CD PLAYERS

Three of the very best high-end CD players around

The Technics SL-G700 straddles generations of digital formats by playing discs – CD and SACD – as well as streaming music from across a network or via Bluetooth. Airplay, MQA and Chromecast are on the menu too.

At first glance, the SL-G700 looks like a premium-priced product and certainly feels hefty, weighing in at more than 12kg. That substance is backed-up with rigid, nicely damped casework and a standard of finish few rivals can better. The controls work with well-oiled precision, though the buttons seem crowded on the right side, with an oddly proportioned display for company. Much of the front panel is bare apart from the headphone and USB sockets and a power button on the other side of that silky smooth CD drawer.

At the back are balanced and singleended analogue outputs. You’ll also see a USB, a pair of aerials for wi-fi, optical and coaxial digital connections and an ethernet socket for greater stability.

Could be slicker

Getting things up and running isn’t as slick as it could be. Set up the SL-G700 on your network using the Google Home app, then switch to the dedicated Technics Audio Centre streaming app to control the streaming operations.

It’s a decent piece of software, albeit lacking the design flair of alternatives from Naim, Linn or even Bluesound, however, it doesn’t control all the operations. To use the disc playing side of this machine, you have to use the traditional remote handset provided. If you switch sources often, swapping between the app and the physical handset feels cumbersome.

We may not have warmed to the way this player operates, but we can certainly admire just how well it plays music. You won’t necessarily get this impression over Bluetooth. The sound is a little bland, but still clear and informative.

The situation improves when we start playing discs. We play Prince’s Diamonds And Pearls and are a little surprised to hear just how good a player the SL-G700 is. It’s right up there with the best CD players costing less than £2000, delivering a detailed and precise rendition that still has plenty in the way of punch and rhythmic ability. This is a player that can deliver Gett Off with all the attitude it deserves, yet still has the skill to render Prince’s voice with the nuance and emotion intact.

Weight and punch

Bass has plenty of weight and punch but remains agile and tuneful. The Technics sounds cohesive, every instrument coming together seamlessly to create an entertaining presentation.

We play Stravinsky’s The Rite Of Spring on CD and the SL-G700 delivers a sound with plenty of scale and authority. Large dynamic sweeps are rendered with confidence and the stereo imaging is as precise and layered as we could hope for.

The player’s tonality is nicely judged between providing enough weight and warmth without sacrificing bite at the top end. This is a refined performer, but it never goes so far as to dilute the excitement from the music being played. That’s a balancing act that few get right.

We dust off our SACD collection and listen to Eric Bibb & Needed Time’s Good Stuff. We are impressed by the SL-G700’S ability to resolve subtle details and the delicacy with which it reproduces Bibb’s acoustic guitar. The sound is full-bodied, and organic enough to make us wish that the SACD format had made more of a lasting impact than it did.

We stream music from our reference Naim NAS and aside from the player’s slightly clunky operation, we find little else to complain about. There’s plenty of excitement when the music demands, but it’s coupled to an ability to shift down a gear when necessary. Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds comes through with its feel-good factor intact while Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony is rendered with all the drama it deserves.

The likes of Chromecast and Airplay work well enough, but their main purpose is to provide a choice of source material rather than push sonic boundaries. But there are things we don’t like, such as the sound through the front panel headphone output, which is only reasonable at best. It remains perfectly usable, but you won’t hear the Technics at its best through this connection.

We’re pleasantly surprised by the Technics SL-G700. We half expected a compromised package that would struggle to excel with both disc and stream, but it’s a superb product that sets high sonic standards across the board.

he CDA2 Mk2 packs a CD player, fully featured digital-to-analogue converter and a high quality analogue preamplifier. It’s not a common combination of abilities, and while the obvious path is to compare this ATC with separates components that add up to the similar overall price, that doesn’t seem wholly fair. Going the separates route triples the box count and adds the cost (and mess) of additional cabling, but potentially at least, delivers a better quality of sound. Or so we thought.

While ATC is best known for its speakers, the company has made electronics for years. The power modules in its active speakers and its range of stand-alone amplification have gained praise, but never quite held the limelight.

TPremium chip

The CDA2 uses a premium 32-bit AKM DAC chip, chosen for its low noise and distortion, meaning that it can cope with music files up to 32-bit/384khz PCM and DSD256, though the latter drops to DSD128 if you’re using a Mac.

Connectivity is good with USB (Type B), coaxial and optical available beside two pairs of stereo RCA analogue inputs and a 3.5mm jack. The 3.5mm input and 6.3mm headphone output are on the back panel and rather awkward to use.

Given ATC’S pro heritage, it doesn’t come as a surprise to find the inclusion of balanced XLRS as an alternative to the usual RCA analogue outputs. Both connections work through the CDA2’S volume control. Just add a power amp or a pair of active speakers to get a sound.

The CDA2’S output stage is generously specified, delivering no less than 9.2V through the RCAS and double that out of the XLRS. This means it should have no trouble driving long cable runs and the most insensitive of power amplifiers.