K-03 first impressions, settings choices. WOW.

Ricardo, welcome, and glad you are loving your K-03. I feel the same way as when I started this thread: it's a great machine, and I'm very happy :)

Enjoy!
 
Hello guys,

recently read this message below:


"I have reviewed your posts on PC and IC questions and a thin sound comment.
Q. When listening to the Esoteric K-03, are your usual interconnects XLR or RCA based ?

If XLR, then the reason for a thin sound often relates a hot pin mismatch, in other words an inverted phase, also revealed by an unusually wide sound stage.
USA (McIntosh etc) and your Euro made Gryphon have Pin 2 positive (hot) & Pin 3 negative (cold), whereas Japanese products have Pin 2 (cold) & Pin 3 (hot).
Luckily with Esoteric you can switch phase easily.
(Not so with the Luxman CD8 I auditioned recently, or the early Marantz SA11-S1 both being fixed. Only way to unfix is with a cross-over cable or a few minutes swapping pins with a soldering iron)."

Is this information correct?


Nice regards,
Ricardo Nonato.
 
Ralph, I noticed my K-03 improved in sound quality as the hours on it went up. Probably have about 800 hours on it now. I have tried a few of the settings. I have it set to 2f upconversion and S_DLY1 for CD's. I usually use it to play SACD's which don't use the filters. I noticed an audible improvement when I put Symposium Rollerblocks under it but my rack is not audiophile grade. I thought the Rollerblocks sound like a component upgrade. Have to say I haven't been using it that often recently since I got my new TT - new toy.
 
Ralph, sorry you are somewhat disappointed with your K-03. Not sure what you are comparing it to. I had an Oppo 95, then a McIntosh MCD500 and then the K-03. I noticed a sonic improvement with each step up. I still prefer the sound of vinyl over any CD or SACD but most of the newer music I like isn't available on vinyl. I am terrible at describing improvements in sound, I just A&B the changes and keep what sounds best to me. I thought the Rollerblocks just sounded better with than without. I also have upgraded power cords and balanced interconnects on the K-03.
 
kiwi_1282001 said:
Hi Jeffkad,

Any update on your Esoteric K-03?

1. What changes (if any) did you observe as the player clocked 500 hours?
2. Has your prefered filter / upsample selection remained constant?
3. Have you tried different resonance control devices under the player?


Cheers
Ralph
Click to expand...

KiwiRalph: very sorry for the delayed response. Unfortunately, my life has been so busy that I really haven't had time to play with the K-03. I still love the way it sounds, but I have not kept track of hours on each setting. As previously mentioned, I had long stuck with the 4fs/sdly1, but about 2 months ago decided to try the 4fs/fir1 setting for a change of pace. This is embarassing, but I dont even remember why. I got so busy at work/life that I just grab a listen whenever I can. Therefore, I am proving totally useless to you, lol. As for resonance control, I dont believe in any of that because i dont want to spend any more money :). If vibrations on a solid wood platform sitting on concrete slab can make a major difference, I'm calling it a day. I'm just not that interested.

Anyway, sorry I couldnt be of more help. However, I do think your problem stems from where you are coming from, a supposedly wonderful and warm Cary CD player that many rave about. I had no such level of previous quality, coming from an Oppo bdp95, so the jump for me was very significant and pleasing. Perhaps if I was coming from an excellent tube-based CDP, I would think differently. I have my own issues with my speakers, the Revel Salon 2. An excellent speaker, but still not providing the bass output I'd like to hear. I have made great strides in bass improvement by adding superior upgrades to the supporting cast of electronics, and, especially at loud volumes, the SQ is excellent. However, at all volumes but especially at medium to low volume, my basement room gobbles up bass and thins it out. When I switch my prepro to L/R full range + sub, there is a very noticeable improvement in bass weight and texture. I guess I now finally need to address my room.

I guess the moral of the story is different strokes for different folks, and every aspect of the chain matters, as I've painfully and expensively found out. And maybe the K-03 will just never do it for the type of sound you are looking for.

Regards...Jeff
 
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kiwi_1282001 said:
Hi Jeff,

Thanks for the reply.

There is no doubt that my Cary player was on the warm side of neutral but being fully solid state it was devoid of romantic tubey characteristics.

In post #38 in my system thread I lay out what I believe are the strengths and weaknesses of the Esoteric K-03.

In sum, despite many good qualities it is not wow'ing me (to borrow the term from a fellow Shark) and I am not satisfied.

I am presently in the midst of a new audio room construct and once complete I will put some more hours on the K-03 in a new environment. If with further burn in the player does not connect me as I feel it should to the music then it is toast - and the a search for a replacement will begin.

Cheers
Ralph
Click to expand...

Well, like I said, different strokes for different folks. It wowed, and continues to wow me (and yes, I am the fellow shark who perhaps overused the term. I make no apologies.). Sorry if I miscategorized the Cary as a tube-like device, your previous descriptions led me in that direction. At this point, I doubt the K-03 will be what you are looking for. Which of course is fine, as there are many, many different sounding alternatives. I wish you the best of luck finding whatever you are looking for.
 
I just purchased a gently used (9 months old) K-03 and should receive it at the end of the week. I can hardly wait! I'll report back once I put it through its paces.
 
Bachtoven said:
I just purchased a gently used (9 months old) K-03 and should receive it at the end of the week. I can hardly wait! I'll report back once I put it through its paces.
Click to expand...

Congrats! My friend has the K-05 and it sounds great. I'm sure the K-03 is another level above that. Looking forward to your impressions.

Did you see the new K-01X? Oh my....


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Mike said:
Congrats! My friend has the K-05 and it sounds great. I'm sure the K-03 is another level above that. Looking forward to your impressions.

Did you see the new K-01X? Oh my....


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Click to expand...

Yes, it's lovely...
 
Mine arrived today--wow!! Actually, it's about 9 months old, but it's new to me and was just about half-price on Audiogon! Anyway, I can hear why it gets such fantastic reviews. The utter realism and musicality are just amazing. I'm hearing details that I've never heard before, and the total lack of "digititis" is something to behold. I have set for 4X upsampling for RBCDs (It has numerous upscaling and filtering options), which makes them sound nearly as good as SACDs. I really don't miss the surround sound, and for the few pipe organ SACDS I own, I'll use my Oppo 105. These Esoteric players are pricey but worth it. (Heavy, too: this one weighs 61 pounds!)
 
Congrats Bachtoven! I've been away from the site for some time (I tend to drift away from these sites as I become satisfied with my system, which is probably good for my wallet, lol). Anyway, I am still thrilled with my K-03. Just moved from 4x/sldy2 to 4x/sldy1 a few months ago and loving the different sound. It's just another great aspect of this machine: you can change the sound as you like. My last purchase will be a server, which I've been saying for over a year but have been too busy to pull trigger. Can't wait to try the K-03 as a DAC. Enjoy!
 
Jeffkad said:
Ha. Nope. No thanks. I really don't need to hear that. Nope......:disbelief:
Click to expand...

OK, you can look, but don't listen...:lol:

Esoteric-Grandioso-P1-und-Esoteric-Grandioso-D1-580.jpg


In the foreground are the transport and power supply--the other two boxes are the dual mono DACs!
 
kiwi_1282001 said:
Which filter do you prefer?
Click to expand...

On my K-01, I always prefer SLDY2. Oversampling rate depends on the recording. Native on marginal recordings to 4X oversampling on terrific recordings. Always +6dB gain, 0 dB gain has a recessed midrange IMO.

Ken
 
kiwi_1282001 said:
That’s interesting Ken.

It’s been a while since I've evaluated the upsample and digital filter settings on the Esoteric. One of the problems with too many setting options are that one tends to find something they like - set and forget! Traditionally I've preferred 4x upsampling with no filters.

Reading recent posts including your own I re-evaluated this again last evening using two excellent recordings; the first being Mylene Farmers live concert, Timeless 2013; the second, since it is nearly Christmas, Charlie Landsborough’s Album of Christmas Classics. The former recording beautifully recreates a very large acoustic space complete with live concert sound; the latter beautifully recreates an intimate but powerful male vocal with compelling central imaging and realism in a simple / acoustic accompaniment.

In summary, after cycling through the Esoterics set up modes numerous times I still much preferred 4 times upsampling. In observation this setting was more resolving (revealed greater detail) and proffered superior ambient information/cues – leading to a more lifelike sound. This was particularly noticeable in Farmers concert where crowd noise; yelps, claps etc. were better fleshed out and decayed and the dimensions of the venue (generated by ambient cues) better defined with greater awareness of the reflective boundary walls of the acoustic space behind and to the sides of the performers, and the spatiality of the hall itself. In contrast, the organic setting had less air, less sparkle and an altogether flatter reproduction. In the smaller performing groups setting as in Charlie’s album one with the organic setting lost some of the acoustic space around the musician, diluting also the impactful and ghostly dimensionality around his vocal.

Turning now to the digital filters; oddly, while seeing some appeal to the somewhat rounded S_DLY2 presentation; overall, I still preferred the no filter setting. I find with no filters employed that reproduced music seems to have a greater continuity, continuousness and completeness to it. Music seems to more effortlessly flow rather than leave me with the psychological feeling that it is artificially joining dots.

Irrespective of the above findings, the best settings of these conversion features will be those that sound best to the individual user.
Click to expand...

Hi Kiwi,

Your post was very interesting. I'm going to try some listening today with no filters employed. I'll post my results afterwards. My impressions could be totally different now that I've replaced my Pass Labs components with Soulution.

Thanks,
Ken
 
I've always loved the Esoteric players. You guys are making me want one!


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