I know some of the people here are using this and I was wondering what your thought were and what the unit actually plays. Also I have seen this refurbished much cheaper and was wondering if anyone has had any problems. Thanks
Bought mine refurbed from accessories4less.com and loved it from day one.
My only gripe with it is that every time I turn it on, the darn thing goes back to Disc 1 instead of staying on the same disk I last played. Annoying but minor.
Even more minor is that the mechanism is a bit noisy when switching between CDs.
But the sound quality is excellent, and I was a longtime believer in the idea that all CDPs sound the same. ABed it with the $500 NAD542 in a store and actually preferred the Marantz by a small margin...found it more dynamic and punchier, though the NAD did have a silkier midrange. But still too subtle of a difference to justify the extra $350 bucks, IMO.
Edster, Thats a very informative response, thanks. I currently have a Yamaha DVD C750. Its a decent 5 disc universal player. The changer is very slow, and I have had some issues with its average video. I am picking up a single disc dvd player and really wanted to keep the 5 disc cd. I looked at some single discs, Nad 541Bee, Music Hall 25? and a few others. I went down to Cambridge Soundworks tonight to inspect the Marantz CC430 and its disc change, which has been called slow by some, is SOOO much faster that my Yamaha 750. I am really hoping on my own equipment it sounds just as good.
Yeah, I think my speakers made the biggest difference. The shop tried to replicate my setup best they could, so they used a NAD c372 integrated, and going by my description of a "neutral" 3-driver speaker, some Monitor Audio floorstanders that cost about 3 times my Ascend 340s.
I was much more impressed with the Marantz at home with my NAD separates (this was before I got the digital Panny I keep raving about), even though my listening room at home is an accoustic nightmare, so I figured it must be the speakers.
I have the CC4300 and used to have the C542 NAD and the NAD blew it away. The Marantz is soft on detail and lacking dynamic contrast compared to the NAD. The NAD on the other hand is a little clinical, that's why I used to have it. I've given the CC4300 to my wife for a second system. It's by far the best inexpensive CD changer I've heard for anywhere near the same bucks and an undoubted top value.
I also bought mine refurbed from accessories4less.com and and have been quite pleased with this bargin. It's several steps up from my 15-year-old Sony that preceded it.
I like having a CD changer as I'm often working on compilations CDs that I play in vehicles rather than listen to the radio, and the Marantz, besides being a bit noisey, suits my purposes fine.
Now Art may be right about the lack of detail---but it also comes down to what sort of gear you are mating your CD player with.
I've read good things about the refurbished Marantz CD changer, but, unfortunately, I've had the bad luck to get a defective one. I just opened it this morning. When I turned it on, the gears made a grinding noise, it went through all its cycles, then I got an "error" message. The drawer seemed to be loose and was sticking out slightly, but pushing it closed didn't help -- something was broken or disconnected inside. I called accessories4less, and they told me it must've been damaged during shipping. Too bad. (It was well packaged, so I don't really believe it could've been broken en route.) Anyway, it doesn't look as well made as my Panasonic DVD/CD F-86 (which works great mechanically, sounds excellent through a digital coax connection to a Panasonic xr55 receiver, and matches the xr55 in appearance ... if that matters). I thought the Marantz unit would be an upgrade from the Panasonic, but I don't want to try again. Unfortunately, again, this means I had to pay the shipping both ways, just for the fun of wasting my time with a defective unit.
Actually the first CC4300 I bought had a bad drawer and I bought it from a retailer so it has nothing to do accessories4less. Hopefully your next one will be fine. My second one worked (and works) flawlessly.
Jeffrey-WNY
Unregistered guest
Posted on
Thanks, guys. Your postings have been very helpful. I haven't bought any audio equipment for a long time, mainly because I've moved a lot for career reasons and have been living in apartments. A few months ago I realized that my neighbors are "snowbirds," a common phenomenon here in Buffalo, so I've decided to get together a system, which I can indulge in until the snow melts or until I give up and buy a house. The challenge isn't to go out and spend a lot of money, but to apply two principles. First, to understand the difference between good sound and mediocre sound, and, second, to find my own "tipping point" where the costs of upgrading outweigh the benefits of improved quality.