General Asylum: REVIEW: Muse Electronics Model 9 DVD Players by mulysa

I am very impressed with the sound produced by the Model 9 Signature version. The unit plays CDs, DVDs and audio DVDs from the likes of Chesky and Classic Records. The Signature improves considerably over the analog output stage of the regular Model 9, taking performance to an altogether upper echelon.

With regular CDs the Model 9 Signature is very revealing of the recording and mastering quality of the source. Great CD recordings such as Reference Recordings' recent Copland disc sound well balanced and musically satisfying. Most Reference Recording CDs sound great on this player. But many older CDs sound the way they truly are, that is to say "digital" in the negative sense of the word. But with a good source the Muse is very detailed and revealing, and doesn't sound harsh or "digital" at all. This is particularly true of 24/96 material.

Indeed, Audio DVDs were a revelation to me, particularly those from Chesky Records, such as Livingston Taylor's pleasing if somewhat bland disc, and Sara K's excellent work. From the standpoint of their sound quality, these expensive discs are well worth their price, and fully competitive with SACDs. They increase the musical experience with a quantum leap over even the best CDs. For instance, I strongly recommend listening to the Philadelphia orchestra's Nature's Realm (Water Lilly 24/96) through this player, in nearfield speaker position, to really discover what this unit is capable of. Makes me wish everyone recorded classical music that way.

This is a very balanced player (no pun intended, although the unit is electrically fully balanced too). The bass is natural sounding and very present without being intrusive or boomy. I concur with the comments made by the manufacturer of Simaudio in a recent Stereophile review, in that achieving a natural top end is one of the big challenges of digital audio. The Muse's top end is as natural as I've heard, although perhaps an inch short of the state of the art players from Burmester which I have not listened to at home (and are over 10x in price). For instance, I rank the Muse Model 9 Signature a cut above the Levinson 39, which is also a great player costing $3000 more than the Muse. Construction quality is very good, but again, in my view surpassed by the very best.

To summarize, the Muse Model 9 Signature represents hard to beat value for the money and beats some of the best players out there at any price, with very few exceptions. Other CD/DVD players which I haven't heard but I would definitely consider at this price (or above) include players from Ayre, Metronome and MBL. Other players I considered but that were surpassed in performance and value by the Muse include units from Levinson, Meridian, BAT, Wadia and Theta. It would seem that improvements in sound are achievable by spending multiples of dollars, as opposed to extra dollars. In the case of this player I doubt that there is a better sound out there at less than several multiples of its price.

REVIEW: Muse Electronics Model 9 DVD Players Review by mulysa_den at Audio Asylum