Recommend me a CD player

96cobra10101

96cobra10101

Senior Audioholic
I want a dedicated cd player. No Dvd, BluRay, Streaming, yadda yadda...
just a dedicated cd player that I don't have to put the tv on and go through the menus in order for it to start playing the cd. I also want something vintage (80's) and built like a tank, but not entirely necessary, but the rarer the better. An optical or coax out is preferred because I want to buy the Emotiva DAC to go with it.
 
J

jaymz

Enthusiast
Buy an used Marantz off of eBay. They have a great sound, well-built and go for reasonable prices.

Jim
 
zhimbo

zhimbo

Audioholic General
just a dedicated cd player that I don't have to put the tv on and go through the menus in order for it to start playing the cd.
Ignoring the rest of your post - and I'm not arguing for or against any purchase - I wanted to say that I've never had a DVD player or Blu-ray player that required this. Certainly neither of my current panasonic players do.
 
3db

3db

Audioholic Slumlord
Ignoring the rest of your post - and I'm not arguing for or against any purchase - I wanted to say that I've never had a DVD player or Blu-ray player that required this. Certainly neither of my current panasonic players do.
Agreed.

All of my DVD/BluRay players just play CDs with no menu selection required.
 
TLS Guy

TLS Guy

Seriously, I have no life.
I want a dedicated cd player. No Dvd, BluRay, Streaming, yadda yadda...
just a dedicated cd player that I don't have to put the tv on and go through the menus in order for it to start playing the cd. I also want something vintage (80's) and built like a tank, but not entirely necessary, but the rarer the better. An optical or coax out is preferred because I want to buy the Emotiva DAC to go with it.
I have a couple of 80s CD players that I don't think I will have a use for. Both are built like tanks.

One is a top end Denon.

The other is a top end Revox that I have had since new 1984. There is a mechanical problem with this one at the moment, but I'm sure I can fix it fairly easily.

Let me know if you are interested.
 
agarwalro

agarwalro

Audioholic Ninja
An optical or coax out is preferred because I want to buy the Emotiva DAC to go with it.
If you are using an outboad DAC, any CD player with a working digital out will sufficie. As long as the external DAC can differentiate the ones and zeros, they will be equally reproduced irrespective of "transport" used.

If you intend to use the analog outs on said player, the onboard DAC comes into play. In this case, I'd recommend an used Denon 3910.
 
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j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
If you are using an outboad DAC, any CD player with a working digital out will sufficie. As long as the external DAC can differentiate the ones and zeros, they will be equally reproduced irrespective of "transport" used.
Exactly what I was going to say. Doesn't matter if it is built like a tank or rare, with an external DAC it will sound no different.
 
96cobra10101

96cobra10101

Senior Audioholic
Ignoring the rest of your post - and I'm not arguing for or against any purchase - I wanted to say that I've never had a DVD player or Blu-ray player that required this. Certainly neither of my current panasonic players do.
No it doesn't do it all the the time, but depending if it connects to the internet or not is when it does it. It downloads the titles and album image, and also it takes what seems like forever for it to boot up. I realize this isn't an necessity, but it is something I want to do "just because". Also, everytime I turn on my bluray it turns the TV on, and if I turn my TV off, the player shuts off. And yes I know I can bypass this, or by a CD player.
 
davidtwotrees

davidtwotrees

Audioholic General
96cobra. I don't get why so many people are freaked out about a dedicated cd player. I would buy one of TLS guys. You know he is gonna take the thing apart and check it every which way but Sunday. The Denon sounds hot.
I know a couple of "audiophiles" with the Rega Saturn top loaders. They look really sharp.
 
96cobra10101

96cobra10101

Senior Audioholic
96cobra. I don't get why so many people are freaked out about a dedicated cd player. I would buy one of TLS guys. You know he is gonna take the thing apart and check it every which way but Sunday. The Denon sounds hot.
I know a couple of "audiophiles" with the Rega Saturn top loaders. They look really sharp.
I've been corresponding with TLS already. I'll post up if I go through him or else where.
 
djreef

djreef

Audioholic Chief
If you are using an outboad DAC, any CD player with a working digital out will sufficie. As long as the external DAC can differentiate the ones and zeros, they will be equally reproduced irrespective of "transport" used.

If you intend to use the analog outs on said player, the onboard DAC comes into play. In this case, I'd recommend an used Denon 3910.
I just sold a Denon 3930ci on fleabay for a song. I really think I got took on it, but if the pricing is similar for other units of this type u should be able to pick one up for pretty cheap.

DJ
 
96cobra10101

96cobra10101

Senior Audioholic
You ask, and you may receive! Well, next week atleast. I bought an '80's Revox CD player from TLSguy today. I'll post pics when I receive it next week, or TLS can share some he already took. Thanks again Mark, can't wait to hook her up!
 
TLS Guy

TLS Guy

Seriously, I have no life.
You ask, and you may receive! Well, next week atleast. I bought an '80's Revox CD player from TLSguy today. I'll post pics when I receive it next week, or TLS can share some he already took. Thanks again Mark, can't wait to hook her up!
These were his options.

A 1985 Denon DCD 1800. Flagship player made in Japan by Denon Corporation.







A 1984 Revox B225 I bought new in 1984. Made in Switzerland by Studer/Revox.





http://mdcarter.smugmug.com/Walberswick-Studios/Vintage-CD-palyers/i-gVWRcsZ/0/XL/IMGP3670-XL.jpg



Note that since the whole drive moves, it is an easy matter to clean the laser lens.



The Denon was working, but the Revox unfortunately shut down when you pressed the load button.

The draw motor on the Revox was ceased solid. I got it unstuck and cleaned the commutator and brushes. I lubricated the reduction gear box. After reinstallation the player worked for a morning and then the motor lost torque. The force I had to use to free up the armature from the permanent magnets had caused the gear to loosen on the motor shaft. There was no remedy for this except motor replacement.

So I got hold of one of my excellent contacts, Jack Clark of JM Technical Arts.

He was service manager for Studer/Revox in Nashville back in the glory days. He is the go to guy about any Revox problems in the US. Fortunately he had one good used drawer motor, which he sold to me for $30.

This motor is quite large, and has to develop a lot of torque, as the Revox has a powerful magnetic disc clamp, to hold the disc in place firmly. The motor has to have enough torque to break the magnetic attraction.

The motor arrived yesterday, and I installed it right away. The Revox is fully restored.

I bought this unit new in 1984. I have manual and original packing. The remote is connected by cable and was an extra. I never bought one.

I connected it to my studio rig via my Quad 44 preamp. It sounds superb. It was so beguiling, I could not get out of my chair. I had to listen, and was totally adsorbed in the music.

After this reverie, I did some measurements. The unit was flat from 10 Hz to 20 kHz to a small fraction of a db. Even out to 20 kHz the waveforms were perfect. Here are the left and right channel 20 kHz tones on a test disc on my scope.



This is superb performance for a new player, let alone a first generation player now 28 years old.

The disc drive was the top of the line Philips drive of the day built at Eindhoven. The digital circuits were designed by Roger Lagadec. After Willi Studer's death he was poached by Sony and designed the ES series. These were good players, but did not have the build quality of the Revox, but cost more!

As I serviced and repaired this unit, I noted how beautifully made and easy to access and service it was. It is a far cry from the Far Eastern products we have to put up with now. An era destroyed by socialism, with high taxes, especially death taxes which was the prime reason for the breakup and selling off in parts of most of these fine European firms. This should never have been allowed to happen. We are now paying and will continue to pay a heavy price for this.

The Revox is very fast in all its actions. It plays discs of unlimited tracks and very unusually for a first generation player, it will play computer generated discs, at least ones from my Plextor burner in my workstation.

The Denon DCD 1800, I bought off eBay in 1999, to use at our Lake home when it was largely a seasonal home.

This was a player I quickly remembered I did not have a lot of love for. It looks gorgeous and impressive.

However were the Revox is smooth, this has the early digital upper end harshness. Every action is so slow, you darn need to go and have a cup of coffee. It will not cue beyond 1 tracks, which was typical of the period. It will not play computer burned discs, again this is typical of the period.

This player is a piece of Far Eastern mutton dressed up as lamb. In other words dressed up to sell as they say.

I checked the Audiogon Blue book and there are not enough sales to graph the resale is quoted as $120.

There are many more Revox B225 sales, at the top end $500, and at the lower end $200.

I have seen them sell on eBay for up to $1200, but when they get those prices it is normally a Far Eastern buyer. I have noted that Far Eastern buyers are prepared to pay very high prices for older classy Western Equipment. I take this as admission that they have replaced it with largely junk.

Since this unit is now a perfect example of the iconic Revox B225, I sold it to the OP for $375, which I thought was a very good deal.

If any member wants the Denon DCD 1800, they can have it just for the cost of shipping. If you want it PM me. It is built like a tank and is the heavier machine.
 
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