Review: Eastern Electric Minimax Tube CDP

Eastern Electric MiniMax CD Player



My initial interest in the MiniMax product line was sparked by a “mini review” contained in an ebay listing for a dealer demo CDP. Dennis of Cape Ann Audio in MA was the author of that review. He and his wife Colleen deal primarily in quality used gear and are people who, quite simply, “know audio.” They have been very helpful to me in the past with unbiased opinion based on decades of experience. Their ad for the MiniMax CD Player was notable for two reasons: it was the first offering of “new” equipment I’d seen by them; and, their review of the unit left little doubt that they were very impressed. I had to learn more.

First stop was the web site for Morning Star Audio Imports (www.morningstaraudio.com), the exclusive North American distributor/retailer. I learned that the CDP had recently (February 2004) joined the existing MiniMax product lineup consisting of a tubed, linestage preamp and a pi-filtered, 5AR4/GZ34-rectified push-pull pentode amplifier (both featuring point-to-point wiring.) After a thorough read of the distributor’s site information, the surfing began to linked reviews and from there to audio forum user reviews. My curiosity was piqued.

I was finally nudged into taking the plunge and auditioning the MiniMax when I discovered an auction, by Morning Star, for a new MiniMax CDP on AudiogoN. As luck would have it, I was the successful bidder. I didn’t realize how lucky until the unit arrived!

First Impressions – Fit, Finish and Features

Although mini in footprint and name, there’s nothing gimpy about this unit. It is solidly constructed of cast aluminum and steel – no plastic is to be found in its front-mounted controls. Light weight equipment that slides on the rack shelf when touched is irritating to me. At 14 lbs. Minimax isn’t going anywhere. It sits atop four conical rubber feet that provide a measure of vibration dampening. The chassis cover is easily removed with four bolts which are easily accessible on the sides, but you don’t need to remove it for tube access – a very nice feature. Output RCA jacks are gold plated. Its full-featured remote is a solid block of aluminum that feels good in the hand. The remote buttons are a bit on the small side, but I don’t find it in the least inconvenient to use.

I’m a “vinyl sorta’ guy.” I cut my teeth in two channel audio in the early ‘70’s - long before digital. To be honest, I’ve always considered CD audio a compromise of convenience. My vinyl collection (of some 1500 titles) dwarfs my CD collection. A quality turntable, tone arm and stylus have always been the source components on the top tier of my audio rack. This “new kid on the block” was unpacked and installed lower down the rack and burned-in, rather unceremoniously, by running it on repeat for a few days. I did sneak a listen now and then during that period. Right out of the box it was apparent the “new kid” came to play.

While Mini was breaking in, I took the opportunity to familiarize myself with its features and specifications:

One piece, block aluminum remote (AAA’s included)
Cast aluminum faceplate and transport face
Adjustable brightness, multi-function operational display
Power and HDCD indicator lights
Tube output headphone jack with volume pot
RCA tube analog output
Digital coaxial output (75 ohm S/PDIF)
Burr-Brown 1732 DACs
Two 6922 or 6DJ8 tubes, with a pair of the 6922s included and pre-installed
Custom toroidal power transformer
Supports both conventional and HDCD-encoded compact discs
Output Level: 2 Volts +/-3dB
Frequency Response: 20Hz~20kHz +/-0.5dB
Distortion and Noise: less than -60dB
S/N Ratio: 90dB
Dynamic Range: 93dB / 100dB (HDCD)
Channel Separation: 90dB @ 1kHz
Power Requirements: 1117VAC +/-5%, 50/60Hz
Power Consumption: 30Watt
Dimensions (W x D x H) - 12" x 13" x 3" (316mm x 338mm x 95mm)
Weight: 13.25 lbs (6kg)
Warranty: 2 years – 30 day “Money back” trial period
MSRP: $1350 – Direct web sales price $899



The equipment line-up used in my audition of the MiniMax CDP consisted of:

Anthem PRE 2L preamplifier (tubed - dual 6922/6DJ8, with stock Sovtec 6922’s installed)

PS Audio 200 Delta power amplifier – 200 wpc@8 ohms, 375 wpc@4 ohms

Polk Audio SDA-SRS speakers, bi-wired – Nominal 4 ohms

Audioquest Diamondback RCA IC – source to preamp

Monster RCA IC – preamp to power amp

PS Audio Statement Bi-wire speaker cables

Electro Harmonix 6922 Gold Pins (for tube rolling)

Source material used:

Robben Ford – Supernatural (HDCD)
Little Feat – Dixie Chicken
Diana Krall – When I Look In Your Eyes

A Marvelous Listening Experience

The source material chosen is all very familiar to me, or so I thought. Beside the fact of familiarity, the selections were chosen for their excellence in engineering. The Minimax rendered every detail of these well recorded selections impeccably, and provided new levels of depth and separation that were, obviously, there all along and waiting to be experienced. Lead vocals breathed with a level of realism that was breathtaking. Backing vocals and tight harmonies emerged from murkiness that I honestly never realized I’d been experiencing. Instrument separation was superb with no blending of register and no instrument “walking on” another.

The stock Sovtek tubes had a hint of softness at the upper end of the mids and a slight loss of bass clarity. In went the EH 6922 gold pins. Fresh from the box they are extremely weak in bass punch. But, within 12 to 18 hours of play that issue evaporated and a new level of warmth, without softness, and clarity emerged that put a smile on my face. The Minimax can definitely benefit from tube rolling and I look forward to auditioning other combinations.

Lasting Impressions

My Minimax tubed CDP is now on the top shelf of the audio rack. In fact, my vintage turntable has been carefully packed and stored in my basement record storage room. I no longer feel that CD’s are a compromise of convenience and I’m having a ball working my way through (and thoroughly enjoying) the CD collection. If a tubed CDP is something you’ve been contemplating, the Eastern Electric Minimax is very worthy of your consideration. For price, features, quality of sound, and a 30-day no risk trial period you just can’t go wrong giving it an audition yourself.

Happy listening,

Mike