Specs & Pricing

Equipment
Report
Resolution Audio
Opus 21 CD Player
and Integrated
Amplifier
A stack with high-end aspirations
Alan Taffel
There is no getting around it: Resolution
Audio’s Opus 21 is a component stack.
That’s right, a stack in the manner of
those sold at big box stores by unknowing
salesmen to unknowing consumers. But try
not to condemn the Opus 21 through guilt
by association. This particular stack might be
different. And stacks, as a concept, may not be
all bad.
Consider, for instance, the matter of stacks as
a pure packaging scheme. It turns out that they
have a lot going for them. They don’t require
a hand truck to lug around or a divestiture to
purchase. Their stylishly coordinated aesthetics
beg to be showcased in an actual living space.
Operationally, stacks are beyond convenient;
they are near-telepathic. And while in these
respects stacks resemble all-in-one boxes, in
other ways they are more like separates. Stacks
are flexible and modular, and can relegate
sonically combative elements—like digital and
analog circuitry—to separate chassis. Perhaps
most remarkably, stacks have an unheard-of
effect on significant others: They implore you
to buy one.
Externally, the Opus 21 may be a 9.5"-wide
stack; but inside it’s high end all the way. From
prioritizing sonics over frivolous features, to
the use of high-grade parts, to fine-tuning by
ear, this is a product consistent with the best
traditions of the high end.
Because the Opus 21’s design and
execution is in a different league than its
mid-fi counterparts, so is its price. The whole
works—including a CD player, mm and mc
phonostages, AM/FM tuner, integrated amp,
and a control center with comprehensive
digital and analog connectivity—runs $7500.
While clearly not in mid-fi territory, that’s still
a bargain in a world where one single-function
high-end component can easily reach that
sum. And many Opus 21 systems will come
in for less; nothing says you have to buy the
full stack.
All the hallmarks we
audiophiles cherish
are right here
Stacks are like Lincoln Logs; you build them
up piece by piece. In the Opus 21’s case, the
analogy is particularly apt since its modules
actually physically interlock by means of 25-
pin connectors on their respective tops and
underbellies. This approach negates the need
for interconnect cables, with their inherent
losses, and requires but a single solder
point directly to each circuit board. Analog
signals, status/command traffic, and power
travel between components through these
connectors and along a high-speed bus. Digital
signals traverse an entirely separate path in
order to quarantine their noise.
Both Lincoln Log structures and stacks
require a foundation. The Opus 21’s is its CD
player. This module actually consists of two
chassis: the transport/DAC, and the Power
Center. The latter contains a power supply
and large display that serve not only the CD
player, but any additional modules present.
Cleaving the CD player’s traditional functions
makes such efficiencies possible and, again,
segregates noise-generating from noisesensitive
components.
Because the CD player forms the Opus
21’s foundation, it is the only module that
can be deployed in a stand-alone capacity. But
even in that role, it is far more than a simple
source. The transport/DAC chassis includes
a coaxial digital input that will accommodate
any stereo PCM source up to 24-bit/96kHz
resolution. That allows the player to host an
external device such as an XM radio receiver,
PC-based music server, or DVD player. The
CD module also includes a built-in high-grade
analog volume control. With these features,
the player becomes all that many systems will
need as their front end—just add a power amp
and speakers.
Of course, if you require an amp, the Opus
21 stands ready with the S30 module. Inserting
it between the CD player’s two chassis adds
a sophisticated though modestly powered
(30Wpc) amplifier with a transformer of its
own to supplement that of the Power Center.
Because the S30 is actually a full-fledged
integrated amp, it incorporates a linestage, its
own volume control, and three analog inputs.
December 2006 The Absolute Sound 57