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Thanks, Tommy it might be very interesting. The player looks like it has 3-tube output stage and I wonder it is possible to run unit this all time on but to shut down juts the tube section?

Also, beside all typical curiosity regarding sound of that player I find it very interesting also use of USB interface. Would it mean that if I use the player then I would be able to play my DAW files though the Abbingdon processor? I truly do not know if USB interface is good enough to care high sampling rate signal. I think the newer (I think they are 5-6 years around) USB 2.0 is near 50-times faster, and I think the FireWire even faster. Now how it all extrapolate its in term of sound I really do not know… but I know that when I record and play 96/24 I would like to have all speed that I can get. It said that the unit can up-sample to 192KHz, can it actually read the 192KHz stream? Perhaps a raw 32-bit mastering stream? That would be very good? I would however require a lot of horns power to do it….

From the Abbingdon manual:

1. Digital Master I – this mode directly takes the data extracted from the CD and re-clocked to generate the music signal. Due to the complete lack of digital or analogue filtering, the treble frequencies are slightly rolled off, making the sound somewhat soft and laid-back. For the same reason, the mid-range and below is very natural and realistic. The reproduction of impulses is undistorted. This mode often helps to ‘tame’ overly-bright recordings.

2. Digital Master II – this mode is identical to Digital Master I but complements this with a special analogue filter which corrects the roll-off in the treble frequencies. With a subtle, but audible difference, this sampling method is not quite as faithful to the original data as DM I. However, in practice, as the tonality is more accurate in the treble, we recommend this mode as the benchmark with which to enjoy music.

3. Oversampling 2x – this mode engages the Digital Filter with an oversampling factor of 2, thus performing the least digital processing possible (except for no digital processing). The original data from the CD is in effect discarded and re-placed with a re-calculated version. This new version of the music is mainly linearly scaled up using a whole number as scaling factor and resolution/edge enhanced. The sonic result of oversampling mirrors those of resolution enhancement in digital photographs: more apparent detail is noticeable. However, impulsereproduction is distorted, leading often to a slight perception of an edginess or graininess.

4. Oversampling 4x – this mode engages the Digital Filter with an oversampling factor of 4, performing quite a large degree of digital manipulation. The original data from the CD is in effect discarded and re-placed with a re-calculated version. This new version of the music is mainly linearly scaled up using a whole number as scaling factor and resolution/edge enhanced. The sonic result of Oversampling 4x is similar to that of Oversampling 2x; except more accentuated.

5. Upsampling at 96kHz – this mode engages the Upsampler with a sampling frequency of 96kHz, performing quite a large degree of digital manipulation. The original data from the CD is in effect discarded and re-placed with a re-calculated version.  This new version of the music is non-linearly scaled up using a complex number as scaling factor and resolution/edge enhanced. The sonic result of upsampling is similar to oversampling; however there are subtle degrees of change in the tonality due to a shift in the harmonic spectrum as a result of the complex number which underlies the scaling.

6. Upsampling at 192kHz – this mode engages the Upsampler with a sampling frequency of 192kHz, performing a very large degree of digital manipulation. The original data from the CD is in effect discarded and replaced with a re-calculated version. This new version of the music is non-linearly scaled-up using a complex number as scaling factor and resolution/edge enhanced. The sonic result of 192kHz upsampling is similar to 96kHz upsampling. However, as the complex numbers that underlie the upsamplings are different to oversampling, the shift in the harmonic spectrum is not the same: hence tonality is somewhat different.

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