I also took offence to the "fantasy" quip. And Chesseroo laughing at "the ridiculous content of this thread". Because of my support of Chris's findings, these comments were directed at me as well.
I've always been skeptical of the boutique CD players with the vibration isolation feet and so on. Every CD & DVD player I've owned has sounded identical - regardless of connection path. Plus, I somewhat agree with John about recievers/amps sounding the same - BUT AT LOW LEVELS. Past that, I believe they can sound different. So going in, I wasn't expecting anything. But when Chris did the switch, (same CD) I DID HEAR A DIFFERENCE, and I was shocked because I wasn't expecting it. (Chris has his equipment behind the listening position so at the time, I thought he was just putting in another CD)
Regardless, I didn't hear enough of a difference, and I don't do enough "critical" listening to justify the $600 price tag. But Chris does, and that's all that matters. I've got friends and relatives that think I'm nuts for spending $3900 on the Epic 80/600, but to me it was worth every penny.
I don't care whether you believe me or not, but I certainly didn't appreciate (or expect) to be laughed at, or be told that I live in a fantasy world.
