Do dedicated CD Players sound better then Blu-Ray Players for CDs?

[SimplySound]

You'll likely pay less than $15 for it and it'll be a good test for sound with your system. IMO - you may not hear a difference between a BlueRay player and a dedicated CDP, but the CDPs from the mid-80s do have a wonderful sound and most of them look great...

There we go Pete... in other words, you really don't know Super until you try it. Trying to answer your question is highly subjective. There are some awesome, inexpensive, dedicated CDP's out there that will be very hard to beat with ANY player. Just as there are some really high quality UDP's that can compete with and surpass many CDP's.

The real point I'm trying to make is you are now finding some really nice "DVD UDP's" that folks with means are selling off to upgrade to BD Players. If you research and shop around, you can get a SACD, DVD-A, Redbook Player for not a lot of money that will do everything you need in the "Audio Realm" and do it well! :thmbsp:

 

[Arkay]

Get a Yamaha GT-CD1 for CDs and an Oppo BDP-105D for everything else that is on disc, or streamed (via DSD connection) from the computer. Then sit back and enjoy the music. Not quite there yet, but that's my plan, at least!

IF that breaks the bank too much, I'd second the advice to look for one of the better mid-80s Japanese CD players. There are some excellent units out there for very cheap prices. A lot of the time, all they need is for the pickup head lenses to be cleaned (Use pure alcohol, and see if the back side of the head, seldom cleaned even by techs, needs cleaning, too --assuming it can be accessed without disturbing alignment.) I have units from Denon and Pioneer in that category (along with a Tascam studio/pro one) that are all excellent-sounding, each with its own sound. Some work better with one amp, others with another amp. In suitable combinations, they can sound very good, indeed. (But the GT-CD1 trumps them all in pretty much every situation.)

 

[RShackleford]

I'm wondering what the answer to the subject-line question would be if we assume an external DAC ? I guess, if both the BluRay and the dedicated CD player give bit-perfect output, without more jitter than the DAC can handle, the answer is "no".

I wonder, because I've got a CD player that is sitting on my bench needing a good cleaning, but maybe it's moot, as I have a BluRay player in my system, connected to my Emotiva XDA-2 DAC.

 

[SimplySound]

I'm wondering what the answer to the subject-line question would be if we assume an external DAC ?

Well I think my answer would be the same as your assumption. Now you are talking "Transports"... so yeah, if they are Bit Perfect than the DAC is the key.

But I think the OP was asking if newer players (DAC's and Transports for BD, DVD & CD) can compare to a dedicated CDP Reader. And so your question is a good one!!!

It isn't just the DAC's to consider. There is a whole lot of signal processing that goes on inside a player to get the Digital Output of the laser deck converted to the Analog Output that your system can handle. :thmbsp: