I third the Eastsound CD-E5. It has replaced my Proceed CDD and Audio Note DAC1.1x combo. I use it with a Karan KA-i180 integrated and Merlin VSM-M speakers. It is very good! |
Consonance CD-120 Linear. |
I would second the Eastsound E-5 CD Player - for under US$1,000, I believe this player offers fantastic value for money and has a tube like sound in the mid section. |
I would have to second the opinion of "Loudandclear", the Rega Apollo is a wonderful piece. I just received my unit for demo and have been burning it in for a few days. It's a beautifully detailed and musically fluid player. Something special is going on here and, to my ears, it easily beats anything I've heard under $1.5k thus far. I'm confident we'll be hearing alot about this player in the audio press over the next few months. I'm going to go out on a limb here, but I believe Rega's Apollo is going to do for affordable cd playback what the Planar 3 did for affordable vinyl replay. Rega's even priced it less than their Planet 2000 : ) Stay tuned...
Happy Listening,
Robert at Audio Eden. |
Another choice would be the Cary 303-100. A very good player and musical. |
Second the Quad 99 cdp. Had the Jolida and Consonance. The Quad is many steps ahead of Jolida, particularly in detail, which is the weak point of the Jolida. Until you hear good resolution you don't know what you are missing. (although more $, the gap narrows a bit for used units as the Jolida hype is not there with Quad). Quad is also better in musicality than Consonance but the Conso has more detail.
I am starting to believe tubes and cdps don't go together so well, but I don't have enough experience to back up that claim. |
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denon 1650ar...great build and sound...no sacd however...weighs 25lbs... |
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forgot to mention muse cd/dvd player..... |
From personal experience I would stay far away from the Marantz (very over-rated mass market junk...don't believe the Stereophile reviews). I have the Jolida JD 100 which is a solid value for approx. $600 used... you can use the left-over money for some RCA NOS tubes and a Flavor 4 power cord or some better interconnects. If you want to spend a little more, the Arcam CD23T or CD33 are solid choices.
Another option is to use your Kenwood CDP as a transport and get a Bel Canto Dac1 and digital cable. |
The level of detail one achieves with the Jolida is dependent on the system and the tubes one has substituted for the stock tubes it comes with. My choice, after trying all the currently made 12AX7s, is Ei.
I use the player in an all Jolida system (302B integrated, phono pre and tuner) with Meadowlark Kestrel 2s and the player is almost as detailed as the phono (stock Music Hall MM7) which to my ear is quite good. |
Foster9,
I agree the Jolida is smooth, musical, and addicting to the point that it is hard to turn off, but detailed it is not. Maybe mods change that, but my Rotel 1070 had a lot more detail at a lower price. |
I second Aball in the recommendation for the Jolida. I am biased since I own the player, but before I bought a stock Marantz multiple format player, I would definitely consider purchasing a redbook-only player. Your first priority is redbook playback, no? Unless you plan on modding a multi-format player, you will likely not get the best redbook playback out of it at the pricepoint you're considering. The Jolida is musical, smooth and detailed. You can eaisly get one used at a nice price well under $1k. |
the marantz is pretty good.. try to by with warranty though (new)... chances are you will need it.. |
I am leaning towards an marantz sa-8260, this way I will be able to try sacd's when the mood strikes |
If you want abilty to add upgrade 24/96 module easily and filter output with different tubes that Ahh!Tjube 4000 (I think that's model number).Not sure I am sold that that is where tubes shsould go in the signal chain but some folks like it it.I am not sure how DVD Audio is entrenched but SACD is here to stay and worth buying a deck with both.A freind of mine thought he did well by killing a few birds with one stone when he bought the $1K Sony DVD that many reviews said had good redbook.If you have a TV in same room that's how I'd go.Lastly folks don't mention tham that much anymore but I still like the Rega CD decks.Took an analogue company to bring out what at it's time intoduced was the best sub $41K deck due mainly to it's well designed output stage.
G'luck
Chazz |
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CTP,
I really like the Quad 99-CDP CD player (not to be confused with the inferior Quad 99 CD player). It is a very articlate player that is also very smooth sounding. Some of the shillness you notice with your current system may be "digital glare" that is common with some older and/or less expensive CD players. The Quad would likely cure that problem.
Also, if you want to try it, the Quad has an excellent remote controlled variable volume control, so you could hook the Quad directly to either of your amps to see if you like the CD direct sound. Personally, I love the Quad connected directly to the amp, bypassing the un-needed pre-amp section.
The Quad 99-CDP sells for about $800.
Enjoy,
TIC |
Arcam cd92 is a great player. About 700 used. I think you can even find a used cd33 for 1K used ... |
For your system, I would recommend the Jolida JD100. |
