Ruminations On CD Players

Plenty of options - Get an old Rotel and have the parts upgraded along with the laser if you want really good sound but don't want to spend too much.  Or get an old Cary 306SACD model and have that upgraded.  Once that is upgraded it will complete with much higher priced DACs for a ton less in standard Rebook CD sound.  We were amazed how good it sounded compared to DACs like the Mola-Mola, Kasandra, etc.

Happy Listening.

Thanks for the info and advice.  One of the posters asked about my system.  I have a Prima Luna Dialogue One amp and Forest Totem speakers.  I don't have a streamer and hate to say never, but I'll likely stick with CDs and vinyl.  When the time comes I'll pick a separate and inclusive CD player from the suggestions, and find an online dealer with a liberal return policy.    

Going down the road of transport and DAC gives a lot of flexibility for future upgrades and "tuning" SQ to ones liking. Limit of $2K is well enough to start on this path. Cambridge or Audiolab transports, very well regarded, and lots to chose from DAC category under $1.5K. Been there, done that.

If you have a dac I’d recommend getting a transport. Much more flexibility. 

I don't have a streamer and hate to say never, but I'll likely stick with CDs and vinyl.

It’s good you’re at least open to the possibility of streaming in the future.  Once I started streaming via Qobuz I very rarely spin a CD anymore because 90%+ of my music is available to stream from my chair in any order, and a good bit of it is also available in hi res.  Plus, I spend much more time exploring worlds of new music, which I find infinitely more rewarding, enlightening, and enjoyable than just playing the same stuff over and over — best thing to happen to audio in decades IMHO and has totally reinvigorated my love of audio.  My only regret is I didn’t start streaming even sooner.  All that said, if you do think you might try streaming in the future you might consider a separate transport/DAC or at least a CD player that has a digital input and can be used as a DAC.  These days you’ll also have a lot more choices in DACs than CD players, so there’s also that to consider.  Anyway, best of luck in whichever way you choose to go.