MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
At the moment I have an old Marantz amp plus Tannoy speakers (about 15 years old!) and that's it, as my CD player died some time ago. I ripped a load of CDs a while back and decided to go the digital route but got slightly distracted by the different streaming methods, formats etc. As a result I'm sorely missing my music which tends to get piped through my relatively cheap PC speakers.
So if I wanted a cheapish approximately £300 CD player what should I go for?
or
Do I go for a whole new system and if so what - CD/amp/speakers or streamer/amp/speakers?
Also how much to spend to get something relatively decent?
cheers
what about this - any good?:
http://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/products/productdetail/Marantz+CD5004++CD+Player++%28Save+30%29/part_number=CD5004/1765.0.4.3.1003220.50278.0.0.0?pp=40&sort_selection=price_low_high&
Get some good condition B&W DM601 S3 (S2 are still very good) speakers second hand and an Onkyo Spotify equipped amp - job done!
Pick up some speakers at the very least, they really are very good.
The subject is totally down to personal choice, you are bound to get totally conflicting views.
Good luck
Currently in a similar position and I'm thinking about buying a Music Fidelity DAC, using my blue ray player as a transport for cd and running my PC music through the USB port.
cheers Button, best place to look for these?
I have a Naim Uniti (CD, Streamer, Amp, Radio) I'm about to put up for sale, it'd blow the doors off anything sub 3k, pre power etc.
I admit it'll be more than £300
MTT
how much do you want for the Naim - any details?
Now, about your cables.....
Afraid Ebay, but S3s fetch good money. I bought some S2s for our our other room
for £25, but that was a bargain.
I recently replaced the system for the man cave, giving myself a fairly strict budget. From eBay I got a NAD C350 amp and a NAD C542 CD Player both for a little over £200 and some B&W 601 S3 from a friend. With cables it all came in under £400. Seriously good for the money, I paid a few times that just for a CD player some years ago, so there are some excellent used bargains to be had.
i really think you should get a DAC, rip all your music in alac/flac then stream it dont bother with a CD player
i have an iMac streaming lossless to an AE then into a Rega DAC and it sounds fantastic!
Isn't the problem with streaming that you need some sort of wired connection, as wireless is too temperamental and quality suffers?
What advantage is there to a DAC as opposed to a headphone jack plug connected to an Amp for listening to spotify?
Dac is considerably better quality than all but very expensive sound cards, I got a USB one a few years ago and am very pleased with it
Thanks, would this be any good, as a pre amp between a mac mini and a Musical fidelity XA amp?
Isn't the problem with streaming that you need some sort of wired connection, as wireless is too temperamental and quality suffers?
NO!
never had a problem streaming to AE then optical out into my Rega DAC
A dac isn't going to help spotify, too compressed.
cynic-al - MemberA dac isn't going to help spotify, too compressed.
I had heard that Spotify premium with a decent dac is supposed to be reasonably good?
AE?
Apple Express.
Is your pc really a laptop?
If so the echo indigo pcmcia or pc-express cards are very good dacs
Get yourself over to avforums and have a read on there. More info there than you can shake a stick at.
Can't recommend the B&W gear enough. I got some DM601 S2's about ten year ago brand new for £200 and they sound just as good now as the day they were new. Hooked up to a NAD 320 amp and NAD CD player.
A dac isn't going to help spotify, too compressed.
Your point being? the OP has not mentioned spottily
Spotify premium streams at 320kps, which on an iPod/basic pc speakers is acceptable - the OP kit wont expose the shortcomings of spotify at 320kps.
When you start putting compressed audio through better amps/speakers then yes it reveals its limitations.
Also a DAC gives you more options,
What advantage is there to a DAC as opposed to a headphone jack plug connected to an Amp for listening to spotify?
Because you are relying on the quality of the DAC in your source.
if you are streaming spotify to your iPhone then using the 3.5mm jack to your amp,the iPhone will be utilising its DAC, its not a bad DAC but you can improve on it.
Dac is considerably better quality than all but very expensive sound cards, I got a USB one a few years ago and am very pleased with it
it depends? DACs cost from £40 to £4000
Hitman,
Where do you listen to your music?
is your amp/speakers near your PC?
is £300 the top of budget?
What will be your main source?
At the moment listen to music through PC.
My lounge is set up for listening to music - marantz amp, tannoy speakers, atacama stands but no music source.
I'm thinking replace the CD Player, or add a DAC plus laptop, or a streamer, but money is limited and I want to get something soon as I'm missing real music (the sound from my pc speakers is alright but not great)
what about this for a DAC:
cheers
As a result I'm sorely missing my music which tends to get piped through my relatively cheap PC speakers.
Try this first - 3.5mm to Phono...
...stick it in the back of your PC and then into your Marantz Amp - it could save you a fortune!
I got a Marantz 6004 CD player for £299 when my old CD broke this year, they can still be had for that price.
Very impressed with it compared to the lower end Marantz and Cambridge CD players I have owned before.
I got some DM601 S2's about ten year ago brand new for £200 and they sound just as good now as the day they were new
that's always a good sign - although they could possibly sound better with use.
Try this first - 3.5mm to Phono...
ignore suggestions like this - the quality will be pretty low and probably noisy as well.
If you have a laptop then the Echo indigo cards I mentioned are very high quality and can be got for about £60 from ebay 2nd hand.
If you are near Surrey you could try a Dell laptop I have with one of those cards.
Airport Express £80
Optical Cable £5
Spend £215 on a DAC
Cambridge DACmagic will be perfect!!!
Although the Marantz CD6004 is a fantastic player (i have one) i think CD player days are numbered for the masses.
Money better spent on a standalone DAC
If you have a DAC it opens up options (hi res audio, DVD, digi box, games console)
I have this sound card in my PC at present:
http://uk.asus.com/Multimedia/Audio_Cards/Xonar_DX/
SBrock - does this do the same but with the addition of video?:
http://store.apple.com/uk/browse/home/shop_ipod/family/apple_tv
Do you not have a DVD player?
Why not get PS Slim and put the DAC on the digital output of that?
Don't have a DVD player
ignore suggestions like this - the quality will be pretty low and probably noisy as well.
Well my sounds absolutely fine - iMac, Cambridge Audio Amp, Mission Speakers.
Worth a try for the sake of £3.50.
I've got my old Arcam Alpha 7 amp with bi wired Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers connected to my pc via optical cable straight into a Beresford Caiman DAC. Sounds amazing. Far better than the Arcam Alpha 7 cd player I had that broke on me. Rip tunes to flac/wav format. Play through foobar on 24/96 setting and enjoy. The dac opened up songs and I actually heard bits of the music that was low down in the mix that I had never heard before. Small cymbal hits etc. Bass is nicely controlled and punchy and doesnt seem to run away from itself anymore.
Results with a 3,5 jack depend entirely on the sound card and DVD player in the computer. Plugging into Madame's laptop the result is buzzing and lousy reproduction. My PC does better and is perfectly acceptable with a Creative external sound card.
I gave away a Kenwood CD player when I found a Sony DVD/Blue Ray player was at least as good.
Well my sounds absolutely fine - iMac, Cambridge Audio Amp, Mission Speakers.
My PC does better and is perfectly acceptable with a Creative external sound card.
sorry - I misunderstood - I thought we were talking about hifi systems - my mistake !!!
it is very unusual to find a good performing headphone socket - the one on my Echo card is very high quality and low noise but its line level output is a fair bit better.
But when using lower-level audio gear the results might well be 'acceptable'
I'll admit to using the phono sockets on the sound card but really can't tell the difference. Here's a sample of quality music so you can properly analyse how well your system reproduces distortion, TurnerGuy:
Nothing from Slade is ever going near my system...
I'll admit to using the phono sockets on the sound card
the previous poster was talking about using the headphone output, not the phono sockets which are going to be a different matter entirely.
I use the phono (actually XLR) sockets from my LynxTWO card, which is getting long-in-the-tooth but still does well. Here's some distortion figures:
http://audio.rightmark.org/test/lynx-two-b-2496.html
and a review if you want more info:
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/mar02/articles/lynxtwo.asp
plays into a Music First copper classic pre-amp, which will be getting an upgrade to V2 transformers soon:
http://www.mfaudio.co.uk/classic.htm
and that feeds some Quad 909 mono-block power amplifiers, which drive some 11ohm LS3/5as in thin-wall cabinets and using Cicable external crossovers - here are some charts showing the improvement in distortion the crossovers provide:
http://www.cicable.de/xovers_ls35a_plots_e.htm
and there is a Tact 2.2x pre-amp in there as well, that gets used for most normal listening, like TV stuff.
enough geek ? 🙂
sorry - I misunderstood - I thought we were talking about hifi systems - my mistake !!!
Quit the sarcasm.
If the OP has been reasonably happy to listen through PC speakers, then just the act of outputting the sound through a proper amp and speakers will give a big improvement which the OP may well find 'acceptable'.
I don't deny you could chuck a shed-load of money at the problem and get something that sounds awesome - but the OP admits money is tight.
If the OP has been reasonably happy to listen through PC speakers, then just the act of outputting the sound through a proper amp and speakers will give a big improvement which the OP may well find 'acceptable'.
or his current hifi system is a lot better than his PC speakers and he will hear how bad it all is. And it is not likely to be good, particularly if he is using the standard onboard sound, which is nearly always dire.
Plus the PC speakers are probably designed to be driven by a headphone amp.
I struggle with long sentences
but I could really do with a Quad amp in my life right now.. in fact any amp would do.. ( my speakers are rated for 80 W / 8 ? max Average Power) anyone selling anything really really cheaply..? 😐
[/thread hijack]
Try this first - 3.5mm to Phono...
"ignore suggestions like this - the quality will be pretty low and probably noisy as well."
Well worth a go
This is what I've got it's approx 5 M long and there is no Audible noise,although subjective the Quality if OK for music off Itunes and Sportifi. The best £ 5 i spent on my music system as it's opened up a whole new musical world.
However I may invest in a DAC in the near future
anyone selling anything really really cheaply..?
there's a few tings on ebay that might be decent, like this:
or some Marantz amps
A DAC is definatly the way forward unless you are using a top end computer audio interface.
Well worth a go
it's no wonder you guys can't tell the difference between speaker cables...
🙂
Not read all the above, but when my old amp blew i bought an Onkyo TX-SR309 AV Reciever and a 2nd hand PS3 from Game (MsD works there)
Ripped all my CD's onto the PS3 and shunted the DVD & CD' players into the attic. Already had the 5-way speaker set up from the previous amp so now have a tidy & compact set up that delivers good quality sound (to me anyway) when listening to music or watching films via DVD/Blu-Ray/BT Vision box streaming.
Amp was only £200 and think the PS3 was another £130 so for not a great deal of money i had a completely new digital set up.
Now need to get my hands on one of those vinyl-to-digital record player/recorders and rip all my old vinyl.
or just go for a cheap USB DAC - no bidding on this yet:
M-Audio are a good prosumer company
Here's a review:
http://icrontic.com/article/maudio_sonica_usb_audio_review
Now need to get my hands on one of those vinyl-to-digital record player/recorders and rip all my old vinyl.
look for the CD of the LP on Amazon and look at the market place - often people are selling for low prices.
then convert only the ones you can't replace with CDs.