CD1/I

Posted by: Scott Mckenzie on 22 June 2001

I have contacted my local dealer about this and he seems to think that this is a worthy buy..

I have been offered a CD1 (CDI) for around £300, from what i understand this is somewhat of a bargain and I should definetly buy it, I would like the opinions of some people on this forum as to whether or not it is worth purchasing and also if it is going to be wasted in my system which currently is running a Nait 3R - with the plan of upgrading on my return from the US in September.

I have also been told that it would be worth sending it back to naim for a service as it is a 93 model...does anyone have any idea how much this would cost as it too would influence my decision.

I currently have an Arcam Alpha 7SE so anything Naim would be a considerable upgrade.. however would it be better to buy a CD3 or 3.5 as my music tastes are more Dance/R&B/Hip Hop and I have heard reports of the CD1 being a little "soft".

Scott

Posted on: 22 June 2001 by Rico

Scott

the CDI is not everyone's cup of tea. But even on a (very, very) bad day, a CDI will absolutely whip your Arcam 7. Totally. At £300 it's a steal, and I suspect that even if it needed a full service at Naim, it would still be a good buy. You are talking of a very capable player that some consider 'soft'(we're only talking degrees here, remember; and that's counterbalanced by opinions of "greater nuance/timbre/texture"), against much newer, more expensive players, none of which are remotely close to £300! Mere semantics. Get thy ass and wallet coupled, and go buy it, assuming it's all ok.

It will give you a worthy source for your Nait, and allow system expansion for some time to come.

Rico - all your base are belong to us.

PS - you're right that "anything Naim offers a considerable upgrade over your Arcam" - a CD-3 smashes an A-7 too.

Posted on: 22 June 2001 by Steve G

Is this the one currently on ebay by any chance? If so I suspect it may go for considerably more that 300 by then end of play. If not they for 300 quid snap it up - and if you decide not to take it let me know the sellers details...

Regards
Steve

Posted on: 25 June 2001 by ebirah

Like Brendan I have a CDI with 72, Hi-cap, 250 and Shahinian ARCS. I feel no need to change it whatsoever. It's great and would be a stunning buy at that price. I recently spoke to a London dealer who has many CDI owners listening to the CD5 as a possible replacement for their 'ageing' machine (I was one of them). The CDI blew it out of the water.

Steve

Posted on: 26 June 2001 by Steve G

The CD1 sold yesterday on Ebay for something like £450 so someone got a bargain. For that price even if it needs serviced it's a good buy. I might have bought it myself if I hadn't recently purchased a CD3.5.

Regards
Steve

Posted on: 26 June 2001 by Rico

- did you get it sorted?

Rico - all your base are belong to us.

Posted on: 26 June 2001 by Goose

I have used a CD1 in all manner of Naim Shahinian /dynavector systems and it has always sounded fantastic. £300 is a bargain.

Go for it.
Goose

Posted on: 27 June 2001 by Steve B

Steve

Quote:

"....many CDI owners listening to the CD5 as a possible replacement for their 'ageing' machine (I was one of them). The CDI blew it out of the water."

Oh my, I've just about saved up enough money to buy a CD5 then I read this.

I heard a CDI not long after it was introduced and wasn't impressed. I thought the Linn Karik was slightly better. Neither player was brilliant.

So where does that leave the CD5? I assumed that the CD players would have got better as each model replaced the previous one. i.e. CDI, CD2, CD3, CD3.5 and CD5.

I will dem one soon but I'll also have a good listen to the CDX and decide whether to postpone the CD player (again) until I can afford the better one.

Steve B

Posted on: 27 June 2001 by Rico

If there's any possibility of a CDX, personally I'd buy that. If you need a 'mid-point' en route to this, a CD3 represents a fantastic used buy for not much cash.

FYI chronology for the lines is as below. No "better-best" is inferred here.

CDI/CD2/CDX

CD3/CD3.5/CD5

Rico - all your base are belong to us.

Posted on: 27 June 2001 by Steve B

Thanks Rico,

I haven't completely ruled out buying a used CD player yet although I am a bit wary as I get the impression CDs are the least reliable pieces of HiFi gear.

I'll dem the CD5 v CDX soon and report back.

Steve B

Posted on: 27 June 2001 by ebirah

Steve B - I initially heard the CD5 in a middle ground system (5 series amps and some spaekers I couldn't identify) and it sounded fantastic! Detailed, involving and rather smoother than I'm used to with Naim gear - hence thoughts of getting one. Unfortunately, when partnered with the higher end stuff it just didn't better the CDI. Interestingly, when I first got my CDI, I thought it was the best of a bad bunch - I'd waited for the CD3 release but it wasn't close enough to the CDI so I bought the latter. I'd never been really happy with the CDI until I changed my SBLs for Shahinian ARCS - now I just can't stop listening to it and, for the first time ever, prefer some CDs to LPs. Gosh!

Steve