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  3. 163210-18279

The anachronistic CD Transport? And do I really need one.

CD Transports.

This is a machine that in my early audiophile days I could not afford. I appreciated, philosophically the advantages of it. Thinking of this device in 2021 seems strange. Yet they still exist and, maybe more importantly, they are still manufactured.

Just a few years ago (I dunno...maybe 2015) I remember thinking Redbook CD sounded great with the right DAC, and underlying system of course. But today, I don’t know this to be true. It is starting to seem that the compact disc is riding in the third row of the vehicle, with vinyl and non-cd-digital vying back and forth, musically for the driver’s seat.

So, my listening habits are

Vinyl 65% of the time
Digital 40%
CD 5%

I do have a small collection of CDs. They are things that I cannot easily or actually hear on other mediums.

I have a great DAC and it made an old (2005) Rotel CD player sound pretty good. The Rotel CD player's remote is dead with no easy replacement, and it does have progressive optical reading disease--...it drops in and out with less than perfectly clean discs.

Can you please evaluate the following options for me? Or tell me to piss off!

1. Buy a Transport
2. Buy a CD player (maybe with SACD ability)
3. Dump the discs and stick with your better sounding vinyl and digital.
4. Are you insane for listing as no. 1 "Buy a Transport"? You must be old.

Fire away.
128x128jbhiller
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 

jbhiller
Can you please evaluate the following options for me? Or tell me to piss off!

1. Buy a Transport
You say you have a great dac, the wait for the new Schiit Audio cd transport to come out, it "should" be a cracker! knowing the designers background designing all that Theta Digital was known for in the past.

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/schiit-cd-transport-on-the-way-soon

Cheers George
  
soix
8,602 posts
 
Ditch the spinning buggy whip and buy an Innuos Zen server/streamer, load your CDs into it and never deal with a transport ever again — and very possibly improve your streaming performance as an added bonus.  Best of luck. 
kijanki's avatar
kijanki
4,394 posts
 
I switched to server only when my last CDP failed (long time ago).  I use external computer CD reader to rip new CDs.  I can also play CDs directly in my DVD player connected to Benchmark DAC3 (high jitter suppression), but I never do - nothing beats convenience of the server.
mglik
885 posts
 
+1 for Schitt transport. Or a used Theta Compli. The Compli originally sold for $2500 and you should be able to get one for around $500. They are built like battleships and are as solid and good as ones costing much more. I have happily used mine with a great $20K tube dac for many years.
Bit if Schitt is coming out with one it should be affordable and really good. Mike Moffett at Schitt was the man behind Theta and actually designed the first CD player. It was a prototype monster called “the Frankenstein”. If Mike is designing a new one it should be excellent!
audite84
110 posts
 
5% CD’s vs 40% digital files. My suggestion is to rip your CD’s into digital files. Then spend the money you’re planning to spend on a new transport towards improving your digital implementation, or if it’s already great, towards new music.

(BTW, I think you meant 55% vinyl.)
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