Hello:

Our 16 year old NAD CD player finally can't be repaired any more...they
don't make the parts for it any longer. I went onto the Harvey Electronics
sight and saw that NAD now makes two different CD players and two different DVD
players. I am wondering if anyone is familiar with these and which like better
and why.

Also: are there any good review magazines on the newsstands and even better
- are there any good web sites that review high end audio equipment like NAD?

We do not plan on setting up home theater but do have nice SNELL speakers
and I wonder if we would be better off with a DVD player. I still hear that a
CD player plays the CD's better.

Thank you for your advice.

Sharon

DahliaLily wrote:

Hello:

Our 16 year old NAD CD player finally can't be repaired any
more...they
don't make the parts for it any longer. I went onto the Harvey Electronics
sight and saw that NAD now makes two different CD players and two different
DVD
players. I am wondering if anyone is familiar with these and which like
better
and why.

The differences are subtle. One has a 24-bit DAC, the other a 20-bit DAC,
but whether this is significant for a 16-bit medium like CD is, shall we
say, controversial. One also decodes HDCD, but HDCDs are rather rare. You
might own a few and not know it. If you don't know what HDCD is, it may not
even be worth finding out at this point.

I haven't compared the two, but I wouldn't expect a major (or for that
matter, even a minor) difference in sound. You should listen to both
yourself, however, since what you hear will be more important than what I or
anyone else hears.

Also: are there any good review magazines on the newsstands and even
better
- are there any good web sites that review high end audio equipment like
NAD?

Yes, but they'll tell you the more expensive one sounds better. Always.
Again, what you hear is more important than what they hear.

We do not plan on setting up home theater but do have nice SNELL
speakers
and I wonder if we would be better off with a DVD player. I still hear
that a
CD player plays the CD's better.

Well, if you don't plan to play DVDs, then you don't need a DVD player.
Whether a CD player will sound better than a DVD player is, shall we say,
controversial.

What has changed in 16 years is the introduction of new digital
formats--SACD and DVD-A. These have higher resolution than CD, although
whether that makes a sonic difference is, shall we say... oh, you get the
idea. Also, they are not common and don't look like they will ever become
common, IMHO.

Still, relatively cheap players exist that can play either or both formats
(someone will recommend one to you within 24 hours, I promise), so you can
try them out if you want.

bob

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Sorry Bob, don't think I made it in 24 hrs. I bought a Pioneer DV-563A for
my basement theater and it is pretty much all-in-one for about $200. DVD
prog scan, DVD-A, SACD, SACD 5.1, , CD....even the ghastly MP3s.

For audio only, my SONY ES SCD-C555ES has been nothing but a pleasure to
own. And yes I do personally enjoy SACD sound.

"Bob Marcus" wrote in message
...
DahliaLily wrote:

Hello:

Our 16 year old NAD CD player finally can't be repaired any
more...they
don't make the parts for it any longer. I went onto the Harvey
Electronics
sight and saw that NAD now makes two different CD players and two
different
DVD
players. I am wondering if anyone is familiar with these and which like
better
and why.

The differences are subtle. One has a 24-bit DAC, the other a 20-bit DAC,
but whether this is significant for a 16-bit medium like CD is, shall we
say, controversial. One also decodes HDCD, but HDCDs are rather rare. You
might own a few and not know it. If you don't know what HDCD is, it may
not
even be worth finding out at this point.

I haven't compared the two, but I wouldn't expect a major (or for that
matter, even a minor) difference in sound. You should listen to both
yourself, however, since what you hear will be more important than what I
or
anyone else hears.

Also: are there any good review magazines on the newsstands and even
better
- are there any good web sites that review high end audio equipment like
NAD?

Yes, but they'll tell you the more expensive one sounds better. Always.
Again, what you hear is more important than what they hear.

We do not plan on setting up home theater but do have nice SNELL
speakers
and I wonder if we would be better off with a DVD player. I still hear
that a
CD player plays the CD's better.

Well, if you don't plan to play DVDs, then you don't need a DVD player.
Whether a CD player will sound better than a DVD player is, shall we say,
controversial.

What has changed in 16 years is the introduction of new digital
formats--SACD and DVD-A. These have higher resolution than CD, although
whether that makes a sonic difference is, shall we say... oh, you get the
idea. Also, they are not common and don't look like they will ever become
common, IMHO.

Still, relatively cheap players exist that can play either or both formats
(someone will recommend one to you within 24 hours, I promise), so you can
try them out if you want.

bob

__________________________________________________ _______________
Tax headache? MSN Money provides relief with tax tips, tools, IRS forms
and
more! http://moneycentral.msn.com/tax/workshop/welcome.asp