cd player help

[ryanianmckinnon]

well the Marantz CD5003 is a nice CD player i am gonna keep looking around till im positive i know what i want

[Mr Peabody]

No, people like the ERC because it's a kick ass player. It will blow the 5003 away. The ERC-1 was much better than the NAD 545 I compared it to and the NAD got glowing reviews and retails $499.00. Right now my ERC-1 is connected to my Krell 500i via XLR. A cheap player would sound like hell hooked to the Krell. The ERC sounds good. For under $1k you'd be hard pressed to find a better player. I also liked the ERC-1 better than a Conrad Johnson DAC I had. The DAC was older digital technology but cost $1200.00 new. The only criticism I have of the ERC-1, and that's ONLY when comparing to much better players, it could use more tonal quality and more weight in the bass. The ERC-1 has enough bass with a lot of detail, just not as much authority when compared to more expensive players. When compared to players it's own price range the ERC-1 will feed them lunch.

If you can find our old threads on the ERC-1 there's more info on what we compared it to etc. I also wrote a review on the Emotiva website under the user name Krellion.

[bonsaiguitar]

For $285 I think the Marantz will do me just fine. Not out to blow my doors off, just listen to some awesome tunes at a good price point. And I think it's ugly.

I'm sure there are other players that will blow the Emo's doors off. I'm also sure you heard the old saying.......there's always someone else out there faster, stronger, etc. Someone is probably reading this thinking the Emo is a joke compared to their $27,000 transport.

How long did you own or listen to the 5003? Just curious.

[ryanianmckinnon]

yeah im pretty sure im going to get the ERC, it may be more money but that really doesnt matter to me. I know once i find time to relax and listen to it, i will hear things in music that i havent heard before, i rather pay a little more for something to get a better product

[Mr Peabody]

I did not own the 5003. We have a dealer that carry them. I did compare the ERC-1 to the NAD 545 side by side. The 5003 was sold for $299.00 all it's life. It may be alright for a budget player at $299.00 but the ERC-1 at $399.00 performs far better than it's priced. The ERC-1 was on holiday sale at $320.00. I started out a skeptic of Emotiva but it wasn't until I tried the ERC-1 and heard how well it did that I began to trust they do perform.

My main system is in my signature. The T+A is my reference player and came in at just under $3k.

[bonsaiguitar]

Good luck. I hope it performs to your expectations. I may read up some more and end up buying one myself down the road. Now that I'm getting back into it and looking into exotic amps and other gear and have the room I might build a few systems.

The one I'm working on now is for the man cave where I workout.

[ryanianmckinnon]

yeah i hope it does to i happend to notice that u have a AR sub ? how do u like it i have AR speakers and i love them, i am wondering if there subs are just as good ?

[Mr Peabody]

Acoustic Research, the original company that is, went out of business several years ago. I see the name on cheezy cables now but I don't think any speaker product is being sold under it. I may be wrong I haven't been to a Best Buy in quite a while. When companies go out of business the name is often sold to some other company to use.

REL is an excellent brand of sub that is offering some affordable models. Affordable compared to their upper end stuff.
Martin Logan has some affordable models, such as the Dynamo.
I use SVS and very pleased with them. The best sub I've owned so far. Take a look the cylinder style are interesting, www.svsound.com

[ryanianmckinnon]

yeah its to bad they went out of business it was probably because they sold there products to cheap and ended up losing money

[philhh]

I've been reading rave reviews regarding the NAD C 565BEE at $799.00...

http://www.soundstage.com/equipment/nad_c565bee.htm

Also the Onkyo DX7555 at $599 looks extremely interesting.

These don't quite conform to your budget, so I apologize for the post, but in past experience I've found some really stellar products just out of reach of my initial budget that I wished I'd saved up for, rather than compromising on lesser gear.

This was certainly true when I saved up years ago for a Meridian 508.20 CD player (used) which lasted me a good 8+ years and doubtlessly saved me money over a couple intermediate upgrades/swaps even at moderate prices.

-Phil

[bonsaiguitar]

I've been reading rave reviews regarding the NAD C 565BEE at $799.00...

http://www.soundstage.com/equipment/nad_c565bee.htm

Also the Onkyo DX7555 at $599 looks extremely interesting.

These don't quite conform to your budget, so I apologize for the post, but in past experience I've found some really stellar products just out of reach of my initial budget that I wished I'd saved up for, rather than compromising on lesser gear.

This was certainly true when I saved up years ago for a Meridian 508.20 CD player (used) which lasted me a good 8+ years and doubtlessly saved me money over a couple intermediate upgrades/swaps even at moderate prices.

-Phil

When you have several systems that might turn into a serious problem. This is for a smaller system with tube amp. I've had NAD amplifiers in the past and loved them. I was going to go for a tube player but my ears can't tell any significant advance in sound. I might get one of those Lenova's or whatever they're called. I was reading about them a while back and they give military discounts. The Marantz arrived today and is a perfect match for this system in every way. And I was able to get it for $285 shipped. Thanks for all the input. Much appriciated.