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| Letters -- October 2005 Integris versus...? October 24, 2005 To Mike Silverton, I enjoyed your review of the Aurum Integris CDP. In saying it is the best CD player you have heard, what other players besides the ones mentioned have you listened to? I am currently considering the CEC and the dCS players. Vernon Stating that the Integris CDP is the best player I've heard amounts to saying that it's the best player I've lived with. I could not in good conscience pass judgment on, or recommend, a player I've experienced in other than a familiar setting -- my home. The Mark Levinson No.390S, a player I first acquired as the No.39, served as my reference for a period of years. By way of the No.390S, I evaluated recordings and a number of audio peripherals. I was hugely impressed by the Wadia 861se. As I mention in my Integris comments, the Wadia departed the premises before the Integris's arrival. A direct comparison was not possible, and the No.390S remained. Again, as I mention in my Integris comments, the Integris CDP impressed me as a far better player than the No.390S. Further, as lagniappe, there's the Integris CDP's excellent preamp section. Perhaps someday I may have the privilege of evaluating the players you mention. For now, I'm obliged to plead ignorance. It's a happy ignorance, really. As I've sat on my couch listening to the Integris CDP as a key component in the system, I've asked myself how CD sound can get much better than this....Mike Silverton "Battle of the Formats"? October 17, 2005 To Jeff Fritz, I've been blown away by the extreme quality of the digital source equipment that you and others at SoundStage! have reviewed recently. I can't believe how far digital sound has come. To make this high-tech scenario even more interesting, I was thinking you could set up an ultimate Battle of the Formats by putting the best of Red Book up against the best of SACD. SoundStage!, unlike most other review publications, is familiar with the best of both formats. It would be great to have your Esoteric digital separates (playing SACD) go head to head with Marc Mickelson's top-of-the-line Zanden gear (playing Red Book). Which one will the fountain bless? Will this battle (finally) decide which format is superior? My money is on the Zanden Red Book system, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it go the other way. Either way, we're all big winners as this technology (should) trickle down and more music lovers will be able to enjoy super-sounding digital -- SACD or not. J. Phelan Wonderful suggestion! It would be great fun to see whether the Esoteric separates could trump the beautiful Zanden components. I think it would be most interesting, however, to compare them strictly using the CD format, rather than to bring SACD into the equation. SACD, at this point in time, is fading. CD is still the king. In fact, I think it's a safe bet to say that CD will be the last great physical music carrier of our time. The future is downloadable digital -- music, regardless of the encoding system, that can be bought and stored in myriad ways. But until that happens (next week, perhaps?), players like the Zanden and Esoteric will represent the state of the art with CD playback, and that is what's most relevant to audiophiles in the here and now....Jeff Fritz
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