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Dealer recommendations: CD players

By Michael Jones

August 2008

Audio Analog Rossini
Cambridge Audio 840C
Naim CD5i
Plinius CD-101
Rega Apollo
Rotel RCD1072

Despite the best efforts of AudioEnz reviewers, we simply cannot cover the breadth of products available to you, the buyer. So for this issue I polled twenty hi-fi dealers about which CD players they would recommend, and why. Six specialist dealers responded.

Here are their choices:

Audio Analogue Paganini 192/24 $2995

“All sweetness and light, the Audio Analogue is full of personality as befitting its Italian design and manufacture,” says John Ransley from Dunedin’s Totally Wired. “Sleek, with unique ergonomics, Paganini is built like a Ducati. It handles like a dream, taking on every twist and turn in a musical score, accelerating and stopping with complete control. The solid chassis, faced with lovingly machined aluminium, encloses a powerful and capable disc engine, feeding data into the highly specified 192/24 upsampling DAC. The remote control is a beautifully tactile teardrop of alloy. Midrange quality and openness are defining characteristics of this player.”

Audio Analogue Rossini $2499

“We have been really impressed with CD player,” says Neil Young from Eastern Hi-Fi Newmarket. “In my opinion it outperforms its more expensive brother the Maestro, possibly due to its valve output stage. “Aesthetically, it is my favourite CD player, it is stripped back and minimal, although it retains full controls on the front. Well worth a listen.”
AudioEnz Audio Analogue Rossini review

Cambridge Audio 840C $2299

The Cambridge 840 has a lot of fans. AudioEnz reviewer brent Burmester said of the 840 “every now and again, however, a component comes along that seems to have been made by people unaware of what might reasonably be expected of such a thing, so they happily exceed every reasonable expectation.” Romesh from Hamilton’s The Listening Post recommends the player highly, saying “the 840C is a giant killer. More open and detailed than any Cambridge before, it is a lively and engaging player.”
AudioEnz Cambridge 840C review

Exposure 3010s

“Twin Burr-Brown 24-bit DAC's and large toroidal power transformer with separate windings for CD transport and audio stages make for some high-resolution listening,“ says Jay of Christchurch’s The Listening Post. “The 3010s seems most at home with strings and horns - jazz ensembles and string quartets have a very intimate presentation - inviting deep listening. Lots of character to vocals, and rich bass with a beautiful woody timbre you'd expect from some back-alley Jazz bar.

McIntosh MCD201

“The finest two-channel CD player for both CD and SACD playback on the market today,” declares Jay of Christchurch’s The Listening Post. Hand-made in Binghamton, New York the MCD201 delivers torrential levels of emotion from any well recorded CD. It's difficult to capture the beauty and purity of McIntosh - it's kind of like the Matrix - one can’t be told what it is, only shown it.”

Marantz CD5001 $599

“This entry level single disc player strikes a good balance between detail retrieval and dynamics without becoming over grainy or bright sounding,” says Ricky Dasler of Nelson’s Living Sound. “There’s a lot of good musical attributes to be found in many budget CD players nowdays as the likes of Marantz push the envelope of silver disc replay quality further and further.”

Marantz SA11s2 $5999

“The new s2 retains the same qualities that made the original a star, but improves on the s1 in almost every respect,” says Romesh Anandaraja from Hamilton’s The Listening Post. “CD playback is fast, open, detailed, delicate. SACD adds another degree of sweetness, texture, and liquidity to the all ready excellent CD playback.”

Meridian G08.2 $7999

“A favourite of many dealers and AudioEnz writers, Meridian is the real deal with a heritage that goes back to the very first ‘audiophile’ CD player, the MCD,” says John Ransley from Dunedin’s Totally Wired. “The Meridian sound is as substantial and solid as their players. On this foundation, Meridian builds a detailed and expansive soundstage. We’d wager that Meridian is also the player of choice for the vast majority of serious record owning enthusiasts - everything that we value in analogue is there, and if we can’t have an album on vinyl, the Meridian will deliver what we want from CD.”

NAD T535 $799

“Soundstaging was transparent, structured and disciplined, with plenty of 'space' around instruments and voice alike,” says Jay of Christchurch’s The Listening Post. “Bass is taut and lively, which nicely complements the finesse and intimacy of the highs in recordings from the likes of Tracey Chapman or Nina Simone. I like this player for its emotive presentation and the breadth of imaging. For a sub-$1000 player, the T535 is the perfect entry level for people who care about music.”

Naim CD5i $2700

“The mark of a good hi-fi is the ability to “take you somewhere special” – music should thrill, relax and most importantly involve!” says John Vivian of Takapuna’s Shore Hi-Fi. “A no nonsense design, sleek, beautifully built and most of all very, very musical – that’s why I love the Naim CD5i!” Allan McFarlane from Wellington’s The Real Music Company agrees. “Detail, tonal accuracy, lively dynamics and rhythmic layers aplenty, this is a player that effortlessly brings any CD collection to life.”
AudioEnz Naim CD5i review

Naim CD5X $4900

“A real heavyweight contender bringing concentrated doses of rhythm, pace and dynamics along with fine detail retrieval and composure,” says Ricky Dasler of Nelson’s Living Sound. “This player is more a scaled down version of the reference series Naim CDX2, than a hot rodded Naim CD5i. Even more of the magic can be had when the Naim FlatCap 2X ($1800.00) is added to power the analogue stage within the 5X,while the players power supply handles the digital stages.” The CD5X is also a pick of Allan McFarlane from Wellington’s The Real Music Company, who describes “an organic musicality and spatiality being delivered” via this player.

Naim CDX2 $9250

“This is a very, very capable player” says Allan McFarlane from Wellington’s The Real Music. “CDs are revealed with an almost brutal reality that can make some lesser recordings sound just that. Musicality is however revealed at a much higher level. Control of phrasing, effortless decoding of the most complex material you place in it, and an at times miraculous accuracy of timing that is both hauntingly slow and controlled, and punchy and exuberant as required.”

Naim CD555/Naim CD555PSU $47000.00

Ricky Dasler of Nelson’s Living Sound puts his money where his mouth is. “Having lived with this statement player for over a year now in my home system, it has never failed to impress with its ability to convey emotion into the listening experience via the silver disc. Not an easy task for digital playback.”
“It has everything that is fabulous about high-end audio: oodles of detail, huge dynamic swings (both micro and macro), rhythmic drive, agility, subtleness and slam when called for, inky black backgrounds and the ability to remain unflustered no matter how busy the music gets.”

“The benchmark in CD reproduction,” says Allan McFarlane from Wellington’s The Real Music. Coupled with appropriate equipment the CD555 allows the spine tingling and tear inducing performances trapped on CDs that lesser systems are unable to extract at these extraordinary levels. In a nutshell the CD555 draws you into the music. Detail is in proportion to fidelity leaving easy focus on individual lines as well as musical totality. Bliss.”

Perreaux's Compact two-box Silouette CD player

“I haven't seen many two-box players on the market in recent days, so the SXCD player immediately stood out as being quite unique,” says Jay of Christchurch’s The Listening Post. “ High-hats and cymbals are beautifully textured and paced, bass well balanced and snappy. I like this player for its vivid and persuasive imaging. Plus it's unique design sets it apart from all the other 'stuff' out there.”

Plinius CD101 $5610

“Plinius were reluctant entrants into the CD player game,” says Romesh Anandaraja from Hamilton’s The Listening Post. ”It’s a terrific machine with excellent dynamics, plenty of detail, and a great sense of rhythm. All in all real music maker. In typical Plinius style the design is simple yet intelligent, and the results are world class.” Three AudioEnz writers also loved the sound of the CD-101, if less taken with the ergonomics.
AudioEnz Plinius CD-101 review

Quad CDP2 $2100

“Very few players can do what the Quad CDP2 does,” says John Ransley from Dunedin’s Totally Wired. “The Quad CDP2 essentially doubles as a digital preamp with a quality full range volume and digital inputs, so you can feed other sources in (think Wadia’s new iTransport, MySky or any DVD player) and make the most of the Quads 24 bit, 192kHz upsampling DAC. All this would be irrelevant if the Quad CDP2 didn’t cut it soundwise. It’s rich, solid and completely listenable, and a very easy choice.”

Rega Apollo $1650

Allan McFarlane from Wellington’s The Real Music Company applauds “the level of musicality the Apollo can bring to your collection. Information is apparent in abundance but it is always knitted together in a highly involving manner.” The Apollo is also a favourite down south. “Our pick under the two grand price point,” says Ricky Dasler of Nelson’s Living Sound. “Basic and honest with it’s approach to the music combined with good detail retrieval and pace. Surprising smoothness for a player at this price point.”
AudioEnz Rega Apollo review

Rotel RCD 06 $999

“Value for money supremos, Rotel haven’t let the grass grow under their feet while other companies such as Cambridge Audio jostle for position,” says John Ransley from Dunedin’s Totally Wired. “The RCD06 builds on previous worthy models, adding considerable sparkle and life. It’s light in its feet, and adept at unravelling recordings that lower cost machines muffle. If it gives away a little in terms of depth, it more than makes up for it with enthusiasm and sheer likeability.” The Rotel is also a favourite of Ricky Dasler of Nelson’s Living Sound. “Strong rhythmic drive and swagger makes this a favourite with our rock and jazz listeners,” he says.

Rotel RCD1072 $1499

“A great all round player,” says Neil Young from Eastern Hi-Fi Newmarket. “Just a well thought out and implemented piece of gear, that succeeds in delivering the goods.”
AudioEnz Rotel RCD1072 review

Sugden CD21SE $4299

Sitting in the middle of the Sugden range, the CD21E is “so musical and understated,” says Neil Young from Eastern Hi-Fi Newmarket. “All the feedback from customers on this CD player is excellent. In fact it is so good a lowlife took it upon themselves to liberate one from us!”

Triode Corp TRVCD4SE-$2999

“A very popular CD player at the moment,” says Neil Young from Eastern Hi-Fi Newmarket. The CD player comes from Japan and includes a tube (6DJ8/6922) output stage. “So musical and revealing at this price,” says Neil that it’s “hard to recommend much else at this level.”

Wadia 581se $16399

“You haven’t heard what the CD format is capable of until you’ve heard it through a Wadia!” proclaims Romesh Anandaraja from Hamilton’s The Listening Post. Wadia’s entry level offering “makes most manufacturers reference offerings sound ordinary by comparison. The authority, texture, presence, and sheer musicality of this machine make it supremely enjoyable.”