Please help me choose a CD player

[admin_exported]

Please help me decide what CD player to buy. I have thrown my Cambridge Audio Azur as far as I could as I am not prepared to spend anymore money on it - broke once after ±75 hours and a second time after ±50 hours. Living in South Africa we don't have the choice that you guys have overseas so I have to stick to one of these. Yamaha CDS300 Marantz CD5004 Harmon & K HD980 Onkyo DX7355 Thanks for your effort and time.

 

[jaxwired]

You have a PC right? Don't waste your money on a CD player. Get an Apple TV and a decent DAC. The ATV is dirt cheap and mine now sounds better than my old CDP since I upgraded my toslink to a wireworld supernova glass cable. I kid you not, the sound is pristine and transparent as h elll.

http://community.whathifi.com/forums/t/510468.aspx

 

[Big Chris]

I'd say have a trawl through eBay/auction sites to see what bargains are out there. I bagged my Arcam CD192 for £320 last year, at almost a third of its original RRP.

There are some great deals to be had especially if you don't write off the less popular brands.

FWIW, After hearing my Father-In-Law's C.A gear, I'm positive you'll find something that easily surpasses it.

 

[John Duncan]

Psssh. I had a 640c v2 and won't hear a word said against it. However, when the OP is resorting to physical violence, maybe it is time to move on...

Apple tv and dac are certainly worth consideration (I replaced my primare with that combo), as is the second hand market (where I originally bought said primare for 212 quid). Haven't heard any of the new players you mention, but I like the look of the Yamaha very much.

 

[shooter]

JohnDuncan:Apple tv and dac are certainly worth consideration.

Is the ATV used only as a streamer with the DAC doing the only audio conversion? Or is it similar to the AE whereas it uses it's own internal DAC first that can't be bypassed?

 

[John Duncan]

Yes, and the old one that had it's own internal storage as more reliable on the wireless AE. You're wrong about the AE though, it has an optical out, which I now have plugged into the back of the Uniti streaming Spotify as my main source of music.

 

[shooter]

JohnDuncan:Yes, and the old one that had it's own internal storage as more reliable on the wireless AE. You're wrong about the AE though, it has an optical out, which I now have plugged into the back of the Uniti streaming Spotify as my main source of music.

Oh, I was told by Sqare group that you couldn't bypass the internal DAC of the AE with any output?