Having a blast building some decent quality stereo equipment. 
Would consider upgrading the transport.
Presently I have a Marantz CD63 (CMD12.1 mechanism) as transport, and a CS8416/CS4397 DAC with a Lampizator that replaces the 2 double IC’s with tubes.
The best value seems to be on some 20 – 30 year old CD players that had some really nice transports. They were typically quality units costing upwards of $1,000 then, but now can be had for under $200 now.
The CD players I am seeing that have the most value today are those with a KSS-151A, but few can be obtained with this mechanism for under $200. There are a number of other units getting good reviews:
CD/DVD Player/****/ Transport
Denon DCD-1560/**/ KSS-151A
Denon DCD 1500/**/ KSS-121A
Marantz CD52/******/ CMD-4/19
Sony DVP S-7000 /*/ ???
NAD 5000/**********/ D77/KSS-150A
Are there some other good CD players with quality transports that could be recommended? Or one (or more) that is clearly better than the rest?
Would consider upgrading the transport.Presently I have a Marantz CD63 (CMD12.1 mechanism) as transport, and a CS8416/CS4397 DAC with a Lampizator that replaces the 2 double IC’s with tubes.
The best value seems to be on some 20 – 30 year old CD players that had some really nice transports. They were typically quality units costing upwards of $1,000 then, but now can be had for under $200 now.
The CD players I am seeing that have the most value today are those with a KSS-151A, but few can be obtained with this mechanism for under $200. There are a number of other units getting good reviews:
CD/DVD Player/****/ Transport
Denon DCD-1560/**/ KSS-151A
Denon DCD 1500/**/ KSS-121A
Marantz CD52/******/ CMD-4/19
Sony DVP S-7000 /*/ ???
NAD 5000/**********/ D77/KSS-150A
Are there some other good CD players with quality transports that could be recommended? Or one (or more) that is clearly better than the rest?
Last edited:
Hello bsmith,
Seems like you have picked some good CD Players already, unfortunately none I've owned. I owned a Pioneer PD-S904 a while back which has great reviews as a transport due to the Stable Platter Mechanism, here's a great link on vintage Pioneer players:
Pioneer CD-Player
I have just received an old Denon DCD-1015, which was a budget player back then but gets good reviews as a transport although I think Pioneer are better, I'd seriously think about the old Arcam players too, my friend just bought a Arcam Alpha 7SE which is brilliant, really warm smooth sound for £150 used excellent condition, have fun choosing a CD Player to suit you.
Seems like you have picked some good CD Players already, unfortunately none I've owned. I owned a Pioneer PD-S904 a while back which has great reviews as a transport due to the Stable Platter Mechanism, here's a great link on vintage Pioneer players:
Pioneer CD-Player
I have just received an old Denon DCD-1015, which was a budget player back then but gets good reviews as a transport although I think Pioneer are better, I'd seriously think about the old Arcam players too, my friend just bought a Arcam Alpha 7SE which is brilliant, really warm smooth sound for £150 used excellent condition, have fun choosing a CD Player to suit you.
Thanks for all your input.
Kevin,
Your recommendation could be a giant killer, as based on this thread:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digi...-great-top-load-transport-cdm1-mkii-long.html
If I can find one for a few $, it might be worth while (based on my limited mechanical and electronics ability, there is high probability of screw up).
Thimios,
Your point is well taken: the mechanism will be old, and replacement parts hard to come by. If I buy any vintage CD player, I need to be prepared to call it a total loss if it breaks.
Stewart Holms,
The Pioneers look nice, but single CD players of the vintage variety are scarce and expensive. Maybe they are more popular on your side of the pond,
Will also look at Arcam. They make some really good players.
I will continue to search out inexpensive KSS-151A and CDM-1 Mk II transports. They seem to be worth investing time and money into.
Our life with God is an exciting journey. Fun choosing a CD player and listening is only a part. So enjoy the journey.
Thanks again for your comments
Kevin,
Your recommendation could be a giant killer, as based on this thread:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digi...-great-top-load-transport-cdm1-mkii-long.html
If I can find one for a few $, it might be worth while (based on my limited mechanical and electronics ability, there is high probability of screw up).
Thimios,
Your point is well taken: the mechanism will be old, and replacement parts hard to come by. If I buy any vintage CD player, I need to be prepared to call it a total loss if it breaks.
Stewart Holms,
The Pioneers look nice, but single CD players of the vintage variety are scarce and expensive. Maybe they are more popular on your side of the pond,
Will also look at Arcam. They make some really good players.
I will continue to search out inexpensive KSS-151A and CDM-1 Mk II transports. They seem to be worth investing time and money into.
Our life with God is an exciting journey. Fun choosing a CD player and listening is only a part. So enjoy the journey.
Thanks again for your comments
OK since a few years have passed I'll revive this dead thread by posing the same query as the OP: What's a decent CD player likely to be currently available in North America?
My trusty Pioneer PD-101 still plays like it did 20 years ago, but at lower volume levels it makes an audible ticking noise when spinning discs. I'd like to get a newer one before this one stops working & maybe get something a little better if used bargains are out there to be had. Thank you!
My trusty Pioneer PD-101 still plays like it did 20 years ago, but at lower volume levels it makes an audible ticking noise when spinning discs. I'd like to get a newer one before this one stops working & maybe get something a little better if used bargains are out there to be had. Thank you!
Just bought four CDM-1 based Philips from a house cleareance sale.
Really in a bad shape, the seller told me they were stored in a cellar. Thin black dust (I assume coal) and so much moisture that the bottom tin plates did rust to a dark grey. Even the cast aluminium of the CDM-1 has corroded with a rought white layer. First time I did see a black stain on a cotton bud when cleaning a lens.
But testing error correction with Digital Recordings "CD-Check",
one of those four players plays the highest error sizes (4x1.5mm - 6mm total)
without any clicks. None of my other players is able to do that. (but the other three CDM-1 based players fail as well). Because every CDM-1 has to be aligned in the factory (horizontal position, height and vertical angle) the sweet spot might be rarely achieved to allow perfect readout. But this is my assumption. Maybe less of an assumption:
The CDM-1 (and swing arm in general) uses only one horizontal servo. All other designs use two - one for coarse movement (the whole laser) one for the lens (fine movement).
I assume, when an big error (i.e gap in readout) appears, both servos will never be congruent - the laser loses track thus extending the gap. But with the swing arm, the laser
will be "stuck" in position. But as I said it is an assumption.
The four players are two Philips CD-104, one CD-304, one CD-304MKII.
The CD-304-MKII provides digital out, maybe the first Philips player to do so.
But servo design of all 4 players is identical.
They are all built like tanks, even though the design looks mediocre.
I mentioned the tin bottom plates, one could also take the chassis for plastic
but it is dull black painted die cast aluminium. Seek times are very slow btw,
I first thought this was an error. This also gives a remembrance why Philips lost many shares to Sony. With Sony, no tin plates and seek times of one second - to the last track. (Using BU-1 based mechs)
Also the trays age They will become stuck.
But still I would also propose a CDM-1 based player besides one fact:
The laser diode (Sharp LT022MC) is now 33 years old and will not last forever.
This is why i bought four of them, to find out wether the diode can be replaced. If this could be done, a CDM-1 based player would become an ever lasting transport:
Ball bearings, brushless motor, glass lenses. Besides the integrated circuits, everything can be replaced.
All the best,
Salar
Really in a bad shape, the seller told me they were stored in a cellar. Thin black dust (I assume coal) and so much moisture that the bottom tin plates did rust to a dark grey. Even the cast aluminium of the CDM-1 has corroded with a rought white layer. First time I did see a black stain on a cotton bud when cleaning a lens.
But testing error correction with Digital Recordings "CD-Check",
one of those four players plays the highest error sizes (4x1.5mm - 6mm total)
without any clicks. None of my other players is able to do that. (but the other three CDM-1 based players fail as well). Because every CDM-1 has to be aligned in the factory (horizontal position, height and vertical angle) the sweet spot might be rarely achieved to allow perfect readout. But this is my assumption. Maybe less of an assumption:
The CDM-1 (and swing arm in general) uses only one horizontal servo. All other designs use two - one for coarse movement (the whole laser) one for the lens (fine movement).
I assume, when an big error (i.e gap in readout) appears, both servos will never be congruent - the laser loses track thus extending the gap. But with the swing arm, the laser
will be "stuck" in position. But as I said it is an assumption.
The four players are two Philips CD-104, one CD-304, one CD-304MKII.
The CD-304-MKII provides digital out, maybe the first Philips player to do so.
But servo design of all 4 players is identical.
They are all built like tanks, even though the design looks mediocre.
I mentioned the tin bottom plates, one could also take the chassis for plastic
but it is dull black painted die cast aluminium. Seek times are very slow btw,
I first thought this was an error. This also gives a remembrance why Philips lost many shares to Sony. With Sony, no tin plates and seek times of one second - to the last track. (Using BU-1 based mechs)
Also the trays age They will become stuck.
But still I would also propose a CDM-1 based player besides one fact:
The laser diode (Sharp LT022MC) is now 33 years old and will not last forever.
This is why i bought four of them, to find out wether the diode can be replaced. If this could be done, a CDM-1 based player would become an ever lasting transport:
Ball bearings, brushless motor, glass lenses. Besides the integrated circuits, everything can be replaced.
All the best,
Salar
If you want to get creative you can pull the guts from a CDM4 player (I found several on ebay for $50-$100) and make a top loading unit. You can buy the top loading parts from taobao or aliexpress for dirt cheap.
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
print screen windows
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
photoupload
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.