Digital Drive: REVIEW: Electrocompaniet EMC 1 CD Player/Recorder by BHAGWAN72

Model:	EMC 1
Category:	CD Player/Recorder
Suggested Retail Price:	$2500
Description:	One box 24bit/96Hz CD player
Manufacturer URL:	Electrocompaniet
Model Picture:	View

Review by BHAGWAN72 ( A ) on January 30, 2002 at 19:31:00
IP Address: 203.94.232.96

Add Your Review
for the EMC 1

27th May, 2001.
ELECTROCOMPANIET EMC-1.
Serial Number :- 01334.
Price Paid :- US $ 3,000/- .
Purchased from :- Sound of Music [New Delhi] INDIA.
An 'over built' CD Player, reasonably good sounding, I do wish that it sounded as good as its size and weight ! Unfortunately that is not to be. All the same, it sounds very good at its price and its price to performance ratio is reasonably good.
The player came to me very poorly packed and was kind of damanged in transit / transport. The CD cover / slider was dismanteled and freely moving about in the box.
I used the player for about 1 month playing it about 3 to 4 hours daily prior to my critically examining its sound reproduction qualities.
The CD Player tracks and reads CD's very well, specially the lower frequencies. It also creates a wonderful sound stage. Although its representation of the 'highs' is not so 'lush' or 'silky'.
The CD player performs better as a transport than as a full CD player. If used as a transport along with a good tube output DAC the combination is superior. Please do use the ASEUB digital output, it is far better than the SPDIF co-axil digital out.
Over all in absolute terms the CD Player would score a 7 out of 10, where say a 9 out of 10 would be awarded to the Forsell Air Bearing Transport + dcS Elgar [combination] or a Wadia 27 + 27 ix [combination] or a Burmester etc.
Electrocompaniet should make an effort to improve the quality of its IR Remote Control. Very poor for a CD Player that retails @ US $ 4,000/-. An analog volume control incorporation in the CD Player too would go a long way in making the CD Player a more attractive buy [It would eliminate the need of a Pre-Amplifier & 1 set of Interconnect Cables].
Testing and review carried out with :-
A] Equipment
Simaudio Moon Eclipse CD Player
Electrocompaniet EMC-1 CD Player
Ultech Audio UCD-100 CD Player + Sonif Frontier SFD !! Mk 2
Simaudio P-5 Pre Amplifier
Bryston BP-25 Pre Amplifier
Lexicon DC2 Pre-Amp / DAC / Processor
Bryston 7B ST Power Amplifier
Dynaudio Confidence 5 Loudspeakers
vdH [Van den Hul] â€˜The Secondâ€™ Balanced XLR Interconnect
vdH [Van Den Hul] â€˜The Revelationâ€™ Speaker Cable
B] Music
M.A. Recordings - Begona Olavide / Mudejar MA042A
Water Lily Acoustics - Tabula Rasa WLA-CS-44-CD
ECM Records â€“ Making Music / Zakir Hussain ECM â€“ 1349
Moment Records â€“ Ustad Sultan Khan MRCD â€“ 1006
Reference Recordings â€“ TUTTI ! RR-906CD
Telarc â€“ A tribute to Oscar Peterson CD â€“ 83401
Chesky Records â€“ The Raven / Rebecca Pidgeon JD 115
Mercury â€“ Essential / Yello 512 390 â€“ 2
Mazher Bashir JAFFAR
27th May, 2001.
Mumbai [Bombay] INDIA
e-mail :- schwinn@bol.net.in
www.schwinnwarehousing.com

Product Weakness: Display is very small and not bright enough.
Very poorly transported [From Norway to India]
Over built, feels like a Soviet Tank from the 1960's.
Un-Balanced 'analog out' not as good as the 'Balanced'.
Remote control is very 'cheesy' needs to be greatly re-worked.
No HDCD [needed for Reference Recording CD's]
The 4 buttons for navigation on the front of the CD Player get 'jammed'

Product Strengths: Well built [sturdy]
Tracks CD's very well, specially lower frequencies.
Creates a good sound stage, also very good to use as a CD Transport.

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	BRYSTON 7B ST
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	PASS X1
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	EMC 1 [ELECTROCOMPANIET] AUDIOMECA MEPHISTO II TRANSPORT & ENKIANTHUS DAC
Speakers:	DYNAUDIO CONFIDENCE 5 SPEAKERS
Cables/Interconnects:	vdH [VAN DEN HEL] THE SECOND & REVELATION
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	CLASSICAL [WESTERN & INDIAN]
Room Size (LxWxH):	11 x 10 x 20
Room Comments/Treatments:	CUSTOM TREATED AND SHAPE MODIFIED
Time Period/Length of Audition:	6 MONTHS
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	vdH [VAN DEN HUL] POWER CORDS
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner
Your System (if other than home audition):	AT HOME IN MY LISTENING ROOM

Product Weakness:	Display is very small and not bright enough. Very poorly transported [From Norway to India] Over built, feels like a Soviet Tank from the 1960's. Un-Balanced 'analog out' not as good as the 'Balanced'. Remote control is very 'cheesy' needs to be greatly re-worked. No HDCD [needed for Reference Recording CD's] The 4 buttons for navigation on the front of the CD Player get 'jammed'
Product Strengths:	Well built [sturdy] Tracks CD's very well, specially lower frequencies. Creates a good sound stage, also very good to use as a CD Transport.