Cambridge Audio Azur 851N in the house!

audioluvr
audioluvr Posts: 5,582
in Going Digital
Just picked up this pre off CL for $800! Just over a year old. The guy told me his wife made him get rid ALL of his stereo stuff. Poor idiot... This thing sounds amazing! Considering my next newest component is over 20 years old... Right now I have my laptop hooked to it via Bluetooth. Thanks all for helping me spend my money!

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Gustard X26 Pro DAC
Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
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  • tophatjohnny
    tophatjohnny Posts: 4,182
    edited February 2019
    Congrats. I enjoy the heck outta mine. It lives in our bedroom and is a solid performer. Download the Cambridge Connect app on your phone and have some fun. Silver looks cool.
    "if it's not fun, it's not worth it & remember folks, "It's All About The Music"!!
    *****************************
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  • displayname
    displayname Posts: 1,148
    audioluvr wrote: »
    Right now I have my laptop hooked to it via Bluetooth
    You have not even scratched the surface of what that streamer is capable of. Once you get one of the streaming services going direct to the unit you're going to unlock a whole new world of digital quality. Enjoy!
    Analog: MoFi MasterTracker > MoFi UltraDeck > Sutherland 20/20
    Digital: Cambridge CXC / Streaming > Cambridge CXN v2
    MastersounD Dueventi > Rosso Fiorentino Certaldo or Arcam rHead > Hifiman HE4XX
    Discogs
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    Ya still trying to figure this thing out...
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
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  • afterburnt
    afterburnt Posts: 7,892
    @audioluvr nice catch, but not for the "poor dude".
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  • afterburnt
    afterburnt Posts: 7,892
    Oh BTW I am glad Oppo stopped selling Universal players, I may have never thought about Cambridge, they have a nice signature sound from what I can tell by the two pieces that I have.
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  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,194
    Yes awesome piece. I've used it many many times with many different speakers and it doesn't disappoint in any way.
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    edited February 2019
    So when I play CD's on it, the display shows 44.1 kHz aptx. Does this mean my transport is a POS? Just curious as that's the same thing it says when playing Tidal in HiFi mode. I haven't upgraded Tidal yet as I thought I'd wait until my "Free Trial" was over first. Plus my WiFi must suck because it sometimes pauses during songs. The guy I bought it from had a couple of Western Digital "My Cloud's" that had all his music files on. I'm trying to figure out how that works... Do I need any special software do this? Sorry for all the newbee questions.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • rooftop59
    rooftop59 Posts: 8,121
    Tidal in hifi mode is the same as cd quality.
    Living Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
    Game Room 5.1.4:     Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra
    Bedroom 2.1     Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer
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  • BlueFox
    BlueFox Posts: 15,251
    I have a Cambridge Audio 840E preamp, and two 840W amps that made my first good stereo. The 840W amps are now in my home theater powering the front speakers for both video, and audio only. The 840E pre is in a box in the garage as a spare. About two months ago my Pass XP-22 preamp broke and I used the 840E for about three weeks until I got the Pass back. It did a great job as a stand in, and sounded great
    Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
    Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
    Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes

    Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
    Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
    Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables

    Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
    Three 20 amp circuits.
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    rooftop59 wrote: »
    Tidal in hifi mode is the same as cd quality.

    Ah. I just read that in the manual. So where do higher quality recordings come from? The manual says if I am wanting to play higher quality recordings it should be hard wired to the router. That's not happening for a while... I still need to figure out this downloading thing... Boy do I feel dumb...
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    edited February 2019
    audioluvr wrote: »
    Boy do I feel dumb...

    No need to feel dumb, that's a big boy player with a ton of functionality to explore.

    My first suggestion, stop using it with your laptop via Bluetooth.

    Download the Cambridge Connect app on your phone and go about things from there.
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    Just discovered the "Radio" function... Holy crap! 20,000 HD internet radio stations to choose from and most all at the 192kHz level. They sound REALLY good! Very warm.
    Listening to radio while I figure out the app on my phone...
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    edited February 2019
    Ok got the app running. S W E E T ! ! ! Now the CA shows the album cover and track on it's display. This thing is making my Sonata's and Polks really sing!

    Big shout out to @dSkip for the excellent review of this unit that made me jump on this when it just happened to come up for sale right afterwards.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • tophatjohnny
    tophatjohnny Posts: 4,182
    edited February 2019
    Lol...remember when!! You will have fun with that
    "if it's not fun, it's not worth it & remember folks, "It's All About The Music"!!
    *****************************
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    One limiting thing I see with this that I really liked about the B&K is you can't program the name of inputs. On the B&K you could label them "CD Player" or "Turntable" which was cool. Also there are only 4 presets. 4. Lame. The B&K had 99. BUT the B&K wasn't a streamer so in the closet it goes!

    I'm really digging the free radio streaming. I have local stations saved in the presets.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    Try setting the presets via the Cambridge Connect app. I was able to set 20.
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  • tophatjohnny
    tophatjohnny Posts: 4,182
    Clipdat wrote: »
    Try setting the presets via the Cambridge Connect app. I was able to set 20.

    Nice to know. I haven't messed the
    With radio portion since I got it outside of checking to see that it works ..but definitely worth
    trying .
    "if it's not fun, it's not worth it & remember folks, "It's All About The Music"!!
    *****************************
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    I may have mis-typed. I believe I meant to say the web interface, not the cambridge app. Just type the IP address assigned to it into a browser and you should see the additional setup options, including the additional presets.

    Then, once they are setup you can control/access them from the cambridge app.
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    edited February 2019
    Ya it'll do 20 if you hit the home button and go into presets. I was just looking at the remote. My bad. I thought it was cool that I could find and listen to the rock station in Topeka, KS that I used to listen to decades ago when I was stationed in Ft Riley, KS.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    So after almost a week of using this I'm starting to dislike the "brightness" of it. At low volumes it's clarity is pleasing but I've found that I can't crank it anymore without it fatiguing me. The B&K Reference 50 pre had such a smooth and natural sound that it was always making me want to turn it up more and more until everyone in the house started freaking out, though at low volume it was not as pleasing to the ears as the CA. Maybe not cranking it is a good thing....
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    Well you could always put the B&K back into the system for preamp duties, and just run the 851N to it as a fixed line level source.

    There's no reason you have to use the Cambridge as a preamp just because it has that capability.
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    True but I was trying to free up space... The B&K takes up a big chunk of space. I'm torn...
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,934
    Can't you just put it back into that large open space underneath the Cambridge?
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    edited February 2019
    Ha! Those are for my amps. I took them out to install a entertainment center cooling system.

    https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-AIRPLATE-Thermostat-Cabinets/dp/B00QFXC4MS/ref=sr_1_9?hvadid=241939786042&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9032871&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t2&hvqmt=e&hvrand=8118661436348705243&hvtargid=kwd-128615632620&keywords=airplate+t3&qid=1551163074&s=gateway&sr=8-9&tag=googhydr-20

    I'll figure something out.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,962
    Hmmm....your the first person I've heard of that thinks it's on the bright side. Interesting....because that would be a turn off for me. Cambridge usually tilts to the warmer side of neutral.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

    Sonos zp90
    Grant Fidelity tube dac
    B&k 1420
    lsi 9's
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • displayname
    displayname Posts: 1,148
    edited February 2019
    tonyb wrote: »
    Hmmm....your the first person I've heard of that thinks it's on the bright side. Interesting....because that would be a turn off for me. Cambridge usually tilts to the warmer side of neutral.
    Skip and I talked about this when I got my CXN. He said he was thinking about potentially having me lean toward the 815N as it's obviously a more robust product with greater detail, but he said it is a little brighter, and he knew that was the main thing I'm trying to tame in my system so the CXN would be a better fit for my needs now. I don't think that means the 815N is bright in general. Just compared to certain things.
    Analog: MoFi MasterTracker > MoFi UltraDeck > Sutherland 20/20
    Digital: Cambridge CXC / Streaming > Cambridge CXN v2
    MastersounD Dueventi > Rosso Fiorentino Certaldo or Arcam rHead > Hifiman HE4XX
    Discogs
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    Amps: B&K M200 Sonata's
    Speakers: Polk SDA 1C's
    Speaker Cables: Wireworld Mini-Eclipse 7
    IC's: Monoprice XLR's

    The CA 851N is about a year old so it should be broke in. I'm going to run the analog out's through the B&K to see what that does for me.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    Some internet radio. A lot of Tidal and occasional CD's. Pulled my B&K pre/pro out to experiment with. Using the RCA analog out on the CA into the B&K. Have the CA setup with the preamp off with volume set to max. MUCH better! Apparently it's superpower is DAC and streamer. My daughter (who has yet another snow day) likes it better this way as well.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    DSkip wrote: »
    A good preamp is very important to a system.

    I was wondering why you guys were not using these as a pre also. Not saying the B&K is the best pre but after trying different approaches I'd say the music that's coming out of my system now is very pleasing. Even tried a BluDento in both analog out and digital out to the B&K to see which had the better sounding DAC. Definitely the B&K even though it is older. But the CA 851N has clarity and imaging in spades compared to the others. Now if I can just figure out how to get all these components into my entertainment center...
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,582
    Skip, I am using the B&K as the analog pre and the CA as the DAC and streamer. By far the best sound that way.
    DSkip wrote: »
    Can I ship you my Audible Illusions preamp so you can try that in place of the B&K?

    I would love to try it out!
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter