Differences Between CD Players?

[stuartk]

1984 is old indeed! must have been one of the first mass market oneS?

in those early days of a new device, the companies put so much care into making them knowing that they'd be selling for a bajillion bucks. <sigh!>

I sometimes think that early stuff is better because they haven't figured out how to cut corners yet.

 

[stuartk]

Genuinely curious here, and understanding we're relating entirely different sensory and engineering phenomena, but all the same: why does no one debate that the digital data of a DVD-Video is highly dependent on its player for video quality (as in Denon 3910 vs. 1st-gen Coby or somesuch) but the audio information of a CD is always magically transported to our ears flawlessly whether through a $39 DVD player or a $26,000 transport/DAC setup? I've had a whole bunch of CD players over my

I use an inexpensive DVD player to feed an external DAC. I feel the DAC is the place to put your money.

 

[KentTeffeteller]

Hi,

I would bet on low hours better old players to long outlive newer players by miles. My current daily player is a Magnavox (nee Philips) FD-1010 SL. Made in 1983 and has the CDM-0 transport (the best ever made for trouble free service). My example plays most any CD-R disc fine. This is a top-load player. Older B&O, ReVox, Meridian, and McIntosh players are jewels in this regard. Also older Marantzes are in this league among others. Old Denon players and better Yamahas and Onkyos are excellent. :tresbon:

 

[luvvinvinyl]

YEAH!
I scored an Alpha 8 CD player -for $150 today, and even scraped together enough $$ to get a pair of Harmonic Precision interconnects, an additional $70. I'm starting to climb out of the yard sale find budget/ style of gear acquisition, and get some synergy going. I have other Arcam Alphas, an integrated amp and the tuner. The one remote I have works with all three pieces, a good thing.

After dinner, I burrowed into the nest of wires, and hooked it up, stacked on the tuner, which is on cedar 4 inch blocks above the amp.

I let it warm up for 2 hours, the seller advised 2 or 3 hours, watched HBO's 'Generation Kill' and 'The Kingdom,' then put on some familiar pieces, a few tracks of Mahler's 2nd, a few tracks of Beethoven, Enigma, Abbey Road, put on my Grado 325i cans, and heard details and layering (ambience or detail?) in the music I never heard before. Voices, nuances in the strings and guitars, as well as percussion details, some silly, like more tonality in the woodblocks, and the modulations in the attacks. IT really is clean and fresh, sort of like putting fresh herbs in your food instead of dried herbs.

This stuff is pushing what, 15 years old? Anyway, I really like this sound. I also have a NAD, a Denon, several Sonys, a Fisher and a Nakamichi, not including the DVD/Cd players. They ALL sound different.

I can't wait till I get the room carpentry finished ( LP cabinets, hahaha) and hook up the Vandersteens.
Adam

I'm glad you found an Arcam for that price. It took a Lector CDP0.6T to push my Alpha off my rack.

I hope you get many happy years of service from your Alpha 8.

 

[Hyperion]

How about the difference between one CDP !!! - Yamaha CDX750E - changed OP Amps - now a different player.

John

 

[bre's dad]

I've gone through several older cd players recently and after each of them failing at one point or another decided to look for newer players. My mainstay is an older, mid/late 80's Sony CDP-570. Its not the best performer but if it won't play it, then the disc itself is bad... I've had a few higher end players recently I LOVED.

Carver SD/A-490t One of the smoothest sounding players I've heard thanks to the tube analog output. The person I got it from off ebay packed it horribly and it was damaged. It sounded wonderful on the highs and brought out fine detailing I had never heard before, even on cd's I've had for 20 years. bass was lackluster & kinda muddy at best, but tolerable. It got to the point it wouldn't read discs so it was replaced with a Denon DCD-1520.

Denon DCD-1520 High ratings from everyone who's heard them. Way overbuilt, dual DAC. Instantly I heard a much warmer, smoother than the Sony though not quite as detailed as the Carver. Its problem is that it skips like crazy & will restart songs, usually the first 2-4 on the disc. After talking to a guy who's repaired them, I've decided to shelve it for now and replace it something newer.

I went to a hifi shop and got to listen to several new players, mainly a Cambridge Audio 540p, 840p, Creek Evolution. I dismissed the 540 after listening to the 840. THe 840 sounded much better... warmer, better sound stage just an all around improvement to the 540. But I don't have $1400 for a cd player, so we pulled out a Creek Evo they had on clearance. It was closer to the 540 than the 840, but I was told that after a thorough break in period, it should be closer to the 840. It was noticibly different than the 540. I'm testing it in my system currently and i like what I hear at less than half the price of the 840, its a bargin. it is MUCH cleaner than using a dvd player or the Sony. I've got a JVC changer I've used as a temp player... we won't even discuss that one.

 

[mwicks]

I've gone through several older cd players recently and after each of them failing at one point or another decided to look for newer players. My mainstay is an older, mid/late 80's Sony (CDP-560 I believe). Its not the best performer but if it won't play it, then the disc itself is bad... I've had a few higher end players recently I LOVED.

Carver SD/A-490t One of the smoothest sounding players I've heard thanks to the tube analog output. The person I got it from off ebay packed it horribly and it was damaged. It sounded wonderful on the highs and brought out fine detailing I had never heard before, even on cd's I've had for 20 years. bass was lackluster & kinda muddy at best, but tolerable. It got to the point it wouldn't read discs so it was replaced with a Denon DCD-1520.

Denon DCD-1520 High ratings from everyone who's heard them. Way overbuilt, dual DAC. Instantly I heard a much warmer, smoother than the Sony though not quite as detailed as the Carver. Its problem is that it skips like crazy & will restart songs, usually the first 2-4 on the disc. After talking to a guy who's repaired them, I've decided to shelve it for now and replace it something newer.

I went to a hifi shop and got to listen to several new players, mainly a Cambridge Audio 540p, 840p, Creek Evolution. I dismissed the 540 after listening to the 840. THe 840 sounded much better... warmer, better sound stage just an all around improvement to the 540. But I don't have $1400 for a cd player, so we pulled out a Creek Evo they had on clearance. It was closer to the 540 than the 840, but I was told that after a thorough break in period, it should be closer to the 840. It was noticibly different than the 540. I'm testing it in my system currently and i like what I hear at less than half the price of the 840, its a bargin. it is MUCH cleaner than using a dvd player or the Sony. I've got a JVC changer I've used as a temp player... we won't even discuss that one.

You should look into the Rega Apollo. When I was getting my last CDP, it came down to the Cambridge 840C and the Apollo. The 840C was probably a bit more detailed than the Rega, but in terms of musicality and smoothness the Rega won hands down. It's the ONLY CD player I've had that I've been able to really listen to for extended periods. The Rega was decently cheaper than the 840C as well.

 

[operaman]

Esoteric X01 D2 ($16,500)
McIntosh MCD500($6,500)
McIntosh MCD301($4,500)
Esoteric DV60($5,600)

I really can't believe you would spend that kind of money on CD players. That's more money than I've ever spent on anything in my life.

However I am changing my opinion on there being "no" difference between CDPs. My $3 Sony is currently playing way better than my $40 HK :thmbsp:

 

[tman202]

I know there are differences in CD players just by messing around with one - by changing the filter setting on my 333ES I can hear a difference, so if different players were to have different filters...

For an extreme example, when that player was in the shop I had to use a the line out of a portable Panasonic, and there was absolutely no comparison. And, my old Sony 777 portable sounded different (and better) than that Panasonic.

I don't really get why people who are picky about all other components (especially amps) would think that there couldn't be differences among CD players (which have different transformers, DACs, power supplies, filters, caps, clocks, transports, jitter reduction methods, etc.).