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Single disc or carrousel cdps

cubdog

banging through drywall
I've always preferred multiple disc players since I like listening to a variety of similar music. My current player is a nice Sony SCD-C2000ES. I know most feel that single disc players out perform the carrousels and I'm not debating that. I'm just wondering who the other carrousel lovers are.

cubdog
 
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I will endeavor to be discrete in my comments. Let's just say that back in my days of bachelorhood and wolfing around, a carrousel cd player was obligatory for entertaining a date at home.
 
Me!

I got a Technics 110 disk CD player. The good thing is that it combines well with the similar vintage SU-V620 amplifier and RS-575 dual well cassette deck. A single remote controls all.

My wife loves the unit as I have put 110 CDs inside, all CDRs stuffed with music and compiled a 4 page list with contents. Now, she can choose the music she wants with a single button. No need to have stacks of CDs laying around.
 
I have a carousel that just won't die (an older Magnavox). I kinda wish it would though. I like carousels for social gathering where I can pick out 5 CD's that will fit the occasion and I don't have to mess with it. OTOH, for normal listening, I like to pick out one title at a time (as one does with vinyl.) Accordingly, I tend to use the carousel as a single disc player - an application for which it is decidely inconvenient.

FWIW, same goes for a car CD player. One car I have has a 6-pack cartridge and the other cars have single CD's. I much prefer the single CD players for the convenience of picking one title at a time as my mood changes.
 
I've had only a 5-CD changer in the house over the years and no longer have it. Some time back, I went to the network-attached-diskdrive approach w/ripped CDs on it and haven't looked back.

I have a friend across town, though, that swears by his Sony carousel and refuses to part with the functionality and filing system he's built around it. He even added an outboard DAC to the Sony to improve the sonics without abandoning the functionlity he loves. The tide is turning there, however, as he recently purchased a McIntosh Music Server and is discovering the ease of use a single-spindle archive can buy. He's also discovering the joys of streaming internet radio stations.

Cheers,

David
 
My main cdp is a 5 disc unit. I also have a 200 dics Sony that I hate. Why I bought it I'll never know. I wish it would blow up.

cubdog
 
I prefer and have always owned single disk but the wife wants one of those 100+ units and I can understand her points, it is always loaded and you don't have to mess with it.
I still prefer vinyl, after all I need to move every 15 minutes to keep the muscles in tone :)
 
I don't use a carousel or a jukebox player, though there have been times that I've seriously considered buying one. Most of the carousels I've encountered sound about the same as single-disc players at a similar price point. If you like the convenience of a carousel and want better sound, get a carousel with a digital output and add an outboard DAC. You can have your cake and eat it too!
 
I've never liked CD changers because it's slower to load a single disc, and they never seem to do what I want. They can have a mind of their own, rotating from disc to disc past the one I wanted to play. These days, if you want hours of background music, you can use an MP3 player, or computer.
 
I have a Sony DVP-NC685V CD/DVD/SACD five-disc changer that got very good reviews for audio performance when it first came out. I've been happy with it, but rarely use it for it's multiple disk capability.
 
If you can find a Technics SL-MC 60+1 cd player at the thrifts, buy it. It has a unique design- you just pull the front panel down, and there are 60 slots (like the old juke-box players). I can play Disc 1 or disc 35 within 5 seconds of each other- nice easy front controls, and it sounds great too!
 
Up until about a month ago, I had a 5-CD Sony CDP-CE305 which served me well for 13 years. I would rarely load it up for five hours of uninterrupted listening, but rather tended to use it as a single CDP, though I'd often leave discs in there, which made for some pleasant surprises when the disc I'd selected finished playing and a CD I'd selected a week (or a month) previously would pop up.

I could never see myself using one with more than than 5-CD capability, though. Generally, I like my CDs on the shelves, not in a jukebox.

Generally, though, I'm very happy with my single-disc replacement player. I don't really miss having a CD changer.
 
I have one of each flavor and I'd have to say I much prefer the carrousel changer. If there is a difference in the sound I can't hear it. The changer is so much more user friendly that it easily won the spot in my main system. The single disc player is no slouch (denon 1520) and does nicely in a secondary set up.
 
My main cdp is a 5 disc unit. I also have a 200 dics Sony that I hate. Why I bought it I'll never know. I wish it would blow up.

cubdog

Give it away Cub, or sell it. Plenty of folks like 'em. I don't but then again I don't like the carousel either. I have one connected to the home theater, my wife doesn't want me to get rid of it. It was the first new piece I bought for her office system. I have since replaced it with a modded Rotel RCD971, which she really likes. When she had the carousel in her system she usually used it as a single disc player.
 
I've never liked CD changers because it's slower to load a single disc, and they never seem to do what I want. They can have a mind of their own, rotating from disc to disc past the one I wanted to play. These days, if you want hours of background music, you can use an MP3 player, or computer.

I have 2 Pioneer PD-F407 25 straight-slot disc changers. My brother-in-law has a newer Pioneer 250 disc carousel & he says mine is quicker on random play than his. It could be just the fact that it's 25 as opposed to 250, but 25 is plenty for me. I usally just play single discs most of the time anyways.

I picked up mine at the thrifts for a few bucks each. Single play is a cinch, just drop the disc in the 1st slot, close the door & hit play.
 
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Nakamichi Music bank system (or CDp-2) has the single player quality and stacks the disc rather than uses a rotating platter (stores 6 discs) . On the other hand, a Yamaha 565 or higher etc. (stores 5) allows you to play the disc in use while opening and replacing the other disc in the unit. A nice feature. I also prefer a unit with variable outputs controlled by a remote control. A must have feature for me.
 
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