Recommend a new cd-player!

[Sami M]

I remember the Philips cd-player, one relative of mine had it back in the day. It, like many B&O or almost any 70's hi-fi look much more appealing than most of the stuff today. What happened to innovative design?

Yes, I plan to stay away from Denon as well as from Sony, from which I have some very bad experience. :evil: Which reminded me, that I would very much like a cd-player that doesn't brake up after two years becouse of the daily use :roll:

[paul]

As a footnote to this topic. You guys might be right about DVD audio being the future format for another reason. I don't know how many of you Stereophile subscribers read a tiny response from Theta Digital on p. 137. There is reference to articles which describe the limitations of SACD compared to DVD. In fact I did a little research on this and it would appear that SACD is no better and perhaps even worse than cd over 10 kHz. DVD it seems is truly superior to cd and SACD technically it seems.
This may not mean much however because the best doesn't always win (Beta vs VHS) and quite frankly, XRCDs prove that when done properly, cds can finally match their promise.
As for my recomendation, I am pleased with my 3 year old Kenwood 406. It held it's own against a Meridian and tweaked Marantz. Until things settle down, if I were shopping for a new player, I would go for a moderately priced stand alone cd player. The multi-purpose players that are aren't megabuck Accuphase's for example, may sacrifice cd performance.

[QUINNY]

[quote="Graham_StartSonically, the masses are happy with 128kbps MP3s and CDs that have 1db of dynamic range. Consumers will always choose what is most convenient, not what sounds best.[/quote]

a). Music is a mass market (but fading) appealing to mass tastes.
b). The masses have little choice in what's offered to them. Why people get so emotional over music and then go and drive a Ford, shop for the cheapest food, buy cheap clothes etc, etc, etc, is beyond me.
c). Most people couldn't give a rat's ass about the more delicate nuances of sound (and who can blame them...they have a life and CD is good enough!).
d). If anyone thinks that all CDs have just 1dB range, they are mistaken.
e). I'll reiterate what I've written before. Unless recordings are made with microphones that have accurate frequency responses that extend to 40KHz, SACD, DVD and vinyl are very much a con. Sure, there will be small differences between a CD and SACD or DVD, but these are miniscule as none of the information beyond 20 KHz is actually recorded to any meaningful level on 99.999% of product that's out there. At the moment, until everything is recorded at 88.2KHz or 96 KHz sampling rate, using microphones that are flat to 40KHz through desks and outboard which also has the same extended bandwidth, the whole gambit is a nonsense!!!!

[Mixmachine]

Originally Posted by "QUINNYa). .
b). The masses have little choice in what's offered to them. Why people get [i

so[/i] emotional over music and then go and drive a Ford, shop for the cheapest food, buy cheap clothes etc, etc, etc, is beyond me.
c). Most people couldn't give a rat's ass about the more delicate nuances of sound (and who can blame them...they have a life and CD is good enough!).

are this statements for real? :o :

I'm extremely glad that many great individuals through out man kind's history didn't subscribe to this 'got a life" "good enough" philosophy, other wise we could all very well still be hunting deer in the forest and shitting in the woods.

Well, since I've been known to stop over by my local McDonalds for breakfast on several occasions, and because I’m the happy owner of a great portion of the Sony/Phillips Empire and certainly must be trying to con you at every turn in this board, you shouldn’t even consider my humble observations on the Sonic quality of the 2CH "Three Degrees: When will I see you again" SA-CD, but just in case, I’m adding a couple of remarks for those that enjoy living dangerously; :lol:

Yesterday I finished listening and comparing this release with it’s vinyl and CD counterparts and was pleasantly surprised by the level of Sonic improvement achieved in this SACD version which IMO literally blows all others away, the improvements in the vocals definitions in cuts like “Dirty old man” are mesmerizing, all three singers come alive across the front stage and their solos are carefully placed and defined like nothing I ever heard before, the clarity achieved with all instruments is incredible too, one can clearly now pick up the background congas on ‘TSOP” or follow just about any instrument without much effort, in “Love is the message” the sax solo floats in the center stage like never before, and the girls voices are crystal clear, (unfortunately they used the 7” version), this are just a few of my layman observations of this SACD release, but once again I must remind you that you shouldn’t listen to me, after all according to some, I’m part of the conspiracy that is trying to con you out of your hard earned money.. :lol:

[QUINNY]

MixMachine: As you may or may not know I do sound recording professionally, but believe it or not I am not someone who worries about sound quality as much as many consumers do. Maybe, because I'm hearing stuff at source, I don't have a need to try and improve upon things so much, as these things invariably give me a miniscule return in real terms. As someone who earns money from recording, I have to have a certain level of detachment, otherwise I'd never earn a dime, as there's always something that claims to be the new bee's knees ready to part me from my hard earned cash.
That's not to say that I don't invest in new equipment, but if I do, it has to make a real difference. It's rather like, do you go from v.1.1 of a software to v.2.1, or wait until major changes in v.4.1. IMO, currently, with the lack of high end microphones being used, SACD is like only one version up from CD, it's fiddling with things.
Only twice in the past 20 years have I thought to myself "hell, that's so much better".

Firstly, when I started using Hi Fi video for mastering, instead of 15 ips reel to reel. The difference in quality of sound between the two was stunning. It was still analogue, but with less background hiss and much less wow & flutter and a truly flat response from 20Hz - 20KHz (so almost like digital). It's a shame the format proved to be less than robust and those Hi Fi video master tapes now show extreme signs of distress.

Secondly, believe it or not was not the advent of digital (I hated it for the first 3-6 months of use), but the purchase of a mains isolation transformer(conditioner). I bought a second hand B.B.C. unit that weighs a ton and cost me $350. It's basically just a huge transformer and capacitors? that helps to cut out mains borne interferance. You'd be amazed just how dirty most mains supplies are!
Instantly, there was less gunge in the background noise and everything started to sound so much sweeter.

Almost anything else I've bought have been minor tweaks by comparison, even my Earthworks microphones that cost me $1500 each.

[judydoggie]

My studio reference speakers and mixers are made by Mackie -- a remarkable company that really stands behind their products. My mixer's Protools LE Rack. All the other equipment I own, from video displays to audio distributors/compressors, CD players, Video Tape Recorders, Minidisc Recorders, CD/DVD recorders, are made by Sony. Go to www.bpcvalue.com. It's Sony's discount pro audio outlet. You never know what you're going to find. I purchased a $7,000 pro CD player that's so full of features it's silly (including working seamlessly with Protools as a controller) for $1,800. Most of the equipment on bpcvalue has been used once at trade shows and is still covered by Sony's warranty -- and, remember, this is NOT consumer stuff; it's all PRO.

[K-Bee]

:lol: It seems that old topics never die!
Which player did you actullay end up buying Sami??

[Sami M]

K-Bee: I'm still looking... :o Got kind of bored with the situation and have settled for my budget Sony dvd-player, an annoying piece of plastic really! (Buttons don't work without pressing really hard, no programming etc.)

At the moment Primare is the most likely choice. They seem to be quite popular here too. But I'm still not rushing to the shop...

[K-Bee]

Oh i remember Primare very well. A very high high end priced amplifyer set were available in the late 80s over here.
Just checked their site at http://www.primare.nu/ - looking good (and expensive too I guess )

[Bernie]

The Primare DVD30 looks beautiful and has a nice feature set. Too bad it's $4,000. :cry:

[Sami M]

Well the Primare is not THAT expensive here, the dvd Bernie mentioned is 2.500 euros in standard price. But it's still a lot of money of course... That's why I've not bought anything yet. I still don't know weather a simple cd would still be a wise buy...

Main reason to this cd-dilemma of mine is that I had the Sony CDP-XA-555Es player but it totally broke down after two years of use. The manufacturer replaced the laser head without charge after very tirefull demanding. And after 6 months it broke down again exactly the same way! Again the manufacturer finally paid the repair, but not untill after contacting the seller and the top manager of Sony's office in Finland. I was a very unhappy customer :evil: Finally I got rid off the machine, but lost a lot of money to have it for just 2 years.