Should You Buy a Vintage CD Player? Or Any CD Player?

Streaming vs. playing CDs: Is there a clear winner? Are CD players worth buying? Can vintage CD players compete with new ones?

[@matthewsummers1697]

For the longest time I was under the impression CDs didn't give me the thrill that vinyl ever did. I went for the longest time listening to CDs out of convenience more than for the sound quality. Fast forward about 30 years and I'm back into vintage audio and getting back into listening to more music. Read an article about this so called phenomenal TDA1541 chip and decided to take a chance and purchase a Nakamichi CDP-2A player with a non functioning drawer. Did some handy work and replaced the belt, hooked it up to my Nakamichi SR-3A driving Klipsch KG3s and proceeded to almost cry. I've never in my life ever heard anything like it. I've been listening to inferior DACs my whole life! Needless to say I was definitely turned back onto CDs and now I'm sold.

[@ericschulze5641]

Try removing the dac from your system, I assure you the sound quality will improve immensely, dac's are absolutely not necessary, & degrade the sound

[@emilspec1227]

​@@ericschulze5641how do you plan to listen to digitally stored music if you remove a DAC from the system?

[@ericschulze5641]

Where'd you hear that nonsense, I have yet to find anything that won't play digital, without a converter , I take that back my old tube TV in the basement requires a converter ,but NOT ANY of my vintage recievers

[@anonamouse5917]

@@ericschulze5641 Sure thing, ThioJoe👌

[@maidsandmuses]

I bought two used Marantz CD80 players when they were going really cheap (i.e. before it became recognised as a desirable TDA1541A player). Fully re-capped both with new electrolytics, and did some opamp upgrades. Superb reliable great sounding players and won't be parting with them. If you already own hundreds of CDs like I do, question is why would you _not_ want a decent CD player?

[@mrboat580]

Invention of the CD has been the most audible improvement to audio in my lifetime. Everything else has been so minutely (barely detectable) improved since, to where I have to pretty much guess if I am hearing anything different. I still have my generic ($99 multitech) from around 1985-ish. Was one of the very first affordable cd players local to me and I used it as my only physical source for over 20 years. The SQ of that, along with the period CDs from then, remind me pretty much exactly of vinyl with all the noise removed and I was in heaven. If I don't use it for awhile, I have to take the cover off to physically push the laser to the "0" position to get past the ERR (in beautiful red LED) code. Then it is fine for the rest of the day. Leave it alone again for a few days and it will need it's now usual jump start. Still sounds great and recently fooled some self-proclaimed golden ears. It was lumped in a loose blind test between DACs, one of which was around $4k and the CD player placed near/at the top multiple times! The DAC on that old player must have less filtration or something on the chip because it does just have this really clean, yet analog presence to it. I still listen to CD in my truck as my main source of car audio. I stream at work and at home but have most of my CDs ripped onto my PC. I'm just not that picky. Recording quality, speakers and the room still make up the majority of overall experience. Relatively low audible distortion, well balanced system and enough headroom, I'm good to go. I have vintage equipment but it's on it's last go around with me. It's already on it's second life and that's a good enough journey with it. I am now willing to embrace Class D and I do keep a couple of modern Class A and A/B around via DIY stuff. I'm digging some of the heavier built AVRs from the beginning of this century, which is the new vintage to me.

[@RUfromthe40s]

yes for some is true but the sound of an average turntable and old cartridges sounded much better and a record costed half of a cd so sometimes i would go and buy a cd but found another lp that was also very good tome ,so i would ended up buying two records instead of one cd, but at least in my country people didn´t had good system ,some were destroying records by using old compact systems with built quality but with saphire needles still , for some the cd in the 90´s was a big improvement in sound quality

[@user-oq9mv8pc2g]

Hearing an older very good CD transport will drop your jaw to the floor and make you despise steaming

[@LetsRideIllinois]

Hearing those CDs ripped to FLAC and played from a device with a good DAC and a subscription to Qobuz will drop your jaws all the same.

[@carljung9230]

​@@LetsRideIllinois far more so

[@hanksta34]

I bought a couple used Sony DVD/CD players at Goodwill and the last time I paid $7.14! I’ve also bought some CDs there for about $2.50. So, I will continue to play some CDs even though I tend to stream the most. It’s a far better value than the privilege of owning new vinyl.

[@terratenientesalgo2511]

the part i like the most is to just sit down and listen to a whole album including songs i usually wouldn't even pay attention if i was streaming music, in this case i rarely skip, i just stay there and listen in silence, uninterrupted by other media, a rare commodity these days.

[@TheAgeOfAnalog]

I have a pile of 4 Sony ES series players in my shop, all of which have proven to be unrepairably fubar. I found a 2004 Pioneer Elite DVD player at a yard sale for $10 that sounds AMAZING as well as playing SACDs.

[@jukingeo]

Having had MANY CD players in the past, Pioneer proved to be the most reliable and best sounding. Sony mechanisms sound great too, but were more prone to breaking down and/or having the laser burn out. Not to say that I haven't had ANY problems with Pioneer, but given the hard use I have seen some go through, the Sony units had failed about four times over before I had to replace a Pioneer one. Now, I don't know how these high end transports compare. But they generally go for around $600 and up and that is with no built in DAC. While they might be better than buying a used Pioneer, the cost savings on the latter would have me buy a Pioneer with a known good digital output and pipe that into a good DAC. I don't know if Pioneer is still making CD / DVD players, but if they are, a good higher end unit will probably last a very long time. If you want something more bullet proof and will last VERY long, then as the fellow says above, go with a turntable and records. A good turntable with a good motor will last a lifetime.

[@reddyfreddy]

also not a big fan of baloney players either or dieneer

[@NathanielKraft]

Great video, thanks for sharing it! Ive accumulated avfew older cd players myself. Wild how some ofthem work perfectly, and ithers are im need of some form of significant repair.

[@Daniel-79]

I think it’s all about how you enjoy the music you listen to. For some people it’s streaming lossless audio and for others it’s popping an 8-track in and cycling between the tracks. For me, I like all media formats. When I’m on my bicycle, I enjoy streaming music to my BT headphones. When I’m at home, I enjoy spinning vinyl, playing cassette tapes, spooling reel to reels. It’s really what interests me at the time. If I was an audio snob, I really would enjoy 8-tracks as much as I do.

[@orl2222]

I had a fire at my house a few of years ago, and lost about 80 % of my CD's. Good thing I had ripped my CD collection into Apple losless years ago. I was able to save the HD from destruction. Even the very good LG external 5,25 bluray/CD drive with external power supply which is not made anymore. Funny Ihad to replace all my stereo equipment, and stuff was cheaper at the time of the pandemic. I bought over 400 blank CD's which are getting hard to find local from amazon.Also bought the 100 amazon branded CD holder cases. I sppend some time burning my files back to CD's. Probably redundant, but I still enjoy listening to them. I do have a Node 2i, and works fantastic, but Ido have my ripped files of all my music.hooked upto it on a SSD. Streaming is fine. Also found my 1st gen airport express and can stream to that in CD Quality, Old boomer here too! My advice? Make copies of your CD's! you never know what can happen.

[@AllboroLCD]

Sony ES players from the 90's will go toe 2 toe with any modern hi dollar cd player. That x77 you have there is quite the gem, best player ive ever heard!

[@Stupid_you_so_stoopid_UHF]

I got a X77 ES and imo I think it's an incredible transport player but the DAC isn't really that impressive. Now that said the Sony DVP S9000 is a horrible transport of a player but sounds amazing. Trust me I know what I'm talking about. In fact I own Bill Johnson from Audio Research Sony CDP X77 ES . I bet it's been used less than 100 hours. Awesome transport but the internal DAC is a total slouch. Sony DVP S9000 ES smokes it in SQ all day (lousy sluggish transport).

[@mikeg2491]

I picked up a 1980s California Labs CD player with tube output in fantastic shape off eBay, cost like $10k back then and that’s not even adjusting for inflation. It sounds beautiful.

[@TrueStereo-]

A few months ago I would say all CD players sound the same via digital outputs. After picking up a nice Pioneer for $14 at goodwill I noticed it sounded better than my standard four year old Sony UHD player. After testing six players vintage/new and A/B testing I was surprised they all sound very different even via digital out! settled on Panasonic UB9000. Even toslink and digital RCA sounded different on the same player. Jitter & implementation. I would be curious to hear your Sony ES and Magnavox. As of now I am a big fan of CDs.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Yes, I should totally do some comparisons.

[@TrueStereo-]

I tried different cables to make sure that was not an issue. I do not know what is the cause but I do know that often the different ports can have different jitter measurements on the CD player as well as the pre-amp/dac/av receiver.@@joelcarson4602

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Do you have Audacity? You could compare the waveforms.

[@rontoolsie]

Not only do different CD transports sound different...but the SAME CD transport can be improved to give a better sound when used only as a transport. Back in the early 1990s I had a Phillips CD80 player that I used as a transport. Beefing up its transport with the Simply Physics mods improved the digital transport sound... But the biggest improvement came when the coac digital output was hardwired with 75 Ohm coax cable internally, instead of letting the digital signal pass through over a foot of PCB traces. If these two minimal mods could greatly improve the fidelity of a digital transport 30 years ago- just imagine what could be done to optimize digital transports today!!

[@RUfromthe40s]

@@rontoolsie today ,i think there is no real development in digital convertion, but litle changes in sound to make the cd sound better because it´s a very limited digital source, most of the problem is the cd itself not the cd player, just compare it with a dat deck from the 80´s ,it´s other world in sound quality and digital

[@kgfgfg1]

Why should I rent a Album for 19.99€ on tidal for 30 days ( I need flac otherwise it is not a apple to apple comparison) and indefinitely as a used CD for 3-5€ shipped forever ? I turned streaming my back and I am happy to „own stuff and be happy“ instead of „ you own nothing and will be happy)

[@Kane26510]

Streaming is great until someone, somewhere decides a song or tune has become "problematic" and is cast into the ether. CDs don't have commercials. If streaming services are commercial-free, then you're paying them monthly. At this point, CD players, DVD Players, and BLU-RAY Players are cheap as chips (and plentiful), and if something goes wrong, it's cheaper to replace them than to fix them. My hearing is not good enough to hear much difference between high end CD Players and an average DVD Player when it comes to CD playback.

[@TD75]

Like Beastie Boys recently getting censored on KZbin!

[@danigomb]

after sooo many years in audiophilia... i just smile on all that

[@SRX2004]

I recently bought a Technics SL-PD8 from 1999. Cleaned it up a bit and cleaned the lens. Have it connected to my Sony receiver via an optical cable. This thing looks and sounds amazing.

[@Jack96993]

I have the OPPO BD105 Blu-ray player and love it!! It has so many features and can be even used as a pre-amp I use it's pre outs to connect my two Subs in my old school tube two channel stereo rig

[@ronaldweed6103]

Vinyl & CDs do not own me,i owen them. 12.50$ for my cd player. 250$ for my turntable,ok I'm owened by vinyl 😢

[@Zockopa]

Well,i grew up with records and added CDs in the late eighties to the sources. I dont hear music at work because i work instead of hearing music at work. At home i like to relax while listening to records or CDs. That didnt change in the last decades. As simple as that.

[@stevenmann9769]

Same, for the most part I am not interested in streaming.

[@annebokma4637]

I bought a new cd player, a Marantz cd80. Bought it when it just came to market, well over 30 years ago 😂 had it out for maintenance twice so far, not because it had to be done, purely preventative. My new bought harman Kardon citation pre amp and tuner are from the same time also bought new. I got my money worth 😂

[@williamconquest5066]

Informative..entertaining & fun.. Many thanks & Mahalo from Kauai..!

[@mostirreverent]

I have a Sim Audio 260D Neo with a dac board option. I haven’t heard any noise with it. I’m also using a threshold FET 10 preamp.

[@ladronsiman1471]

I have a couple of B&O CD players .they are fantastic .One is out of order l..I hope to restore it .Or get another one ..I am not sold on the streaming crap yet ,,But i still think that you are correct ..

[@Thetimeisnow78]

Where are you located? I live in SF Bay Area and have some receivers and takes in need of service.

[@mikewilding3199]

l have an orginal Marantz TT 551 linear tracker bought new in 1987 still working flawlessly after all this time. With the vinyl revival its getting more use than ever. Think it will outlive me

[@Plastpackad]

Ciao, I bought a Rotel rcd-955ax in absolut mint condition for a bargain, the same day this video was released. It is a fantastic sounding CD-player. Very plain looking. Had plans on modifying but heck, is it really called for. I knew op amps can play a huge difference and I might try to fit a Burson or a Sparkos if they have specs to fit with the Rotel. I have a Burson V5 in my Aune x8 DAC. I still haven't run the Rotel as a transport (TDA1541 is hard to beat). I guess my speakers are the bottleneck in my system now. Might want a tad bit more top end finess. The cymbals don't linger that very long. Could be the amp or cables as well. Anyhow, what a find! PS. The Bang&Olufsen CD-players from around 1990 are also really good (CD6500, CD7000, etc) but main caps need replacement asap. Maybe the only B&O products that sound as good as they look. DIN-RCA adapter needed if needed..

[@adaboy4z]

Love my Vintage Technics SL-P555, 1989. Still going strong. I've since bought a Yamaha CD-s303 at Goodwill.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

You're not the first commenter to mention the Technics players. I may have to get me one of those.

[@adaboy4z]

@lancasterhi-fi3935 great player even has a remote with volume control.

[@mikecampbell5856]

I stream and play CDs. I use Blu Ray players with external DACs plugged into vintage receivers for CD playback.

[@matthewgaines10]

The obvious answer is availability. What you can stream today isn’t what you can stream tomorrow. We have all seen both subscription and purchased content becoming unavailable. Licensing deals and renewals gone wrong. That is common enough. A physical copy + backup digital copies are a hedge against loosing access to things you want to hear in the future. Should you buy vintage CD players? If you have a decent mid range or high end CD player with a decent DAC, you may not need one unless you have a high end amplifier and speakers.

[@Thetimeisnow78]

Never mind. I just finished watching your video and you are in Oregon

[@davidtennien2806]

I have an older CD Player a Fisher DAC-Z1 with Burr Brown DACs PCM58P and I have yet to hear a CD player that sounds as good. I know Fisher also made crap but the Professional Digital Reference Series was awesome. I paid $1k for it new. It coupled with the matching receiver with a ToSlink even back in 1990.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Another to keep my eye out for! Why is that era of Fisher so overlooked? I think it's because it's not The Fisher and, once bought (by Sanyo?), they did have stuff at a low price point (i.e., crap). I have a Fisher preamp from 1979-80 that is very nice.

[@nicodenhaak3961]

If you own a decent older cd player, which has been upgraded where it counts (masterclock, upgraded rectifiers, decent recap), it's a real joy to own and listen to. In most cases that will outperform a good streamer also. But it's a misunderstanding that older standard cd players in oem original condition will sound better than it's modern newer (decent quality) brother. In most cases, that is simply not true. But when upgraded where it really counts, lots of old heroes can surprise you in ways you couldn't imagine. It puts a smile on my face every time. And i just also love my physical media.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Those are good upgrade suggestions. The new rectifiers and recap are things I have done and will likely do on the Sony featured in the video. I've heard of upgrading the clock but shied away from doing it for ... reasons? I guess it just wasn't a rabbit hole I wanted to go down when I restored and modified my first CD player.

[@damirhlobik6488]

good video, thanks you can't go wrong with the Philips cd 960 or cd 880

[@stevenvox6549]

I like the Philips brand too. they have a warmer sound and are not too bright and a little more like analogue. They don't seem to overemphasize the upper mids and treble.

[@abbersj2935]

That's mostly due to the DAC chip, (the Philips TDA1541A) it's in a host of CD players and was much used at the time. Cambridge Audio made some great players using it as well as Sony, Arcam, Marantz, Micro Seiki, Meridian and Naim to name a few. Opps, I almost forgot AMR's CD77, ( it's one of the very best).

[@utube4andydent]

If I have problems with my CD playback a quick clean in an ultra sonic cleaner will on the whole fix this. When the CD first came out it was ground breaking for people who don't look after vinyl. Yes it's a great thing to store lots of music on a RAID but do you have time to listen to even a fraction of the stored music. From a broadcasters point of view all media is great but each has it's own faults. .My pair of CD players have balanced outputs so this gives less noise from the player.

[@jonpatrick66]

I like your video. Good job.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Thank you very much!

[@Thetimeisnow78]

Thanks!

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Welcome!

[@davidchingching167]

I have an immaculate x7esd that alas the drawer has failed long ago. Guess I should try and get it fixed.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

The drawer was the main issue with mine. Lots of cleaning and some 3-in-1 oil on the rails fixed it up.

[@stpworld]

I have a jvc 100 disc cd player it has a singe disc trayy loading unit and then the changer is i a cube and it can play 100 discs untended

[@AstonsVintageTechnologyWorkshp]

Well done on the 77ES. They regularly reach £2k to £3k over here. Lovely decks. All the best, Ast...

[@reddyfreddy]

a single player luxman restored my faith after repairing several sbaloney players and dieneers all with goo belts and brittle plastic parts and gears.

[@pedrofernandez8729]

Do you consider an older Phillips DVD player good for playing CD's? I got a model DVD 711

[@Hairyegg]

It’s where to get them fixed. It’s a dying art of people fixing them or finding someone that restores them also

[@Techrewinds]

I think I have only had one cd player break down on me since the 90's and thats because my kid messed it up

[@jewllake]

IDK much but I'm happy with my onkyo dx 7500.

[@nickdudesville5154]

My first CD player was a nothing special TEAC from the late 80s that was a champ. It played the nastiest scratched discs that other players wouldn't even recognize as a disc and I never once cleaned the lens. I stored it and lost it somewhere along the line...

[@nickdudesville5154]

...the only reason I quit using it was I got a pioneer 100 disc changer that I've been using for the past 20+ years trouble free and rarely have to touch the discs...

[@mondoenterprises6710]

It's up to us holdouts to fight enshittification.

[@anonamouse5917]

I use an old Sony DVD player as a transport and rip to my computer using SP/DIF. I then divvy up the tracks in Audacity, save them as -24 LUFS 24 bit flac files and access them via the Strawberry music player. Naturally I have multiple backups. I don't want the heartbreak of CD rot and the eventual death of my transport. Also, is that an LAB-420 in the background?

[@frommatorav1]

An internal or external DVD/BR drive could be put in your computer or connected via USB very inexpensively. Then music can be captured or ripped at much faster than 1x speeds.

[@anonamouse5917]

@@frommatorav1 Been there, done that. EAC is far from perfect. Everything from incorrect drive info resulting in audible glitches to sitting on a bad spot on the disc seemingly forever while the drive heats up and burns out. There's a lot to be said for a 1X rip from a quality standalone player. My Sony's error correction is the best that I know of. If I get audible problems with the Sony, I'll get audible problems with ANY solution. I'm learning how to resurface discs now, and hope to get (near) perfect rips from $1 cds. If EAC is your preferred method I'd recommend locking the drive at 4X. EACs creator shows you get fewer errors that way. Cheers

[@frommatorav1]

@@anonamouse5917 I've never had one get stuck on a scratch before. It has either ripped it or thrown an error. I haven't got an error with a CD in decades but I rarely buy new CD's anymore. I just encode to FLAC for my favorite CDs that I want to re-rip, to improve on mp3 quality. freac has a validation setting, where it will confirm a perfect rip. Then you can rip at higher speeds without issues.

[@raymondtaylor6966]

Hello love your channel I noticed the Sony X77ES I’m interested can I purchase the peace

[@melockavich9596]

I got 40 good cd players love to tune them for best sound best sounding with doing nothing is the technics 999

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

I'll have to keep an eye out for that one!

[@sexytasmin]

I have a Nakamichi cassette deck which is over 30 years old and is in mint condition. It is totally original (Including the belt) and sounds fantastic!!

[@albertc136]

Kind of misleading. I have an universal player and a streamer and dac . I bought the cd player for the rest of the family , who did not want to learn how to use the server and dac combo. Now your comment on how robust the cd player is vs a drive is misleading. The chance of the laser dying on the cd player vs a ssd or hdd , i would say is greater. Also i have 2 copies of my hard drive backed up which is backed up when i get new music. I also have i hard dive at my brother's. Hard drives are readily available. Can you say the same if you need to get a replacement laser for your cd player?

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

How misleading? I mentioned that lasers can die, but drive and laser failure are not directly comparable: drive failure means data loss, but laser failure does not. Besides, I'm not saying you shouldn't use a NAS/ streamer/ DAC combo but, rather, if you do so, you also need to have backup systems, and there's a place for CD players.

[@Scotty_in_Ohio]

Yep - technology can be better (arguably) and more flexible - it's sometimes nice though to "just play a record / CD / tape"....

[@tonymagnier9846]

I own a couple of Marantz CD 5001s from around 20+ years ago and they really bring even old late 80s CDs to life, the texture, musical detail and sonic audio quality is absolutely superb...sidser by side with a Technics and Sony which sound almost dull in comparison.

[@oxfamshop]

Of all the many CDs I have I think I have only ever bought 2 CDs new , Dire Straits Brothers in arms and the music to the film chariots of fire . All the rest were from charity shops/ thrift stores . I am fussy condition wise when buying from charity shops/ thrift stores

[@bobsbits5357]

hi you are saying a very good points in this video note i do all my repairs yes you are right there are decks that are money pits note there are things that get missed out i have cats and i to sell all my records of as they were start to take alot of space and i was offered a super deal on zonal used master tapes 1/2 inch and up yes i have the spot i love the sound of 1 inch tape as well if i keep hold of the records i would missed the sound of master tapes 200 zonal tapes in the small room lady cat's around the house

[@jameslaidler2152]

It is a quandary, isnt it? Even a top loader device, you can still get a duff diode or even the travel mechanism for said diode. Fortunately modern 3D printers are building a growing cottage industry if people making somenof the more delicate plastic gears or other parts. I think we'll get a rennasaince of sprts for repair of CD players and cassette decks etc.

[@jameslaidler2152]

Sir I'm amazed you parsed anything out of that horrendously typed gobbledygook. In any case thanks for the like.

[@Barbarapape]

The spinning disc has served us well, but it is time to move on. Who has the space to store thousands of CD's in todays lego land sized homes? The charity shops are full of unwanted CD's, try selling any on the auction websites unless it is a very rare title, they just don't sell anymore. If you have a large collection and wish to be able to play them, buy some working players whilst they are so cheap.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

In my previous video, I made the point of how cheap CDs are right now. I'm happy for everyone to move on while I snap them up for cheap!

[@Barbarapape]

If you have the room buy as many as you can whilst they are so cheap. But also a few players, this is what will kill the format when they have all stopped working. @@Lancaster_Hi-Fi

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Sure, but players and transports are still being manufactured.

[@mondoenterprises6710]

I think I have only had one cd player break down on me since the 80's and that was my fault.

[@OuterGalaxyLounge]

Sony 100-CD changer in good working order from the mid 1990s on a clearance table at a bookstore 4 months ago -- for $10 ... and people just walking by it like it was nothing. Better believe I pounced on that sh*t with no hesitation. Been playing it and the sound is clear and rich. Nothing I've heard on streaming or whatever compares to it.

[@nicevmax]

I can't believe you got a Kenwood ka 9100 for $50 that's incredible.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

AND the Sony X77ES! Such a score! The KA-9100 is in pieces on my bench now. One channel of the phono preamp isn't working right. Replaced a couple of JFETs last night, but that didn't quite do the trick. I'll keep at it, though.

[@ezekielchariot]

Opinion about one that has a TDA1543 ?

[@bakeone4406]

I have an Auralic G1 streamer, (not a world beater, but sonically capable of much better than the components discussed by the narrator). It's connected to (and uses the DAC of) an Esoteric K-01xd CD player. CD's on this system generally sound slightly better than their counterparts when streaming through Tidal. I do not own the albums I can stream w/ my subscription and have no control of their future availability. I've had hard drives misbehave and lose recordings multiple times. CDs have been much more reliable. My Feickert table / Kuzma arm / Benz LPS cartidge set up occasionally sounds better than my CD player, but most of the time it does not. In short a good CD player is not an inferior to a good table or streamer.

[@technics-n-thuiast8346]

@13:15 Now you're talking. That Sony is so well built that todays CD players can just step aside and bow. Fully restored it'll give some modern High End players run for their money. If ever have doubts, just pop its hood to glance at those beautiful internals and shiny copper enclosure and your heart will skip the beat :) @17:25 I too have had bought three ( 3 ) Technics SL-PA10 CD transports at some point. Two out of three were bad ( bad laser in one, bad laser and no power on other one and third one needed just a service ). I managed to get all three back in fully operational condition but man was that a hustle. One I have cannibalized several other players with some interchangeable parts to get one converted and downgraded to full blown player with DAC, one is bone stock whilst third one I got some fancy parts from Japanese market only models than are much higher quality ( SOAD70A laser mechanism etc ). I have sold it for about 1000 Euros and was still losing money on it. I guess if you are modding it and keeping it then you can do so and throw money in it but for a resale you can never even brake even.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Yeah, it's seriously beast-mode inside. I love the dual transformers. However, I did find out that the chassis is not solid copper but copper-plated steel. Corrosion of the surface produced the dreaded green, but underneath that was plain old rust. And I don't know if it was plated or painted with copper. In any case, I touched up the chassis with copper spray paint, and it blended reasonably well. The copper paint does contain actual copper, too. That aside, I will take joy in doing a full re-cap at some point. (It's even got a super-capacitor to power the programming memory!)

[@technics-n-thuiast8346]

@@Lancaster_Hi-Fi Well, I think Sony ( just like Technics and most of the other Japanese manufacturers ) kept all the good stuff for themselves. Pure copper is found only in a Japanese market proprietary models. I do a lot of Technics models and constantly buying Japanese models off of the Yahoo auctions from Japan to "sup-up" the ones rest of the world is using. If you look up the Japanese Sony that you have ( probably was made in silver btw ) you will find some alterations and better electronics. I have had Technics 2000 series preamp, amp and cd player for a EU market and was properly disappointed with the performance just to later find out that their Japanese siblings are so different inside-out!!!

[@b.j.taylor9576]

Any opinions on digital sterile vs. analog warm?

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

My opinions have evolved, still are evolving. I suspect the sterility of digital is down to the analog stage of the DAC among other factors.

[@abbersj2935]

It very much depends on the perticular player. Just as with any equipment different products perform differently. Any player with a Philips TDA1541A DAC chip (there are lots) will probably be a good start. But a good CD player in my view can compete with analog for musicality, and is so much easier to live with.

[@boblynch2802]

Wow I never thought I would hear the words CD player and vintage in the sentance.

[@RUfromthe40s]

i still think of it as a modern device

[@kensoleyn8921]

The human brain is a digital computer with analog inputs. Like a computer that brain has memory. The music coming out of my speakers to my ears is analog. A good HiFi system reproduces what was recorded, mixed and mastered on the media accurately. Digital media is very repeatable but must be converted to analog. In the future the technology might be such that music is streamed directly to your brain you would just think about what you want to hear or verbalize it and it will appear to you as though you are there. just say Beatles at the Cavern Club or John Coltrane at the Village Vanguard and you will be there (sort of like the holodeck on Star Trek). In the meantime I am happy with my CDs

[@simonzinc-trumpetharris852]

LM4562 op amps are superb.

[@Alchemetica]

There is one aspect never mentioned by enthusiasts and audiophiles, age. The age of the listener and presbycusis. Human hearing is at its peak at 21 years of age. As one ages the hearing deteriorates naturally, the high frequency of 20 kHz starts to decrease. While hearing loss can occur at any age, it is a gradual decrease as humans age. By 60 years to 70 years of age the highest frequencies heard will typically be in the range of 7 kHz to 10 KHz. This state occurs over a decrease every year from 21 years of age. How fast and degree of hearing a person loses depends on their exposure to loud noise, environmental exposure. Diseases can also hasten loss of normal hearing faster. People with tinnitus can mean constant background "noise" to their hearing

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

This morning, my hearing drops out at 13.7 kHz, which seems to coincide with the frequency of my tinnitus, which comes and goes and changes in pitch.

[@Solitaire001]

I did an informal test myself (using an audio file that plays all the frequencies from 20hz to 20,000khz). I listened to it and found that my hearing cuts off somewhere around 13khz. Despite doing my best to keep my hearing (such as avoiding very loud sounds as much as possible), the loss still happened.

[@patbarr1351]

To expand on your point, I've read up on this through the years, beginning in psych class in college & later while studying recording. Humans can hear up to about 20kHz when very young, but that number has already dropped significantly for most of us by the time we hit our 16th birthday, more so by age 50 of course. There are other aspects to musical perception besides frequency response-- dynamics, timbre (which makes instruments & voices sound true to themselves) and the ability to resolve voices & instruments in space. (Well, those are the ones I can think of!) Better CD players give us those facets of sound that make music more enjoyable.

[@michellegrinder9484]

that sony looks like it was in the same room as a meth lab

[@patrickcardon1643]

Discman players work fine on little batteries :P

[@bigd835]

ive bought a few used cd players. dont waste your time on them. they all skip and give you problems after a while. i currently use a dvd player to play cd's most of the time. they never skip, i dont know why but they are many times more reliable.

[@RUfromthe40s]

there are very good cd players from late 80´s built with extreme quality sold cheap ,as an example the marantz cd players that were prized like the 52 or similar ,was entirelly equal to the philips model 604, with a better DAC ,having already twin dacs will sound better than a very expensicve cd player today ,people say they all are the same but no ,they are sequencies of binary code of I and 0 but the convertion to analogue can be done with more quality or less ,if having a good sounding system ,that today are very expensive, i still use material from the 70´s mixed with 90´s or 80´s or even more recent components ,all will show the capabilities of a good or bad cd player some cheasp dacs don´t do nothing but today everybody wants a dac, normally a good one to a brand producing cd players will cost them only a € or two at the most, but most of the things said are in my opinion ,correct has i do the same but always when not tired or having time i would play the phisical format such as cds, records ,cassettes, minidics, dac´s or reels, old cd player have old technology but there is no new technology(only some improvements at reading level but nothing that wasn´t available in the 80´s, so must check about digital sound ,the DAT decks are much above cd sound quality and it´s a 80´s format and expensive even when sold in stores so why cds are so bad sounding today, in the 80´s digital had already several times better sound than todays cds, the sony cd player showed was very strange it could work for years or having problems at the end of 6 monthes only the pioneer brand had good cd players and with heavy use they still work today perfect ,this refering to my first standart size cd player in second half of the 80´s, the PD-7300, the ones i bought in the 90´s are looking very bad and the first i had on my system still looks and plays perfect also just by looking it´s more good looking than the ones i bought later said to be very good ,i even have a rega that was expensive but looks so bad that i have it on my garage, i ended up having a very good cd player that was ofered to me from CEC belt driven(i couldn´t believe it) and cost me nothing what i found funny is recentelly i looked for my cd player on internet and only found it in the brand site, my surprise when seeing that is still sold today without any improvements and i knew that it was expensive but still being sold by 36.000€ today ,i almost had a stroke and have others that i thought it were better but cost me only 150€ in 2nd hand

[@TimChilde]

Tom Sawyer made me like and subscribe ;)

[@bobsbits5357]

hi you know at the end of the vdeo this is a key point if you have alot of gear put it around that the gear has to go to a new home i have been all over the place in the uk time to time the wife is left to deal with it some ex bbc tec had a fall down some stairs note the gear left my the 80 plus man s now left a house last time i was told this how i got alot of master tapes they were left some one was ill please think about the one's you leave behide i have seen a skip come to take gear away i got 40 betacam decks this way i was going to re sell them note i can make more money moving the video if you like to get fee gear find away for them to gen money and make a living this why price of used recorder are very high the soundcraft 381-8 sounds ace same with the brenell mini 8 i done alot of work on keep away from uk reel to reel they take alot of time to get them working

[@ceylonmooney]

with some exceptions, perhaps the ones u mentioned, theres really no such thing as a vintage CD player. vintage audio is pre-BPC and pre-digital. and im a firm supporter of buyin a cheap cd player, no more than $20, preferrably with a coax out, and sending it to a good DAC. no DAC? send it to a good preamp. sounds good. DVD player is fine as well. i respect and admire your rehabbing a good CD player and havin it runnin up to snuff.

[@RUfromthe40s]

a dvd player to meet a cd player quality when new must be a expensive one, in have a sony with great frequency response when new 750€ but compared with other cd players i own don´t seem that good

[@ceylonmooney]

hmn. i did not know that. either way, a cheap used 15-20€ CD or DVD player is sending its digital read to my outboard DAC, @@RUfromthe40s. u reckon it makes any difference there?

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Different devices mean different quality. For example, the "Superdrive" connected to my Mac had a hard time with one of my CDs, but my old Sony CD player has no problem.

[@RUfromthe40s]

@@Lancaster_Hi-Fi that never hapened to me but i also only have very old macintosh material , my first good amplifier was the MA 5100 amplifier /pre it sounded so good at the time with some altec lansing speakers that were the first monitors on my father´s studio, with a PL-41/50(not sure) pioneer turntable and a tascam reel deck i also had from my father, older stuff he didn´t want anymore but maybe at the most 3 years old at the time, when he found something better when living in my parents house he would pass them to me, but from late 60´s to early 70´s a lot of changes hapened in the hi-fi world, as an example the stereo albums. My first standart size cd player years later was the PD-7300 allthough i had already the first sony portable with an adaptor with a power transformer and two rca´s , portable but to place it in other place and listen to music with headphones not a walking discman and expensive cd players had at the time a good frequency response and building quality ,the older i have ,today still looks good and other more modern from the 90´s they were great sounding but today they look old , in terms of technology i don´t remenber if something was called to those improvements, what i notice most when cds appeared is that my best 70´s systems when added a cd player had to decrease the treble , it was louder and not that more to the end of the frequency spectrum but a litle excessive mid-high´s as i call them

[@karensingh2020]

have 3 vintage players. 2 yamahas and 1 technics.

[@Coneman3]

CD transports sound different. Controversial statement

[@Thetimeisnow78]

That's a great question!

[@Johny666EU]

when it comes to drive get siled cd drive like decent sony, denon etc. my dc players are extremely silent and i need to put my ear to tough the case then i can hear something but nothing horrible, mostly i hear heating water flows in my heaters then my cd players. second and the most omportand how did you rip your cd? did you use computer drive with very cheap mechanism creating lots of jiters and reading errors which during riping the processor using error corrections and save it as a flac? well my cd players and 1000 or more times better when it comes to reading data from cd so good cd player always will be better then any ripped on computer drives files. those riped files are already after reading error corrections so is not exac copy as cd is. modern cd players are using very cheap, basic transport so they will never be the same as old vintage cd players with decent transport. oversampling, 24bit, mhz etc this will not help to get original data from cd.

[@carljung9230]

audio cd player is obsolete. but hifi people like having lots of boxes ...

[@holgerhansen5643]

Nos Dac

[@skinskin8549]

Cds are the best!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@retroman3075]

Why do boomers hate physical media so much? This is like the 12th video I saw that has some old guy complains about the "difficulties" of owning some form of media and the devices used to play them.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Please: I'm Gen X (the generation named after a punk band of Boomers).

[@hanksta34]

He has a good channel and you should consider subscribing. No annoying background noise like other channels, and has a relaxed approach geared towards fellow audio enthusiasts.

[@TriAmpHiFi]

@@hanksta34 Within your statement is the real answer to RetroMan's question. Unfortunately, as part of Gen-X, we have lost what the Greatest Generation taught the Boomers who failed to teach us and ourselves. Gen-X (now we're in power) apologizes for all opinion & is incapable of drawing a line between right and wrong. Example? OK. I dare any Gen-X to publicly state, 'America built and used two Nuclear Bombs on the japanese civilians because it wouldn't save japanese lives, it would save American Lives and would do it again.' The Greatest Generation did it, the Boomers understood it & Gen-X did cocaine. So, RetroMan, you get defensive answers like "... relaxed approach geared towards fellow..." blah, blah, blah. Instead of the answer, because most have become so socially isolated and thin skinned that they actually believe words are violence. Gen-X would do very well to remember the nursery rhymes we were supposed to learn like; Sticks & Stones Will Break My Bones but Names Will Never Hurt Me.

[@nickdudesville5154]

Let's see... Wow, flutter, pops, hiss, eaten tapes, cleaning heads, demagnetizing and adjusting heads, dropouts, dirty needles, brand new warped records, the quality of affordable components, the price of quality components... The list goes on and on.

[@rickg8015]

Not really.. He has that Turntable behind him, and demoes his collection on it in past vids.. Besides, the dude has good taste in music..

[@Phil-pq4ks]

DAC is waaaay overrated. Of course streaming is much better now but it will always be inferior to a quality CD player. Especially some of the original Japanese ones from the 80's. Just purchased a Rotel and like I said....no comparison for multiple reasons.

[@Holychickendestroyer]

Noise from the player??? Friend, truthfully you have grey hair, I don’t think your hearing is that good or say audiophile level 😅

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

I mean noise from the mechanism. It doesn't come through the speakers, so you could put your player in a closet or cabinet or the next room, but no mechanism is perfectly silent. The sound that the player makes while playing is not accounted for in the SNR spec. Seriously, you've never noticed the sound of the mechanism? Even between tracks?

[@3dmaxuser]

Give me my CD player and DAT recorder over vinyl any day ! is this guy trying us that a CD transport noise will transfer to the actual audio output if so HES TALKING SHIT !

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

And that's why I didn't say that.

[@3dmaxuser]

@@Lancaster_Hi-Fi so what did you mean by what you said ?

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

The mechanisms aren't silent, and the SNR spec doesn't account for mechanism noise because it's not transmitted electronically and doesn't come through the speakers. However, that noise does intrude on the "black background" that CDs promised to give us. My Sony X77ES is much quieter than my Magnavox CDB582 but not absolutely silent and, depending on the relative positions of the listener and player, louder than the noise floor of the signal.

[@3dmaxuser]

Ah ok but unless your siting in an anechoic chamber why would you care ? I'm not trying to wind you up I'm honestly trying to figure out why you would be worried about the sound a tiny stepper motor inside the Cd unit would make when your pet hamsters farts are so much louder, if you see what I mean :) your talking about sounds that just don't register to anyone older than 12 years old :) @@Lancaster_Hi-Fi

[@ahmadsharif1631]

Your information is not correct.

[@Lancaster_Hi-Fi]

Sigh. Please elaborate.

[@PulledPorkGarage]

1) question depends. 2) Cd is physical, CDA files are still the norm. It is a recording standard. And more fun. A good CD player has no noise, not audible at least. And the format CD disk is made to survive physically a thousand years with no loss of data.. And you never have to be online. But taste matters.

[@TriAmpHiFi]

. A 2-minute image search, randomly found, toroid powered CD w/coax for $225, the ROTEL RCD-971. LQQKs pretty good. I'll keep CDs. Acid Jazz, Funk & Brass 🔈🔉🔊