[PinkFloyd]

I recently bought a Marantz CD 10 compact disc player (flagship model back in the 90's) totally on impulse and with a view to modding it.


Well, she arrived today delivered by a very small postman who remarked "what the hell is in that package a lead weight?" The moment he handed the package over to me I realised what he meant........ this thing weighs a ton! (to be precise 17.9 Kilograms)

I couldn't wait to get under the bonnet for a peek and, to my surprise, noticed the CDP had the Trichord Digital Output board with dedicated Trichord PSU fitted inside..... I phoned Trichord and apparantly that's £385 of Mod!!! I also spotted a sprinkling of Black Gate caps and other exotic looking caps.......


I must admit I'm kinda in a state of shock / elation at the moment and am not quite sure "exactly" what I have in my hands here..... I was expecting this to be the standard CD10 but this is quite clearly "far from standard" and has already undergone some mods which have been professionally executed judging by the look of them.

The sound that comes out of this "beast" of a CD player is as close to vinyl as I have yet heard and I absolutely love it. The seller tells me It's been in storage for the past three years so the sound will probably (is) get better as the caps reform over the next few hundred hours.

The only reason I bought this machine was so I could tinker about with it and try to max it out but considering that's already been done (Trichord / Black gates etc.) I'm between a rock and a hard place.......

Do I sit back and enjoy the music, sell it on, try to max it out more...... sorry if this post is a bit "bitty" but I'm stunned at just how good this CDP sounds and still in a state of shock after seeing those Trichord mods under the bonnet.

The CDM4/Pro transport is just orgasmic........ in and out in total silence and rock solid..... track access time is nanoseconds (instantaneous) compared with modern worm and peg mechanisms....... why the hell did they get rid of the swinging arm? (silly question.... cost of course) anyways I digress.....

I'm in no state of mind to fully realise what this machine is / what it can be / how much It's worth......... at the moment......... so I'd appreciate your input........ She is one hell of a machine IMO and I feel this has been my lucky day......

Comments or suggestions very welcome.

Mike.

 

[rickcr42]

power supply upgrades,reclock it and then adress any chassis vibration issues though it does look pretty well put together.Maybe just a penny box on top and "spike it" to a sandbox

 

[rickcr42]

oh yeah,my standard CDP/DVDP mod-solid hardwood cabinet on three sides

top and left / right side caps

 

[Duncan]

Sell it to me

The CDM4/D36 would complement my CDM4/11 & CDM4/19 perfectly...

...Can't get enough of the swing-arm love

 

[strohmie]

Boy did you hit the jackpot.

Well, here's the question -- do you leave well enough alone, or do break even in the deal by selling the modded CD-10, get an unmodded one, and redo the mods yourself?

Tough call. The CDM4 transport is legendary but I worry about buying old equipment on the offhand chance that the transport goes bad. Really, you might just want to track down a replacement for the transport and hold onto that unit -- it should stay good for a few years yet.

Quite a find. That's my next project once I'm done with my CDP -- buy a high quality, older model and mod the heck out of it.

 

[rickcr42]

I actually was seriously tempted to vote "bash it with a hammer" but only because I like bashing things with a hammer

Weapon of choice :

24 oz Vaughn

 

[Duncan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by strohmie Tough call. The CDM4 transport is legendary but I worry about buying old equipment on the offhand chance that the transport goes bad. Really, you might just want to track down a replacement for the transport and hold onto that unit -- it should stay good for a few years yet.

Its good to see you know your mechanisms strohmie

I've already got Mike to run an CDRW through the CD10, and it played perfectly... so, by my book, that means the laser has a lot of hours left on the clock

(CDM4 is the only old school mechanism to be able to read CDRW, but it does need a good quality / focused laser to be able to acheive it easily)

 

[RnB180]

Pinkfloyed gets the most envied diyer of the award.

how much did it set you back? did you get it off ebay?

 

[Oink1]

Keep it and enjoy Mike - It's a nice looking piece of kit mate

 

[multibit16]

That would make an excellent transport for an external dac, especially using the digital out re-clocker.
Its worth finding out if the digi out board is actually used for the internal dac as well as for an external one, if its only used for an external one and your planning on using the cd10 as a stand alone player then it would be worth selling the digi out board on its own to get a bit of money back

 

[Madcat05]

I'd keep it and enjoy it and maybe down the line mod the power supply but I'd mostly leave as it is.

 

[PinkFloyd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 power supply upgrades,reclock it and then adress any chassis vibration issues though it does look pretty well put together.Maybe just a penny box on top and "spike it" to a sandbox

Hi Rick,

It appears to have been reclocked by Trichord. I honestly can't see any chassis vibration issues manifesting themselves... the bugger weighs 17.9 Kilos and the side panels are solid Zinc and weigh like 4lbs a piece..... I don't think my CD support could withstand any more weight Rick

 

[JWFokker]

Ideally, mod it more and make it an uberplayer. But if you're prone to killing electronics as I am, maybe not.

 

[PinkFloyd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RnB180 how much did it set you back?

That's for me to know

Quote:

Originally Posted by RnB180 did you get it off ebay?

No.

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

I don't think my CD support could withstand any more weight Rick

OK then maybe a set of nice tires and a steering wheel

Heavy weight makes a good case for external vibrations not getting in and usually any internal vibrations being dealt with also (this is where ALL the later generation palyers suffer due to keeping the price down for the masses).

And if reclocked already it would suggest any possible ps issues have already been dealt with.

so all that is left is the cocobolo cabinet