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Is my dealer lying to me?

This past weekend I went to listen to some speakers. I've been planning to buy CD player also, but that was not this weekend's purpose.

At first we were using a YMB player, McCormick amp, and Soliloquy 5.3 speakers. The speakers is what I was auditioning.

The CD player he is trying to sell me is the Cambridge Audio D500ES, I beleive. Price:400

Big difference I know between the YMB ($2500)and the Cambridge ($400). But it wasn't $2100 in difference in sound I can tell you that. What concerns me is the difference between his comments and the perceived opinions of people on this board. In other threads, there are quite a bit of "ditch the Cambridge" comments.

The dealers comments were "best player under $2000"... "chris sold his $2500 Theta and picked this one up because it's that good, and pocketed the money"... etc.

I'm not asking if this is the best player under $2000. But how does it compare to Arcam and Rega models at $500-700?

Obvisouly, he recommends the Soliloquy 5.3 also. I liked them but wasn't as impressed as much as I thought I would be. The guy has a small shop and seems honest, but it seems this cambridge is not very well respected in this forum.

I've gotten rid of alot of my gear. What I have left to use is a Yamaha RXV-995 receiver. An amp will come, hopefully sooner than later, but I need speakers and a CD player now unless I want to continue to use my DVD player for CDs.

Any comments?
gunbunny
patmatt
86 posts
 
I don't think your dealer is lying to you. Remember, no one says "rotten fish" for sale. That is not an excuse for lying, but remember he could carry alot of different products and chose the Cambridge on it's merits and profitability as well. Also, you can bypass all of this stress by bringing the unit home for an audition on your system and keep it if you like it. If you don't, return it for refund or store credit. At any rate, make up your own mind and don't get hung up on the opinions of others. Even mine!
Good luck!
sdcampbell
2,136 posts
 
At the risk of drawing the wrath of fellow audiophiles that own megabuck CD players, I personally think that most high-end CD players are grossly overpriced. I used to work for a laser manufacturer, so I have a pretty good idea what it costs to build a CD player. To look at the prices of high-end CD players, you'd think they were manufactured with parts made of the mystery element, unobtainium.

If you don't own a good DVD/CD player, you might want to consider buying that rather than buying a CD-only unit. I previously owned a Rega Planet CD player, and replaced it with a Pioneer Elite DV-37, which I bought new for $650. The DV-37 not only produces a superb video image with DVD's, but it also has better audio quality with CD's than my old Rega player. A number of other people on this forum have also had a very good experiences with the DV-37. The DV-37 has a very large power supply, solid chassis, and excellent build quality.

To the extent that reviews matter, the DV-37 received a 5-star rating from one of the major review mags. Just my 2 cents......
photon46
1,076 posts
 
I'm not so sure that Cambridge has recieved the degree of disdain in this forum you describe. Many here have recommended them as a decent budget player. Sure, the cosmetics, programming, and ergonomics aren't the greatest, but they hold their own sonically in comparison to the Regas and cheaper Arcams (not the 9's & fmj's.) Like Patmatt says, demo them at home and form your own opinion.
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