Hey all,

Love the forum and all the high praises has lured me into taking the plunge. So I've purchased a two room system that will include M22 and EP 350 for one room and M3, Q400, with EP 350 overflow.

I've also been looking at the Integra 6.6 as an AVR component to run the goods.

Now as the funds are beginning to dry up, I'd like some advice on a DVD player and or CD player.

I have a Sony multiple disc CD player (not very high quality CDP-C545) that is about 10 years old and a DVD player that is not even worth mentioning (might as well play vhs).

I've read some comments on here that good dvd players are super inexpensive now (about 100 bucks). So should I purchase cd/dvd players separately. Buy a single dvd/cd unit, or just buy a single dvd player and use the old school sony for now.

I will primarily be listening for music with a movie or two a week.

Budget is about $400 give or take a few bucks.

Sorry for the newbness, but I want don't want the speakers to not be fully utilized!

Thanks,

Rick

Rick, I'm sure that you'll enjoy your speakers and for a player I'd strongly suggest not only a multi-disc player, but a mega-changer. Don't underestimate the convenience in having a unit which can hold all your CDs and DVDs and allow you to choose them almost instantly. Because of the dual laser they play both CDs and DVDs with optimum quality and there's no good reason to buy separate players unless for other reasons you'd need two units. Consider the Sony 995 .

Good call Mr. JohnK!

Although I do not have the CD/DVD MegaChanger I do have a couple of the Sony 300 Disc CD (CDP-CX355) MegaChangers daisy chained that I really like. I've had one unit for over two years and the other unit for almost two years without the first sign of trouble. Convenient as heck and the price just simply cannot be beat.

Very interesting John. The price looks right and the wife will love the fact that at least one book of cd's will disappear is a great selling point.

As an avid lister (although up to this point on sub-quality gear), will I be sacrificing any or signficiant quality on the cd's and/or dvd's? I've read THX certification is a marketing thing, so I don't seem to need that. What about the 192/24 processing that some higher priced units offer. Is this a "must have" or not an overly critical element?

Oops, I see its got 192/24 processing...

thanks again for the recommendation

Rick, as I noted, CD/DVD players use a dual laser. It operates at the 780nm wavelength which is optimal for CDs and 650nm which is optimal for DVDs/DVD-As/SACDs; no compromise is involved. One of the old audio mythologies still floating around is that a "dedicated" CD player somehow has better sound, but when the CD/DVD players are operating at 780nm, they're in fact "dedicated" to playing CDs and do so optimally.

Gee, John, what about jitter and time correction and blah, blah, blah...?

You should concern yourself more with jitters coming from the trembling earth in California than with jitters in the digital data stream from your CDs.

And I suppose over there you should concern yourself more with the jitters from your trembling hands and teeth after being outside for a while.