I need a new CD player

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Tom H, Feb 11, 2016.

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  1. Sal1950

    Sal1950 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Central FL
    I had reliability issues with some NAD stuff over the years, my vote goes Marantz.
    If you have a decent front end like the Marantz CD the next upgrade will always be the speakers.
    The differences between all other component will be fairly minor, the big players are your speakers
    so if you want to really hear a improvement do your home work and buy the best speakers you can afford.
     
    bhazen likes this.
  2. MrTim

    MrTim Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pacific North West
    I have a Onkyo c-7030 but if you have the Budget go with the Marantz or NAD mentioned above. I have concerns on the Onkyo transports longevity and actually purchased a spare transport for when and if it quits. Somewhere on a forum someone put together a Tascam and the Schitt Modi Uber and liked the sound quite a bit and said the transport was well built.
     
  3. mds

    mds Forum Resident

    Location:
    PA
    Hopefully not the above $500 models, particularly when you hit the thousand and above catagory. Lucky my experience has been good with the upper tier players not the lower.
     
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  4. PhilBiker

    PhilBiker sh.tv member number 666

    Location:
    Northern VA, USA
    My DVD-A10 is going on 15 years old and still going strong (knock on wood). Part of the reason I recommended older top-end DVD players as a good alternative is my experience with this player (originally 1200 msrp).
     
    mds likes this.
  5. George P

    George P Notable Member

    Location:
    NYC
    I am very happy with my CD-S300. Great, natural sound. The DAC is 24 bit, Burr Brown.

    This is my third Yamaha CD player in a row. The last two each lasted over 5 years.
     
    bhazen likes this.
  6. PhilBiker

    PhilBiker sh.tv member number 666

    Location:
    Northern VA, USA
    Pardon me if this is a silly question - but what advantage does a 24 bit DAC have in a dedicated CD player? CD is limited to 16/44.1. I looked up that player and it doesn't claim to have any "upsampling" or "remastering" feature - is that stuff just baked in?
     
  7. Agitater

    Agitater Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    The DAC can be accessed externally. The CD-S300 has rear USB, optical and S/PDIF jacks so that the player can also be used as a standalone DAC for use with, e.g., an USB connection from a laptop computer.
     
    PhilBiker likes this.
  8. hesson11

    hesson11 Forum Resident

    The Tascam CD-200 got a very nice review in Stereophile recently. Sounds like it may be built a bit more ruggedly than the typical $200 - $250 CD players:

    The Fifth Element #86 »
     
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  9. scobb

    scobb Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney, Australia
    Most ex demo's come with the same warranty as a new item so I don't see it being an issue. With second hand then a bit of care is needed on choosing well known and reliable brands but CD players should last a good ten years ++ so I'm not sure "reliability" is something to stop someone looking at the 2nd hand option.
     
  10. Brian Lux

    Brian Lux One in the Crowd

    Location:
    Placerville, CA
    I'm not an expert but this is what I went with recently and I'm completely satisfied with that player. I had seen other recommendations in various threads on this forum that led me to pick the CD5005 and I very happy I did.
     
  11. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    Plenty of decent CD players to choose from, it really depends on your needs or if you also want network connectivity, e.g. Onkyo's CN-7050.

    For speakers, I'd simply suggest you shortlist some good active speakers in your price range. Tannoy Reveal, KRK, Yamaha, etc, all have good models under £500.
     
    Last edited: Feb 13, 2016
  12. mikaal

    mikaal Sociopathic Nice Guy

    Caveat emptor regarding Marantz CD 5005: When in program mode this player inserts gaps between previously segued songs ie Ziggy Stardust into Suffragette City. Very annoying! All the Denon players I have owned never did this. If you want just a portion of say Dark Side Of The Moon...forget it.
    Great sounding player otherwise.
     
    Last edited: Feb 13, 2016
  13. TVC15

    TVC15 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Why even spend $300?

    There's many options on Amazon for just over $100 that I'd bet would be perfect.

    In fact, a low end Sony Blu-Ray would be pretty decent.
     
    PhilBiker likes this.
  14. JBStephens

    JBStephens I don't "like", "share", "tweet", or CARE. In Memoriam

    Location:
    South Mountain, NC
    I used the $90 (at the time I bought it) Teac CD-P1260. It absolutely trounced the $500 AMC player I had in frequency response and soundstage. They are still cheap, just look around for one.
     
  15. scobb

    scobb Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney, Australia
    Analogue out for a black and white start, better reliability and build quality second and last, but not least, better sound! That's why I wouldn't touch a low end blu ray player
     
  16. therockman

    therockman Senior Member In Memoriam


    Most of those don't have RCA outputs.
     
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  17. Mark broadhead

    Mark broadhead Forum Resident

    Location:
    Newcastle England
    Try and find a nice Sony es player say a ES338 or 557. Amazing build this side of an Esoteric and still sound excellent.
     
  18. wgb113

    wgb113 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chester County, PA
    I'm not sure about now but I had multiple issues with multiple models of NAD CD players in the late '90s that I've sworn them off for good.

    I'd recommend Cambridge Audio for your price range.

    Bill
     
  19. ponkine

    ponkine Senior Member

    Location:
    Villarrica, Chile
    If you can grab it, try BC ACOUSTIQUE EX 602.2

    I have the 602.1 version, and it's a WONDERFUL MACHINE.
    It blew my Yamaha CD-S300 OUT OF THE WATER

    EX-602.2 CD & USB player »

    [​IMG]

    :wave:
     
  20. htbomb

    htbomb Hot Rod

    Location:
    FLA
    I'm on my third Yamaha since the advent of CDs: the CD-C600.
     
    George P likes this.
  21. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    Good shout, hifi+ magazine raved about the 650 back in 2010. The 651 is also worth checking out and both, I think, use the excellent Wolfson WM8740 DAC.
     
  22. Dhreview16

    Dhreview16 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London UK
    Similar point. The Marantz CD 6005 retails over here in the UK for about £ 280 or $ 420. It has won UK magazine "What Hi Fi" Best CD player under £ 500 for 3 years in a row now, including 2015. "Simply the best budget player on the market" - full review online. There is a matching amp or amp/streamer if you are looking at other gear also.
     
  23. PhilBiker

    PhilBiker sh.tv member number 666

    Location:
    Northern VA, USA
    Looks to be virtually identical to the TASCAM player mentioned previously on this thread. Knowing TASCAM/TEAC it's probably a very nice piece.
     
    bhazen likes this.
  24. therockman

    therockman Senior Member In Memoriam

    My personal advice to the OP. Since you own the Grateful Dead 30 Trips box set, which was a hell of an investment, buy an HDCD capable CD player to fully enjoy that beautiful box set.

    I'm just saying.
     
    wilejoe, PhilBiker and scobb like this.
  25. TVC15

    TVC15 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Thinking about his current system a $300 anything feels like overkill.
     
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