Keep the cal audio or buy a new cd player?

I've had my CL10 for about 7 years of heavy use. I sent it in once because the random didn't work. Apart from that, all seems in good order. The CL10 sounds pretty good by itself. When paired with the Perpetual Technology dac's (P1-a, P3-a, separate modded power supply and Modwright mods on the P3-a), the sound is very, very good. That would cost you another $1,000 or so used, but it's hard to beat.

Right now, I'm auditioning both the highly rated Opus 21 and the vastly underrated Talk Thunder 3.1. The Opus and CL are pretty close (trading off some bass for some presence/space). The Thunder does seem stronger than either of the others. For the money, my recommendation would be to fix the CL10 and save up for the Perp Tech dacs (I use a relatively inexpensive Stealth Vardig XLR to connect the CL10 to the Perp Tech). If you aren't a super bass fan, you will love that combo. Are other good setups out there? Sure, but bear in mind that the stuff I'm auditioning is north of a couple of grand.

Hope that helps. There are some good repair sites out there for Cal Tech. I don't have them in front of me, but let me know if you need the info that was posted earlier by others at Audiogon.

Thanks Ozfly, I 'll keep it in mind.

I've auditioned the Cambridge Audio 640C with the Totem Rainmakers and was very impressed. The sound and build quality are far beyond its price in my opinion and experience. I have no experience with Cal, but you should see the 640C in person and give it a try with your Rainmakers.

had a cal cl-20 for a while...not a bad player. there is a sweetness to the sound.

the maranatz sa-8260 is pretty darn good...comapring the two, the marantz blew it away imo..

consider it a excellent cd player with free sacd playback.

would suggest buying new with warranty intact, there are some issues with earlier toc/transports.

good luck,

mike