Rotel CD11 Mk2 - am I happy with my new CD player?

[RomanticWarrior]

Well I've finally bought some new hi-fi. My first purchase in 20+ years. I needed to replace an old Marantz CD player in my second system and had no hesitation choosing the new Rotel CD11 mk2 having been in love with the Rotel 965BX CD player in my main system for the last 30+ years. I bought the new player purely out of brand loyalty.

When I first connected the CD11 up to my old NAD amp & Castle speakers I was well impressed by the depth of the sound. "Oh yes" I was thinking and immediately set about enjoying several of my favourite 'test' tracks. However, once my initial euphoria settled down I started to concentrate more on the player's ergonomics.

The display looks .... well .... pretty basic to say the least. The LCD characters are like something from a 1970's Space Invaders screen. Really chunky and quite difficult to read from a distance.

When you eject a CD you often want to insert another and may take a minute or two to choose which one. Unfortunately this player takes offence at its drawer being open and closes it again after exactly one minute even if you're currently in the process of inserting your next disc! A bit like Arkwright's till.

But here's my showstopper. I listen to a lot of music with long tracks (Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze etc.) so when the phone rings or someone in the house demands my attention I often need to pause it and then return to where I left off. Unfortunately someone at Rotel has made the decision that you're not allowed to pause for more than 5 minutes. If (shock, horror) you don't return in that very short time, the pause times out and goes back to standby thus losing your place. I find that totally unacceptable. It gives a whole new meaning to the term 'User Control'. If they're intent on prolonging the life of the motor, why not have a longer, more reasonable time or give the user the choice via the 'setup' menu?

So, if I'd been aware of these issues before making my choice would I still have bought it? No, I'm afraid I wouldn't. And that's a real shame cos' the playback is lovely.

 

[matthewpianist]

There is an option to disable Auto Power Off in the setup menu - worth a try?

 

[Jasonovich]

Well I've finally bought some new hi-fi. My first purchase in 20+ years. I needed to replace an old Marantz CD player in my second system and had no hesitation choosing the new Rotel CD11 mk2 having been in love with the Rotel 965BX CD player in my main system for the last 30+ years. I bought the new player purely out of brand loyalty.

When I first connected the CD11 up to my old NAD amp & Castle speakers I was well impressed by the depth of the sound. "Oh yes" I was thinking and immediately set about enjoying several of my favourite 'test' tracks. However, once my initial euphoria settled down I started to concentrate more on the player's ergonomics.

The display looks .... well .... pretty basic to say the least. The LCD characters are like something from a 1970's Space Invaders screen. Really chunky and quite difficult to read from a distance.

When you eject a CD you often want to insert another and may take a minute or two to choose which one. Unfortunately this player takes offence at its drawer being open and closes it again after exactly one minute even if you're currently in the process of inserting your next disc! A bit like Arkwright's till.

But here's my showstopper. I listen to a lot of music with long tracks (Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze etc.) so when the phone rings or someone in the house demands my attention I often need to pause it and then return to where I left off. Unfortunately someone at Rotel has made the decision that you're not allowed to pause for more than 5 minutes. If (shock, horror) you don't return in that very short time, the pause times out and goes back to standby thus losing your place. I find that totally unacceptable. It gives a whole new meaning to the term 'User Control'. If they're intent on prolonging the life of the motor, why not have a longer, more reasonable time or give the user the choice via the 'setup' menu?

So, if I'd been aware of these issues before making my choice would I still have bought it? No, I'm afraid I wouldn't. And that's a real shame cos' the playback is lovely.

Check on manufacturers website for the latest firmware update, maybe this will address some of the issues you've been experiencing.

 

[nopiano]

These things are why it's so essential to visit a dealer and have a play with stuff. I know that preference reveals I grew up with hifi in the pre-CD era, when there were far more retailers and tons of choice. But it's still true today, unless you have the time to thoroughly research all the reviews and forum posts that might reveal any 'characteristics' or idiosyncrasies before getting out your credit card!

 

[Al ears]

These things are why it's so essential to visit a dealer and have a play with stuff. I know that preference reveals I grew up with hifi in the pre-CD era, when there were far more retailers and tons of choice. But it's still true today, unless you have the time to thoroughly research all the reviews and forum posts that might reveal any 'characteristics' or idiosyncrasies before getting out your credit card!

Sometimes it simply comes down to reading the manual......

 

[nopiano]

Sometimes it simply comes down to reading the manual......

True enough - another skill that has fallen by the wayside! And not helped by manufacturers who pack a postage stamp-sized sheet with a QR code instead of a decent booklet!

 

[manicm]

Pausing does cause wear and tear on the laser if I'm correct. You may disagree, but I think Rotel made the right call on setting the limit to 5 minutes.

The drawer issue I understand can be frustrating, then again dust is the enemy of any CD mechanism.

Since you're happy with the sound and instead of going through the trouble and expense of getting another player, I would just change my habits to suit the player.

 

[Jasonovich]

These quirks annoying as they are, as per above comment, could be a product feature. Perhaps not desirable but certainly can be overcome by making those small adjustments.
However, if the sound quality was rubbish I would have returned it back to the vendor.
I have a similar problem with my Vovofox digital transport, every time I switch it on, I have to change Chinese menu to English.
I'm hoping the next firmware will put this right but sort of got use to it.

 

[RomanticWarrior]

Thanks all for your input. I've read the manual thoroughly and I'm not missing anything. My mistake for saying "standby" @matthewpianist, I meant that state where the CD is loaded but you haven't yet hit play. So disabling the auto power-down function (which I have already) wouldn't help. But thanks anyway.

I've been in touch with Rotel via their UK distributor and there is a possibility they might address the 'pause' issue in a later update. I've already looked into updating the firmware but none of the current updates address this issue. Why though has my unit (bought 3 weeks ago) not got the latest update? I'm three behind! It was only released to the UK market at the beginning of January.

If pausing causes significant wear on the laser mechanism @manicm why has my 30+ year-old Rotel not already died. And why 5 minutes anyway? Why not 10 or 15 to give me time to have a pee, wash my hands and put the kettle on?

Yes I agree about auditioning products. But you'd never test things like the pause in that situation. You don't know there's a problem until it's actually a problem for you, ie. at home under normal circumstances.

 

[manicm]

Thanks all for your input. I've read the manual thoroughly and I'm not missing anything. My mistake for saying "standby" @matthewpianist, I meant that state where the CD is loaded but you haven't yet hit play. So disabling the auto power-down function (which I have already) wouldn't help. But thanks anyway.

I've been in touch with Rotel via their UK distributor and there is a possibility they might address the 'pause' issue in a later update. I've already looked into updating the firmware but none of the current updates address this issue. Why though has my unit (bought 3 weeks ago) not got the latest update? I'm three behind! It was only released to the UK market at the beginning of January.

If pausing causes significant wear on the laser mechanism @manicm why has my 30+ year-old Rotel not already died. And why 5 minutes anyway? Why not 10 or 15 to give me time to have a pee, wash my hands and put the kettle on?

Yes I agree about auditioning products. But you'd never test things like the pause in that situation. You don't know there's a problem until it's actually a problem for you, ie. at home under normal circumstances.

It could be the old Rotels, and other CD players were exceptionally engineered back in the day. But if you investigate, prolonged pausing on CD players is frowned upon, it wears the motor/belt and laser. If I were gone for 15 minutes honestly I'd just stop the player and restart playback from the track.

As much as I slight turntables these days I concede in the long term they're far more servicable than CD players - because individual elements can be replaced/repaired. Once a CD player starts playing up I write it off, although some with more nimble and talented fingers ply open the case and get the gubbins out, I'm not that way inclined unfortunately.

 

[DougK1]

Maybe you're an ideal candidate for streaming... Where's Pod?

 

[twinkletoes]

Sounds like power saving features to me. Its sensing no activity and shutting down. Sounds like it’s work as intended to me.

As Doug suggested above maybe a form of streaming would work better for you

 

[RomanticWarrior]

As Doug suggested above maybe a form of streaming would work better for you

I've been using Spotify Premium for a few years now so I'm sort of doing that already, but we live in the sticks in an area with low speed broadband so options are limited. But I guess I'm old-fashioned (pre-CD in fact) and I like to own things, plus I like the sound that comes from 'proper' hi-fi components.

Brother-in-law is a hi-fi nut and seriously into streaming (from Qobuz) and plays it at the highest res through his wicked hi-fi so I'm very familiar with it's potential.

Spotify has introduced me to a lot of good stuff though (all stored in my 'Liked Songs') so it definitely has it's place with me.

 

[Fandango Andy]

I've been using Spotify Premium for a few years now so I'm sort of doing that already, but we live in the sticks in an area with low speed broadband so options are limited. But I guess I'm old-fashioned (pre-CD in fact) and I like to own things, plus I like the sound that comes from 'proper' hi-fi components.

Brother-in-law is a hi-fi nut and seriously into streaming (from Qobuz) and plays it at the highest res through his wicked hi-fi so I'm very familiar with it's potential.

Spotify has introduced me to a lot of good stuff though (all stored in my 'Liked Songs') so it definitely has it's place with me.

Have you looked into full fibre? My parents live in the middle of nowhere and have faster broadband than me!