Sub £150 DVD Player for music

[brookesboy]

I'm looking to upgrade my current DVD Player (Sony DVP NS 305) for a multi region player for under £150.00 which I will be using predominantly for cd playback but also a fair amount of 5.1/6.1 too. I will be hooking it up to a CA Azur 540R.

I have initially narrowed it down to the Pioneer 575A (looks to be well thought of within the forums) or the CA DVD59 (seemingly good reviews). I can get these for about £120 from RS.

Could anyone throw any light on which would be the better option or if there are any on the market that would be preferable.

I realise there are other threads discussing the merits of the Pioneer but they seem to be based more around home cinema (which though important to me) than music.

Thanks

 

[mjm2705]

For what its worth .. I've had a Pioneer 656a DVD player for about 3 years and that's a very competent CD player.

That model was designated a 'universal' player in that it also supports DVD-A and SACD so I'm not sure its significantly different from the 575.

Does the 575 have a dual focus laser?

At the end of the day, a lot depends on what your hooking into ... if its an audiophile amp & speaker setup then any DVD player is going to sound a bit lacking on CD playback ... if its a cheap midi system then the quality of the source won't make any difference.

Mine hooks into a half decent Yamaha Av amp driving small Mission fronts and an REL sub ... not audiophile but not crap either. The Pioneer replaced a 2 box input setup consisting a Samsung 709 DVD player and a Marantz CD52 MkII CD player ... it looks way better than the Sammy and sounds no worse than the Marantz.

 

[balders]

Limit DVDA900SE - £50 from Play (was £200, then down to £100 until recently).

Very good musically (it's tuned by Cryrus for CD playback), but I can't offer a comparision against the Pio's as I haven't heard them. If you do a search on the forums, you'll find some opinions from others who have compared the Limit against other models. Most felt it was better for CD playback than the current crop of £100-£150 Tosh/ Pio models.

It sounds cheap and no-name, but it really is a bargain.

Balders.

 

[FunkyMonkey]

I recently bought a Philips DVP720SA from dabs.com - it was under £50 but it's gone up now. It is multiregion and plays SACD too. I bought it for SACD, but it is acknowledged for musicality - check the home cinema choice website's review section.

I replaced by £150 (as was a few years ago) yamaha CD player with it and it is far superior. It has 2x and 4x upsampling - you have to use it selectively - sometimes it makes improves music remarkably, sometimes you can hear crackles. I don't understand why, but I just go with what sounds best.

I like this because it really brings out the detail in music - more so than previous dedicated CD player. Also, it doesn't sound sparkly and harsh, it sounds laid back. But that may be due to me having marantz stereo amp which have a laid back quality.

The DVD playback is superior to my toshiba which I have to say was a few years older so no surprise there.

Plus, this unit is limline so I have space for IT and my amp one one telly shelf.

Hope that helps.

 

[brookesboy]

I've had a look at the Limit DVDA900SE and for the price it looks a steal - that said I'm finding it hard to believe there isn't a catch. I've also seen recommendations for the Phillips 963SA (£120), which is supposedly very good with music but is not multi region.

Does anyone have any information on the CA DVD59? I've been really impressed with my CA Azur 540R and was wondering whether they'd be a good match.

I will be using the DVD for 5.1 home cinema (6.1 soon) so DTS, Dolby etc it important too.

Also can someone explain to me the benefits of SACD and PS - sorry for being such a novice.

Thanks again

 

[brookesboy]

Also any owners of the Marantz DV4500??? Any good??

 

[balders]

The thing with the Limit is, it's not got some of the latest features and wizzy UI of some other machines. It plays MP3/ DVDA, but no DivX or SACD. No HDMI either.

What it does have is a chipset shared with the (albeit slightly older) Arcam CD players, and audio circuit/ PSU tweaks by audio-company Cyrus. It also feels pretty solid and nicely put together.

If you just need basic functionality, but good quality output I believe it to be a good choice, especially at that price. The only catches are:
- the remote is functional, but basic,
- there's no standby mode, only a power switch on the player,
- it can struggle with some multi-media cds (eg Dido)

I replaced a Tosh 220 with the Limit, and whilst noticing no discernible difference in the DVD quality, the quality of CD playback is far superior. My music-teacher missus agreed too, and she's got a much better ear for these things than me.

You could always order one from Play (or elsewhere) and if you don't like it, send it back.

I'd be interested if anyone can offer an opinion on the sound quality of the Limit versus the newer Tosh 350 and Pio 585 though as I haven't had a chance to listen to either. From the reviews I've read (if you can trust them), then I'm not expecting either to beat the Limit in the audio stakes.

Balders.

 

[brookesboy]

Thanks Balders - The Limit does sound a remarkable player at the price. That said I've pretty much narrowed my choice down to either the Philips DVP-720SA (can get it for £130.00) or the Philips DVD-963SA (£120.00) with the CA Azur 540D (£200) as an outsider but I can't really stretch my budget that far.

Both Philips seem highly regarded but I am leaning towards the 720SA simply because it is a newer machine and reviews seem to suggest that there will be the option to upgrade features as and when.

 

[sparticus]

Its always worth checking ebay for a good secondhand player, as well as the forums.
Regards