Aqua Acoustic Quality La Diva M2 CD transport

To paraphrase the much misquoted Mark Twain, reports that CD is dead are an exaggeration. It may no longer be the format of choice on the high street but among the musical cognoscenti, that’s us, it remains a very popular format. It’s not hard to see why; for a start, a lot of audio enthusiasts have thousands of CDs many of which are not available on streaming services. Then there’s the intrinsic simplicity of playing them; no need for a smartphone or tablet, just press the button and you’re away.

The drop in mainstream popularity has had one clear effect, and that’s to reduce the number of players on the market. Where once dozens were released across all price points every year now we are down to one a month at the most. So, it’s heartening to see that Italian brand Aqua Acoustic Quality has updated its La Diva CD transport and continue to offer a high quality disc spinner to the many audio enthusiasts who enjoy the format.

La Diva M2 looks exactly like its predecessor, which is very good indeed, it simply oozes quality with attention to detail at a very high level, and fit and finish in the premier league (music loving footballers take note). I love the Nextel finish on the casework and magnetic puck, and ditto the levers in place of buttons. These operate like buttons by springing up after they are pressed, but have a very definite action and immediate consequences in terms of the transport’s behaviour. This is something that CD lovers take for granted but is less common in the world of streaming where a processor has to jump in with every command.

Of delight

The transport mechanism or disc drive sits beneath a lovely sliding lid on top of the machine. This has pros and cons. On the plus side, there is no drawer mechanism to go wrong and the process is a bit like playing a record. But on the inconvenience front, it requires top-shelf positioning if you are to be able to place and extract discs with ease. I have a turntable on the top shelf of my rack and used a reasonably high (eight-inch) space on the next shelf down. This was a bit of a fiddle, not least because you need to remove and replace the magnetic puck. On one occasion, I wasn’t paying attention and the disc slid into the machine to the left of the drive bay; it didn’t disappear but I was more careful thereafter. I guess that dedicated CD users will afford La Diva M2 the top spot and thus avoid this sort of malarkey.

Dedication

Aqua is keen to point out that La Diva M2 is a “pure CD machine”; it is dedicated to the humble Red Book CD and doesn’t dally with the likes of SACD or even DVD‑Audio (if anyone remembers that). This is largely because the latter is dead and buried, and there is no protocol for digital connections with the DSD format that underpins SACD. La Diva M2 uses a modified CD Pro-8S transport mechanism from the optical division of Stream Unlimited, with an aluminium chassis and carbon-fibre turntable. Aqua developed the coding and wrote it to FPGA, which controls signal feed to the various outputs on the back of the machine, among which the AQLink I2S is their proprietary connection for Aqua DACs.

Those with DACs from other brands have a good choice of connections to pick from; alongside S/PDIF on coaxial and (preferably) BNC connectors, there is AES/EBU on XLR and an AT&T fibre output. It doesn’t have USB output and would probably be the only CD transport to do so if it did, but given that this is often the best input on modern DACs it’s something that might be worth investigating. Those looking for ultimate digital synchronicity will be pleased to see a word clock output on a BNC connector, if your DAC has the same facility this is one area which warrants closer inspection, that is if the price of a decent clock isn’t too frightening.

I mentioned attention to detail in the appearance of La Diva M2 so it shouldn’t be a surprise to see that this continues inside the box. Here you will find a multi-stage voltage regulator for accurate disc drive control, tracking and focus, two low noise power transformers running the digital and servo sides separately, and fully floating galvanically and magnetic isolation between drive system and digital outputs.

Precise and compelling

I have to admit that my days of playing discs on a regular basis are long gone, but I still have a good collection of CDs and would prefer to listen to rips of those discs than to a streaming service. And going back to spinning polycarbonate proved to be a highly rewarding experience, with Aqua’s La Diva M2 delivering a precise and compelling result through two very different digital to analogue converters.

La Diva M2 is very clear and definite in its presentation; there is no vagueness or blurring of leading edges and transients, and it seems a lot more calm and collected than the CD players I used in recent times. You really feel that, on the one hand, the noise floor is extremely low and on the other, that the transport is extracting an awful lot of what the disc has to offer. CD’s only real advantage over streaming is that it doesn’t have to deal with noise coming in from a network connection, the technology comes from an era when this stuff didn’t exist in audio and was developed in a cleaner electrical environment. Players still have to deal with noise on the mains, which has undoubtedly increased, but you don’t often find a streamer with sonic backgrounds that are as quiet as you get with La Diva M2.

This is very good for producing leading edges without grain or blur, which give you all the attack of a note in clear and definite fashion. And that in turn means strong timing without any of the digital edginess that can afflict this format. I was very impressed with the dynamics on offer from the Aqua; it really makes the most of dynamic contrasts so when a quiet intro is used to give the following crescendo impact you know all about it. The sound is not dissimilar to the sort of thing you hear in pro audio, it has that no nonsense solidity of delivery, it’s a confidence inspiring approach because it handles transients so well, nothing seems to phase it.

Keith Jarrett’s live album Testament was recorded in London and Paris, and recorded really well at that. The piano has real body and weight and this much is clear on La Diva M2, it gives you a strong sense of the hardwood and steel of the instrument, and of the way that Jarrett could combine power and restraint in his improvisation. All of which is underpinned by compelling rhythm, here there is no apparent emphasis but it always comes to the fore. Something that will vary with different DACs of course but something that La Diva M2 is clearly very proficient at.

It makes my similarly priced streaming source, a Melco N10 server, sound a little soft and laid back, the Aqua having an impetus, a get up and go that the music files lack. Each suits different tastes and systems of course and as a rule the Melco is combined with a streamer but it’s an interesting contrast. If you want to feel the power and energy of a well recorded drum set La Diva M2 makes a very good case for itself, here the transient speed and power of each impulse is very realistic. The drums on Tortoise’s ‘Ry Cooder’ are all about attack and with this transport that quality is particularly well served. On the upbeat ‘Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes’ [Paul Simon, Graceland] the bass line really pops while the voice and guitars are as open as you like, the steel strings have real zing. The rhythm is of course infectious, don’t even try to sit down.

Sticking with the silver disc

CD is clearly in much better health than disc sales would suggest, it’s now a format for afficionados who realise that it’s not only more straightforward but quite possibly the least expensive option available to the sound quality conscious. The Aqua La Diva M2 is a superb piece of kit that makes a very strong case for sticking with the silver disc, it combines very high build quality with a strong, compelling sound that few who use their ears could resist.

Technical specifications

• Type Solid-state CD transport
• Disc Types CD, CD-R
• Digital Outputs Two S/PDIF (one coaxial RCA, one coaxial BNC), one AES/EBU (via XLR), one AT&T ST fibre optic, one AQLink Pro I2S (via etherCON RJ45).
• Frequency response N/A
• Distortion Not specified
• Signal to Noise Ratio Not specified
• Dimensions (H×W×D)  100 × 450 × 370mm
• Weight 10kg
• Price £8,960

Manufacturer

Aqua Acoustic Quality

www.aquahifi.com

UK distributor

Elite Audio UK

www.eliteaudiouk.com

+44 (0)845 060 9395

0800 464 7274 (UK only)

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