Conference hips::uk_audioo

357.0. "Help on CD player/transport." by PAKORA::MBROOMFIELD () Wed May 13 1992 08:34

	I wonder whether I could get some opinions on CD players and
    transports from people in both the USA and UK to help we with some 
    future system upgrades.
    	I have not upgraded my CD/AMP/SPEAKER combination for ~8 years now,
    and have lost touch with the Hi-Fi equipment world as a result.  Over 
    the last year or so however I have become more aware of an unpleasantly 
    harsh sounding high end on my CD player.  I'm not sure whether this 
    has always been there but become more obvious to me over time, or whether 
    my player has begun to degrade.                     
    	In any case I am well aware that some huge improvements have been
    made in the CD world since I bought mine, and as a result I have begun 
    to read the mags and this conference over the last few months with a
    view to upgrading.  I can feel that terrible urge coming on me as well
    that says I might well want to improve my amplifier and speakers over
    time, so I plan to make a more significant improvement to my CD player 
    than my present components might appear to justify.
    	I live in Mass, but am temporarily in the UK, so I would like to 
    take advantage of that insofar as there might be UK made CD players
    available here that are not in the US, or are very expensive over there.
    I can also buy here and claim VAT back (subtract 15% from shop prices as 
    VAT is 17.5%).  On the other side of course I don't want to buy here
    something that I can get for less money in the US after I return.
    	Enough pre-amble.  My current system is:
                                           
     CD  		Marantz CD93
     Amplifier		Sansui  AU-D11 II                
     Speakers      	BOSE 601 Mk 1 on spiked Foundation stands
                                   
     	The CD player and amp were both bought in the UK.  The CD was rewired
    for 110v when I moved (~7 years ago) as the transformer had different 
    tappings.  The amplifier couldn't be rewired, so I run it through a very 
    large external transformer (~750VA at a guess).  The amp is rated 110W/ch 
    RMS.  In addition I have a SONY DAT 75ES.  Any component I buy here would 
    be run from a seperate mains transformer if it couldn't be internally
    rewired.
    	Rather than buying a full CD player, I have been thinking of
    getting a CD transport, and using it with the DAC in the DAT player.  
    I am aware that this could be fraught with a number of problems, namely 
    finding a transport that would sound good with the above, vs what it
    would sound like when/if I want to add a seperate DAC.  I think however 
    that this is also true with the other components, and to a certain extent 
    is true for anyone making substantial upgrades to a system component by 
    component. 
    	I listen to Blues, Folk, Jazz, middle-of-the-road Rock.  
        Pricewise I think I want to keep components below $1000, (~�700) if
    buying a transport, maybe $1500 for a full player. 
    	The players/transports I've seen reviewed (in the UK) quite well are:
                    
     ARCAM Delta 170 (transport)
     MERIDIAN 206B (player)
     TEAC P500 (transport)
     
        Any ideas on these or others?  What about similar equipment in the
    US?  I believe I've read somewhere that some transports are a little
    picky on the DACs they use, has anyone experience with this?  I've yet 
    to listen to any of the above, but I have my amp and DAT player here, 
    and will be engaging in quite a session before doing anything drastic.
    I'm principally looking for open comments about transport vs full
    players, and especially equipment available in the US.  
        By the way, as a sanity check, I thought I'd also listen to the Rotel.

     Thanks,

     Mike

    Posted in AUDIO