[CloudySkies]

I bought a newer Sony cd player a couple years ago and its overstayed its welcome. It cost like $100+ and was one of the top of the line models with the whole mp3 play options and an am/fm tuner. The only problem was that it sounded horrible....it sounded anemic compared to my old 1997 Sony Discman with its "mega bass" on full. But since my old Discman doesn't have any form of skip protection and is literally falling apart, I need a new cd player within the $50 range.

I don't know if the newer Sony I had sounded so bad because of the included am/fm tuner or what. Can somebody clear this issue and chime in with the answer to whether added features like mp3 disc compatability and am/fm tuners detract from cd sound quality? I'm done with Sony, I'm sure they have some good stuff out there but I just want something better that has a really robust sound too it with a bass boost(or eq) that actually improves the sound instead of making everything sound like a decaying techno thud. So any thoughts or suggestions on cd players? I've been looking at these, any thoughts on any of those models? Thanks.

Coby MPCD915

Digital Media Group PDP 110

Coby MP-CD575

Panasonic SL-SX420

iRiver iMP50

Philips AX5115

iRiver ChromeX iMP-150

 

[boodi]

welcome to head-fi , sorry for your wallet

...go in the portable audio review and give a read to duncan review on " PDCP through ages " to get an idea on good sounding pdcp - in short old players are by many here trusted as better sounding portable players , but they're old ( low battery duration , many don't have the e.s.p. , they're not always an easy find - these are main compromises )

50$-If i were you I 'd consider the chance on ebay for
-a philips az68xx serie
-panasonic ct470
-a sony dxx serie

 

[cdeviney]

REALLY like the new Sony D-NF400 CD/MP3/ATRAC player, includes AM/FM/TV/Weather.

http://sonydb.isomedia.com/perl/docu...00&template=EN

This is the link for the manual.

 

[CloudySkies]

Thanks, and I'll check that out. Hearing that the older portables sound better than others doesn't surprise me much. I'm a musician and the same rule applies to a lot of guitar related audio devices with the whole analog/tube/digital/vintage/modern thing. And then there's the whole vinyl vs cd/cassette debate, lol. I can spend more than $50, but I really don't feel like forking over $100+ again for something that doesn't even sound as good as my old beat up cd player. The Coby and iRiver players are the ones I've been looking at the most because of the features they both have for a pretty low price.

 

[boodi]

Denon 50 or 80 or 100 are good portable sources .They go on ebay for 50-150$.

Also do a search on the boards here to get better informations on good sound pdcp units and for opinions on headphones out (vs line out + portable amp )

 

[Oddball]

The problem with older PCDPs if that they're a pain to move around. I have a Denon DCP-150 (and I think the models are DCP-50, 70, 7D, 100, and 150) and it actually doesn't skip easily, but it's a behemoth. So...exactly how intent are you on getting the best sound? There are a lot of tolerable PCDPs, but there's only a few (relatively) great ones. What's the model number of your old one?

 

[CloudySkies]

The Diskman is on its last trip around the block....but its still functional and would still be my cd player for around the house for as long as it still holds up. My discman is a D-151 from 1997, my sister(away at college) had a D-E301 which had similar sound but with 10 sec ESP, and then the newer model that is giving me bad thoughts about Sony is a D-FJ61 "CD WALKMAN" from 2000. As long as my Discman works, it'll be my at home player, but I need somehting that is portabel enough so that I can take out in public and be able to play cds without skipping. That's why I'm more interested in trying to find a new production model that would work well enough.

 

[Sczervok]

My vintage 1 bit DAC cd player has died... sorta. You have to push the spinnie thingie down in order for it to be able to spin.. oh well. It's as good as dead. Can't even turn the thing on its side.

Well, I've just got to say good bye to the bass boost, and the 10 second ESP...

I'm going to get a iMP50 probably just as a high capacity replacement.

 

[d3ft]

Take a look at this thread - rave reviews of the $60 D-NE300.

 

[CloudySkies]

Quote:

Originally posted by d3ft Take a look at this thread - rave reviews of the $60 D-NE300.

I jsut posted a few questions over in the thread about it. That looks pretty good to me....except I'm getting bad vibes from the fact that it looks almost exactly like the P.O.S. Sony player that gave me trouble, lol.

 

[Norbert]

I'd avoid the classic PCDP's if you are looking for any portability I'm with Oddball on this but I have the DCP-100 and it skips if you sneeze, definately not portable. I'm looking for a portable with sound as good as my denon with skip protection. I'm not sure it's out there.

 

[Duncan]

Norbert...

Not neccesarily so, the Sony D515 & D321 (a very under-rated Sony unit as it goes) have 3 second, first generation anti-shock, the D777 has 2nd generation 10 second ESP, the D-E905 has 3rd generation 10 second ESP, and the D465 has 20 second 2nd gen ESP... all of them (extra especially the last three) are acceptable for portable use... even battery life isn't that bad if you use nimhs

 

[Lisa]

Quote:

Originally posted by CloudySkies The Diskman is on its last trip around the block....but its still functional and would still be my cd player for around the house for as long as it still holds up. My discman is a D-151 from 1997, my sister(away at college) had a D-E301 which had similar sound but with 10 sec ESP, and then the newer model that is giving me bad thoughts about Sony is a D-FJ61 "CD WALKMAN" from 2000. As long as my Discman works, it'll be my at home player, but I need somehting that is portabel enough so that I can take out in public and be able to play cds without skipping. That's why I'm more interested in trying to find a new production model that would work well enough.

I have a D-E305, same as the D-E301 but with remote I think. The Iriver ChromeX imp-150 sounds better but has less output so doesn't go as loud.

There's a tread here about an Aiwa model that reminds me of my old D-E305 in sound but the bass boost is not so good. You might want to do a search when the search is up. (search is down a lot these days)
If you're from Eurpope the model is Aiwa XP-EV500. I forgot the US model #

 

[CloudySkies]

Well I bought the Sony DNF-400 for $70 today. It fits me perfectly with all of its features, and I was able to set the eq to sound close to my old Discman. Not that the DNF-400 doesn't sound good, because it does have a nice sound quality to it, but the Discman just has this certain punchy and big sonic quality to it that none of the newer cd players I've tried could reproduce. I really like the new Sony cd player a lot and highly reccomend it, but I'm still going to have to be extra cautious with my Discman in hopes that I can keep it around for a little while longer. The Discman is staying at home where its safe, while the DNF-400 gets to be my on the go audio source

.

 

[cdeviney]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CloudySkies Well I bought the Sony DNF-400 for $70 today. It fits me perfectly with all of its features, and I was able to set the eq to sound close to my old Discman. Not that the DNF-400 doesn't sound good, because it does have a nice sound quality to it, but the Discman just has this certain punchy and big sonic quality to it that none of the newer cd players I've tried could reproduce. I really like the new Sony cd player a lot and highly reccomend it, but I'm still going to have to be extra cautious with my Discman in hopes that I can keep it around for a little while longer. The Discman is staying at home where its safe, while the DNF-400 gets to be my on the go audio source .

Glad to hear the D-NF400 fits your needs. I am VERY happy with it; I wish it had an option for a backlit display though. What headphones do you use? So far, I have tried Senn HD-280, Senn PX-200, and Sony MDR-7506...all sound very good. $70 is a great price...where did you find it? Not many places have it yet as the new Sony line is just coming out.

I will continue to use my D-NF610...the younger daughter gets the new D-NF400. It is smaller than the older model...1'' tall (at the display/battery insertion area) and 5.25'' in diameter. Highly recommended to anyone looking for an inexpensive MP3 player (CD media is dirt cheap!).