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CD players, expensive vs what I listen to

cubdog

cubdog

banging through drywall
Having just recently purchased my first tube amp I'm wondering if I should upgrade my CD player. I have always used inexpensive players priced between $70.00 and $200.00. I like changers vs single disc players which is part of the reason I have never bought a top notch player. Personally I can't tell any difference between a $70.00 RCA and a $200.00 Yamaha. What will I gain by buying a truly good CD player. I will be running two systems in the same room. 1. Onix Melody SP3, JBL L96 speakers, 2. Sansui 517, JBL L112 speakers. Should I spring for a top notch player for the Onix or just buy another RCA. I want seperate CD players so I don't have to switch back and forth. What do you guys think? Thanks. Also if you think I shound upgrade any suggestions?

cubdog
 
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There is a difference between "average" CD players and "audiophile quality" players. There are many out there to choose from. The Rega Planet comes to mind.

Happy hunting! :)
 
Hi Ross,

I don't know how good they are, but I have a Conrad Johnson SD1 (Audiophile, but ooooooold) and a Proton CD player. Like I say, they are definately not the same as a new Jolida tube player, but they might be more than the typical sub $100 player- or not. I believe I hear a difference between, say, the Conrad Johnson and the Yamaha changer from the dump (true) but I'm not totally sure. You would be welcome to come take a listen.

Take care,

Ed
 
Budget of course is determined by the improvement in overall sound quality. $300.00 for a marked improvement is reasonable. If the the improvement to my ears is questionable then of course it makes no sense. That is the problem. How many of you own CD players that cost over $300.00? I'm guessing the number is few but I really don't know. As with many things I'm in the dark on this one. Thanks for the offer Ed, we will talk.

cubdog
 
IF you want to spend around $300 then give the Denon DCM-380 consideration.
It's 20 bit Burr-Brown chipset, HDCD and mp3 decoding add some flexibility. It's also a changer and has remote controlled volume. http://www.crutchfield.com/S-gQtK7F...p?g=53100&I=033DCM380&search=Denon+CD+players
There are also quite a few good SACD and DVD players in this price range too, but in my experience their performance is focused on either SACD or DVD and not on making the best of 16 bit Redbook CD's. And unless you are just starting out collecting music, most of your collection will lie there.
 
I upgraded to a Sony sacd/universal player $500 cdn.. I won't recommend the player because others have had reliability issue with them, I don't want to get blamed. Before that I was using a Panasonic dvd universal player. On first play it was immediately obvious how much better the music sounded. This was before I had customized any of the dvd settings. 'Processing Direct' off is where I get the best results. What I heard was way more detail even from mp3's. The music came too life. With the Panasonic I was becoming bored with the sound and I was contemplating getting better speakers. But the speakers weren't the problem, the source was. I haven't gotten bored with the sound since.
I think you could expect similar results, but as you probably already know, your system is only as good as the weakest link. :smoke:
 
CELT said:
IF you want to spend around $300 then give the Denon DCM-380 consideration.
It's 20 bit Burr-Brown chipset, HDCD and mp3 decoding add some flexibility.
Click to expand...

When I was looking for a CD player with volume control I bought a Denon DCM-380. It is a very good sounding CD player and a great CD player considering it's price. I thought it sounded better than my NAD C541i in my system. :yes: The only problem is that it couldn't read half my CDs. It never read one Enhanced CD (the kind with a promo video on it). So even though it sounded great I returned it. :thumbsdn: This is what half the reviews on the net said about this player. It's a shame really as it was one hell of a player.

If you are enjoying the sound of the new onyx amp and believe to a quality peice of equipment then I would go with the Onyx CD player too.
 
Marantz CD-74

Hi,

I recently got a late 80's model Marantz CD-74 single disc player for about $150.00 which I am very happy with. The rest of my system is old tube gear & the Marantz sounds great through it.

I have a few "old" CD's that I haven't been able to listen to in years on ANY other player due to skips & scratches. The Marantz plays them without a hitch & makes them sound BETTER than ever!

I'm not an expert, so take my advice for what it's worth, but I'd say that if you come across a 15 year old CD-74 in good condition for less than $175.00, it'd be worth considering.

Maybe some of the more learned AKers have some experience/knowledge of this particular unit?

- Wil
 
I can tell you from experience that there is a BIG difference in CD players. In the 80's I purchased a Sony CDP 101, their first unit and ran out to buy some CD's. I was careful to only buy the DDD disks. DDD means that the signal was digital at every step. I was unimpressed so during the next 20 years, I purchased maybe 7 or 8 more CD's; only when I wanted something that was available only on CD. In the mid 90's, I bought a newer Sony player and it sounded even worse. So, I wrote the whole CD thing off in my mind as a format for kids into rock or whatever other noise they wanted to listen to. (Sorry, but I'm a classical music snob) :deadhorse

A couple of years ago, I stumbled across a Lynn CD player at the thrift for $30. in excellent condition with the remote, so I bought it. I knew that Lynn had a very good rep and knew it was worth much more than $30 so I could always sell it at a profit. It had retailed in 1992 for $1,700. I hooked it up and was instantly impressed. I heard things on my old CD's that I didn't think were there. I have since begun to buy CD's again. Yes there IS a difference! :yes:

Clyde
 
OK I am going to suggest you try a sony playstation. I know a lot of people here are probably sick of me recommending this as a player I don't care, for the $20 you will have to pay to try one what have you got to lose. Chances are you might have one lying around you could try right away. The reason I suggest this player to you is because you must like valve sound and the playstation has a sound more like vinyl than many other players and there are a few companies using the playstation coupled to a valve output stage and it reatail for a couplke thousand dollars I believe. Also you say you can't really hear much difference between the cheaper players, well this one is very cheap and I think you might hear a difference.

There is another thread on this subject in the DIY forum, but if you want to try it look for a very early model playstation 1. You want model SPCH1001 or 1002 which has RCA sockets on the back. This player sounds the best of the PS1s IMO but some of them droip out occasionaly on some CDs I think the laser bias is manual, the SPCH-5502, 5002 rate highly also and don't skip generally they have auto laser bias. Last choice would be a 7052 model, I wouldn't bother with any of the later models, they made them cheaper and changed the design sigbificantly as time went on.

You can use a PS2 DVD remote control unit with the PS1, it has a reciever that plugs into the controller port. You can just use the controller to try one out though, no need to plug it into the TV, just press the start button to play and the buttons on the top of controller to skip tracks.

Please report back if you try one, also if you do try one I would like to hear your opinion compared to a higher end CDP if you decide to get one. Also do you DIY? there is lots of DIY DACS non OS DACS, reclocking tricks etc you can do to commercial units or build from scratch for relatively low cost and a soldering iron.

good luck.
 
Playstation One

Definetly audiophile. You will hear the difference immediately. People may scoff and I was skeptical til I tried one. Now I have two of them plus the remote control for one of them. Undoubtibly the best cd player I have ever heard.
 
ldatlof said:
When I was looking for a CD player with volume control I bought a Denon DCM-380. It is a very good sounding CD player and a great CD player considering it's price. I thought it sounded better than my NAD C541i in my system. :yes: The only problem is that it couldn't read half my CDs. It never read one Enhanced CD (the kind with a promo video on it). So even though it sounded great I returned it. :thumbsdn: This is what half the reviews on the net said about this player. It's a shame really as it was one hell of a player.
Click to expand...
WOW! :yikes: That's good to know!
 
I do have a playstation 1, currently not in use. It is model # scph 5501. It does not have rca jacks on the back just a plug in thing with three rca banana plugs on the opposite end. I may give it a try until I make a decision. Has anyone used this model playstation as a cd player? What do you think of its performance compared to the others sited? Thanks.

cubdog
 
It is model # scph 5501
Click to expand...

Should sound pretty good, as far as I know its the same as the 5502. Only the 1001/1002 have RCA sockets. Just use the connector it came with.
 
Hey cubdog, I dont know if you listen to CD-R's, but be DAMN SURE the unit is capable of handling them before you blow too much money on one. Several people on AK have mentioned that their high-end units can't deal with CD-R's and older models may have trouble as well.
 
I have a NAD 521BEE.It is the best i have owned,and as long standing or sitting members will tell you I have had a few. It is well suited to the Jolida hybrid and it reads cdrs.The sound is light and airy and it displays none of that shrillness that cdps sometimes do!

I also have a proton,the thing is a workhorse,tough,heavy,one of the better units of its day. It sits in the closet,quiet now,but on stand-by

Alan
 
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