Mid Fi CD Player Shootout. Please Help Me Decide Which One!

Hello All.
Beave here and I've narrowed down my MidFi New CdPlayer purchase to two contenders:
The Marantz CD6004 and the NAD C546BEEE.
I've considered many others but that's water under the bridge. It's between these two. So if
anyone has experience with either or both of these units please give it up for the Beave. My Budget
us $500 firm or the Wifey WILL kill me. I'm now using an Onkyo C-7030 Which I LOVE. But tax
man didn't throw me to the wolves so I want to see what the next level sounds like.
Thanks All!!!
The Beave

 

It may help forum members here who have heard both players to let them know what components make up the rest of your system.

Is it possible for you to hear both players at home?

 

Answer to the question is no. I'll have to do them, if I do them both one at a time by mail order.
My Speaks are Mirage OMD-28's/Onkyo M-282 2 channel Amp/Yamaha c-80 Pre Amp. Strictly 2 channel in a 15x17 foot vaulted ceiling house in Very Soggy Auburn Washington.
I LOVE the Wolfson DAC in the 7030 and I AM keeping that player-I'm doing this because a) I want to....
b) The Tax Man was kind to me and my wife and c) My Wife is not putting up any fight with me getting a new
piece of gear, so this might be the only time that I could afford (by money ($) and by skin) to get a $500 price point CD Player.
And No, I don't care about Emovita/Downloads/Streaming Blah Blah Blah, maybe if I wasn't married and our schmuck 30 year old Boy wasn't back living with us cause he's a BIG LOSER, then I'd probably be all over those technologies, but I'm tired and I just wanna ROCK!!!!!!
The Beave

 

oppo 103 would be my winner.

 

Why not stick with the Onkyo if it works?

I liked the higher-end Marantz 8004 quite a bit, which plays both SACD and regular CDs. However, I'm skeptical about the long-term of physical media in general. To me, what makes more sense is to bypass CDs completely and just listen to lossless files on a music server.

 

I think Cd's will be around a LONG time. Invest in a decent player. If you later decide to switch to a server/computer system, you will still have a quality way to play discs.

 

While I like the Marantz player very well, your Onkyo player is excellent in it's own right.

 

Thanks Vidiot and Rodentdog and well, all of you who replied! This is what makes the hobby fun.
Now some background on me:
Failed Professional Musician turned straight (went to voc tech school for telephony and became a GTE Phoneman). Smack dab in middle class America but most of my life very frugal-(depression era Parents influence) and when it came/comes to Stereo Gear Never really looked at the price ranges I couldn't afford. So grounded in economic reality. Now I'm 54 and the Tax Man said me and me Wife didn't owe the IRS any more so I figured it's time to step up to the $500 level CD player, which I know is piddle for a lot of you more successful folk out there in Hoffman land, but for me it's basically a new level. I really can't get the Wifey to go along with anything higher and I do like a happy household so that's the background to this endeavor.
To answer some of your posts:
McLover:
The Onkyo 7030 is an incredible player! There is no faulting it in the 5 months I've had it. Insane price also-$200 or less. The reason I wanted to test the waters is to see if higher priced players offered 'Something More' soundwise, that's all. The Wolfson DAC in the 7030 literally turned my digital experience upside down, as I had been 'down' on cd's and digital audio for years due to mediocre quality-that's what got me back into Vinyl 4 years ago. And the 7030 literally got me re-excited about CD's and the possibilities of Digital that was lacking in my system with older players. (Everything from Sony/Pioneer/Yamaha and the likes, basically Japanese mid fi players). So I have no plans to part from the 7030.
Vidiot:
I might get there with the server based music but for now the old school me still is steeped in the physical collecting of musical objects. And I must admit that I do find it fun and fascinating chasing different pressings/masterings of recordings, it's what makes this hobby fun for me. I feel that if I were to go to the digital playground I might just get bored with perfect sound and actually stop enjoying the hobby. The Music is indeed first, but the chase to get there is just as fun for me as opening a good brew and rocking out to Brubeck or the Stones or Floyd. Plus, I see stereo equipment like I see Women, as objects of Beauty, and I just can't get 'going' with strictly Digital-it leaves nothing for me to lust after!
RodentDog:
This seems to be the path I'm on. I AM open to the future, but have already gone down the path of the 'Universal' Player-several times and that's what had killed my enjoyment of cd's until I got the Onkyo.
Now, I did get the Marantz CD6004 this past Tuesday and have been burning it in for the past 4 days (around 100 hours by now) and last night (friday) did my first a/b on headphones with the Onkyo using the first three songs on 'Time Out' by Brubeck.
The Results for those three songs was an education to me! At normal headphone volume, not loud and not too low, after volume leveling because the Marantz's output is 1.4 db higher than the cd standard, I could detect NO real and repeatable difference between the two decks. Now granted, these recordings were NOT 'busy' recordings that the Marantz, according to WhatHiFi, excels at when it comes to detail and 'air' around a busy and instrumentally congested recording. This is a Quartet and a very clean recording. But it STILL surprised me a bit that the 7030 was, sonically, right up there with this 5 star award winner. Hmmmmmmmmmmm.
So now it's Saturday morning, or just passed and that's where I'm at. I still have 3+ weeks to send the Marantz back for a refund. But it IS a beautiful machine to behold. But so are a lot of other players, Like the striking Denon DCD-720AE, which just gives me a sonic boner big time! But that's only availible in Europe at 230 volts and I'm here in Auburn Washington USA on 120 volts, so my options are limited to Cambridge Audio/NAD/Yamaha/Emotiva/Onkyo/Marantz/Music Hall/and a few others as far as $500 players go.
Now, can any of you suggest further Rock/Jazz/Pop cd's which might show me sound staging differences? I'm an Old Rock guy so I have Stones/Beatles/Floyd/Stevie Ray/Mingus/Monk/Hawkins/Parker and some others like those. But I am open to being educated further........
time out for a smoke and a cup o coffee..........
and please, I already gave up drinking, a man needs SOME vice, and tabacco is it for right now.....
coffee's not too bad either in Seattle!
The Beave

 

Id get the OPPO because it gives you the option to play everything. You don't have to start collecting SACD, DVD-a or BluRay music, but having the option, you can grab something in one of these formats if the mood strikes.

 

Used Oppo BDP-83SE can be had for $500 or less and it might eek out the 103 for audio.

 

I agree the sentiment in both statements.

Go with Oppo because it plays everything you can throw at it. I would look for a used BDP-95 on Audiogon. People are selling them rather cheaply so they can upgrade to the 105. Their loss could be your gain.

 

Good call there... Incredible performance for the money.

 

Sounds like Ward has been awful hard on the beaver lately.

If you have any player with a serviceable drive you might better invest that money in a standalone DAC. I don't think most CD-only players in a reasonable range sound much different from the universal players such as the Oppo. I've had a couple of Oppos and been pleased.

 

I have the Onkyo C-7030 as well and I love it. Would rather spend the money on music but hey if you can swing it then why not. We only live once!

 

I think I would keep the player and use it as a transport and invest the $500 in the best DAC I could find.

 

Very true. And that's why I asked because the Marantz cost me about $300 more than what I payed for the Onkyo. That's an up coming Beatles Mono Vinyl Box or a crap load of Cd's-especially the double jazz cd's I've been getting from the PD European 'Avid' label. At $10 a pop for usually four out of print jazz albums with pretty decent mastering, I can buy even MORE cd's that I'll probably never listen to before I die!
It's still interesting that with close analytical listening the 7030 sounds Identical to the M6004. Granted the Marantz has a build quality consistant with it's list price, but the Onkyo's build quality is way over what it's pricing would suggest. So, with all this being said, what out board DAC's would give a substantial improvement over the Wolfson or Cirrus DAC's in these players? And are there any in the $500 arena?
Oppo will stay in the back of my mind for now......I just can't stand the physical drives and how long they take to respond to commands like 'Play' 'Skip'. Drives me up a wall.......
The Beave

 

The Oppo drives are very responsive. Data access is fast on all formats but blu-ray. Not considering a player because it takes 1/10th longer to skip a song doesn't make sense. The Oppo players provide great value for your dollars spent.

 

I agree, on the Oppo option. I have the model 93, and am very happy with it for cd and BlueRay. I am hoping to upgrade to the 105 next time around, for the higher quality audio. I also have my old Onkyo model 7210 in the system, and it's performing very admirably still.

Bob

 

I haven't heard the NAD, but I run a CD6004 in my secondary (family) system. I have it paired with a Marantz PM6004 integrated (they were literally made for each other), driving a pair of Tekton M-Lores.

Now, I don't know how much of the rest of the system is affecting things, but I'm not that impressed with the CD6004. I enjoy listening to CD's with the kids on it, but it's nothing special. I probably would have been just as happy with a $2-300 player. I had it hooked up to my main system for a couple days once when my primary player was out of commission, and even through the better set-up, still felt pretty "meh" about it.

If I were you, I'd stick with the Onkyo for now, and save up for something like a CA Azur 651C, or better yet, 851C. I like Cambridge Audio CD players --they're very smooth and lush sounding, have a wide sound-stage, and look great, too (the CD6004 is a real dog in the looks department, if that matters).

Good luck with whatever you end up with, and remember not to obsess so much over the gear that you don't enjoy the music! (my new mantra)

 

Go over to Accessories4less and see what you can find for a good buy. They did have some CD/SACD players for good prices as B Stock and I have not been burned by them ever. You may even want to look at their BluRay player selection and be able to play all your discs in one place. Some can even play 2496 DVD + or - Rs, SDACds and DVD-A. Carousel cd players are great prices as well if you are interested.

Just want you to ge the most bang for your buck.

 

Well what can I add . The Marantz 6004 is probably the best choice, ause it is ell made and will last much longer than the NAD C 545, which may sound a tad more audiophile. Not a far margin, but these NAD CD Players do sound darn good as their amps, too. I owned a 515 BEE and that was in fact better than the stuff i used before incl. an older NAD from the early 9ies- But both NAD's failed, they get picky with CD's till they refuse even brand new CD's.
So best forget that.
Since I just was in your shoes, needing a new CD Player ( cause that NAD had died and I moved my PRIMARE CD-Receiver to the bedroom) it was time to get me one of those old warhorses. I would have stayed with my AMAZON CD/DVD-R stand Alone IF it was not for the YAMAHA CD-N 500 - This is indeed a wonderul machine. First it is a good CD Player with old school charmes, a good Cd Drie tested + tried - about the same level as the YAMAHA CD-AS 700 . The Bonus was what got me hooked. They added a complete network player with all the right features - gapless 24/192 a free app to drive it. Plays USB sticks and streams from any mobie phone or tablet. Best of all the Cd player sounds as good as the Marantz the network part does not use any kind of additional handkling after it went to the DAC cho, so the signal coming from the network section is at a level, where you would need a 1000 dollar player Price is around 550 Euro list, but can be found for 500 in europe. Not sure about prices in the US; but this CD-Network player is a no brainer. ooks good, sounds even better and is Made By yamaha, which means quality and longevity. looks like their top network player with a Cd Tansport..lol the NP-2000, that sold for 2000 Euro two years ago.(Of course the Analog Section is taken from their top Cd Player the AS-2000). really hope they willsell this product in the states, too. It slowly but surely is seling like hot cake over here, since people realize the sound quality and extra value of this unit.
Nuf tal..
check...http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/cd-players/cd-n500_w/?mode=model

oops 795 in the US - list price..google around for a better offer if interested.

You can use it as a simple Cd Player as long as you wish, the just connect it to your LAN , download TWONLY and the set up is more or less automatic. apps for Androids / iPhones Pads etc is free and nice to navigate. 20.000 radio stations from all corners o the world at your finger tips, or ignore or tell that "30 year old Loser" to set that stuff up..LOL

 

In the CD6004's favor--and this is actually what put it over the tipping point for me--it's made in Japan, rather than China like the NAD. Not that this is indicative of quality, necessarily, just that with the Marantz, you can be fairly certain it wasn't assembled in a sweat-shop.

 

I like the Oppo, cause it does so much and plays just about anything, but curious, are you actually looking for "Mid" fidelity, Or did you mean mid priced?

 

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Kevin makes a good point as there is a big difference if you can find a bargain in an upscale player.