new CD player

[Fedecris]

Hi to everyone,

I'm going to buy a new CD player to replace my old one, a Cambridge Audio CD6.

My set-up is currently this:

Amp - YBA Integré Alpha

Speakers - Sonus Faber Minima Amator

I'm considering two main options, in the price range <500£:

1. Cambridge Audio Azur 651C

2. Marantz CD6005

Any thoughts and advices would be appreciated.

Many thanks.

 

[matthewpiano]

The two players you mention are both good and you can't go wrong with either. However, for the best value for money, I'd recommend the Denon DCD720ae or Onkyo C7030. Both well made and easily a match for the Marantz and Cambridge offerings, but at even lower prices.

 

[plastic penguin]

Hi to everyone,

I'm going to buy a new CD player to replace my old one, a Cambridge Audio CD6.

My set-up is currently this:

Amp - YBA Integré Alpha

Speakers - Sonus Faber Minima Amator

I'm considering two main options, in the price range <500£:

1. Cambridge Audio Azur 651C

2. Marantz CD6005

Any thoughts and advices would be appreciated.

Many thanks.

If you don't mind s/hand then Arcam CD17 should do a job nicely. Or Matthew's suggestion is very good.

 

[Boomer]

Can pick up a used TEAC VRDS T1 Transport for around £250 and buy a decent DAC (maybe Arcam DAC) for £250 that is a great combo.

 

[Andrewjvt]

Getti g a good dac instead then ripping all your cds to hd?

It is so much more convenient and quick plus you can scamble all your tracks instead of just playing one disc then swapping.

On the down side if you have 1000s of discs, its a grind at first to rip them all but once its done it is for me 100 times better.

And sound quality will not be effected.

 

[philpot1001]

Getti g a good dac instead then ripping all your cds to hd?

It is so much more convenient and quick plus you can scamble all your tracks instead of just playing one disc then swapping.

On the down side if you have 1000s of discs, its a grind at first to rip them all but once its done it is for me 100 times better.

And sound quality will not be effected.

I think i must be the only person alive who actually enjoys using physical music and the experience of selecting a CD or vynyl and placing on the drawer / turntable lol.

 

[FennerMachine]

I prefer using CD's too.
Many others like vinyl because it is tactile.

 

[Andrewjvt]

Getti g a good dac instead then ripping all your cds to hd?

It is so much more convenient and quick plus you can scamble all your tracks instead of just playing one disc then swapping.

On the down side if you have 1000s of discs, its a grind at first to rip them all but once its done it is for me 100 times better.

And sound quality will not be effected.

I think i must be the only person alive who actually enjoys using physical music and the experience of selecting a CD or vynyl and placing on the drawer / turntable lol.

Like you that like putting in a cd and holding the cd and cover but once you are over that there is no going back plus your pc displays images of the band playing and is cool

 

[Fedecris]

Thank you all.

I'm an "old school" one, when I sit to listen to music in front of my hi-fi I like to choose from my cd, and vinyls, collection (got more than 1000 cds). Anyway I don't reject the idea of using also a DAC to play some music from my Macbook. Don't how much good is the USB port on the Marantz CD6005 in terms of sound quality, but do you think it could be a good hybrid solution to start?

Or maybe I should buy only a good CD player and add a DAC in the future to complete my set-up?

Other advices are welcome (and sorry for my English, I'm from Italy).

p.s.: I think I can make a further effort in terms of money, anyway it should be something balanced with my set-up.

 

[philpot1001]

I use it and i think its a great machine as a starter for 10.....the USB port is fine, however it obvs depeneds on what you feed in to it, i.e. normal spotify / Youtube is a bit KAK, but a decent resolution sounds fine to me! Im thinking of upgrading mine at some point with a fancy DAC......but only if i can actually hear a difference.

 

[Fedecris]

I use it and i think its a great machine as a starter for 10.....the USB port is fine, however it obvs depeneds on what you feed in to it, i.e. normal spotify / Youtube is a bit KAK, but a decent resolution sounds fine to me! Im thinking of upgrading mine at some point with a fancy DAC......but only if i can actually hear a difference.

Thanks for the answer. What devices can I plug into the USB port, just a USB pendrive or a iPod, or even a PC/Mac? Does it support Flac files?

 

[philpot1001]

being honest im not sure - it def supports ipod and iphone as thats what i use.....as for other android phones,. not sure, i would have thought so.....as for FLAC and PC again i havent tried it, sorry. I almost exclusively use CD's

 

[Deleted member 108165]

Thanks for the answer. What devices can I plug into the USB port, just a USB pendrive or a iPod, or even a PC/Mac? Does it support Flac files?

From memory as I haven't used mine since I got a network player: Pen-drive - yes, iPod/iPhone - yes, PC/Mac - no. Supports wav, wma, m4a and mp3 only. To play flac files you would need a separate decoder. See pages 19, 54 & 55 of user manual here:

http://m.us.marantz.com/DocumentMaster/US/CD6005_Owners_Manual_English.pdf

 

[radiorog]

The 651c is a superb CD player for the money. I have not heard it side by side £500 players, but having heard a rega appollo before before in my set up, I would say it is a fairly close match. Not as good in some areas, and maybe better in others. I have not heard a marantz CD player with anything like as much insight, but I've only heard a few marantz players (£300 and less).

 

[gasolin]

Getti g a good dac instead then ripping all your cds to hd?

It is so much more convenient and quick plus you can scamble all your tracks instead of just playing one disc then swapping.

On the down side if you have 1000s of discs, its a grind at first to rip them all but once its done it is for me 100 times better.

And sound quality will not be effected.

Depends on dac, i use a audioquest dragonfly in my pc that i can't use with my cd player and i can use the dac thats in my rotel cd or if i could get it to work(coaxial output doesn't work on my cd player) the dac in my Marantz PM6005 which is the same as in the marantz CD6005.

I'm pretty shure that tidal hifi,ripped cd's doesn't sound the same as when i play the same music from the same cd on my rotel cd player, it won't sound exactly the same, the hardware from the source to the amp would make a difference.

Also my harddrive is more noisy then my cd drive, but i agree ripped cds are easier,fater to listen to, even more then tidal but tidal has much more music to listen then 99.99% have in there cd collection

 

[Andrewjvt]

Getti g a good dac instead then ripping all your cds to hd?

It is so much more convenient and quick plus you can scamble all your tracks instead of just playing one disc then swapping.

On the down side if you have 1000s of discs, its a grind at first to rip them all but once its done it is for me 100 times better.

And sound quality will not be effected.

?

Depends on dac, i use a audioquest dragonfly in my pc that i can't use with my cd player and i can use the dac thats in my rotel cd or if i could get it to work(coaxial output doesn't work on my cd player) the dac in my Marantz PM6005 which is the same as in the marantz CD6005.

I'm pretty shure that tidal hifi,ripped cd's doesn't sound the same as when i play the same music from the same cd  on my rotel cd player, it won't sound exactly the same, the hardware from the source to the amp would make a difference.

Also my harddrive is more noisy then my cd drive, but i agree ripped cds are easier,fater to listen to, even more then tidal but tidal has much more music to listen then 99.99% have in there cd collection

Yes sound quality depends on the quality of the dac not the transport
Music files are files either on a cd or a pc hard drive as its only storage for the files.- they dont change

 

[gasolin]

The marantz CD6005 is for the 3 time best cdplayer of the year in it's price category, what more is there to say?

If you want a cheap cdplayer with good sound get a Marantz CD6005, if you don't need the usb input

get the Marantz CD5005 there should be no difference in sound quality since the both use the same dac.

 

[Fedecris]

Anyway, I'd like to know if all these models can be considered as an upgrade from my CD6, that has started randomly skipping tracks, not reading cds, etc. Or could I consider the option of replacing the lens if I find the replacement ( I think it's a Sanyo sf 91)? Don't know if it's worth the money.

 

[Fedecris]

what about this one?