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Which CD Player is Better to Buy Under £ 500

What DAC is it may I ask?
My actual DAC is a Chinese AK 44 something entry level that has been highly modified by a friend with a real Texas Instrument chip, high precision resistors and so on.........
But the one I had before was an SMSL M500 and the results was already very good, on par with the small DAC from Naim.
 
I think laser wears out only by using it, maybe somebody knows better. 15 years could be borderline.
 
It may sound counter intuitive but some of the oldest CD players *can be* by far the most reliable and after being serviced properly will provide decades of further trouble free service. The mechanical build quality of CD players has pretty much gone steadily downhill since their inception and the quality of the widely available current production mechs is usually very poor indeed. And we're not just talking about entry level models, the same applies for even very expensive machines. Don't be fooled by the heavyweight luxury alloy casework and slick marketing!

The build quality of the TOTL vintage players from the likes of Sony, Denon, Marantz and Accuphase is something to behold.

*When properly and fully serviced by someone who knows what they're doing.
 
I kind of agree about older vintage serviced players which can be so rewarding to use. Otherwise, would mention Cyrus (just transport as well) - a great one can be found within £500.

some higher end blu-ray players can be very decent transports too..
 
Have to agree the older stuff is amazing look at cdm1 or cdm2 they are amazing and built to last as are the sony equivalents. The loading mech on my Sony 337es is a work of art and genuinely do not make them like that anymore.
 
I have a beautiful Kenwood transport that has a wonderful transport..... but you cant get lasers for them anymore. So its useless. I personally would buy an inexpensive new transport and a dac.
 
I've got a Marantz 6006 British edition, i bought it to use as a transport, it works OK functionally but it is pretty uninspiring as a transport (compared to the last buffered transport i had), the 6006 built in Dac is terribly dull too.
I'd buy a dedicated transport or a better CD player if i was doing this again.
 
I found the Primare CD31 and Rega Saturn at a price that suits me. Often users write that Primare has dry sound, and Rega does not read CD-Rs well. Both devices are about 15 years old.
 
Denon 1500AE, 1600NE or upper models from series have very nice, quiet transports. And as cd players they also not bad at all.

Absolutely love my DCD1600NE. Built like a tank, best CD player I’ve had, including Meridian and Naim models.
 
I've got a Marantz 6006 British edition, i bought it to use as a transport, it works OK functionally but it is pretty uninspiring as a transport (compared to the last buffered transport i had), the 6006 built in Dac is terribly dull too.
I'd buy a dedicated transport or a better CD player if i was doing this again.


I had the same player when it first came out hugely disappointed flat and lifeless, the Rega Apollo blew it away. The highly modified Rotel 955 I have just now seen the Rega off but as I liked a lot of what it did I picked up a Rega DAC. Would not recommend for long term use but my naim CD3 as I have a spare cdm9 will be getting a digital out fitted to leave a pretty solid transport. To further complicate it and we'll very few of these left and mine will need to visit Mike for for a once over but did have a moment of madness and got a Sony 337es.
In short for reasonable money ie less than£500 these are the players I have enjoyed
 
I found the Primare CD31 and Rega Saturn at a price that suits me. Often users write that Primare has dry sound, and Rega does not read CD-Rs well. Both devices are about 15 years old.
I have been using Primare amplification and cd players for 25 years and in terms of performance and reliability, its 10 out of 10. Superb build quality as well.
 
I've got a Marantz 6006 British edition, i bought it to use as a transport, it works OK functionally but it is pretty uninspiring as a transport (compared to the last buffered transport i had), the 6006 built in Dac is terribly dull too.
I'd buy a dedicated transport or a better CD player if i was doing this again.

what was the last buffered transport you tried ? I am just comparing this 6007 with another sacd cd player and it seems reasonable
 
It was just a NAD CD player i think i was a C521BEE, before that i had a dedicated transport a Teac T1, the NAD wasn't terribly reliable but sounded better than the Marantz as a transport. I use the CD player very rarely, as most of my listening is via the computer as the transport using a USB to coaxial converter into a DAC. After all the positive reviews i thought the Brexit tuned edition would at least be a match for the 20 year old £40 Dac im using now, turns out it isn't.
 
I've had so many over the years including some expensive Naims, Roksans and the like.
Currently using an Arcam CD8se which I enjoy. It has on board Hdcd option and also works well as a transport with upscaling Dacs to give bigger soundstage and detail.
An Arcam CD9 will give you a more forthright presentation but I prefer the more relaxed 8se.
 
Rotel 965BX/955AX. Yes they are older than 15 years but as others have mentioned, the general build quality and lifespan on the transport is much much better on these than most modern machines.
 
I've got a Marantz 6006 British edition, i bought it to use as a transport, it works OK functionally but it is pretty uninspiring as a transport (compared to the last buffered transport i had), the 6006 built in Dac is terribly dull too.
I'd buy a dedicated transport or a better CD player if i was doing this again.
I used an earlier marantz cd player (6004) as a transport and found it dull, it's been replaced by a bluesound node as a digital transport in to the same dac and its much more engaging.
 


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