Expensive CD players - worth it?

[Marco]

Can't agree, it's a digital signal, the transport has to very poor or faulty not to output that perfectly.

But the other day we were talking about die-cast metal mechanisms in the likes of Barry's ML and my Sony, and I thought we agreed that such things mattered?

However, you're looking in the wrong area. I'm talking about the effects of vibration and it's audible effect in the signal path: a plastic transport mech will be more resonant than a metal one - and you can hear it, certainly in my experience.

Marco.

[Pigmy Pony]

Skipping can also be due to a failing belt. People automatically assume that skipping means it's the laser although that's rarely the case. But it could also be any number of other things too.

Took the Marantz into Richer Sounds this morning. Bloke there is pretty confident the fault will be the belt, as you suggested I know you said they are about a fiver, but I wouldn't be confident messing with it. If they can sort it for the sixty quid I advanced I'll be ok with that.

[Macca]

But the other day we were talking about die-cast metal mechanisms in the likes of Barry's ML and my Sony, and I thought we agreed that such things mattered?

However, you're looking in the wrong area. I'm talking about the effects of vibration and it's audible effect in the signal path: a plastic transport mech will be more resonant than a metal one - and you can hear it, certainly in my experience.

Marco.

Better transport will read damaged discs to greater extent and will probably last longer, but that's really about it.

If vibration is affecting a digital signal you'd get drop outs in the signal, not slightly worse sound quality. All players buffer to some degree so the level of vibration has to be quite high. Much higher than when it's sat on a shelf in a room.

[Marco]

Better transport will read damaged discs to greater extent and will probably last longer, but that's really about it.

I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree, as it's not what my experience tells me.

Sony built the X-777ES with a die-cast metal transport mechanism not just to help make it last longer, but to control vibration. There are many areas of its design that do similar, obvious when you look under the hood, such as dampening foam on the PSU caps, so it's clearly an area Sony felt was necessary to address in their statement products.

Marco.