EMM LABS XDS1 V2 CD/SACD Player
 

Hi,

Anyone have familiarity with this player, either owning one or auditioning one? I was considering an Accuphase DP-560 but a dealer in NYC was saying he thought this was a better choice. He sells both Accuphase and EMM Labs products. I recall his saying that EMM Labs develops DSD decoding, which it then licenses to other manufacturers, including Accuphase. I could be a bit off on my recollection, so anyone with better information, feel free to correct me.

But I have no familiarity with the EMM labs. There doesn't seem to be a large dealer network for it in the US.

I would use this player primarily for listening to CDs and SACDs, so not sure what value I would get from DSD.

It's an excellent CDP. I had one and it was a very good unit that I enjoyed for a lot of years. Probably the best single box player out there still. They don't make them anymore so i assume you are buying used. The good news is that it features an Esoteric VOSP drive mechanism so should be dependable.

Don't worry about DSD or other technical points or who developed what, that's not something that's particularly relevant; focus on the sound.

In any case, you should audition it before you buy so you can make up your own mind.

And you can always make it sound even better if you get the itch later:

https://www.dagogo.com/emm-labs-xds1-v3-update/

Thanks, Bar81. When I go on EMM Labs web site, it lists the v2 as a current product. Did they recently discontinue it?

https://www.emmlabs.com/products.html

Also, I believe the dealer in NYC is amenable to sending units out for audition. I live in Central MA.

I am an Emm fan as a few others who have heard Emm as well. It is truly a good value product.

DSD is used by Sony and Philips for their system of digitally recreating audible signals for the Super Audio CD (SACD). DSD uses pulse-density modulation encoding—a technology to store audio signals on digital storage media that are used for the SACD. So you would be using the EMM Labs DSD decoding capability when you play SACDs.

To my knowledge it was discontinued over a year ago. Esoteric stopped selling the disc mechanisms to any third parties and EMM Labs used its last batch of VOSP mechanisms for the Limited Edition TX2 Transport (which is likely long sold out by now as the run was limited to no more than 50 units).

The only source or DAC that's currently in production is the DA2 and maybe(?) the DAC2X as a lower priced option to the DA2. The amplification on the other hand should all be current.

Interesting that EMM Labs & Meitner Audio are located in Calgary, CN. Not a place one thinks of as a hot-bed of digital activity. While their website is a bit 'long in the tooth', too bad their supply of drives has 'dried up'. Their CD/SACD products got excellent reviews.

That's an interesting point. So if Esoteric stopped selling drives to third-parties, and I believe only Accuphase also makes their own drives, would there be any support issues with buying an EMM Labs or other player if there is a drive failure. I think I had heard that's why Soulution stopped production of the 541 because they could no longer get drives from Esoteric.

Responsible companies will keep back a certain amount of stock for service. As such, I would expect that EMM Labs has units held back for any failures of existing transports although I'm not sure how they've allocated remaining stock between TX2, TSDX and XDS1, if at all, since they all use the same drive (although it probably doesn't matter as the failure rate should be identical across all units).