Replacement CD on a tight budget?

I bought a Denon DVD-1930CI to replace my Oppo DV-970HD. The Denon is better on music and movies to the Oppo. The current Denon DVD-1940CI or a Pioneer Elite DV-48V should out perform your older Pioneer.

my favorite inexpensive cd player is a ps1 (the first model of them, that is, with the rca outputs - model scph-1001, i believe).

you can usually get them for 20-40 bucks on the auction site who must not be named, and they are just a he** of a lot of fun.

they are the most "analog" sounding cd player i've heard for under $750 or so. they resolve detail pretty well, but their best trait is that they are musical. i listen to a lot of rock and the ps1 makes the bad recordings that most rock albums are sound quite good (and better than my more expensive transport).

stick a ps audio power punch c7 cord on one for $50 more and they sound even better.

good luck!

About the only thing I see on the Audiogon sale pages that would fit your budget is an Oppo dvd 981hd for $130. Truth be told at your price point, pickings are going to be slim. Occasionally you'll find an older Denon, NAD, or Rotel in your price range, so it might worthwhile to check the listing daily. Also, remember in most cases you'll have to budget some additional monies for shipping cost. Also, you might want to check some pawn shops, music/audio stores, in your area. Every now and then, you can come up with a good and affordable find.

I am in a similar situation...looking for a player to play all formats with the exception of Blu-Ray or HD.

I'm intrigued by the Denon 2930 recommendation. I would consider the 2930 to be old (3-4 years), particularly in terms of electronic technology...even at $200. For less money, I think you can get newer technology even if you buy new. Perhaps using the 2930 as a transport and purchasing an external DAC (later when the upgrade bug hits) will provide the excellent video and sound for which you are looking.

The Oppo you mentioned, 980H, is a newer model with a considerable number of improvements over the 970, including an upgrade to the DAC. I've owned the 970 before and while I was very impressed with the video, I too was not impressed with the audio. Another thing to remember, the Oppo 980H is actually a newer model than the 981.

FWIW - I'm leaning toward a 980H now and adding an external DAC later.

Pgawan2b,

Funny you think the 980 is better than the 970. When both were both available from Oppo, before the 970 was discontinued, "The Absolute Sound" has said the 970 sounded better than the 980, but the 980 had better picture. The 980 was harsh in their listening session and felt the 970 was a killer player for a budget music system they put together.

While it was nice for the money I felt it had a flat sound stage and lacked involvement that adding the Benchmark DAC1 alleviated, but we are talking about a DAC that cost over 3x the Oppo.

When I bought the Denon 1930 for $45 used, which Hi-Fi Choice raved about, it blew away the Oppo, and now the Oppo is long gone. Funny thing is that the Denon was available at the same time but America was enamored w/ the Oppo units. Europe on the other hand loves the cheap Denons.

The Denon 2930 is better but the 1930 is awesome and built better than the Oppo too.