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


Yes, I just received this player and can honestly say this is the first time the review was spot on. This is easily the best bargain in digital audio bar none. This player is in my mind and my musical tastes as good as it gets for under $5k or maybe more with the exception of the Resolution Audio Opus 21. It is that good.

I agree 100% with the review in absolute sound....the highs are to die for, the imaging and spatial presentation is that of a mega dollar player. The only drawbacks I can find is a slight lack in definition of low bass....but I only have 15 hours on the unit!! I fully expect that to clean up over time. This thing is the real deal.........
arbuckle
The point here is that moderately priced digital sounds pretty darned good these days, whcih can but be a good thing for music lovers over-all.

I haven't yet heard the Cambridge but I did audition the Opus 21 in my system - I wouldn't want the Opus even at $1000. Just not to my liking. But Opus 21 owners love it, and they're happy and it sure sounds better than most top of the line kilobuck digital from 15 years ago.

So to each his own, audition anything in your system, and rejouce that none of us *has* to spend 7k to get good sound...although I would dearly love to own a Reimyo some day ;-)
Rackon,
I'm neither an Opus 21 lover or hater since I've never had one, but I'm curious what you didn't like about it?
Thanks,
Bill
Mr Bill, I owned an Opus 21 and found TOO detailed, if there is such a thing. The company lives up to its name RESOLUTION Audio. I found it tiresome after several months, plus the odd placement of control bottons UNDER the CD tray, and the 2 box set up seamed to be more gimickey to me than anything.
I currently have a Bel Canto CD1 and an Accuphase DP57 that I find are easier on the ears.

Associated equ:
Spendor S9
Gamut Pre
Musical Fidelity a308cr

of course your results may vary :)
Just to make a clarification due to criticism from some folks at Headfi:
The Cambridge 840C is an OUTSTANDING sounding CD player, and used to be my reference player, until some family tragedies forced me into selling off most all of my system.
I, at that time, preferred it to both the Rega units and the Marantz units, and sold all of them, except for the 840C.
I still regularly recommend the 840C to friends, along with the 8001 and the Rega Saturn.
After the tragedies, I then had to sell off the 840c, and most of my headphone and home systems.
Just recently I fianally purchased a used, fully broken-in, Marantz SA8001, at a bargain price, a used Sennheiser HD650 Equinox headphone cable, and did a trade on some Harmonic Technology Pro-Silway Mk.3 + interconnects.
Well now, my headphone system has NEVER sounded better!
I have never enjoyed my CD's as much as I am now.
I borrowed a friends 840C, and I think that the 8001 simply does more things right, and less things wrong than the 840C.
Right now, the 8001 is my budget reference cd player.
Maybe its a synergy between the Harmonic Tech interconnects and the 8001, or the fact that this 8001 has alot more break-in time than my first one, who knows?
Hope I have cleared any confusions that there may have been.
12-19-07: Tgyeti
Mr Bill, I owned an Opus 21 and found TOO detailed, if there is such a thing. The company lives up to its name RESOLUTION Audio. I found it tiresome after several months, plus the odd placement of control bottons UNDER the CD tray, and the 2 box set up seamed to be more gimickey to me than anything.

I also found the Opus 21 tiresome and used an 840C instead. The buttons are indeed fiddly and i wonder to about the merit of multiple boxes.