Cant beat the Wadia 301 for $3000. Great bang for the buck! BUt I must add, what a useless thread this is!
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My personal opinion is you can't beat the Linn IKEMI for the money; this CD is ridiculously priced for the value and compares with top high-end equipment from most prestigious brands without a flinch when it comes to hearing the music, balance and livelihood. Try it with a good cable like the Cardas GC Reference and listen!!! |
I considered the AH! Njoe Tjoeb 4000 but when I came across the Anthem CD1 on Audiogon and having read a good number of excellent reviews along with the six-disc capability plus its solid build (25 lbs), there was no doubt I would go for the CD1. At some point, I will get the outboard upscampler and swap its tube for a better one. |
QUOTE: PS: and just maybe after 2 1/2 years, the original poster is ready for a new player... hey. QUOTE Yeah...well I guess he's got plenty of suggestions to choose from by now, eh? :P Come on Jazze22....give it up, bro! Waddja get? You don't start a thread like this and then keep everyone in suspense for 2 and a half years.....sheesh! |
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Uhhh....the guy started this thread like 2 1/2 yrs ago. Ya reckon he's still shopping??? If so how bout the Sherwood Newcastle CD980? You can get it for around $150 - $200 used...dual Burr Browns, variable output......ooops! Wrong website! Sorry folks....I thought I was on cheaphometheater.com. Didn't mean to offend anybody! Great cd player though! |
I am also looking to buy a new cd player.My budget is approx.$2500Cdn. Among the ones I'm considering are Musical Fidelity 3.2,Linn Genki,and perhaps the Naim 3.5. My system consists of the following. Linn LP 12 Anniversry Table with vallaha,Akito arm& Troika cartridge,Classe Ten amp,Classe Four pre-amp,Castle Howard speakers,biwired with Linn K400 cable,Arcam Alpha 6 cd player Nakamichi LX5 tape deck. every thing is wired with Transparent Audio Super interconnects.Most of the power cords are Wireworld Stratus. I prefer to listen to rock and roll , blues and stuff like the Flying Burrito Bros. I'd appreciate any and all opinions. Thanks |
My theory for buying a used piece of gear is that someone else is taking the largest part of diminishing returns. For example, a Rega Planet, if someone who bought it new for $800 sells it a couple years later, they'll get $400. If I buy it at $400 and sell it a couple years later, I can probably still get $250 or $300. So, it seems to me that a NEW CD player has more diminishing returns than a USED one. This leads me to believe that the best CD player for the money will definitely be a USED player. |
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?vopin&1043544749&openusid&zzTok20000&4&5#Tok20000 This is a link that will show you pictures of my Ayre CX-7 and the rest of my system. The Ayre CX-7 even at full $3k retail is an amazing player. Enjoy! KF |
I would tend to agree with our colleague FastPArrot - I just purchased a used Accuphase DP-75 and I was unprepared for just how good that unit sounded. Got the DP-75 a couple of days ago. I gave it a few hours to warm up to room temperature before I played it – it was ice cold as it came off the Fedex truck. My initial impressions are those of tremendous detail and harmonic bloom and gorgeous liquidity. Pianos sound like – pianos. Soundstage is huge and open and the characteristics of each recording venue are readily distinguishable. My wife - a music lover, but not an audiophile per se - was stunned at the musical presentation. She remarked that 'now the music just goes right through you.' This is a truly wonderful unit, and I can only marvel that it is a ten year old design. A superb bargain at its currrent used value of approx $2500 to $3000. I'll review it in depth after I've had time to live with it. |
All i have to say is: Get a semi-cheap cd player that can be used as a transport and get an MSB link DACIII with half nelson upgrade and let me tell you - that setup will FAAAR outperform the likes of the Rega Planet 2000 etc. I was just visiting a bunch of stores over the past couple of weeks to find a replacement for my RCD 971 (Rotel), but for slightly less than a new REGA Planet, I can get the MSB with the Nelson upgrade. I compared the Planet with a cheapo combi-player (and i mean REALLY cheap) and it completely KILLED the Planet 2000. If you're looking to bring your source to the next level, I strongly suggest you take a look at this approach. It is certainly, without a doubt in my mind, the route I will be taking in the very near future. |
There is no right answer to your question. It seems that everyone has a different opinion regarding what is the best. If you compare the audio magazines, you will also see that they have their favorites. My recommendation is you pick some of the above CD players that are in your price range and go listen (both in the store and then in your home). I own the Meridian 508.20 (recently upgraded to 24 bit) and like it very much. Another good choice is the Arcam 23T CD player. Enjoy and go listen. cheers... |
Dan Wright fully moded Sony stuff though hre sings the praises of the new $1K Phillps that was $2k up until recently.He thought it sounded gr4eat out of the box and give him a budget of say $500-1500 and he'd max it out like the Sony's (he still thinks his fully loaded 777ES is best sound availible including tyhe mega $$ Accuphase but then again he's partial.Still he has folks that agree aNd buy his stuff.He also told me that it may not be last word in Rez but the Ah!Tjube is very pleasant to listen to.It is abargain at $600 and now they have a $300 user installable 24/96 module.Then get some NOS and have fun swapping glass.To some tubes may not make sense in a digital product but if you would put them farther down the chaain for the glow why not right up front? |
Granite 657 tube output CDP's are fast achieving "cult" status among those audiophiles who wish to listen to the music and not fall victim to the media hubbub.The music this aesthetically beautiful stealh component produces is equivalent or better than SACD's.The SACD hoopla is just another attempt by the marketing fat cats who are not even interested in the music to clean out our wallets year after year.These marketing types are sellng us the menu rather that what you order to eat.They are selling us the PROCESS not the end RESULT which is always the music. Demo a Granite 657 sans preamplifier because it sounds better without it(less is more).You will hear the difference and realize that you don't have to fall victim to the constant "new and improved" pitch of the music player industry. You also do not have to fall prey to the marketing hyperbole so prevalent in the high end market. Sometimes the constant promotion of new, more expensive better sounding equipment reminds me of the story of the "Emperor's New Clothes." |
I've been listening to my brand new AH! Njoe Tjoebs 4000 through brand new speakers for two days. Had to go straight into the amp because my preamp took a dump on Sunday. I've been using the AH!'s volume control to regulate the volume. Which means nothings broke in except my amp. Bottom line... I doubt there is a better sounding CD player for the money. And quite a few that go for a lot more money. Can't wait for everything to get broken in... |
Kanna, I too live in Sac and have visited Deetes several times. Do you remember what Jolidas you wee comparing the Musichall with? According to Bill Baker of responseaudio the JD100 and Musichall 25 are basically the same unit except the Jolida has a tubed output stage. The Jolida sells for $900. I would be very surprised if a modified Musichall sounds as good as a JD100. Not saying it doesn't - I haven't heard one. |