SMSL VMV PL100 CD player £110

[ChenHui]

What about the headphone output? It's good? Can drive a HD 660S?

I think driving 660 is not a big problem, you can try it, and you can buy a headphone amplifier separately for later upgrades.

 

[tmtomh]

Yep, I have to remind myself that a lot of people don't listen to classical music. If your diet is pop and dance music then gapless playback probably doesn't count for much. If your diet includes motets, cantatas, trio concerti or baroque opera there is a good chance that artificial gaps between tracks could be annoying.

The question of mechanical noise has come up a few times. I think BluRay players typically have an audience that likely never hears it. If the movie is on, why would you? For that reason standards might not have been as rigorous as those for CD players.

For music listening I think it depends on a few things such as the distance from the player to the listening position, time of day and the amount of background noise generally, whether gear is behind glass or out on display, whether you've been listening to loud or quiet music and whether you are actively listening for mechanical noise. If you are listening late at night in a very quiet suburb to generally softer music in a room that is not that large... well, I'd expect you to hear most cheap BluRay players in the gaps between tracks. Perhaps not all but most.

I hardly ever listen to classical, but I agree with you 100% that lack of gapless playback is a deal-breaker. It's awful for playing live performances in any genre, as well as any album where two or more tracks seamlessly segue into each other. Plus it just seems dumb and subpar in 2024 for any CD playback device not to be able to do gapless since 40 year-old CD players, including the cheapest ones, can do it with no problem.

 

[VientoB]

So, any news on whether this does gapless playback?

 

[Bleib]

So, any news on whether this does gapless playback?

Said in another topic, yes, it supports gapless

A Thread Dedicated to Cirrus Logic CS43131

That one has a PEQ though. They claim an EQ function via an app called Walk Play but as already said, it's not clear to me if it is something done and stored in the dongle hardware (in this case the app should be a proprietary interface to the specific dsp used) or is something like a system...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[LarsRR]

I've tried cheap DVD players but the mechanical operation noise has been too distracting to enjoy.

I have quite a few CDs containing audio which flows from one track to another. Unnecessary gaps in playback destroys the listening experience for them as unnecessary silence interrupts the music flow. Also, while the gaps are silent, the player creates more mechanical sounds as the laser resets to change tracks. Pink Floyd DSOTM and The Wall are good examples, but there are plenty of others. It's very common in live and orchestral music albums.

Aside from the annoyance, introducing gaps in CD audio doesn't conform to the Redbook audio standard and means the players are essentially broken out of the box. It *shouldn't happen*, but it does because modern cheap DVD players read the CD audio as Track-At-Once (TAO) like a CD-ROM.


It was used in the early 80's as a way of noise reduction technique. It was implemented on a number of albums in the 80's but is not used nowadays. Still, as part of the Redbook standard, all CD players *should* support it but many don't. It should also be implemented in DACs, but many don't.
Read about it here:

Pre-emphasis - Hydrogenaudio Knowledgebase

wiki.hydrogenaud.io

Yes you may be able to find a good quality and good condition DVD player which meets your requirements for cheaper. I've been lucky to find an early 2000's era Pioneer DV-686A new in box that does all the above (although I don't use the DAC). You never know how much life they have in them though as the components fail with age and use, so it's great to have a well-priced current option. I need one to replace a Sony Blu-ray player which doesn't have an inbuilt display.

In addition to the other requirements, I'd also like it to support HDCD. I'd much rather HDCD support than MQA.

i have had the PL100 for a couple of weeks now and it is exactly what i've been looking for. it is solidly built and very quiet. i have a couple of dvd players i could have used but they did not have the outputs i needed (either rca or optical since i'm using a coax between my wiim pro and dac). the PL100 allows me to use my chord c-line rcas out to the wiim and easily control the volume with the wiim home app. i have dozens of gapless ambient/electronic cds so that was also important. my only complaint is that the display isn't a little larger. i can't make out the track number from across the room but i can easily live with that limitation given its functionality.

 

[Ismapics]

Yep, I have to remind myself that a lot of people don't listen to classical music. If your diet is pop and dance music then gapless playback probably doesn't count for much. If your diet includes motets, cantatas, trio concerti or baroque opera there is a good chance that artificial gaps between tracks could be annoying.

The question of mechanical noise has come up a few times. I think BluRay players typically have an audience that likely never hears it. If the movie is on, why would you? For that reason standards might not have been as rigorous as those for CD players.

For music listening I think it depends on a few things such as the distance from the player to the listening position, time of day and the amount of background noise generally, whether gear is behind glass or out on display, whether you've been listening to loud or quiet music and whether you are actively listening for mechanical noise. If you are listening late at night in a very quiet suburb to generally softer music in a room that is not that large... well, I'd expect you to hear most cheap BluRay players in the gaps between tracks. Perhaps not all but most.

I am always baffled on why people believe they can tell other how they and somewhat patronizing tone. No one has to like anything the other writes, but from there to assumptions is a bit of a jump. Mechanical noise has to be really bad to be annoying. The best cure for that is distance and disregard.

 

[Bleib]

The best cure for that is distance and disregard.

I'd prefer that the low quality stuff was never even made. Sometimes it's something to fix with a firmware, but they simply keep the costs down as much as possible.

 

[Blew]

I think driving 660 is not a big problem, you can try it, and you can buy a headphone amplifier separately for later upgrades.

I found that, despite the 150ohm impedance, the HD660S needs a decent amount of power to drive them to their full potential. I would consider them as the same as the HD650 in that way and not skimp on a dedicated headphone amp to drive them.

 

[LarsRR]

i have had the PL100 for a couple of weeks now and it is exactly what i've been looking for. it is solidly built and very quiet. i have a couple of dvd players i could have used but they did not have the outputs i needed (either rca or optical since i'm using a coax between my wiim pro and dac). the PL100 allows me to use my chord c-line rcas out to the wiim and easily control the volume with the wiim home app. i have dozens of gapless ambient/electronic cds so that was also important. my only complaint is that the display isn't a little larger. i can't make out the track number from across the room but i can easily live with that limitation given its functionality.

edit: on a whim, i connected the PL100 to the wiim pro using an optical cable to bypass the wiim pro dac and ensure a digital path to the topping e70 dac via coax (and amp via xlr) and it sounds considerably better than using the chord rcas. definitely something to consider if you're using a similar setup and still listen to cds. what a time to be alive.

 

[Blew]

Mechanical noise has to be really bad to be annoying. The best cure for that is distance and disregard.

Mechanical noise *is* really bad in cheap DVD players, such that it is very distracting when trying to enjoy listening to CD music on a decent system. Some of the annoying noise is created by the spinning of the disc, which makes a loud constant whirring noise during playback that becomes distracting during the quieter parts of a track. Other noise is created by the laser moving between tracks, which is particularly audible when combined with the player introducing artificial gaps in the CD tracks which force the laser to reset before playing each track. This was still annoyingly audible to me at a 4m listening position, so distance didn't resolve the issue much.

I don't see the point in spending money, time, and effort in putting together a high-fidelity music system with low distortion and noise throughout the signal chain, only to pair it with a cheap DVD player that introduces mechanical noise and can't play CDs properly.

 

[DavidM1]

I am always baffled on why people believe they can tell other how they and somewhat patronizing tone. No one has to like anything the other writes, but from there to assumptions is a bit of a jump.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say here. However, if my post bothered you it wasn't intentional.

 

[Ismapics]

Mechanical noise *is* really bad in cheap DVD players, such that it is very distracting when trying to enjoy listening to CD music on a decent system. Some of the annoying noise is created by the spinning of the disc, which makes a loud constant whirring noise during playback that becomes distracting during the quieter parts of a track. Other noise is created by the laser moving between tracks, which is particularly audible when combined with the player introducing artificial gaps in the CD tracks which force the laser to reset before playing each track. This was still annoyingly audible to me at a 4m listening position, so distance didn't resolve the issue much.

I don't see the point in spending money, time, and effort in putting together a high-fidelity music system with low distortion and noise throughout the signal chain, only to pair it with a cheap DVD player that introduces mechanical noise and can't play CDs properly.

I get a consumer that wants to have the best of the best. It's clear, however in my case I see the Blue Ray as an evolution of the CD player. When I need to playa CD it's my go to into an external DAC. However, I hardly use it that's why I don't see the value on a single use CD player. I rip CDs to lossless and play the files over network or direct form disk drive.

 

[VientoB]

People spend extra to get -120db SINAD but should ignore mechanical noise?

 

[DavidM1]

I get a consumer that wants to have the best of the best. It's clear, however in my case I see the Blue Ray as an evolution of the CD player. When I need to playa CD it's my go to into an external DAC. However, I hardly use it that's why I don't see the value on a single use CD player. I rip CDs to lossless and play the files over network or direct form disk drive.

Airplay has been around for 20 years and I started transferring CDs lossless via iTunes to our network some 15 years ago. It's a common story.

I still like to play CDs, especially if I'm working at my desk, and although the bluray has been fine this is smaller and I'm hoping it will also be quieter.

 

[Bleib]

I still have some 40 cds, and a CD-r burner... sometimes it's better to listen from beginning to end. Better focus.

 

[Blew]

I get a consumer that wants to have the best of the best. It's clear, however in my case I see the Blue Ray as an evolution of the CD player. When I need to playa CD it's my go to into an external DAC. However, I hardly use it that's why I don't see the value on a single use CD player. I rip CDs to lossless and play the files over network or direct form disk drive.

The CD format definitely has its shortcomings, but it still can't really be bettered in audio fidelity and most of its shortcomings can be worked around.
Blu-ray is a substantial evolution over the CD as a storage medium, but that's mostly useful for video. Unfortunately, most BD players fall short of providing a good CD listening experience as a CD player/transport. They usually don't have many of the features I listed above and are also usually quite slow in starting up and playing discs.

I currently have a Blu-ray player hooked up to one of my systems to play CDs too but, although it's fairly quiet and doesn't introduce gaps in CD audio (Sony players are good like that), it doesn't have an inbuilt display and only has play/stop external controls on the unit. So, I can't see what's going on unless I hook up a TV or monitor to it. Not as much of a problem if your music system is also your home theatre, but a big problem if you don't have a TV nearby. It used to support Gracenote (after Sony bought CDDB) but unfortunately that's now been shut down. I haven't tested the DAC in it but don't need it. It plays SACD too, which is great, but I only have one SACD and SACD can only play digital via HDMI, so it's not a big factor for me. The same goes for DVD Audio and Blu-ray audio discs. I want to replace it with something that will provide a better listening experience.

If you don't like to listen to physical CDs then you probably don't need a dedicated player. It's also much easier not having to factor in CD audio into your signal and DSP chain. I rip all CDs to my NAS too and stream CD rips and Tidal etc all over the house via LMS, but I found that I really prefer the physical experience of selecting a physical disc from my shelf and playing it. I also like to display the disc case in a tablet stand above it as its playing. I use a Raspberry Pi with touchscreen display when streaming, so the artwork is on display when streaming too, but I just seem to appreciate the music more when playing the physical disk. I also like paging through the physical album art booklet and try to get collector editions of albums that have extra bits and pieces.

 

[Blew]

I still have some 40 cds, and a CD-r burner... sometimes it's better to listen from beginning to end. Better focus.

I'm still actively collecting CDs while I can and buy a lot of CDs second hand for cheap. As CDs are disappearing from shops very quickly now, I think they will become a niche format that only appeals to a small market. I fear that it won't be long before they will reappear as a new retro trend like vinyl did, accompanied by vinyl prices!

 

[Hagan66]

This thread has taken an unfortunate turn as so many do on this and other web sites. Folks trying to tell others what they like, and dislike and how much is "worth it". Think I will bow out for now....

 

[DavidM1]

This thread has taken an unfortunate turn as so many do on this and other web sites. Folks trying to tell others what they like, and dislike and how much is "worth it". Think I will bow out for now....

I can’t speak for anyone else but I think I’m bored waiting for the PL100 to arrive. It won’t be delivered until next week and I won’t be back home until the week after. My conversation here is a bit more like idle chat than the useful content ASR aspires to.

 

[Blew]

This thread has taken an unfortunate turn as so many do on this and other web sites. Folks trying to tell others what they like, and dislike and how much is "worth it". Think I will bow out for now....

I find the irony of your comment rather amusing.