What should I look for in a cd player? (1 Viewer)

[Reid K]

hopefully soon i will get a cd player for my yamaha rxv-730, and energy c-1s. On the side you think these will be good or should i consider looking into an amp? Back on track though what should I look for? Iam looking to spend up to 150 american. I just need it for playing cds, however most of mine will be CD-RW. So if you can give me any advice or recomened a player that would be great.

 

[Jason_Els]

Hi (again) Reid,

With a CD player you want to be sure of two things. First, that it can play CD-RW. That's not an easy requirement to fill with some of the low-end units so be sure the the specs say they can play them. The second is to be sure that it has a digital output. When you do that the CD player really becomes nothing more than a transport that feeds a digital signal to your receiver to decode. The rule of thumb is to go with the better DAC (digital/analog converter). In your price range that will be in your reciever. The digital output on the CD player will bypass the CD player's internal DAC and feed the signal directly to the receiver. Given that, the rest is ergonomics. Find a player that you like. CD player remotes aren't so complex that nearly any receiver remote can't do everything required of it so don't let that be your guide.

Nearly any of the major Japanese brands would be in your price range and they usually offer the best bang for the buck.

 

[LanceJ]

This is my CD player if it helps any:

Technics SL-PG4 single-disc player

This player has no particular sound of its own--which is good IMO. My previous player from Pioneer, while sounding good/detailed, had a rather warm sound (i.e. bass-heavy). It was a changer model & I just didn't like guessing which slot each CD was in so I gave it away.

An interesting factoid: my Technics player was made in Germany!

LJ

 

[Reid K]

so what would you say is the best cd player of these? http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/sub...10&catid=10546
right now iam thinking the RCA since it has 5 cds (right amount for me I wont need any more but would like more than one) it MUST have cr-rw which it does. On a side note why is the H/K more than double the price of the others? And would that be worth it?

 

[KeithH]

Reid, as with anything else, you do in part pay for the name behind the component. Harman/Kardon is a better name in audio than RCA. However, it is very important to understand that not all players sound alike. A general trend is that the more expensive the player, the better a player it is. When comparing the Harman/Kardon changer to the RCA changer, the higher price for the former is in part due to the Harman/Kardon name. The Harman/Kardon unit is also a better player. That said, I have never liked Harman/Kardon changers. For similar money, I recommend the Denon DCM-280 or '380 or the Sony CDP-CA70ES.

A basic player that you might look at is the Sony CDP-XE370 single-disc player. It sells for around $140 USD, and it plays CD-RWs. Go to www.crutchfield.com for more information. Sony also makes the 'XE270 single-disc player for a little less money, but it doesn't come with a remote. Stick with the 'XE370 if you are going to go with a budget Sony model.

 

[Reid K]

okay thanks so any of the ones you said should be pretty good right?

 

[Reid K]

I think I have narrowed it down to the following:
Sony CDP-XE370
Sony CDPCE275
Sony CDPCE375
Any help on the final decision would be great. As in what will have better sound etc etc, and will work best with my current set up

 

[MarkHastings]

I have a similiar player to the "Sony CDP-CE275 5-CD Carousel". I have an older model "CDP-CE335" and I've been happy with its performance. I would think the CE275 would be a great player as well. The Disc-Exchange feature is neat (i.e. You can exchange any of the other 4 discs while the 5th disc is playing). Also, CD-RW is a great thing to have as well.

Optical outs are definitely the way to go! Not that it really matters now, but when I first got that player I was excited to be able to play DTS CD's, and being able to bypass the D/A convertor is a definite 'plus' in todays world.

p.s. My motto has always been "You can't go wrong with a SONY". Maybe not in all cases, but if you are ever uncertain, you're safest to lean toward them.

 

[Sathyan]

My brother has that HK & it sounds really good. It supports HDCD. If you get it use the CD players DAC (he uses it with a Roksan Kandy Integrated & Mirage OM10's). When working it sounds great but it has been in the shop twice in the last year. The HK is also substantially cheaper than quoted if you buy from harmanaudio.com

I have the Sony 375 which is used as transport (using the DAC in my Onkyo receiver). The DAC is horrible. When bypassed, the CDP is dead-quiet, changes discs relatively fast, and interface logically laid-out but no HDCD and a smaller soundstage. Also the headphone & variable level is stupidly implemented. Build quality is better than I tend to expect from non-ES SONY. I've had it since last July the only problem was it stopped reading from Disc4 at one point; I shook it and npow its fixed. My only regret is that I should have bought the '775 for SACD playback. As a cheap redbook transport, the '375 is recommended. For using receiver-based bass management, you'll want to use a digital path

When using a player DAC there are few adequate _changers_. Denon/MArantz and HK make good ones at the $250 price-point. SONY ES also (if you get SONY ES, get it with SACD). Above that price single-dics players dominate: the universals from Yamaha, Pioneer Elite, Denon, Onkyo and Marantz; Rega Planet, etc.

 

[Reid K]

Ya I will use it through my reciever but can only go up to 150$ american or 300 canadian before tax. Also I have no idea what like Hdcd or whatever means. Also if I just burn cds can I burn them with DTS? All the cds being played through it will be mixes also, and I wont be using it for anything super high tech, I just want it to sound good.

 

[KeithH]

Reid, note that the Sony 'CE275 does not come with a remote. If you are going to get a changer, get the 'CE375. It comes with a remote.

Do you have to have a changer? In general, a single-disc player is better than a comparably priced changer. I am primarily considering comparison of the two using the analog outputs. There are other variables to consider when comparing transports (i.e., using the digital outputs). The 'XE370 and 'CE375 are similarly priced, and you might find the 'XE370 to be the better player. In the end, try to compare them using the analog outputs on both. If you are set on using the digital outputs, it might not matter much, but you might want to compare them as transports.

 

[Reid K]

Okay I just always thought using an optical cable would give me better sound am I mistaken?

 

[MarkHastings]

Okay I just always thought using an optical cable would give me better sound am I mistaken?

Optical is definitely better. The thing that Keith was referring to was if you are using the analog outs.

Since CD's are digital, there has to be a conversion from digital to analog (when using analog outs). With optical/digital outs, there's really no difference when comparing models because there's no conversion when reading and sending digital info (i.e. a cheap player with digital outs will probably sound the same as an expensive player with digital outs). But when you compare analog outs, there is a world of difference. The cheaper models won't convert the digital to analog signal as well as the more expensive models, thus adding more noise to the signal. (i.e. a cheap player with analog outs will probably sound worse than an expensive player with analog outs).

But as Keith was saying, if you are going to use the digital out, then there's really no need to worry about the cheaper players because basically digital is digital. Unless there's something I'm missing with optical outs? I assume they're basically all the same?

EDIT: Here's a thread that discusses optical out differences:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...hreadid=122301

 

[KeithH]

Mark said:

With optical/digital outs, there's really no difference when comparing models because there's no conversion when reading and sending digital info (i.e. a cheap player with digital outs will probably sound the same as an expensive player with digital outs).

Not exactly. Not all players perform the same as transports. Jitter is one factor that contributes to the performance of a transport -- the lower the jitter, the better. However, there is likely to be little if any difference between a $140 Sony single-disc player and a $150 Sony carousel changer when compared as transports. By contrast, a $500 player such as the NAD C 541i could very well serve as a better transport than a budget Sony player. If one has a revealing system, the difference between transports can be striking.

 

[Eric_M]

I understand that a $500 player compared to a 150 player will probably be way better but then is it really worth the jump from a Sony $100 player to an Onkyo $200 player??

 

[Sathyan]

Eric_M : You can get the Onkyo 380 for $80 as a refurb (at J&R with 90-day warranty; then add a 2-yr extended warranty for $20. In terms of build quality, reliability (my Sony occasionally gets "confused"), and DAC the Onkyo's definately better. As a transport, I can't tell the difference (on cheap speakers, it should be noted) in sound quality.

Another thing to consider is system integration (same brand CD player and receiver) to limit remote juggling. My Onkyo receiver remote will not control non-Onkyo CD players or tape decks. So for the OP, consider Yamaha changers (I think they have one for $200); I've never hear them. It is convenient to hit play on the CDP and have the disc start spinning, source change to CD, and mode change from DolbyDigital to Stereo all with one button. Of course, if you have a macro-capable universal remote you can do this with other brands.

Sathyan

NP Natasha St-Pier - De L'Amour le Mieux (redbook)

 

[MarkHastings]

Not all players perform the same as transports.

That's why I used words like 'really' and 'probably'. Considering Reid is only spending $150, he probably won't notice a huge difference in that price range.

If I were to invest $500 in a cd player, I'd probably do some big time research into jitter control, but for a limiting factor of $150, I'd be more concerned with the capabilitites (i.e CD-RW).