Fosi Disc Nano (exposed portabe CD player)

[Cogito]

Previous response still stands. It looks pretty cool and can be stuck on a wall.

Both VERY important when someone is in the market for a CD player.

 

[mhardy6647]

Most of the modern Discman devices (like the Fiio DM15) are closer to being movable than pocketable like the original devices back in the day. They're just too big for that. This one is just tiny to carry around.

Perhaps the term luggable will return to the lexicon.

 

[JaccoW]

Both VERY important when someone is in the market for a CD player.

If that's what you're looking for of course. The current options for wall mounted players are either a vintage Beosound 3000 for €2000+, a new Beosound 3000 for €10k or a vintage Muji cpd-4 for €150+. And a couple of CD players in art frame for €500+.

A Fiio DM15 with a screen on top next to the disc and centred USB + optical cable with a wall mount would be another gorgeous option. Alas, they don't make that one.

I asked them for a remote and got this response:

Thank you so much for your interest in our Fosi Disc Nano CD Player!

We’re excited to hear that you’re looking forward to adding it to your setup.

Regarding your question, the Disc Nano does not come with a remote control.

It’s a new product, and we expect to launch it by the end of September.

Please subscribe to our website to stay updated. Once the Disc Nano is officially launched, you’ll receive a notification so you won’t miss it!

 

[Saponetto]

It seems that the old SoundBurger concept will never die, eh?
Just kidding, I like it!

 

[MCH]

If that's what you're looking for of course. The current options for wall mounted players are either a vintage Beosound 3000 for €2000+, a new Beosound 3000 for €10k or a vintage Muji cpd-4 for €150+. And a couple of CD players in art frame for €500+.

A Fiio DM15 with a screen on top next to the disc and centred USB + optical cable with a wall mount would be another gorgeous option. Alas, they don't make that one.

I asked them for a remote and got this response:

No remote and side buttons is a bit of bad news for a wall mounted unit. You'll have to learn the position of the buttons

 

[NTTY]

Can I please get one?

 

[JaccoW]

Can I please get one?

Haha I actually read your Fosi Merak review this morning. If I get my hands on it I will let you know. But maybe Fosi Europe is willing to send you one for review if you ask nicely?

 

[JaccoW]

Seems like they quietly launched it today.
Available on the global an EU website:

• fosiaudio.com
• eu.fosiaudio.com

Ordered a white one for myself.

 

[Redacted]

That CD unit plays my latest two heavy metal CDs beautifully.
.
.

 

[JaccoW]

Received mine today. Will be playing around a bit more tonight after work.

Sounds good over optical and I definitely need a wall mount for this. Balancing on the edge is stable enough but not perfect haha. One small gripe I have is the plastic disc clamps on the spindle instead of the more common metal ball bearings but we'll see how this holds up. Lying it flat on top of the receiver is pretty stable because of the magnetic mount. When touched and slowing the CD down it keeps playing for quite some time while it spins back up again.

 

[JaccoW]

Initial review:

• Playback not gapless
  • EDIT: For some reason the manual does state that "it supports gapless playback" but mine clearly doesn't on a DJ mix CD. Time for a message to Fosi.
• Sounds is great over optical (as it should)
• Screen is very readable
• Quiet when playing
• Kind of noisy when skipping between tracks
• Good shock protection
  • I could physically stop the CD and it kept playing, just don't do it near the beginning of the track.
  • Hell, I could even raise the lid, remove the disc and it would continue playback at the same point!
• No fingers being cut
• Built quality is not as high as I wish it was (plastic disc clamps stand out) but feels solid enough.
• Lightweight

@NTTY do you want to take a crack at it with actual measurements?

 

[NTTY]

I’m always in for a CD player

 

[Bleib]

This is not for me. It's enough to see the CD rotate in the Merak, but partly exposed? Bad idea
The price is better than Merak though, I'll give it that

 

[Bleib]

That CD unit plays my latest two heavy metal CDs beautifully.
.
.
View attachment 559732

Surely that's industrial?

 

[Roland68]

Initial review:

• Playback not gapless
  • EDIT: For some reason the manual does state that "it supports gapless playback" but mine clearly doesn't on a DJ mix CD. Time for a message to Fosi.

Is it confirmed that the CD is truly gapless? In other words, is there only a marker between the tracks, without a 2-second gap?
Does the CD play back gaplessly on other standard CD players (not using software)?

 

[JaccoW]

Is it confirmed that the CD is truly gapless? In other words, is there only a marker between the tracks, without a 2-second gap?
Does the CD play back gaplessly on other standard CD players (not using software)?

The CD I used was Cassius - French Disco '03, which is a continuous DJ mix of several songs. I just popped it into a Sony UBP-X800M UHD Blu-Ray player to compare and it played gapless without issues. One song just moved straight into the other.

I think I have Alive 2007 from Daft Punk on CD as well but I will have to dig a little bit. That should be a single live recording as well.

I just e-mailed Fosi. Let's see if we can figure out what is going on.

 

[Roland68]

The CD I used was Cassius - French Disco '03, which is a continuous DJ mix of several songs. I just popped it into a Sony UBP-X800M UHD Blu-Ray player to compare and it played gapless without issues. One song just moved straight into the other.

I think I have Alive 2007 from Daft Punk on CD as well but I will have to dig a little bit. That should be a single live recording as well.

I just e-mailed Fosi. Let's see if we can figure out what is going on.

It's a good thing I haven't ordered yet; gapless playback is important to me.
I hope they can solve the problem.

 

[JaccoW]

It's a good thing I haven't ordered yet; gapless playback is important to me.
I hope they can solve the problem.

Got a reply from Fosi:

Thank you very much for letting us know, and also for taking the time to test the Disc Nano and share your feedback with us.

We sincerely apologize for the confusion. You are absolutely right to point this out.

After checking with our engineering team, we can confirm that the Disc Nano does not currently support gapless playback. Unfortunately, the information in our manual stating that it supports gapless playback was incorrect. This was an error on our side, and we are very sorry that the manual gave you the wrong expectation.

We completely understand why this is important, especially when listening to DJ mixes, live recordings, or albums where there should be no interruption between tracks. We also understand that this can be a dealbreaker for your particular use case.

There is no setting that needs to be enabled to make gapless playback work on the current Disc Nano. We will make sure this incorrect information is corrected in our documentation so that other customers are not misled.

We really appreciate you bringing this to our attention before publishing your review. If you are willing to share any additional details about the discs or tracks you tested, we would certainly be happy to pass them along to our engineering team, although at this point we have confirmed that the limitation is the lack of gapless playback support itself.

I'm of two minds right now. On the one hand I want to send it back and wait for a second iteration that solves this issue. On the other hand it's a really cool little player that will be fun to lug around to listen to discs in thrift stores.

I've got a few more days before I need to send it back but @NTTY there might not be a player on my side to send to you in the remaining return timeframe.

 

[NTTY]

Thanks for the update and sorry not replying earlier, I got too busy on other matters.
No gapless, no need to test for more, I’m afraid. Like they say in their reply, it really is a deal breaker.
Thanks for letting us know!

 

[Nopiano]

It’s a pity that the Red Book standard was ever permitted to be ignored. It’s ridiculous not to have gapless; as absurd as if it began at the last track! In my eyes it isn't a player without gapless.

Do I recall that the original machines when CD was launched had to meet the standards to carry the prized Compact Disc logo?