Hi Frank,
As I said at AC, my Emmlabs stack has more punch than the Tentation but the Tentation isn't exactly a slouch. Come to think of it dynamically handicapped CD players, regardless of price, are more the exception rather than the rule. The things that I don't like about redbook playback lay elsewhere. To be precise, a lack of dimensionality and some rough transients here and there. Boy, how can I put this? Maybe so this doesn't go the wrong direction I should make some things crystal. I am a music junkie first, format evangelist last. Actually I'm not even that. I have 192, 320 and AAC on my drive, I've not bothered to rip my CDs into lossless, when I want to hear a CD, just like an LP I give it a wipe and pop it in a player. I'm heavily invested in my music collection and the stuff I play it on. The mp3s and AACs are for instant gratification, if I like the music enough I go looking for the CD, SACD, or LP. Like I said I am a music junkie so I'll take whatever form it comes in and just enjoy it. I still like looking for new artists and save for very few exceptions, most of which I don't care for, LPs serve me for acts that pressed records until the early 90s. Time seems to fly doesn't it? There's two decades worth of music available only on CD. So even if I am passionate about LP collecting and playback, I've been chasing good CD sound for the same number of decades.
My list of players and DACs is a long one. To give you an idea these are what I have right now aside from the Tentation and DVD/BD players.
Bel Canto 1.5
47 Labs Shigaraki Transport and DAC
Theta Pearl and Pro Prime
Levinson 360S
Accuphase DP78
Emmlabs CDSD and 2 DCC2 SEs (don't ask why I have two of them, it's a long story anyway one is my old one factory upgraded, the other an SE)
Tascam CDR2000 ( a professional unit outlasted by the commercial ones, who would have thunk it? )
2 seemingly unbreakable Pioneer CDJ 500s
The emms replaced a Wadia 581, which in turn displaced an Audio Aero which I had on extended audition. Second system players included CAL Audios, Audio Analogs, an Arcam CD92 (ring DAC) and a MF X-24k which in hindsight, I should have kept. That's just what I can remember or was at least memorable.
Whew.
So clearly I am not anti-digital. I'm still trying hot darn it! 20 years worth of music. 20 YEARS!!!!!!!
All I'm saying is when it comes to dimensionality and the lack of nasties mentioned, this player has the most of the former and the least of the latter that I have heard in my own systems. My rant about the lack of functionality in terms of not being able to play SACDs and not having a digital input for my computer or airport express stung both Didier and Albert but hey, it doesn't have it, what can I do? Maybe it'll make Didier put an input the next generation player. My SACD library is tiny so that isn't an issue. I stand by every word positive and negative but in the end it really is a player that I feel earned its rack space. Maybe the reason it can do what it does is because it was optimized for just one format. I don't really know but it's a possibility. A dying format at that. Oh, the irony.
I have on hand the DL2, smooth and spacious like the Tentation (2 models up) but less punch too. I'll go look at 6moons again and see what Mr. and Mrs. Henk wrote. I just scanned through it before.