sho220
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Relatively affordable+Good Quality CD Player???
bifcake
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Try Rega Planet 2000 on Audiogon. It's very good and you could probably find for a bit more than $400.

smejias
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Hey sho.
Thanks for stopping by. The idea of dropping 20k on a CD player makes me cry. Your price range is my price range.

Rega makes great stuff. I would also look at NAD, Cambridge Audio, Music Hall, and Onkyo. Tangent is interesting and in your price range, but I haven't heard their stuff yet. The Oppo is popular, also.

jackfish
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Kill several birds with one stone - the Oppo DV-980H is a great upconverting DVD player that also plays CDs, SACDs, HDCDs and DVD-As, and has a pretty good DAC and HDMI v1.2a outputs for PCM and DSD. Only $170.

bobedaone
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I agree with all the recommendations offered so far. I own an Oppo DV-980HD and can vouch for its exceptional sound for the price. A used Rega or any of the brands Stephen mentioned would also be fantastic.

You mentioned, though, that you'd like "something to hook up my Grado SR-60's to and chill". Does your receiver have a headphone jack? Do you have a receiver at all? If not, then our field has just narrowed considerably because we need a player with a headphone output and adjustable level. In your price range, if you want headphone capability, it's going to be the Marantz CD5001 (retails for $330, but can generally be had for less - check around, especially online). It's a solid performer that delivers a lot of the hi-fi goods. Thankfully, you already have a set of cans that will allow you to appreciate the improvement.

http://us.marantz.com/Products/1154.asp

I hope it's close to what you're looking for. Good luck and happy listening!

sho220
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Quote:
I agree with all the recommendations offered so far. I own an Oppo DV-980HD and can vouch for its exceptional sound for the price. A used Rega or any of the brands Stephen mentioned would also be fantastic.

You mentioned, though, that you'd like "something to hook up my Grado SR-60's to and chill". Does your receiver have a headphone jack? Do you have a receiver at all? If not, then our field has just narrowed considerably because we need a player with a headphone output and adjustable level. In your price range, if you want headphone capability, it's going to be the Marantz CD5001 (retails for $330, but can generally be had for less - check around, especially online). It's a solid performer that delivers a lot of the hi-fi goods. Thankfully, you already have a set of cans that will allow you to appreciate the improvement.

http://us.marantz.com/Products/1154.asp

I hope it's close to what you're looking for. Good luck and happy listening!

What I'm looking for is something for my man-cave. It's already a little cramped for room, so I don't want or need speakers. I don't want a seperate receiver either. The Marantz seems like it fit's the bill perfectly.

While you folks are in the helping mood

Should I be concerned about overheating a cd player if the room temp is in the mid-upper 70's? My man-cave also doubles as my snake room (ball pythons & boas) and the ambient temp is generally around 76-77 degrees. It's a bit warm, but I wasn't sure if that was warm enough to cause concern.

Thanks for all the info so far...

Elk
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The CD player will be perfectly happy with the temperature.

It may be scared, but the temperature will be fine.

rvance
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sho220, There may be a little hiss in the upper registers and some constriction in the mid-band, but with an extended bottom end and lots of scale. Sorry...

bobedaone
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LMAO

love the snake humor

It's not for everyone, though; You could give phobics the jitters!

magma90210
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i actually came here to start this exact thread...a few months ago a got a system based a lot on the good advice i got here (cambridge 540, rega P1 turntabe, and epos ELS bookshelfs), and i've been really happy with it so far.

but as much as i like vinyl i do have a ton of CDs and need something decent.

for me though, i want something REALLY cheap like sub-200 over even cheaper.

Is the Oppo really my only option for new?

i saw an nad 5220 cd player for sale on craigslist for $40 but i don't know much about it...

haroyal
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The Rega Apollo is probably the best budget cd player on the market now. It has been rated the best of 2007 by two or three audiophile magazines that I have read. For under $1000, it's money well spent.

Don't short change yourself the quality of superior audio for a few dollars. I agree that spending multiple thousands may not be for everyone, but quality spans many budget ranges and Rega is the best at it's price point.

I own one.

HAR

bobedaone
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AFAIK, the Oppo is the only good digital player selling new for <$200. Really, though, it's no sacrifice. I love mine, and probably won't replace it until I can afford a Rega Apollo (or whatever they're calling the thing by the time I can afford it). It's competitive with players costing 3-4 times its price, imo.

s10sondek
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I went through this dilemma over the past year. It was triggered by the death in August 2006 of my beloved Cal DX-2 (which I bought in college in 1997) and since then, I have had about 5 or 6 different players in my home for a few months at a time in search of an adequate replacement.

Also at this time I was trying out several different amplifiers to replace my NAD 2100X, which I bought when I was a high-school freshman back in 1990.

I do not usually embark on such exhaustive (and exhausting) studies, but as an engineer, classical violinist, and avid classical music concertgoer, I was struck by the sheer inadequacy of many of the offerings (in both categories of CD player and Amplifier) I tried and felt compelled to work at it until I

dbowker
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I used to have the nad 5220 and thought it was a great value for the money. It's on the slightly warm to dark side, but I'd rather that than bright or harsh. I question the $40 though- does it still actually work? I sold my on Audiogon for around $180 about 6 months ago when I upgraded to the Rega Apollo (a phenomenal player BTW). The NAD is good too because it has a decent digital out section if you ever get the urge to upgrade your D/A.

magma90210
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thanks for the advice all,

yep i just talked to him, it sounds like this guy doesn't really know much wrt audio stuff, he's actually selling the NAD 5220 for $30 now!

it's one of those deal, his older brother is a stereophile and was cleaning out some stuff and just gave it to him, he has another CD player so it's basically just been sitting around collecting dust. he said he tried it out w/a half dozen CDs and they all played fine.

so until i can really upgrade, with xmas coming up and everything, $30 for something decent sounds like a nice quick fix until i really get something very nice.

Elk
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Great post, Carl! Very interesting reading.


Quote:
I must admit as an engineer that it is frustrating that, unlike transducers
exerciseguy
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I've been considering upgrading to a $399 Marantz DV7600 universal player from my current DV4400. The DV4400 is used almost solely for CDs via coaxial to my Marantz SR5400.

What sort of sonic improvements should I expect using the DV7600 compared to the DV4400?

What are your thoughts of the DV7600 solely as a CD player?

It seems to be a better CD player (at least on paper) than many CD specific players around.

Has anyone compared the DV7600 to the Rega Apollo?

davekoch
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Definitely check out the Oppo players. Erik B. turned me on the it, and I love it.

exerciseguy
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I'm familiar with the Oppo, but I'm specifically interested in the DV7600, thanks.

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