Esoteric XD Series

...I'm eager to hear the Esoteric and will see if it can unseat the Discrete. That's number 1 right now. I don't want to second guess my choice if I have the chance to try other new gear.

i see in another thread that we have a winner!! :D

it would be great to hear how these two compared from your perspective ...and, what it was that pushed the esoteric over the line?
 
i see in another thread that we have a winner!! :D

it would be great to hear how these two compared from your perspective ...and, what it was that pushed the esoteric over the line?

I’m not sure how to describe it but right off the bat, the K-01xd just sounded better, more musical and a little more relaxed. Granted the esoteric is more money. I absolutely enjoyed the Discrete but something was holding me back from placing the order. Thank goodness. Once the esoteric warmed up a little it absolutely got better and now, WOW! I love it. It’s already at the top of my budget but I’ll be able to use it for a few more months before my brother takes it off my hands.

I NEVER liked pre XD esoteric gear but this is a whole new sound. Old esoteric was dry, a little sterile and generally boring to my ears. I’m not a golden ear but damn, it fell right into place with the new K-01xd. I love it. No way I can even think about the top two MSB dacs so I either get the K-01xd or N-01xd network version and maybe eventually try the clock. I’ll be ecstatic.
 
There is VERY limited supply of BLACK K-01XD and K-03XD. Like 2 left.

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...I NEVER liked pre XD esoteric gear but this is a whole new sound. Old esoteric was dry, a little sterile and generally boring to my ears. I’m not a golden ear but damn, it fell right into place with the new K-01xd. I love it. No way I can even think about the top two MSB dacs so I either get the K-01xd or N-01xd network version and maybe eventually try the clock. I’ll be ecstatic.

i would assume that the sound difference between the XD and pre-XD models has to do with the new "master sound discrete DAC" in the XD ...and, given that the XD DAC is an R2R converter, i wonder if this moves the esoteric XD DACs into the realm of analog sounding DACs like those from MSB?
 
i would assume that the sound difference between the XD and pre-XD models has to do with the new "master sound discrete DAC" in the XD ...and, given that the XD DAC is an R2R converter, i wonder if this moves the esoteric XD DACs into the realm of analog sounding DACs like those from MSB?

Whatever they are doing, it’s definitely working out great.
 
No idea why esoteric doesn’t offer black on a permanent basis. They obviously can manufacture a gorgeous looking all black player without charging extra. I sold my K01X 4 years ago and one factor was that it stuck out like a sore thumb in my all black component system. I too felt it was a little boring sounding as Joe eloquently stated. The XD sounds like a winner.


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I sold my K01X 4 years ago and one factor was that it stuck out like a sore thumb in my all black component system.

well said.
it would be nice to have the choice.

also i would really like the frontplate to be sandpolished just as the round corners and the topplate seem to be.
 
ahhh -- yes, i see it is delta sigma...

"The N-01XD includes ESOTERIC’s exclusive Delta-Sigma (ΔΣ) modulator supporting 64-bit/512Fs audio frequency sampling. To perform D/A conversion on par with its excellent DSD and PCM characteristics, separate FPGA* digital processing algorithms were developed for each conversion process."

thanks for correcting -- pictures of DAC module had lead me far astray here.
 
No idea why esoteric doesn’t offer black on a permanent basis. They obviously can manufacture a gorgeous looking all black player without charging extra. I sold my K01X 4 years ago and one factor was that it stuck out like a sore thumb in my all black component system. I too felt it was a little boring sounding as Joe eloquently stated. The XD sounds like a winner.


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You might not want to see this :D

K-01XD Black Edition | OVERVIEW | ESOTERIC:Japan high-end audio manufacturer | エソテリック
 
I’m wondering if converting USB to optical on the K01 XD would be a good move ?

If you are talking about USB to toslink, I don’t think there’s much benefit, if any. I think choice of resolution is lower too.
 
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