Can I set my amp directly on top of my cd player??

I can't think of any reason why I shouldn't be able to place my cd player directly under my amplifier? Am I wrong? I don't have a rack at present due to renovations, just a shelf with the components stacked. I recently purchased a Music Hall CD 25 and it's too deep(14"!) to fit on my bottom shelf on top of the cassette player. My amplifier, an Arcam Alpha 7 integrated, has heat vents on the bottom. Is it a bad idea to place it on top of the cd player? Excessive heat? Electrical interference??

 

I have my SACD/CD player on top of my Denon 3300 receiver with no problems. I do give both units plenty of space (over 3") to keep the air flowing by raising the cd player a few extra inches with old cassette cases turned around so you only see the black part.

JohnG

 

This is a total shot in the dark, so take it for whatever it might be worth. Given the quality of what you have, this might not matter, but any piece of equipment should be designed to sit on a shelf, even it there are vents on the bottom, so I would think that most amps are meant to vent from the top, back, or sides, e. g., my Pioneer receiver is supposed to have 8 inches of clearance on top. Assuming your cd player doesn't need to be ventilated, setting the amp on top of it would seem to be harmless to the amp and possibly beneficial to the cd player because the weight on top of it may halp to damp any vibrations that the design of the player doesn't alleviate. Doesn't someone sell special bricks or wieghts, or something for this reason?

For the record, I have my receiver on top of my Sony carousel cd changer. both are on top of my equipment cabinet.

 

Hi,

I don't like to stack equipment but space is always a consideration.

-Jeffrey

 

If the case for the CD player can support it, I don't see why not. Not ideal, of course, but I think it's better than putting a CD player on top of a warm (or hot) receiver or amp, where you may run into heat-related problems. Then again, my in-dash CD players have baked in the summer and been in sub-zero temps in the winter, and were none the worse for wear.

 

Is putting an amp on top of a CD player really any different than putting a brick or sandbag on it - an old vibration tweak?

 

I tried it with mine, ran into all sorts of trouble

 

KHorn, just don't put your speaker on top of your gear.

 

This is exactly how my receiver and SACD changer are situated, and I have no problems.

 

As Steve says, try and find another solution.

Besides heat, the main issue is the excessive noise most cd players give off. You can easily hear this by taking an am radio and placing it close to the player when it is playing a disc. You'll probably hear a lot of screaching from the radio. This doesn't help the reciever do its job.

- Gabe

 

Don't know what I was thinking. Steve and GabeG are absolutely right. I've already found "another solution".......anybody interested in a brand new Music Hall CD25??

 

Experiment, GoldenBoy. You may be surprised how much this is affecting the sound.

Regards,
Geoff

 

Try not to...

I once put my tube phono amp on top of my pre-amp to save space but noticed that it turned what had previously been a minor hum from the phono amp into a major hum.

I later realised that by doing so I had sited the transformer of the pre-amp directly above the input/output tubes of the phono amp and that emmissions from the transformer somehow interfering with the signal from the phono amp.

 

Re: Try not to...

You should have Shakti stoned that bad boy!

 

OK, on your suggestion I rearranged my components and moved the receiver down off of the SACD player and put it where my TT was, placing the TT on top of the CD player. This shouldn't be a concern as I don't need the SACD player on when spinning records. I'm not sure I hear any difference, but this setup makes more sense, so I'll just leave it that way. both of these components are very solid and very heavily shielded (Sony C555ES SACD and Sony DA4ES Receiver) so perhaps this was keeping any possible interference to a very nominal level? Or preventing any interference at all?

 

I don't have my DJ mixer on top of one of my CD players for the same reason that I would not put any other amp on top of my CD players. The reasons explained already.

 

Upon further listening, I believe that I may be hearing a slight improvement in the sound now that I have moved the Receiver off of the SACD player. It may be a bit clearer, with more extended and cleaner highs. I don't notice any direct decrease in any noise level though, because any noise was almost non-existant to begin with.