[Captain Humble]

I need to upgrade CDP.
Considering Rotel 1072.
Thoughts regarding same appreciated.
Jeff

[rosconey]

take a look at ny sound
the shengya s10 for 300$ is a very nice unit, i recieved mine this week and cant find anything negative about it-it had no bass for the first few discs but is coming around nicely.very well built also.

www.nysound.com

[audioslave]

Hey Capt:
I recently read that the 1072 won product of the year by TAS. I do not know that you can go wrong with this cdp. They said it was a fantastic player, especially given the price. Here are some reviews you can check out :
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter/146/rotel_rcd1072.html

http://www.hifichoice.co.uk/review_print.asp?ID=2751

I am not sure if it is in this TAS article that they named it product of the year but an insightful review nonetheless. Are you considering any other players? Hope this helps.

[lonewolfny42]

Hey Captain,

Looks pretty good , worthy of an audition. I have read some good comments on Rotel cdp's , here's the spec's ...

http://www.rotel.com/products/specs/rcd1072.htm   [/list:u]

[BeeBop]

Still no optical digital out though. They had it on the 991 - often touted as their best player ever. What is it about this that they don't get? Also, the TAS article mentions that it is engineered for low jitter but no jitter specs to be found anywhere. Why do CDP manufacturers shy away from this in a world where things like THD and SNR are commonplace. Rotel even puts wow and flutter in their spec (not sure how quantitative "Crystal Precision" is as a stat though).

[rosconey]

a local shop has the rotel, i had a look at it when i traded my old def tech speakers  for a sansui tuner a few months ago.i  didnt think it was worth 700$.

capt we bolth have odyssey pre and amps , you also show a toshiba on your list-i know abit about that player also, the shengya has it beat hands down, dont get me wrong i will always have nothing but good memories from the 3950 ( heck i discovered it)but the shengya is so dam nice on the top end , mids, vocals and last night the bass came in full.
i was cranking some ac/dc( high voltage) last night and -a long way to the top-had a clean and smooth top end man it was good, i used to cringe playing it that loud on the toshiba( bag pipe i think is the instrument)then thru in some jack johnson  

[Captain Humble]

Guys,
Thanks so much for the posts so far.
I'm entertaining guests from New Orleans this weekend so I haven't had much time to either listen to or research equipment.

Stan Tracht, the US Distributor for Usher told me that a reveiwer that he respects, can't remember his name, raved about the 1072.

The UK review offered above dosen't seem to concur.

It is also critical that the player handle CDrs.  Won't have one that won't. Based on what I've seen thus far I'm not sure the 1072 will.

rosconey, thanks for the intro to the shengya.  It's now on my radar.

Guests leave Sunday night so I'll have time to continue my search and respond to additional posts on Monday.

Thanks again.
Jeff

[Dan Driscoll]

Still no optical digital out though. They had it on the 991 - often touted as their best player ever. What is it about this that they don't get?

In my experience most audio enthusiasts prefer coax for digital connections, I know I do. The connection is much more secure and the cables are far less susceptible to damage. I know some will disagree, but it wouldn't bother me in the least if optical connections completely disappeared from audio source components.

[JefferyK]

Guys,
Thanks so much for the posts so far.
I'm entertaining guests from New Orleans this weekend so I haven't had much time to either listen to or research equipment.

Stan Tracht, the US Distributor for Usher told me that a reveiwer that he respects, can't remember his name, raved about the 1072.

The UK review offered above dosen't seem to concur.

It is also critical that the player handle CDrs.  Won't have one that won't. Based on what I've seen thus far I'm not sure the 1072 will.

rosconey,  ...

Gee, I seem to be the only contributor to this thread who actually OWNS an RCD-1072.

Mine plays CDRs. No problem there.

The most remarkable thing about this player---to me, anyway---is its musicality. And you probably won't really understand what this means unless you hear one.

The two choices in this price range seem to be the Rotel and the Arcam 73 (which I haven't heard). And the choice between the two seems to boil down to personal preference and set-up synergy.

Try to audition the Rotel if you can.

Jeffery

[Captain Humble]

audioslave wrote:

Are you considering any other players?

I'm definetly open to other CDP suggestions.  While $800 or less would be preferable, if spending a couple of hundred more would yeild a significant increase in value I'm fine with that.  Also fine with used.

A digital source upgrade is long overdue.  I've followed threads on this topic over the years and am really no closer to making a decision then I was a year ago.  Upsampling vs. no sampling. DAC vs. all in one.  Phase issues.  Sync issues. Many conflicting opinions.  No way to actually hear optional sources in my system.  

While external DACs seem to be the most popular solution at A/C they just seem a bit over the edge to me for the $ comittment I'm willing to make to audio. The Perpetual Tech DAC sounds like a great solution but damn! Buy a transport, mod it.  Buy the DAC, mod it. Buy an upgraded power supply. Buy extra interconnects. Oh, let's not forget contact enhancer and bybee (spelling) conditioners.  $3+K or more later I've got to ask if it really sounds $2K better than a simple $1K self contained unit.

Here's what I want:
-  I'm a sucker for a wide and deep soundstage.
-  Deep tight bass
-  Sweet smooth mid and highs without simply chopping them off
-  Good dynamics
-  Reliablility

Based on what I heard about the Rotel 1072 I thought it was the answer. Now I wonder if the reveiwer that Stan talked to heard an actual production model.  Here's a link from audioslave to the reveiw by HI-FICHOICE dated July 2004
http://www.hifichoice.co.uk/review_print.asp?ID=2751

The sad fact is that early, pre-production samples were technically and subjectively superior to the final production sample reviewed here. As a result, the RCD-1072 sticks out as a rather sore thumb in a range populated by some of the best sounding DVD players, amplifiers and AV receivers available. If there's a chink in Rotel's seemingly impenetrable armour, this must be it.

JefferyK, I'm going to try to audition the 1072.

rosconey, I called NY Audio, no demo units.  After buying 2 3950's (great price) and then being told that they are the EXTREME WEAK LINK in my system, I'm just skeptical about a $300 CDP.

Stan was kind enough to leave an old Denon 2800 with me to try.  It totally outperforms the 3950 and they go between 350 and $400 on audiogon.  Again if an extra $600 will make a $600 improvement I'm willing to spend it.

Thanks to all that responded and any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Jeff

[rosconey]

ny sound does have a trial period-it think its 15 days.
shengya makes -vincent, kavent, music hall and shandling from what ive read-not a bad group  
i opened it up to swap a nos tube -it is very well built inside.wish you lived closer i would let you use mine for a few days.

[JefferyK]

I'm sorry, but I think that "Hi-Fi Choice" review is really screwy. The reviewer seems to have a real problem with the Burr-Brown chip's specs, without detailing exactly what the problem is. "Hard and oppressive" is an extremely subjective judgment. And what the hell does this mean: "the RCD-1072 brings the music to you rather than inviting you to come listen to it"?

Meanwhile, my experience with my Rotel 1072 supports a lot of the statements made in the far more positive (and better written) "Absolute Sound" review. The background IS very black. The soundstage IS broad and deep. I experience ZERO listener fatigue. And details DO pop out: This is the ONLY CD player I've heard than does the "air" thing vinyl does.

As I said before, try to listen to the Rotel before buying. And do try to listen to the Arcam: I've seen messages online from a couple of people who think the Arcam has better tonal balance than the Rotel. I wish I had auditioned one before I bought the Rotel. I don't regret my purchase, but it would have been sensible to have compared the two.

Jeffery

[rosconey]

take a look-http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/1/504.html

[claud]

Are you hung up on Rotel, or just want a good high performance CDP? Do you have an Arcam dealer near you where you can audition a CD73? For a bit more $$$ there is a black Arcam FMJ CD23 on Agon for about a grand( a great sounding CDP).

[Captain Humble]

claud said

Are you hung up on Rotel, or just want a good high performance CDP? Do you have an Arcam dealer near you where you can audition a CD73? For a bit more $$$ there is a black Arcam FMJ CD23 on Agon for about a grand( a great sounding CDP).

I'm definetly open to other CDP suggestions. While $800 or less would be preferable, if spending a couple of hundred more would yeild a significant increase in value I'm fine with that. Also fine with used.

Reading reviews on all of the above.

Thanks

[Captain Humble]

Found a local place that carries both the Rotel 1072 and the Arcam 73.  The gentleman I spoke with on the phone said he prefers the Arcam 73 and they are the same price. He can set them up for a comparison so I'll soon hear them head to head.

Jeff

[Captain Humble]

I listened to the Rotel 1072, Arcam 73 and 82 last week.

Bought an Arcam CD82T today off Audiogon.  Only about 3 hours of use and remote still in bag.

I wanted to listen to the Jolida 100A but I spoke with them yesterday to learn there is no dealer in the Metroplex and therefore no way to audition it.

Rosconey, I'm sure the Shengya is great, but I've got so much invested I just wanted to buy something I could hear and hopefully be satisfied with it for a long time.

Thanks to all of you that helped me with this.

Jeff

[ctviggen]

I'm thinking of buying the shengya for my second system, so I could compare it versus my Pioneer Elite, my PE into my Proceed as D/A, my PE or the Shengya into an ACK Dack, and the Shengya.  It'd be a good shootout!

[ABEX]

I would checkout the Phillips 963SA which has dual Laser. Very important to have if the player does MP3's!

Good Luck!

[djbnh]

I continue to like the Jolida JD-100 (bought mine with no audition, no one in NH carries it that I could find). I replaced the unit's stock power cord with a Chris VenHaus cryoed Flavor 1, and rolled some tubes until I landed a pair of NOS Sylvania Gold Label JHS 5751WA triple mica blackplates (still have 2 pairs of GE 5751 triple mica blackplates (http://cgim.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/vs.pl?vopin&zz1081031922&viewitem&o18&1091591777#item).

I also used Walker SST on the ICs, RCAs, and IEC outlet, which made a very nice improvement, too. Oh yeah, this weekend I inserted a 20 lb. marble slab, supported by Vibrapods, under the Jolida, which gave me an even blacker background.

There's so much nice equipment out there now, I 'm not sure if you can go wrong, perhaps you can only get "really good" equipment and "even better" equipment!