Is there a cd player that sounds close to an LP?

I have done many comparisons with the CD and LP medium.
It all comes down to the quality of the recording!

I used to use the cd63 in my system (as a transport). It isn't a great transport unfortunately. If you do get a dac, which is the cheapest way to do what you want, you'll want to pick up a reclocking device ($100, used). That being said, I think the comment about SACD is right. It's so much closer to analog.... but there's hardly any music on sacd - at least if you're looking for normal, mainstream releases, not 'audiophile' discs which seem to be made for people to listen to their systems, not the music (yeah, there are a few exceptions...). Bottom line: I've seen sony 777es (not the multi-channel) sacd/cd players here for under $1500: they sound very analog-y on regular cds (redbook) and with sacd, it's a whole order (or two) of magnitude better. They take forever to break in, so if you get a chance to audition one, make sure it's played a couple hundred hours at least. (By the way, do you leave your cd player on all the time? That's a huge difference right there.) Good luck.

I second Taters response above. The engineering and production of the LP or CD really does determine how it will sound on a high end system. I have remastered Rudy Van Gelder produced jazz CD's originally recorded in the late 50's that kill stuff recorded today. The LP equivalent is fantastic too as compared to some of the more recently released pressings. Unfortunately, poorly produced recordings will always be the weak link in our musical enjoyment and systems, whether in LP or CD format. I have LPs that sound inferior to the CD, so...it's personal.

I third tater's response. Asian pressed CDs sounds best to my Asian ear. There is also a thread claiming Aussie recordings are damn good. American CDs are awful and cost me a bundle in upgrading digital front end. I am getting a Parasound CDP-2000 with belt drive transport hoping to get off this awful sounding CD merry-go-around.

I too suffered the CD hurts my ears problem, especially on high-pitched instruments like flute, soprano sax, violin and upper register piano. Like you, at first I thought it was the CD setup. Upgrading to a dedicated DAC and then a transport certainly made things more tonally balanced and musical. But the hurt didn't vanish until I switched pre-amps, in my case from a Forte 44 to a Threshold Fet 10.

My guess is when the amplification components are faced with resolving the high signal-to-noise signals of CD but lack the quality to do so, instead those components will produce hurtful noise and distortion. It makes sense that this happens at the frequency extremes, where the proper extension is most difficult to achieve. For years, LP and tube gear cleverly avoid this problem by rolling off the high end signals so the amps never have to deal with them.

So I agree, don't foul up your LP sound to make the CD palatable. Going the DAC route will definately help, and synergizing with the same company's transport will too. I use mid-line Theta separates and feel no urge to search for something better. You're on the right track though. You've identified the problem. But in the long run, dulling your sound is not the answer.