CDP unit

[phalaris]

OK well it looks 99% certain that I will be buying the CA Azur 640A sometime next week (out of stock right now).
For the time being the DVD player will serve as my CD player unit.

But I need advice on which dedicated CDP I should get. (Preferably from people who have had experience with the 640A.)

Speding too little money is stupid because in the long run an extra 100 euro won't be noticed but a lack of sound quality will.
But spending too much money is also stupid because the CA amp can only do so much, and there's no point in getting a CDP X that is 500euro more than a CDP Y if the Azur's relatively low sound quality will render the discrepancy unnoticeable.

So I guess it's kinda tough to find the middle-ground here, and what makes it even harder is that most shops in Ireland don't give money back - they only give store credit and ALL shops except one don't have the Azur 640A. So it's not a question of going around the shops and listening to all the available models at my leisure. It's more of a question of picking up as much info as I can on the net and then buying one, which I will be pretty much stuck with..

So what would you guys recommend?

(PS. I'm not getting the 640C because I heard some bad stuff about it.. that's final.. and anyway, I like the idea of a multi-brand setup..)

thanks

[kay]

I've only heard the 640A together with a 640C, and to my ears it sounded awesome (with B&W DM309 as well as Mordaunt-Short Avant 908 speakers -- I preferred the B&W out of the two).

[j_garcia]

I haven't heard it, but the 540D is supposed to be an excellent CD player as well as DVD player. I know one guy who bought one just to use for redbook because it sounded so good, but there is also the 540C and 640C, which I would expect to be every bit as good also.

I was going back and forth between the 540A and 640A, but I got a great deal on a Marantz PM-7200 after one channel died on my PM-7000 (they let me pay the difference and upgrade to the 7200). WOW, in class A operation, the PM-7200 sounds pretty amazing. I was expecting I would sell the 7200 and go pick up the 640A, but now that I've heard this guy, I think I'm going to keep it (at least for a while ;) ) I really like the CA gear...so I may pick up one and compare the two.

[phalaris]

I am currently considering the Marantz 5400 (only £80GBP as a B-Stock item at Richer Sounds) and the Denon 685 (£100 on eBay).

What do you reckon would be the better choice? I have read some horrible reviews about the Denon.. but I mean, these are probably really picky people with good amps/speakers..
Would the 685 sound bad with the 640A?

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These would be "temporary options" until I save up some more money, so I can buy a decent new one (or take the DAC route) as well as some speakers...

[nm2285]

Look into NAD and Rotel. Both have players that have excellent sonics and good value. I'd skip on the Denon because of the bad reviews...why chance it if you have other players without bad reviews?

[phalaris]

I just purchased a Meridian 263 DAC from eBay. £78 seemed like a great deal if I ever saw one..
Will take about a week to get here though..

So I guess I'm gonna go with the Transport -> DAC -> AMP route, at least for the time being.

Does anyone have any comment on this DAC? I know it's pretty old but DAC's don't really degrade with age, do they? How would my overall system compare with the sound coming out of some of the above-mentioned CDP units?

.