Yes like you, i am also having to do the same, the D100 is so much slower at ripping compared to the buffalo, but its doing a better job, so need to be patient with it
1 Like
I originally had my CD collection ripped via my PC and dbPoweramp. Having heard DB’s Melco rips and those at my dealer I could clearly hear that the Melco rips were easier on the ear and as you describe just more natural with a wonderful sense of air and space, better in fact than my CD555 which I traded for the ND555. I agree you would need a revealing system to get the best out of the rips, I am using an ND555 x 2 NAP555PS with a 552/500 into Kudos 808s on a SL full loom. The ripping process is very slow on the D100 direct on to my N1. I reckon it takes about 1 hour to rip six or seven CDs on average. I started re-ripping my collection (about 2000) about four months ago doing a few each day and I reckon I have a few weeks to go yet so it’s keeping me occupied during lockdown! So icing on the cake for sure, at £1099, but I am sure that I will not be ripping my CD collection ever again.
2 Likes
I rip with an Apple super drive. I use XLD. I rip to AIFF I used to rip to ALAC . I rip with Accurate rip enabled, drive offset and pre gap. I’m not a fan of WAV files since metadata support isn’t as good. I’m not a bits are bits guy by any means but there is no timing info in a rip so I’m not sure how different rips can sound different
Better not respond…a same polemic will begin and was discussed already many times.
1 Like
When I bought my original N1a, Melco were promoting the simplicity of ripping using any £25 external drive. I variously wore out LG, Asus and Hitachi drives before buying a Melco blu-ray drive. I wish had done so in the first place. It’s faster, quieter, has ripped a number of discs that constantly failed before.
So then I renamed and reripped half a dozen discs. Of course I was going to hear a difference, but my wife didn’t know why I asked her to listen. She can hear a difference as well!
Interesting. So Buffalo owns Melco I wonder if a Buffalo optical drive would rip as well as the Audiophile Melco? There’s a Buffalo Blu Ray desk top unit that’s $135. BRXL-16U3
Here the answer, posted above.
Interesting, thanks Dunc.
Interesting. So Buffalo owns Melco I wonder if a Buffalo optical drive would rip as well as the Audiophile Melco? There’s a Buffalo Blu Ray desk top unit that’s $135. BRXL-16U3
The buffalo will get you say 95% and the D100 the full 100% lets say.
What matters is if you want the last 5%, if you will hear the last 5%, as like i said in the thread, i dont think it would be worth having a melco D100 unless you have a very revealing system, as i just dont think the extra space, air and more natural sound it can deliver on its rips would show, could be wrong, but having not had the same issue when i had the NDS, i would say that its dac wasn’t capable off showing it up, if that all makes sense.
But off course if you have 1000’s to rip, then it could make perfect sense to rip them the best way possible, as then you stand a better chance going forward not ever having to do them again, like i am now.
But take it from me ripping from a D100 takes a long time, it is much slower than the buffalo and how long it would take anyone to rip say a 1000 CD’s is just mind destroying
Does the Melco use proprietary ripping software or is it like any other drive?
I dont know, sorry. You will need to go on the melco site to find the answer, unless someone else knows
It can use third party software such as dbpoweramp if connected to a pc . If connected direct to the Melco itself It uses some built in proprietary software.
Why Melco D100 for ripping…Unity Core is not better for ripping? anybody here compared?
RipVanRadio above reported:
Didn’t understand your post all the way …what I understood that’s ripping is better with D100
Yes the melco with the basic buffalo sounds better than the core and plenty off info if you do a search.
The D100 just makes it even better
But then a Mac CD Drive ripping using DBPowerAmp onto a fanless QNap NAS sounds better than the Core
I guess its time to consider an external ps for my Core. Oh they don’t make one. Perhaps a firmware update would do it. Naim? New product opportunity.
Well i have finally finished re ripping all my favourite CD’s once more and happy its over.
The melco D100 clearly rips better than the more normal buffalo drive melco recommend if you dont have the D100.
The D100, adds a more natural sound and extra space, its not hugely different, but it is different and in a good way, it also takes a lot longer to rip a CD and some CD’s a very long time, i guess going slower helps it extract all the data correctly. Its also quite a heavy beast and very quite in operation and i guess this also helps, anyway what ever it does, it does it very well and if your system warrants the extra few percent of quality this can give, then give one a try.
Its also worth noting that if you use a melco with the dac out (usb), you can use this drive as a CD player and its ment to very good at that as well.
Just to add the melco i use is the N1zs/2 which also might have helped me get to this outcome.
Cheers dunc
5 Likes
I still have a couple of thousand of cd’s to do…, but also very happy with the results of the first 1000 I re-ripped