Wanted cd player

[nashkato]

looking for a good sounding cd player , preferably professional with xlr outputs.
used older players with tda1540/41 da converters and liked the sound .
more modern hifi or dj players felt a little too "crisp/sharp"
also used denon dn 950/961, liked those a lot , but now they're beyond repair .
recommendations for new available units are welcome , too

 

[scott2000]

Marantz PMD 321 is good too...
looks like there's a 331 as well but not familiar with it...

not sure what the requirements you listed are though? 1540/41 dca?

 

[nashkato]

thanks scott , edited the first post .

 

[k brown]

What possible purpose would XLR outputs serve?

You running 1/4 mile of interconnects?

Balanced outs usually just mean additional, unnecessary devices in the signal path.

Quality cable with good, tightly braided shield, and outs with well-designed RFI filtering are all that's needed to protect from external noise in short, line-level connections.

If I had a unit with XLR outs, I'd probably replace them these, and bypass the balanced circuitry.

 

[scott2000]

thanks scott , edited the first post .

pretty sure the Marantz has the TDA chip ....
The analog out does sound sweet and preferable to the digital out to a nice converter in some cases....imo

 

[nashkato]

What possible purpose would XLR outputs serve?

all my other environment (mixer (here even the direct outs are xlr ) , monitor controller ) is xlr , it's just easier that way . i hate looking for cables or have to solder some when i can't find any and don't get me started on adapters .... but i always have a box of xlr's .
also my floor is always a mess with cables of any kind , including power , crawling upside down.
furthermore how cinch connects the shield is kind of unpredictable. some plugs are too tight , some too loose .
until i'm able to afford an emt turntable ( probably never will ) i have to deal with cinch anyway with the 1210 .

 

[sahib]

I have a Technics SL-PJ25 and a Ferguson. They are unbalanced RCA but would be a good project to convert to balanced.

 

[nashkato]

thanks cemal ,but not kind what i'm looking for

 

[sahib]

Thank you too David. Kind regards.

 

[Cqwet Dbdfte]

Why not get a "CD transport" and run a digital RCA or optical cable into a DAC?
There should be more choices for DACs including those with XLR.
This is of course a whole can of worms that has been beaten to death anong the audiophillies.

 

[RCAguy]

looking for a good sounding cd player , preferably professional with xlr outputs.
used older players with tda1540/41 da converters and liked the sound .
more modern hifi or dj players felt a little too "crisp/sharp"
also used denon dn 950/961, liked those a lot , but now they're beyond repair .
recommendations for new available units are welcome , too

Oppo CDP95? I have its non-XLR 93 and its performance is tops, with only a belt change to get a used one working. Does DVD-A and SACD.

 

[Emmathom]

Why not get a "CD transport" and run a digital RCA or optical cable into a DAC?
There should be more choices for DACs including those with XLR.
This is of course a whole can of worms that has been beaten to death anong the audiophillies.

Yes ! Use a Blu-ray for transport (can be found for 50$ second-hand) + an ES9038 (Pro or standard depending on your budget) and you got the best ever CD player ! Knowing that Blu-ray (and even simple DVD) have a better mecanical transport than any ever built CD player and that an ES9018/28/38 is the best today DAC (with R2R) or AKM. Total cost : 200$-250$ more or less...

 

[Mr. Moscode]

The Alesis Masterlink was a good machine in it's day. It has mastering software for burning a CD and it is hot-rod-able. We had one in our NYC studio circa 1998. You can find them used on Ebay.

If you want audiophile stuff look on Audiogon, or go the route of a cd player and outboard DAC.

 

[Cqwet Dbdfte]

Going off on a tangent, the 1970's CD is based on real time output, much like the old vinyl, which at the time was OK.
If low cost memory was available better error correction would have been possible. Transferring data output to storage today makes this possible.
DVD-A was not a hit, but is much better from my experience. Recording quality is a dominant factor in all formats.

 

[Emmathom]

Extracting sound datas from CD (off-line with any computer's CD-DVD player for demat' stockage) avoids jitter and "live" reading errors. Then you got your music on SSD (2024) available at any time & best quality

 

[Cqwet Dbdfte]

Yes ! Use a Blu-ray for transport (can be found for 50$ second-hand) + an ES9038 (Pro or standard depending on your budget) and you got the best ever CD player ! Knowing that Blu-ray (and even simple DVD) have a better mecanical transport than any ever built CD player and that an ES9018/28/38 is the best today DAC (with R2R) or AKM. Total cost : 200$-250$ more or less...

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805221990322.html
much of these kind of products on ali

 

[Mr. Moscode]

Yes ! Use a Blu-ray for transport (can be found for 50$ second-hand) + an ES9038 (Pro or standard depending on your budget) and you got the best ever CD player ! Knowing that Blu-ray (and even simple DVD) have a better mecanical transport than any ever built CD player and that an ES9018/28/38 is the best today DAC (with R2R) or AKM. Total cost : 200$-250$ more or less...

First time I've heard of the ES9018/28/38. I see it's on AliExpress but the descriptions by sellers are confusing. Where'd you get yours? Did you upgrade it?
Thanks

 

[Emmathom]

First time I've heard of the ES9018/28/38. I see it's on AliExpress but the descriptions by sellers are confusing. Where'd you get yours? Did you upgrade it?
Thanks

ES90XX serie is the best DAC for more than 15 years now (R2R Soekris came after and more recently AKM chips)

I have bought this ref. which is really stunning for the money :
https://fr.aliexpress.com/item/1005003104287156.html?gatewayAdapt=glo2fra
Also note that the best USB interface is Xmos and this model got it.

In this model you got ES9038 + Xmos + good OPA's > a very good deal ! and also BT 5.0 / USB (of course) / SPDIF Coax & Opt connexions !
Frankly, for 110$ or so, you'll be more than happy

 

[Newmarket]

What possible purpose would XLR outputs serve?

You running 1/4 mile of interconnects?

Balanced outs usually just mean additional, unnecessary devices in the signal path.

Quality cable with good, tightly braided shield, and outs with well-designed RFI filtering are all that's needed to protect from external noise in short, line-level connections.

If I had a unit with XLR outs, I'd probably replace them these, and bypass the balanced circuitry.

Same purpose as a balanced out on any other piece of kit. And no, a balanced output doesn't necessarily degrade the audio by adding additional components. You could simply implement an impedance balanced out.
Actual whole system performance depends much on whether CD player is an earthed piece of kit.

 

[Emmathom]

Same purpose as a balanced out on any other piece of kit. And no, a balanced output doesn't necessarily degrade the audio by adding additional components. You could simply implement an impedance balanced out.
Actual whole system performance depends much on whether CD player is an earthed piece of kit.

Yes but except cases as @nashkato's one (for wiring facilities between balanced devices) there's no improvement in sound in a balanced output on a "hifi" sound device (unless you run 1/2 mile modulation cable).
Good RCA plugs and good cables and you're done