Updated August, 2008

Hi Dave,

My first exposure to your magic was with the Denon 3910 Signature Edition which I preferred to my stock Esoteric X-03.  This was my first surprise and I didn’t want to believe it.  Then I followed your recommendation and moved to your Denon 5910 Ci Signature Edition.  Once again I was amazed by the difference.  I thought this is it.

I always been an Esoteric fan and lately following your recommendation again, as you know, I bought an Esoteric X-01 Limited Edition with your Signature Edition update.

This time, I’m speechless!  What a jaw dropping experience.  I can’t believe the details and musicality coming from this player with standard cd’s – it’s like I have a new cd collection.  With SACD, it’s a WOW! Factor.

It seems that there are few more sound layers to the men/women voices and music instruments.  Soundstage is wider and deeper than what I’m used to.

Now, the best part – the dynamics are very fast with top to bottom extension and the music is much more a like  “live” event.

I can’t be happier.

Congratulations for your work!!

I can’t recommend enough your magic to any player.

Best regards,

Dan Comeau

Hi Dave,
 
 The player sounds magical. This is the first time my system is giving me the magic consistently thatI am looking for.  I cannot believe that it can sound any better than this.............and I did not connect the Exactpower yet.  Also a dedicated power line/station with the new Cardas pure copper in-wall solid core power cable will be installed in my new listening room that is in construction. This is very promising.
Thanks,
Ron 

DaGoGo.com Staff Reviewer Ed Momkus's Review of Esoteric P70+D70 Upgrade

THE UPGRADE COMPANY-MODDED
ESOTERIC P-70/D-70 DIGITAL COMBO
OR
“GET ON THE PHONE OR COMPUTER AND CALL OR EMAIL DAVID SCHULTE RIGHT NOW!”

The ‘Mad Modder’

Well – not really – I was just looking for a cute subtitle. I’ve never met David Schulte, but I’ve spoken to him on the phone and corresponded via email. When you talk to him on the phone, it becomes evident that you are speaking with a sincere and earnest man who has a passion for taking good audio equipment and making it sound better. However, if I hadn’t previously spoken to him over the phone and only communicated via a few emails, I probably would have imagined David Schulte to look like Einstein, but with the crazed look and maniacal laugh of a demented audiophile genius. After all, who else would send you an email at 2:00 AM to let you know that the mods are done and that the modded equipment is being cooked in anticipation of shipment in a day or two?  I’m sure that the engineers over at Esoteric, Mark Levinson, Krell, Acoustic Research, and the other audiophile manufacturers are dedicated, hard-working music lovers who work late when necessary, but not at 2:00 AM….

The Upgrade Bug Strikes

I have had the Esoteric P-70 Transport and D-70 DAC for two years now. The pair together is Esoteric’s “statement” redbook digital. Even though I’ve purchased many hybrid SACDs under the assumption that I would one day purchase an SACD player, I have yet to hear an SACD player that sounds better playing the SACD layer of those hybrid discs than the Esoteric P-70/D-70’s rendering of the redbook layer of those discs. [There are several relatively recent products that are heavyweight contenders. For instance, I have not heard the Esoteric P-01/D-01 (I couldn’t afford them and haven’t been lucky enough to review them), but I am tentatively scheduled to review the EMM Labs DAC 6e  SE and CDSD SE Disc Transport.] Not content to simply wait for someone to make something better, I set out on a search for potential mods.

Modificosa Nervosa

Once I started seriously thinking about modding my Esoteric P-70/D-70 combo I also started to research various “mod shops” and their philosophies. The first thing I discovered was that no one had attempted to mod the Esoteric P-70 or D-70. This made me very nervous. If I owned a Lamborghini Diablo and wanted to improve horsepower and handling, I would sure as hell want to have it done by someone who had done it before. Alas, I was going to have to trust someone to do a good job the first time. Given the relatively unique technology used in the P-70/D-70, I wasn’t comfortable with anyone who was going to radically change the guts of the units (after all I liked the P-70/D/70) and was attracted to The Upgrade Company’s/Dave Schulte’s philosophy of substituting better parts. I also saw that David had modded many other Esoteric products and I figured that his experience with those other Esoteric products would help. Finally, I’d come across the names of The Upgrade Company and David Schulte  in the past when reading reviews of various mods, and the comments were very positive.

Mod One and Mod Two

I decided to “interview” David and exchanged some emails and spoke with him on the phone. He was very confident and reassuring, but I just couldn’t pull the trigger. Months went by while I continued to avoid making a decision. Finally, in March of 2007 I took a deep breath and sent the Esoteric pair to David along with $3,000 ($1500 for each unit). He got them on March 20th and shipped them back to me on March 26th. I reassembled my system and deliberately avoided listening for 24 hours. When I finally sat down for some serious listening I could immediately tell that the performers were larger and that the soundstage was deeper and more layered. This is unusual in my experience. In the past “larger” performers invariably meant a more forward soundstage perspective. It was the first time that I had this experience when upgrading any component. I was quite satisfied with the value I had received, since added soundstage depth had been one of my primary goals in getting the units modded.

Two weeks later I received an email from Dave Schulte which surprised me. First, he had liked the Esoteric P-70/D-70 so much that he went out and bought one. Second, he had been playing around with his new P-70/D-70 and had found a whole new series of mods that would elevate the combo to yet another level. Finally, he said that if I would just send the units back to him again he would perform these additional mods at the parts’ cost and not charge me for the labor. I was very impressed with Dave’s offer, but I had some downstream components I had in for review and couldn’t send the Esoteric combo back just then. “Besides”, I thought, “how much more improvement can you squeeze out from an already cream-of-the-crop component?” I liked what he had done and was reluctant to part with my babies a second time.

Three more months went by, but Dave didn’t give up. He again reiterated his offer to do the additional mods for just the parts’ cost. Finally, in July I gave in and sent the P-70/D-70 back to the Upgrade Company right before leaving on vacation. As before, David Schulte got the upgrades done promptly, but he also called and asked me if I’d also like to get the combo’s fuses replaced and upgraded with Hi-Fi Tuning fuses. I previously had great success with upgrading my amp fuses and would have also upgraded the fuses in the Esoteric combo, but they were located internally, so that you had to disassemble the units to replace them. I told him to go ahead.

Let’s go Live!

Let’s get to it. The Esoteric P-70 and D-70 took a few weeks to fully break in the new components, but the change was immediately evident. The improvements I noted before were much more obvious. First, the soundstage was even deeper and more layered. Second, the performers were not just larger, but they created the impression of being more fleshed out. In addition, and quite incredibly, both the lower bass and the upper treble became more extended and more detailed. I was particularly surprised by the improvement in bass, because the Esoteric P-70/D-70 was particularly good at rendering bass – in fact, the best of all the players I’ve heard.

All of these individual improvements stand on their own, but the real benefit is their cumulative effect. I have never heard, or should I say felt, an all-digital/solid state system sound so immediate and “real”. I’m not saying that the modified Esoteric P-70/D-70 sounds “rich” (it does not, and I don’t want it to). I’m not saying that it would sound equally “real” in a different system. I am saying that in my system, the modified Esoteric P-70/D-70 is finely balanced on that razor-sharp dividing line between richness and accuracy and produces music the way I hear it when it’s live in an excellent acoustic venue.

Based on this short review, you probably guess that I’d recommend the Upgrade Company and David Schulte for your upgrade needs. Well, you’d be right – and in spades! My experience was very positive. If you’ve got any of the components that Dave’s already modded (check his website and email him), send them to him for some amazing improvements. If, like me, you have something he’s never modded before, send it to him with confidence. You will not be sorry.

Ed Momkus
DaGoGo.com Staff Reviewer

"The DV-50 upgrade sounds great.  No need to go into long winded detail.  Everything is fantastic.  I don't sit around and try to analyze all of the details.  I sit and listen for hours. That’s all the accolades I need. The bass is the best, most detailed I have ever heard.  The speakers just disappear."

Edwin Roberts CPA
Irving,  Texas

A MUSICAL TRIP THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS WITH THE UPGRADE COMPANY

Absolute Sound reviewer's review of his Esoteric DV50S upgrade

By Max Shepherd

Having a CD player modified is not cheap, so the question is, is it worth it? How much of an improvement can I expect to hear for my money? Once I began considering having my Esoteric DV-50s modified, I tried to find the answer to that question. I read numerous testimonials on modifiers’ websites, some threads on Audiogon, lots of results of “shoot outs”, and a few reviews of modified CD players. They were interesting, but inconclusive. What I was looking for was an article that tried to directly answer my question by comparing a modified player with a stock player. I never found such an article, but decided to have David Schulte at the Upgrade Co, modify my DV-50s anyway. And I decided to run my own A/B tests. Toward those ends, I sent David my DV-50s, and I arranged to get a virtually new DV-50s on an extended loan.

When I got my player back in about 10 days, I set about burning it in. To avoid any accommodation effect during this burn-in period, David recommends a 300-hour burn-in, I did not listen to the player for 2 week, which was not as hard as it sounds, since I was out of town for most of that time. I just disconnected the interconnects, put in a CD, hit play and repeat, and walked out the door. Finally, though I was ready for some critical listening. With the modified DV-50s on the left and the stock DV-50s on the right, I put a CD in the stock player, sat back and began to listen. I have always liked the sound of the DV-50s. It has a good soundstage, relatively wide and deep; much better resolution of low-level detail, including timbre and decay, than any other player I have had; realistic dynamics, and it is musical.

I listened for a while, and then switched the power cord and interconnects over to the modified player, and listened to the same tracks. Did the modified player sound different? Yes. Was the difference significant? Yes. And of course, the real question: Did the modified player sound better? Absolutely. The difference was in fact stunning. The modified player sounded like a completely different component. Think sonic CinemaScope for those of you who remember that cinematic projection system - wide, deep, detailed, color saturated, and engaging.

David is, understandably, reluctant to discuss in any detail what his modifications entail. However, he apparently replaces parts in several of the subsystems of the player, including, most importantly, the output stage. Consequently, David’s modifications change virtually all aspects of the musical presentation. But the most immediate difference that I heard between the stock player and the modified player was in the sound staging. Here the differences were just short of breath taking. David’s modifications took the already impressive soundstage of the stock DV-50s and not only increased its overall size, which one might expect, but more remarkably, they gave the soundstage a palpable sense of volume and depth, and a sense of “you are there-ness” that was more than just an increased sense of size. More about this later.

The improvements in sound staging were particularly apparent when I listened to Handel’s "Messiah", originally performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and transferred to CD by Chesky Records, and pieces from the "Essential Tallis Scholars", a choral group. In both recordings, the modified player created or more accurately, reproduced a compelling sense of the enormous halls in which the music had been recorded, halls that were clearly much wider and deeper than my listening room, by projecting those halls beyond my listening room walls.

And with the changes in the sound staging also came a remarkable improvement in both resolution and clarity, changes that undoubtedly contributed to the sense of the deeper soundstage. Strings, whether on piano, violin, guitar, or standup bass, sounded fuller, rounder, thicker, and more natural, as the modified player more accurately revealed what I came to call “the belly of the string”, but what was actually the timbre of the string being played. Piano strings lost any sense of glare and simply sang. Violin strings were taut and true in tone and timbre. The strings of Ry Cooder’s bottleneck guitar jangled and rattled as he played with U.M. Bhatt on his Mohan Vina. This increased resolution and realism was not limited to just string instruments. Oboes in Handel’s "Water Music" were hauntingly reproduced, and again were true in both tone and timbre. The trumpet that introduces Mahler’s 5th Symphony thrust forward as a three-dimensional, brass instrument floating against a black background. Lyrics were also clearer and more easily understood. And vocalists generally emerged as more three-dimensional figures than simply flat voices against a background.

In addition, the modified player eliminated virtually any vestige of congestion that had existed in the center of the soundstage. This had the effect of sharpening the sense of both the individuality and the placement of the performers within the sound stage. And when the performers were presented as individuals, clearly distinct one from another, their individual performances blended together harmonically as music rather than smearing together as coalesced sound. I found this to be a particularly wonderful difference because it brought a sense of realism to the music that I had never experienced with my system before.

Yet another difference that I heard with the modified player was the change in the tempo of the music. I cannot explain this difference. However, I suspect it is related to the greater resolution of the modified player, including the fact that musical transients were so much crisper and cleaner. Regardless of the source, the effect was as if the music was being played slightly faster or with a more upbeat tempo, but without any distortion to the time signature of the music. The modified player just made the stock player sound sluggish. The other result of this difference was that the modified player made the music sound much more realistic, engaging and exciting. The music just grabbed my attention and wouldn’t let go. I had never had that experience with my system to that extent before. I noticed this effect initially when I was listening to Keith Jarrett’s “The Out-of-Towners”. I found that I was consistently being drawn into the grooves that Keith Jarrett was laying down in song after song because of both the difference in the tempo of the music, and the elimination of a slight sonic haze that stood between the performers and me.

This last difference is well worth noting. David's modifications so greatly improved the resolution of the player that they essentially eliminated a very slight haze or lack of clarity that had previously overlaid the music. While the presence of this almost gossamer like veil was slight, its elimination was quite significant. Eliminating this veil was like lifting a curtain that hung between the performers and me. And when this unobstructed access to the performers was combined with the startling musical realism that the modifications created, and the cavernous soundstage presented, it was like stepping through the looking glass and into the emotional reality of the music. Piece after piece became more exciting and engaging than I had ever experienced before with my system. I listened enthralled for hours, and still do.

Finally, one more observation and a caveat. First the observation. The differences that I heard between the modified DV-50s and the stock player when playing Redbook CD's were equally as apparent with SACD playback. And the caveat. While I had the stock player on an extended loan, it was not an indefinite loan. I ultimately had to return the stock player before I could conduct any A/B comparisons of the video performances of the two players.

My system consist of the following: the modified DV-50s, Aesthetix Calypso line stage with Mullard NOS long plate 12 AX7 and Amperex white 6922 tubes, McIntosh MC 402 amp., Dali MS-5 speakers, a modified Salamander Synergy Triple 20 stand, and Shunyata power cords, cables and interconnects.

Audiogon Member "Dadeyo44" on his Esoteric DV50S upgrade:
"Well done all around. It makes sense, what they do, when you think about it. Why try to redesign what some Multi million dollar company designed when you can simply upgrade their middle of the road parts! I can attest to the fact it is the best upgrade I have ever had performed for certain. Noticeably better than stock out of the box and the best bang for the buck I have experienced to date. Thanks for the best darn Esoteric DV-50s I have ever heard."

Dr. Fred Cohen on his Esoteric X-01 Signature Upgrade:

Thank you for the opportunity to audition the Upgrade Company/Schulte Signature upgraded Esoteric X-01 CD/SACD player. I am an authorized Linn dealer, so I am somewhat biased towards the wonderful " Linn sound ". I have an ethical and responsible position to deliver the best performance at various price points to my clients. I have also been considering offering another option for digital playback to my clients, since Linn has discontinued the CD-12.
After many weeks, and over 100 hours of serious auditioning, you have taken my experience in digital playback to the extreme sonic limits. I have done all my auditions with Linn Komri speakers which just went Aktiv, and I have them quad-amped, so the detail is brought out to the highest level.
We had over twenty high end audiophiles, and dealers to hear the event weekend last week.
We auditioned the DCS stack, the Esoteric P-03/D-03 separates, and the stock X-01 limited. We all were in high end sonic heaven as they all sounded great. We were quite surprised the your signature upgraded X-01 was by far, the best sounding piece in the all weekend event. Don't get me wrong. The other equipment was wonderful, however the signature X-01 that you did your magic to, took us to the most amazing sonic place. It was as live sounding, and some felt even better than live. The detail, transparency, overall depth of sound stage, and the emotion created by the sonic details and layers created were jaw dropping.
At the end we went back to the stock X-01 limited. It sounded like a plain vanilla cd player compared to the Signature Upgraded X-01.
Dave, thank you for sharing the opportunity to reveal what is truly possible in the high end world, and what the manufactures should be doing in the R & D departments.
Sincerely,
Dr. Fred Cohen
PS, any questions can be addressed by having them call me. Feel free to give them my contact info.

Audiogon Member Rick - from California - on his Esoteric DV50S upgrade:

I purchased my Esoteric DV-50 for convenience. I was looking for a player that would play any disc I could throw at it without a second thought, and of course, I wanted it to have good build quality and decent sonics. So, it was a great match for my needs. After a couple of years I wanted more in terms of sound yet still keeping the convenience amenities. It made sense to keep the unit and modify it with enhanced parts, etc. Problem was, with all the war stories out there regarding Mod Specialists who could I trust? I did my research and decided to go with David Schulte of the Upgrade Company. David put me at ease impressing me with his integrity and enthusiasm. After about a week with the unit Dave called me and said the upgrade was done and the unit was ready to ship. I couldn’t wait to hear the difference….

From the moment I plugged it in it was noticeably better. I had always felt the player exhibited congestion; imaging was smeared causing a lack of individuation. After the mod this condition was totally eliminated, no smearing, image delineation was first rate. Also, the soundstage was bigger with considerably more depth while the entire presentation emerged from a blacker background. The other thing I noticed was substantially more bass, in fact both ends of the frequency spectrum were more extended. Dave told me that complete break-in would take about 300 hours and everything would continue to improve, and it did.

In the world, as in audio, it’s all about return on investment. I can say without reservation that the return was well worth the investment, and I can say without qualification that David Schulte of the Upgrade Company can help you achieve your little piece of audio nirvana.
Give him a call….
Rick from California

Audiogon Member Martin M. had this to say about his Esoteric DV50 upgrade experience:

"I already had one helluva player that to me was heads above the rest. I've always been looking for a CD player even when I’ve had 2 -3 players in house costing anywhere from $1500 - $4500. Always looking. The Esoteric DV-50 was the first time I found a unit that could do a formidable job at more than just CD playback. It was the perfect solution - I could get rid of all the different players, free up all the real estate they were taking up, liquidate expensive PCs & ICs and generate some cash in the process. The
stock Esoteric was exceptionally good at everything it could spin and I was very happy with the unit. But one thing audiophiles cannot do is leave well enough alone.

Enter: The Upgrade Company
After doing research and then more research, I called David at the Upgrade Company to hear what he had to say. Always skeptical, I had my questions and concerns regarding my player laid out. Money wasn’t the issue, doing harm to what I already thought was a tremendous player was the issue.

After talking to him on several occasions and contacting another customer of his, I decided to go ahead with the upgrade. I dropped off the unit one afternoon and did some critical listening at his
place of business, then again when I picked it up. There was an
improvement, a little more than subtle but a change for the better. When I arrived home, I briefly listened to it again in my rig and noticed a discernable difference. I then allowed it to burn in for several weeks using my Ayre IBE CD (track 4) to get past the 300-hour break-in.
My take:
The whole musical experience was changed. Slight in some respects more overt in others, but nonetheless most welcome. Without going into all the rhetoric, I'll give you what I heard and felt. Yes, I did say "Felt" because I don't listen to music passively.

Resolution sums up the biggest improvement. I was no longer listening to musical notes being played I was hearing the instruments that played them. Never before have I heard such a thing to this degree. It was like literally watching the instrument being played in front of me. The image that the music portrayed was that vivid. Bass was wonderful. Better than I
remembered and once again the accuracy in timbre was arresting to say the least. Accurate “and” euphoric!!

In laymen's terms it was like taking the horse blankets off my Maggies.

The long and short of it:
Resolution, bass impact, dynamics, more refinement = a more involve
listening experience.

My experience with The Upgrade Company was truly an investment in everything I know, love, and feel about music. My Esoteric could already play the hell out of; CD's, DVD's, SACD's or anything it could spin… but now it has a soul. David is a great guy and now I can call him a friend who offers a truly unique service for people who love music. Invest in your music."

David,

Thank You for the big improvement to my Esoteric UX-03.

There is more and better sounding bass.

The mid range is sweeter.

The highs are smoother.

The music source in the sound stage is more focused (the ‘coughs’ in Bill Evans, Waltz for Debbie, are pin-pointed in space.

Overall, it is more “analog like” but with more definition of the single notes by different instruments playing together.

The improvement is big enough that I don't plan to upgrade my inter-connects and speaker cable.

Best Regards,

 Ken Paul