Logitech Squeezebox sound compared to CD Player

As with any product in audio, you're probably going to get a range of answers.

I've had a Squeezebox Touch as my only music source on my system since they came out almost 2 years ago. (And I've had other Squeezebox players for almost 10 years now.)

My opinion is they are an incredibly good player, especially given they sell for $300 and under. I previously had a Nad 542 CD player and compared its playback quite a bit with my prior Squeezebox Classic / Lavry DAC combo and could not reliably tell the difference. I sold the Nad and haven't looked back.

After I got the Touch, I ran the same comparison with the Classic/Lavry (synced and level matched) and found I again couldn't tell the difference.

So, I sold the Lavry and moved the Classic Squeezebox to my second system. I've had zero urge to change anything since, other than just adding more music to my collection.

Others are certainly going to give you a different opinion.

My point is that you should get a Touch for yourself and run your own comparison. I believe Logitech still has a money-back guarantee if you're not happy.

As for cables, that's something you'll also need to experiment with to find what works best for you.

I'll second Mapman's comment. The SB3/Classic and Duet models were fairly good mid-fi in terms of sound quality. They improved substantially with the use of an external DAC.

The Touch is significantly better by itself. I know some still prefer an external DAC, but as noted, I ran a side-by-side, synced and level-matched comparison between the Touch and a Lavry DAC for several weeks. I routinely found myself unable to tell which was playing unless I checked the position of the input selector on the amp.

Now, that may be due to my pedestrian system, aging ears or utter lack of audiophile sophistication, but I'm enjoying my music.

With a relatively low up-front cost and the money-back guarantee, it strikes me as a pretty easy decision to find out for one's self.