Classic CD Players

My best CDPs were:
Rega Planet
Ah! Tjoeb '99
Modified Sony Playstation 1

 

I have the Marantz version of the CD100, the CD 63 in gold finish

 

I like to think of my 1989 Sansui CD-X711 as a classic, it's very stately looking with it's black lacquered metal front. (I should've polished the front before the pic, it really cleans up nice).



balanced outputs available:



Still works perfect near 30 years later, and sounds pretty good compared to modern ones.

Built like a tank at 22 pounds, dual mono construction with twin power supplies:



1990 Stereo Review audio hardware issue entry for it:



Probably what is considered a classic much more so than my Sansui from that same era is the respected Pioneer Elite PD-91, I have one, not my pic:

 

Just as a follow up to my last post - here's a picture of my Denon DCD3000. It has balanced outputs too.

 

Replacing the tray gear wheel takes a few minutes and a few pounds

1991 Marantz CD52 CD player CDM4 tray gear repair - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum »

No affiliation

Marantz CD 52 MkII Zahnrad mit Riemen CDM 4 Gear Wheel Spieler player »

 

Actually, I read the same thread and bought a SL-S120 from Ebay. I was very pleasantly surprised by the sound quality. I expected it to sound good after reading the recommendations on the forum. But, it exceeded my expectations. The only drawback that I've found is that it is VERY sensitive to motion or even the slightest shock. That won't a problem though, because I will be using it as a component of my existing system. It will be stable when playing. Now, I'm inspired to finally upgrade my speakers. Which is a story for another thread.

 

The Magnavox CDB650 I'd say qualifies as a classic from the 80's. I wonder now if my Brother still has his...might be fun to hear it again

 

It was my first one too

 

Just picked up that model Adcom as part of a complete Adcom system I put together earlier this year. Sounds really nice with the couple of CD's I tried. Use the system mostly for vinyl.

 

Most early players had little to no skipping read ahead memory so any jostling and it was bad news for the disc getting played.

My "high end" late 1980's Pioneer Elite PD-91 and Sansui CD-x711 although very heavy and expensive at their time and having damped suspension for the CD spinner still can be made to skip VERY easily. On big drawback that was actually fixed fairly well for the CD playback a few years later on. The modern players I have now are near impervious to vibration induced skipping.

 

Last week, found a Sony CDP-30: one of the first incarnations of Sony's CD players (1985?) = $11.00. Nice early 80s styling.

The only negative is that the drawer is a little finicky. I'm going to get in there with some compressed air and Deoxit one of these days and give it a once over.

It sounds GREAT. It could just be my excited initial impressions, but it sounds super-warm and analog-like. Anyone else have experiences with this model?

Here's a pic (not mine).

 

I had that one as well, got rid of it when I bought the Sony RCD-W1.

 

This was my first player back in the early 90s. Cost around £400.

 

There weren't that many classic cd players. I can think of only a few.

Aero Audio Capitole Classic:
http://www.stereotimes.com/CD010308.shtml

Primaluna Prologue Classic:
ProLogue Classic CD Player »

EAR Acute Classic:
Osage Audio Products, LLC »

NAD Classic C521:
NAD Classic C521 - CD player Overview »

 

My 1st 'classic' was a Mission DAD7000 (a modified Phillips). Followed by a Sonographe SD1 (another modified Phillips, this time by the Conrad Johnson subsidiary). I guess I've got a 'thing' for British gear, currently I'm using an Arcam FMJ CD23 (not to mention Linn and Spendor also featuring prominently in my rig!).

 

Another vote for the XA-20ES. Up until last year when I found one on the sidewalk walking home one morning I wasn't much impressed with CDs the way I am with vinyl. For years I played CDs with a $80 Philips DVD player. And that wasn't very often. Like some others I just assumed a CD player is a CD player. How wrong I was! This SONY has totally changed my attitude towards CD and I've been grabbing way more CDs now than ever before. Yup, it was just sitting their about to be carted away by the trash collector! Had the remote and the puck. It has worked perfectly ever since!

 

The Sony CDP 715 is a great sounding player.
Krell KAV 300CD with 180 transistors in the output stage and 1702 DAC chips is also excellent.

 

My brother had the Philips CD650

 

I have just purchased a NOS, new in the box Nakamichi CDP-2A from 1988. I plan to keep it as a time capsule and open it in a few years time.
Nakamichi was the brand I lusted for when I was a kid back in the 1980's, so I have a soft spot for it. Besides this particular CD player has the same DAC chip as the Magnavox CDB650, the Philips TDA1541A, and it is reputed to sound superb. So I am stoked!

 

I picked up one of these second hand, a very solid workhorse. I love it.

 

I dunno, but I've been listening to a few of my old classic players a lot lately and the more I listen to them the less I think my newer setups sound drastically "better".

Newer setups:
Onkyo C-7030 with Teac UD-H01 DAC
Pioneer Elite PD-S95 transport with Musical Fidelity late model M1 DAC

Classic Players:
1987 Pioneer Elite PD-91
1990 JVC XL-Z1010
1992 JVC XL-Z1050
1989 Sansui CD-X711

The differences are so small it really is dependent on the CD's being of good enough program material to really even reveal any differences. The one that still really consistently impresses me on a lot of varied program material is the 1987 Pioneer Elite PD-91. That player just flat out has it in spades no matter what you throw at it.

 

Agreed newer gear sounds better. My new Lampizator DAC/Laptop combination is the best digital I've heard to date,
My interest in these is merely nostalgic and in the case of CD players based on the better DACs available then, they should sound pretty sweet as well!