Need opinions on CD players $1000-$1500 (preferably with SACD) - Head-Fi: Covering Headphones, Earphones and Portable Audio

shuttleboi · #1 (**permalink**) 07-05-2009, 09:36 PM

I was looking at the Marantz CD5003 and the Cambridge Audio 640C, both of which are under $400, but then I started investigating $1000-$1500 units that can play SACD and look to be solidly built.

I own 700 CDs and want to get back to the visceral feeling of handling my CDs and looking at the booklets instead of ripping them to FLAC. I don't own any SACDs, but those Depeche Mode SACD editions sure are tempting.

I'm assuming $1000 CD players have pretty good DACs, so whatever I buy will probably be hooked up to a Woo Audio 6 or something and then to headphones.

So, does anyone have any opinions on these units:

1. Sony SCD-XA5400ES, $1499 list. This is Sony's newest top-of-the-line SACD player. Released October 2008. Stereophile Magazine apparently says this is the best SACD/CD player available right now, with the redbook CD quality almost as good as SACD. I've not seen anything on head-fi about it.

Sony ES SCD-XA5400ES Multichannel SACD/stereo CD player with HDMI output at Crutchfield.com

2. Yamaha CD-S1000, $1299 list. There's also a CD-S2000 for $1999. Plays SACD. I've read on head-fi that there might be drive noise problems.

Yamaha CD-S1000 Stereo SACD/CD player at Crutchfield.com

3. Marantz SA8003, $999 list. I've read that it sounds great. Plays SACD. But the unit is slow to respond to input, and it doesn't display CD-Text.

Marantz SA8003 Stereo SACD/CD player at Crutchfield.com

4. Cambridge Audio 740C ($1099 list) and 840C ($1499 list): They don't play SACD, but I've read that these are excellent players. They have optical inputs, so they can serve as DACs as well. Not sure if they show CD-Text.

Azur 740C upsampling CD player

5. Denon DCD-CX3 ($1299 list). This one is really intriguing, but I can't find a review of it anywhere. Plays SACD. It's built small (11" wide), so it will fit onto my desk. I don't particularly like the beige colour.

Denon USA | DCD-CX3

6. Onkyo DX-7555, $599 list. Not in the $1000 range, but it gets 5 stars on Amazon.com.

Onkyo DX-7555 - Audiophile-Grade CD Player | Model Information | Onkyo USA Home Theater Products

Ampersand · #2 (**permalink**) 07-06-2009, 04:14 AM

I can only comment on the Marantz, and i've found it to be a very enjoyable player. I personally don't feel the Marantz is unusually slow at all.

The 'slow' issue with these players is when you first insert a cd. I timed it and it took just over 5 seconds from the time i pressed "close" until it was ready to play. That gave just enough time to close the CD case, put it down, sit down in my chair, and put my headphones on. Not a problem at all, IMO. Nothing is slow about the response other than the initial "read".

I don't think you'll go wrong with any of your choices. When i was choosing, i wanted a solid player that looked the part. IMO, the Marantz looks the part more than any other player in this price range.

Hope this helps, and good luck choosing.

Markj · #3 (**permalink**) 07-06-2009, 04:22 AM

I have XA5400ES since May 09 and I like it very much. June Stereophile has review.

Uncle Erik · #4 (**permalink**) 07-06-2009, 06:52 AM

I haven't heard the SA8003, but have owned the SA8001 for a couple of years now. It is a a fine player. Its performance stats are impressive (see the Stereophile review) and I have had zero problems with it. I don't think spending more would result in much, if any, improvement. I'm planning to keep it until it dies. The only thing that would tempt me would be a commercial/broadcast quality SACD player. I don't know if there are any on the market, but I really prefer the build quality of commercial gear.

Also, the Depeche Mode SACDs are worth every cent. Violator sounds almost unreal - it is one of my reference discs.

shuttleboi · #5 (**permalink**) 07-06-2009, 06:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ampersand

I can only comment on the Marantz, and i've found it to be a very enjoyable player. I personally don't feel the Marantz is unusually slow at all.

The 'slow' issue with these players is when you first insert a cd. I timed it and it took just over 5 seconds from the time i pressed "close" until it was ready to play. That gave just enough time to close the CD case, put it down, sit down in my chair, and put my headphones on. Not a problem at all, IMO. Nothing is slow about the response other than the initial "read".

I don't think you'll go wrong with any of your choices. When i was choosing, i wanted a solid player that looked the part. IMO, the Marantz looks the part more than any other player in this price range.

Hope this helps, and good luck choosing.

Thanks for the info. Regarding the Marantz SA8003, the 'slowness' came from this review:

Overall, the SA8003 seems a bit sluggish in its response to controls...even basic functions went into effect a second or so after pressing the button.

Do you agree with that?

Ampersand · #6 (**permalink**) 07-06-2009, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shuttleboi

Thanks for the info. Regarding the Marantz SA8003, the 'slowness' came from this review:

Overall, the SA8003 seems a bit sluggish in its response to controls...even basic functions went into effect a second or so after pressing the button.

Do you agree with that?

Actually i don't. I just tried pressing a variety of buttons (play, stop, next track and so on), both on the player and the remote. Everything felt instantaneous to me except for when entering a 'single-digit' track from the remote. This operation took about a second before play began. It appears the player is waiting for a second digit to be pressed before beginning play. This is how the player deals with tracks above 9 since it doesn't have a 10+ button on the remote. This delay can be completely bypassed by entering '0' first. Such as "0 2" for track 2. Did that make since?

Also, it did just occur to me that the fast-forward and rewind features are rather slow. I rarely use these features, but i can see where it might be a pain if you use them often.

Hopefully other 8003 owners will chime in concerning the 'responsiveness' of the controls. My previous players included MusicHall, Denon, and Onkyo, and IMO the responsiveness is comparable.

jazzwave · #7 (**permalink**) 07-07-2009, 04:14 AM

How about Marantz SA8260? class A and play SACD?

Stereophile: Marantz SA8001 SACD player

fhuang · #8 (**permalink**) 07-07-2009, 04:49 PM

i don't have a shanling scd300 but i recently got myself cd300. love it. they look exactly the same. maybe they are the same player + sacd function?

by the way, what kind of sound you're looking for? for me, i say shanling cd300 sound better than a 740c because the shanling has a very rich and smooth sound comparing to the cambridge very cold, lifeless sound.

shuttleboi · #9 (**permalink**) 07-07-2009, 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jazzwave

How about Marantz SA8260? class A and play SACD?

Stereophile: Marantz SA8001 SACD player

I think the Marantz SA8001 was replaced by the SA8003 last year.

shuttleboi · #10 (**permalink**) 08-18-2009, 05:19 AM

The Sony SCD-XA5400ES SACD player is finally (finally!) back in stock after having been unavailable for almost the entire summer.

Sony ES SCD-XA5400ES Multichannel SACD/stereo CD player with HDMI output at Crutchfield.com

Does anyone have opinions on this unit? Stereophile magazine gave it an excellent review. However, would I be better off with another combo, like a $500 SACD/DVD player and a $1000 Benchmark DAC1?

devin_mm · #11 (**permalink**) 08-18-2009, 05:37 AM

Well I assume you know if you get the Benchmark you can't decode DSD with it as I don't know of a player that outputs DSD over optical/coax.

shuttleboi · #12 (**permalink**) 08-18-2009, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by devin_mm

Well I assume you know if you get the Benchmark you can't decode DSD with it as I don't know of a player that outputs DSD over optical/coax.

Actually, I did not know that. Thank you for that valuable information.

devin_mm · #13 (**permalink**) 08-18-2009, 06:46 PM

Yeah I wish I could find one that did that it's the only thing holding me back from getting a good SACD player. We'll see maybe I'll take the plunge, this thread will be very helpful.

shuttleboi · #14 (**permalink**) 08-18-2009, 07:12 PM

This particular Sony player outputs DSD over HDMI 1.3, so if you have a new home-theatre A/V amp that has HDMI 1.3, then you're set. Oppo and Pioneer also have DVD players that output DSD over HDMI. However, I do not know of any dedicated DACs that take HDMI. That's kind of a bummer. Hopefully, the DAC in this unit is very good.

s_nyc · #15 (**permalink**) 08-18-2009, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shuttleboi

However, would I be better off with another combo, like a $500 SACD/DVD player and a $1000 Benchmark DAC1?

Anyone wants to chime in? What about a reliable $300 CD Player (e.g. the Marantz CD 5001/5003) and a $1200 upper-scale DAC (e.g. the Cullen PS Audio)?

I am starting to be less and less convinced of the 2-box solutions vs the integrated one, but I would love if someone proves me wrong.