Joey_V
Well-known member
I just picked up the Cary 306/200 from a local audiophile who’s becoming a friend of mine. He has a knack for collecting CD players (among other things) and he somehow wanted to get rid of this venerable player. I dunno why, but it certainly was my gain!
Anyway, when I was over his place, we had a good time a/b-ing what was still his Cary CDP against my PS Audio Digital Link III DAC. It was apparent that the PSA DAC was subpar compared to this world class player. Imaging was smeared and timbre was not sufficiently accurate. There was grain between the players/musicians/instruments and there was a lack of stage depth – most apparent with the literal up-front presentation, a type of inadequacy I’ve come to associate with less than stellar audio equipment.
It was easy to see that my wallet was in trouble, but seeing as how my birthday is only 2 days away – I figured what the hell… I deserve this CDP! So we packed it up and I brought it home…
My theory...
My theory that has been honed by my experience over the years has been that stellar equipment always manage to tighten the image and bring it closer and closer to a dense, palpable, and believable rendition of the real deal. Phenomenal improvement in my system – with my still new Cary SLP-05 preamp at the helm and the help of a solid foundation that is the Cary 306/200, I don’t even want to recall back to the sound my Summits pushed out when I was still running them off of my Soundblaster XFi soundcard + Rotel RB1070/RC1070 combo!
Man… it’s taken me some time to really get the source squared away and despite the fact that the PS Audio DAC III was a fine DAC, I always felt that I had short-changed my system. It was still the weak link despite being an improvement over the stock DACs within my Squeezebox 3. Finally, I feel that my system is somewhat rounded and balanced.
Anyone on the fence regarding the Cary 306/200 should NOT BE. It is a phenom of a player and at used prices, it is a steal. The improvements are very discernable especially on a transparent speaker like the Summits. I would say that I’ve improved the system by approximately 25-35%. It does exactly what I felt that it should and no more/no less.
Improvements:
- Imaging has been improved. James Blunt is stable and very localized within a foot behind the speaker plane (depending on volume). The air around him is further improved (blacker) when I switch to Class A on the Plinius. I feel that on Class A/B with the Plinius, the imaging of his voice through the Cary is AS GOOD AS through the PSA DAC III with the Plinius at full Class A… now switch the Plinius to Class A through the Cary and you will see that this is no joke! The Cary 306/200 is an absolute imaging phenom!
- Timbre is improved. The guitar has better decay and better leading edge. The drums are more articulate. The trumpet has more life. It is very impressive that I could actually tell the difference when I a/b the PSA DAC III to the Cary… I’m not particularly keen with instruments, but the improvement is so apparent that I can’t help but notice!
- Musicality is up a notch. With improved timbre and imaging comes a helping dose of musicality. Things just sound better through the Cary. It’s not a question of psychoacoustics, it’s a step towards better listening.
Conclusion:
Reading the numerous reviews on this player, I was skeptical as to exactly what it would bring to my system. I am already happy with how my system sounds with all the amplification and preamplification improvements I had made over the recent year and I felt that I would be let down by the hype. However, I’m so glad that high end truly exists and that you get what you pay for. The PSA DAC III is a good $1000 unit, it does what the price demands. On the other hand, the Cary 306/200 is a good $5000 unit, it does exactly what the Ayre C5xe did for me during my audition last year. I have no doubt that more expensive or more current players are probably a tad better, but for the used price – I’m a totally happy camper.
I love the fact that it has digital inputs, a requirement of mine especially since most of my music collection is stored in a hard drive ala FLAC. The Ayre, Krell, and various other popular CDPs don’t have this luxury and despite the acclaim of said CDP, I can’t afford to buy a CDP purely for spinning the silver discs. The Cary came out on top from my research so it was purely a waiting game.
I don’t regret this purchase. The only regret I have is that I should’ve done this sooner.
Cherian, Burke, Wayne, and David… you guys gotta come over to the new abode and listen to the new system. It’s improved leaps and bounds.
Thanks all!
Joey
Here are some pics as always…
Anyway, when I was over his place, we had a good time a/b-ing what was still his Cary CDP against my PS Audio Digital Link III DAC. It was apparent that the PSA DAC was subpar compared to this world class player. Imaging was smeared and timbre was not sufficiently accurate. There was grain between the players/musicians/instruments and there was a lack of stage depth – most apparent with the literal up-front presentation, a type of inadequacy I’ve come to associate with less than stellar audio equipment.
It was easy to see that my wallet was in trouble, but seeing as how my birthday is only 2 days away – I figured what the hell… I deserve this CDP! So we packed it up and I brought it home…
My theory...
My theory that has been honed by my experience over the years has been that stellar equipment always manage to tighten the image and bring it closer and closer to a dense, palpable, and believable rendition of the real deal. Phenomenal improvement in my system – with my still new Cary SLP-05 preamp at the helm and the help of a solid foundation that is the Cary 306/200, I don’t even want to recall back to the sound my Summits pushed out when I was still running them off of my Soundblaster XFi soundcard + Rotel RB1070/RC1070 combo!
Man… it’s taken me some time to really get the source squared away and despite the fact that the PS Audio DAC III was a fine DAC, I always felt that I had short-changed my system. It was still the weak link despite being an improvement over the stock DACs within my Squeezebox 3. Finally, I feel that my system is somewhat rounded and balanced.
Anyone on the fence regarding the Cary 306/200 should NOT BE. It is a phenom of a player and at used prices, it is a steal. The improvements are very discernable especially on a transparent speaker like the Summits. I would say that I’ve improved the system by approximately 25-35%. It does exactly what I felt that it should and no more/no less.
Improvements:
- Imaging has been improved. James Blunt is stable and very localized within a foot behind the speaker plane (depending on volume). The air around him is further improved (blacker) when I switch to Class A on the Plinius. I feel that on Class A/B with the Plinius, the imaging of his voice through the Cary is AS GOOD AS through the PSA DAC III with the Plinius at full Class A… now switch the Plinius to Class A through the Cary and you will see that this is no joke! The Cary 306/200 is an absolute imaging phenom!
- Timbre is improved. The guitar has better decay and better leading edge. The drums are more articulate. The trumpet has more life. It is very impressive that I could actually tell the difference when I a/b the PSA DAC III to the Cary… I’m not particularly keen with instruments, but the improvement is so apparent that I can’t help but notice!
- Musicality is up a notch. With improved timbre and imaging comes a helping dose of musicality. Things just sound better through the Cary. It’s not a question of psychoacoustics, it’s a step towards better listening.
Conclusion:
Reading the numerous reviews on this player, I was skeptical as to exactly what it would bring to my system. I am already happy with how my system sounds with all the amplification and preamplification improvements I had made over the recent year and I felt that I would be let down by the hype. However, I’m so glad that high end truly exists and that you get what you pay for. The PSA DAC III is a good $1000 unit, it does what the price demands. On the other hand, the Cary 306/200 is a good $5000 unit, it does exactly what the Ayre C5xe did for me during my audition last year. I have no doubt that more expensive or more current players are probably a tad better, but for the used price – I’m a totally happy camper.
I love the fact that it has digital inputs, a requirement of mine especially since most of my music collection is stored in a hard drive ala FLAC. The Ayre, Krell, and various other popular CDPs don’t have this luxury and despite the acclaim of said CDP, I can’t afford to buy a CDP purely for spinning the silver discs. The Cary came out on top from my research so it was purely a waiting game.
I don’t regret this purchase. The only regret I have is that I should’ve done this sooner.
Cherian, Burke, Wayne, and David… you guys gotta come over to the new abode and listen to the new system. It’s improved leaps and bounds.
Thanks all!
Joey
Here are some pics as always…
