Budget cd players

Hi found out from the Customs Tariff that the basic duty for a Compact Disc Player is 10% that would translate to around 25% including the Countervailing Duty and Cess.
 
Rs.25,000 is a lot of money for a hit and miss!! I don't mind the money so much as the possibility of disappointment and then the trouble for searching for another product. And then, of course, what do you do with a product you are disappointed with? Given my infamous temper, I might just smash it on the floor, and then feel bad about it for weeks. I once smashed a Modem on the feet of the MD of the company that sold me the product !! :eek:

Cheers[/QUOTE

I thought I was one among a few with a bad and hot temper.... :lol:
So, after all, I guess its not bad for men to have a bad temper, isnt it? :)
 
Hey! Dinyaar hope all the bhonu & lagan nu custard must've been digested.

The best cdp Ive heard is the bow tech but dont think we are looking at that price point.

I agree with prems suggestion for the AMR, the Ayon Ive not heard but it is expensive.

The esoterics are fab but I guess they can sound a bit digital, it could also be case of system match & Im sure you won't take a call without a proper audition.

I would recco the Cary audio cdp. The 306 is about 4L & the new 303(Not heard) i guess should be 2.5. You should def also try the Holfi Xandra at that price point.

Below that price (less than 2L) my fav is firmly the Holfi xenia but I from what I understand a new model is on the way & certainly worth a trial would be a cdp by a company called Artora, although Ive not yet heard it but it is designed by the same guy who made the bow.
All the best.
Cheers
 
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Yes it is. But AFAIK only one machine is in stock with the distributor & Im not sure he is keen to sell it. They are becoming too expensive to make, hence I guess theyve stopped making them.
If you are interested to have a listen lemme know, Ill hook you up with the distributor.
Cheers
Hi Neo

Is Bow Tech available in India?
 
This is regarding the Emotiva ERC-1 when I sent an enquiry regarding the power supply which was to be modified for 220V 50Hz their support stated that the power supply is auto detecting therefore no modifications were necessary for the same.
 
@ dinyaar Metronome, audio research & audio aero also come to mind & of course your fav marantz.
Cheers
 
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[
I chose the 6003 for a bit over 20K.
We both heard it at my home & the cdp does not dissapoint at all. Nice looking, reasonable build, headphone out with volume and USB. I did not have the time to do some spade work & read about the internals or browse some reviews and this kind of quality in gear @ around 20K seems a deal to me. Its made in China like most entry level gear is I guess.
Very musical, decent timing, fairly airy highs with bass being a bit loose but then many a higher marantz suffer from the same. The midband seemed natural and the player felt musical with all the music that the guy tried.)

I have seen the reviews on cd6003 and pm6003 combo. All very positive. Recommended speakers Wharfedale diamond 10.1. Where can i get them at the best price in India.
Gnanaraj
 
limaraja I bought mine for 21,500/- from Boomerang, Mumbai last week.
Its a decent cdp for sure but please dont just buy it cause WHF gives it 5 stars or it wins a group test or whatever.
Hear the other options & decide.
Lastly this unit that I bought is not with bill/warranty but bought in g...
Rgds
 
Today I received a quote from Emotiva for the ERC-1. They have quoted 319+110 for courier to Dubai. That is about the same Dillihifi got for transportation to India. I am trying to check if there is customs in Dubai. If not, for roughly 20,000 it looks as if I can lay my hands on a good player.

Today, I read the Stereophile January 2010 review of CA 650C, and I have started thinking again. As per the article, even with nearly identical specs, an external DAC seems to have better implementation, and hence better resolution of sound delivered. If that is true, a simple CD Player, and a good DAC will go a long way in fulfilling my media server plans.

Though Sam Tellig does praise the CD A 650C for being of excellent build quality, he feels CA's own DacMagic trounces the CD Player in all areas. Here is his conclusion:

"When comparing the sound, I used the Cambridge DacMagic in its Minimum Phase setting vs the Azur 650C's slow-rolloff setting. One could go crazy with the combinations. Using the same XLO combinations from the Rogers Skoff era (the 1990s) from both products, I was able to switch from the Azur 650C's own DAC to the DacMagic by changing inputs via the remote. Levels were already matched. I used the matching Azur 650A amp, my Harbets, and my favourite headphones."

"Straining to hear the differences like fellow sharpener Robert Deutsch, PhDm I felt that the Azur 650C, used as a one-box CD source, was less resolving than when used only as a disc transport for the DacMagic. If you own a DacMagic, keep it. If you have a CD Player or transport you love, buy a DacMagic. It is more resolving, more harmonically full than the Azur 650C, but not by much. The sonic signatures were similar; but with the DacMagic there was a touch more there there. Plucked strings were pluckier, I noted greater definition, faster transients, more ambience."

"Open, airy, sweet, civilized - that is the sound of the 650C. I did think the harmonic textures could be richer, fuller. Voices could be more convincing and immediate, the bottom end tighter. I wouldn't call the sound threadbare, but lush the 650C is not."


In the same issue, there is a lengthy test of Asus's Xonar Essence ST and STX by Jihn Atkinson. If his tests are true, both products come out as killer products for reliable delivery of music from a normal PC. The STX, John says, is much better than the Squeezebox that he praised some time ago.

The STX, it seems delivers exceedingly low levels of noise and superbly defined sinewave at both 16 and 24 bit wordlengths. Word-clock jitter in the STX's Toslink S/PDIF output measured diretcly with the AP SYS2722 and 44.1KHz datastream, was low at 1.48 nanoseconds, which is close to the system's resolution limit. Jitter in the analogue output was also very low at 170 picoseconds.

Concluding, John says, 'The Xonar Essence STX and Essence ST soundcards are by far the lest expensive way of turning a PC into a genuine high-resolution audio source I have yet encountered. Neither the Essence's resolution nor their low levels of noise are compromised by having to operate in the electrically unfriendly environment of a computer chassis'

So now it looks as if those who installed the Asus Essence cards have taken the correct decision. With my hard disk nearing 500GB of music, should I also go the same way? If only I can but the card from a genuine audio dealer rather than a small and smelly gullies of Ritchie Street. Sigh ! Are you listening Sridhar, Raghu?

Cheers
 
the emotiva looks too Cool for a $330 player... any idea what transport it is using ?
 
the emotiva looks too Cool for a $330 player... any idea what transport it is using ?

They have built their own transport. Most CD Players use Philips, but CA, Emotiva and others have started building their own transports.

Cheers
 
Hmm, a DAC vs a soundcard.
-cost?
-robustness?
-flexibility?
-after sales service?
-repairability?
 
They have built their own transport. Most CD Players use Philips, but CA, Emotiva and others have started building their own transports.

Cheers

Only issue with that would be if any problem arises it would be difficult to get it repaired here in India
 
Hmm, a DAC vs a soundcard. -cost?
Very roughly US$497 vs US$200

-robustness?

Should be kind of equal. Both use highly integrated circuits. As long as you protect them from the vagaries of out electrical system, they should be OK.

-flexibility?

A DAC can be updated through it's USB or through a player connected to the DAC. Usage flexibility will be limited to what is available.

A soundcard can easily be updated, it's drivers repaired or changed. In addition, software that use these cards are there in large numbers. Usage flexibility will be very high.

-after sales service
Service, that too after I have your money? Are you joking?

Jokes apart, a DAC will be better in this area.

-repairability?

A sound card that needs repairs, will, most probably, been thrown away, And I am sure a DAC can be repaired.

Cheers
 
Rikhav, thats true for most transports ! as long as Emotiva can supply replacements one is safe.
 
Essence STX costs around 8500 rupees in India. My main desktop has it and its significantly better than entry level cd players.
 
Essence STX costs around 8500 rupees in India. My main desktop has it and its significantly better than entry level cd players.

ROC, you have both Essence STX card and Peter Daniel DAC. Can you please share the comparison between them? Have you listened to DacMagic DAC ever? Any comparison between DacMagic and Peter Daniel DAC?
 
ROC, you have both Essence STX card and Peter Daniel DAC. Can you please share the comparison between them? Have you listened to DacMagic DAC ever? Any comparison between DacMagic and Peter Daniel DAC?

A friend I sold a Parasound DAC-1100 to sold his Audiozone DAC-1. He found the Parasound to be clearly better. Of course he also bought my Assemblage DAC 2.6 which was heavily modded and he likes even better than the Parasound. Take what you want from this.

The Parasound deserves looking into. The Assemblages are just amazing for the money but good luck finding one, they are as rare as they come.
 
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