THE BEST cd player on the planet?

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#22
- Linn CD12?

- I recall a Hi-fi Choice group review where a T+A player got the worst ratings because of a cold, lifeless sound inspite of being the most jitterless of all, and a Naim CD5 won first prize because of its musicality altough it was the one with higher distortion figures. Maybe they were being patriotic, I don´t know.

- Phn, there´s lots of Playtations in used equipment stores selling for 50€ here. I felt tempted to try one after reading your posts, but believe it or not I´ve never played with any games console. Does it need a TV to access a menu or something or it´s straightforward to operate like a dedicated CD player?

Thanks
 
#24
Well, the PSX is a b**** to use. Sometimes it refuses to recognize the CD and you have to navigate thru the TV. Granted, my PSX needs a new CD unit. I just haven't gotten around to order one.

I'm the first to acknowledge the irrational of using the PSX. (It may just be one of the reasons I like it.) I don't bring it up to get others to buy one. People should buy what they want and like. (Or even better in my world, MAKE what they want.) I rather bring it up because people are so quick to dismiss it, while they wouldn't think twice about taking a €100k CD player at face value. And I'm not at all surprised if the T+A player did poorly in a listening test. That has been my point all the time. And, no, that doesn't mean I'm right. (I don't post here to be right.) It only means that people are looking for different things.
 
#27
phn said:
The PSX has quite a distinct sound. The bass is lacking and it doesn't have the attack of even an average CD player. Hence, it's not very good with rock music. In a sense I would like to compare it to one of my favourite turntables, the Thorens TD-160. They are very different, of course. But the TD-160 has a very distinct sound as well. I love the sound of the floating suspension Thorens. Others love the Rega sound. Which takes us back to my original point of personal taste.

I did a quick search on eBay UK. The only SCPH-1002 I could find is part of this lot of defect PSXs. It has two SCPH-1002s.
Click to expand...

I have heard the SCPH-1002 and 5002 and they sound
great .... but why ????
 
#28
phn said:
The best CD player in the world is probably Sony's laboratory reference player or something such. If you want a more attainable "reference" redbook player, the EMT 982 probably comes as close as any. If you have some personal favourite flavour, you go with Naim, Krell, Meridian, Mark Levinson, or some other box of hype.

And, yes, the CD pro 2 is great. Currently as good as it gets. And who made it? "Mid-fi" maker Philips.
Click to expand...


I think Sony has the best CD player in their laboratory ??

They have build the SP1 1002 and is sounds great..

So they have the technology !!!!!

But SACD was more important ???

so the best CD player will never be build
 
#29
PauSim said:
- Linn CD12?
Click to expand...

I've heard it a lot, and a lot of times, and I listen to it when I want.
Seriously, I've never heard anything that beats it.
For CD, it's the best thing I know.
And it's MILES ahead any Mark Levinson or Wadia.
Don't believe the hype.

But it costs the price of a car.:bawling:

Seriously, nobody's going to give a definitive answer on this thread.
One would have to listen to them all.:xeye:
 
#31
After having lived with my SCPH-1002 Playstation (with output stage mods) for over a month now and having continously compared it with my Naim CDI and modded Shanling CD-T80 I must also say that the cheap playstation is one of the very best CD players I have yet heard to date It makes absolutely no sense but I've learned to trust my ears (and always have my other two CD players if I have a moment of "it CAN'T sound this good" crisis - haha!).

Cheers!

- John
 
#32
I post this more than a year after my previous post.

I have to make two corrections. The PlayStation has no problem recognizing CDs. My fist console was defect. The first model is from 1995 and they have usually been played very hard.

My PlayStation is now modified and no longer has any shortage of bass or dynamics. I like the unmodified PSX as well. It has a more "vintage" sound. It's quite pleasing to the ear. But when all is said and done, the modified one wins.

Even if you accept that a gaming console can sound great, it's still not for everybody. It has poor feedback. You cannot see if there's a CD or not, for example. Vinyl junkies and tube heads are less likely to mind. But for the CD and ss crowd not used to wait 15 seconds for tubes to warm up, it might turn out a bit frustrating.

The only people I would recommend the PSX to today are vinyl junkies--people who don't have a CD player.
 
#33
Agreed about the feedback aspect of it - it's still a bit annoying not being able to see what track number you're on.... unless it's connected up to the TV of course! (yuck!!)

The only other machine I've heard that totally beats it was a Naim CDS, but I'm sure there's still more to be had from the PS1 yet in terms of mods and so forth.

Cheers!

- John
 
#34
PSX displays...

well ya can always hunt for an old PS1 LCD display, 5 " or 7"(can't remember), if you use RCA outs. If you use the AV multi out then you can always hack into a 2.1"LCD screen from an Intec or similar LCD Playstation controller.
I missed buying one for $25.....
 
#35
I have a tiny 3 inch monitor. It's hard to read from a distance.

You should be able to use something like the rockna CD ROM controller if you only know where to get the signal. Then the PSX would be a "real" CD player.
 
#38
I don't know if it s the best ever, but...

right now, the best CD player I've heard (and own) is the Durabrand 1700 portable DVD player, a Walmart house brand. Didn't buy it for this reason, I just discovered it by accident. But it beats my old Denon CD player and is better than some home CD or DVD players I've heard.

Maybe its another one of those deals like that portable CD player from Ratshack a few years ago that was supposed to be an 'audiophile quality' sleeper.
 
#39
PauSim said:
Linn CD12?
Click to expand...

I always liked the CD12. A very listenable player. But at the 2005 local diyFest i borrowed the CD12. The guys started doing a shoot-out and i came back an hour or 2 later & they had choosen to listen to the Jolida...

The DCS deserves some attention here, as do the Vacuum State modified SACD players.

What i think will come to rule the roost are computer based transports running into full zoot FireWire DACs. Some of the USB DACs are already pretty good, but using USB is like trying swim with an anchor tied to you.

And i do hope that a hiRez digital standard comes to the fore (the death knells for SACD & DVD-A are being rung by whatever they put on bluRay) we can hopefully get past the severly limited amount of data in a CD.

dave
 
#40
I can vouch for the quality of the Wal-Mart Durabrand 7" DVD player mentioned a couple of posts ago. I just went out and bought one to serve as a "transportable" player for decent mobile sound. WAY better than the mediocre-sounding top of the line Sony and Panasonic portable CD players.

Can't say how it stacks up against the heavy iron of the high end stuff, but with a decent line out, no phony bass-boosting and a solid bottom end (at least with my portable system), and a rechargeable lithium battery, this thing rocks for $78. Solves a number of problems for me. Don't see a downside except having to get it at Wal-Mart.

--Buckapound
 
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