Digital Drive: REVIEW: Cambridge Audio D500 CD Player/Recorder by 02Pete

Model:	D500
Category:	CD Player/Recorder
Suggested Retail Price:	$250 to $300 used
Description:	Single CD player with 20-bit Crystal Delta-Sigma DAC
Manufacturer URL:	Cambridge Audio
Manufacturer URL:	Cambridge Audio

Review by 02Pete ( A ) on April 20, 2003 at 17:55:31
IP Address: 24.195.35.73

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I bought this CD player used in February 2002 from an audio dealer via an eBay auction. As of the date of this review in April 2003, I have had it for more than a year, and have listened to it regularly. It is playing as I am writing this.
While the D500, engineered in the United Kingdom and manufactured in the People's Republic of China, is now out of production, a successor model, the D500SE, is being marketed in the US by Audio Advisor (http://www.audioadvisor.com) for $429.00. There was also a somewhat less expensive model, the D300, which has now been replaced by the D300SE, available for $299.00 from the same source.
The D500 CD player has a standard audio component footprint, 17"W x 11.75"D x 3.25"H, and a conventional front-opening slide-out CD drawer. The manufacturer's website,http://www.cambridge-audio.co.uk , describes this model as having a 20-bit Crystal delta-sigma DAC, a precision voltage reference, regulated power supplies, a high-stability clock, and proprietary jitter reduction circuitry. The drive/laser mechanism, apparently built by Sony, includes a custom VLSI chip which helps improve tracking. The D500 has a detachable IEC power cord, outputs for regular RCA interconnects, and both optical (Toslink) and 75 ohm BNC coaxial digital outputs. The front-panel controls are basic but adequate, including a jog dial which is convenient for selecting tracks. The unit also comes with a remote which is reasonably easy to use. The numerical display panel is green, can be easily read up to about 45 degrees off-axis, and is only moderately bright -- which might sound like a criticism, but is very nice to have if you listen with the lights dimmed, when a very bright display would be intrusive. The case comes in a matte black finish which I personally like, although some might consider it plain. (The D500SE is similar, but has a 24-bit Crystal DAC, and is available in silver finish as well as black.)
While I have seen some online complaints by other users about reliability problems with this firm's equipment, I have not experienced any service difficulties with my D500 at all during the more than one year I have owned it. My impression is that Cambridge Audio has sought to deliver a competitive product at a moderate price level by using ambitious design specifications, but out-sourcing the production to a PRC manufacturing facility. This strategy might perhaps have resulted in some occasional quality control issues along the way, but my unit appears solidly built and works well. Audio Advisor, one of the US Internet/mail order firms markieting Cambridge Audio equipment, appears to be a successful company which stands behind what it sells, and I doubt that they would continue to sell this manufacturer's products if there were extensive reliability problems.
In building and selling the D500 to a price, Cambridge Audio did economize on the IEC power cord and the RCA interconnect cables furnished with the unit. These are relatively slim, lightweight cords, and limit the unit's performance somewhat. The purpose of buying used equipment at a moderate price would be defeated, however, by spending excessive amounts of money on replacement power cords and interconnects. After some shopping around, I ended up buying a Belden Professional power cord for about $50 from Midwest Audio Outlet Center (cunninghamp@hotmail.com), which I found on AudioWeb (http://www.audioweb.com). I also bought MAS Grey interconnects for about $80 from Stu Wein (audioparts@aol.com), which were recommended by user Sugarbrie on Audiogon (http://www.audiogon.com). The uprated cables made a noticeable improvement in the D500's performance. Those on tighter budgets could probably get good results from MAS Blue, AudioQuest Sidewinder or Kimber Tonik interconnects.
Stereophile (http://www.stereophile.com) rated the D500 a Class C Recommended Component in October 2000, based on a very favorable review by Sam Tellig in that magazine's September 2000 issue. Mr. Tellig also gave the successor D500SE model a positive review in the magazine's November 2001 issue. A British publication, HiFi Choice (http://www.hifichoice.co.uk), selected the D500 as "Best in the Test," and gave it a "Best Buy" rating, including 4 stars overall and 5 stars for value, in its May 2000 Issue 202, offering various favorable comments.
Committed audiophiles with deep pockets might describe describe the D500 and its D500SE replacement as entry-level or mid-fi units. Clearly, there are newer units on the market which might offer superior performance, although generally for a significantly higher price. I am happy with the D500 however, and consider it to represent an excellent value.
When I added the D500 to my system, it replaced a JVC CD player from the early 1990s. The difference was audible and evident from the first CD I played. The D500 sounded much more musical overall. In the higher frequencies, cymbals and the higher registers of stringed instruments and guitars were defined much more clearly and realistically. This was apparent even with the older speakers which I use with my system. Through good quality headphones, this part of the music was even clearer. In the middle registers, the tones and timbres of instruments and voices were not only clearer and more distinct, but also warmer, rounder and fuller. Down in the bass registers, the music seemed to be clear, present, well-controlled, and in proper balance with the upper registers (although I do not have a subwoofer which would bring out the deepest part of the music). The overall impression given by the D500 was a lot closer to the experience of listening to live music than the older mass-market unit which it replaced.
The one area which took a little getting used to was the D500's sense of pace, rhythm and timing. In some way, it seemed to be deliberate, with an unhurried presentation. This was not noticeable on slower-paced music, but did seem to affect faster-paced music such as rock. I am not an electrical engineer, and I do not know whether the digital to audio converters (DACs) in CD players use processors or RAM comparable to those used in personal computers. My impression while listening to fast-paced music with the D500, however, was a bit like the feeling of working with a high-definition graphics file on a personal computer which could handle it, but would benefit from a slightly faster CPU or a little more RAM. Given the surprisingly high quality of the D500's performance in certain respects, and its moderate price (especially used) compared with high-end equipment, I think that this was probably the unavoidable result of trade-offs which the design engineers made between offering clear, detailed, well-defined, realistic sound and tonal quality on the one hand, and keeping the manufacturing costs and price to the consumer from rising too high on the other. It is, in some ways, easier to design a piece of high-performance equipment intended to sell for $2,000 than it is to design one intended to sell for $500. Considering the great increase in musical realism which the D500 provided in comparison to the unit which it replaced, I find its pace, rhythm and timing to be acceptable, although I imagine that more expensive CD players might have somewhat higher performance in this regard.
Overall, I am very satisfied with the D500. It may not be the ultimate CD player, but it is much more detailed, realistic and musical than the older mass-market CD player which it replaced, and its cost is reasonable. It also works very well with the NAD C340 integrated amplifier in my system. If you can afford more expensive equipment, by all means enjoy it. For somebody like me, though, supporting one child in college and another in high school on a middle-class income, equipment like the D500 offers access to high quality sound at an affordable price. I would encourage those who are planning a budget system to consider the D500. I'm happy with mine.

Product Weakness: Pace, rhythm and timing -- sound is leisurely, laid back; fine for slow-paced, contemplative jazz and classical, but somewhat lacking in drive and urgency for fast-paced rock.
Product Strengths: Value -- excellent sound for modest price; clearer, more detailed, fuller, more musical sound than most mass-market components. A good match with NAD amplification.

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	NAD C-340
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	None
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Cambridge Audio D500 CDP; Yamaha P200 turntable; Dynaco FM-5 tuner
Speakers:	Dynaco A-25; Grado SR125 phones
Cables/Interconnects:	MAS Grey ICs
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	jazz, classical, rock, folk
Room Size (LxWxH):	21 ft. x 14 ft. x 8 ft.
Room Comments/Treatments:	rug, curtains, furniture
Time Period/Length of Audition:	More than one year
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Belden Pro power cable
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

Product Weakness:	Pace, rhythm and timing -- sound is leisurely, laid back; fine for slow-paced, contemplative jazz and classical, but somewhat lacking in drive and urgency for fast-paced rock.
Product Strengths:	Value -- excellent sound for modest price; clearer, more detailed, fuller, more musical sound than most mass-market components. A good match with NAD amplification.