Wadia 861 CD Player hi-fi+ technical review

The Wadia 861 is an improved version of the already impressive 860x reviewed in Issue 4. It's big, and it's expensive, yet, as a CD player you might be forgiven for wondering why we're bothering with it. After all, aren't CD's days numbered, the medium about to be swept aside by SACD and DVD? Well, no. Things really aren't that simple and whilst we can see an end to CD's new-release life, there are the millions of discs out there (hundreds in your own collection) that will still need playing. Of course, SACD and DVD machines will both replay CD discs, but you have to ask yourself just how high on the agenda that aspect of performance is going to be, especially given that the whole raison d'etre of the new hi-bit formats is improved sound quality.

So, assuming you still want to extract the best performance from your existing silver disc collection you're going to need either a decent CD player or transport. If the Eikos (reviewed by JMH in Issue 13) represents the application of everything we've learnt about digital replay applied to a good basic machine, the audio equivalent of a hot-hatch like a Subaru Imprezza, then the Wadia turns that concept on its head. This is no after market bolt-on. The 861 represents a complete ground-up, inside to out reassessment of the problem, conceptually more akin to an Aston Martin than a souped up saloon car. The problem of course is that all that engineering costs, so the price is more like an Aston Martin too.

Of course, there are any number of expensively built and presented CD players on the market, but what sets the Wadia apart is the elegance of its conception. It might look like a (very) large and somewhat austere single box player, but as so often with things audio, all is not what it seems. Although it is indeed in a single box, the 861 is better understood if you think of it as a CD transport and a dedicated, switchable input, variable output DAC. Look around the back and you'll see socketry for four digital inputs, four digital outputs and both single-ended and balanced analogue outputs. Further, the DAC is already 24bit/96kHz capable making it compatible with DVD-V sources, and wilt also allow further future updating to accommodate SACD or DVD-A once the dust settles on their minor format tiff. So in reality, the Wadia promises to let you have your cake and eat it by providing both serious CD replay and a future proof DAC that should allow you to enjoy your investment with the new formats, albeit only in two channel format.

The 861 shares all of the above with the 860x. However, it adds a series of refinements all of its own. The inputs and outputs are now all disengaged if not in use and the player now incorporates extensive RFI filtering. But the really big news is all to do with the digital filter and analogue output stage. Wadia's progressively developed Digimaster filter algorithm has long been the heart of their decoders, but now, for the first time it offers user switchable characteristics, with three options allowing the owner to tailor the player to suit the character of his or her system. The analogue stage has been completely redesigned to incorporate lessons learnt in the development of the hideously complex and expensive Power-Dac project.

Finally, Wadia have finally tackled one of the biggest operational criticisms involving the digital volume control. The problem with any volume control that operates in the digital domain is that as you reduce the level you also reduce the system's resolution. Thus it's vital to keep the control running near the top of its range. Unfortunately, if you were running the 860x straight into a power amp then its 4V output level made that problematic to say the least, especially with the move towards more efficient systems. The 861 solves this problem by providing an internal adjustment of maximum output level, variable between 0.25 and 4.2V, which should enable you to match it to any system out there.

In use, the 861 demands a lot of real estate in your rack, both horizontally and vertically, as well as taking an unconscionable amount of time to warm up. Weeks rather than days in fact, so a quick listen is out of the question if you want to hear this player at its best. But believe me, its best is impressive indeed, and well worth the effort if you want maximum return from your investment in silver discs. For the majority of the review period I ran the Wadia with the Klyne or Plinius line stages, feeding either Monarchy Audio SM70 or Jadis JA30 amps driving the Living Voice Avatar OBX speakers. Cabling was Nordost Valhalla throughout.

By way of experiment I also ran the 861 directly into the SM70s, a topology of which Monarchy also approve (see my Playing The System column [this issue, 14]), and rang the changes with the Ars Acoustica Divas and Acoustic Solutions Model 8 speakers, the latter in the course of investigating the switchable filter topology. On which subject the answer is yes, you can hear clear differences between the three options. Configuration A equates to the standard Digimaster topology as supplied with the 860X and that's where I started. It was a bit like meeting an old friend, with all the power, solidity and presence that I remembered so fondly from the original review. It's the sheer substance and momentum that it brings to the music that sets the Wadia apart.

Engaging Configuration B added air and space to the soundstage, but overall I felt it lacked the immediacy and sense of temporal precision that came with A. Playing the superb new Reference Recordings disc of Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances (Eiji Cue, Minnesota Orchestra RR96) clearly demonstrated the differences. Where A offered tremendous substance and purpose with an almost brooding atmosphere, B opened up the air and space of the Minneapolis Orchestra Hall, lightening the mood and presentation at the cost of that sense of sheer drive and power, qualities which I think this music needs.

However I can easily perceive situations in which another listener in another room and with different equipment might opt for B; or how, presented with an impossibly forward recording or speaker I might engage C. That's the beauty of what Wadia have done. Not only does it allow you to vary the presentation to suit your needs and system, but it's so quick to do (about half a minute) that you can even adapt it to individual discs if necessary. Experimentation with the different speakers proved the point with subtly different effects in each case. I wouldn't put the facility top of my shopping list but then I've got a well balanced system and a room in which it takes absolute precedence. I can see situations in which it could be a lifesaver, and given the structural integrity and upgradeablility of the 861 this is one player that you buy for the long haul, so adding adaptability to its list of attributes is no bad thing.

This One's For Blanton (Analogue Productions CAPJ 015) is exactly the sort of disc to get audiophiles a bad name and send their less enlightened partners rushing from the room. A 'jazz sonata for double bass' that description probably tells you everything you need to know.

And yes, on a lot of systems it can descend into a mess of wallowing bass notes and irrelevant piano parts. Put it on the Wadia and it serves to demonstrate precisely what makes this player special. The dynamic discrimination is exceptional. Whether it's differentiating the speed, pacing and attack of Ray Brown's upright bass notes, or separating the emphatic, stabbed full stops at the end of Ellington's convoluted, rolling melodies, the 861 speaks with complete authority. The instruments are fixed solidly in the soundstage, never wandering with level or the instrumental balance, but simply placed on the stage as they would be live. The problem is that all too often this solidity and stability comes at the expense of life and immediacy, control crushing the breath from the performance. Not here. The sure footed agility of the Wadia never fails as it tracks the intricate and varied steps of the bass, never confuses the relationship between it and the faster, darting piano notes, shifting effortlessly between stabbed emphasis and more languid melodic lines. The end result is that it manages to make perfect sense of this most demanding (in both musical and hi-fi terms) performance.

It's a trick that it carries over to the instrumental excess of Slobberbone (Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today, New West Records). This bizarre mix of grunge meets country is remarkable mainly for the denseness of its mix and the attitude of the playing. This'll clear rooms but for a completely different reason. Playing 'That Is All' the first thing you notice is how easily the Wadia sorts out the competing instruments, allowing them all to jostle for position without ever swamping the lyrics, which are for once perfectly intelligible. The first, searing guitar break comes as no real surprise except for the grace with which it's delivered. What's more impressive is the subsequent insertions from harmonica and mandolin(!) each of which stands with equal integrity. Even the closing chords leave you hanging ... just waiting for the abrupt little Coda.

The Wadia's real ability is to reveal not just the structural bones of a performance, something which it does extremely well, but to flesh them out into a believable whole. I returned to the Sonora disc Music For Violin And Guitar (SACC 102) which impressed me so much on the 860x. If anything the 861 offers slightly greater focus and transparency, representing a small but worthwhile gain over its predecessor. In its own way that's as reassuring as my preference for Filter Configuration A. It's yet another example of Wadia moving slowly and purposefully towards their goal, refining their product by increments rather than trying to hit a home run every time. The fact is, that if you've got it fundamentally right it's easier to mess it up than improve things.

Thankfully that hasn't happened here and the 861 is just as impressive, and comes just as highly recommended as the 860x. Owners of the earlier player should contact the importer to discuss upgrades, whilst first time buyers should consider the far more beautiful silver finish, an option which unfortunately wasn't available for photography (you'll just have to take my word for it).

If the true worth of a product can be measured by the reluctance with which it is returned to its rightful owner, then the 861 is a star indeed. There are few CD players that can offer its sonic performance or its continuing relevance and upgradeability. A seminal product in the short history of CD reproduction, it promises to remain so for the foreseeable future. It will probably still be just as relevant by the time I can actually afford one.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Wadia 861 CD Player
Decoding Software 3 User Selectable Algorithms including 32x Re-Sampling Digimaster
Digital Processing Capability: 24 bits
Digital Resolution: 21 bits
Digital Inputs: 1 x Glass Optic (ST)
1 x AES/EBU (XLR)
1 x SP/DIF (BNC)
1 x Plastic Optical (Toslink)
Digital Outputs: 1 x Glass Optic (ST)
1 x AES/EBU (XLR)
1 x SP/DIF (BNC)
1 x Plastic Optical (Toslink)
Analogue Outputs: 1 pr Balanced XLR, 1 pr Un-Balanced RCA (Both can be connected simultaneously)
Output Impedance: Less Than 15 ohms
Dimensions (H x W x D): 17" x 16" x 7" (including feet)
Weight: 48 lbs
Price: - 861 player: UK£7950
Upgrade to 860/860x: UK£1500

Distributor:
Musical Design Company
PO Box 4146,
Epping, CM16 6HJ
Essex
Tel. 0044(0)-1992-573030
Fax. 0044(0)-1992-574030
E-mail. mdc.hifi@virgin.net
Net. www.mdc-hifi.co.uk

Manufacturer:
Wadia Digital
Tel. (1)734-475-4217
Net. www.wadia.com

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