Affordable audiophile quality "Giant Killer" type CD players?

Vintage, used or new. Budget is $400-$800. I'm sure this has done before. If so please link me. I'm thinking it's time to get a really really good CD player and give messing with vinyl, tube amp phono stage issues and surface noise distractions a break for awhile. I still vintage vinyl, of course. Will never get rid!

 

the legendary 1987/1990 PIONEER PD-91 would be an excellent starting point, IMHO;









-as you can see, this superior quality vintage CDP has both OPTICAL and COAXIAL outputs, so,
in the event that the truly superb quality of the 91's CLASS-A analog output stage
might prove dissatisfying, one can always link it
to the outboard DAC of their choice and have a truly fantastic CD transport.

further, LD PICK UPs are still very much available from PIONEER's service arm,
and are very easily self-installed by the owner,
so there is just one more reason to vouch for this superb player right there...

 

Nice! That's the kinda info i'm looking for.
Gotta say, i'm an absolute beginner when it comes to outboard DACs/CDP mods, etc. Haven't a clue.

 

Cambridge makes an affordable CD player that is highly rated and probably can be found used.

 

I would go high-end CDPs used. I picked up my main CD player, a Musical Fidelity A 3.5 CDP for I $750 locally. It's absolutely killer. Ever since I heard a stack of MF products on some of my dream Dynaudio speakers I fell in love with the combo.

I had an older NAD CD player which sounded great, but the transport started having problems reading discs, so it needed replacing.

I will also say that the differences among CD players (and some will argue there are no differences, I disagree) are very subtle. Whereas vinyl front end makes a huge difference, basically any working CDP will sound fantastic. Some will sound only every so slightly different. So I wouldn't put a lot of money and time at a CD front-end unless the rest of your system (room and speakers primarily) is already excellent. Because your money is better spent in almost all cases dealing with what REALLY affects audio: room and speakers (and vinyl front-end if applicable).

 

Rotel RCD-971 or RCD-990. I own a RAM modified RCD-971 and it still sounds great. The stock unit got very good reviews when it came out. The RCD-990 is more robustly built. Both recode HDCD. A 971 is available on @udiogon for $320.

 

Current top 3 CDP's are:
Marantz CD5003 (last year's model) & Kyocera DA-310cx (1987 vintage) & Magnavox CDB 471 (1988 vintage, made in Belgium)

The Marantz was $350 out of the box. The other 2 were CL finds @ $40 and $20. How much better can i really do than those within my budget?

 

Like the OP, I'm scouting for a CD player (hopefully one with HDCD decoding).

Re the recommendation to go vintage, I’m wondering if there’s an argument to be made in favor of a newer model instead of one of these great old warhorses. Beyond the risks associated with wear and tear and mechanical breakdown, is there a case for newer chipsets and improved contemporary DACs in late-model CD players?

 

Emotiva ERC-1. Great player.

 

Playstation One.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SONY-Play-S...Video_Games&hash=item231944b916#ht_500wt_1413

 

Yeah, unlike other audio gear, I'm of the opinion that DACs have improved enough that it's not worth going "vintage" for CD players. But some very good, relatively recent models can be bought used for a decent price.

 

In general I tend to agree with this, but I would not go so far as the statement in bold. Maybe true if you are assuming some minimum level of quality (say entry level high end like a NAD or Cambridge unit), but not true for your average mass market player in my experience.

 

Rega Apollo

It is now on sale brand new for $700.

 

very happy with my Jolida. roll some tubes and swap out the power cord. I bought mine used-no problems at all in 2 years.

 

I'm including entry-level mass-produced X-brand whatevers. I've never heard a bad CD player. Even the 15-yo Sony POS my folks bought at Sears sounds just fine. Is it as good as a $2K audiophile player? IMO, no. But it's 95% as good. Pretty small fry differences.

It's really not difficult to make a CD player, and even the cheapest DACs are very accurate, orders of magnitude more accurate than even very expensive loudspeakers, and guaranteed to be WORLDS more accurate than your room.

In my opinionated opinion, nobody has any business spending more than $100 on a CD player if their room doesn't already have acoustical treatments. Or you're just nitpicking about the kind of racing slick you're trying to put on your wheelbarrow. Not saying good tires don't make a difference, but there are MUCH more significant priorities to take care of first for most folks...

 

Your experience with CD players is VERY limited if this is your opinion...

 

That depends. Yes DACs have improved a bunch over the years. However a very well designed and implemented older player which still has very good, but somewhat older, DACs will still kick the snot out of some ROTM cheapo blue-ray player with theoretically better DACs simply because of how much better it was designed and constructed. Digital technology prior to roughly 1992 or so is getting pretty long in the tooth though, and I'd have a difficult time recommending anything which is that obsolete.

 

I'm also watching this thread with interest. I've tried two Sony Playstations...they sound great but both had issues with playback of many of my CD's and were generally fickle at best. Not worth the trouble.

 

What is the rest of your system that goes with your $100 CDP? You have nothing listed in your profile.

 

I really like my Onkyo DX-7555. Not made anymore but should be in your price range used. I also have a Cambridge 840C that needs to be repaired at the moment. With the Onkyo I don't miss it too much.

 

................ uh oh......

(insert emoticon of eating popcorn)


This may get ugly.

 

Hear nothing but praise for the Rega Apollo CDP. I might pull the trigger on that actually.
Definitely not a "Giant Killer." It's more a GIANT isn't it?!

 

Where can it be had for $700?

 

I think Music Direct is closing them out, as are various Rega dealers around the country.