Anyone using an ;
Audiolab or
Micromega spinner?
Audiolab or
Micromega spinner?
CD players that make for a great transport
For those who have an extensive CD collection, own a quality DAC used for streaming, and occasionally enjoy spinning disks, what current model or recent vintage CD players within a budget of $500-$1000 are noted for having a good transport and quality coax digital output?
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Glad you like the DV-09. I know it doesn't play certain disc. Like SACD, but most others it is fine. Don't forget the BDP-09. Better DACS. beat the Theta gen Va dac and was very close to the Audio Research DAC8 that I own. and don't let anyone fool you. The AR DAC8 is a very nice DAC. Most people were using the BDP-09 as a DVD or Blue ray player and didn't like the fact that it took awhile to boot up. I couldn't care less because 1) I'm not in a hurry and 2) I'm using it as a CD player or Transport for music only. I bought it after I owned the DV-09 for a while and it plays more CD's than the DV-09 and sounds great. I believe it is based on the same platform as the DV-09 so it is built like a tank also, but has four internal DACS. I love the look of the Pioneer Elite equipment with the wood grain panels. So, unless I have a reason, it is difficult to sell the DV-09. It looks great. Same with my Pioneer Elite PD65 in my office. It still sounds great. Love those wood side panels. enjoy |
Briefly: PIoneer DV09 works very well as a CD only transport. I bought one inexpensively and it is feeding into a Meridian 563 DAC via an AQ Cinnamon coax digital cable. There are two striking differences. The first is clarity - you can quite literally hear things you don't through the other 2 transports I have (a Rotel 975 and a Sony DVP-N50S). It's MUCH easier to follow a musical line, and to understand how they tie together. For example, with the Pioneer you can hear a number of percussive effects on Ulrich Schnauss's album Far Away Trains that are inaudible through the Rotel or Sony. The second is authority. The Pioneer simply has a much tighter grip musically. Sonically, this means the upper frequencies are much cleaner and real sounding and bass extension, speed, and grip are significantly improved. That authority also gives it a sense of ease, and provides for improved macro and micro dynamics. Minorl - thanks for the suggestion. Curious now to try a much newer transport, like an Oppo 103 or Cambridge CXC. |
For the money, one would be hard pressed to beat the Pioneer Elite BDP-09 player. It can be used as a player and as a great transport. It has four internal DACS and I have compared the transport and cd player with many others and with external dacs and it bettered just about every DAC and transport I found. You can get this used for about $800. Also, the Pioneer elite BP95 and 79AVI make great transports. Another one is the Pioneer elite DV-09. The BDP-09 and DV-09 are literally built like bricks. They are seriously over built and make wonderful transports. enjoy |
Hi, I used to own a CAL Audio Delta CD transport feeding my THETA Pro-Basic 3 DAC. The CAL is built like a tank and has 3 separate digital outputs, Balanced, RCA, and Toslink. If there are any out there I'm sure you could get one on the cheap. By the way, I replaced the above set-up with a Cambridge 840C CDP/DAC and have no regrets and may be another option for you. If you read reviews on the 840C its noted as being a very good CD transport. The 840 has been replaced by the 851, so you can probably pick up an 840 on the cheap as I did. One last option I would like to suggest is a Sony SCD C2000ES 5 disk CD changer. Its my SACD player and of course CD's, it has RCA Coax and Toslink outputs (outputs CD only and mutes when playing back SACD's). Again, it's an older unit you can probably pick up for around $300? It sounds great through my 840C and you can load up 5 disks! |
oros37 posts06-25-2016 6:50pmJVC XL-Z series CDP’s - great transport mechanisms. Bullet proof last forever..+ 1. I used to own an XL-Z1050 for 18 years and it never skipped a beat. It is a very smooth, sophisticated sounding player and has excellent build quality for its price. Because the transport mechanism is smooth and solid & benefits from JVC’s legendary K2 processing, it is cherry ripe for connecting to a good outboard dac. If looking for this player on the used market, the usual advice applies; look for an example which has no more than 2 owners, ask to see lots of photos from all angles, make sure all original items (incl: the orig shipping box) are included, check the seller’s f’back & use Paypal. I’d also ask for the history of the player & S/N to check when it was sold & to which Distributor. |
As I stated above I am currently using a Arcam DV-137. Prior to Blueray, this was marketed as a universal player with a retail price of $2000. I purchased mine new from a dealer about 4 years ago for $500 as the addition of Blueray greatly diminished the value of DVD players. It has served me well for CD playback via my DAC, and DVD viewing. If I were to accomplish a significant upgrade in CD playback, I believe it would require a much greater budget, likely to be spent on a CD player/CD transport only player (such as the Neo 260). What drove my initial post was that I thought it might be nice to develop a list of CD players that can be recommended to those who still compile and listen to CDs and, in addition are interested in upgrading to a separate DAC for redbook or hirez file playback. I have friends, and believe there are many in this AG community, who fit this description and would benefit. Thanks to all who have contributed! Comments regarding home service applicability (gear driven vs. belt, etc.), availability of parts are extremely helpful. |
JVC XL-Z series CDP's - great transport mechanisms. Bullet proof last forever. Make great transports can be Picked up for Peanuts. But hush it is a secrete, how can anything like that be good. Keep it under your hat before they all get snapped up. At the prices they go for what you got to loose. Also sound great as stand alone CDP's. |
If you want to spend even less I'd recommend the Sony DVP-S7700. It's actually a DVD/CD player/transport. It's been a budget audiophile favorite for many years and they can be had on the cheap. But with your budget you might be embarrassed to spend so little. They are plentiful on the used market so I say buy one and spend the rest of your money elsewhere.... |
mesch I would go for ones on this link that use Philips or Sony laser/mechs and look on the net to see if in the future you have spare lasers still available. Please don't all rush this link,, or you may crash his server. http://vasiltech.narod.ru/CD-Player-DAC-Transport.htm Cheers George |
try finding a good Teac VRDS they made many deferent ones from all in one players and stand alone transports. they are getting a few years old but lots of parts out there and many high end companies used the VRDS system in their own cd played. hard to beet that VRDS transport even now a days as it was copied so much, VRDS stands for Vibration-Free Rigid Disc Clamping. |
No, the Neo 260 has the same transport as the 650D and 750D but uses a scaled down less expensive DAC that sounds pretty good but my Bryston BDA-1 sounds more dynamic. The Neo260 can be ordered without the DAC as a transport only for $2000 or $3000 with the DAC. Check out the review in TAS and other publications. |
Adg101, I believe that the Cambridge CXC would likely be a good choice for someone with a quality DAC and with the stated budget To all, I recognize that this thread is somewhat redundant with a previous one posted by Cooper52. With my thread I was trying to focus toward cd only players that others have experience with using as transports with external DAC. It seems that a single speed (cd only) transport and clock might prove better than multi function spinners. I would like to hear more from others on this. |
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I highly recommend Marantz SA-11S1 or SA-11S2. They both listed on A'gon right now. https://www.audiogon.com/listings/cd-sacd-players-marantz-sa-11s1-2016-06-06-digital-91773-san-dimas... |