Help me make my last move (in market for CD player or DAC/transport)

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by CMT, Sep 14, 2020.

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  1. Benzion

    Benzion "Cogito, ergo sum" Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    Then a NOS DAC should be your ticket.
     
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  2. GoldprintAudio

    GoldprintAudio Forum Resident

    Location:
    Lexington, NC

    With you having a great relationship with your local dealer, who also appears to be a Rega dealer, you should absolutely check out the Rega Saturn-R Cd player/DAC.

    http://www.rega.co.uk/saturn-r.html
     
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  3. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    I understand what you're saying. My existing player was a very good one at the time and it still feels rock solid. The thing is, I need to replace the even older, less robust CD player in the secondary system. So, while I get what you mean, I'm still in the market and it seems sensible to get the best thing I can afford. Thanks for the feedback about the Cambridge and Audilab transports.
     
  4. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    Doing a Google search, I'm guessing NOS in this context means "non-oversampling" as opposed to "new old stock"?
     
  5. Benzion

    Benzion "Cogito, ergo sum" Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    Yes
     
  6. LakeMountain

    LakeMountain Vinyl surfer

    Location:
    Netherlands
    If you are adventurous you could try this 16bit NOS DAC with built in phase correction for the high frequency harmonics content. It is supposed to sound very natural, HOWEVER no one here has tried this yet! Sparkler Audio S512 D/A processor to improve CD sound!?

    If you want to go safe I would recommend the fantastic Technics SL-G 700 CDP. Normal CD’s sound great. And it can also play Master Quality Authenticated -Ultra High Quality CD’s (MQA- UHQCD), which are getting popular in Japan right now. Apparently, it also makes CD’s sound very natural!
     
    Last edited: Sep 16, 2020
  7. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    I don't want to alter the sound of my CDs. I just want to play them, with fidelity to the recording. You know -- Hi-Fi.
     
  8. fuse999

    fuse999 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Texas
    I would find a used Rega Saturn-R
     
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  9. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    An elusive beast.

    Actually, I don't like the top-opening design very much....
     
    Last edited: Sep 16, 2020
  10. fuse999

    fuse999 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Texas
    There is one on Ebay and two on US Audiomart.
     
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  11. LakeMountain

    LakeMountain Vinyl surfer

    Location:
    Netherlands
    I understand, the Technics SL-G700 will do that superbly!
     
  12. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    It's about $800 over budget at $3,300 with tax. I have about $2,500 to spend, including tax, shipping, etc., but it looks like it might be a nice choice. Still, too much, I'm afraid. Should one really need to spend that much to get a solidly built, reliable player for a medium that has been around for 36 years in the consumer market? I'm thinking that there really ought to be something that sounds good and is solidly built for well under $2500.
     
  13. LakeMountain

    LakeMountain Vinyl surfer

    Location:
    Netherlands
    Sorry, did not realize that these cost so much more in the US, here it is 2500€. The new Audiolab 8300 CDQ should be within budget. It is also a top player. Otherwise any of the other Japanese brands are usually god as well (Marantz, Denon, ..)

    If you looking for a DAC only, the new Vincent DAC 7 is excellent.
     
  14. displayname

    displayname Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dallas
    Do you recall what you paid for your Pioneer PD-HS7 when you purchased it back in the early 90s?
     
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  15. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    Yes, I've done the math in the past to figure out that in today's dollars and using the exchange rate at the time (I purchased the deck in Tokyo in yen), what I spent then works out to about $1,800. So, sure, I'm prepared to spend about that much, but $3,000 plus tax, or $3,300, seems like a lot today to get the same quality.
     
  16. Shangri-La

    Shangri-La Forum Resident

    Location:
    CA
    I totally understand your love for CD. But I'd suggest you at least try streaming and see how you like it. Streaming can also offer top-notch sound quality and it has enormous selection (not so much about format) of music available, on demand.
     
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  17. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    I picked up a nice refurb marantz HD-CD1 - it has the ability for an external DAC if you decide the internal isn't for you. Great price - no tax at less than 400.

    That is what I'd do/did.
     
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  18. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    No, it's really not for me. I like the physical object. I like the cover art. I like to be able to hold a jacket in my hand and read it while listening. I like to know the object is mine and that I can sell it if I tire of it, or pass it on to someone. I like the look of the discs in their cases or LPs in the covers. I've read enough threads here on streaming to know that too much of it involves fooling with computers and files. I've had more than enough of that for a lifetime. I listen to music to get away from that sort of thing. I'm sure streaming is great, when it's going well, but I just have no interest in it at all.
     
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  19. Shangri-La

    Shangri-La Forum Resident

    Location:
    CA
    Makes sense. Now you made me feel want to switch back to CD listening lol...

    The Oppo Digital UDP-205 universal disc player was a Stereophile Class A media player just a year or two ago selling for $1300 new. It should serve you well enough and is well within your budget. You can go through their recommended component list and see if you find anything interesting.
     
    Last edited: Sep 16, 2020
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  20. nutsfortubes

    nutsfortubes They tried to kill us, and we won!

    Location:
    New Jersey
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  21. Richard Austen

    Richard Austen Forum Resident

    Location:
    Hong Kong
    Consumer Reports noted the average life of dsic spinning CD and Sacd player was 7 years. Today, most stuff is plastic junk because the best transport mechanism ceased product 10 years ago. Some bigger high end companies like Audio Note bought 10,000 transports from Philips when they stopped production. They hoarded the L1210 and Pro2LF. Other companies who used these mechanism wound up buying something inferior and dressing it up...like putting various coverings on it like sound absorbing felts or Pioneer's honeycomb...to try and hide their $8 mechanisms.

    That includes my cxc. But the CXC is $350 us so i am not expecting the world. Most CD players now use cheap plastic junk transports. To be fair the Cambridge Audio transport probably outsells all the other transports combined so you will be bound to read more people with issues.

    Bryston offers a 5 year warrant on theirs. Not 20 like everything else. Still, that is 3 years more than most. Thus, if they still make one, you might try them.

    For a better chance at reliability you should go with a top loader. It removes the cheap crappy drawer mechanism and the horrible slot loading players. Audio Note, metronome, opera consonsnce 'droplet' all use top loading and the Philips Pro2LF. The best mechanism being used...but no longer being made.

    And there is still no guarantee they won't ever fail. My 1996 Cambridge Audio CD6 still runs. Every other disc spinner since has not made it 4 years.
     
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  22. Benzion

    Benzion "Cogito, ergo sum" Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    Rotel 1572 is well under
     
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  23. CMT

    CMT Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Sebastopol, CA
    I guess that's another argument for going the transport + DAC route?
     
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  24. Benzion

    Benzion "Cogito, ergo sum" Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    Actually the higher-end Pro-ject transports- the RS and RS2 use their own, newly developed CD drive -something they boast about.
     
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  25. Benzion

    Benzion "Cogito, ergo sum" Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    Yes. The likelyhood of both going bust at the same time is close to zero.

    Pro-ject RS transport is 1,299

    Border Patrol DAC is something like 1,350. And it's tube rectified.

    Just about your budget.
     
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