Let's talk CD Players!

[Prana Ferox]

Figure I'd post an update on the CD players I own now. Currently Have A Sony CMT-EX1 and Denon DN-950FA

https://imgur.com/7mLaTvT

I absolutely adore the show the Sony puts on while loading/playing.

I had one of those Sonys for ages, also bought for the show. I finally tossed it; the mechanical loading mechanism was giving up the ghost, it was taking up space and I just didn't have the use case for it to justify attempting repair. I've still got the speakers for it on my shelf, but their power handling IIRC is miniscule.

Looking for a quality older cd player under $200. Please recommend a few. Had an older Sony Es unit that finally died. My cheap blu ray player is just used for movies

Find a cheap lower-end changer with a digital out and a remote. Changers generally were lower specced that single-disc units and are thus less desirable (and more common to begin with) but you'll be bypassing all the relevant parts using the DO. The remotes are practically worth as much as the decks by now. It's been ages since anyone's made mechanical mechanisms or laser assemblies worth spending much money on and I'd be a little surprised if any of those are under $200 still.

That being said, if your cheap blu ray player has digital out, it's just as good, if you don't mind the user interface. Bits is bits.

 

[rdenney]

Looking for a quality older cd player under $200. Please recommend a few. Had an older Sony Es unit that finally died. My cheap blu ray player is just used for movies

Tascam CD-401 (ca. early 90’s)
Marantz Professional PMD331 (late 90’s, when Marantz Professional was still part of Marantz)
Cambridge Audio D500SE (ca. late 90’s)

Those have been good old performers for me. The first uses the Sony KSS-151 transport, the second a Philips transport, and the third a Sony KSS-213 transport. These are all better than the Sanyo transport found in current models under a grand. They also have much nicer CD-specific controls that you won’t find on a DVD player.

Of these, the Marantz is the coolest, the CA is the hippest, and the Tascam the cheapest. All three are about as maintainable as any old CD player can be.

Rick “paid well under two bills for each of these” Denney

 

[Indy]

Thanks for the info.

 

[JaccoW]

I'm picking up a Marantz DV9600 in a week or two. Curious to see and listen to it compared to my DV6400.
With the silver player on top op a black Sony UBP-X800M I hope to be getting Yamaha R-N2000A vibes.

I mostly wanted to get a silver player to match the rest of my vintage setup but the DV6400 is about twice as expensive compared to what I paid for it 1-2 years ago. So instead I dug into the different models available.

Pics when it arrives.


Current setup.

 

[Graham849]

Denon DCD-815 which I guess is almost vintage. Connected by coax to fosi q4 and a long RCA to AO200. Golden ears claim it has analogue sound. I dunno. works for moi.

 

[JaccoW]

Picked up the DV9600 today to replace my DV6400 with. I knew it was bigger, but didn't entirely realize how much bigger.






Sounds amazing even though I had to get the remote elsewhere. The seller never had it either as he got it from an uncle but replaced it for a streaming solution.
Not sure which order I prefer it in my setup. Probably better to put it below the Sony 4K player as the Marantz is quite a lot bigger.

 

[tonapo]

I have been lurking on this thread for a while and I couldnt resist any longer...

I bought my first CD player in the 90's (buying my first system when I was 20 - in the UK, its what a student loan was for!!) and I still have it, a Technics SL-PG590 and much later on a Denon DVD-2910 (SACD, CD, DVD etc). I rip CDs, usually purchased from ebay, as soon as I get them using dbpoweramp and then store on my NAS, I then have a seperate copy of the music on a SSD which is accesible by my Roon core, all accessed via tablet. However, I do miss the tactile nature of CDs alot. Vinyl was less popular when I was getting my first kit so I didnt ever buy any, and I haven't felt the need on the latest resurgance, CD was always my thing. I have had both the Denon and the Technics in the rack recently but both got pulled due to space constraints, I only really use them as transports, taking optical out to my Topping D90, I am planning a reshuffle so i can fit one of them back in.

So I am building shortlist of players to look out for, I know I could use the Denon or the Technics but I very much like the look of Sonys recommended by @restorer-john earlier in this thread ( I think Sony x7/x77/x777). However I havent found many of those Sonys in the UK for sale, what other similar players might be worth looking out for? I have been enjoying looking on ebay, are any of the older Musical Fidelity players worth consideration, like the A5.5, A3, X-Ray (I have a Musical Fidelity M6si amp, so I have a bit of a soft spot)? I came across a nice looking Marantz SA7001 K1.Sig too? I suppose I only really need a transport, but a full player is fine too.

Any suggestions? Good quality, but not stupid money etc.

 

[UCrazyKid]

I have been lurking on this thread for a while and I couldnt resist any longer...

I bought my first CD player in the 90's (buying my first system when I was 20 - in the UK, its what a student loan was for!!) and I still have it, a Technics SL-PG590 and much later on a Denon DVD-2910 (SACD, CD, DVD etc). I rip CDs, usually purchased from ebay, as soon as I get them using dbpoweramp and then store on my NAS, I then have a seperate copy of the music on a SSD which is accesible by my Roon core, all accessed via tablet. However, I do miss the tactile nature of CDs alot. Vinyl was less popular when I was getting my first kit so I didnt ever buy any, and I haven't felt the need on the latest resurgance, CD was always my thing. I have had both the Denon and the Technics in the rack recently but both got pulled due to space constraints, I only really use them as transports, taking optical out to my Topping D90, I am planning a reshuffle so i can fit one of them back in.

So I am building shortlist of players to look out for, I know I could use the Denon or the Technics but I very much like the look of Sonys recommended by @restorer-john earlier in this thread ( I think Sony x7/x77/x777). However I havent found many of those Sonys in the UK for sale, what other similar players might be worth looking out for? I have been enjoying looking on ebay, are any of the older Musical Fidelity players worth consideration, like the A5.5, A3, X-Ray (I have a Musical Fidelity M6si amp, so I have a bit of a soft spot)? I came across a nice looking Marantz SA7001 K1.Sig too? I suppose I only really need a transport, but a full player is fine too.

Any suggestions? Good quality, but not stupid money etc.

I have had a Musical Fidelity A3.2CD for over a decade. It serves me well. But it definitely benefited from being paired with a modern DAC. I have it now connected via coax to a Gustard X26 Pro DAC and it makes a terrific transport. While I have had no issues with my unit, I am encouraged to know the mechanism is made by Sony and that the laser is easily replaceable and available on eBay and other sites for the day when it is worn out.

 

[tonapo]

have had a Musical Fidelity A3.2CD for over a decade. It serves me well. But it definitely benefited from being paired with a modern DAC. I have it now connected via coax to a Gustard X26 Pro DAC and it makes a terrific transport. While I have had no issues with my unit, I am encouraged to know the mechanism is made by Sony and that the laser is easily replaceable and available on eBay and other sites for the day when it is worn out.

Thanks for the reply. I think I would like a miniDSP SHD long term, then I can feed it with a CD player or a media streamer (currently a raspberry pi 4 with ropieee) and the SHD (with Dirac) will apply convolution to both sources. I could then still grab a CD and listen and get great sound with room correction applied. I could feed the SHD presumably with toslink or coaxial via s/pdif. The only problems, are a) what player to target and b) that the SHD is very expensive in the UK.

On the player front, I can see a few musical fidelity players for sale on ebay, in addition to A3, I can see A5s and they look like tanks!

 

[UCrazyKid]

Thanks for the reply. I think I would like a miniDSP SHD long term, then I can feed it with a CD player or a media streamer (currently a raspberry pi 4 with ropieee) and the SHD (with Dirac) will apply convolution to both sources. I could then still grab a CD and listen and get great sound with room correction applied. I could feed the SHD presumably with toslink or coaxial via s/pdif. The only problems, are a) what player to target and b) that the SHD is very expensive in the UK.

On the player front, I can see a few musical fidelity players for sale on ebay, in addition to A3, I can see A5s and they look like tanks!

Honestly I come from the camp that "bits are bits" and any of these past generation high quality CD players will make excellent transports as a modern DAC is going to apply jitter reduction and apply a new clock to the signal. With that in mind, I'd pick what looks good to your tastes and is in your price range. The only exception being if you need SACD playback. They you are kind of limited by Sony's DRM.

 

[Puzzle]

I have a walkman portable cd player running in 2 aa batteries. For good old days low-fi music XD

 

[tonapo]

I continue to look for a CD player to keep for the longer term, probably second hand. I have been mainly looking on ebay in the UK and wow, there are alot to choose from. I have not found many of the older Sonys recommended earlier in the thread, but I have seen a cool looking Rega Planet top loading CD player. A friend of mine had one when they came out and I always loved the look. There are some tank link Musical Fidelitys, the A5.5, but perhaps these are a little too industrial looking. There are a couple of nice looking Marantz players, a CD 94 and a CD-7, I like the look of both of these. Its fun looking, but I find time passes very quickly!

 

[Herbert]

Was this site ever mentioned?

Vintage audio laser

Site dédié aux lecteurs CD vintage

vintage-audio-laser.com

I wish they had kept the built quality and simply upgraded the DAC design.
I have some of those old players from the dawn of the CD-age and they still work flawlessy.
But just in case they do not, this article is also very good:

Vintage audio laser

Site dédié aux lecteurs CD vintage

vintage-audio-laser.com

Bottom line: Early players were built like tanks, i.e. with brushless motors.
With people like vintage audio laser or ManoloMos from diyaudio,
it has become possible to repair laser assemblies with burned out diodes.
And restorer-John, of course:

Let's talk CD Players!

@ restorer-John: Were you able to swap the diodes? I have several Toshiba-XR-Z70 that have almost the same laser (OPH-32), several Sony BU-1 based player, a Nakamichi-OMS-5II, two early Denon DCD-1800 plus a Sony CDP-101. All of them probably have the same diode, Sharp LT 022 MC. Looks like...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Though there is a caveat:
Original diodes have become Unobtainium and no one dealt with
the challenge yet to replace them with modern types. Mechanical adapters once were available
(I have some) but probably have to be milled now and the APC has to be redesigned.
But from the second generation on, it has become fairly easy to provide
an SPDIF-output for all the Toppings or SMSLs out there .
Did this on my own Nakamichi, based on a second generation chipset that originally
did not provide SPDIF, using a transmitter IC from Texas Instruments.

Adding SPDIF Output to old Sony-Based Compact Disc Players - schematics attached

Hi to all, thanks to solderdude and others, I am extremely pleased how well support in the DIY section of this forum works, especially for noobs like me. To give at least a little bit back, here is a schematic for the DAC-Nerds, developed 12 years ago with the help of people @ DIYAUDIO. This...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[Adaboy4z]

I have 3 players. One that connects to my Laptop via usb, no built in CD drive. The other two are Technics SL-P555 (1989) and a Marantz DV4200 (2002) DVD/CD player. I use the Technics the most as I like its features. I still have about 50+ CDs that I love.

 

[pantera_rapida]

I had no intention of buying a high end CD player. Why bother? Once HiRes downloads and streaming came of age it seems pointless.

But after looking into downloading and streaming I determined I wasn't interested in anything that wasn't physical media. I have a fair set of vinyl, and also have my CDs from the 80-90's I used to play in my cars. But every CD player I listened to in the last 10 years that cost (or used to cost) $1000 sounded lousy. CDs would sound brittle, harsh, thin. Unfortunately I never found any in that price range that would satisfy my ears.

I became convinced that there are older high end CD players (late 90's-2000s) that would sound amazing. One caveat was that I'd first find a shop that can service a player. I don't know how long lasers last, or trays, etc.

So I looked around and learned about a model that still had support even after they stopped making them in the late 90's. So I called the shop and confirmed yes, they still service them, and will even modify them beyond their original build. I picked up a mint used model, dropped it off to their shop, and a week later picked it up.

I continue to thoroughly enjoy any and all CDs I've played on it. The model is Anthem (formerly at the time Sonic Frontiers) CD-1. It's a single tray but you can load 6 CDs. I assumed multi CD players probably won't sound that great. Not this one. Everyone that's heard it has been astounded at the sound quality.

Months later, as fate would have it, a Sonic Frontiers SFCD-1 came on sale that was upgraded to SE (special edition) by the same shop that did my Anthem. Another amazing CD player that never disappoints. CDs that can sound harsh on cheaper CD players are now smooth and very listenable for hours on end.

And lately I tried 3 different CDs of differing formats: HDCD, XRCD and Super HDCD. I will say that some CDs I have that were expertly mastered sound as good as these 3 formats. But, all 3 of these CDs sound spectacular.

I buy new CDs, but I also buy used ones, many in great shape, and very cheap.

 

[Steven Holt]

The error correction and tracking ability of the older dedicated upper range machines are in another league also. They will track damaged discs with perfection that computer drive based machines will not. Add linear motor tracking (as opposed to gear/rack or stepper) and BSL spindle motors and you get long term reliability where it counts.

The failure points on old CD players mostly revolve around the loading/chucking/clamping mechanisms. Either go for a very solid mechanism or a machine where each part of the loading mech has it's own motor. The single motor system load/chucking (commonly low end Sonys) are trouble as they get old- too much plastic and wear.

The other option is to go with the polar opposite- a very cheap mechanism like the plastic geared Sanyo that uses a Sony laser block and a very simple magnetic clamp straight onto the spindle motor. You could also easily make a transport out of cheap boom boxes where a particular chipset was used (Sanyo) that provided for an easy tap of fully error corrected SPDIF. Benefit is you get a fast and indestructible transport to feed the D/A of your choice for a few dollars and a fun little project to boot.

What do you think of the Pioneer DV533 (192/24 DAC)? I picked one up and one of my salvage hunts, it seems to be in very good condition (but no remote, don't care). Do you think it's worth hooking up and putting it in the System?

 

[eyekaiser]

I own a significant number of CD players as my primary music source is CD. I have zero interest in streaming, downloading or ripping to network devices or music servers. My NASs have movies, files and pictures, but no music.

To me, there is absolutely no comparison between a TOTL CD player from the 80s/90s and any crappy multi format spinner made today. They are simply glorious machines built in a different era that do one thing perfectly instead of lots of things in a half-assed way.

As for reliability, they pretty much last forever, apart from changing loading belts every 10 years or so and lubricating loading mechanism parts if they need it.

People dribble on about Oppo machines being wonderful. In my experience fixing them for people, I wouldn't have one as a gift.

Hunt down a Sony CDP-X7/X77/X777 or some of the big Denons, Onkyos or Pioneers. Spend a few dollars on a new set of belts for the loading mech and enjoy it forever. Spend a few more dollars on a strong shelf to support it as they weigh a ton (around 17kg or 37.4lbs). In terms of performance and measured figures, they all pretty much hit the performance stops in 1990-93 with 16/44.

Cannot afford a new CD player at the moment, but old bluray player (2012 era Philips) with audio set to bitstream to cheap DAC with RCA out to Yamaha receiver for CD, but movies must be set to PCM (why? WOuld like optimal audio for all mediums). Have large CD collection of electronic/ambient/techno etc.. The laser tends to have issues on used models, so new is the way to go for me. Have large audio collection on hard drives. Also am film buff for digital/DVD/Bluray. Have a pro set up with studio monitors for multimedia production, but home stereo is a separate animal. CD/Bluray/DVD and digital media stream to stereo. Would like to upgrade Bluray player and DAC with nicer audio input/outputs options, less fiddling, more optimal-by-default settings...

 

[TimF]

These are three Sony machines I have out at the moment:

CDP-338ESD, CDP-338ESD and the far right is a CDP-X7ESD. Including the Pioneer A-91D, the weight on that buffet is 162.5lbs (73.9kg)
View attachment 34306

The Sony high-end cd players are beautiful on the inside. I think of them as a work of art like the IBM Selectric II typewriter.

 

[TimF]

Of all the female athletic fantasies to pick, why this one?

Were the Brazillian beach volleyball team, Russian ice skating team, or Swedish downhill teams just too sexy?

Specialties--people have their specialties. You want a pirated dvd with lascivious content of women pro golfers?

 

[kevin80]

Hello! I bought a Toshiba xr-z70 cd player 3 weeks ago. When I bought it, I tested it and it read any CD. When I got home, when I turned it on from the power button, the drawer fell out. I put the CD in and pressed the open-close button, the CD drawer went in, but it stopped reading the CD. When I give it play from the button, the drawer comes out. After many attempts, he reads the CD to the end. When he takes the CD after many attempts and plays song 3 and I give him song 9, he stops and takes the drawer out. The CD player was not in it. In the meantime, I made a full recap. I changed all the electrolytic capacitors, but nothing changed, the same problems. After several days and many attempts, sometimes it sees the CD and when I play it, it doesn't read it and makes a very loud sound and the jagged wheel from the motor that engages the wheel from the metal bar that engages the laser mechanism jumps. Any ending is welcome. Thank you very much. A good day.