Since we last looked into the ongoing resurrection of the classic digital disc, even more CD playing devices have caught our eye. Here’s an update featuring the latest in standalones and separates, ranging from casual players that can be hauled from room to room to ultra-high end machines that’ll require a significant audio upgrade across the whole of your system to hear them at their best. These contemporary CD players will help you revisit music old and new, in the often overlooked old-school audio format that offers both quality and convenience.
Vinyl owns crackle and tape has hiss, but aside from these analogue anomalies, the main attraction of the two formats is pure nostalgia. Granted, record players of impressive quality and sophistication are still being made (along with vinyl storage), and the low-level tape revival (with accompanying cassette players) marches a steady path between TikTok pop and the audio avant-garde. But as any casual aficionado of high-fidelity sound will tell you, Compact Disc (CD) is where it’s at and always has been.
In this era of infinite, always-on streamed media, choice and curation often take a back seat to just letting music wash all over you. The CD is a near-perfect medium for enjoying that most widespread art form of the past 60 years, the album. Offering exceptional sound, neatly packaged, CDs are less hassle than their analogue forebears, but more intentional than just popping on a Spotify playlist.
CD sales peaked over 20 years ago, when around 650 million were sold each year. Downloads and streaming decimated these numbers, but the billions of discs sold are mostly still around and in perfect condition. Many manufacturers stepped away from making CD players – you’d be hard pressed to find a modern car equipped to play discs.
Manufacturers are seeing an uptick in the demand for CDs, noting that they’re actually more sustainable than pressing on virgin vinyl. John Service at North London’s Key Production has noted that many labels and artists are shying away from the fragile ‘jewel cases’ of the past. ‘There has been a 70 per cent increase in cardboard packaging orders in the last year alone,’ he says.
We’ve sought ten of the best contemporary CD players that’ll make the most of the digital disc’s most enduring qualities, whether it's been thrifted, remastered, or simply dug out from deep in your archives.
CD players to embrace the compact disc revival
Denon DCD-1700NE and Denon CEOL N12DAB
First up, a couple of players from Denon, starting with the pro-level DCD-1700NE. This one is designed for component systems and is capable of playing high resolution SACD (Super Audio CDs), as well as self-created CDs and music-laded DVDs containing audiophile-friendly FLAC and WAV files. Available in black and silver. In contrast, the CEOL N12DAB model is a compact all-in-one system that pairs Denon’s CD player tech with a DAB/FM tuner and extensive connectivity options, including the ability to receive and stream sound from TVs via HDMI.
Denon DCD-1700NE, £1,199, available from Denon.com and Amazon.co.uk
Denon CEOL N12DAB, £749, available from Denon.com
TEAC PD-505T CD and TEAC AD-850-SE
TEAC’s offerings start with the function-heavy AD-850-SE. This stacking component not only offers a CD player but also a cassette deck, along with USB input to record from both formats in mp3 format. Not only that, but the unit has a microphone input that allows you to blend the mic signal with the recording to tape, with added reverb for karaoke use. A do-it-all device that’s an absolute must for audio archivists. TEAC’s more upscale PD-505T is a compact device that’s part of the company’s Reference 500 series of high-end audio kit.
TEAC AD-850-SE. £529, available from eu.teac-audio.comand Amazon.co.uk
TEAC PD-505T CD, £999, available from eu.teac-audio.com
Elements CD player by Leema Acoustics
Manufactured for over a decade by the British specialists Leema Acoustics, to exacting standards, the Elements is a minimal, compact and high-end, with a simple digital display and controls and all the connectivity necessary to install it as a centrepiece to a high-grade audio system.
Elements CD player, £1,610, Leema-Acoustics.com
Tangent CDII
A slice of Danish minimalism, Tangent Audio’s CDII pairs with the company’s equally reductive TUNERII and AMPSTER BTII to create a timelessly simple mini system. Barely 20cm wide and 7cm high, each component can stack into the smallest of spaces without compromising sound quality or simple aesthetics.
Tangent Audio CDII, £150, Tangent-Audio.com , available from Amazon.co.uk
Esoteric K-03XD
Weighing in at an impressive 28kg with a similarly hefty price tag, the K-03XD is the most recent reference-quality CD player from this Japanese manufacturer. Esoteric’s approach is all about using the most advanced components and manufacturing methods, with the kind of meticulous tolerances and circuitry design that warms the hearts and ears of the most exacting and obsessive audiophile. The company began as TEAC’s premium range and is now considered one of the world’s most premium hi-fi brands.
Esoteric K-03XD Super Audio CD/CD Player, £16,350, Esoteric.jp
Viking by Hegel Music Systems
Norway’s Hegel Music Systems is another Scandinavian company with a minimalist approach. Their Viking CD player is a separate component with an automotive-style slot loading CD mechanism, rather than a conventional tray. The company has pared functionality back to two simple dials and a one-line dot matrix display.
Viking, Hegel Music Systems, £4,500, Hegel.com
Quad Artera Play+
Quad’s Artera Play+ is an admirably simple design. Quad is better known for its rather more elaborate power amplifier range, which come with exposed valves and prominent vents, but its Artera range of pared-back multi-functional units start with the Play+ and go on to the Solus Play with a full range of streaming options.
Quad Artera Play+ CD Player, £1,299.95, Quad-HiFi.co.uk
Instant Disk Audio CP2
Drawing inspiration from Naoto Fukasawa’s classic Muji wall-mounted CD player, Instant Disk’s Audio Cp2 is a CD player with a built-in speaker and a go-anywhere type design – wall mount or simply take it with you. Just 27mm thick, the CP2 also includes Bluetooth 5.1 as well as a regular headphone jack and the ability to play back mp3-loaded CDs.
Instant Disk Audio Cp2, £159, km5.co.jp
Loewe klang s3
German audio manufacturer Loewe specialises in television sets, but its hi-fi products are also well worth a look. This is the klang s3, a slender (but hefty) all-in-one unit that splices together a DAB radio, FM radio, internet radio, streaming services (Spotify, Amazon, etc), plus that all important slot for a CD. Operated via a remote control or Loewe’s radio app, the klang s3 sounds punchy, is beautifully built and comes with more choice than you’ll ever conceivably need.
Loewe Klang s3, £719 from Amazon.co.uk, Int.loewe.tv, @loewe.international
Pure Evoke
Another all-in-one, Evoke’s Home was designed by Sam Hecht and Kim Colin at Industrial Facility. With its cherry wood grill, pop-up screen and meticulous design, the Evoke’s easy minimalism is countered by a full feature set, including slot-operated CD player, and the trio of FM, DAB and internet radio. There’s also Pure’s UNDOK app for smartphone control, and a total of 100W of power.
Pure Evoke Wood Edition, £449.99, Pure-Audio.com, @pureaudioworld
Philips Audio M6805
Philips – the original inventor of the CD format back in 1982 – currently offers this impressive micro music system to keep it in the game. It’s a more conventional alternative to the chic stylings of Loewe, Ruark and Pure, but the functions certainly aren’t lacking. The ability to play mp3 files burnt onto CDs allows you to revisit the noughties equivalent of the mixtape, and there’s also a USB port for plugging in old school thumb drives. The CD player is a front loader and makes full use of the 50W sound system.
Philips Audio M6805, £259.99 from Amazon.co.uk, Philips.co.uk
Ruark R3S DAB
Ruark used to have several CD players in its range, but now it’s reduced that down to one, the R3S DAB (even the flagship R410 and R810 systems don’t have space for compact discs). That’s OK, because the R3S is still a winner, a compact shelf-mounted all-in-one unit that pairs a front-loading CD player with a suite of streaming, internet and radio tuners. It’s available in a soft grey finish or with a dark walnut veneer.
Ruark R3S DAB, £649.99 from JohnLewis.com, RuarkAudio.com, @ruarkaudio
Roberts Stream 67L
The final recommended model in this survey of all-in-one systems is the Roberts Stream 67L, a familiar form factor and feature set, distinguished by the curved wood case, acoustically tuned to accommodate the four-speaker set-up. Roberts has been building radios since 1932 (and has a royal warrant to show for it), with a strong whiff of retro-style creeping in throughout the 21st century. The Stream 67L is more mid-century than pre-war, and offers a distinctive, elegant form to go with the excellent sound.
Roberts Stream 67L, £499.99 from Amazon.co.uk, RobertsRadio.com
Brennan B3+
Brennan’s B3+ needs to be hooked to speakers – either wired or wireless, or your existing Sonos set-up – so it can’t be considered a standalone product. Back in the dawn of the digital era, Brennan started building simple to use players that could rip CDs to their internal hard disks. That’s still the case, and the core users have typically been audiophiles looking to create lossless FLAC files, rather than compressed MP3s. With 2 terabytes of storage, the B3+ is good for storing over 4,400 CDs at the very highest quality, archived and searchable. Or you could simply play the CD itself.
Brennan B3+, £729 from Amazon.co.uk or Brennan.co.uk
Cambridge Audio AXC35
The AXC35 is a very traditional-looking hi-fi separate, of the kind that used to be available in their hundreds. High-quality CD players are few and far between at this price, and Cambridge Audio’s longstanding commitment to hi-fi dates back to its founding in the eponymous town in the late 1960s. The company built the first ‘two box’ CD player with a separate decoder unit in 1985 and has distilled all that know-how into this contemporary no-frills model. Finished in Lunar Grey, like all CA’s products, it’s a welcome step back to simplicity.
Cambridge Audio AXC35, £349.00, CambridgeAudio.com, @CambridgeAudio
Lyngdorf CD-2
Minimally styled but with maximal commitment to fidelity, the Lyngdorf CD-2 is a player for golden eared aesthetes. Slender and simple, the CD-2 is designed to be used in conjunction with Lyngdorf’s other separate components and is dedicated to playing standard CDs only. Lyngdorf was set up by the Danish audiophile Peter Lyngdorf in 1975 and started making its own components in the early 1980s. All products are designed and made in Denmark.
Lyngdorf CD-2, £2,600, available from RobertTaussig.com, Lyngdorf.Steinwaylyngdorf.com
Naim Uniti Star
The Naim Uniti Star is a mighty system that adds TV connectivity and smart assistants to its long list of services and functions. Naturally this includes a CD player, alongside USB and HDMI inputs. Support for SD card storage allows you to rip discs to the device, while there are wired speaker outputs and support for Naim’s own wireless speaker series, as well as Apple AirPlay and Google Chromecast systems for multi-room playback.
Naim Uniti Star, £3,499, available from RobertTaussig.com, NaimAudio.com, @naimaudio
Marantz SACD-30n
The SACD-30n is the flagship of Marantz’s CD player line-up. Made in Japan, this standalone player can handle DVDs as well as SACD – the short-lived ultra-high definition ‘Super Audio’ format. It also incorporates Marantz’s HEOS system, a multi-service search engine that will find tracks across Amazon, Tidal, etc, incorporates digital assistants like Alexa, and can be app-controlled from anywhere. It’s designed to pair aesthetically with Marantz’s MODEL 30 series.
Marantz SACD-30n Streaming SACD Player, £3,000, Marantz.com, @marantzofficial
