Thanks, Rick, that means a lot. I am glad you've found my content relatable. I want to help normal folks just like me find their way through this hobby just as I have.

Excellent A/B comparison! It really all comes down to the DAC. Of course build quality and extra features will have some effect to a certain degree, but not as much as using a DAC that suits your listening style. For example, I use the Denafrips Ares II which in my experience is very nice, mellow and warm. It gives the music a very smooth sound. In comparison to other DACs which can be a bit cold and lifeless. I am so glad you found that sonic sweet spot you are happy with! Happy listening!

You could not pay me to stream.

I just ordered a Magnavox with the TDA1541 from 1988. I can't wait to hear what everyone is talking about with that DAC!

I'm working on possibly reviewing Audiolab! I am looking forward to it

As an owner of the Audiolab 6000 CDT, Can you tell me if this transport support Shuffle mode? I am getting the idea that it doesn't. So what is the "Random" button on the remote for? Thanks.

Yes, I am in the same situation. So I bought Sony UBP-X800M2 Bluray Player as my SACD "transport" which the digital out goes to my Denafrips Venus II DAC. Sounds really awesome.

Unfortunately ebay has done a terrible job in protecting buyers and sellers. Not to mention they're the most expensive platform to sell on.

I’ve mostly had great experiences with eBay, but second hand CD transports are quite risky, as some might be selling if they know the transport has a problem. Items which have moving parts are far more likely to encounter problems.

It’s also a way to get even better sound.

Totally agree,got a marantz mid range cd player going through a old but top notch benchmark dac 1, total heaven.

Key words said, built quality is very important! I still have the brochure for the CAL interior electronics power supply etc very impresive! Another plus lasted 30 years before the drive/spinner stopped working.

If the CD player has a digital out, it can be used as a transport but it's only a stop-gap solution. Read Paul Rigby's The Audiophile Man's review of the Audiolab 6000CDT if you want a good overview of why. If you want the best from your DAC, use a dedicated transport.

@@leeandrewclarke I agree with you. That and Cambridge Audio CXC Transport is another great entry level Transports. In my opinion, the best DAC under $1k is Denafrips Ares.

Well depends on how it's built. There are several factors to take into consideration however, theoretically yes the $50 transport could give you comparable sound. The advantage you get from a higher end transport are better parts, and a digital output with less noise and jitter. However whether those things are actually audible is yet to be seen. Mainly the nicer ones just look pretty lol 😆

@@mykandrew Thanks! That's my feeling. I'll start saving to get a $700 transporter (while hoping the price to come down). Meanwhile I'll stick to a DVD player from the early 2000s with a coaxial that i think it sounds pretty good on a CA CXA81...

You may have to look in the used market. Buying new is too expensive these days.

@@mykandrew OK, even so, are there any recommendations? Thanks.

You are very welcome

Awesome! Hope you ordered through my link. It helps out the channel quite a bit! Enjoy the combo, Geshelli Labs make some awesome stuff! 👌

You have almost 100% answered a question I have... I am considering buying an external DAC to use with my 30 year old Marantz CD 52. Sounds like it might be worth it 😊

@@martinlowery6244 what I read about the CD52, is that the sound is warm and musical. I wouldn't call the sound of the DV8300 warm, but compared to my external DAC, the sound is somewhat softer, more rounded. I have a SMSL DO300, I would describe it as open, detailed, transparent, but never harsh. Compared to the DV8300! 😉 Depending on the DAC you choose, I expect the difference with the CD52 to be more noticeable.

The primare dd15 is excellent 👌

I don't understand the question... Are you asking if I have high-end gear? Well I use a Lyngdorf CD2, I have a pair of full range Infinity Kappa 8 floorstanders and my preamp/amp is classic Adcom by Nelson Pass or I sometimes use my Purifi Amplifier I built 😉

I did a video awhile back about an expensive CD Transport and a cheap dvd player. I found the CD Transport to have different sound signatures and sound better all around. Now in the world of science, it should have sounded exactly the same. Which proves that a device that is built cheaply, will have limitations when attempting to dispell jitter, vibrations or noise from the power supply. Now as far as the buffer goes, all CD Players should have one and from what I have read doesnt have as much of an impact on jitter like lets say the master clock. However this is a highly debatable topic in the audio world. Thanks for watching the video and I hope you subscribe to the channel so we can chat more about audio!

I have that same BLU ray player. Been ok so far 🤞

Yes, absolutely. Plug it into the Dacmagic

@@mykandrew I just stumbled across your channel and really like it. Are there any videos about turntables and dacs and portable players like the sony nw 306 etc... Also, I have 2 receivers and can't decide which one to use. Pioneer elite vsx 105 or Emotiva ta 2. which would you use. I have polk r 600 speakers.

@duskmike8526 thanks for checking out the channel. The one turntable I have reviewed and consistently use is the U-Turn Orbit. Great entry-level table. I would personally use the Pioneer, however I haven't heard the Emotiva. Which one do you like more bothe feature and sound wise?

If you are connecting your CD Player to your receiver via RCA then the CD Player's DAC is the one doing all the work. If you are plugging in a DVD player via HDMI send it to the TV then send an optical to the receiver.

@@mykandrew at this moment I'm using HDMI to connect the player with the receiver. Do you recomnend an optical one? I suppose that the receiver DAC is better.

What type of player are you using and what Receiver?

Ive heard of this practice with dynamat. Ill have to try it someday

I think your biggest improvement would be to add a nice DAC in between the PC and the CX81. I think with the addition of a proper external DAC you will get much more than from adding a transport.

​@@mykandrew if you can recommend me a good dac better than the dac inside cx81 would be great :)

@@albertccja13 If you like slightly warm signature then get an Ares 2.... but its a big wild world outside there.

Thank you for watching the video! To answer your question, you can go either way. Since the DAC will be converting the signal to Analog you can use RCA cables to go from DAC to Preamp or DAC to Integrated Amplifier. Essentially the results are generally the same depending on what you choose to use. For example, when using my CD Players as a Transport I go from external DAC to my Cambridge EVO 150 which is an Integrated Amp and I plug straight into one of the RCA inputs.

@@mykandrew thank you so much for that advice!

I would reccomend a decent player, that way you have options of whether or not to use the external DAC. Definitely research which player you vuy first to make sure it has a nice DAC or at least that people say it was designed well.

@@mykandrew Appreciate the assist.

Hey Bernardo, I do the same thing, however, sometimes it's just satisfying owning a piece of the music that's actually tangible. If feels good. That's why vinyl is so popular as well. Streaming and CDs are far superior, however people still love the collection aspect.

@@mykandrew I understand that (and I agree). That is why after ripping I keep the CD in my physical collection. But my question is purely on the fidelity standpoint. In my mind a good streamer and a good DAC can provide the same benefits (low jitter, perfect clocking, etc) than any expensive transport, no?

@@bernardosilva7306 depending on the manufacturer it would be very hard to tell which one is which even in a double blind test.

@2WheelAspie I am 100% OK if the argument is “how you feel”. What I really question is when people try to say it “sounds better”… if it goes through the same DAC, it should sound identical.

Hey Chev, I appreciate the feedback. The last thing I want is for my audience to leave confused after watching one of my videos. The concept of choosing a CD Transport or CD Player is simple and complicated at the same time so I tried my best to pack what I could into a video that could very well be expanded upon. To answer your question and give you my sincere and honest advice, I would do a CD Player that has a great analog output stage. This means the engineer spent time designing and executing the Digital to Analog Converter and spent a lot of time creating a really nice output to your amplifier or preamplifier. The advantage here is that most, if not all new CD Players come natively with a Digital Output (Coax/Optical). This means if you would like to use it as a transport with an external Digital to Analog Converter you absolutely can. It plays both roles of being a CD Player and a CD Transport. Buying only a CD Transport eliminates the RCA output altogether and you would NEED an external Digital to Analog converter. I ask that people turn to the comments for questions so that way I can answer them properly and tailor fit the response to the particular viewers' specific questions. It would be a one-hour video if I had covered every different angle and property of these two devices. Please feel free to email me anytime with questions as well, as I am always open to helping people grow in this hobby. It's why I do this. Here is my email if you have any further questions or if I could be of any help with putting together your system. mike@audioarkitekts.com Thanks for watching the video and for your feedback. I always take constructive criticism and try and apply it to future videos to help myself grow as a KZfaqr and educator.

@@mykandrew Jeez ,you give a excellent detailed response and answer everything,and not even a thanks or a thumbs up...to you .

@@joebloggs8636 30 years as a school teacher. This man runs reason, clarity and integrity up the flagpole. I salute him, too.

Yes you absolutely can, plug it in straight through the Optical or Digital Coax Inputs on the Marantz.

Thanks very, much my friend

You are incorrect. At the highest level, CD transports beat streamers.

​@@Coneman3 No, you got that totally wrong. CD transports are limited to playback of CD media, which contains up to 700MB of data that is prone to errors due to scratches. Nowadays we can stream tracks up to 192kHz 24 bits PCM lossless error-free FLAC from popular streaming service (I use Amazon Music Unlimited). A CD can hold only TEN MINUTES of such quality digital audio data, if it was even supported by your transport. But it is not! So ABSOLUTELY, a CD transport is at this point INFERIOR to status quo of the leading streaming services on the highest quality digital audio support. Of course any company selling your overpriced CD transports will not tell you this fact.

You are wrong best audio is CD or vinyl, streaming is inherently inferior. Streamers limit quality just like a cd transport, but cd transport has the data directly. Can’t just quote specs and say it’s superior.

@@Coneman3 Hey, I actually understand how it works. When you stream music online, it comes from hard disk drives in some huge datacenter owned by Google, Amazon and others. Any modern datacenter needs to support error-free data to customers and it doesn't matter if it's a website, online banking, government data, company data, Netflix, Apple Music or whatever service. So when I click on, let's say, "Toto, Africa" and the stream is 192kHz 24 bits, I can trust that my DAC gets the exact data stored in the datacenter with zero errors. As the internet infrastructure today is supporting much higher bandwidth than what is needed for music, you do not need to worry about getting the data in time for the DAC to play it, unless you have some outdated internet connection. There is no such thing as "has the data directly". I can appreciate some companies want to make a business out of selling a CD player without DAC and call it "Transport", but reality is that streaming has overtaken the CD media on bandwidth and data integrity. Now, in all fairness, there is no guarantee that the files themselves stored in a datacenter aren't in some cases changed e.g. some track might be compressed because someone think he can make more money from more compression when played on cheap audio gear. While I think this is almost like a crime, I could be concerned there are such cases.

​@@Coneman3 Gosh no. Some years ago I would have agreed, but nowadays streaming is vastly superior with higher bandwidth and error-free transfer. Streaming can easily beat a CD transport today. Hey, trust me, I work in audio R&D and I am not trying to sell you anything.