Do I still need my CD player?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by action pact, May 12, 2019.

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  1. Bungo

    Bungo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Madison, WI
    I am keeping mine, but only because it can also play DVD-A's and such. Not sure I would bother keeping a plain vanilla CD player. Good suggestion in any case to remove the remote control batteries. I'm doing that now!
     
  2. timind

    timind phorum rezident

    Keep it for the HDCD function. I ripped 1500 cds to hard drive via Mac Mini a few years ago and have probably played 2 cds this year. The rips (AIFFs ripped with XLD accurate rip) sound identical to the cds IMO. I keep my cdp because its also my dac. If I were to move to another dac, I'd dump the cdp.

    Years ago I had a Resolution Audio CD50 which decoded HDCD. I loved that player, and if it had a digital input, I might still be using it.

    I've also kept my cds. They are boxed up in a closet in the basement.
     
  3. timind

    timind phorum rezident

    Collecting and playing physical cds means nothing but a waste of time to me. I have no trouble at all getting fully engaged in listening without opening a cd case, placing it in the player, and pressing play.

    As for sound quality, a properly ripped cd verified through accurate rip contains the exact same digital information as the cd. Some folks say listening to the rip is more accurate as the cd player will pass errors to the dac, while the computer will ensure the data is correct before outputting it to the dac. It's been years since I compared, but when I did, I heard no difference.
     
    Kristofa likes this.
  4. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    I am more attached psychologically to LPs as a physical media, but digital in any format is more about convenience to me. CDs as objects are not all that meaningful to me.

    I have no idea what this means.
     
    Kristofa and SandAndGlass like this.
  5. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    Agreed.

    My external DAC (a modest Schitt Modi 3) sounds as good if not better than the DAC in my old Rotel.
     
    timind and SandAndGlass like this.
  6. Andy Saunders

    Andy Saunders Always a pleasure never a chore

    Location:
    England
    Keep it as a back up - besides it will come as a fashion dictates.:)
     
  7. SandAndGlass

    SandAndGlass Twilight Forum Resident

    I am in complete agreement with this. While I do want to have possession of the CD because of my belief in physical media, I am not in any way attached with it, like I would be attached to an LP.

    Once I have ripped the CD, the physical CD can live on in storage forever.

    As long as I have an easy method to play back the digital file, nothing else is important.

    While I will always look at a record cover and liner notes. I never did relish doing the same with a CD, it's not the same thing.
     
    action pact likes this.
  8. SandAndGlass

    SandAndGlass Twilight Forum Resident

    I can see where physical media will disappear from the shelves.

    Fast forward twenty five years...

    It would be interesting to set a turntable side by side next to a CD player, and have identical record's and CD's for both of them.

    Then, invite some of the future younger generation over to have a hand's on.

    Which will they find more interesting to play with?
     
    timind likes this.
  9. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    you are a funny one, eh? not necessarily...LOL...I own hundreds of LPs with no TT...DIG?
     
    SandAndGlass and timind like this.
  10. Mike-48

    Mike-48 A shadow of my former self

    Location:
    Portland, Oregon
    This thread proves the old adage: Ask 150 audiophiles a question; 50 will say yes, 50 will say no, and 50, "it depends."
    :)
     
  11. Done A Ton

    Done A Ton Birdbrain

    Location:
    Rural Kansas
    I'm curious what expense and bother you have maintaining your CD players. How old are they?
     
  12. Mr Bass

    Mr Bass Chevelle Ma Belle

    Location:
    Mid Atlantic
    Fourteen and 10 years old. Lasers particularly for Bluray and SACDs have shorter average lifespans. I already have bought a replacement laser to fix the Esoteric and have had to buy spares for the Marantz. The problem is that the players are disappearing. Not that they will disappear entirely but the quality and choice will go down.
     
    Dave and Done A Ton like this.
  13. Bingo Bongo

    Bingo Bongo Music gives me Eargasms

    Location:
    Ottawa, Canada
    Couldn't agree more, but have learned to just look it up on the Internet!
     
  14. Erik Tracy

    Erik Tracy Meet me at the Green Dragon for an ale

    Location:
    San Diego, CA, USA
    I don't get the argument that streaming (a digitized collection on a home server) is more convenient than physical media.

    I pick out a disc, I put it in the player and I hit play.

    Much easier to me than setting up hardware, software, drivers, networking, et al where my experience with that is "well, it was working yesterday".

    The day I can't get up from the couch to get a disc is the day I should have my system taken away from me....imho, of course.
     
    Muriel Heslop, Dave, ukrules and 8 others like this.
  15. Takehaniyasubiko

    Takehaniyasubiko Forum Resident

    Location:
    Void
    My CDP isn't going anywhere. I love its sound and I love having physical discs which I can play whenever I want.
     
    jusbe, Dave, fogalu and 1 other person like this.
  16. SandAndGlass

    SandAndGlass Twilight Forum Resident

    Let's say that you might be an unusual case.

    Wouldn't the same thing thing usually apply, "if one owns records...of course!"?

    I have a TT, because I have records. If I didn't have records, I don't think I would have a TT.

    I suppose you could have a record collection and not listen to records. But, I think my way if more fun. :)
     
    rockin_since_58 and SirMarc like this.
  17. ggg71

    ggg71 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    I would keep it for sure. I ripped all my music to iTunes. Went through a good stretch of listening to all my ripped cd's through my Macbook -> stereo. Good times. Sounded great. Then I got into LP's, and I now only occasionally listen to my ripped collection. Now, I am looking for a new rack for my equipment that has a space for a CD player. I've picked up some nice Japanese mini-lp's over the last few years, and I'd kind of like to play them.
     
  18. Synthfreek

    Synthfreek I’m a ray of sunshine & bastion of positivity

    There’s more to it than that though. I love the ability to do things like type a few keys and find every jazz album of mine that Tony Williams plays drums on. Or find every song within a specific genre and from a certain year. Or compile songs that have a certain word in the title. I don’t see why music nerds wouldn’t like benefits like this.
     
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  19. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    As I was saying you’ll never know what gets dumped. Paid $.99 for the Leonard Cohen 11-album remastered set at the GoodWill today. Missing “New Songs”. Who cares? Lol

    [​IMG]
     
  20. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    it's all good. ; )
     
    SandAndGlass likes this.
  21. Audiowannabee

    Audiowannabee Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florida
    I would never get rid of cd s or a cdp...never...i like silver discs

    May the discs continue to spin
     
    Dave, muletrane, fogalu and 2 others like this.
  22. hvbias

    hvbias Midrange magic

    Location:
    Northeast
    With a DAC that has a good digital section, removing the CD transport and its real time error correction, I have never heard anything sound as good as a great computer transport to a high end DAC. With my Merging NADAC, the only CD player combination I can think of that I'd trade it for would be something from DCS (I would not turn down a Vivaldi stack!) and even then I know people that don't bother with DCS' CD transport and say a good computer transport sounds better. Or MSB's DAC but using a computer transport.

    If I was a rock/pop guy I'd apply that same reasoning to the Schiit Yggydrasil, another very good DAC, no CD transport needed.

    Was just listening to a Daniil Trifonov rip from a CD of Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto 2/4 an hour ago, only my small speakers were the limitation with how real it sounded. Same thing with the Russell Sherman Beethoven piano sonata cycle that has been in my heavy rotation; digital recordings to DCS and Nagra gear and some of the best sounding piano recordings I've heard reproduced.
     
    Last edited: May 13, 2019
    Ghostworld likes this.
  23. Audiowannabee

    Audiowannabee Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florida

    I would get some decent speakers that can handle your music.. Speakers VERY important!
     
    Dave and SandAndGlass like this.
  24. Dr. J.

    Dr. J. Music is in my soul

    Location:
    Memphis, TN
    I am with you with lps, but I can't get on board with the streaming/computer audio thing. I have a TB of hi rez files on an external HD attached to a Mac laptop and I still find myself going for the cd even when I know there is a superior mastered hi rez version. Maybe I just like looking at players doing their thing for too long. I don't like staring at a computer when I am listening to music.
     
    brushwg, Audiowannabee and Bob_in_OKC like this.
  25. Joey_Corleone

    Joey_Corleone Forum Resident

    Location:
    Rockford, MI
    Any good reliable sources, other than Discogs? Rarely do I see Discogs entries with everything.
     
    Mr Bass and Bingo Bongo like this.
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