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Enter the CD One T. Once you factor in that great equalizer McMammon, it becomes the more persuasive of the two Metronome machines. Spend more and get more is arithmetic anyone understands yet dreams of beating. Bel Canto's CD Two at €2.950 is one of the most cost-effective machines with which to secure a Philips CDPro2M transport if one regarded DVD/ROM drives as inherently inferior and wanted the last commercial audio-only top quality drive remaining. Add to such a transport my Yamamoto YDA-01 D/A converter and a superior digital link like Stealth Audio's Varidig. One would clock upwards of €5,000 to hit the sticker zone of also the fully gussied-up Metronome CD One T (its base version without tubes and XLR outputs is €4.700).*
In my digital career, I have worked through a number of credible contenders, from the Accustic Arts Drive with Audio Aero Anagram tube DAC to the top-line 4-box Zanden separates to the Ancient Audio Lektor Prime—all three incidentally with Pro 2 Philips transport—to the Peychev-modified Esoteric UX-1 to presently the same UX-1 as transport for the Yamamoto DAC. Anything that competes with or outperforms the present duo for the price of a Philips Pro2-based transport plus my YDA-01 becomes in my view a commendable proposition.
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* Of course, the pesky competition sleeps not nor do all punters agree that a PRo2M transport is essential. For €3,750, Raysonic Audio's fully balanced valve-powered and regulated two-box CD-228 is a very close call on sonics, albeit just as weirdly crippled on functionality by shunning digital inputs altogether.
The CD One T does outperform my customary front end slightly but consistently. In the world of Redbook Digital spun the old-fashioned way and thus read only once and in real time, small advances these days are hard earned. Hence even a very small lead remains meaningful this side of Kalista & Co. Granted, I personally would never buy the CD One T for its sadly antiquated lack of digital inputs. Yet I'm certainly not about to impose my needs or preferences on a fair assessment of its audible performance.
That incidentally begins with handling. The moment you close the massive lid over a disc properly seated under Metronome's Delrin puck, TOC is read in and total track numbers and disc time are displayed. Ready for joy? Only if you avoid a mistake easily made the first time. Without a magnetic latch but super responsive rails, even the smallest unintentional push on the lid—whilst putting a jewel case on it with more than required flourish perhaps—will dislodge the lid edge from its electronic trigger shown above. The faintest millimeter will do. Suddenly the control logic registers 'open' and the disc motor stops instantaneously. One does learn quickly that it's hands off during play. And that's really the only other grief to report. (Miniature request to Toulouse - install small magnets with just enough force to make a seal that'll require more deliberation to open.)
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For this segment of the test, I reverted to the J2 amp driven by the Esoteric C-03 at 12dB/gain. The CD One T connected to the C-03 via its analog outputs while the digital output saw the Yamamoto DAC which jacked into another C-03 input. After levels were matched, comparisons were a remote click away, level offsets electronically remembered.
The specific area where the CD One T had the upper leg was textural, which I think of as a small infusion of oil. Where water is a common analogy for purity and clarity, it lacks some texture or cohesiveness by comparison. It's why Shigeki Yamamoto added valves to the second incarnation of his D/A converter. As reported in my review of the YDA-01B, I ultimately preferred the transistorized version for its subjectively greater intelligibility at low volumes and its 'faster' handling of transients. Simply but comprehensively put, the Metronome adds valve-sourced texturizing just as the YDA-01B did earlier but remains more on its toes on the leading edge of things. That's it.
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A perfect playground for this tightrope act between tone and impulse response was Live in Le Quecumbar London by the Angelo Debarre Quartet which features Christian Garric on violin [Fremeaux]. Or Odem [Universal] with Wolfgang Puschning on sax/flute, Jatinder Thakur on tabla/percussion and Dhafer Youssef on oud/vocal. Having just experienced Dhafer Youssef live in Vevey's Rocking Chair club with his new quartet—the matching new CD Oud Poetry out in February 2010 should be a first-grade stunner—I could still fully appreciate how the real thing is always so far grander in scope, far richer in energy and overall impact.
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But KBO as Churchill supposedly said. One keeps buggering on to optimize the playback experience for more of those qualities which so plainly hinge on timing, tone and dynamics. Forget life-like dynamics unless you perhaps run big four- or five-way hornspeakers (which will introduce their own problems). It's on tone and timing where most of us stand greater chances of getting closer. And the Metronome CD One at its price nudges uphill on this quest to combine transient brilliance with more developed tone to elude that artificial dryness which is flat and stale compared to 'live' on a good day. |
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Another prime example for such benefits was Enrique Morente's so very peculiar voice on Vicente Amigo's Paseo de Gracia ["Autrorretrato" - Sony Music]. Raspy harmonics flicker like knife-edge flageolet in and out of sight when something in the throat catches or compresses. Seeming slightly out of tune—they aren't—these subtle shifts make for the colors and inflections of the singer. And the Metronome player separated out the simultaneity of harmonic movements and sharp attacks more strongly than the Yamamoto converter fed from the same Toulouse-modified Philips transport.
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If that doesn't sound like a lot by way of superiority, I did preface this section accordingly. As long as one plays in a given price range and deals with traditional CD playback—as opposed to a memory player for example—I haven't seen evidence for grand differences between competently designed machines. The Metronome's advantage over my customary Yamamoto was consistent and demonstrable but far from drastic. Still, I'd settle for the CD One T if I were shopping in this price range today; owned something a clear rung or two lower; and had no intentions of ever incorporating hard-drive or SSD streaming audio.
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Alas, I'm definitely looking to do so. Until I find a solution that fulfills all my requirements, I won't alter my existing setup. Those who sympathize with Metronome's priorities meanwhile also have the very persuasive Raysonic CD-228 to consider. That's just a tad softer/slower overall but lighter on the wallet. Just as I concluded for the integrated amplifier, Metronome's CD One T isn't pushing ultimate value. Given the company's small size, focus on European labor and extended development cycles, that comes with the turf. It's the bane of being artisanal in a cottage industry that must compete against Far Eastern imports which keep getting better and better.
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What's clear also is that Dominique Giner and his compatriots in Toulouse have a very clear idea of what sound they're after. They lock into it with different component categories and output devices. The CD One T and MT One are clearly cut from the same cloth. They thus complement each other perfectly for a compact high-quality setup that's nicely balanced between attack and decay, impact and flow to occupy that middle ground between solid-state and tubes a lot of quality equipment tries to reach by different means. Particularly with the CD One T, it stimulates curiosity. If this is what Metronome can do with a single-box machine, what do they manage with those outboard power supplies they make for their more expensive models?
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Metronome clearly practices solid 'analog' engineering where power supply quality is dominant. They also admirably refrain from digital buzz-word propaganda which personal experiments with endless filter/sampling options considers mostly irrelevant. That's probably precisely why particularly Metronome's digital gear has developed a top reputation. Their focus is on the analog bits of mechanics, output stage and power supply where the current trend toward miniaturization often skimps. Perhaps this could be an investigation to continue with another Metronome digital review down the road. That machine by then will have to have provisions for PC audio to be accepted however.
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For today, the conclusion is obvious. The CD One T and MT One are high-performance machines with an exclusionary feature focus; pricing that's not in lock step with the best imports that compete on sonics; and performance that's bona fide high-end and flawless. Flawless in this context simply means so cannily balanced that nothing telegraphs lack or opportunities for improvement unless a direct A/B comparison presents something overtly superior. Such innate balance is the most boring to talk about as a reviewer but in use as a prospective owner, far more important than anything else. On that note, Metronome's two machines thus 'did good' in Casa Chardonne... |
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Quality of packing: Double shipping box with foam inserts.
Reusability of packing: Yes.
Condition of components received: Perfect.
Delivery: Hand-delivered by the global marketing manager in Andorra.
Website comments: Classy in appearance but apparently hacked at the time of the review to feature very limited functionality.
Human interactions: Professional.
Final comments & suggestions: Metronome must modernize its feature sets to remain competitive and relevant. This company has the sound down. Now they need to make their machines do more, i.e. interface more comprehensively with a world of computers, iPods, televisions and cellphones that store music.
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