Considering getting a CD player (again). Used? New? Criteria?

Excellent discussion about CD/SACD players in 2022 !

 

Happy Listening!

I also have the Audiolab 6000 CDT now with an Audio-gd DAC and it’s very solid combo indeed.

I'm o happy with my audiolab 6000 CDT transport If I was going to put something together for under a grand, I'd get the CDT and add a Schiit Modi Multibit and a good inexpensive digital cable like a Mogami 2964 from Amazon. Total investment $825.

The OP has purchased a Cambridge CXC and a MHDT Orchid DAC. 

A great combination for the money, and beyond.

Alex, I used to have a 90s EAD player which retailed for around $3500 as well. The sound was fantastic, unfortunately the laser was starting to go, which is the main issue with older players. Honesty my Emotiva ERC-4 sounds every bit as good as the EAD. I think you would have to pay some serious money to best the ERC-4.

Beats me, 

why wouldn‘t you just get say an Innuos Zen Mk3 and kill two birds with one stone?: top cd play after transferring to internal SSD library and top streaming including Tidal and Qobus capability, even Roon if required. And within budget

I use Cary 303 CD player from 2001 as transport. The retail price of Cary was $3500 back in that days.
It is interesting how do these modern affordable transports like Audiolab, Emotiva  sound compared old Hi-End CD players from 90x-2000x?
Regards,
Alex

I have had the ERC-3, Marantz 6006, and Audiolab 6000cdt. Out of those choices, the Emotiva is the best, no contest, in my opinion. The Marantz feels and sounds like a consumer product, I don't know why it is reviewed so highly, I found it to be very unimpressive. The Audiolab is okay, but I think the Emotiva is the best player at this price point. I've also had anewer NAD player, but again was not very impressed. I will be purchasing an ERC-4.

You can get an Audiolab CDT 6000 transport on sale now for $500, Add to that a Schiit Modi Multibit for $350 and you would have a nice CD playing system that would be upgradable with better DACS later on. 

I got a good deal from a friend on a Cambridge Audio Azur 840 CD player after my mint used $40 Rotel 855 went kaput.  All I did was move the 855 into another room and then the laser stopped reading discs.

The Azur 840 is very nice but seems very analytical sounding and I actually prefer the 16 bit Rotel over the Azur.  
Note, with my amp (Onix OA-60 dual mono int), I do not have the capability to listen to the Azur in balanced mode which is supposed to be much better.  The Azur also has many other DAC features built in, that a dinosaur like me doesn’t know how to use yet, as I still enjoy my LPs and cassettes :)

For those with limited funds, the Marantz CD6006 ($499) is an easy recommend. A very musical player with good build quality and a 3-year warranty.

https://www.whathifi.com/us/marantz/cd6006/review

Further to my intial reply ...i've now found and got a Marantz 6000 SE Ki CDP ...which i must say i'm finding best use purely as a transport with its optical out into BenchMark Dac1 HDR to act as the Dac & Pre then via XLRs onto Cyrus Mono Xs and into Klipsch Quartets .... going directly via the CDP along with the Cyrus Amps makes the sound too bright, so i'm sure that with different amps it would sound much less bright ...but having all 3 options of Coax/Optical & Analogue RCAs this CD has got it all covered and at under £200 will be staying

I use an old but overbuilt Marantz player's digital out to a Cambridge DAC with a regulated Pangea (no longer available, but a Peter Madnick design) power supply, and will be bummed when any of these things fail as they sound amazingly good

I've just obtained a 2005 Musical Fidelity A5 cd player ... why i chose old was based on finding that older gear can have a better tone to my ears YMMV of course ...a great price only £200 (house clearance seller didn't really know the value) for a back in the day £2500 player that generally goes for around £500 plus over here and by all accounts was always a solid build too, indeed at over 10KG (22lbs) and looks basically like a cd player in a power amp box ..all nice and silver front plus black handles with a minimal display & buttons (the looks i like) it so far seems to of survived well after i gave it a good clean up as it was covered in dust & muck from being stored in an attic ..with its coax & opt outs i can run it as a transport through a Benchmark Dac that i have but comparing that with its RCA outs into a Cyrus Pre into Mono Xs i am for now prefering the sound of the MF DAC built into the player ..admitedly by a small but noticeable margin it has a warmer feel ... my next comparision test is to pitch it directly against my Cyrus Discmaster 8.0 which serves duty for me as DVD & CD player, after 7 years i started to hanker for a dedicated cd player or transport to explore what differences could be there...movies are still sounding great though.

Having said all that i was very close to going the transport route with the Audiolab 6000CDT that "everyone" seems to be raving about as my budget was up £400

So to help the OP i'd say that i realise MF has it's fair share of critics but don't rule out what others aren't fans of regardless of brand and certainly don't rule out older kit ... audition what you can and sell on what you don't like i'm sure you will arrive at a great destination for your ears in your room and have some fun along the way, for myself there is a great guy by reputation called John Sampson of JS Audio Repairs who has decades of MF experience so I'm sure in due course i'll be letting him tidy her up ..plus before buying i checked and found belts & lasers are still available so with a spare belt & laser soon she will at least have her own spare parts ready for if the day comes they are needed ..and all for less than £300 

@naimfan For what it's worth, I spent some time comparing it pretty closely to the streaming stuff I have (not high res, but 320kbs). I really heard a difference -- it was definite, clear to my ears. And I often second guess my ability to hear differences. The CXC's successor is out, so I'd suggest grabbing the CXC while it's still discounted. Crutchfield has them and a 30 day return policy.

I might have to try a CXC into whatever DAC I get (if I go that way . . . ) and see how it is compared to the Exposure 3010S2 I have as a player . . . it's been too long since I heard one. 

There are several things I like about your Emotiva more than the Cambridge CXC I just bought -- outputs, display, and the remote by a mile. The only solace I have is that I paid $399 rather than $599 and didn't get a DAC I didn't want. Happy listening!

Just got my Emotiva ERC-4 from Audio Alternatives.  So nice to have a cdp and dac in one.  Just plugged my macbook (via usb/spdif) into the coax input and i can stream my full res ripped cd's and stream WWOZ and others
Sounds great rich, full sound, good bass, detailed not harsh
my have to sell the MR-71 tuna

hilde45

Keep me posted as you massage the CXC into your system.
Those mods looks like a cool project as well.

Happy Listening!

I like CDs and, weirdly, the new car I just bought (BMW M240i) has what a sales dude described as the last EVER BMW with a CD player (this assumes you trust any car sales dude's opinion)...it also allows music from CDs to be stored digitally (no clue how many, but easily deleted if the thing fills up) for space saving. A pleasantly surprising feature.

@mcstin I'm enjoying mine very much and just bought the Node2i. I like the CXC very much so far. I'm considering some mods, à la: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoxC3st7WQw

I have a couple posts in this thread stating I did not like my new Cambridge Audio CXC after comparing it to my Node2 streamer. I have since had a chance to listen and do a few more comparisons, and would like to retract my earlier statements. I have listened to a wider variety of music and have to admit to liking it as much as I hoped I would. The plan now is to keep it for many years.

Also have a vintage Arcam CD192 which sounds pretty good. Any input here?

I am also interested in having a transport for cd playing. Any input on the Oppo UDP203 or something better. I would like to keep it under 2k.

hilde45,

You need to check out the ad in US Audio Mart for a MW Sony 999 with the separate power supply and tubes--full mods in other words.  You could get this at VERY near your price point or at it.  ALL the other good players that have been listed will pale in comparison in sound.  This IS the type of buy I mentioned before.  Jack be nibble, Jack be quick...
You can thank me later.

Bob

Thanks, I’ll check on that!

hilde45,

If you are looking for IC recommendations, look on Audiogon for Acoustic BBQ ICs and speaker cables.  Bill Dion (grannyring) sells Duelund wires with very good connectors at more than reasonable prices.  If you haven't heard of the Schroeder Method of using double sets of ICs to each component, it makes a very significant difference in all ways compared to regular single ICs.  Bill sells a set of double ICs for $289--his regular ones are $179.  This is a super deal.  I have double ICs each needing 4 sets of splitters to do all the connections.  Bill has 2 separate sets of cables all build to do the double so you don't need the splitters at all.  There is more increase in sound quality by doubling the ICs than if you were to double or even triple the price of a single IC from the same manufacturer.  Duelund wires are very natural sounding much like real music.  This idea comes from Doug Schroeder who reviews for Dagogo online.  I guarantee you that all who have heard this configuration will never go back to a single set of ICs.  Bill's speaker cables are also Duelund and he sells them for $379 for an 8 ft. pair.

Bob

Thanks, jafant, and others for your reports and suggestions. One of the difficulties in contributing back to this forum is that my system is still so primitive (relative to audiophile stuff) that I'm building things up to a point where I might be able to have an opinion! But I will report what seems to be a real result, when they verifiably occur!

hilde45

I am looking forward in reading about your evaluations and reviews.

Happy Listening!

I just bought a new Tascam CD-RW900MK11 for $300.I wanted it mainly as CD recorder but was surprised it's a good transport also with my Bryston DAC.For 300 bucks new at Sweetwater a pretty good deal and it records rewritable CDRW's.

I am not one to speak about what is the best buy for any cable. I do know that without them my system sounds a little dull :). To me a reasonable expenditure for a cable might be up to 10% of the cost of the two components to be connected. There are those on this forum that have more experience than I who feel a greater expenditure is warranted. I simply take an approach that fits my philosophy and run with it. 

Room treatment, component isolation. cable routing are issues that can be addressed without great expenditure.

I enjoyed a listening session last night and was truly blown away. That is what this is all about.

@mesch Thanks for the recommendations. I will likely try optical cable first. I've been trying to sort out when and where differences in cables matter -- I know this is a very controversial question and I don't have an opinions of my own. I did see this article: https://www.cnet.com/news/when-are-expensive-cables-worth-it/
which at least starts me on the topic, and I watched a Hans Beekhuyzen video or two about Audio Hygiene. It's clear to me, so far, that there are some cables where it really can matter and others where it's less important. Money, time, and experienced effect (tested with some rigor), are all relevant factors, of course.

I use a Audioquest VDM-5 coax between my CXC and Audio Mirror DAC. I also use the Glass toslink cable mentioned above by loomisjohnson. It connects my DVD player to the same DAC. Another quality glass toslink is made by Lifatec. Though more expensive it remains a budget product.. 

I have read two very favorable "Stereophile" reviews of the Rega Apollo CD player (the original and the revised version) though I've not heard one myself. According to the 2018 review, the transport (Sanyo, if I recall correctly) is still in production and is used by several manufacturers. The Rega rep who was interviewed for the article stated that Rega has a large number of replacement drives in stock and these are available for future repairs. What wasn't mentioned though was the repair cost. That unit is about $1000.

Very good arguments against 1. used and. 2. Expensive

The availability of spare parts or replacement lasers /drive transports for many high end CD players is a real risk. I would guess few want to spend big bucks (> $5k) on potential "boat anchors". Esoteric won't sell replacement drives to previously supplied manufacturers like Emm Labs, Oppo is out of business, and even Cary doesn't have replacement parts for its vintage units.

I would never buy anything Linn again, certainly not used. I have had my Linn Sondek LP-12 since 1982. I bought the Linn Sondek CD-12 when it came out in 1999. It was wonderful. When it died, Linn said they couldn’t get parts to fix it. A $20,000 boat anchor. No discount on a new player offered, nothing. 

CD and LP are not a thing from the past, they are both wonderful formats.  Streaming can be fun too. No reason to limit yourself, especially if you already own CD's and so many can be found so cheaply now...somehow hate having to open a menu on my phone to listen to music, though I do quite like Tidal...get yourself a nice player and enjoy !!!

@Roadsterluver I will rip my CD's too. Not an either or.
@larry I'm not ruling out streaming or internet (as I said over and over in this thread). CD's may be a thing from the past, but I own them and the idea of putting one on is appealing. You might still own a physical book. They're pretty old, too. They have their own rituals and haptics, which I also like.

Why would you ever buy a CD player when you can stream Tidal MQA for $20/month?  It is convenient and you can sit down view their library from your seat and enjoy a huge library.  CD's are a thing from the past.  I feel the same way about vinyl.  Who wants to hear the noise from the needle tracking on vinyl grooves?  Certainly not me.

Agree with "Its Just Me" above.  Just rip your CDs.  I did so a few years ago after selling my McIntosh player and never looked back.  My music is both on my MacBook and in the iCloud.  I then downloaded Audirvana 3.5 ($75) which accesses my streaming accounts (Tidal, Qubuz) and all of my ripped CDs.  I use my MacBook as my streamer. Then I downloaded the Audirvana iPhone app and use my phone as a remote.  I've learned from several dealers that CD replacement transports are becoming harder to get (think Oppo and older model McIntosh for example).  Hence, ripping CDs makes more and more long-term sense,  Best of luck.

Ever since I moved my 600+ cd collection out of their jewel cases and into notebooks to save space, I just don’t listen to cd as much as I used to.  So I also was wary of spending a lot of money on a CD player.

Im also old school and my other unit is an Oppo DV970, a 24 bit/192 player that was a budget component of the year that I’ve had for about 10 or more years and is indestructible.  In the past I’ve owned a CAL DX2, Audio Alchemy DDS3, AMC CD6 (1 bit player) and a Proceed PCD2 that I truly regret selling.

A month ago, I picked up a near mint Rotel RCD855 for $40 and couldn’t be happier.  It’s built really nicely and works perfectly too.  There is definitely something to be said for this old 16 bit TDA1541 chip.  It’s warm and very listenable sounding and if I want to do better, I can always just get a better DAC, but for now, pleasantly surprised and very happy with it, especially since it was only $40.  
This hobby need not be expensive.  I’ve proven again and again the opposite of the Linn approach, which is to have the best source components you can buy because it all gets amplified downstream, which makes total sense.... however, in contrast, I have a $40 CD player on good revealing gear and it sounds pretty darn good!

Amp:  Nikko Alpha 130 & custom EL84 amp
Preamp:  Museatex AVC1 & FT Audio passive
Tuners:  NAD 4300 & Perreaux TU1
TT:  $60 LSA/Columbia (pre Denon)
Cass:  Nakamichi DR2
Phono Pre:  Creek OBH 8 SE
Speakers:  Castle Durham 900 & Synergistics S22

@sj00884 What interconnects do you like? I'm getting the Cambridge CXC transport and it has SPDIF Coaxial or Toslink Optical outs. I've read that there's no difference with optical, but for Coax, any thoughts?

There is a dearth of players available at the ~ $700 price point really. I would go new the get the latest and great available. In the past I have had both onkyo and Nad at that price point and both were exception at sound retro, However the Nad had a series of quality issues that I finally gave up on, the onkyo just died of old age.
I recently purchased a a Denon 800NE and have been happy thus far. I still believe there is some burn in improvement on the horizon. Please use decent interconnects as they do matter. 
https://usa.denon.com/us/product/hifi/cdplayers/dcd800ne

I have just recently acquired a Cambridge Azur 851C and am extremely happy with overall performance.  Its brought new life to my CD collection and being as advertised a digital preamp, offers great flexibilty for adding digital sources such as BT (audioengine via toslink), IPOD via digital dock, ++.   Cambridge Audio appear quite specialised with DAC technology considering the number of DACs offered in their range, plus the upsampling  24bit/384kHz technology.  No direct comparisons, but it works for me . fed into a tube amp.

My vote would be a Linn Mimik II, which is well below your budget. I have two of them, one in an all-Linn system, and one in a Naim system, and they are still, after many years, powering right along, and sound better than flac files.

@mesch Thanks. I ordered the Cambridge and will try it out. Got it for $399, new. The Audiolab has good reviews but is, as you say, twice the price. For some, the stakes here are higher than they are for me; I simply won't be able to determine how good a choice this was until I have settled on a DAC, a new preamp/amp, and speakers. With all those choices yet to come, more analysis of this choice seems imprudent!