Tube output stage CD player ?

I'm not particularly technical, but the common meaning is that a CD player which uses tubes in its analog stage would be considered a tube CD player.

That one has been and will continue to be debated on this site forever with respect to amplifiers, preamps and the like. Were you to ask the designer of a tubed unit, doubtless he would say the tubed one; likewise, the designers of the Levinson and similar players would say solid state. And while I prefer my tubed dac, I'd be the last one to assert that an Ah! Tjoob CD player sounds remotely as good as an Accuphase. Ultimately the one that sounds "better" is the one you think sounds better after careful listening, I guess.

Hey Trelja, did you ever own one of the early Analogic Designs players made by Scott Nixon (later called Anodyne)? I did, and for the very reasons you mentioned about early digital. Gave it to a musician friend years ago, and I believe she's still happily listening to it (although I wonder how the tubes are holding up).

They were usually based on the Magnavoxes , like the Magnavox 472, and corresponding Philips based units. Some sounded pretty good, too, for those times. And yeah, musicians I know for the most part don't seem to care as much about the sound as the performance. They do have it right.