Digital Drive: REVIEW: Class� Audio CDP-102 CD Player/Recorder by Luminator

Model:	CDP-102
Category:	CD Player/Recorder
Suggested Retail Price:	$4000.00
Description:	CD/DVD Player
Manufacturer URL:	Class� Audio
Model Picture:	View

Review by Luminator on July 23, 2010 at 16:29:25
IP Address: 75.25.148.121 Add Your Review
for the CDP-102

An Inmate wrote: "Lummy, I thoroughly enjoyed your series over on Central, but c'mon, you gotta post more about audio!"

Well, those who follow my blog know that I have been quite busy, reporting on several audio products. One of which is the Classe' CDP-102. This time, you have lots to click on:

Sooner Or Later
Eclipse
Oppressing The Masses
Brother Where You Bound
Boys And Girls
Steelheart
Beethoven's Last Night
Unguarded
The Revival
No Jacket Required
Secrets
Southern Cross
Medusa
The Dream Of The Blue Turtles
Little Creatures
Brothers In Arms

Another audiophile e-mailed me, "I like following your posts. You're the only [audiophile] who uses popular music as a reference. Plus, you're always giving us a history lesson. Can't wait for you to do another review, and take us to another time period."

Ah, for this review, let us go back to the summer of 1993. It is now archived, but my review on Cable Asylum of the Kimber KCAG focused on the Spring 1993 semester. I graduated from college in mid-June 1993. I was actually on good terms with my girlfriend, KJ. On the way back to San Francisco, I held her hand, and really thought we were going to make it. I didn't know what else was going on with my life, but as long as KJ and I were good, I didn't care.

My brother had just bought the new OMD album, Liberator . At the time, we had two home CD players, a Sony CDP-520ES II and NAD 5000. The former operated in lightning-fast fashion. The latter took a few seconds to ramp up. Liberator 's sound is upbeat and fresh, even when the subject matter isn't. Alas, any excitement you may have in anticipating playing Liberator is quickly dashed, when you have to wait, and wait, and wait for the Classe' CDP-102 to load. Car CD players, with their slot-loading mechanisms, often load quickly. Not the CDP-102. It can take over 19 seconds to start playing a disc. Of the CD players I have used, only the Wadia 581i/781i (up to half a minute to load and play) is slower.

Here on Audio Asylum, I have mentioned Howard Jones' cover of [Donald Fagen's] "I.G.Y." a few times. You can find it on Jones' The Best Of compilation. I used to bring this CD with me to San Francisco's Ultimate Sound. In 1993, Ultimate Sound was still located in the basement "dungeon" of the Sherman Clay building on Kearny Street. You'd walk in, pass by some pianos, and turn left. In the stairwell was a poster of Monster Cable. Downstairs was the sheet music. By a black curtain was Ultimate Sound. Playing Jones' "I.G.Y." portrayed open optimism, even though it was dark and gloomy, down in Ultimate Sound. Back then, Ultimate Sound had a demo Conrad Johnson CD player [I don't recall the model number]. Its red display was hard to read. And that certainly killed the positive vibes of "I.G.Y." The CDP-102's blue-colored display is easier on the eyes than the CJ's red. However, the display is tiny, and if you stand 2 or more feet away, you won't be able to read it. Useless. Furthermore, the Graphical User Interface's touchscreen is slow to react. If you are used to the sensitive screens of iPhones, you are going to be disappointed in the CDP-102's lousy GUI.

1993 was a time for grunge, rap, and alternative. There wasn't much room for Tears For Fears, then reduced to Roland Orzabal. Nevertheless, "Break It Down Again" was and is a favorite of mine. I actually found the CD single at the Tower Records on Market near Castro on a sunny afternoon. The recording's images are somewhat fuzzy, perhaps a nod towards grunge.

I tried tens of interconnects on the CDP-102, from the throwaway patchcords which came with a DVD player, to Nordost Odin, which costs as much as a small car. Over time, I became aware that the CDP-102 is "cable neutral." That is, it does not discriminate, and will assume the character of the interconnect. This became obvious, when I used XLO's original Signature 1.1 and 2.1. The sound and images became tight, especially in the lower mids. It reminded me of being hungry, tummy grumbling, but having to run after the 22-Fillmore bus, in order to get home from the Market Street Tower Records. That is most certainly not how "Break It Down Again" is supposed to sound.

Just a few weeks after graduation, KJ broke up with me. I was devastated. To make me feel better, I delved into music and high-end audio. On a dark, but fog-free evening, I went to the Wherehouse which used to be on Geary and Parker. I bought A-Ha's Memorial Beach . Like everyone else, I was hoping for more of A-Ha's signature synthpop. Alas, A-Ha ditched the synthpop, and tried to emulate U2. At least here in the U.S., A-Ha have never really recovered from this ill-fated move. Still, Memorial Beach does include the gem, "Dark Is The Night For All." The interconnect which makes listeners go, "That sounds like what Daniel Lanois intended to schieve" is the MIT Oracle v1.2.

The inexpensive-but-good Kimber PBJ, though grainy, makes the CDP-102 detailed and musically compelling. The super-expensive Nordost Odin is the most sonically invisible. The Tara Labs ISM The One imparts a slick, glossy, yet transparent personality. The Q-Audio Tao is the most BS-free. The Cardas Golden Reference mucks everything up, like Lanois' butcher job on U2's The Joshua Tree . The XLO Limited Edition is like dunking your head in a tub of warm water. The Wireworld Platinum Eclipse gets really technical about the details. But it is the MIT Oracle v1.2, which causes KJ (to whom I am now married) to get up, and exclaim, A-Ha "are right there !"

Again, though grunge, alternative, and rap ruled the early 90s, Taylor Dayne's "Can't Get Enough Of Your Love" portended adult contemporary's mid-90s resurgence. Somewhat surprisingly, powercords do not have an extreme influence on the CDP-102. Overall, of the powercords I had on hand, the Pranawire Satori brought out the CDP-102's best. But you don't necessarily need expensive powercords to bring out some of what the CDP-102 can do. At a bare minimum, the Kimber PowerKord Golds do not shut down and obscure the music. They'll leave you thinking, "Why the heck did Dayne cover Barry White?"

The relatively affordable Acrolink 6N-P4030 with Oyaide P/C-046 plugs brings out the CDP-102's resolution capabilities. It will leave you feeling, "Dayne may not have been wise, but she sure had guts, trying to cover Barry White."

In the summer of 1993, there was an audio store, Sounds Alive, on San Francisco's Florida Street. I brought [Steve] Vai's new CD, Sex & Religion , to Sounds Alive, which was using some Audio Alchemy DAC. Yikes! There was no air above soundstage, no space between the images.

My friend and classmate, Kim [you've read about her in my other reviews here on AA], lived just a few blocks from Sounds Alive. Kim had found out that KJ and I had broken up, so she seized the opportunity, and swooped in. The afternoon was shining through Kim's bedroom window, and I swear that the Vai CD had more air and space via Kim's boombox, than the system at Sounds Alive.

The CDP-102 does indeed do air and space. It leaves the older Classe' CDP-10 sounding milky, opaque, and grainier. The CDP-102 [especially with the Tara Labs ISM The One] preserves the space between the helter skelter images on Sex & Religion , kind of like letting light come through Kim's bedroom.

Also in that summer of 1993, I recall going to San Francisco Stereo, located on Market and Sanchez. It carried Krell amplification, but did not have Krell Digital sources on display. It was in the process of bringing in the Mark Levinson line. Eventually, I bought the No. 39 CD player, and later upgraded it to No. 390S status. While playing the then-popular "Insane In The Brain" by Cypress Hill, I could feel the disapproving stares from the staff and customers.

The Mark Levinson No. 390S sounds a bit small and grayed-out, compared to the Classe' CDP-102. The CDP-102 simply sounds cleaner, catchier, bigger, more appropriately raw, with better contrasts. The No. 390S, by contrast, sounds like Cypress Hill caught a cold.

I don't expect anyone, let alone audiophiles, to know about Lillian Axe. But leave it to me to discover and report acts like Lillian Axe. When I picked up Psychoschizophrenia , I noticed the competent playing and production. My friend and I took a break from playing softball at Rossi Playground, and listened to this CD. A light fog was beginning to pass overhead, which added to the mood. The Simaudio Andromeda seems to pick up where the CDP-102 leaves off. The Andromeda reproduces Psychoschizophrenia with even more body, emotion, speed, grip, passion, emotion, and contrast. It is like sitting on the weathered bleachers, and noticing that the surroundings aren't drab. From the backstops, to the vegetation, to the neighboring homes, there's a wealth of shades. The Andromeda, better than almost every other CD player I've tried, captures these colors.

While the CDP-102 comes across as a poor man's Andromeda, it does a good job of making Lillian Axe appear in the here & now. I like the focus on the guitar strings. I like the ease in the riffs. I like the punch to the drums. I like the accurately-sized vocals. I like the ability to track both the fast songs and the power ballads.

During that summer of 1993, I did go back to Japantown Bowl, and participate in multiple leagues. I liked the so-called travel leagues, where our squad would go to other alleys in and around the Bay Area. Because of the travel, these leagues would take up most of the day. Our van was stuck in traffic on I-80, and the Smashing Pumpkins' "Disarm" came on (I think) Live 105. It was an interesting blend of two popular styles, alternative rock and grunge. As it turns out, Butch Vig, who was behind the console of Nirvana's Nevermind , also produced the Smashing Pumpkins' Siamese Dream .

Every bit the equal of the Simaudio Andromeda, the Wadia 781i does "Disarm" with an effortlessness, balance, and across-the-board excellence. The Classe' CDP-102 is like a step down from the mighty 781i. With the CDP-102 you lose some power, body, color, and ease. It's like when I bowl a 200, versus someone who averages 200. With me, it takes more effort, concentration, rhythm, and luck. With the better bowler, a 200 game comes naturally, and is expected.

Even though KJ and I had broken up, she did accompany me on a bowling trip to Reno. I normally would room with a high school bowler, but this time, I was just with KJ. She had the new Billy Joel album, River Of Dreams . On the first night, she sang "The River Of Dreams" and "All About Soul" in the shower.

Let's get this out of the way first. No CD player in my experience does soundstage depth and layering like the dCS Puccini. In the right setup, it can remove your listening room's walls, leaving you to explore the true size of the recording venue. Though the CDP-102 does air and space well, it is no match for the dCS Puccini.

The Puccini is clean, precise, and detailed. But it also comes across as somewhat whitewashed, especially in side-by-side comparisons with the Simaudio Andromeda and Wadia 781i. Indeed, the Classe' CDP-102 has more grit and soul than the dCS Puccini. The Puccini reminds me of sitting on the hotel bed, while KJ was in the shower singing Joel's "The River Of Dreams." The CDP-102 has more get-up-and-go. It is more like shaking off the reservations, hopping in the shower with KJ, not caring about getting water everywhere, and singing backup on "All About Soul," while she takes the lead.

The dCS Puccini plays SACDs, but not DVDs. The Classe' CDP-102 plays DVDs, but not SACDs. I have very few copies of DVD-As, but DVD-As on the CDP-102 do have a better sense of ease. Also, perhaps because the CDP-102 uses a DVD drive, it sometimes will not play a disc. The disc will spin and spin and spin, and you will have to eject it, reinsert it, wait, and hope and pray that it plays. Furthermore, while playing a disc, the CDP-102 sometimes starts skipping. You will have to stop the disc, and play it again.

Video quality? Sigh, even with the S-video output, the CDP-102 is no better than a generic DVD player. Spend another $500, and watch DVDs (and Blu-Ray) on, say, the Oppo BDP-83.

-Lummy The Loch Monster

Product Weakness:	Slooooooooooooow; tiny display; temperamental disc drive; poor video quality
Product Strengths:	Cable neutral; runs cool; has all four time modes

Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: numerous
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): numerous
Sources (CDP/Turntable): numerous
Speakers: numerous
Cables/Interconnects: numerous
Music Used (Genre/Selections): rock, pop, metal, R&B, Hawaiian, dance, rap
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner

Amplifier:	numerous
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	numerous
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	numerous
Speakers:	numerous
Cables/Interconnects:	numerous
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	rock, pop, metal, R&B, Hawaiian, dance, rap
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner