My Current System

Shanling CD T200C SACD
This is the most recent addition to my system; it’s the beautiful and very capable CD T200C Super Audio Compact Disc player from Shanling. I must admit I was very sceptical when these products started appearing in the hi fi realm a few years ago, but it would seem their reputation for excellent build quality and innovative design has gone from strength to strength. So when I decided it was time to explore the new trend of SACD format, it was the excuse I needed to finally get my hands on one of Shanling's beauties. The first thing that is apparent from the moment you open the box and lift this unit out is the impeccable build quality and attention to detail. This is a serious product!
The sonic qualities of this unit have just got better over the time I have owned it. It has a very good over-all presentation, with excellent detail, scale and depth (even with regular format CD disks) but the real difference is with the SACD format. WOW! I use both the tube output and direct, but prefer the direct output for critical listening.
My final thoughts: This unit performs every bit as good as it looks so, if you're contemplating investing some of your hard earned cash on SACD technology, be sure to check this player out.

Eikos CD Player
This is my current compact disk player. It is number 7 of the last 10 Eikos machines from Acoustic Precision. It just so happens that no.7 is my favourite number, so you could say it was fate! Being one of the last ten produced, it has all the latest mods that AP could throw at it at the time. In my opinion, this player is exceptional; it has just about everything performance wise that most critical listeners could want in a CD player; detail, bass, sound stage, ambience, etc. and at the moment, I wouldn’t swap it for any other player, at any cost.

Rock Turntable
This is the original Rock turntable, developed by Cranfield University. It was recently saved from that great hi fi graveyard in the sky. Its performance is excellent, with a strong full-bodied performance that in my opinion is still hard to beat.

Pre-Amp
This is the prototype of the all new line level preamp from Tube Distinctions, aptly named the 'Soul Mate' and its the first product to benefit from the new 'hyper regulators'. It is directly coupled throughout, non-inverting and is exceptionally linear and quiet. There are three stereo inputs (five on production models, all line level) and two outputs per channel for bi-amping.

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Power-Amp
This is the new 'Soul' single-ended, pure class A, hybrid amplifier (of which the first proto-type was recently reviewed by Roy Gregory, editor of Hi Fi Plus magazine, 2003) and has taken just under 4 years of design and development for the final production versions. The amp pictured is one of only three red Soul power amps built - two 30 watt mono-blocks, and one 15 watt stereo. All three were originally built to power the creative speaker designs of Overkill Audio, recently featured in the high-end show at Heathrow! They now reside in my own system.

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