it's not performing as it should and it might be impossible for me to properly treat the issues at this distance (there's nothing like actually 'being there' to see possible problems first hand - I had a problem only this morning which I fixed because I could 'see' that something was plugged in incorrectly causing my mids to sound bright, for example) but I'll give it a try. Maybe I can at least give you a few pointers. So list your entire HiFi chain. Everything, including cables and ancillaries and shelving, etc. Also how you're plugging everything into the mains (power blocks, etc) plus the room you're in. The lot. Then I'll have a think and get back to you. This may take a while :)

Of all the HiFi brands in the world, I would say that Moon is almost unique in being able to design boxes where the included feature tech actually sounds good, as opposed to poor or (at best) adequate. The only built-in phono amp in any HiFi product I have ever really respected was in a Moon, for example. In *broad* terms though, I'd plump for an external...anything to improve sound quality.

I have seen a picture of the new, soon to be released 7000cdt. I think this is the best looking of the three. Very similar to the 6000cdt with a better version of the display, easy access button controls. I prefer black for the 9000cdt; the screen looks better, more integrated and sticks out less. Silver looks sleek, elegant for newest model. Yes sound quality is most important

I have the LS50 Meta and am looking for a good amplifier. Naim Nait 5i not up to it. I was thinking of buying the 9000A (I have the 9000CDT). Do you highly rate the Hegel with the KEFs?

@@christinejames5697 my experience is based only on Hegel H90 that surely works very well with LS50. But consider now the new model is Hegel H95 which has a better D/A converter too

Thanks for that. I‘m trying to buy from Amazon, so I can return it all if necessary. I‘ve got a Bluesound Powernode arriving tomorrow. I‘ll see if the 80 WPC has a better grip on the KEFs. If not, maybe back to the drawing board. Hegel certainly highly recommended. 👍😊