Is our Marantz CD 65 II still good enough?

[Sago]

We've just bought a Cambridge Audio Azur 351A amp and are now womdering if our 25 year old Marantz CD65 II cd player can be bettered by modern kit. It sounds OK to us, and that may be a good enough reason for keeping it, but I wonder if current budget cd players - for example the Marantz CD6005 or the CA Azur 351C -would offer significant improvements in sound quality.

I'm conscious that our days of playing actual cds may be numbered. For example we now hold many of them on the hard drive of a mac we use as a music centre, and use smartphones and Spotify a fair bit too, but we still have a moderate cd collection and we do still play them in our main living room and most likely will carry on with them for a few years yet.

Thanks

 

[spiny norman]

For all the reasons you mention in your post, I'd hang on to the Marantz and enjoy it for as long as it keeps on working.

 

[BigH]

I don't think the 65 is 25 years old, I have the 63se which is about 21 years old I presume the 65 came a few years later. Anyway I would keep it, I heard a few cops costing £800-1,000 and to me they did not really sound better. Also cdps don't seem to last so long now, esp. Budget ones, so yes I would keep it as long as it works. The tray tends to be the first thing to go wrong but this canbe fixed fairly cheaply. Going forward I would rip and play.

 

[MeanandGreen]

Hang onto your CD player, the tech is exactly the same now as it was then. The CD format has been taken as far as it can and that happened years ago. If yours is in good health just stick with it.

 

[MajorFubar]

I wonder if current budget cd players - for example the Marantz CD6005 or the CA Azur 351C -would offer significant improvements

Depending on your definition of significant improvements, probably not.

I don't think the 65 is 25 years old, I have the 63se which is about 21 years old I presume the 65 came a few years later.

Just to confuse things, no. CD63 II was later. I think the CD65 MkII came out in 1989 iirc. I was young and had my finger on the pulse of all the happening technology back then (how times have changed) so I'd be surprised if I was wrong by more than a year.

 

[Vladimir]

Some trivia. McIntosh MCD7007, Marantz CD65 and Philips CD 650 are basically the same CDP.

I would hold on to that 65 and just replace the rubber bands for the tray mechanism.

 

[Leeps]

I owned a Marantz CD65 from around 1987 for about 13 years before it finally gave up the ghost. (Used pretty much daily for all that time). Jolly fine machine, although the case and tray was flimsier than some of Marantz's later models.

In its day it was the among the best of the budget/midrange machines for sound. Its main rival at the time was a Technics: how curiously current!

It cost me over £300 new those many years ago. I ran it with a Marantz PM45 amp and Monitor Audio R252 speakers at the time. Bearing in mind your amp, the biggest consideration would be system synergy. If you like the sound, I'd just continue to run it until it dies...which may not be too far away!

 

[Sago]

Thanks for the responses.

I'm pleased to know I've got a good bit of 'budget' kit, and I'll definitely keep it - bonus that the remote for the Cambridge Audio amp works for the CD player too.

Yes I gathered it's a Phillips and it also has a famous DAC chip inside it that can be tweaked to improve the sound, but I'll not bother.

All those years I took no notice of it and it turn out I had a real gem up the corner!!

Thanks again all.

 

[whiskywheels]

womdering if our 25 year old Marantz CD65 II cd player can be bettered by modern kit.

No.

 

[Gray]

No.

He probably got his answer roundabout 10 years ago 👍

 

[Al ears]

He probably got his answer roundabout 10 years ago 👍

Yep!

 

[JFC]

We've just bought a Cambridge Audio Azur 351A amp and are now womdering if our 25 year old Marantz CD65 II cd player can be bettered by modern kit. It sounds OK to us, and that may be a good enough reason for keeping it, but I wonder if current budget cd players - for example the Marantz CD6005 or the CA Azur 351C -would offer significant improvements in sound quality.

I'm conscious that our days of playing actual cds may be numbered. For example we now hold many of them on the hard drive of a mac we use as a music centre, and use smartphones and Spotify a fair bit too, but we still have a moderate cd collection and we do still play them in our main living room and most likely will carry on with them for a few years yet.

Thanks

Hi Sago, why not consider having the Marantz modified and brought up to date that way. I doubt very much a budget ' new' player will outperform the Marantz anyway. Russ Andrews and Fidelity Audio do upgrades to pretty much any peice of equipment. Replacing capacitors, mains wiring, upgrading the power supplys and timing clocks etc etc, all to a much higher level of performance. You budget to what you can afford. You can go for a very modest Upgrade, to full blown. I've had much of my equipment upgraded by them, my two Denon Sacd players for example have been upgraded by Zac at Russ Andrews, the full works! Take a look at their websites, you'll see many people have had their equipment upgraded by them. Lots of photos too! RA will even collect your equipment for you. Fidelity Audio can also transform even a modest player into somthing really special. It would probably be a good idea to have a new replacement laser lens fitted if you go ahead, they'll be able to do that for you I'm sure. It will give you a whole new experience listening to cds again. ------I personally only listen to cd/sacd and have a vast collection. -----On a side note I've gone into HMV quite a few times this year, (The Bond St branch in London) there is a large stock of records and cds in there. Most people are at the cd racks, while the vinyl section is very quiet. Probably doesn't help that vinyl prices are ludicrously expensive!! -----Regards, Jon.

 

[Al ears]

To be honest, the idea of spending loads on upgrading, you are better off saving a few quid and buying something new.

 

[JFC]

To be honest, the idea of spending loads on upgrading, you are better off saving a few quid and buying something new.

No! I disagree! Modification/servicing of equipment is a very cost effective way of improving older and classic cherished equipment, in this case Sago's Marantz! I bet NO budget modern player which is what he's interested in will sound any better than that older player. They were, and still are very good cd players. You spend as much or as little as you want on improving the player. You keep a cherished bit of kit for many more years and help to be a bit more environmentally friendly along the way.

 

[Jasonovich]

No! I disagree! Modification/servicing of equipment is a very cost effective way of improving older and classic cherished equipment, in this case Sago's Marantz! I bet NO budget modern player which is what he's interested in will sound any better than that older player. They were, and still are very good cd players. You spend as much or as little as you want on improving the player. You keep a cherished bit of kit for many more years and help to be a bit more environmentally friendly along the way.

I quite like the idea prolonging the life of your old cd player but don't overlook, second hand as an alternative to saving costs.
I got my Marantz SA8005 cd/SACD player secondhand and what a gem it's proved to be 😊

Still easy to find on eBay

Pardon our interruption...

 

[Al ears]

No! I disagree! Modification/servicing of equipment is a very cost effective way of improving older and classic cherished equipment, in this case Sago's Marantz! I bet NO budget modern player which is what he's interested in will sound any better than that older player. They were, and still are very good cd players. You spend as much or as little as you want on improving the player. You keep a cherished bit of kit for many more years and help to be a bit more environmentally friendly along the way.

Environmentally friendly quite possibly but economically viable, I doubt it very much.
Good CP players are cheap these days and I am curious as to anyone would want to spend good money having someone replace a few belts and capacitors or whatever they do.
Perhaps you could give us some idea just how much taking away the OPs CD65 II, and improving it, might cost?

 

[JFC]

I quite like the idea prolonging the life of your old cd player but don't overlook, second hand as an alternative to saving costs.
I got my Marantz SA8005 cd/SACD player secondhand and what a gem it's proved to be 😊

Still easy to find on eBay

Pardon our interruption...

Good on you! Totally agree. I'm done buying new now. I will continue to have my cherished equipment serviced in the future, unless I have absolutely no choice but to replace with new for whatever reason. I had my 1997 Ruark Crusaders serviced a couple of years ago, Wilmslow Audio did the work. They sound fantastic, they replaced and upgraded the crossover caps, and fitted new equivalent tweeters.

 

[JFC]

Environmentally friendly quite possibly but economically viable, I doubt it very much.
Good CP players are cheap these days and I am curious as to anyone would want to spend good money having someone replace a few belts and capacitors or whatever they do.
Perhaps you could give us some idea just how much taking away the OPs CD65 II, and improving it, might cost?

If you read my Ist post properly which clearly you didn't by the looks of it, you can go on the mentioned websites and you will see the the various costs of equipment already done. The choice is yours of what ever work you want done on your equipment. Its not just cd players, its pretty much anything! You speak to them on the phone, Some people spend a fair bit, others a very modest cost at no greater than the price of a new budget player. You can spend £99 or less or £2000 or more, or anything inbetween. The whole point of the post was to say a lot of older equipment is well designed and cherished, and there are plenty of people out there who do not want to part with their older gear. As I said, I bet the Marantz cd65 mk11 in stock form will hold up well if not better to probably anything equivalent new today. It's well worth keeping. Having it serviced or a modification done to it will take it to another level.

 

[record_spot]

Environmentally friendly quite possibly but economically viable, I doubt it very much.
Good CP players are cheap these days and I am curious as to anyone would want to spend good money having someone replace a few belts and capacitors or whatever they do.
Perhaps you could give us some idea just how much taking away the OPs CD65 II, and improving it, might cost?

Loads.

Which for a CD player that's over 35 years old is money best spent elsewhere if you're going to spend money on anything.

 

[record_spot]

As I said, I bet the Marantz cd65 mk11 in stock form will hold up well if not better to probably anything equivalent new today. It's well worth keeping. Having it serviced or a modification done to it will take it to another level.

So, what are they adding that'll take it up to that next level that isn't available for £1500-£2,000 now?

Bearing in mind VAT, Labour costs...

Oh, and I'm aware of the options and the companies, but I'd like your thoughts on the matter.

 

[JFC]

So, what are they adding that'll take it up to that next level that isn't available for £1500-£2,000 now?

Bearing in mind VAT, Labour costs...

Oh, and I'm aware of the options and the companies, but I'd like your thoughts on the matter.

Oh my word!!! Are you incapable of going to the websites and looking and reading up on the subject? All of the information is there for you to read! It shows you what they do.-----For my cd players I had better chassis earthing arrangements put in, to complement chassis earth grounding that I have in place. 3x mains, signal circuit and RFI filtering at the point of mains entry. Better socketry all round, a full compliment of Panasonic caps, kimber bypass caps fitted to the analogue power supply. A Trichord Master Clock, silver audio wiring from the phono sockets. Full damping on the base of the players. RA fuses, kimber wiring to the power supplys. The difference over the already good 'stock sound' of both was very noticeable. Better Imaging, more detail, excellent bass, all tied in with a very natural, atmospheric presentation that wasn't quite there before. It goes beyond the next level. -------Please stick with your budget cd players or whatever ever you listen to, as you clearly have no intention going beyond that. My original post was to recommend to another person to look into it as an ALTERNATIVE to buying new again, not to argue or defend somthing that I've had done to a person that clearly has no interest in going down that route. And that is absolutely fine, you're entitled to your opinion of course, as I am too! We obviously beg to differ.