4 CDP's

[ajay124]

Although,I am not in the market for a CDP upgrade at the moment,I miss the excitement of researching equipment,which I experienced earlier this year.My gut feeling is that when I want a change,I would be replacing the Arcam CD 192.I did a casual search on the net,for CDP's priced around the 2500-3000$ mark,and came up with a few that I found interesting.Even if I do upgrade in the future,I would be looking for a used/demo piece at approximately half those prices.I would be willing to wait patiently for a seller who's need to sell,was more urgent than my need to buy
Have not included NaimXS,Rega Saturn,Arcam CD37,as I would prefer one of the 4 listed below.But I don't mind learning more about the Brit Brigade.Also any other brand in that price range.No Dac.I prefer a small,uncluttered,rack...CDP/PRE/POWER.
The CDP's I liked were:
Meridian GO 6/2
Ayre CX 7e
Bryston BCD1
Ayon CD 1
Meridian G06 Review
SoundStage! Equipment Review - Ayre Acoustics CX-7e CD Player (6/2007)
SoundStage! Equipment Review - Bryston BCD-1 CD Player (9/2007)
6moons audio reviews: Ayon Audio CD-1

 

[jitubisht]

I hope you do know that a high-end Cary (SA)CDP is on sale in our forum

http://www.hifivision.com/sale-owner/13605-cary-sacd-306-professional-cd-sacd-player-dac.html

 

[sidvee]

The CDP's I liked were:
Meridian GO 6/2
Ayre CX 7e
Bryston BCD1
Ayon CD 1

I have auditioned the Ayre, Bryston and Ayon Cd1 and ended up with the Ayon Cd1s. Loving it.
Cheers
Sid

 

[ajay124]

I have auditioned the Ayre, Bryston and Ayon Cd1 and ended up with the Ayon Cd1s. Loving it.
Cheers
Sid

Were all the auditions done with the same amp/speakers/cables or at different times with different equipment and different music?
I feel that for a reliable and accurate audition of these 4 CDP's,the amp/speaker/cables/room would have to remain the same.Otherwise how would one decide,to what extent the CDP was responsible for the sound.Unfortunately ideal audition conditions are usually not possible in India,leading to erroneous conclusions.
I remember when I auditioned the Vienna Acoustic Mozart Grand's,I dismissed them as extremely forward,bright,and unmusical.The rest of the equipment had impressive pedigree...Meridian amp/cdp (I think).The unimpressive sound was probably caused by casual speaker placement,and lack of burn in.The Vienna Acoustic sound that I get at home is extremely refined,detailed and musical.Still not perfect,as the right speaker,still sounds a little more forward than the left.Have not been able to satisfactorily tweak that.An audition,unless painstakingly set up will not be very reliable.And how many dealer's have the time and inclination to set up a painstaking audition?

 

[suri]

Were all the auditions done with the same amp/speakers/cables or at different times with different equipment and different music?
I feel that for a reliable and accurate audition of these 4 CDP's,the amp/speaker/cables/room would have to remain the same.Otherwise how would one decide,to what extent the CDP was responsible for the sound.Unfortunately ideal audition conditions are usually not possible in India,leading to erroneous conclusions.
I remember when I auditioned the Vienna Acoustic Mozart Grand's,I dismissed them as extremely forward,bright,and unmusical.The rest of the equipment had impressive pedigree...Meridian amp/cdp (I think).The unimpressive sound was probably caused by casual speaker placement,and lack of burn in.The Vienna Acoustic sound that I get at home is extremely refined,detailed and musical.Still not perfect,as the right speaker,still sounds a little more forward than the left.Have not been able to satisfactorily tweak that.An audition,unless painstakingly set up will not be very reliable.And how many dealer's have the time and inclination to set up a painstaking audition?

but,

you have not thought of any of these?-

Marantz America | Reference Series

 

[anm]

ajay, the title of your thread sounds like "chaar cdp ki....."

 

[ajay124]

but,

you have not thought of any of these?-

Marantz America | Reference Series

Will include SA1552 Marantz Reference Series in my search.

 

[sidvee]

Were all the auditions done with the same amp/speakers/cables or at different times with different equipment and different music?
I feel that for a reliable and accurate audition of these 4 CDP's,the amp/speaker/cables/room would have to remain the same.Otherwise how would one decide,to what extent the CDP was responsible for the sound.Unfortunately ideal audition conditions are usually not possible in India,leading to erroneous conclusions.
I remember when I auditioned the Vienna Acoustic Mozart Grand's,I dismissed them as extremely forward,bright,and unmusical.The rest of the equipment had impressive pedigree...Meridian amp/cdp (I think).The unimpressive sound was probably caused by casual speaker placement,and lack of burn in.The Vienna Acoustic sound that I get at home is extremely refined,detailed and musical.Still not perfect,as the right speaker,still sounds a little more forward than the left.Have not been able to satisfactorily tweak that.An audition,unless painstakingly set up will not be very reliable.And how many dealer's have the time and inclination to set up a painstaking audition?

No unfortunately the auditions were not done with the same equipment - almost impossible in India and to some extent overseas as well unless you can find a dealer who will let you home audition - I used to frequent a dealer in Detroit area in US who would let only frequent customers home audition. Anyways my auditions were long, 4-6 hours with my own music and equipment that was of similar sound signature and placement that I have at home. Warmish with great midrange overall. So I was reasonably sure of the sound of the CDP, but if you can get all players into 1 room for an audition - I would consider that something of a miracle. bTW 2 of these players I auditioned in Detroit as Ayre does not even have a dealer here AFAIK. Anyway just my way of buying equipment - and honestly I do not know of any other way.
Best of luck regardless.

Cheers,
Sid

 

[ajay124]

Adding two more CD players,in a similar price range,to the mix
Unico CDE – Unison Research
Electrocompaniet - PC-1

 

[Dr.Bass]

Adding two more CD players,in a similar price range,to the mix
Unico CDE Unison Research
Electrocompaniet - PC-1

Unico is a dustbin !!! I am sorry, I cannot be more polite.
Electrocompaniet EMC1 would be a real upgrade over your existing player.
Apart from these, I would suggest you look at Linn Ikemi or an ARC CDP.

BTW, there is a demo Bluenote Stibbert Tube CDP on sale by the India dealer JNBSound. I suppose it is about 2 years old. That will take your system to another league altogether. I understand that you are in no hurry/mood to upgrade at this moment but still I would say, getting a Bluenote within India is extremely rare and getting it from the dealer is a dream, give it a thought.
He is is Mumbai so a demo should be pretty easy.

BTW, since you listen to a lot of western classical, Bluenote is an absolute champion at that:licklips:.

 

[arj]

Nice to See the Ayre there. a company that believes in Solid engineering/Design with good components.
I would guess that a trip to singapore should get you a demo of all of these.

If you are not into soundstaging as The high priority then the naim can also float your boat

 

[murali]

I have Ayre C-5xe and intend to keep it for ever. Initially I was also looking for a C-7xe but then got this, < 2 years old, only marginally costlier than a new C-7, and capable of playing SACD, DVD-A etc, all 2-channel.
Another good player I can suggest is the Resolution Audio Opus 21 which also I considered then. I now find a used player advertised in audiogon for $1,600 (230 volt) from Hong Kong. If it is genuine, it is worth a look.

Good luck and cheers.
murali

 

[Dr.Bass]

Another good player I can suggest is the Resolution Audio Opus 21 which also I considered then. I now find a used player advertised in audiogon for $1,600 (230 volt) from Hong Kong. If it is genuine, it is worth a look.

Good luck and cheers.
murali

I have heard the Resolution Audio Opus CDP. It was smooth and detailed but to my ears harmonically lean (something which many people complain about digital playback).

 

[ajay124]

Nice to See the Ayre there. a company that believes in Solid engineering/Design with good components.
I would guess that a trip to singapore should get you a demo of all of these.

If you are not into soundstaging as The high priority then the naim can also float your boat

Most likely,when I do buy,it would be from Malaysia or Singapore,after an audition.Audition's will reveal the real story.Hopefully,I will be able to carry out some auditions,where an Arcam cdp is also present,in order to be able to compare various brands to the 'Arcam' sound which I would be sacrificing.
At the moment,I am inclined towards Meridian,Ayre,Ayon,Bryston.New brands may crop up.
The color of the cdp would have to be silver only,to go with my Bryston.I know,that is not a valid criterion,but visual harmony is important to me,and I would not buy any other color.
Has anybody auditioned the Musical Fidelity M6i and the Bryston BCD1 side by side at Audio People?
Does Ayon CD1 come in silver?
@Dr.Bass,Your short,succint,stunning review of Unico has been filed in my memory

 

[sidvee]

Does Ayon CD1 come in silver?

Unfortunately it does not. I asked the same question so that it would match my ARC LS26. BTW CD1 has been discontinued and now it is the CD1s. I believe the older Ayons were made in silver as well.
Cheers
Sid

 

[arj]

Most likely,when I do buy,it would be from Malaysia or Singapore,after an audition.Audition's will reveal the real story.Hopefully,I will be able to carry out some auditions,where an Arcam cdp is also present,in order to be able to compare various brands to the 'Arcam' sound which I would be sacrificing.
At the moment,I am inclined towards Meridian,Ayre,Ayon,Bryston.New brands may crop up.
The color of the cdp would have to be silver only,to go with my Bryston.I know,that is not a valid criterion,but visual harmony is important to me,and I would not buy any other color.
Has anybody auditioned the Musical Fidelity M6i and the Bryston BCD1 side by side at Audio People?
Does Ayon CD1 come in silver?
@Dr.Bass,Your short,succint,stunning review of Unico has been filed in my memory

I actually kind of envy you..researching/audition for an upgrade is a real fun thing :lol:

that puts the Naim out..they ar all black

if I could comment i personally really liked your choice of components..and you could not go wrong with your current shortlist.

If you do audition the Ayon please do try it with a direct connection to the power amp aswell and use its internal volume control. if the synergy with the power amp works out you may notice a jump in dynamics.

 

[dranil]

Hi friends
I can add one more to the list
Shanling CD T1500, a tube base player I am using since nine months
The sound quality is excellent.
SHANLING CD-T1500 -Audiophile Tube CD Player - USA TUBE AUDIO
Anil.

 

[dinyaar]

Hi Ajay
There is a used EMM labs single box cdp for sale. I think the model is the CD/SA. Google it.
Seller had offered it to me for 2L a week ago. I presume its still available.

Have heard this machine and it is great. Very different from the Cary on offer here on HFV. Both great machines with different sonics and both these are truly an upgrade to what u are currently using. IMO these are built to a different level as compared to the cdps u have listed.
Rgds

 

[ajay124]

Hi friends
I can add one more to the list
Shanling CD T1500, a tube base player I am using since nine months
The sound quality is excellent.
SHANLING CD-T1500 -Audiophile Tube CD Player - USA TUBE AUDIO
Anil.

The Shanling looks good not just for listening to music but also for flying to the moon
By and large has excellent reviews.Where did you buy it from?What is the price range?Can you provide more detail about your experience with the T1500.

 

[murali]

I have heard the Resolution Audio Opus CDP. It was smooth and detailed but to my ears harmonically lean (something which many people complain about digital playback).

That is your opinion and I fully respect it. Just to give some personal opinions, I belong to that camp which does not believe in auditioning in the same system, synergy etc as far as a source like CD player is concerned. It makes perfect sense to do that, for example, an amplifier-speaker combine where the speaker is the transducer changing the electrical energy to sound by mechanical means and the output to a great extent depends on how good the amplifier is able to control the speaker drivers.

As far as a source like CDP is conerned, it is the origin of everything and defines the boundaries of what you will hear from the speakers at the end of the link and so the source determines the resolution, timing, etc etc. I have also heard the Resolution Audio in different systems but never felt that it was lean, of course, my experience.

It is like writing an examination paper. Whether you use a Pilot or Parker or Dunhill or Cross pen, how good is your bond paper, what ultimately matters are the contents of what is finally written on the paper. This is determined by what is in the brain and as long as the contents of the brain are limited, the same will appear on the paper no matter how good the pen or paper is or how smooth the hand-pen-paper coordination is. As long as you don't know the answer to the question, it doesn't matter on the rest.

So some insights into the design of the CDP, quality of components used etc greatly help in its choice. I too had an Arcam CD-192 which is an excellent player but has its own limitations in design and quality, and when moving to a Ayre, I could notice the differences. I thought the Resolution Audio with its concept of 2-box design to keep the noisy and digital circuits separate sounded very well in whatever system I heard.

cheers.
murali