Wanted - CD Player (£150) [Archive] - The Art of Sound Forum

Darren Cotter

08-02-2011, 19:09

I didn't know that CDs carried 5.1 information.
At least not red book ones.:scratch:

Hi Chris,

What I meant was is that I currently have a 5.1 system, and use a BD player for playing CDs. I want a dedicated CD player to improve this side of things.

Regards,

Darren

The Vinyl Adventure

08-02-2011, 20:11

What's the bluray player?

You could get a dac to go with it ... My Sony bdps550 sounds quite impressive through a dac

Alex_UK

08-02-2011, 20:44

What's the bluray player?

You could get a dac to go with it ... My Sony bdps550 sounds quite impressive through a dac

or a very cheap CD player as a transport (Pioneer PD-S703? - about £50) and a DAC for around £200 would be another option...

Darren Cotter

08-02-2011, 21:01

Hi Hamish & Alex_UK,

That's a great idea. My BD player is a Sony BDP S760. I could get an external DAC now, and upgrade to a dedicated transport at a later date.

So, if anyone has a DAC for sale, let me know.

Regards,

Darren

Reid Malenfant

08-02-2011, 21:09

So, if anyone has a DAC for sale, let me know.
Hi Darren, i have a Beresford Caiman+ here you can have if you are interested at the same price i payed for it ;) I was going to modify the thing but i recently purchased a load of dCS kit so i guess it's surplus to requirements now :rolleyes:

It comes with a load of capacitors if you want to go ahead & do the passive modification, as well as that there are about 5 or 6 (i think - i'll check) different operational amplifiers (some of then quite expensive) for you to play with if you desire :)

I got the thing cheap with all the bits as well, you can have it at the price i payed including delivery @ £135...

Let me know if you are interested, it's as new boxed with instructions.

Reid Malenfant

08-02-2011, 21:19

Just checked it, there are 6 alternative operational amplifiers & 3 different sets of capacitors if you fancy doing the passive modification ;)

E2A:- You'd get the same delivery as i got, RM "special delivery" which would totally cover things insurance wise & is trackable, i'm not sure it'd get to Jersey next day though :D

Darren Cotter

08-02-2011, 21:23

Hi Mark,

I’m not familiar with the Beresford Caiman+. Is it a DIY build?

Regards,

Darren

John

08-02-2011, 21:25

I have old Philips Cd630 I never use now Wadia used to use the Transport of this Machine

Reid Malenfant

08-02-2011, 21:35

Hi Darren, no it's not. It's a DAC that punches well above it's price point, i suggest you type it into search on this site! Not meaning to crow or anything but £135 including the op amps & caps is very cheap indeed, these things regularly sell for more with no extra bits..

Please take your time & look about, i'm sure if you don't wish to take up the offer someone else certainly will ;) I'm in no rush to sell it but i have no use for it now so it might as well go to someone that wants a good upgrade for the same price as i payed so i lose nothing...

Take it from me that £135 as good as new with the extra bits & special delivery is cheap :eyebrows:

Here is one thread on it... (http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=8941&highlight=caiman)

The Vinyl Adventure

08-02-2011, 21:39

Do it Darren ... You will not be disappointed!

Alex_UK

08-02-2011, 21:45

... and that is a very good price, trust me! If Mark can hold it for you, do a bit of reading around the forum - it may come across that we are Beresford "Fanboys" a bit, but that is because uniquely the manufacturer is a regular contributor (StanleyB) on here and works differently to your average manufacturer.

Brief What Hifi review of the Caiman here (http://www.whathifi.com/Review/Beresford-Caiman/) - the + that Mark has has 2 optical inputs and no USB I believe.

Reid Malenfant

08-02-2011, 21:47

<snip> the + that Mark has has 2 optical inputs and no USB I believe.
Spot on Alex :)

Darren Cotter

08-02-2011, 21:57

Jason P

08-02-2011, 21:57

Bite his hand off, OP - that's a great deal for a Caiman.

Jason

EDIT! HA!! you beat me to it. Great buy, and you'll love it. Make sure it's burnt in if it hasn't been already - they need a good couple of hundred hours to come on song.

Enjoy!

Reid Malenfant

08-02-2011, 22:34

Hi Mark,

I'll take it.

Out of interest, what would you say the performance is like compared to the Meridian 203, which was the last DAC I used in the early 90’s, before I fell into the NAIM trap.
I have never heard a Meridian 203 to my knowledge :scratch:

I have a couple of Meridians' monoblock power amps though ;)

I'll actually plug the thing in to something just to make sure it works as I actually haven't tested it yet. I'd hate to sell you something as working if it doesn't for me, no reason to doubt the seller that i purchased it from though..

I'd still like to satisfy myself though at the end of the day :hmm: Let me get back to you in a day or so with the hopefully good results 3699

Darren Cotter

08-02-2011, 22:39

Hi Mark,

I've sent you a PM with my details.

Regards,

Darren

Reid Malenfant

08-02-2011, 22:48

Received, let me test it as i haven't yet ;) As soon as i establish it's good to go then it's yours chap...

:cool:

Reid Malenfant

09-02-2011, 18:30

Well it's safe to say it works :D Just plugged my blu ray player into it via coaxial cable & out to a cambridge audio pre amp & way hey :cool:

I think i'll listen to this this evening, it sounds soooooo much better than spinning discs in my laptop :cool:

PM on the way Darren :)

Darren Cotter

09-02-2011, 19:45

Hi Mark,

The money has been sent as per your PM. So, bearing in mind I know pretty much nothing about electronics, what are the extra components you are sending with the DAC?

Regards,

Darren

Reid Malenfant

09-02-2011, 19:56

Hi Darren, nice one chap ;)

Ok, what you have are three different sets of capacitors that will enable you to do the "passive mod" on the Caiman if you so desire :) You can find details of that on this site, all 300 odd pages (or is that 300 replies?) of it if i remember correctly :eek:

Also there are 6 different operational amplifiers, these are used on the standard output board & sit in a small 8 pin socket. Only one is used at once, so if you fancy tinkering with the op amp you have plenty to experiment with. At least one of these op amps costs well over £10 on it's own.

Again if you use a search on this site you'll come accross one or more threads concerning modifying the Caiman with different op amps on the output ;)

At the moment i'm listening to it as standard (i think :eyebrows:) & it's pretty damn impressive (which is why i haven't disconnected it yet :D) but there are performance improvements by altering stuff, you just need to go through the different bits & see which you prefer at the end of the day.

As the thing stands i'd rate it though, it has turned this BD player into a great sounding stereo CD spinner :)

Darren Cotter

09-02-2011, 20:03

Hi Mark,

Thanks for the explanation. I saw something on changing the op amps. Do you think I should upgrade to the Gator Board?

Also, there is a company selling power supplies on eBay. Is that something to look at in the future?

Regards,

Darren

Reid Malenfant

09-02-2011, 20:06

Yes, payment received :) Ok Darren i'll get this out to you tomorrow chap, i'll cut up a box to put the standard box into as it's worth keeping that in good condition imo just in case you sell it in the future ;)

Like i said i'll send it RM Special Delivery, i somehow doubt you'll get it next day in Jersey, but at least it'll be fully insured which is the most important thing ;)

As soon as it's in the system i'll PM you the tracking number :)

Many thanks indeed :) I think you are going to love it, it sounds very good indeed considering it's cost :exactly:

Alex_UK

09-02-2011, 22:53

Thanks for the explanation. I saw something on changing the op amps. Do you think I should upgrade to the Gator Board?

Maybe - try the passive mod in the sockets first, and see how you get on. Will you be using headphones from the Caiman? (The passive mod renders headphones unusable, and will lower the output from line/variable outputs.) The Gator restores both those, and adds a bit more width, punch and life in my experience, but depends what goodies Mark sends you!

MartinT

09-02-2011, 22:58

Darren Cotter

10-02-2011, 07:59

Hi Darren

I run a Caiman (modified, passive coupling) from my Sony BDP-S300 Blu-ray player, mostly for films. However, I have played CDs through it and it sounds very impressive indeed. You will not be disappointed.

Hi Martin,

Do you use the DAC for whilst watching films? If so, how do you incorporate it into a 5.1 film soundtrack?

Regards,

Darren

Darren Cotter

10-02-2011, 08:01

Maybe - try the passive mod in the sockets first, and see how you get on. Will you be using headphones from the Caiman? (The passive mod renders headphones unusable, and will lower the output from line/variable outputs.) The Gator restores both those, and adds a bit more width, punch and life in my experience, but depends what goodies Mark sends you!

Hi Alex,

I will probably use the headphone socket, as I presume it will sound better than the socket on the S760, so I think I will go for the Gator if there are any available.

Regards,

Darren

Alex_UK

10-02-2011, 11:51

Hi Alex,

I will probably use the headphone socket, as I presume it will sound better than the socket on the S760, so I think I will go for the Gator if there are any available.

Regards,

Darren

You're in luck - Stan has started a second run of 200 - see posts from #4 onwards here (http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?p=186623#post186623) - available later in the month which will give you a chance to get to know the Caiman in stock form, I would suggest. Enjoy!

MartinT

10-02-2011, 12:17

Do you use the DAC for whilst watching films? If so, how do you incorporate it into a 5.1 film soundtrack?

I don't, I listen in stereo. I'm not in the slightest bit interested in surround sound.

Darren Cotter

11-02-2011, 08:23

Hi All,

Does anyone know if it would be better connecting the Caiman DAC to my Sony S760 Blu Ray player using an optical or coaxial cable? The Sony would be used as a transport for playing CDs.

I have a cheapish Monster optical that I can use to get going, but would like to buy a better cable based on your recommendations. I would probably like to purchase the cable from Mark Grant, as most of my cables are from his range, but I am always open to suggestions.

Regards,

Darren

Alex_UK

11-02-2011, 08:59

Hi Darren, - both have pros and cons, but I think most would agree that a coaxial connection would ideally sound better than an optical one in ideal circumstances. I must say I have struggled to really tell the difference between the two - in reality you will get great results from either, IMO.

I've not experimented greatly with Coax digital cables - but why not try one of the Belkin ones which everyone is raving about first and compare to the optical? (There is a very long thread discussing all the Belkin cables HERE (http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=8581) if you haven't already found it - if you plough through that and haven't lost the will to live, then well done - alternatively, save losing half a day and order this one (assuming it is long enough at 1m) - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Belkin-PureAV-Digital-Coaxial-Audio-Cable-AD80100-1M-/270652104819?pt=UK_Computing_CablesConnectors_RL&hash=item3f041f6073#ht_1910wt_1139 - you can always try different cables later on.