BillG
Major Contributor
Btw, glanced at your location and IMO you're basically living in heaven. I love NZ.
I'm an expat American that's been here for 23 years now, and I'm never returning to the US...
Btw, glanced at your location and IMO you're basically living in heaven. I love NZ.
No. But do I get this right: The guy offers usb-In modules for 14-bit Philips players ?
Did a title search here and did not find much discussion.
- Do you still own a dedicated* CD Player (or players)? *plays CDs only Why or why not?
- If yes, what model(s)? Pics would be nice.
- anecdotes about CD playback most welcome
- links to measurements of CD players also welcome
I just bought a beautiful Sony CDP-338ESD locally for $200. A pretty large purchase for me for something that old, but I have wanted a Sony ES CD player for quite a while (mostly for the “wooden sides” look, but they do have a great reputation for sound as well). These ES players seem to be quite a bit harder to find and generally command more money in the US than in Europe or Asia. Its cosmetic condition isn’t museum-quality, but it is acceptable to me. Now, unbeknownst to me when I bought it, it is a 100V Japanese model, as apparently the 338ESD was sold as the 608ESD in North America. Luckily, I found a high quality Japanese step-down transformer a couple of weeks ago for only a few dollars. I’m not sure if this Sony was ever used on 120V electricity for more than a few minutes - the guy I bought it from seemed like a collector/flipper, and I doubt he had used it much if at all.
Overall, it seems to be in good operating condition, and sounds quite good indeed. There are 2 things to mention, however:
1. It sometimes has problems starting to play track 1 on a CD. It either won’t start playing the track, or it will keep jumping a few seconds, like the laser can’t “lock on” to the CD. This seems to stop happening the longer it has been turned on, but it could also have to do with the laser being exercised, as I have kept playing CDs and/or skipping tracks whenever this has happened. Also, it will usually play the problem track if I stop and restart or eject and re-insert the CD. I have not had any skipping after it has already started to successfully play more than a few seconds of the track. Besides this, choosing tracks is effortless and quite fast. What is the most likely culprit of this problem?
2. The motorized line out/headphone jack will not move if I try to adjust the volume using the Sony RM-AV3000 universal remote control. Unfortunately, I don’t have the original remote, so I’m not sure if this is an issue of the remote not sending the right command or the motor being shot. Thoughts?
Thank you!
I have two Sony CDP-338esds. One I bought new in 1990 and I only just took it out of its box after nearly 30 years. Of course it needed new belts, but both machines are perfect. They are a stunning CD player and only bettered that year by the CDP-X7esd which I also have a few of...
I have reviews where the technical performance was basically flawless. Channel separation was around 120dB, IMD non-existant, THD was incredibly low etc. The quote was "Put simply, the Sony 338ESD is an absolute stunner and worth every cent of the asking price", which, incidentally was AU$1399 at the time.
The motorized line out will need the Sony CD player codes and the universal RM-AV3000 doesn't cover it. But any and all dedicated Sony CD player remotes with the line out +/- will operate the motorized pot. I have plenty of Sony CD remotes here, if anyone has a foolproof way to capture the IR codes.
There are several possible issues causing the problem you describe. If you want to start a separate thread, I may be able to help you.
I have been interested in the Creek CD players and would be interested to hear more about your experience.I have a Creek Audio Evolution 50CD. Player and DAC. I'd be willing to send it in for measurements as I've been curious how disappointed I'll be with it's objective performance.
The build quality and user functions are great. Menus and buttons are straight forward. I also have the companion integrated amp EVO50A.I have been interested in the Creek CD players and would be interested to hear more about your experience.
Several Metronome bits of kit have been measured by HiFi News. They are dire, particularly jitter somethines 3 orders of magnitude worse than SOTA.Not to get off topic, but $50,000....
https://www.stereophile.com/content/métronome-technologie-aqwo-sacdcd-transport-and-da-processor-measurements
Is that the CD-S2100? I’ve been eyeing a few players. I love how they sometimes hide measurements and you have to visit other sites.Love this player, maybe for looks over all else. Quiet as can be. Drawer opens very smoothly and is solid. Plays SACD’s as well.
I’m at that age where any mediocre CD player sounds as good as the best, so my saying the sound is phenomenal may lack credibility, but it sounds phenomenal. Balanced outputs to my amp.
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.... I have no idea why nobody sees a market for the CXU or the Oppos any more. In particular as I do not know of a stand-alone HDMI Mch DAC (except some 100 usd Amazon offerings which make wonder.....)I still use my Cambridge CXU regularly to play SACD. I have most of my music in my NAS now but still have 2 big boxes of CDs that are not ripped. If I feel like it I still play them with my CXU through my Element X DAC via coaxial.
The CXU is great because it is so versatile. It can stream music and video from my NAS via dlna on my wifi network. That was my main setup for many years before I got my external DACs. I think Cambridge stopped making universal players a few years ago. The Cambridge CXUHD doesn't count because it does not have an onboard DAC, so you can't really play SACD unless you have a compatible AVR with SACD decoding capability via HDMI.
Apparently my CXU can rip SACD into ISO files via USB port (so can Oppo players). I have downloaded the software to do that but haven't had a chance to actually try it.
Ironically the function I use the least is to play Bluray discs, which is really what this player is mainly about!
As far as I know there is currently nothing in the market that can do what this player can do. Both Cambridge and Oppo stopped making this kind of players completely. The current Pioneer / Technics universal players do not cover all the functionality of the CXU. I am saving this player from wear and tear now, can't imagine what I can replace it with.
I still have an old Arcam CD73t CD player in a box in my spare room. It is a nice sounding CD player 10 years ago but I just don't have a use for it anymore.
Yes. Solid as a rock. Worth every penny? Probably not, you’d do better with an Oppo 205, but I’ll admit I wanted it to match my A-S2100 amp.Is that the CD-S2100? I’ve been eyeing a few players. I love how they sometimes hide measurements and you have to visit other sites.
Exactly why my Oppo 203 hasn’t been sold yet, even though I could sell it for almost double what I paid. It plays everything. Praying it dies after I do.Both Cambridge and Oppo stopped making this kind of players completely. The current Pioneer / Technics universal players do not cover all the functionality of the CXU. I am saving this player from wear and tear now, can't imagine what I can replace it with.
Yes. Solid as a rock. Worth every penny? Probably not, you’d do better with an Oppo 205, but I’ll admit I wanted it to match my A-S2100 amp.
.... I have no idea why nobody sees a market for the CXU or the Oppos any more. In particular as I do not know of a stand-alone HDMI Mch DAC (except some 100 usd Amazon offerings which make wonder.....)