The best CD Player for the money

I'm going to ask the same question that started 10 years ago.
I'm looking for a CD player in the price range of 500-1500 used. i've been looking at Consonance/opera, Macintosh and Jolida. do the tube player sound better? do i need SACD's.
what about the mac 201 and 301....i need help on this one.
i'm am rock and roll guy. the rest of my stuff in mcintosh mc7300 with a c30 and ads speakers.

Playback Designs

What the difference in sound in a Marantz sacd/cd and a Marantz sacd/cd/dvd
that was at an equal retail price. like the 9600 vs 333 (just for example)
The dvd players are running and the cd players are going for 900

IF You're talking best bang for the buck, I'd have to go with the Emotiva ERC1

I use only Meridian. But bang for da buck is latest Sony discounted

Modded Oppo 83SE!

Need help, please! I have an old Rotel RC D955ax CR player and an Oppo DV 970HD universal player. I use the Rotel for music and the Oppo for video because the Rotel is just a bit smoother for music.

I have a chance to buy a Marants DV7001 universal player and would like to know its sound characteristics. I listen to classical, folk, and some rock and value soundstage, depth, and musicality. Maggie 1.6s are the speakers.
Any comments on this possible change?

Any other suggestions for $300 (used) or less?

Thanks,

Bob

The Sony 5400 CD- SACD player is the best player out there for under $1200 you get a player that beats players even in cd mode at over 3x the cost ,the key is it needs 500 hours of play time to be at it's best and a good power cord and interconnects, also it is in the class A + ratings in Stereophile mo other player at even $4k does that ! and with the Great Mod Dan Modwright just finished for this for less than a $3500 total investment including the player can compete with any $10k player out there that is money well spent IMO.

Sony PS1 - no doupt - had mine tuned in germany with TET Computer Specials - check their site - google it - original in German - I had a basic upgrade done - swift and perfect.

without a doubt given 3 solid weeks of breakin 24-7
The Sony 5400-Es sacd player is easilly the best build quality for sure ,,also it has a warm but detailed sound
that is up there with the $4000 + crowd Stereophile has it listed as A+ catagory not bad for under $1100 delivered
also it sounds better than their $5k player before the 777es.what they did was use hugh quality parts and dual R core transformers Burr Brown 1796 chipsets and opamps
Panasonic and Elna capacitors ,and 23 lbs you have a great player the reason it is far less money then before is that Sony built a state of the art factory in Malyasia ,the workers get 3x less than a worker in Japan ,the same tight
standards and that is how this new classic was born,BUT
it gets better Modwright ,and Terra firma lite Bit clocks are doing excellent upgrades specifically for the Sony5400
for they said it is solid all the way around !

Dave_b what do you like about the Sony player? I'm considering it and the Rega Apollo. I'll run it through a Denon 4310CI and Hales Design C-5 speakers.

FWIW, I've never been a fan of Sony equipment. I think their sound reproduction is rather flat and lifeless. I read the Stereophile review on this model and they thought it was great. Who knows!

For my money the best price/ performance I've had is the Cambridge Audio 840c, about $1k used. But there are a lot of good players out now.

I like my Cary CDP-1 and am thinking of investing in the new 303T, but not until it gets reviewed and I get a chance to listen to one.

Sony SCD-XA5400ES. NO CONTEST! I have had many of the top players, some costing WAY more than the Sony XA5400ES. Resolution, definition, musicality, the best so far for me.

Meridian

Marantz 803, both SACD/CD with a USB input. Fantastic player for $750.00

i cant beleive so many people like sony. never owned anything by sony i was pleased with.

I love my Talk 6 cd player. We should be hearing some about this player as it is spectacular regardless price.

i'm musician as well, I guess musicians prefer a more realistic presentation, i mean hi-fi music is like can food, it can't beat live concert, though some systems do reproduce toward that goal, with the right system, one can tune the sound to either laid back or more aggressive, so I'm just guessing cuz i haven't heard samsung blue ray, it's probably quite different from Rega Apollo. In the end of the day it's down to personal taste, i heard people who own expensive system auditioned and upgraded to something cheaper. So i say go for the one your ears like, if you like to cheaper one, that's even better.

Great thread. I just bought a Rega Apollo and am using van der hul ICs to a Cambridge Audio 640R receiver then to Vienna Acoustic Mozart Grand speakers.

But honestly I can't tell the difference between this and my much cheaper new Samsung bluray player with optical out. Both sound dandy. What am I missing here, folks? I was hoping I wouldn't need golden ears to detect this upgrade.

I had a musician friend with big ears over and blind-tested him and he preferred the Samsung.My heart sank. We were listening to new cd of Miles Davis SKETCHES OF SPAIN. Nice full-range recording. We tested two minutes of A, two minutes of B, and so forth and so on.

The meridian sound is rather cool and hard vs many other players. Warmth, suppleness and contrast can be had in other comparable players.

I am going to buy a Meridian used. Which is the smartest purchase, 508.24 or 507.24?

Kinergetics KCD40

I've owned several of the different Kinergetics CD players and for some reason, they all have a very a sound that's really special, but the balance between soft and smooth vs detail and clairty with the KCD40, is just the right sound for me.

Hard to find, but if you can get one for under $400, I think you'll have something very special.

IMO the only player worth the money today is the outstanding Sony XA5400ES Stereophile Class A+

I am very happy with my denon 3910 multiformat player. I use it only for 2 channel - no video or surround.

You can get these high-end players for pennies on the dollar since everyone wants blu Ray now. There are also lots of mods available for them if you are so inclined.

Mark

Sony SCD-1

Need a paired DAC and CD player. Get a DAC that can feed the power amp, bypassing/eliminating the pre-amp. Just because it can drive the power amp, does not mean it is built to work that way. Check the impedance to make sure it is a good fit.

The Sony XA5400ES...brilliant!!

find a deck w/the features you like then take to a tech and hell do things that will blow you away

"Stonedtemplepilot
why do you want to invest in stoneage technology ? moving parts, vibration damping, CD cleaning ....

look into Cambridge Dacmagic, Logitech Duet, Peachtree, Linn Majik DS, Weiss DAC 2, Prism Orpheus"

Reply to old thread: I can't help but smile with your reference to "stone age technology" (exaggeration for emphasis understood) when I see you have a tube amplifier. With your love of "new technology" surprised you don't have D-class amp. Hilarious.

I have had the Rotel RCD 1072 (MSRP $700) and a NAD T585 (uni. player)($1199). The Rotel never gave me any trouble. The rather new (to me) NAD has trouble with hybrid SACDs now (read errors), but plays CDs fine. After living with both for some time and inspecting the interiors, I thought the Rotel a more solidly built piece of the two; note the price points.

why do you want to invest in stoneage technology ? moving parts, vibration damping, CD cleaning ....

look into Cambridge Dacmagic, Logitech Duet, Peachtree, Linn Majik DS, Weiss DAC 2, Prism Orpheus

What is a better used CDP Rotel RCD 1072 or NAD C542? I have NAD amp and preamp.

Mtkhl567 and Tvad, Alex P is in hiding w/Andy Hefly somewhere in the Czech Replublic. I think Andy is the only person who can get my Audio Alchemy amp to work!

I want to buy a CD player too but a witch stole my brain.

Cambridge Audio Azur 840C is my pick. Very happy with it. HUGE step up from the Rega Planet, which I enjoyed many years, before and after adding a DAC.

I would go with the Studer A727. I promise you can't go wrong, sound quality is top notch. Very open, airy, analog sounding unit.

Without a doubt - Teac VRDS.

Nothing else in its price range can touch it... IMHO.

Yes - my 981 OPPO has volume control on the remote.

Perrew - Never heard of it. My friend Sarah says it cannot be possibly larger then Alaskan continent.

Kijanski, i have found out its a continent, amazingly slightly larger than the US

Perrew - Europe? Is it a country or a continent?

Mtkhl567 if you consider europe part of planet earth he's here and delivering to happy customers, Im one of them:)

I am just curious if there are any owners of the new APL NWO-DAC 1 already?

Tvad, no intentions, just some crazy rumors going around at CES

What happened to Alex P? Did he vanish from planet earth?

Wadia 781i. No, its not an inexpensive player but after leaving APL HI Fi as Customer Service Manager and dealer , I was forced to audition many players to fill the void. I had heard mixed reports of the Wadia 581 and 861 . Some claimed it was the perfect balance and some claimed it needed the GNS mod to become more organic . I picked a Wadia 781i up new and it was horrible out of the box . Patience and burn in was mandatory . As it burned in , it unfolded unlike any player I have ever worked with . I broke SACD in first and it evolved rapidly . It now stands as the finest SACD playback I have ever heard . Redbook was a mess . The Sonics were constrained and imaging was jumbled up with harsh edge and no dimensionality . It bloomed far slower then SACD for some reason . I thought that at 300 hours it was simply going to be a mediocre Redbook player and was disappointed and sorely missed my NWO3.0SE . I ran it in another 200 hours without listening . When I returned it was obvious that it had exploded through a performance barrier . It is hard to describe what is so amazing and that is what has me puzzled . It is as if it is has no single attribute that distinguishes itself as superior yet it presents music in such a way that I am glued to my chair. Micro detail is the best I ever heard and listening at very low levels is now addicting . The space breathes with life : small trios become situated between the speakers in an intimate space and large works not only expand beyond the speakers but often wrap around you. Mid bass to low bass is the best I have ever heard , period. Nuances of upper bas and lower midrange glow with color and pitch. Midrange and upper midrange is controlled and rich in gradations of harmonics . Lower treble through upper treble still needs air , presence and palpability and I expect that will be coming with more break in as the top end almost always fleshes itself out last in my experience .
Yes, I am a dealer but I just needed to " shout it out " about this player because first and foremost , I am an audiophile and this is a break through cd - sacd player IMO and its the best cd player for the money I have yet encountered

BAT VK-D5 24 bit CDP. If you understand why vinyl is superior to digital, then you will crap yourself upon listening to the BAT in a high end system.

I agree with Rega Planet used or the new Apollo.
very musical stuff and get better with a good revealing preamp.