Κώστας Φ.
Truth hurts. Here's a teddy bear.
- Μηνύματα
- 8.978
- Reaction score
- 895
C.E.C. and the dawn of belt drive
By 1983 already, C.E.C. had presented its first CD player, not yet belt-powered but fitted with a Sanyo drive. Introducing belt drive occurred in the 90s to parallel the dissolution of turntable manufacture. Launched in 1991, the 12,000 Deutsch Mark TL1 became the first CD belt drive, a solution for which the firm has since become famous.
To nip misapprehensions in the bud: C.E.C.'s oft-cited patents naturally don't focus on belt drive per se -- that subject is wide open to competitors -- but rather, implementation. The grand daddy of today's TL51XR (with belt, naturally) was the TL5000. It entered the market in the mid 90s for roughly 3,000DM. Little has changed disc spinner wise though that's not true for the D/A conversion.
The C.E.C. TL51XR
The 10kg TL51XR sports two Burr-Brown 24/192 PCM 1796 chips in dual mono. And once again we encounter señor Carlos Candeias whose LEF load-effect-free technology frees a circuit from needing an end-to-end dual differential architecture. The single-ended class A output stage is intrinsic to the LEF concept. (For detail freaks: Higher bias current shifts the load line of a solitary class A transistor which handles the full signal to avoid zero crossing shifts from phase splits where phase and anti-phase are handled by discrete devices). Candeias' amplification modules are impossible to overlook whereas the belt drive itself is harder to make out beneath the hood, requiring further screw driver action. I was content to admire the rubber through a few slits.
As per C.E.C., belt drive increases isolation between drive motor and spindle not merely mechanically but also by undermining electromagnetic cross coupling of currents. Regarding bad vibes, even the bottom plate of the enclosure elicits a lazy flat 'plock' during the knuckle test. A small opening in the underside demonstrates how this plate is a multi-layer construct.
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Conclusion
The C.E.C. TL51XR
- Seems mechanically unusually elaborate
- Avoids digititis like the plague
- Is charactized by a profoundly relaxed, fulsome presentation
- Illuminates mid and treble tones down to the molecules
- Eschews analytic sharpness to propose the opposite: Detail done correctly supports organic musicality
- Creates coherent, highly realistic dimensionality
- Offers a strong bass foundation which ultimately lacks some impact and bounce
In toto and for its price class, the C.E.C. TL51XR offers extraordinary mid and high frequencies with rarely heard realism and brilliant resolution. Despite the latter, our Japanese refuses to ever get analytical. The only thing missing is the last word in bass definition though a bit of roundness in the bottom holds charms for quite a few.
Full Review: 6moons.com
