Dedicated CD player or External DAC

arvindrjh

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Jul 30, 2018
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Hi All,
For stereo music CD player considered best source but now a days external DAC had no features like USB play, network/bluetooth connection along with the option for other connectivity available. Can anyone compare if still CD player is must for stereo or dac does this job. Considering digital audio available.
 
Depends on couple of factors, notably, do you have a sizeable collection of CD's? If yes then CD Player is definitely needed
 
Since the CD as a media has been phased out, look out for a system Marantz M-CR series. It is a Network receiver, Airplay, Spotify, bluetooth, internet radio with USB support. I think it caters to all your needs for a digital audio. It has a digital input from TV too.
 
Since the CD as a media has been phased out, look out for a system Marantz M-CR series. It is a Network receiver, Airplay, Spotify, bluetooth, internet radio with USB support. I think it caters to all your needs for a digital audio. It has a digital input from TV too.
It is more expensive... I can go for a dac in price range of 20k or CD player of same price range like Denon 720.
 
For 20K, you would get a better sound out of a CD player.
A <20K DAC would be relatively rough and digital sounding. For a smooth output from a DAC you would also need a good jitter free source too. They don't come cheap.
 
In my budget I can go for, it will be very helpful if you can put your opinion:
CD player
Denon 520 or 720
CA Topaz 5 or 10
Marantz 5005
NAD 516 BEE

Dac:
Audiolab mdac mini
SMSL
Topping D50
Pro ject dac box
Etc.
 
For 20K, you would get a better sound out of a CD player.
A <20K DAC would be relatively rough and digital sounding. For a smooth output from a DAC you would also need a good jitter free source too. They don't come cheap.
Will it be okay to connect a DVD player(digital output) with DAC?
 
In my budget I can go for, it will be very helpful if you can put your opinion:
CD player
Denon 520 or 720
CA Topaz 5 or 10
Marantz 5005
NAD 516 BEE

Dac:
Audiolab mdac mini
SMSL
Topping D50
Pro ject dac box
Etc.

Bit stretch your budget and consider Marantz CD-6006. It is a good player in 30k budget.
 
If you are OK with used CD players there are a few good ones at attractive price. Just go for an audition if possible.
 
The other alternative is Single Board Computer.
Check various alternatives with Sparky or RPI. You can go with RPI + Kali reclocker, Piano 2.1 DAC or Sparky + Digione/ usbridge. Cost will be within 10k to 12k.
 
The other alternative is Single Board Computer.
Check various alternatives with Sparky or RPI. You can go with RPI + Kali reclocker, Piano 2.1 DAC or Sparky + Digione/ usbridge. Cost will be within 10k to 12k.
Thanks for you suggestion... I am in touch with other group member he owns RPi based Allo Boss network player... As per him it is very good player... So thinking about it... And waiting for Katana player as it is not available as of now.
Did you heard its sound?
 
Thanks for you suggestion... I am in touch with other group member he owns RPi based Allo Boss network player... As per him it is very good player... So thinking about it... And waiting for Katana player as it is not available as of now.
Did you heard its sound?
Good luck. But I have not given it a try. Time consuming endless process.
 
Di
Digital sounding means?

That takes a lot of words to explain, but very easy to tell when you hear the sound :)
If you know the difference between the sound of a CD player and mobile phone. A digital sounding source/DAC would be half way through between the two.

By the way, I too have a RPi based Allo Boss network player, the another room. It is good for the price but does not compare with a dedicated CD player. You may want to consider Allo USB bridge with a good dedicated DAC instead. That may need you to extend your budget a bit though.

Regards,
Sharad
 
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