If I could have any CD player (cost no object) it would be...

Yes, for 18k from Tone Imports. The PRIMALUNA MODEL EIGHT CD PLAYER for $2500.00 will give it a run for the money.

If you listen only to audiophile cds, I agree, can sound better than vinyl, unfortunately most modern cd are mastered too loud, I dont see how a state of art cd player can fix it..
 
I ran this player for years and have it in storage now as I am running a smaller system and room dictates it.. Plus I am on a vintage blast now..

Its analogue sound and volume pot as its 4 DAC make it very neutral.. Its CAST connections paired with a CAST amp are as detailed as it gets !
 

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I ran this player for years and have it in storage now as I am running a smaller system and room dictates it.. Plus I am on a vintage blast now..

Its analogue sound and volume pot as its 4 DAC make it very neutral.. Its CAST connections paired with a CAST amp are as detailed as it gets !

The pic is tiny - what is it?
 
Krellkps25sc Pre amp cd player all in one all Class A ....Lots of info on Google ! It retailed for $25,000 back then
 
If you listen only to audiophile cds, I agree, can sound better than vinyl, unfortunately most modern cd are mastered too loud, I dont see how a state of art cd player can fix it..

I agree, i was only comparing CD deck to CD deck and not the overall CD sound.
 
I'd get one of those orange Line Magnetic jobs. No reason other than they look really cool. Orange? Who'da thunk.

Or a Luxman SACD player.
 
I'll stick with my Marantz and Oppo players, but if I could use either purely as transport into the DAC I'd most like to own that would be the Weiss DAC202. For those looking for a reasonably priced transport, look no further than the CD5004 - cheap enough to consider the following simple mods per a Head-Fier who spends an inordinate amount of time with it hooked up to uber DACs costing many thousands of dollars.

Put the transformers on rubber washers. Pulled power to parts of the player which weren't necessary for its use as a transport.

FWIW, Marantz in Japan have made some interesting claims re the internals of the SA-14S1 in comparison with other reference gear, but ultimately its going to come down to whether you prefer a polished, detailed presentation or something with a little more bite.
 

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I lust after many things in the world of audio hi-fi equipment, I think most of us do. Lately it's been CD players, and I'm fortunate enough to be able to afford (well, used at least :D ) some of the models I'd previously lusted after, most notably the Naim CD5i-2, which I'm listening to this very moment. That one was a mini-dream come true. :banana:

Just for fun I thought I'd ask which single CD player you all would want, if cost were no object, etc. I'll tell you mine, it comes to mind without hesitation:

The Meridian 808.2 Signature Reference CD player, which is relatively new. What makes it so special? Apparently (because I'm basing this off of a TAS review written by Robert Harley for their August 2009 issue) Meridian has found the solution to an aspect of CD playback that (again, apparently) is responsible more than anything for the dreaded "CD sound," which can be edgy, bright, flat, brittle, and lifeless in the worst cases, among other things. The culprit is said to be pre-ringing, which is introduced by the brickwall anti-aliasing filter in the CD players A/D converter. Harley explains that this issue, unique to digital audio, is the result of the digital impulse being spread over a horizontal time axis (if it were illustrated, which it is in the article), thereby causing part of the signal to occur microseconds before the actual event. In other words, part of the music is happening almost instantaneously just before it's actually supposed to. Because nothing like this occurs in nature, Harley says, it is quite audible, and our brains interpret it as sound that's clearly a reproduction, often in the worst way.

With this model Meridian introduces what it calls an "apodizing" filter, which they claim eliminates pre-ringing that was previously thought to be a permanent part of the already-mastered CD, and therefore an unfortunate fact of life. This is such a big deal that Harley declares it "the most significant product in the history of the compact disc."

Well I've never heard this CD player, and it's unlikely I ever will, unfortunately, since the cost of entry is about $17,000 (AHHH!!!), but man do I wish I could afford it. Compared to other extremely upper-level CD players, Harley noted some things that the others do differently, perhaps even a little better, but it hardly seems like I would be missing anything if I had one. It's like one's entire CD collection has been remastered, Harley says, with "newfound spatiality, bloom, air, dimensionality, and ease." While not working wonders with poorly recorded discs, he claims it at least removes many of the most egregious problems.

So there it is, my true "dream" CD player.

I want to hear about yours, but note two things: One, just because I've named an incredibly expensive model as my choice, don't hesitate to tell us that yours is a 1985 Pioneer model. This isn't about money, just pretend that's not even an issue. Second, I've gone somewhat in depth describing what gets me so excited about the Meridian CDP, but if you only feel like stating the model, that's fine, though I would like to know why.

EDIT: Picture of the 808.2 added.

(01). Sony SCD-1 (or SCD-777ES) Super Audio Compact Disc Player -- $5K -- 1999

(01t). Accuphase DP-80L Transport & Accuphase DC-81L DAC -- $13K -- 1988-89

On both of them, looks and sound said it all.....
 
Finally got the one I've always lusted over back in Jan,namely the mega rare UK 240V,22 kg (no wood sides either :thmbsp:) NEC CD-903... simply amazin' SQ and build!
 
As others here have said, the AMR CD77 is also on my "To lust after" list. I've a number of TDA1540/1 players, some in my view showing a clean pair of heals to the Marantz CD7. (Micro Seiki CD-M100 and Cambridge Audio CD1, CD2 and CD3 for example) and see the AMR as the last one to try to complete the journey. One other thing I'd say though, is that as with any audio component, system intregration/balance is very important. I've modded a Kenwood DP-7090 (a £80 cost), and it bested players costing up to £4K when demo'ed on a really top notch system (£140K) at a high end audio store. So great gains can be made to what are common or garden players. There is plenty of info out there, and on this site.
 
Bryston BCD-3 seems like a durable audiophile player.

Otherwise the

Audio Note CD5.1x seems like a contender for the best.

I recently auditioned the new AN CD 5.1x and was kind of shocked at how good it really is - the 4.1x was no slouch either but the 5.1x was pretty amazing. AT $35,000 it should be amazing - I went back to audition it again but they have sold out of them and also sold their demo model.

Aside from price my only concern with buying AN transports is that they use the Philips Pro-2LF mechanism and these are becoming scarce as they have not been made for many years now. So if you buy one you should probably buy 1 or 2 mechanisms as back-ups. Audio Note to my knowledge is the only company with a large stock of these transports but then you're stuck paying their price should yours break.

In any event, this is way out of the range I am willing to pay for CD playback - I might lean toward one of their DACs that way I can listen to both CD and my thousands of downloaded albums. For that kind of coin - I want it for all digital playback.
Perhaps a CD Two/II Transport and DAC 3.1x (or second-hand 4.1x) - is doable. But one-box players have an advantage - I have never heard a one-box CD player sound as good as I have with the 5.1x though. I suspect CD would not have got the bad rap they got had this player been around in the early 1980s.

203040c61bebmavvevekaw.jpg


The CD 3.1X/II is under like $6,500 - hmm. But I like the top loaders - still quite a bit cheaper!

This fellow reviewed the 3.1x - I was at the same audio show and it was the best room at the show that year - although I mainly listened to LP (I bought the same turntable) and if I could find some excuse I would buy the Meishu Tonmeister amp he mentioned in the review - that is the best 300B amp I have heard - (I greatly prefer it to the old Meishu). It has made me a fan of 300B.

https://www.thesoundadvocate.com/2020/07/review-audio-note-cd-3-1x-ii-cd-player/
 
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I have a DBX-DX5 and it is a real nice piece of digital machinery. The DAIR is like a selective loudness. The compression is great for headphones. The sound is crisp and well defined. My only gripe is no remote. Hasn’t stopped me from using it as my sole CD player the last 5 years.
 
I've heard a lot of really high-end players...

... and as of now- I would pick the Esoteric Grandioso P1X transport, D1X DACs and G1X clock. Total of about $130K or so.

These have the new Esoteric Discrete DAC technology. Measurably better linearity than the AKM DAC chips used in the previous generation D1 DAC.

The most "analog sounding" CD player I've heard. Not only is it better than any other CD I've heard- it's better than most high-end turntables too. No other digital player of any kind has a better soundstage, to my ears.

Regards,
Gordon.
 
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