Best CD Player for under $400

[Nefarion]

Im going to be getting an Antique Sound Labs MG Headphone amp to go with my Hd-600's. But i want to get my cd player first!...

I know nothing about them. I need a good reccomendation for the best one to get for under $400. As well as reccomendations on where to find them. I just read in another thread that someone was disapointed with the MG head, and couldnt really tell the difference between it and his reciever. Hopefully i will not see it the same way! Thanks for the help.

 

[john_jcb]

One of the first things you need to consider is what formats you want to listen to. Redbook only and you have a fairly wide range of players to choose from. If you are interested in any of the following formats, DVD-Audio, SACD or HDCD, your choices are narrowed down quite a bit. Your $400 budget narrows the field even more. Back to you.

 

[markl]

Quote:

I know nothing about them.

I doubt he knows much about the new formats, either. Nefarion, click on the link at the bottom of my signature if you are curious about SACD/DVD-A.

Also, are you open to buying used, or does it have to be new? If you expand your budget to $500 or $600, your options really start to open up.

Mark

 

[Nefarion]

Ok i read the thread on the formats. So, at this point in time... What would you reccomend going with.. I would actually prefer new equipment. And i would be willing to probably stretch it to 700, just take a bit longer to save up the money. Whats your reccomendation with that in mind?

Is it pretty much a 50/50 gamble on which format will take off?? Or is it possible they both will remain?? Reason i ask is, if im paying 700 bucks for a cd player.. i would sure hate for it to turn out being the loser format. Of course 90% of my collection will probably end up being regular cd's anyway...

 

[bifcake]

There is no guarantee that either format will succeed. Getting a high end SACD or DVD audio player at this point in time is quite risky. You could wind up holding the bag. This is true especially considering that 90% of your music will be on redbook CDs.

My recommendation would be to buy a $700 CD player. You may want to look into the following:

Rega Planet 2000
Rotel 971
Adcom 575? (not sure of the model number)
Musical Fidelity A3CD

Even if one of the high resolution formats takes hold, I suspect that CD players will still be around for a good 10 years. So, getting a plain CD player now may be the safest route.

 

[nanahachi]

bifcake, thanks for listing a few CDPs

im not in a big hurry to get a new CDP (new or used), since im tyring to save up for a Gilmore. however, i know the tenet "garbage in, garbage out." thus, at some pt i need to replace my Marantz C-67.

realistically, is $700 the "safe" price range for a great player? what would work well with my Marantz PM-17 integrated amp?

i'm happy to buy used, and my local hi-fi store will be having a sale in March (giving me time to save).

I have heard the Sony 555ES SACD player, and it sounded great, but I couldnt really compare it to anything. I am interested in SACD, but know nothing about it or DVD-A. im going to go read that thread on new formats now...

thanks for creating this thread Nefarion, and thanks to all who post suggestions, etc

 

[Squalish]

Seriously look at the phillips DVD963SA, the new DVD/SACD player. It will be available soon(early January probably) for $400, and looks to be excellent for everything it plays. Although I forget who I originally heard this from or how credible the source was, I believe that this has been crowned the sequal to both the DVD962SA(their previous highend dvd player) and the SACD1000 player, which retailed for $2000. If you don't believe that, though, most retailers have marked down the SACD1000 to $400 now that this new player has come along.

 

[Nefarion]

Thanks a bunch for the player reccomendations. I will look into these asap.

So the new format cd players do not play redbook cd's??? Hence forcing me to buy a redbook cd player? ... Of course i wouldnt want one that only plays SACD... Basicly are you saying dont waste the extra money it costs for that feature becuase that extra money could go towards a higher end redbook player?? Or are you saying the sacd dvd-a format players only play those formats and i should get a redbook player?

 

[darkclouds]

Some do feel that it's better to put every penny into a redbook only player. I like to have the flexibility of playing both.

I'm quite happy with my 555es for both sacd and redbook. It's definitely not the last word in either format, but I'm completely satisfied with it.

If I were to buy a new player now, I'd go with the Phillips dvd963sa for it's ability to play both sacd and redbook, dvd is just a bonus. Tuberoller, I believe, was the one that recommended this player. And I trust his opinion since I don't get to audition equipment. For $400 bucks, that's almost a steal.

 

[markl]

Quote:

There is no guarantee that either format will succeed. Getting a high end SACD or DVD audio player at this point in time is quite risky.

There is zero "risk", SACDPs and DVD-A players will BOTH play plain vanilla CDs. Also, once you've bought your SACDs or DVD-As, no one will come to your house and confiscate them from you if either format dies. You'll always be able to enjoy that music in the highest fidelity digital format ever made.

Let me turn this argument around--- IMO, why spend $700 on an obsolete machine that will only play Redbook CDs? That seems ill-advised from my perspective.

Mark

 

[sacd lover]

I agree with markl. Which player? Phillips 962sa around $400 and Sony sacd c222es $325; both at Oade Brothers Audio. If you can wait, the new phillips 963sa will be available soon, probably for around $400.

 

[Nefarion]

Yea, i see what you are saying.

My thought to where his reasoning came from is that maybe the money not spent on the extra feature of an additional format will be money spent towards "upping" the quality of the cd player.

But yes, i think it will probably be worth going with a cd player that can play at least one of the 2 new formats... Features are features regardless of how popular they are. Those features arent going away. The privelage of a wider selection is questionable but thats not such a big deal.

So wow, ive learned a bunch so far. Ive decided i would like to go with a player that is capable of handling one of the new formats (which one is a toss up, no preference). And i would preferably like the price range to be between $300 - $600 . With that in mind what other suggestions do you have?

 

[The Quality Guru]

IMO, Rotel makes products of very good value that are relatively inexpensive and sound very good. If I had the money, I would pounce on this deal. A RCD-1070 (the new, top-of-the-line, Rotel CDP) for $450!! A price that low this soon after that product's release is pretty rare. This player received 5 stars from Hi-Fi Choice, too, beating out quite a few other more expensive players. I would nab this player if I had the funds, but, alas, I haven't them.

 

[Nefarion]

Where can the rotel RCD-1070 be found at for $450? I did some reading on it and it looks like a great candidate...

 

[The Quality Guru]

Soy estupido. Here's the link.

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cl.p...lay&1044535410