Hello Everyone,
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Philips CD610 CD Player.
This one will go into my list of affordable CD Players, as I've been requested to review how the entry line of the 90s performed. It is on a kind loan by aa ASR member
Philips CD610 - Presentation
Released in 1990, it was roughly 200€, not really cheap but not too much as well, for a CD player of the era.
It runs a TDA1543 DAC, the economy option of Philips in 1990, with a published THD+N of -70dB to -75db at best
The filter is the old (at the time) SAA7220P/A, four times oversampling only. The drive is the common CDM4/19.
There's a welcome headphones output, but I could not test it because I'm missing the remote control.
The back of the unit is simplistic, not even digital out:
User experience
The drive is fast to skip tracks, and to FFW/REW. The display is large and track playing can be seen from a good distance. It is gapless playback and applies de-emphasis correctly (this is a proper CD player).
Else, it feels cheap.
Philips CD610 - Measurements (Analog out)
All measurements performed with an E1DA Cosmos ADCiso (grade 0), and the Cosmos Scaler (100kohms from unbalanced input) for analog outputs.
I am now consistent with my specific measurements for CD Players, as I described them in the post “More than we hear”, and as I reported them for the SMSL PL-200 review. I used the commercial version of my Audio Technical CD for all measurements. Over time, this will help comparing the devices I reviewed.
The CD610 outputs 1.833Vrms left (-14.56dBFS), 1.852Vrms right (-14.47dBFS), that is 0.09dB difference between the two channels, which is reasonably low. RCA respects absolute polarity, and the phase is dead flat, indicating a symmetrical impulse response.
The measured performances were 2bits worse from left channel than from the right one. So, I'll report only the right, assuming left channel issue is unique to this one I'm reviewing.
----
Let's start with my standard 999.91Hz sine @0dBFS (without dither) from the Test CD:
Yeah, not pretty, but better than the specs of the Philips DAC. Left channel was 2bits worse, though, but in line with the specs of the DAC (-73dB THD+N)
Let's check if things improve at lower level (-6dBFS):
Noise lowered with a lower output but the distortion did not
----
Let's have a look et the Power Supply leakages, the below is a 20Hz to 1kHz zoom with a punishing 512k FFT length to reveal issues:
Not really quiet, highest one is at 50Hz (-100dB) and so will still be easily hidden into music.
----
Next is the bandwidth:
-0.1db to -0.2dB is reasonably good. Note the ringing, which is an indication of low performing filter.
A wider view at the oversampling filter behaviour will tell us more:
Yeah, lots of ringing out of audio band, as expected. Attenuation of the filter is -50dB to -60dB, so that's low perforrnance, even in 1990, and same as I measured with other CD Players using the SAA7220 filter.
----
Next is the multitone test that a lot of you like very much, but you won't be happy with the results:
This is only 14bits of distortion-free range, while best CD players have no issue to do more than 17bits on this exercise.
----
Let's check the jitter:
The red trace is the original WAV file and the the blue one from the RCA output of the Philips. Besides the elevated noise floor, it is not too bad. Few spikes here and there that you won't hear.
----
Started with the Teac VRDS-20 review, and on your request + support to get it done (more here), I'm adding now an "intersample-overs" test which intends to identify the behavior of the digital filtering and DAC when it come to process near clipping signals. Because of the oversampling, there might be interpolated data that go above 0dBFS and would saturate (clip) the DAC and therefore the output. And this effect shows through distorsion (THD+N measurement up to 96kHz):
The interpolator of the SAA7220 has almost 1dB headroom for intersample overs. Not enough, since so many CD Masters are recorded too hot.
----
Let's continue with the good old 3DC measurement that Stereophile was often using as a proof of low noise DAC. It is from an undithered 997Hz sine at -90.31dBFS. With 16bits, the signal should appear (on a scope) as the 3DC levels of the smallest symmetrical sign magnitude digital signal:
The fragile signal is lost into noise. It is probably the worst result I got on this test. No chance to resolve very low level signals.
----
Other measurements (not shown):
The Dynamic lacks one full bit in noise.
Crosstalk is good.
Pitch error is a reasonable +35ppm, can't be heard.
----
Last and not least, I like to run a THD vs Frequency sweep at -12dBFS as it shows how the conversion has evolved over time. I am currently using the beta version of REW and I discovered that this sweep gives better and more reliable results than before. I overlayed the result of the Philips (green trace) with the recently reviewed PROCEED PCD3 (purple trace):
Ouch, that hurts. Lots of distortion from the Philips DAC, and remember this is the best channel...
----
As I did with the Sony CDP-597, I add a "max DAC resolution" measurement test. It is performed from a 999.91Hz sine @-12dBFS with shape dither (from Audacity). I restrict the THD+N span to 20Hz - 6kHz in REW not to account for the noise of the shape dither beyond 6kHz. I take the calculated ENOB and simply add 2bits to it (due to the -12dB attenuation, as 1bits=6dB). The potential maximum, when calculated from the digital WAV file, is 18.7bits under this test. A "transparent" DAC should achieve 18.7bits, ie 100% in this test.
Here are the results compared to others:
Oh no, worst ever. And this is because of the distortion only, the noise is high, but that's not the limitation in this test. This is very bad. We are 2 bits below the first ever CD Player...
Philips CD610 - Testing the drive
What would be good measurements if the drive would not properly read a slightly scratched CD, or one that was created at the limits of the norm? The below tests reply to these questions.
Here are the results:
Wow! We get the quality of Philips drives, nearly best in class. It seems all Philips available brain went here, not into conversion. Too bad this one does not have a digital output!
Conclusion
As opposed to Sony CD Players, I keep on being on being disappointed by Philips ones. This one adds to the list.
The drive quality is staggering, but unfortunately, without a digital output, you can't put it in good use.
That's a miss.
Enjoy your WE!
Flo
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Philips CD610 CD Player.
This one will go into my list of affordable CD Players, as I've been requested to review how the entry line of the 90s performed. It is on a kind loan by aa ASR member
Philips CD610 - Presentation
Released in 1990, it was roughly 200€, not really cheap but not too much as well, for a CD player of the era.
It runs a TDA1543 DAC, the economy option of Philips in 1990, with a published THD+N of -70dB to -75db at best
The filter is the old (at the time) SAA7220P/A, four times oversampling only. The drive is the common CDM4/19.There's a welcome headphones output, but I could not test it because I'm missing the remote control.
The back of the unit is simplistic, not even digital out:
User experience
The drive is fast to skip tracks, and to FFW/REW. The display is large and track playing can be seen from a good distance. It is gapless playback and applies de-emphasis correctly (this is a proper CD player).
Else, it feels cheap.
Philips CD610 - Measurements (Analog out)
All measurements performed with an E1DA Cosmos ADCiso (grade 0), and the Cosmos Scaler (100kohms from unbalanced input) for analog outputs.
I am now consistent with my specific measurements for CD Players, as I described them in the post “More than we hear”, and as I reported them for the SMSL PL-200 review. I used the commercial version of my Audio Technical CD for all measurements. Over time, this will help comparing the devices I reviewed.
The CD610 outputs 1.833Vrms left (-14.56dBFS), 1.852Vrms right (-14.47dBFS), that is 0.09dB difference between the two channels, which is reasonably low. RCA respects absolute polarity, and the phase is dead flat, indicating a symmetrical impulse response.
The measured performances were 2bits worse from left channel than from the right one. So, I'll report only the right, assuming left channel issue is unique to this one I'm reviewing.
----
Let's start with my standard 999.91Hz sine @0dBFS (without dither) from the Test CD:
Yeah, not pretty, but better than the specs of the Philips DAC. Left channel was 2bits worse, though, but in line with the specs of the DAC (-73dB THD+N)
Let's check if things improve at lower level (-6dBFS):
Noise lowered with a lower output but the distortion did not
----
Let's have a look et the Power Supply leakages, the below is a 20Hz to 1kHz zoom with a punishing 512k FFT length to reveal issues:
Not really quiet, highest one is at 50Hz (-100dB) and so will still be easily hidden into music.
----
Next is the bandwidth:
-0.1db to -0.2dB is reasonably good. Note the ringing, which is an indication of low performing filter.
A wider view at the oversampling filter behaviour will tell us more:
Yeah, lots of ringing out of audio band, as expected. Attenuation of the filter is -50dB to -60dB, so that's low perforrnance, even in 1990, and same as I measured with other CD Players using the SAA7220 filter.
----
Next is the multitone test that a lot of you like very much, but you won't be happy with the results:
This is only 14bits of distortion-free range, while best CD players have no issue to do more than 17bits on this exercise.
----
Let's check the jitter:
The red trace is the original WAV file and the the blue one from the RCA output of the Philips. Besides the elevated noise floor, it is not too bad. Few spikes here and there that you won't hear.
----
Started with the Teac VRDS-20 review, and on your request + support to get it done (more here), I'm adding now an "intersample-overs" test which intends to identify the behavior of the digital filtering and DAC when it come to process near clipping signals. Because of the oversampling, there might be interpolated data that go above 0dBFS and would saturate (clip) the DAC and therefore the output. And this effect shows through distorsion (THD+N measurement up to 96kHz):
| Intersample-overs tests Bandwidth of the THD+N measurements is 20Hz - 96kHz | 5512.5 Hz sine, Peak = +0.69dBFS | 7350 Hz sine, Peak = +1.25dBFS | 11025 Hz sine, Peak = +3.0dBFS |
| Teac VRDS-20 | -30.7dB | -26.6dB | -17.6dB |
| Yamaha CD-1 | -84.6dB | -84.9dB | -78.1dB |
| Denon DCD-900NE | -34.2dB | -27.1dB | -19.1dB |
| Denon DCD-SA1 | -33.6dB | -27.6dB | -18.3dB |
| Onkyo C-733 | -88.3dB | -40.4dB | -21.2dB |
| Denon DCD-3560 | -30.2dB | -24.7dB | -17.4dB |
| Myryad Z210 | -70.6dB (noise dominated) | -71.1dB (noise dominated) | -29.4dB (H3 dominated) |
| Sony CDP-X333ES | -30.5dB | -24.8dB | -16.3dB |
| BARCO-EMT 982 | -32.7dB | -24.5dB | -16.3dB |
| TASCAM CD-200 | -73.5dB | -36.3dB | -19.7dB |
| Sony CDP-597 | -30.4dB | -24.7dB | -16.5dB |
| SMSL PL100 | -53.1dB | -31dB | -19.1dB |
| OPPO BDP-95 | -39dB | -28.8dB | -19.2dB |
| OPPO BDP-95 (vol -2dB) | -95dB | -97.5dB | -32.7dB |
| SMSL PL200 | -94.8dB | -97dB | -39.5dB |
| SMSL PL200 (vol -1dB) | -94.8dB | -97dB | -58.7dB |
| Orpheus Zero | -88.7dB | -87.3dB | -56.8dB |
| Azur 640C V2 | -89.8dB | -91dB | -64.5dB |
| NAD C540 | -34.1dB | -26.3dB | -20.4dB |
| Consonance CD120B | -84.3dB | -39.6dB | -20.9dB |
| Fosi Merak | -38.8dB | -28.5dB | -18.5dB |
| Philips CD610 | -62.5dB | -44.8dB | -25dB |
The interpolator of the SAA7220 has almost 1dB headroom for intersample overs. Not enough, since so many CD Masters are recorded too hot.
----
Let's continue with the good old 3DC measurement that Stereophile was often using as a proof of low noise DAC. It is from an undithered 997Hz sine at -90.31dBFS. With 16bits, the signal should appear (on a scope) as the 3DC levels of the smallest symmetrical sign magnitude digital signal:
The fragile signal is lost into noise. It is probably the worst result I got on this test. No chance to resolve very low level signals.
----
Other measurements (not shown):
- IMD AES-17 DFD "Analog" (18kHz & 20kHz 1:1) : -80.7dB
- IMD AES-17 DFD "Digital" (17'987Hz & 19'997Hz 1:1) : -81.7dB
- IMD AES-17 MD (41Hz & 7993Hz 4:1): -82.3dB
- IMD DIN (250Hz & 8kHz 4:1) : -72.2dB
- IMD CCIF (19kHz & 20kHz 1:1) : -81.1dB
- IMD SMPTE (60Hz & 17kHz 1:4) : -76.8dB
- Dynamic Range : 92.2dB (without dither @-60dBFS, unweighted)
- Crosstalk: -90dB @100Hz, -104dB @1kHz, -93dB @10kHz
- Pitch Error (GPSDO corrected) : 19'997.82Hz (19'997Hz requested) ie +35ppm
- Gapless playback : Yes
- De-emphasis : Yes
The Dynamic lacks one full bit in noise.
Crosstalk is good.
Pitch error is a reasonable +35ppm, can't be heard.
----
Last and not least, I like to run a THD vs Frequency sweep at -12dBFS as it shows how the conversion has evolved over time. I am currently using the beta version of REW and I discovered that this sweep gives better and more reliable results than before. I overlayed the result of the Philips (green trace) with the recently reviewed PROCEED PCD3 (purple trace):
Ouch, that hurts. Lots of distortion from the Philips DAC, and remember this is the best channel...
----
As I did with the Sony CDP-597, I add a "max DAC resolution" measurement test. It is performed from a 999.91Hz sine @-12dBFS with shape dither (from Audacity). I restrict the THD+N span to 20Hz - 6kHz in REW not to account for the noise of the shape dither beyond 6kHz. I take the calculated ENOB and simply add 2bits to it (due to the -12dB attenuation, as 1bits=6dB). The potential maximum, when calculated from the digital WAV file, is 18.7bits under this test. A "transparent" DAC should achieve 18.7bits, ie 100% in this test.
Here are the results compared to others:
| CD Player model or DAC | Calculated ENOB (999.91Hz sine @-12dBFS with shape dither, THD+N span = 20Hz - 6kHz) | Percentage of max resolution achieved (higher is better) |
| SMSL PL-200 | 18.7bits | 100% |
| OPPO BDP-95 | 18.7bits | 100% |
| SMSL PS-200 (from CD player) | 18.6bits | 99.47% |
| Denon DCD-900NE | 18.5bits | 98.93% |
| Orpheus Zero | 18.4bits | 98.40% |
| Azur 640C V2 | 18.3bits | 97.86% |
| Consonance CD 120B | 18.2bits | 97.33% |
| Onkyo C-733 | 18bits | 96.26% |
| SMSL PL150 | 18bits | 96.26% |
| SMSL PL100 | 17.9bits | 95.72% |
| Fosi Merak | 17.7bits | 94.65% |
| Sony CDP-597 | 17.5bits | 93.58% |
| Onkyo DX-7355 | 17.3bits | 92.51% |
| Denon DCD-3560 | 17.2bits | 91.98% |
| Yamaha CD-S303 | 16.8bits | 89.84% |
| Revox B-226S | 16.8bits | 89.94% |
| Accuphase DP-70 | 16.6bits | 88.77% |
| NAD C540 | 16.6bits | 88.77% |
| Sony CDP-337ESD | 16.6bits | 88.77% |
| Teac VRDS-25x | 16.5bits | 88.24% |
| Yamaha CDX-396 | 15.9bits | 85.03% |
| Marantz CD-73 | 14.9bits | 79.68% |
| Philips CD610 | 12.9bits | 68.98% |
Oh no, worst ever. And this is because of the distortion only, the noise is high, but that's not the limitation in this test. This is very bad. We are 2 bits below the first ever CD Player...
Philips CD610 - Testing the drive
What would be good measurements if the drive would not properly read a slightly scratched CD, or one that was created at the limits of the norm? The below tests reply to these questions.
Here are the results:
| Test type | Technical test | Results |
| Variation of linear cutting velocity | From 1.20m/s to 1.40m/s | Pass |
| Variation of track pitch | From 1.5µm to 1.7µm | Pass |
| Combined variations of track pitch and velocity | From 1.20m/s & 1.5µm to 1.40m/s & 1.7µm | Pass |
| HF detection (asymmetry pitch/flat ratio) | Variation from 2% to 18% | Pass |
| Dropouts resistance | From 0.05mm (0.038ms) to 4mm (3.080ms) | 3mm |
| Combined dropouts and smallest pitch | From 1.5µm & 1mm to 1.5µm & 2.4mm | Pass |
| Successive dropouts | From 2x0.1mm to 2x3mm | Pass |
Wow! We get the quality of Philips drives, nearly best in class. It seems all Philips available brain went here, not into conversion. Too bad this one does not have a digital output!
Conclusion
As opposed to Sony CD Players, I keep on being on being disappointed by Philips ones. This one adds to the list.
The drive quality is staggering, but unfortunately, without a digital output, you can't put it in good use.
That's a miss.
Enjoy your WE!
Flo
Last edited:
. The story for this one is that she needed a system without spending too much. I got her some Bolero bookshelf speakers, Musical Fidelity Amp and this player (directly from Philips thru a friend who worked there and got an employee rebate). My dealer friend was very upset insisting that the cheap Philips player were not performant. Well, I guess this time he was right and his Golden Ears magic 
! I feel so bad for choosing a crap player for my mom! At least it was reliable and lasted her for 35 years... we did not move it to the old age home! Thank you again for the review!
