SONY D-NE320 is my absolute favorite. Not only do you get Parametric EQ, you get Clear Bass! You can stack both of these effects. Also ATRAC3 can fit pretty much one band's whole discography on one CD-R.
Yeah soon there will be no cd players around, so let's enjoy them while we can and funny thing is the value will probably go up when people start to feel nostalgic for them and may become trendy
I'm with you, I won't get rid of mine either. I have ripped my CDs to my computer, but I want to keep my CD players, you'll never know when one might come in handy.
In 1985 my wife surprised me with a CD player for my birthday. I sold most of my vinyl, packed my turntable away and never looked back. I was on a forum and a guy said he put all of his CDs on his computer and sold them. A short time later his computer crashed and he lost every thing. I will always have a CD or Blu Ray player to play CDs.
With digital media the trick is to have more than one back up. Secondly move the files to a new drive periodically. With a couple of backups I can usually recover anything that gets deleted or corrupted. I first downloaded podcasts, ripped all my CDs, then transferred vinyl, cassettes and negatives. Takes a long time. Scanning books is the next task to add to the digital library - not everything commercial can be found in a digital format.
Yes!!! Computers crash and streaming services go belly up. That's why I have CDs. Blu-ray players are great too. They'll play anything. And I'm not beholden to a streaming service, paying them a subscription fee every month. I OWN MY CDS.
Mike…Spotify is not sustainable and the artists are getting ripped off. As long as you keep the CD.s then ripping to a SSD or cloud solution is excellent. We recently stopped all our streaming services ( Netflix, Disney ) and even Amazon prime. Buy local go to theatre and cinema . We spend the same amount of money as before but at local cinema. Concert and theatre.
Major issues with your idea: 1: The time it takes to rip all of your CDs to a computer would be MUCH better used to just enjoy actually listening to your music collection! (On/using a CD player) Especially for extra large and extremely diverse music collections like mine. (I have about 40K CDs overall, in about 40 different genres from all over the world.) 2: The sound quality of most computer's sound cards is not as good as most (especially higher-end) CD players, and especially if you also are using a good external DAC. 3. What happens once your computer and/or hard drive(s) inevitably crash and you lose your entire music collection as a result??! (MAJOR tears! Lol!)(It WILL happen sooner or later if you rely exclusively on your computer to play all of your music collection!) 4. Talk about "boring"!... Which is actually more involving?... Actually picking out a CD from your collection and playing it, (in a good CD player), while looking at the liner notes and appreciating the artist's artwork on a CD's cover book, and then actually reading the song lyrics from said album booklet while listening to or even singing along with the song... OR... just looking through a long, same font, list of basic word, boring text song titles on a computer screen and then just clicking on one that you wanna hear? (The latter is easier maybe, but definitely not more involving OR enjoyable!) 5. I notice that most of the CD players you mentioned that have mechanical issues are more "fancy" or "higher-end" (and inevitably and unnecessarily expensive, especially to have to repair), but I just have a few more (vintage) "basic brand" CD players from Sony, Yamaha, and Onkyo that all still play perfectly and sound great too. It seems to me, from my experience over the decades, the simpler, more basic something is, the more reliable it generally tends to be long-term, maybe because there's less to go wrong in it? Also, many overly "fancy" or expensive "boutique" brand players tend to sometimes have untried and untested (by anyone but them), mechanisms or electronics in them, which might be cool or "exotic" when new, but over many decades they generally tend to have less guarantee of working properly, or so it oftentimes seems... Besides, if you don't already have a good CD player, or maybe you need a "new" one for whatever reason, as you said; the CD players in the used market rn are almost literally a "dime a dozen", especially in most thrift stores, and good quality vintage CD players can be had in those types of stores for about the same price as a new CD still is nowadays. (Somewhere between $5-$20, depending on what it is) So even if your current player ever craps out, another good used one by a good, usually reliable brand such as Sony can be found almost anywhere for a VERY cheap price if you look! (I almost NEVER have a problem with Sony brand CD players always working in the thrift stores whenever I find them... Sometimes I may use one to test listen to a few used CDs that I'm considering buying, and/or to test out another audio component as a quality music source.) 6. If you ever ONLY just rely on any streaming service for ALL of your music then they can and DO randomly delete or pull certain albums and artists from their playlists completely due to copyright issues and/or popularity, so then you're out that specific album or artist from your music collection. :( 7. You need internet for any streaming service. A CD can be played on a CD player ANYWHERE at anytime that you may feel like it. No additional cost involved! Bottom line is that if you want the absolute quickest, easiest, and most "convenient" way to play most average, well known music, then a good streaming service is fine, but for very rare, exclusive, out of print, collectors item albums, or most true audiophile recordings, a good quality CD player is still a MUST to own IMO, especially for long-term music collection backup at the very least!
I bought a Yamaha disc player, plays SACD, DVD-A, Redbook CD and has a 197mhz bit rate. Purchased out of their online Outlet store and delivered to my door for $35. I make CD towers from 3/4" plywood using a Dado blade set for proper slot height. An 18" tower cost me little and holds a couple dozen disc cases. Lots of ways to skin cats.
Yep. You throw out your CD player (which is dumb, but doesn't need a subscription) and you're into paying a subscription to use this setup. Which is fine, if you're happy about all those monthly direct debt amounts (that you've probably forgotten about) coming out your account. It's just another one. But if we're talking about thrift stores then that isn't a foregone conclusion that this is the best solution for everyone.
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I play all mediums, I recently added a nice Emotiva CD Transport to play more recent titles, it sounds great and renewed my interest in CDs.
Your video really learns what it entails to stop using CDs and start streaming. But the best (vintage) CD players are definitely up there with modern DACs and sometimes even outperform them. There is also a big plus in not having to use all those computer related stuff in the process. I will stick to using LPs and CDs and then I can use my time to replace jewel cases when needed and to take care of the new shelves I need to neatly store my beautiful collection of music documents.
I agree I love my cd's I have hundreds of them stored in archival binders also enjoy my players. I also have some files but do not enjoy them as I do cd's records and even cassette tapes.
At my last job in the audio world I worked for an extremely high end two channel and custom install operation in Los Angeles. We sold LOTS of high end spinners from McIntosh, Moon by Simaudio, and Rega. However for our real hardcore enthusiasts our top solution was ripping CDs using a bit perfect check, keeping the data on a Media PC, setting up a great network, and then streaming the local data to a LINN or a MOON network media player. The stereo-heads preferred the data transfer method vs. the mechanics spinning and any possible errors that induces.
I understand the nostalgia associated with LPs and CDs, but once spotify opened the entire world's catalog of music, I never looked back. My CDs sit in my cd wallet under my couch. Haven't played a CD in 10 years. I guess I'm trading a tiny bit of fidelity for access and the convenience of having music with me everywhere I go
@@Kevinschart Nah I disagree. Spotify is a awesome resource, I listen to it all day at work. But even if you don't care about sound quality, I bet 1/3 of my collection is not even found on spotify. Half of the albums I do have on spotify randomly get certain tracks grayed out, due to legal reasons etc. One great example of this, is the Jack White produced Loretta Lynn cd from 2004 Van Lear Rose. It has been pulled from spotify, itunes, everywhere (in the U.S. at least) except for illegal uploads to youtube. Physical media still wins for me. Converting cds to digital is great, but it still relies on the cloud, or a hard drive or usb stick not to fail etc. Records/lps are getting super high and the cd will have another 2nd heyday in a few years they won't be cheap. I already see some one ebay costing way up over 50 dollars apiece.
CDs are coming back! Sales are up, vinyl is getting more expensive, some albums go for $40 to $50 dollars or much much more, new CDs are from $7 to $12 and used ones .50 cents maybe $1 dollar, it is more affordable to get CDs than records, ripping them is great, keeping a good CD player is a good idea just like keeping a good turntable, love all formats including streaming, everybody has their own favorite that's cool, thank you for your videos!
Theyre charging $1-7 a piece now for cassette cases. I needed a pile but wasnt willing to pay $100 for cases...then i found the very sad never sold cassette tapes still boxed from the studio. $30 for 60 cases and with 60 cassettes i can use to record over 👍. Ohh so sad though lol. I have a wall rack filled with identical mariachi tapes atm 🤣🤣🤣🤣
CDs are coming back but good CD players are not. There are crappy ones from China or very expensive big square boxes ones by others like Sony, Onkyo, Yamaha and that kind of brand that you cannot get the sound out if you dont also purchase another big square box called amplifier or amps and then the speakers which are also very expensive unless you purchase ones they call bookshelf that have tiny woofers.
CDs and physical media is the future. I like having my CDs on a shelf where I can browse and pull some old ones to listen to on many players around the house. Streaming is only good for previewing an album before buying it. I also collect Tapes. Thats another conversation.
The great strength of CDs is their versatility. The fact that you can listen to them using a CD player or rip them to computer and play them over a streaming device to your hifi offers you options. I still do a ‘mixtape’ approach when ripping CDs and make my own compilations. I usually rip to WAV files probably because I am used to the format when exporting stems of my own music from a DAW. I’ve ripped much of my CD collection to an external HDD in the past, only to find the HDD has died. Bearing in mind how time consuming this is, once bitten springs to mind, but I’ve taken the plunge to do it again as it gives me the choices of quickly finding an album on PC or just reaching up to a shelf picking whatever I fancy and slotting it into a cd player and closing my eyes and listen. At least CD gives me the choice to do this unlike vinyl. Physical media (albums being the best) offer me so much greater an experience than music files. However, just because someone you don’t know from Adam tells you that a format is dead has not persuaded me to sell them all or throw a player into the recycling (I have to admit your argument has its merits, as I wonder how long we can keep CDs/DVD players going in the long term?) I intend to keep my vinyl, shellac, CDs, MDs, 1/4in reels and cassettes for as long as I breathe or have the ability to play them.
Any files copied to Hard Disc need to be immediately backed up to ANOTHER Hard disc. It isn't a question of "IF" a Hard drive will fail, it is only "WHEN". I'm keeping ALL of my massive CD collection. But I have also ripped them to Hard Disc + AND backed that up to 2 more Hard Discs!!!! If I'm in a room with a CD player, I have no problem using a CD player.
@@ElectroIllusion Very sensible advice. I've done the same too. Over the years, I've even copied my fave CDs in my collection to CD-Rs after I experienced disc rot in a few discs some years back. Nothing lasts for ever, sadly.
Regarding ripping your CDs and having back ups, If you do this the best option would be to invest in a media server. These systems work pretty much like a normal computer server. It uses multiple hard disks, usually in a RAID configuration, to store files on. There can be a decent investment of between $500-$1,000 up front, depending upon how elaborate you would like to get with the unit, but its advantage is that these systems are incredibly robust and significantly reduce the chance of data loss. These type of computer systems are designed with the intent to reduce HDD failure and data loss as much as possible. Another nice thing is that you can also hook them up to a TV and if you have any ripped or downloaded movies you can use it for watching those as well. If you have multiple TVs or systems you can also use the server to stream to any of your devices - phones included as long as you have an internet connection. I have also seen software packages that allow you to set up your own email so you don’t have to use Gmail or whatever service you are using now if privacy is a concern. I have been looking at these systems for a little while, but I haven’t pulled the trigger yet. since I have been saving for a house. However, from what I have researched so far I think this is definitely the way to go if you want to keep digital copies of your music or movie collection.
About 30 years ago I splashed out on a Linn integrated amplifier and CD player. They were expensive at the time [about £1,000 each] but somehow I justified the price to myself. My son uses the amp now [it still works perfectly] and I still use the CD player [which also works perfectly]. I guess it proves my grandmother right.. she used to say "you buy cheap, you buy twice".
And the world if software and streaming etc is one of poor business. Think of all those kids that spent fortunes on iTunes and when the iPod broke that was it all their money gone they owned nothing
Yes that’s what people will never understand stream all the music on ur cheap asss cell phones to listen to ur low quality music 🎶 While CDs 💿 have better sound quality and u own the music forever
@@robertquant1122 not to mention the shady deals, apple adjusting music so it makes beats headphones sound better than the competetion etc. And alac 🤢. Damn i miss the torrent network. Still remember when the artists tried selling the albums for $1 each (what the artist called fair) and the studios beat them down with streaming. Always some monopoly making life shit for everyone
I feel you! We love our discs, but a small house and tonnes of discs don't match. I've cut down on my records and laserdiscs because of just this problem. Still, there is something special about the act of physically going through a collection, selecting a disc, opening it and playing.
Yes CDs 💿 forever 2023 until I die ima keep supporting them and selling them Thanks to aomeba records, Amazon, eBay and target 🎯 we keep the CDs 💿 alive and we need to support artist 👩🎨
If only there was a format which took up way less space than a record/laserdisc, sounded/looked way better, lasted longer, and was supported to a greater extent by more devices to the point where you probably have multiple capable devices in the house already? Some kind of digital, optical disc?
My Marantz cd player is now 9 years old, connected to an el34 tube integrated amp and small wharfedale floorstanders, I am very pleased with these well built stereo components. Smooth, warm and detailed music. Heaven!
Not going to throw away my three CD players ever. Streaming is nice, yes you can rip them to FLAC or wav and play them, but I LOVE my CDs and my players. Just bought a new Denon DCD-800ne last year. It sounds great, as good as streaming does with my outboard DAC. And if I ever get a substantially better DAC, I can use the Denon player as a transport. As is stated on forums like Audiogon, to equal the sound of a $600 CD player you need to spend about 3X that on your digital front end to make streaming sound equal to it. Heck, I still play vinyl about 10% of the time and even play well-recorded cassettes. The Denon CD player can also play DSD files via a USB flash drive, something my current outboard DAC can't do. I will say if you are going to rip your CDs to a good lossless format, be prudent and make at least one, if not two backups on separate hard drives that are not connected to your system. Storage is relatively cheap these days while your time and effort in ripping them is not. Still even a small outbuilding can store thousands of CDs and your lawn mower at the same time, even if your house is too small.
@@jeffkelly5972 I like it. My older CD players were getting well, old, and I wanted to get a "good" newer one without breaking the bank. Since it can play DSD files via the USB input for a flash drive (and other "high res" formats), I don't think I'll miss that it won't play SACDs. I never understood why SACD players cost so much. This $600 Denon player has all the "stuff" in it to play DSD files which is what SACD was all about, so I don't get why a SACD player should cost $1200.
Yip, love my DCD 800 as well, now own 2, in next week's video, I'll be telling you why you should rip your wax cylinders to 8 track and when your WiFi packs in, I still be listening to master of puppets lmao🤘
I'm a Windows user and have been using Exact Audio Copy to rip CDs for time out of mind. EAC is free! For ripping vinyl I've been using GoldWave and true to his word, the developer has never charged for upgrades over the last 25 years or so. I keep 3 copies of all my ripped music, 2 on USB drives and one on the computer used to play my music with Foobar 2000, also free. While I have a subscription to the Tidal streaming service, the downside to that is the disappearance of titles, something that cannot happen when I own a hardcopy of the album.
Goldwave damn ☺️ cooledit fan myself. Eac is very good. For anything analog use an old x-fi sound card with the old mediaplayer software (still on the website, gotta look for x-fi titanium pro windows 7 tools) it has noise reduction thing that is truly brilliant. Tuneable too.
I have ripped all my CD's and even go by the local Goodwill to see what they have (3/$10). I have hundreds of albums and thousands of songs on my hard drive. I've moved copied of them to a thumb drive and plugged it into my car stereo. All the music I want, when i want it!
Your videos for me are fair assessments your making from your own life experience. You seem like a good neighbor offering advice and I like it! Thanks!
I own a couple of audiophile CD players and run them through the same outboard DACs my streamers are going through. The CD player through the same DAC often sounds better than the HD streaming service I use. I also like reading the album liner notes on my CDs, which aren't really the same through streaming services.
@@MODAC Yes, I just always mention this as I'm surprised that the resolution of HD streaming files are supposed to be better than CD, but CDs often sound better.
I have an extensive vinyl collection, but of late have switched to CD's because I am sick and tired of forking out over the top prices for records. They have shot up and bargains are rare, but CD's now provide a viable alternative. Many love the look, feel and sound of vinyl, rejoice in the art work and the character of holding something from say the 1970's that you handled as a youth or missed out on completely. I feel like that sometimes, but have come to the conclusion that above all I am in this for the music and I love the sound of a well produced CD, sharp, concise and reliable. I have three very nice Cambridge Audio CD player, I have had trouble with one because the drive belt perished but that cost me time on You Tube, £4 on line for a new belt and a cut finger fitting it. I love throwing a CD into the try, pressing play and settling down without worry of a scratched record. I luxuriate in the sound and smile at the price I paid. Today I played Grand Funk Railroad Greatest hits - reproduced without tick or jump at incredible volume. Sound imaging was all there I was there again and even the neighbours enjoyed it!!! CD's are great, vinyl is great, but quickly becoming unaffordable as the youth of today discover the wonders of the 1970's! Love your channel abd dead pan delivery and your depth of knowledge, but have some faith in the honourable CD!
@@stefanialengyel9095 Thanks - needed to make the point that vinyl is getting too pricey and CD's offer value and to be honest I like listening to the whole album without getting up at half time and flipping the record!
I agree. I own an old rega p3 which I love but I rarely buy records anymore as the price is ridiculous. You buy 4 or 5 new cd's for the same price as a vinyl album. I just purchased a marantz cd60, it sounds brilliant and I enjoy buy cd's for literally peanuts in charity shops.
If you got a good CD player, this video would never happen. 4:57 - when was the last time you checked a CD prices? They literary doubled in last 5 years. Ripping CD's in FLAC or WAV as a backup is always a good idea but getting rid of CD's just because you run them on a junk players is plain idiotic!
Yep nope, I love my Harman Kardon CD player it's been working great for decades now. In fact it works better than professional CD players I've used. Ripping CD's works well for DJing but it's not what I want at home.
I have a Magnavox CD player that has the laser in the drawer. I don't think it will ever die. But it has no remote, never had one. Yes, it is that old.
Thanks for the video, liked the overview of the alternatives. That being said, here is the reality at my home. I have set up a music server/streamer for my Non audiophile, levelheaded, bride. Ripped to it are her favorite CD's, there are playlist of her favorite artist set up on it, both locally and within her Deezer account. All she needs to do is turn it on and use the remote to navigate to her music. It has a basic, straight forward user interface. You do not need to have a computer, i-pad, phone, or master's degree in computer science to use it. Do I find her streaming music from it? Hardly ever. When she wants music, she fires up her good old CD player. Despite my efforts to set up something that is basically turn it on and hit play. The system still has too much complexity for her to want to use it. With the CD player you just turn it on, put the CD in and hit play. There are no additional menus to navigate, no decision as to use the onboard music library, playlist, or stream directly from a built-in service, or connect and use an app from her i-pad instead. Despite all its failings, you still cannot beat a CD player's simplicity. So, if there is anything within her stereo rack that would need to go, her decision would be to get rid of the music streamer/server.
Sony Mega CD and Technics SL-MC7 are examples of units that in many instances are still running strong in 2023 and have high capacity. In the case of Sony, several Mega CD units may be daisy chained together. These units are often found at thrift stores, but do sell online, often for around $75 to $100.
I have ripped my CD collection using FLAC, and my computer plays through a Schiit Bifrost 2/64. It sounds good, or I used to think so. I had to double down on the CD player, and got the Denon 110th Anniversary SACD player. I've never heard music sound better, it's my favorite piece of equipment.
I bet! I own the DCD-2500NE and it is my favourite piece too. The quality of workmanship is beautiful and the champagne-gold finish is like a finely brushed jewel. I have a feeling the DCD-A110 will be replaced soon with a -2500NE successor which will likely use the same Alpha processor as the -A110, just probably in the same lovely champagne finish. This is probably the maximum you can achieve with the CD format and surprisingly, the price isn’t stratospheric.
I did this years ago. I still keep my CD's in a closet, and still occasionally collect them when that's the only way I can get the music on them. I still even have some vinyl, as well, and there are even a couple of vinyl discs I've ripped- as well as many of old 45's- that are still unobtainable in other formats anywhere.
The collecting aspect is a great factor,I will always keep using a cd player,great players are still being made,so no problem here,and I collect classic cd players too,lots of fun to be had
I have over 800 cds. I ripped them on to a 1TB Seagate portable drive in .wav form. I also copied the cds to MP3 320kbps and they are copied to my digital audio players. I've also copied the contents of the Seagate drive to another portable drive for backup purposes. I play the drive via a usb port on my Samsung television and it is connected to a DAC using an optical cable. RCA cables from the DAC go into my Acoustics powered speakers and subwoofer. I also own an amp, CD player and passive speakers and I sometimes use this set up. I'm pleased with the sound from either set up.
Man these complaints seem insignificant….. you’re complaining about jewel cases being fragile and the booklets hard to get out? Vinyl is even more fragile, comes in cardboard sleeves, and takes up far more room. Vinyl also requires far more maintenance. Stay away from cheap CD players and buy a quality vintage player. They are made with heavy duty components and laser assemblies are readily available. The older players look much cooler than the drab plain black newer ones that are light as a feather. I couldn’t think of a more boring way to listen to music, than to listen from ripped files in a computer…..
I still have my Adcom GCD-600 changer that I bought new ~1991. I often listen to my cd's and have around 500 of them. Haven't added any in a very long time. I have often thought of ripping them and putting them on my NAS but time is not on my side for that project. I think cd's definitely have their place right along cassettes, reel 2 reel and vinyl. Depending on the cd player some had very solid DAC's that really made the music output something special. The beauty of this "hobby" is there's something for everyone. Keep up the great content!
Sorry, Dave, but pitching my CD player isn't for me. My 2,500+ CD collection is nearly all classical. Ripping classical CD's to digital storage isn't really an option. Most classical CD's don't have any track info on the CD, or they have the wrong data. Consequently, I would face a huge keyboarding effort, subject to all manner of errors, as I rip. The liner notes - far more important for classical than popular, and sometimes downright essential - mostly don't exist online. What do I do about them? Scan them? Or keyboard them, too? I'll continue to exercise enough discipline to put the CD's back in their dumb jewel-boxes and keep the jewel-boxes filed in order. (Who designed jewel-boxes anyway? Some government committee?) Most classical repertoire isn't available from streaming services. We classical geeks get our new releases on CD's. And I've not noticed any price drops on used classical CD's, at least not the ones I want to buy. When you rent or buy some copyrighted work (music, video, book, whatever), you're renting or buying only the license to personally use the contents. The law says the copyright owner can yank the license anytime they want. Your investment in the streaming service or cloud storage can disappear for any or no reason, and you have no recourse. If you physically possess the CD, as a practical matter, the license holder can't come after you. As far as balky CD playback hardware is concerned, once my lovingly maintained CD players finally wear out, I'll replace them with cheap DVD players that have an optical out and feed the digital bits into a decent DAC. Then the analog output from the DAC goes into my stereo system which is all analog, from pre-amp to speakers, and mostly vintage.
There was this little boy who wanted a Porsche so badly and only ever got a Fiat. In the end, he just rode his bike, glued himself to roads and told everyone how bad cars were.
I don't have a cd player and have a Sony STR-DE197 receiver. Am trying to figure out how to hook up my Sony BDP-S3200 Blue Ray player to the receiver so I can play CDS. Your solution seems very interesting if I can't resolve my Blue Ray player issue. Do you get as great a sound from your stored CDS as you do from the CD player on a CD player?
I own two Oppos. I’ll never part with them. I will, however, explore the systems mentioned in this video. Thanks for an informative dissertation on the digital home streaming options !
You can also use a DVD or BD player (easily replaceable if it fails) and connect it to a DAC. I actually expected this video to mention something along those lines.
There's something special about just enjoying the CDs - without having to fuss around with a dang PC! or phone! A standalone home stereo with an eye-level CD shelf is hard to beat. We all have CDs we forgot about, but are excellent - it's because we cant see them easily or use them easily. I would like to see some great ideas for this setup. However - that being said, Thanks for the great video and backups are always a smart idea. Copy while you listen!
Unfortunately, I have to disagree Dave. There's nothing like physical media, something you actual hold in your hands and look and read all the information the booklet provides. Besides, it's totally independent from WiFi, Internet and other factors beyond my control. Internet or not, I place my disc in the tray, press 'play' and sit back and enjoy. And a well maintained CD player will function with no issues for years. Possible replacement (after extensive use) of the laser mechanism, perhaps a belt and a lubrication of moving parts, and that's all. Like all machines they do need maintenance. ...and, it's a good practice to get off the listening chair and change a disc, rather than keep your face on a cellular phone's screen and staying inactive for long periods of time.. Yet, each to their own! 😉😉
You makes some valid points but I have kept my CD player (Mission DAD 7000R) it has moments of "I'm not playing that" and she will start to squeak when spinning a disk every now and then, the remote went missing but she still plays well since purchased back in the 80s. However, while I keep my CD collection I do rip them to Flac via my Mac or PC depending on what I am doing and store them on a local drive mainly for background listening I will never throw away my CD player as the sound quality walks all over my digital players as I use my old CD player as a transport to an external DAC, I you missed that idea.
Keeping my dumb cd player and my dumb turntable. You can pay your $15 a month for Roon. I like streaming for the car and walking outside. I can stream in the kitchen. I might even stream occasional in my music room but my vinyl and CDs still rule.
EAC (Exact Audio Copy) is a very good free and easy ripper. My approximately 800 CDs were ripped to a file server years ago, but I refuse to get rid of my player. There is no argument for that. I can have both. I can play my CDs if I want or I can access my flac and wav files with multiple devices. (Apple TV, iPhone, a receiver with network capabilities, etc.)
I recently picked up a Pioneer DVD player from around 2003 that also plays SACDs. I got it for just $10. It features Brown/Burr DACs and makes CDs sound wonderful, as well as playing SACDs. I own around 1500 CDs and still continue to collect them from my record store. That all said, I own probably a dozen CD players that have serious issues.
I have one that I used to use to make back up copies . Can you please tell me where I can get it repaired? There doesn't seem to be any repair shops anymore. Thank you.
Call me old fashion. I like the idea of looking at the cover art as part of the decision process of what to play. The one thing I miss about vinyl is the larger size art work and potential for extensive liner notes. I find lists of songs or albums on a computer uninspiring.
I have a 24 year old Sony CD Player with their ‘fixed pick up mechanism’. It still works like it did when I bought it in 1999. It’s heavy, it’s all aluminium and is slick in it’s operation. I have my music ripped as well and I like using my ripped music for creating playlists and streaming my music via my network streamer. However what I don’t like is software. Especially when an update screws up something that was working previously and then all of a sudden it doesn’t, or it’s becomes temperamental. If I want to play an album give me the CD in my player every time. It’s tactile, you have a physical disc and physical buttons and no software issues or Wi-Fi connections to think about. I get sick of smart devices and computer screens. I want to read that fiddly to get out and put away booklet. The lyrics are in the there, additional artwork is in there and it tells me when, where and who the album was made by/at. Looking at a thumbnail of an album cover on a screen doesn’t quite cut it for me. Lastly I doubt any of my computers or smart devices will still be doing what they do in 24 years like my Sony CD Player is now after 24 years. How many back ups of backups should I keep of my ripped library for when these devices fail through either software obsoletion or hardrive failure? What’s that? Streaming I hear people say! Ah well you see, then you have the problem trying to find the correct versions and masters you want to hear. You have to have a good internet connection even when driving in your car to a remote location, if you want your tunes you need the data. Then you have to pay a sub to play the music you’ve already paid for on CD & LP, or even downloaded, or even better still not be able to find the rare material you have on that obscure CD from way back when. Streaming… yeah! Think I’ll pass on that one…
Hi, just to say upfront that I enjoy ur postings immensely! But, I cannot agree with you on this occasion! I collect vintage Hifi, it is a passion of mine, I bought my first CD player in 1984, Marantz cd54, I still have it, it works perfectly! It is one of 20 CD players that I have in my collection, all are working fine! Marantz, Pioneer, Linn, Naim, Sony, Shangling are all in my collection! If a problem occurs with any of them I get it to my Hifi engineer ASAP! I have 10,000 lp’s 3000 cd’s hundreds of cassette’s and open reels! I do not rip or stream or download! I am always looking to buy more quality vintage kit, turntables, receivers, CD player, cassette decks, speakers! Nobody is right or wrong in this hobby, whatever blows ur skirt up! From the other side of the pond!👍🏻🇬🇧🇺🇸
My approach is a little different. Every commercial disc I own is ripped and stored on external hard drives in WAV for archival purposes. My preamp has two aux inputs, and each aux has a pair of daisy-chained Pioneer 300-disc changers (that's 1200 discs worth of capacity!). Instead of loading the changers with the commercial discs, they are loaded with CDR rips of just the songs I want to listen to most often from my CD collection. I mean, let's face it- it's pretty rare that every song on a store-bought album is good enough to want to listen to often.
My Pioneer PD-S703 is nearly 30 years old. I've only had it for about 4 years but it's seems to have been looked after really well and have never had an issue with it
You are basically correct. I am keeping my CDs and player. No audio server of special player software, just dBpoweramp CD ripper used now. I've ripped most of my CDs to mp3 at first (years back), and now flac. Not all on flac though. To be played on DAP on the go, or connected to my system via USB into my headphone amp-DAC for best sound. I have 45,000 cuts stored on a DAP with 2 (428 Gb) micro SDs - which nearly full now. I wanted to swap one for a (1) Tb card, to fit more as I go. I did try one new Sandisk 1 Tb micro SD last fall. Dropped and dragged in files for 2 to 3 hours. Stopped to let it 'sit' and all files showed, all was well. Did it get burnt out- the next time I checked the card to continue, it did not exist in player not in my computer. That is, no error to be seen. As though it was just a piece of plastic.
It's simple. Put a decent quality sound card into a PC along with a decent trusted namebrand CD/DVD burner and you can watch and listen to pretty much any format you choose. When it wears out you can order another replacement that looks just like it! My PC is my home entertainment center complete with a HDMI card for quality video source for my flat screen TV. As to storing my media, I store my CD's and DVD's in the cheap and simple white paper sleeves that you can buy anywhere for pennies per sleeve and I print my own labels too. It works with no issues.
Informative video, gives some good options to folks that are tired of the mess and clutter of CD's. I have an old Oppo BDP-83 that I still use and enjoy with my SACDs. I sold the TT and albums, simply no longer interested. But, almost all of my listening is on the 2021 Node, love the simplicity of it and it has never once failed to work like some of the other streamers I have owned and since gotten rid of, much like your old CD players. ;-)
And the worst thing about cd players are when a friend brings his $300 cd player to your place and you realize that there's not much difference in sound quality between his cheap player and your player that costs few thousand dollars, thanks for the video.
Hi! I have the Powered Speakers Edifier S1000 MK II and I just need to listen to my CDs, I am thinking of getting the Yamaha CD Player S303 and I don't wanna spend more money in other devices, is it worth? Can I Take advantage of the Built In DAC in the CD Player with my speakers?
Ripping CDs never appealed to me. The CD and CD player give at least a taste of the experience of listening (to full albums) that records offer. If I'm ripping CDs I figure I may as well just use a streaming service.
A million tracks you don't want to hear or your own digital juke box with a few albums you do want to play. Never played all my albums on a regular basis after the collection hit about 50 albums. With some all I have to do is pick up the album and I don't need to play it as all the tracks run though my head. But if all my collection got damaged they are also likely to be the first to replace.
You are right about CD players but not about the CD medium. To get as close to analog tape as you will ever hear you need a high end transport like a dual belt CEC TL-2N connected via SUPERLINK to a CEC DA SL DAC. SUPERLINK outputs utilize (4) separate BNC connectors; 1 dedicated strictly for the audio signal and 3 dedicated to clocks. MCK(Master Clock): The CD transport receives the master clock signal from the D/A converter through this line, and functions as a slave to the DA converter, enabling completely synchronized transportation of audio data. BCK(Bit Clock): Sends bitclock signals, required for digital data bit identification(e.g. sampling frequency) or signal readout, from the CD transport to the D/A converter. LRCK(L/R Clock): Sends left/right identification clock signals from the CD transport to the D/A converter. Very analog smooth / master tape reproduction using this format
I still have my CDS and Cassettes I'm keeping mine and keep for collectables so for generations to come they can see what we used in my generation. I'm a Generation Xer
I have a WiiM mini and a DVD player I’ve had several technics cd players both have failed due to there age hence moving to a DVD player I have two Dacs connected one for the mini and one for the cd player I also use Apple Music to play Hi res I’m pleased with this set up thanks for this video great information 🙌🏻🙌🏻🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
While I haven’t had it for long, my Pioneer PD-M403 hasn’t let me down. I’ve used it off and on for the past 3 years, only issue I’ve had is when I accidentally loaded two discs into the single cd cartridge and that was fixed in seconds. I’m sorry you’ve had so many issues. I need to go back through and re-rip my CD collection as lossless, but it’s hard to find the time anymore…
Let them do their thing but my CD's don't take up a lot of space. I have probably 2000 or so and the ones I don't listen to (honestly most) are in some storage boxes in the basement. I have 10 CD players that are all over 20 years old and have no issues. Some are high dollar players that I bought for less than $100 each. I find ripping is for obsessive compulsives who end up using a lot of time and money so they don't have to get up out of their chair to change a disc. And with streaming do you know what mastering or edition it is?
I Ripped all my CDs from 6 years ago and still rippin some to this day but I can’t trash an expansive Nakamichi CD player it’s too valuable to throw in the trash maybe I’ll figure something out, I play all my ripped music thru an Old MacBook Pro and I’m satisfied with the output, thanks for sharing this video 👍
I love CD players! There’s something special about a modern, compact unit with a stylish wooden body and outstanding sound quality. The moment I turn on the DAC and hear that reassuring click confirming it's powered up, followed by pressing play on the CD player and feeling that tactile response, is pure satisfaction. Adjusting the volume knob to achieve the perfect sound output completes the experience. While some might dismiss CD players as outdated, a well-made, modern model can easily outshine them all. Yes, older CD players may come with their fair share of issues, but my current one is flawless-and that’s the key. These devices are mechanical by nature and have a limited lifespan, so if yours is aging, just replace it. I stream from my NAS too, I love streaming flacs from my local network too. But there's something special about playing a CD on a real CD player for the first time before you rip it.
I have a Sony 300 Disc CD Jukebox that works fine for me. I stopped buying CD's around 2010, but it's still full of CDs. I store the cases away to keep them clean and scratch free, just in case. Player still works flawlessly. Have a spreadsheet that helps me keep track of what disc is were, although the player is quite good at showing the disc info when you choose a disc number to play. I have no interest in burning them into computer files, they are fine the way they are. Not sure if Sony still makes the CD Jukebox, but I'd buy another one of those before I'd spend weeks burning CDs. Plus, it sounds great running through my Yamaha amp.
Changed all my plastic CD cases for custom vinyl wallets a few years back. These hold the discs in paper sleeves and all the artwork and booklets and take up very little shelf space compared to those horrendous jewel cases. I've just kept my longboxes and a few CD books. Much easier to live with. I keep them in clear plastic storage boxes which hold around 150 discs each. They have lids and are stackable and you can peruse your collection like the 45rpm singles boxes from the sixties.
Interesting video. so when you thought that vinyl records were becoming obsolete was that what you really thought or were you going with what with others were thinking? I still have my vinyl collection that started back in the 70s. Never once thought of getting rid of my records regardless of what anyone else thought about vinyl. I have over 2000 CDs which I treasure. I enjoy both formats. I have CDs which I purchased in the 80s and they still look as new as the day I purchased them. Cases too. CD players? Been using an Onkyo for a few years now, with an external DAC. I am awaiting arrival of the Cambridge CXC CD transport. A step up. There is nothing wrong with streaming but I don't ever see myself becoming a streamer. I have enough of a music collection to keep me happy. Thanks for an interesting video 🙂
I'm a roon user as well and like you, I love it. I'm also a Mac user. May I make a recommendation for ripping your CDs? Instead of using the Music app you may want to look into XLD. It's free, converts to ALAC but uses AccurateRip to ensure your rips are...well...accurate.
I just bought Feel Flows and 1967 by the Beach Boys on cd. Been loving them very much. Maybe leave the thrift store cds for low income people to enjoy. And support your local record, cd, and music store.
I still buy my music on cd, but I transfer it to my iPod via my laptop through iTunes, and listen on the iPod. Or laptop. I agree with you re thrift, or what we call charity shops, it's amazing how many cheap CDs I've bought, even to boxed sets of Wagner operas for next to nothing!
I’ve recently upgraded ti the Roon 2.0 with a new Mac Mini M1 and have ripped a ton of CDs like you. However, I did use my 1990 Luxman CD player and connected a digital coaxial cable to my DAC and the bought an Audiolab 6000cdt CD transport. I sold the old CD player. I EVEN bought NEW CD jewel cases for all of my CDs because I treasure them and enjoy using a CD player/transport. Next I will rip SACDs, not to get rid of anything, but to gain the new experience and enjoy all of my analog & digital sources. I would recommend you do the same. Off to Goodwill to find some $2.99 CDs!
I moved from CDs to having a NAS network box with 12TB storage, and a laptop with a specialist SMSL M8 DAC, headphone amp and linear PSU. There was only a couple of software audio player choices available that were DSD / SACD / ASIO compatible with the hardware; one was JRiver Media Centre and the other is Foobar and the latter is what I use. Best setup I have ever had in the 40+ years I have been using HiFi and music listening gear. I tried to get a friend to do the same, but he had very strong opinions on the subject and stuck with buying CDs, and filling up his room to the point things were uncomfortable (2000+ CDs / Blurays / SACD etc). Whereas I shredded all my home burnt discs and threw away all the plastic jewel CD cases for my shop bought ones, and then slotted the discs in the CD booklets and placed them all in a plastic storage container. I did the same with my VHS video tapes, ripped them to DVD discs and later to hard drive, and threw away the VHS tapes. As for cloud music services, I avoid them at all costs.
I bought an old Kyocera cd player and it works great other than the drawer not wanting to open without some persuasion. It doesn't really bother me that much. Eventually I will replace the belt.
Generally agree with pretty much everything you say in this video, but I have a couple of comments. Firstly, if you’re serious about ripping your music collection and getting rid of the CDs, get a RAID for storage - hearing just one tragic tale of someone’s collection disappearing after a HD/SSD failure should be enough to convince anybody to take a belts n braces approach to the integrity of their data. Secondly, use EAC for ripping the CDs, it’s generally accepted to be the best option for bit perfect ripping, and it deals with ‘unplayable’ CDs well too. Oh, and it’s free!
Yes, EAC is highly recommended but it takes much longer due to its accuracy and correction. I had to use Ashampoo to rip a few cds as EAC struggled with the odd track or two. Trying to rip the "Best of Nazareth" (not a scratch on the disc) was a non-starter with EAC so Ashampoo came to the rescue.
if you get pro dj cd player like a mk 3 from Pioneer or a Denon 3700 or 39oo cd player or the Technics cdj which has many versions that have been modded by gifted geeks.All these machines were built for use in clubs and made for constant use.The Technics and Denon machines have spinning platters and the Technics is very pretty
I am very attached to my cds, mostly I rip them on to SSDs. But I still love to play a cd at night. I bought a cd wall unit that is white and is sold everywhere,it has BT /radio/USB/sd card too. To my amazement the speakers sound so clear that I don't need to increase the volume to hear movies,which I also watch late. Some people like vinyl I'm fond of my cd collection.
Always enjoy your vids Dave. I too know the pain of ripping my CD collection (1000+) to FLAC. It took me a few weeks to complete the process. I plan on keeping my discs as a failsafe, but it's so easy to stream my files using the WIIM-Mini. I really like the looks of the Roon U/I , but I'm an Amazon music user, and really don't want another monthly subscription. Keep up the great work. 👍
Yep the joy of “ripping” 4500 cd’s joy o joy….I will say this…I own two sony 5 disc cd changers one from my grandfather and one from myself..Both these units are at least 30 years old and they both play cd’s perfectly…I had no issues what so ever with playing cds ever..
I thoroughly enjoy my Sony CD Player. Its a CDP-CX220. Its from 1992 i think and still works and sounds superb. Also i am able to use it without the remote. Other than the occasional 1% of the time skipping that only happens during the first few seconds of a song, it works flawlessly. Also cool to use.
I buy a lot of anthology collections from various labels like Time Life, Reader's Digest, Rhino, etc. I often get duplicate versions of the same song, same artist on different CDs. Many times the same songs are different from each other. They may have been remixed, or might be alternate versions recorded at the same time for the single vs the album. Sometimes they are re-recordings of the same song done later. There are many cases when I have eight or ten different versions of the same song, all somewhat different from each other. Usually one or two versions are my favorite and I listen to those versions most of the time. My point is that if you are streaming a song, you get ONE version of that song. Maybe it's the best version, but probably it is the most recently remixed version. If it has been made more loud to compete with modern music, then it is probably not the version you like best.
I rip all my CDs to DSD128 format and they are a match in heaven with my PS Audio DirectStream DAC. For me personally, DSD (paired with the correct DAC) is as close sounding as a master tape. I do own a few CD players and I never have any issue with them, I do listen to them from time to time.
One man's trash is another man's treasure. I modify cd players and I have mine up to the point that to get anywhere near it for sound quality you'd have to have a $2,000 phono cartridge on a $2,500 turntable. I bought it years ago for under $200 used on ebay. Never gives me a problem. There are more things to pick on with record playing. Having to get up & flip the record, inner groove distortion, warps, bad pressings, ticks and pops (& snaps), cleaning the stylus, limited music space per side, stylus and record wear, expensive greedy prices on both new & used lps, lps take up 6 times more room to store than cds scratches often making lp records unplayable, (some cds have hundreds of scratches and still play perfect). Seems like complaining would have a better subject than cd players. They're cheap and plentiful. Just buy another one. You won't usually have to take another $20 out of your pocket that often.
Point well taken but when I tried and eventually stopped ripping CDs, my question was, are all laser pick-ups created equal? Obviously there is more to extracting every "bit" of information from a CD than meets the eye. So, one must do a comparative analysis of all available CD transports out there, past and present, and find out which are the top and how accessible are they? Jitter handling and clock accuracy play a big role in resolution and fidelity. Three decades into this hobby and I have yet to discover the top transports for ripping.
The best thing about 76 years old,and broke is everything sounds good, when my cd player packed up i found a LG dvd player for £6.50 and it sounds ok to my old ears,my local charity shop sells cd,s at eight for a pound,buy loads what i don,t like i take back,so i get to hear things i would not buy, win,win!!!
I will never get rid of my CD players...yes I own several.
SONY D-NE320 is my absolute favorite. Not only do you get Parametric EQ, you get Clear Bass! You can stack both of these effects. Also ATRAC3 can fit pretty much one band's whole discography on one CD-R.
Yeah soon there will be no cd players around, so let's enjoy them while we can and funny thing is the value will probably go up when people start to feel nostalgic for them and may become trendy
I never get rid of anything that's not broken beyond repair.
I'm with you, I won't get rid of mine either. I have ripped my CDs to my computer, but I want to keep my CD players, you'll never know when one might come in handy.
I agree!
In 1985 my wife surprised me with a CD player for my birthday. I sold most of my vinyl, packed my turntable away and never looked back. I was on a forum and a guy said he put all of his CDs on his computer and sold them. A short time later his computer crashed and he lost every thing. I will always have a CD or Blu Ray player to play CDs.
With digital media the trick is to have more than one back up. Secondly move the files to a new drive periodically. With a couple of backups I can usually recover anything that gets deleted or corrupted.
I first downloaded podcasts, ripped all my CDs, then transferred vinyl, cassettes and negatives. Takes a long time. Scanning books is the next task to add to the digital library - not everything commercial can be found in a digital format.
Yes!!! Computers crash and streaming services go belly up. That's why I have CDs. Blu-ray players are great too. They'll play anything. And I'm not beholden to a streaming service, paying them a subscription fee every month. I OWN MY CDS.
Correct....!
Mike…Spotify is not sustainable and the artists are getting ripped off. As long as you keep the CD.s then ripping to a SSD or cloud solution is excellent. We recently stopped all our streaming services ( Netflix, Disney ) and even Amazon prime. Buy local go to theatre and cinema . We spend the same amount of money as before but at local cinema. Concert and theatre.
@@larrymagee8758 Contract not getting renewed between streaming service and artist is the big worry.
Major issues with your idea:
1: The time it takes to rip all of your CDs to a computer would be MUCH better used to just enjoy actually listening to your music collection! (On/using a CD player) Especially for extra large and extremely diverse music collections like mine. (I have about 40K CDs overall, in about 40 different genres from all over the world.)
2: The sound quality of most computer's sound cards is not as good as most (especially higher-end) CD players, and especially if you also are using a good external DAC.
3. What happens once your computer and/or hard drive(s) inevitably crash and you lose your entire music collection as a result??! (MAJOR tears! Lol!)(It WILL happen sooner or later if you rely exclusively on your computer to play all of your music collection!)
4. Talk about "boring"!... Which is actually more involving?... Actually picking out a CD from your collection and playing it, (in a good CD player), while looking at the liner notes and appreciating the artist's artwork on a CD's cover book, and then actually reading the song lyrics from said album booklet while listening to or even singing along with the song... OR... just looking through a long, same font, list of basic word, boring text song titles on a computer screen and then just clicking on one that you wanna hear? (The latter is easier maybe, but definitely not more involving OR enjoyable!)
5. I notice that most of the CD players you mentioned that have mechanical issues are more "fancy" or "higher-end" (and inevitably and unnecessarily expensive, especially to have to repair), but I just have a few more (vintage) "basic brand" CD players from Sony, Yamaha, and Onkyo that all still play perfectly and sound great too. It seems to me, from my experience over the decades, the simpler, more basic something is, the more reliable it generally tends to be long-term, maybe because there's less to go wrong in it? Also, many overly "fancy" or expensive "boutique" brand players tend to sometimes have untried and untested (by anyone but them), mechanisms or electronics in them, which might be cool or "exotic" when new, but over many decades they generally tend to have less guarantee of working properly, or so it oftentimes seems...
Besides, if you don't already have a good CD player, or maybe you need a "new" one for whatever reason, as you said; the CD players in the used market rn are almost literally a "dime a dozen", especially in most thrift stores, and good quality vintage CD players can be had in those types of stores for about the same price as a new CD still is nowadays. (Somewhere between $5-$20, depending on what it is) So even if your current player ever craps out, another good used one by a good, usually reliable brand such as Sony can be found almost anywhere for a VERY cheap price if you look! (I almost NEVER have a problem with Sony brand CD players always working in the thrift stores whenever I find them... Sometimes I may use one to test listen to a few used CDs that I'm considering buying, and/or to test out another audio component as a quality music source.)
6. If you ever ONLY just rely on any streaming service for ALL of your music then they can and DO randomly delete or pull certain albums and artists from their playlists completely due to copyright issues and/or popularity, so then you're out that specific album or artist from your music collection. :(
7. You need internet for any streaming service. A CD can be played on a CD player ANYWHERE at anytime that you may feel like it. No additional cost involved!
Bottom line is that if you want the absolute quickest, easiest, and most "convenient" way to play most average, well known music, then a good streaming service is fine, but for very rare, exclusive, out of print, collectors item albums, or most true audiophile recordings, a good quality CD player is still a MUST to own IMO, especially for long-term music collection backup at the very least!
💯 Long live the CD!
so much wrong. i’ll just point out the first one. you can listen to music while you are ripping
btw… i am a CD collector
I bought a Yamaha disc player, plays SACD, DVD-A, Redbook CD and has a 197mhz bit rate. Purchased out of their online Outlet store and delivered to my door for $35. I make CD towers from 3/4" plywood using a Dado blade set for proper slot height. An 18" tower cost me little and holds a couple dozen disc cases. Lots of ways to skin cats.
Yep. You throw out your CD player (which is dumb, but doesn't need a subscription) and you're into paying a subscription to use this setup. Which is fine, if you're happy about all those monthly direct debt amounts (that you've probably forgotten about) coming out your account. It's just another one. But if we're talking about thrift stores then that isn't a foregone conclusion that this is the best solution for everyone.
I play all mediums, I recently added a nice Emotiva CD Transport to play more recent titles, it sounds great and renewed my interest in CDs.
Your video really learns what it entails to stop using CDs and start streaming. But the best (vintage) CD players are definitely up there with modern DACs and sometimes even outperform them. There is also a big plus in not having to use all those computer related stuff in the process. I will stick to using LPs and CDs and then I can use my time to replace jewel cases when needed and to take care of the new shelves I need to neatly store my beautiful collection of music documents.
I agree I love my cd's I have hundreds of them stored in archival binders also enjoy my players. I also have some files but do not enjoy them as I do cd's records and even cassette tapes.
At my last job in the audio world I worked for an extremely high end two channel and custom install operation in Los Angeles.
We sold LOTS of high end spinners from McIntosh, Moon by Simaudio, and Rega.
However for our real hardcore enthusiasts our top solution was ripping CDs using a bit perfect check, keeping the data on a Media PC, setting up a great network, and then streaming the local data to a LINN or a MOON network media player.
The stereo-heads preferred the data transfer method vs. the mechanics spinning and any possible errors that induces.
I understand the nostalgia associated with LPs and CDs, but once spotify opened the entire world's catalog of music, I never looked back. My CDs sit in my cd wallet under my couch. Haven't played a CD in 10 years. I guess I'm trading a tiny bit of fidelity for access and the convenience of having music with me everywhere I go
I agree
@@Kevinschart Nah I disagree. Spotify is a awesome resource, I listen to it all day at work. But even if you don't care about sound quality, I bet 1/3 of my collection is not even found on spotify. Half of the albums I do have on spotify randomly get certain tracks grayed out, due to legal reasons etc. One great example of this, is the Jack White produced Loretta Lynn cd from 2004 Van Lear Rose. It has been pulled from spotify, itunes, everywhere (in the U.S. at least) except for illegal uploads to youtube. Physical media still wins for me. Converting cds to digital is great, but it still relies on the cloud, or a hard drive or usb stick not to fail etc. Records/lps are getting super high and the cd will have another 2nd heyday in a few years they won't be cheap. I already see some one ebay costing way up over 50 dollars apiece.
CDs are coming back! Sales are up, vinyl is getting more expensive, some albums go for $40 to $50 dollars or much much more, new CDs are from $7 to $12 and used ones .50 cents maybe $1 dollar, it is more affordable to get CDs than records, ripping them is great, keeping a good CD player is a good idea just like keeping a good turntable, love all formats including streaming, everybody has their own favorite that's cool, thank you for your videos!
Theyre charging $1-7 a piece now for cassette cases. I needed a pile but wasnt willing to pay $100 for cases...then i found the very sad never sold cassette tapes still boxed from the studio. $30 for 60 cases and with 60 cassettes i can use to record over 👍. Ohh so sad though lol. I have a wall rack filled with identical mariachi tapes atm 🤣🤣🤣🤣
I’m still buying CD’s…. Great format.
I’m going through a CD craze now as if it’s the hottest fad. CDs can be fun
CDs are coming back but good CD players are not. There are crappy ones from China or very expensive big square boxes ones by others like Sony, Onkyo, Yamaha and that kind of brand that you cannot get the sound out if you dont also purchase another big square box called amplifier or amps and then the speakers which are also very expensive unless you purchase ones they call bookshelf that have tiny woofers.
CD'S are here to stay ! they will have a comeback soon 😍💿
CDs and physical media is the future. I like having my CDs on a shelf where I can browse and pull some old ones to listen to on many players around the house. Streaming is only good for previewing an album before buying it. I also collect Tapes. Thats another conversation.
I love physical media too but I dont think its the future. Technology moves quickly and its only a matter of time before they perfect streaming.
I wish video games would go physical again.
@@kjrchannel1480 same
@@kjrchannel1480 there our,sad part,there limited my guess.i don't buy old games anymore because of third party, pushes insane priceses
The great strength of CDs is their versatility. The fact that you can listen to them using a CD player or rip them to computer and play them over a streaming device to your hifi offers you options. I still do a ‘mixtape’ approach when ripping CDs and make my own compilations. I usually rip to WAV files probably because I am used to the format when exporting stems of my own music from a DAW. I’ve ripped much of my CD collection to an external HDD in the past, only to find the HDD has died. Bearing in mind how time consuming this is, once bitten springs to mind, but I’ve taken the plunge to do it again as it gives me the choices of quickly finding an album on PC or just reaching up to a shelf picking whatever I fancy and slotting it into a cd player and closing my eyes and listen. At least CD gives me the choice to do this unlike vinyl. Physical media (albums being the best) offer me so much greater an experience than music files. However, just because someone you don’t know from Adam tells you that a format is dead has not persuaded me to sell them all or throw a player into the recycling (I have to admit your argument has its merits, as I wonder how long we can keep CDs/DVD players going in the long term?) I intend to keep my vinyl, shellac, CDs, MDs, 1/4in reels and cassettes for as long as I breathe or have the ability to play them.
Any files copied to Hard Disc need to be immediately backed up to ANOTHER Hard disc. It isn't a question of "IF" a Hard drive will fail, it is only "WHEN". I'm keeping ALL of my massive CD collection. But I have also ripped them to Hard Disc + AND backed that up to 2 more Hard Discs!!!! If I'm in a room with a CD player, I have no problem using a CD player.
@@ElectroIllusion Very sensible advice. I've done the same too. Over the years, I've even copied my fave CDs in my collection to CD-Rs after I experienced disc rot in a few discs some years back. Nothing lasts for ever, sadly.
Regarding ripping your CDs and having back ups, If you do this the best option would be to invest in a media server. These systems work pretty much like a normal computer server. It uses multiple hard disks, usually in a RAID configuration, to store files on. There can be a decent investment of between $500-$1,000 up front, depending upon how elaborate you would like to get with the unit, but its advantage is that these systems are incredibly robust and significantly reduce the chance of data loss. These type of computer systems are designed with the intent to reduce HDD failure and data loss as much as possible.
Another nice thing is that you can also hook them up to a TV and if you have any ripped or downloaded movies you can use it for watching those as well. If you have multiple TVs or systems you can also use the server to stream to any of your devices - phones included as long as you have an internet connection. I have also seen software packages that allow you to set up your own email so you don’t have to use Gmail or whatever service you are using now if privacy is a concern. I have been looking at these systems for a little while, but I haven’t pulled the trigger yet. since I have been saving for a house. However, from what I have researched so far I think this is definitely the way to go if you want to keep digital copies of your music or movie collection.
About 30 years ago I splashed out on a Linn integrated amplifier and CD player. They were expensive at the time [about £1,000 each] but somehow I justified the price to myself. My son uses the amp now [it still works perfectly] and I still use the CD player [which also works perfectly]. I guess it proves my grandmother right.. she used to say "you buy cheap, you buy twice".
And the world if software and streaming etc is one of poor business. Think of all those kids that spent fortunes on iTunes and when the iPod broke that was it all their money gone they owned nothing
Yes that’s what people will never understand stream all the music on ur cheap asss cell phones to listen to ur low quality music 🎶 While CDs 💿 have better sound quality and u own the music forever
Streaming is garbage Spotify Apple Music having all that music is lazyyyy anc broke 😅
Oh i wanted one. Not a common name but damn you rang a bell there lol
@@robertquant1122 not to mention the shady deals, apple adjusting music so it makes beats headphones sound better than the competetion etc. And alac 🤢. Damn i miss the torrent network. Still remember when the artists tried selling the albums for $1 each (what the artist called fair) and the studios beat them down with streaming. Always some monopoly making life shit for everyone
I guess I will keep my CD player it's simple!
I feel you! We love our discs, but a small house and tonnes of discs don't match. I've cut down on my records and laserdiscs because of just this problem. Still, there is something special about the act of physically going through a collection, selecting a disc, opening it and playing.
Yes CDs 💿 forever 2023 until I die ima keep supporting them and selling them Thanks to aomeba records, Amazon, eBay and target 🎯 we keep the CDs 💿 alive and we need to support artist 👩🎨
If only there was a format which took up way less space than a record/laserdisc, sounded/looked way better, lasted longer, and was supported to a greater extent by more devices to the point where you probably have multiple capable devices in the house already? Some kind of digital, optical disc?
My Marantz cd player is now 9 years old, connected to an el34 tube integrated amp and small wharfedale floorstanders, I am very pleased with these well built stereo components. Smooth, warm and detailed music. Heaven!
Not going to throw away my three CD players ever. Streaming is nice, yes you can rip them to FLAC or wav and play them, but I LOVE my CDs and my players. Just bought a new Denon DCD-800ne last year. It sounds great, as good as streaming does with my outboard DAC. And if I ever get a substantially better DAC, I can use the Denon player as a transport. As is stated on forums like Audiogon, to equal the sound of a $600 CD player you need to spend about 3X that on your digital front end to make streaming sound equal to it. Heck, I still play vinyl about 10% of the time and even play well-recorded cassettes. The Denon CD player can also play DSD files via a USB flash drive, something my current outboard DAC can't do. I will say if you are going to rip your CDs to a good lossless format, be prudent and make at least one, if not two backups on separate hard drives that are not connected to your system. Storage is relatively cheap these days while your time and effort in ripping them is not. Still even a small outbuilding can store thousands of CDs and your lawn mower at the same time, even if your house is too small.
Correct...!
I have heard good things about the Denon.
@@jeffkelly5972 I like it. My older CD players were getting well, old, and I wanted to get a "good" newer one without breaking the bank. Since it can play DSD files via the USB input for a flash drive (and other "high res" formats), I don't think I'll miss that it won't play SACDs.
I never understood why SACD players cost so much. This $600 Denon player has all the "stuff" in it to play DSD files which is what SACD was all about, so I don't get why a SACD player should cost $1200.
@@rosswarren436 When my old cd player died I switched to a Denon dvd player and I am ok with that.
Yip, love my DCD 800 as well, now own 2, in next week's video, I'll be telling you why you should rip your wax cylinders to 8 track and when your WiFi packs in, I still be listening to master of puppets lmao🤘
I'm a Windows user and have been using Exact Audio Copy to rip CDs for time out of mind. EAC is free! For ripping vinyl I've been using GoldWave and true to his word, the developer has never charged for upgrades over the last 25 years or so. I keep 3 copies of all my ripped music, 2 on USB drives and one on the computer used to play my music with Foobar 2000, also free. While I have a subscription to the Tidal streaming service, the downside to that is the disappearance of titles, something that cannot happen when I own a hardcopy of the album.
Goldwave damn ☺️ cooledit fan myself. Eac is very good. For anything analog use an old x-fi sound card with the old mediaplayer software (still on the website, gotta look for x-fi titanium pro windows 7 tools) it has noise reduction thing that is truly brilliant. Tuneable too.
Another + for EAC! I like Audacity for ripping vinyl. It's also free.
Is there anything wrong with using Windows Media Player to rip CDs to FLAC? It seems to work great for me, it's already on my computer, and it's free.
No wonder I was able to buy a used $2,000 DVD player Pioneer Elite DV-38A for $100 last week.
I have ripped all my CD's and even go by the local Goodwill to see what they have (3/$10). I have hundreds of albums and thousands of songs on my hard drive. I've moved copied of them to a thumb drive and plugged it into my car stereo. All the music I want, when i want it!
Your videos for me are fair assessments your making from your own life experience. You seem like a good neighbor offering advice and I like it! Thanks!
I own a couple of audiophile CD players and run them through the same outboard DACs my streamers are going through. The CD player through the same DAC often sounds better than the HD streaming service I use. I also like reading the album liner notes on my CDs, which aren't really the same through streaming services.
I wasn’t suggesting to stream. Also, Roon has a lot of info about the artist and albums.
what cd player do you recommend as a transport to an external dac?
@@MODAC Yes, I just always mention this as I'm surprised that the resolution of HD streaming files are supposed to be better than CD, but CDs often sound better.
I have an extensive vinyl collection, but of late have switched to CD's because I am sick and tired of forking out over the top prices for records. They have shot up and bargains are rare, but CD's now provide a viable alternative. Many love the look, feel and sound of vinyl, rejoice in the art work and the character of holding something from say the 1970's that you handled as a youth or missed out on completely. I feel like that sometimes, but have come to the conclusion that above all I am in this for the music and I love the sound of a well produced CD, sharp, concise and reliable. I have three very nice Cambridge Audio CD player, I have had trouble with one because the drive belt perished but that cost me time on You Tube, £4 on line for a new belt and a cut finger fitting it. I love throwing a CD into the try, pressing play and settling down without worry of a scratched record. I luxuriate in the sound and smile at the price I paid. Today I played Grand Funk Railroad Greatest hits - reproduced without tick or jump at incredible volume. Sound imaging was all there I was there again and even the neighbours enjoyed it!!! CD's are great, vinyl is great, but quickly becoming unaffordable as the youth of today discover the wonders of the 1970's! Love your channel abd dead pan delivery and your depth of knowledge, but have some faith in the honourable CD!
Well said! I totally agree on every point...
@@stefanialengyel9095 Thanks - needed to make the point that vinyl is getting too pricey and CD's offer value and to be honest I like listening to the whole album without getting up at half time and flipping the record!
I agree. I own an old rega p3 which I love but I rarely buy records anymore as the price is ridiculous. You buy 4 or 5 new cd's for the same price as a vinyl album.
I just purchased a marantz cd60, it sounds brilliant and I enjoy buy cd's for literally peanuts in charity shops.
If you have a descent cd player the quality of the sound is beyond any other media
If you got a good CD player, this video would never happen. 4:57 - when was the last time you checked a CD prices? They literary doubled in last 5 years. Ripping CD's in FLAC or WAV as a backup is always a good idea but getting rid of CD's just because you run them on a junk players is plain idiotic!
Yep nope, I love my Harman Kardon CD player it's been working great for decades now. In fact it works better than professional CD players I've used. Ripping CD's works well for DJing but it's not what I want at home.
I have a Magnavox CD player that has the laser in the drawer. I don't think it will ever die. But it has no remote, never had one. Yes, it is that old.
When they told me CD's had killed vinyl, I threw away, or gave away, over 300 vinyl albums. I would give my left testicle to have them now.
I gave away 1000+. Been building them back up now.
@@MODAC Wow! I’d give them both for 1000! 😀
I threw my TV in the trash 36 years ago; one of my best moves 👍👍
Thanks for the video, liked the overview of the alternatives. That being said, here is the reality at my home. I have set up a music server/streamer for my Non audiophile, levelheaded, bride. Ripped to it are her favorite CD's, there are playlist of her favorite artist set up on it, both locally and within her Deezer account. All she needs to do is turn it on and use the remote to navigate to her music. It has a basic, straight forward user interface. You do not need to have a computer, i-pad, phone, or master's degree in computer science to use it. Do I find her streaming music from it? Hardly ever. When she wants music, she fires up her good old CD player.
Despite my efforts to set up something that is basically turn it on and hit play. The system still has too much complexity for her to want to use it. With the CD player you just turn it on, put the CD in and hit play. There are no additional menus to navigate, no decision as to use the onboard music library, playlist, or stream directly from a built-in service, or connect and use an app from her i-pad instead. Despite all its failings, you still cannot beat a CD player's simplicity. So, if there is anything within her stereo rack that would need to go, her decision would be to get rid of the music streamer/server.
Sony Mega CD and Technics SL-MC7 are examples of units that in many instances are still running strong in 2023 and have high capacity. In the case of Sony, several Mega CD units may be daisy chained together. These units are often found at thrift stores, but do sell online, often for around $75 to $100.
I have ripped my CD collection using FLAC, and my computer plays through a Schiit Bifrost 2/64. It sounds good, or I used to think so. I had to double down on the CD player, and got the Denon 110th Anniversary SACD player. I've never heard music sound better, it's my favorite piece of equipment.
I bet! I own the DCD-2500NE and it is my favourite piece too. The quality of workmanship is beautiful and the champagne-gold finish is like a finely brushed jewel. I have a feeling the DCD-A110 will be replaced soon with a -2500NE successor which will likely use the same Alpha processor as the -A110, just probably in the same lovely champagne finish. This is probably the maximum you can achieve with the CD format and surprisingly, the price isn’t stratospheric.
I did this years ago. I still keep my CD's in a closet, and still occasionally collect them when that's the only way I can get the music on them. I still even have some vinyl, as well, and there are even a couple of vinyl discs I've ripped- as well as many of old 45's- that are still unobtainable in other formats anywhere.
The collecting aspect is a great factor,I will always keep using a cd player,great players are still being made,so no problem here,and I collect classic cd players too,lots of fun to be had
And all equipment needs maintenance from time to time
I have over 800 cds. I ripped them on to a 1TB Seagate portable drive in .wav form. I also copied the cds to MP3 320kbps and they are copied to my digital audio players. I've also copied the contents of the Seagate drive to another portable drive for backup purposes. I play the drive via a usb port on my Samsung television and it is connected to a DAC using an optical cable. RCA cables from the DAC go into my Acoustics powered speakers and subwoofer. I also own an amp, CD player and passive speakers and I sometimes use this set up. I'm pleased with the sound from either set up.
Man these complaints seem insignificant…..
you’re complaining about jewel cases being fragile and the booklets hard to get out?
Vinyl is even more fragile, comes in cardboard sleeves, and takes up far more room. Vinyl also requires far more maintenance.
Stay away from cheap CD players and buy a quality vintage player. They are made with heavy duty components and laser assemblies are readily available. The older players look much cooler than the drab plain black newer ones that are light as a feather.
I couldn’t think of a more boring way to listen to music, than to listen from ripped files in a computer…..
I still have my Adcom GCD-600 changer that I bought new ~1991. I often listen to my cd's and have around 500 of them. Haven't added any in a very long time. I have often thought of ripping them and putting them on my NAS but time is not on my side for that project. I think cd's definitely have their place right along cassettes, reel 2 reel and vinyl. Depending on the cd player some had very solid DAC's that really made the music output something special. The beauty of this "hobby" is there's something for everyone. Keep up the great content!
Sorry, Dave, but pitching my CD player isn't for me. My 2,500+ CD collection is nearly all classical.
Ripping classical CD's to digital storage isn't really an option. Most classical CD's don't have any track info on the CD, or they have the wrong data. Consequently, I would face a huge keyboarding effort, subject to all manner of errors, as I rip. The liner notes - far more important for classical than popular, and sometimes downright essential - mostly don't exist online. What do I do about them? Scan them? Or keyboard them, too?
I'll continue to exercise enough discipline to put the CD's back in their dumb jewel-boxes and keep the jewel-boxes filed in order. (Who designed jewel-boxes anyway? Some government committee?)
Most classical repertoire isn't available from streaming services. We classical geeks get our new releases on CD's. And I've not noticed any price drops on used classical CD's, at least not the ones I want to buy.
When you rent or buy some copyrighted work (music, video, book, whatever), you're renting or buying only the license to personally use the contents. The law says the copyright owner can yank the license anytime they want. Your investment in the streaming service or cloud storage can disappear for any or no reason, and you have no recourse. If you physically possess the CD, as a practical matter, the license holder can't come after you.
As far as balky CD playback hardware is concerned, once my lovingly maintained CD players finally wear out, I'll replace them with cheap DVD players that have an optical out and feed the digital bits into a decent DAC. Then the analog output from the DAC goes into my stereo system which is all analog, from pre-amp to speakers, and mostly vintage.
There was this little boy who wanted a Porsche so badly and only ever got a Fiat. In the end, he just rode his bike, glued himself to roads and told everyone how bad cars were.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I don't have a cd player and have a Sony STR-DE197 receiver. Am trying to figure out how to hook up my Sony BDP-S3200 Blue Ray player to the receiver so I can play CDS. Your solution seems very interesting if I can't resolve my Blue Ray player issue. Do you get as great a sound from your stored CDS as you do from the CD player on a CD player?
Yes, sound just the same.
Nothing beats the looks of the 80’s cd changers. Im keeping mine.
I own two Oppos. I’ll never part with them. I will, however, explore the systems mentioned in this video. Thanks for an informative dissertation on the digital home streaming options !
You can also use a DVD or BD player (easily replaceable if it fails) and connect it to a DAC. I actually expected this video to mention something along those lines.
Because that was not the point of the video. Thanks
There's something special about just enjoying the CDs - without having to fuss around with a dang PC! or phone! A standalone home stereo with an eye-level CD shelf is hard to beat. We all have CDs we forgot about, but are excellent - it's because we cant see them easily or use them easily. I would like to see some great ideas for this setup. However - that being said, Thanks for the great video and backups are always a smart idea. Copy while you listen!
Unfortunately, I have to disagree Dave.
There's nothing like physical media, something you actual hold in your hands and look and read all the information the booklet provides.
Besides, it's totally independent from WiFi, Internet and other factors beyond my control.
Internet or not, I place my disc in the tray, press 'play' and sit back and enjoy.
And a well maintained CD player will function with no issues for years. Possible replacement (after extensive use) of the laser mechanism, perhaps a belt and a lubrication of moving parts, and that's all.
Like all machines they do need maintenance.
...and, it's a good practice to get off the listening chair and change a disc, rather than keep your face on a cellular phone's screen and staying inactive for long periods of time..
Yet,
each to their own! 😉😉
You makes some valid points but I have kept my CD player (Mission DAD 7000R) it has moments of "I'm not playing that" and she will start to squeak when spinning a disk every now and then, the remote went missing but she still plays well since purchased back in the 80s. However, while I keep my CD collection I do rip them to Flac via my Mac or PC depending on what I am doing and store them on a local drive mainly for background listening I will never throw away my CD player as the sound quality walks all over my digital players as I use my old CD player as a transport to an external DAC, I you missed that idea.
I have a 5 disc CD player I bought years ago. It works great. I've never had a problem with it.
Thanks for the advice, now I can get more CD players with less price in the used markets, Thanks a lot.
4:47 "...most music listeners have moved on to streaming services..." But not most people who listen to music.
and even less audiophiles... most of us are into vinyls, reels and so on.
Most don't actually listen keenly to music but use it just for background.
Keeping my dumb cd player and my dumb turntable. You can pay your $15 a month for Roon. I like streaming for the car and walking outside. I can stream in the kitchen. I might even stream occasional in my music room but my vinyl and CDs still rule.
So the ripped CDs in FLAC or ALAC can't be played in iTunes?
EAC (Exact Audio Copy) is a very good free and easy ripper. My approximately 800 CDs were ripped to a file server years ago, but I refuse to get rid of my player. There is no argument for that. I can have both. I can play my CDs if I want or I can access my flac and wav files with multiple devices. (Apple TV, iPhone, a receiver with network capabilities, etc.)
I recently picked up a Pioneer DVD player from around 2003 that also plays SACDs. I got it for just $10. It features Brown/Burr DACs and makes CDs sound wonderful, as well as playing SACDs. I own around 1500 CDs and still continue to collect them from my record store. That all said, I own probably a dozen CD players that have serious issues.
I have one that I used to use to make back up copies . Can you please tell me where I can get it repaired? There doesn't seem to be any repair shops anymore. Thank you.
Call me old fashion. I like the idea of looking at the cover art as part of the decision process of what to play. The one thing I miss about vinyl is the larger size art work and potential for extensive liner notes. I find lists of songs or albums on a computer uninspiring.
I have a 24 year old Sony CD Player with their ‘fixed pick up mechanism’.
It still works like it did when I bought it in 1999. It’s heavy, it’s all aluminium and is slick in it’s operation.
I have my music ripped as well and I like using my ripped music for creating playlists and streaming my music via my network streamer. However what I don’t like is software. Especially when an update screws up something that was working previously and then all of a sudden it doesn’t, or it’s becomes temperamental.
If I want to play an album give me the CD in my player every time. It’s tactile, you have a physical disc and physical buttons and no software issues or Wi-Fi connections to think about. I get sick of smart devices and computer screens.
I want to read that fiddly to get out and put away booklet. The lyrics are in the there, additional artwork is in there and it tells me when, where and who the album was made by/at. Looking at a thumbnail of an album cover on a screen doesn’t quite cut it for me.
Lastly I doubt any of my computers or smart devices will still be doing what they do in 24 years like my Sony CD Player is now after 24 years. How many back ups of backups should I keep of my ripped library for when these devices fail through either software obsoletion or hardrive failure?
What’s that? Streaming I hear people say! Ah well you see, then you have the problem trying to find the correct versions and masters you want to hear. You have to have a good internet connection even when driving in your car to a remote location, if you want your tunes you need the data.
Then you have to pay a sub to play the music you’ve already paid for on CD & LP, or even downloaded, or even better still not be able to find the rare material you have on that obscure CD from way back when. Streaming… yeah! Think I’ll pass on that one…
You had me with Roon and it looked awesome … right up until the $150 / year subscription. Thanks for posting.
It is awesome and worth it to me. Thx
10 years = $1500. The math is scary.
Hi, just to say upfront that I enjoy ur postings immensely! But, I cannot agree with you on this occasion! I collect vintage Hifi, it is a passion of mine, I bought my first CD player in 1984, Marantz cd54, I still have it, it works perfectly! It is one of 20 CD players that I have in my collection, all are working fine! Marantz, Pioneer, Linn, Naim, Sony, Shangling are all in my collection! If a problem occurs with any of them I get it to my Hifi engineer ASAP! I have 10,000 lp’s 3000 cd’s hundreds of cassette’s and open reels! I do not rip or stream or download! I am always looking to buy more quality vintage kit, turntables, receivers, CD player, cassette decks, speakers! Nobody is right or wrong in this hobby, whatever blows ur skirt up! From the other side of the pond!👍🏻🇬🇧🇺🇸
My approach is a little different. Every commercial disc I own is ripped and stored on external hard drives in WAV for archival purposes. My preamp has two aux inputs, and each aux has a pair of daisy-chained Pioneer 300-disc changers (that's 1200 discs worth of capacity!). Instead of loading the changers with the commercial discs, they are loaded with CDR rips of just the songs I want to listen to most often from my CD collection. I mean, let's face it- it's pretty rare that every song on a store-bought album is good enough to want to listen to often.
My Pioneer PD-S703 is nearly 30 years old. I've only had it for about 4 years but it's seems to have been looked after really well and have never had an issue with it
You are basically correct. I am keeping my CDs and player. No audio server of special player software, just dBpoweramp CD ripper used now.
I've ripped most of my CDs to mp3 at first (years back), and now flac. Not all on flac though. To be played on DAP on the go, or connected to my system via USB into my headphone amp-DAC for best sound.
I have 45,000 cuts stored on a DAP with 2 (428 Gb) micro SDs - which nearly full now. I wanted to swap one for a (1) Tb card, to fit more as I go. I did try one new Sandisk 1 Tb micro SD last fall. Dropped and dragged in files for 2 to 3 hours. Stopped to let it 'sit' and all files showed, all was well. Did it get burnt out- the next time I checked the card to continue, it did not exist in player not in my computer. That is, no error to be seen. As though it was just a piece of plastic.
It's simple. Put a decent quality sound card into a PC along with a decent trusted namebrand CD/DVD burner and you can watch and listen to pretty much any format you choose. When it wears out you can order another replacement that looks just like it! My PC is my home entertainment center complete with a HDMI card for quality video source for my flat screen TV. As to storing my media, I store my CD's and DVD's in the cheap and simple white paper sleeves that you can buy anywhere for pennies per sleeve and I print my own labels too. It works with no issues.
Haven’t uses a cd player in years. Ripped them all way back. I have them backed up on a couple of external drives just in case of a pc crash.
Congrats on finding Roon. Keep exploring. There's a lot more that you can do with it!
Informative video, gives some good options to folks that are tired of the mess and clutter of CD's. I have an old Oppo BDP-83 that I still use and enjoy with my SACDs. I sold the TT and albums, simply no longer interested. But, almost all of my listening is on the 2021 Node, love the simplicity of it and it has never once failed to work like some of the other streamers I have owned and since gotten rid of, much like your old CD players. ;-)
just bought an Oppo DV980 H with a Pioner Elite Blueray player for $100 I love it.
And the worst thing about cd players are when a friend brings his $300 cd player to your place and you realize that there's not much difference in sound quality between his cheap player and your player that costs few thousand dollars, thanks for the video.
that happens with any digital source
Hi! I have the Powered Speakers Edifier S1000 MK II and I just need to listen to my CDs, I am thinking of getting the Yamaha CD Player S303 and I don't wanna spend more money in other devices, is it worth? Can I Take advantage of the Built In DAC in the CD Player with my speakers?
Ripping CDs never appealed to me. The CD and CD player give at least a taste of the experience of listening (to full albums) that records offer. If I'm ripping CDs I figure I may as well just use a streaming service.
A million tracks you don't want to hear or your own digital juke box with a few albums you do want to play.
Never played all my albums on a regular basis after the collection hit about 50 albums. With some all I have to do is pick up the album and I don't need to play it as all the tracks run though my head. But if all my collection got damaged they are also likely to be the first to replace.
You are right about CD players but not about the CD medium. To get as close to analog tape as you will ever hear you need a high end transport like a dual belt CEC TL-2N connected via SUPERLINK to a CEC DA SL DAC. SUPERLINK outputs utilize (4) separate BNC connectors; 1 dedicated strictly for the audio signal and 3 dedicated to clocks.
MCK(Master Clock): The CD transport receives the master clock signal from the D/A converter through this line, and functions as a slave to the DA converter, enabling completely synchronized transportation of audio data.
BCK(Bit Clock): Sends bitclock signals, required for digital data bit identification(e.g. sampling frequency) or signal readout, from the CD transport to the D/A converter.
LRCK(L/R Clock): Sends left/right identification clock signals from the CD transport to the D/A converter.
Very analog smooth / master tape reproduction using this format
I still have my CDS and Cassettes I'm keeping mine and keep for collectables so for generations to come they can see what we used in my generation. I'm a Generation Xer
Tell us how you REALLY feel about CDs...
I have a WiiM mini and a DVD player I’ve had several technics cd players both have failed due to there age hence moving to a DVD player I have two Dacs connected one for the mini and one for the cd player I also use Apple Music to play Hi res I’m pleased with this set up thanks for this video great information 🙌🏻🙌🏻🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
While I haven’t had it for long, my Pioneer PD-M403 hasn’t let me down. I’ve used it off and on for the past 3 years, only issue I’ve had is when I accidentally loaded two discs into the single cd cartridge and that was fixed in seconds. I’m sorry you’ve had so many issues.
I need to go back through and re-rip my CD collection as lossless, but it’s hard to find the time anymore…
Let them do their thing but my CD's don't take up a lot of space. I have probably 2000 or so and the ones I don't listen to (honestly most) are in some storage boxes in the basement. I have 10 CD players that are all over 20 years old and have no issues. Some are high dollar players that I bought for less than $100 each. I find ripping is for obsessive compulsives who end up using a lot of time and money so they don't have to get up out of their chair to change a disc. And with streaming do you know what mastering or edition it is?
I Ripped all my CDs from 6 years ago and still rippin some to this day but I can’t trash an expansive Nakamichi CD player it’s too valuable to throw in the trash maybe I’ll figure something out, I play all my ripped music thru an Old MacBook Pro and I’m satisfied with the output, thanks for sharing this video 👍
I love CD players! There’s something special about a modern, compact unit with a stylish wooden body and outstanding sound quality. The moment I turn on the DAC and hear that reassuring click confirming it's powered up, followed by pressing play on the CD player and feeling that tactile response, is pure satisfaction. Adjusting the volume knob to achieve the perfect sound output completes the experience. While some might dismiss CD players as outdated, a well-made, modern model can easily outshine them all. Yes, older CD players may come with their fair share of issues, but my current one is flawless-and that’s the key. These devices are mechanical by nature and have a limited lifespan, so if yours is aging, just replace it.
I stream from my NAS too, I love streaming flacs from my local network too. But there's something special about playing a CD on a real CD player for the first time before you rip it.
I have a Sony 300 Disc CD Jukebox that works fine for me. I stopped buying CD's around 2010, but it's still full of CDs. I store the cases away to keep them clean and scratch free, just in case. Player still works flawlessly. Have a spreadsheet that helps me keep track of what disc is were, although the player is quite good at showing the disc info when you choose a disc number to play. I have no interest in burning them into computer files, they are fine the way they are. Not sure if Sony still makes the CD Jukebox, but I'd buy another one of those before I'd spend weeks burning CDs. Plus, it sounds great running through my Yamaha amp.
Changed all my plastic CD cases for custom vinyl wallets a few years back. These hold the discs in paper sleeves and all the artwork and booklets and take up very little shelf space compared to those horrendous jewel cases. I've just kept my longboxes and a few CD books. Much easier to live with. I keep them in clear plastic storage boxes which hold around 150 discs each. They have lids and are stackable and you can peruse your collection like the 45rpm singles boxes from the sixties.
Interesting video. so when you thought that vinyl records were becoming obsolete was that what you really thought or were you going with what with others were thinking? I still have my vinyl collection that started back in the 70s. Never once thought of getting rid of my records regardless of what anyone else thought about vinyl. I have over 2000 CDs which I treasure. I enjoy both formats. I have CDs which I purchased in the 80s and they still look as new as the day I purchased them. Cases too. CD players? Been using an Onkyo for a few years now, with an external DAC. I am awaiting arrival of the Cambridge CXC CD transport. A step up. There is nothing wrong with streaming but I don't ever see myself becoming a streamer. I have enough of a music collection to keep me happy.
Thanks for an interesting video 🙂
@Zockblatt Shickleblender my listening preferences are not subject to trends 🙂
I'm a roon user as well and like you, I love it.
I'm also a Mac user. May I make a recommendation for ripping your CDs? Instead of using the Music app you may want to look into XLD. It's free, converts to ALAC but uses AccurateRip to ensure your rips are...well...accurate.
Absolutely awesome and easy too understand and your English is spoken very well and slow enough to understand and again thank you.
I have a blusound and have been recently ripping my cds in Apple Lossless. I’ve been looking for the best way to take advantage. Great video. Thanks!!
I just bought Feel Flows and 1967 by the Beach Boys on cd. Been loving them very much. Maybe leave the thrift store cds for low income people to enjoy. And support your local record, cd, and music store.
Aomeba records number 1 music store in Hollywood
Bought a while ago a very nice new Marantz cd player. Love to play my cd collection with it.
I still buy my music on cd, but I transfer it to my iPod via my laptop through iTunes, and listen on the iPod. Or laptop. I agree with you re thrift, or what we call charity shops, it's amazing how many cheap CDs I've bought, even to boxed sets of Wagner operas for next to nothing!
2005 says hello 😅😊lol
What's an iPod?
I’ve recently upgraded ti the Roon 2.0 with a new Mac Mini M1 and have ripped a ton of CDs like you. However, I did use my 1990 Luxman CD player and connected a digital coaxial cable to my DAC and the bought an Audiolab 6000cdt CD transport. I sold the old CD player. I EVEN bought NEW CD jewel cases for all of my CDs because I treasure them and enjoy using a CD player/transport. Next I will rip SACDs, not to get rid of anything, but to gain the new experience and enjoy all of my analog & digital sources.
I would recommend you do the same. Off to Goodwill to find some $2.99 CDs!
I moved from CDs to having a NAS network box with 12TB storage, and a laptop with a specialist SMSL M8 DAC, headphone amp and linear PSU. There was only a couple of software audio player choices available that were DSD / SACD / ASIO compatible with the hardware; one was JRiver Media Centre and the other is Foobar and the latter is what I use. Best setup I have ever had in the 40+ years I have been using HiFi and music listening gear.
I tried to get a friend to do the same, but he had very strong opinions on the subject and stuck with buying CDs, and filling up his room to the point things were uncomfortable (2000+ CDs / Blurays / SACD etc). Whereas I shredded all my home burnt discs and threw away all the plastic jewel CD cases for my shop bought ones, and then slotted the discs in the CD booklets and placed them all in a plastic storage container. I did the same with my VHS video tapes, ripped them to DVD discs and later to hard drive, and threw away the VHS tapes. As for cloud music services, I avoid them at all costs.
I bought an old Kyocera cd player and it works great other than the drawer not wanting to open without some persuasion. It doesn't really bother me that much. Eventually I will replace the belt.
Generally agree with pretty much everything you say in this video, but I have a couple of comments. Firstly, if you’re serious about ripping your music collection and getting rid of the CDs, get a RAID for storage - hearing just one tragic tale of someone’s collection disappearing after a HD/SSD failure should be enough to convince anybody to take a belts n braces approach to the integrity of their data. Secondly, use EAC for ripping the CDs, it’s generally accepted to be the best option for bit perfect ripping, and it deals with ‘unplayable’ CDs well too. Oh, and it’s free!
I only have one CD I can't rip. It was a limited production run by the artist and recorded on CD-R discs over 35 years ago.
Yes, EAC is highly recommended but it takes much longer due to its accuracy and correction. I had to use Ashampoo to rip a few cds as EAC struggled with the odd track or two. Trying to rip the "Best of Nazareth" (not a scratch on the disc) was a non-starter with EAC so Ashampoo came to the rescue.
David, what is the color combo of your G.I.K. acoustic panels?
By this logic, you should get rid of your turntable and vinyl first.
if you get pro dj cd player like a mk 3 from Pioneer or a Denon 3700 or 39oo cd player or the Technics cdj which has many versions that have been modded by gifted geeks.All these machines were built for use in clubs and made for constant use.The Technics and Denon machines have spinning platters and the Technics is very pretty
Great presentation. Can’t your Apple TV stream everything from the computers location to your TV set connected to the HIFI?
I'm not taking the time to rip anything but loud farts. I repurposed a Sony CD/DVD player when my 30+ year old 5-disc Denon started acting up.
Classy…
I am very attached to my cds, mostly I rip them on to SSDs. But I still love to play a cd at night. I bought a cd wall unit that is white and is sold everywhere,it has BT /radio/USB/sd card too. To my amazement the speakers sound so clear that I don't need to increase the volume to hear movies,which I also watch late. Some people like vinyl I'm fond of my cd collection.
Always enjoy your vids Dave. I too know the pain of ripping my CD collection (1000+) to FLAC. It took me a few weeks to complete the process. I plan on keeping my discs as a failsafe, but it's so easy to stream my files using the WIIM-Mini. I really like the looks of the Roon U/I , but I'm an Amazon music user, and really don't want another monthly subscription. Keep up the great work. 👍
Yep the joy of “ripping” 4500 cd’s joy o joy….I will say this…I own two sony 5 disc cd changers one from my grandfather and one from myself..Both these units are at least 30 years old and they both play cd’s perfectly…I had no issues what so ever with playing cds ever..
I thoroughly enjoy my Sony CD Player. Its a CDP-CX220. Its from 1992 i think and still works and sounds superb. Also i am able to use it without the remote. Other than the occasional 1% of the time skipping that only happens during the first few seconds of a song, it works flawlessly. Also cool to use.
U could fixed the Len's,it played liked new
I love the older Sony stuff! My Favorite is my single disc Sony CDP-70 from the 80s.
I buy a lot of anthology collections from various labels like Time Life, Reader's Digest, Rhino, etc. I often get duplicate versions of the same song, same artist on different CDs. Many times the same songs are different from each other. They may have been remixed, or might be alternate versions recorded at the same time for the single vs the album. Sometimes they are re-recordings of the same song done later. There are many cases when I have eight or ten different versions of the same song, all somewhat different from each other. Usually one or two versions are my favorite and I listen to those versions most of the time. My point is that if you are streaming a song, you get ONE version of that song. Maybe it's the best version, but probably it is the most recently remixed version. If it has been made more loud to compete with modern music, then it is probably not the version you like best.
I rip all my CDs to DSD128 format and they are a match in heaven with my PS Audio DirectStream DAC. For me personally, DSD (paired with the correct DAC) is as close sounding as a master tape. I do own a few CD players and I never have any issue with them, I do listen to them from time to time.
What do you use to RIP to DSD?
One man's trash is another man's treasure. I modify cd players and I have mine up to the point that to get anywhere near it for sound quality you'd have to have a $2,000 phono cartridge on a $2,500 turntable. I bought it years ago for under $200 used on ebay. Never gives me a problem. There are more things to pick on with record playing. Having to get up & flip the record, inner groove distortion, warps, bad pressings, ticks and pops (& snaps), cleaning the stylus, limited music space per side, stylus and record wear, expensive greedy prices on both new & used lps, lps take up 6 times more room to store than cds scratches often making lp records unplayable, (some cds have hundreds of scratches and still play perfect). Seems like complaining would have a better subject than cd players. They're cheap and plentiful. Just buy another one. You won't usually have to take another $20 out of your pocket that often.
Point well taken but when I tried and eventually stopped ripping CDs, my question was, are all laser pick-ups created equal?
Obviously there is more to extracting every "bit" of information from a CD than meets the eye. So, one must do a comparative analysis of all available CD transports out there, past and present, and find out which are the top and how accessible are they? Jitter handling and clock accuracy play a big role in resolution and fidelity.
Three decades into this hobby and I have yet to discover the top transports for ripping.
I Loved My CD's Since 1991, Now I Got 70,000 Songs.
The best thing about 76 years old,and broke is everything sounds good, when my cd player packed up i found a LG dvd player for £6.50 and it sounds ok to my old ears,my local charity shop sells cd,s at eight for a pound,buy loads what i don,t like i take back,so i get to hear things i would not buy, win,win!!!