CD Player Wadax Atlantis Reference Transport System Black

Reference optical transport with a proprietary THOR mechanism and bit-perfect reading of SACD, CD and Blu-ray PureAudio

The Wadax Atlantis Reference Transport is a reference optical player that reads CD, SACD, DVD-Audio and Blu-ray PureAudio discs and delivers an unaltered, bit-perfect digital audio stream regardless of the media type. It draws on the development work carried out for the Atlantis DAC and on an analysis of the factors that must be preserved in a digital audio signal — many of which had never before been applied to optical disc readers. At the heart of the unit is the proprietary Wadax THOR 1.3 optical engine, milled from a solid metal alloy of specific composition and complemented by a combination of materials dedicated to isolation and damping.

The THOR mechanism took more than 15 months of intensive development using FEA (Finite Element Analysis) simulations, a method commonly employed for aircraft wings and Formula 1 single-seaters. The simulations made it possible to predict the interaction of vibration, electromagnetic emissions and mechanical stability. Since the disc's rotational speed changes constantly during playback, the resulting vibrations are structurally channelled away from the pickup and damped on their way out. FEA also helped address the induced static charge of the polycarbonate disc, which creates an electromagnetic field directly above the optical block and photodiode as it spins; unwanted induced currents are redirected by design away from critical areas.

The power supply adopts the advanced topology of the Atlantis DAC. The entry point consists of two proprietary transformers designed specifically for the Transport, followed by circuitry with continuous mains voltage monitoring that optimises energy transfer and lowers noise at the power supply output. The whole comprises 10 Wadax circuit boards, 5 motors and control software managing every subsystem. A powerful processor also handles the sensors in the chassis — a vibration monitor and inclinometer display vibration levels and related parameters, so tuning spikes, racks or flooring can be assessed by measurement rather than by guesswork.

The Transport is the only top-loading optical player with a motorised vertical disc loading system: the moving block travels 35 mm of lift in 2.5 seconds, driven by two motors integrated into the THOR mechanism. Industry-standard RCA SPDIF and AES-EBU outputs allow connection to any DAC, but the most accurate digital link is Wadax Link (a dual Ethernet cable), reserved exclusively for the Atlantis DAC — only through it does the native, bit-perfect encrypted DSD stream from SACD pass. The chassis is the result of FEA analyses focused on high-speed disc rotation combined with industrial design by Ochoa y Diaz Llanos. Its modular concept allows software, boards and mechanical elements to be upgraded, with updates delivered via the proprietary Wadax Cloud.

Key features

• Optical mechanism: Proprietary Wadax THOR 1.3 developed using FEA simulations
• Media: SACD, CD, DVD-Audio, Blu-ray PureAudio, CD-R/RW, BD-R/RE
• Outputs: RCA SPDIF, AES-EBU, HDMI and Wadax Link for the Atlantis DAC
• Power supply: Two proprietary transformers with mains monitoring
• Operation: Motorised vertical loading and a 5" touchscreen display