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Considering buying a CD transport

My current disc spinner is a Cambridge Audio 751BD which I'm now mostly (except for SACDs) using as a transport, as I vastly prefer the sound of my Bryston BDA1 DAC to what comes through the CA. Even through the Bryston DAC, CDs can sound shrill. The CA works extremely well for DVDs, Blu-ray discs and SACDs, but I don't think I'm enjoying my rather extensive CD collection as I should. Would a separate transport make enough difference to be worth considering? I've been reading reviews of the Cyrus CDt which are tempting, but I'd like to hear some real-world opinions first. Unfortunately, there are budgetary constraints, so I would like not to exceed about $2K.

The rest of the system: Hegel H200 integrated, Proac Response D2s, REL S2 sub, Clarus Aqua analog interconnects & speaker cables, Nordost coax.
cooper52
nutty
2,948 posts
 
Im not familiar with your partucular Cambridge Audio player but maybe this will help. Due to the differences in the size of the pits or burned surface of DVDs and CDs, they require the reading laser to send a light beam of different wavelengths to read the information on each type of disc.
To accomplish this, a DVD player is equipped with one of two things: A laser that has the ability change its focusing accurately based on DVD or CD detection or, more commonly, a DVD player will have two lasers, one for reading DVDs and one for reading CDs. This is often referred to a Twin-Laser Assembly as is usually listed in the spec sheet for DVD players that have them.
cooper52 OP
187 posts
 
Nutty, thanks for the information. I did some poking around and couldn't find any reference to a twin-laser assembly in my 751BD in the owner's manual. The very detailed 6 Moons Audio review (http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/cambridge/1.html) makes no mention of it either, but does briefly refer to the signal being read by a "modified universal Sony drive." One assumes that if it did have such a feature, it would have been loudly touted in the literature.

On a different subject, my Wyred4Sound reclocker arrived yesterday and I've had only a little time to listen to what it does. First impressions are extremely favorable though. I'll detail this in a separate thread in the next few days, after some more thorough listening.
nutty
2,948 posts
 
cooper52, and others in copy.

Years ago, when I was shopping for a new CD player my local vendor emparted some of the information I posted above. Also on disc players, the motor slows gradually as it reads the disc from the center to the outer edge....CD's play at a lower RPM than DVD's. I suppose all transports are not created equally. And some are created specifically. Perhaps the OPPO BD 105 has a dual transport, judging from all of the glowing reviews. 

N

jafant's avatar
jafant
19,901 posts
 
Very nice- cardani. Wireworld makes fine cables/cords indeed.
cooper52 OP
187 posts
 
That promised review of the Wyred4Sound reclocker is now posted in the Member Reviews section. It's been up for a while now, and it does contain a bit of misinformation (sorry!) that I acknowledge in the subsequent discussion, but as it stands, this little gadget has, for now, put my search for a new transport on the back burner.
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