Cambridge 840C, YES it is as good as the reviews

I auditioned the Cam. Audio 840C at Tweeter on a Krell/Martin Logan system. There wasn't another decent CD Player in the room to compare it against, so I asked the Salesman to hook-up the Krell Showcase DVD Player that was in the room playing a Movie. The Salesman predicted that the Krell Player would be the better of the two, and it was, by a significant margin, plus it also plays DVDs. Both Players were connected via the same make and model Balanced ICs and plugged into the same power-strip.
I believe the Krell Player retails $4,000-

Has anyone been able to compare the 840C to the Arcam
FMJ 33 or 36? I was wondering how Arcam stacks up against
equally priced CD Players.

JT

Hi Sunset,
Based on your last post, are you saying the Ayre CX7e is a better player than the Cambridge 840c?
Thanks,
Bill

Yes, from my listening experience, the Ayre CX-7e is a step-above the CA 840c. Based on opinions expressed on this website (and others), this appears to be a widely accepted point of view.

The Sony SCD-XA9000ES at $3K is another excellent choice (if you don't need balanced connections) and again is a step-above the CA 840c. Nearly all Tweeter Stores carry both, so, like I did, you can easily AB them. The Sony also offers "excellent" playback of SACDs.

after living with the player for almost 6 months - it is an amazing player - i have always said - that with this player that extensive break-in is necessary to experience it's full capabilities.

I would have never realized it's potential just from a demo at tweeter, etc. regardless of how long they have had that player.

The "its the best player i've heard under $5000" that roberty harley said will probably live in infamy forever and probably sets a high bar of stratospheric expectations. Harley also if you remember about 10 years ago - gave an unbelievable review of a product called the "digital lens" which sat between your amp and cd player/dac which was suppose to be the answer to make digital an amazing experience. To me it was one of the the most over-rated products ever - yet during the review i had multiple orgasms (I wish I could find that review now- It was even more enticing then the cambridge review) and had to have one that evening and even travelled 60 miles the next day to get one - i wonder where the are now?

Taken on its own terms it's a very musical player. No doubt that there are other players - equal or better - but that misses the whole point of the cambridge - it nails the flow of music in a real special way.

regards,
smargo