Digital Drive: REVIEW: Cary Audio Design 306/200 CD Player/Recorder by Tuckers

Model:	306/200
Category:	CD Player/Recorder
Suggested Retail Price:	$5000
Description:	Upsampling CD player and DAC
Manufacturer URL:	Cary Audio Design
Manufacturer URL:	Cary Audio Design

Review by Tuckers ( A ) on November 20, 2002 at 00:38:42
IP Address: 66.167.201.13

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for the 306/200

I have posted several on the go updates of my time with the Cary. This review are my conclusions of the product.
Look, build and ergonomics.
The Cary is very well built and designed. It is built like a tank, with a nice, yet a somewhat industrial look. It had no problem visually integrating into my system, being a very handsome component overall.
The blue LEDs are waaay to bright for me. I take a bit of masking tape, color it black with a permanent marker, and put it over the lights. When cut out in a nice little square or circle, it looks ok on the unit. It blocks the majority of glare, while still allowing me to see the indicator. I find the blue display to be too small for me, but that is the case with most CD displays.
The remote is highly directional and only seems to work when pointed directly at the unit without much angle. This is a design flaw as far as I'm concerned. But minor for me as I use a Pronto. Also, from an ergonomic point of view the remote has a switch on top to switch between controlling the CDs functions and controlling the DAC functions. This is not very intuitive to me, as I forget that I have switched it one way or the other, and push the wrong buttons. I will program these as a separate page in my Pronto.
The drawer mechanism is first rate, and the CD spins up to play really fast.
The Cary is all I wanted from a features point of view. It has fully programmable CD functions, and a good repeat function. Why do so may high-end companies leave these out? My Spectral transport does not have programmability, and I miss that. The multiple digital inputs and outputs are just what I wanted, and the ability to select an input from the remote (something most DACs don't allow you to do either).
Sound - in pieces
I had a different response to the sound of the Cary than many other inmates. Let me preface all I say about sound by stating that the Cary is an excellent CD player, it does stuff I have never heard from the medium. However, my taste in digital and the needs of an all solid state system have leaned against the Cary for reasons I state below.
I am comparing the Cary to my Spectral SDR 3000 Reference transport, and Audio Aero 192K Prima DAC with Synergistic Research Resolution Reference Active BNC cable. I have also had a lot of time with Wadia units and Dodson DACs.
I now have close to 500 hours on the unit, so it is broken in. It does need about 200 hours before it shares its treasures. Once broken in you can expect a wild ride. the Cary is the most dynamic and controlled CD player I have had in my system. Macro dynamics are huge, it almost sounds like an expander has been applied to the signal. This makes for huge swings between
quiet notes and crescendos. What a ride. This baby has huevos. The bass is the deepest and most controlled I have heard to date. You can hear subtlety and detail in the bass that is really engaging. if you like bass, this ones for you. I get 15HZ from my system on good material, and the Cary really utilizes it.
Highs are exceptionally pure and very extended. However, I found that the very top highs seemed to be rolled off a bit. This keeps the last bit of air and space from coming through. The highs are also very controlled and you won't hear any spurious digititus from most sources.
The midrange is very clear and smooth. One of the smoothest I have heard in a CD player. There is a touch of warmth to the sound. I always like a touch of warmth to the sound, but with the Cary the smoothness is a bit unnatural sounding to my ears, almost like a smoothing filter was applied. The warmth and the smoothness sound overlayed on the event. It sounds transparent, but with time and comparison, I found this sound to be pervasive and not serving the music. So at end, this is a color to the sound that I could no shake by changing power cords, interconnects, different racks and supports or damping.
The Cary had more detail in the music than my other rig, especially in upsampling mode. the detail was a nice improvement upon my other rig.
A comment on the upsampling. I have had the Dodson upsampling DAC before, and the Audio Aero replaced it. Ultimately I preferred the Audio Aero's holistic presentation of detail and body. In the Dodson the details of instruments seem to be pushed in front of the instruments themselves. The Audio Aero (which doesn't upsample) seemed to integrate the detail better into the presentation. I had the same experience with upsampling on the Cary. I can imagine that on another system that doesn't focus as much on detail and transparency as mine, this detail might render a nice improvement. A nice feature of the upsampling is that you can send it out the digital output of the unit, sending an upsampled signal to a DAC. Which I did to my Audio Aero. The result was much the same. I don't think I am a fan of upsampling anymore.
As a transport, the Cary very good. And that smoothness was still there, but reduced to a point that I enjoyed it through the Audio Aero. I ultimately preferred the Spectral, the soundstage was much wider and deeper with the Spectral. Bass was about equal from both, with the Cary being a bit more forward in that region. But hey, the Spectral transport is almost twice
the cost and a dedicated unit, so no shame there. As a DAC the Cary sounded pretty much like it does as a CD player. It is nice to have that remote switching between inputs.
Sound - the whole effect
While the Cary was technically exceptional by all hi-fi criteria, it never really transcended it's medium for me. While dynamically stunning, the sound never really flew. How can I describe it best? The Cary was too controlled, too colored in a crucial area, and a bit rolled off in air and space. The overall effect was a bit restrained, sounding like an overdamped room, and a bit mechanical. Now, in another system, I suggest that it might really sing. Just not mine.
The sound reminds me a lot of Levinson or Krell gear overall. And I ultimately have the same type of response to those brands. So if that is your taste in high-end, you might really like the Cary too.
My Audio Aero is a tube unit, and I think I do like the contribution of the tube output in my system. One of the reasons I tried the Cary was because it is a tube company. Possibly my overall response to the system was influenced by the lack of tubes.
If Cary makes a tube version of this CD player or a tube DAC, I'll be first in line to try it.
And now for something completely different . . . My next step is to try an Audio Note 3.1 balanced DAC. I have already ordered it. A very different set of design goals and implementations. Possibly closer to my tastes. We'll see. . .

Product Weakness: The sound was a little too controlled, sounding a bit restrained, like an overdamped room, and a bit mechanical.
Product Strengths: Great looks Class A dynamics, bass, control and detail.

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	Spectral DMA 150 II Universal
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Spectral DMC 30
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Spectral Ref. transport/Audio Aero Prima DAC
Speakers:	Vandersteen 5s
Cables/Interconnects:	Synergistic Research Designers active
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Classical, Jazz, Pop, Folk, International
Room Size (LxWxH):	30 x 24 x 8
Room Comments/Treatments:	Room built for Audio, carpeting
Time Period/Length of Audition:	one month
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Sound Applications latest gizmos, Elrod EPS power cables
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

Product Weakness:	The sound was a little too controlled, sounding a bit restrained, like an overdamped room, and a bit mechanical.
Product Strengths:	Great looks Class A dynamics, bass, control and detail.