Accuphase DP-70 Review (CD Player)

[Salt]

You’re serious???

British Humor ...

 

[DSJR]

CDs were the playback medium that wasn’t as good as vinyls.
But was for a time better than streaming, however ripping your CDs made them almost as good as streaming, now streaming is better than Cd but not as good as vinyls.
Keith

Yoiu're a very naughty boy Keith

 

[martin900]

Remember, second hand Accuphase is still expensive but they pretty much never lose value so unless it goes completely FUBAR (which is rare with Accuphase) you can always resell it for the same money, or more 'thanks' to inflation. Value-wise, it's a better investment than any Topping, Gustard, SMSL and others.
I'm going to try the high end models some day as a standalone DAC, the more expensive players from the 90's onwards also have digital inputs.

Also - Accuphase is very strict in giving out technical information (or actually - they don't do it) so if you have any Accuphase gear that you're converting the voltage for, please post clear pictures of the connections, for the community, many thanks.

 

[VientoB]

Remember, second hand Accuphase is still expensive but they pretty much never lose value so unless it goes completely FUBAR (which is rare with Accuphase) you can always resell it for the same money, or more 'thanks' to inflation. Value-wise, it's a better investment than any Topping, Gustard, SMSL and others.
I'm going to try the high end models some day as a standalone DAC, the more expensive players from the 90's onwards also have digital inputs.

Also - Accuphase is very strict in giving out technical information (or actually - they don't do it) so if you have any Accuphase gear that you're converting the voltage for, please post clear pictures of the connections, for the community, many thanks.

Well you could regard it as an investment or you could regard it as an object to tie up $4000 of your money for however many years.
A Topping or SMSL isn't na investment it's something to be used.

 

[TurtlePaul]

Well you could regard it as an investment or you could regard it as an object to tie up $4000 of your money for however many years.
A Topping or SMSL isn't na investment it's something to be used.

Yeah, calling an Accuphase an investment is financial fugazi. I could sell $25k of my bond portfolio to buy an Accuphase, or a can buy a perfectly good modern unit (e.g. Yamaha CD-S303) with a single quarterly interest payment and still have the bonds.

 

[Mart68]

Markets differ round the world but in UK I have seen used Accuphase fail to sell even after significant discounts on the original asking price.

I don't think it would beat inflation, or maybe only after 20 years or so. All the classic hi-fi you could have bought as an investment has already gone up in price to the point where it's no longer an investment if you buy in now. That ship's sailed.

 

[Evgeniy]

Hello Everyone,

This is a review and detailed measurements of the Accuphase DP-70 CD Player and Transport.

Thanks for this excellent review.

 

[TurtlePaul]

Markets differ round the world but in UK I have seen used Accuphase fail to sell even after significant discounts on the original asking price.

I don't think it would beat inflation, or maybe only after 20 years or so. All the classic hi-fi you could have bought as an investment has already gone up in price to the point where it's no longer an investment if you buy in now. That ship's sailed.

People of a certain age value this brand. When those people progressed in their careers going from teens to 20s, 30s, 40s, the value held. When that generation reaches 60s, 70s or meets the mortal coil, the values fall away because the new generations don't have the reverence. I wouldn't buy a 30 year old amp now - not because it would necessarily fail soon - but because in 10-20 more years it will be an irrelevant historical footnote.

It is akin to Elvis memorabilia falling in value. Or like 1980s vintage autos gaining value now while 40s through 60s cars are past their peak. I wouldn't be surprised in 10-20 years if people are chasing Benchmark AHB2 in the vintage market.

 

[aagstn]

I love seeing the quality of classic high end hardware. Yes, they charged you a lot, but they gave you high quality in return. Another fantastic CD player review.

 

[BeeKay]

Markets differ round the world but in UK I have seen used Accuphase fail to sell even after significant discounts on the original asking price.

I don't think it would beat inflation, or maybe only after 20 years or so. All the classic hi-fi you could have bought as an investment has already gone up in price to the point where it's no longer an investment if you buy in now. That ship's sailed.

I would agree. In all fairness it’s still (very very good) HiFi equipment which should not be mistaken an investment. It still ages, still being replaced by newer, better technology. There are better options to 'invest'. In photography there is classical Leica or Hasselblad gear. Made by companies with a similar reputation as Accuphase. Every thing has its time.

 

[beefkabob]

I love those tiny wires on the outputs. Monster Cables? LOL!

 

[Sokel]

Istat Rivaluta tells us that 5.000.000 italian liras from January 1990 are worth 6.034,80 Euro in January 2025 (11.685.000 Liras: appreciation factor 2,337)

That's more than fair given the quality, thanks!

 

[Svensson]

I fell into HiFi, after listening to my friends Accuphase CD and amp combo. We'd talked about pixies and wizardry in the electronics. The advice he gave was "Set a hard budget. It might be cheaper to develop a cocaine habit".

We are now normalised to super high standards at budget prices. All my original gear was sold about 4 years ago and replaced with astonishing alternatives for considerably less cost. These days, I am Scrooge McScrooge when it comes to buying gear.

@amirm this is your fault for creating the reviews and @staticV3 your fault for succinctly precise assessment comments. ;-)

 

[PJR918BMW]

Yoiu're a very naughty boy Keith

"...he's not the Messiah ..he's a very naughty boy"

Corrected it for you. Yes. We are a peculiar breed

 

[martin900]

Yeah, calling an Accuphase an investment is financial fugazi. I could sell $25k of my bond portfolio to buy an Accuphase, or a can buy a perfectly good modern unit (e.g. Yamaha CD-S303) with a single quarterly interest payment and still have the bonds.

Apples vs oranges, though. Especially built quality wise. Not everyone wants to drive a BYD, I still prefer a Mercedes.

 

[DonDish]

I can recommend ppl to plow the Accuphase website. Download the product pdf´s. Or just take a trip to a retailer to feel the products for your self. S.MS.L doesnt compare to this, just like MG´s dont compare to Ferrari´s. Even though modern EV can match 0-60.
Accuphase are limited production, over engineered, handmade luxury objects. S.M.S.L is a repackaged computer cd drive.

It doesnt make the S.M.S.L a bad product though. Im gonna get one myself, but if I had the dough I would certainely buy something that has.. an extended pride of ownership, longevity and craftsmanship.

Just check out this product, the Voicing EQ: DG-68 First introduced in 1997 Also take a look at proprietary HS-link, digital over RJ-45. So a Accuphase is a very serious contender.

 

[Valentino]

Thank you for the excellent review.
It would be curious to see how a 16 bit Tandberg TCP 3015A compares. It was the bees knees in my parts of the world at about the same time.

 

[NTTY]

Thank you for the excellent review.

Thanks!

It would be curious to see how a 16 bit Tandberg TCP 3015A compares. It was the bees knees in my parts of the world at about the same time.

It uses the Philips oversampling filter SAA7220 and DAC TDA1541, so you can check the review of the Revox B 126 to get to know how this couple performs.

 

[NTTY]

Accuphase are limited production, over engineered, handmade luxury objects.

Which can only make them very expensive indeed. Also, they’ve had no intention to increase production for decades, and number of employees have not increased either.
I suspect that if you want a new one and have the money for it, not sure you’d get it since they could be all reserved before being built.

S.M.S.L is a repackaged computer cd drive.

I’m not sure this is the case for the PL200 (could be though), but they say it features a home made servo for fast access. And I must say it is the fastest modern drive I tested with the TASCAM CD-200.

 

[Hipster Doofus]

CDs were the playback medium that wasn’t as good as vinyls.
But was for a time better than streaming, however ripping your CDs made them almost as good as streaming, now streaming is better than Cd but not as good as vinyls.
Keith

And how does that order change if you blackout the edge of the cd