Cambridge audio 651c... thoughts?

[ashleycox]

Having returned my Cambridge audio 851c cd player due to a faulty cd tray, I have been looking into various options, regarding a new amp and cd player.

Having auditioned many amps, I have to say I can't find anything, for a reasonable price, that comes close to the 851a in terms of sound (not to mention features). That class XD technology really is amazing. That being said, I think I've decided on the new 851e/w pre/power combo, but am stuck with regards to a cd player.

I was looking at the CA 651c. A simple cdp... it uses what appears to be the same S3 transport as the 851c, and it also uses 2 Wolfson 8742 DACS (the same as those found in the £1600 rega saturn-r).

Has anyone heard the 651c and can compare it to the 851c? can anyone compare it to the rega saturn-r? I don't need the dac/preamp functionality that the 851c has... all I need is a cd player. SO which is better?

I like the idea of a 1 brand system. I am kind of put off by the transport failure in my previous 851c (I asume, due to the action of the tray that it uses a belt inside - why manufacturers insist on using belts for cd trays is beyond me), but would be prepared to try another if it sounded considerably better than the 651c.

any and all input appreciated!

 

[Leeps]

Why not try the 651C using a digital output into the 851D (the digital pre-amp) into the 851W power amp?

That way, you're using the superior DAC in the pre-amp. And, bizarrely, the 851D pre-amp seems cheaper (£1000) than the 851E (£1200), so you save money on the CD and pre-amp and have a package that's more flexible with additional digital inputs. (Unless you have a large suite of analogue-only components)

The only tricky part with the Azur series (which I rate highly) is that Richers' selection of speakers in an equivalent price bracket to the 851 series is somewhat limited compared to other dealers. With the 851W's power output, you could choose pretty much any speakers you wanted, purely based on your favoured tonal balance, without needing to consider how sensitive the speakers are. I'd love to hear some Spendors, Neats or KEF R's on the end of the 851's.

And spending that sort of cash, I'd want a nice long demo of amps and chosen speakers together. It could mean sweet-talking a few dealers into demonstrating some speakers on the end of the Azur kit. I did something similar to that once: speakers from Sevenoaks, which I demo'd with amp and CD at Sevenoaks, then took the speakers to Richers to see how they sounded on the Azur stuff.

 

[radiorog]

I have the 651c and it sounds greatamazing.very detailed with superb separation.bass weight is excellent and natural compared with my previous 650c which had light bass.I'd def recommend if you can get one with bit of discount.

 

[nickos99]

I very recently replaced an old marantz with the 651c and I am very happy with the change, aesthetically its very nice, and I agree with the comments of the previous poster. Im very new to the world of hifi but crudely put, it sounds clearer than my previous cdp, with better highs and lows.

 

[ashleycox]

I was considering the 851d - however, I have very few digital devices (a stream magic 6, computer and cd player) and need support for analogue sources (turntable, cassette deckk etc). I like the sound of the SM6, and that also handles the computer and has a digital input should i ever want it - so I can't justify spending on a digital preamp.

Thanks for your suggestion re speakers - I currently have some Tannoy Revolution DC6tSE's which were part of my previous system. They're ok... I did consider selling them when the amp failed, but there's no way I'd make my money back on them now... I think I'm going to work on getting my sources and amp right, and then work on sorting the speakers.

I see you have a 640C. Ever had any issues with it? How would you rate the quality of the transport.

Thanks!

 

[Leeps]

This is probably a cue to it blowing up instantaneously, but my trusty 640C is ten years old, used every day and hasn't put a foot wrong. I initially paired it with the 640A and 640T with some Ruark epilogue standmounted speakers, but have since swapped the amp for a surround set-up. I liked the 640C for certain kinds of music, particularly jazz and electronica, but it could sound a bit too harsh with any electric guitar and didn't flatter poorly recorded music. If anything I think the 640A amp was the stronger of the two components.

However I just use the 640A as a transport now as I found that the DAC in my AV receiver sounded more detailed and more tonally balanced than the CD's own DAC, hence my suggestion of buying the 651C and using the digital output. As you have the Stream Magic, why don't you use a digital out from the 651C's cheaper transport to the SM6's superior upsampling DAC?