Hello,
I switched from the K1 to the K1X last year and I don't regret it at all
Indeed the new Grandioso K1X is a major evolution, I am still amazed with each new CD.
The K1 was - and still is - an exceptional machine, but the new one really goes a long way on all criteria.
I must admit that I didn't believe in such a gap when I bought it, so much so that I kept the K1 "under the hood" while the K1X was being run in for a very long time.
The new mechanics and the new dac are wonderful. They really worked well at Esoteric (but without forgetting to add 10K€ on the already substantial price of the old K1...... )
Rather than a long speech, some comments from friends who came to listen to him at home:
- Since my last visit, a big change, even if it is not visible, the player. Exit the Grandioso K1, and welcome the Grandioso K1X... new version. New proprietary DAC and new mechanic
From the very first seconds/notes, the evolution is obvious, it's not a change in the order of detail. It is more airy, more open, and even better timbred. The bass comes down more, very articulate and hyper legible.
But I got a kick out of it. There's a real physical presence, with a lot of naturalness. We went from one style of music to another.
The Blue Mind album by Anne Bisson was a great discovery for me.
I had brought a few CDs, including one with the symphonic poem Escales by Jacques Ibert. And it sounded divine. The sound is so beautiful, the depth of the stage, the timbres, etc.
And Marie-Paul Belle singing Barbara. I'm not really into that stuff, but I have to admit that I stayed... I'm not sure I'd like to be a part of it, but I'm not sure I'd like to be a part of it...
- Seriously, a big gap with the new player, the old version was already very good, but here we play again on another register, it is not insignificant, apart from a general feeling that I find more natural that it is on the timbres, the airing or the presentation but it is especially the low register which gains enormously in consistency and which, of the blow, gives to the listening a true dense and structured base with as with each faith that the bottom is in its place a natural installation of all the other criteria .