VALUE, music realistic

So far, for this price, dont know what to say... Maybe the "ordinary" look but then again, i dont care...

Hi everybody, i bought my cambridge 840C three weeks ago. I will start by saying that this cd player need at least 200 hrs break-in time. Since that break-in is made, get ready for real music. I've tried many cd player in my life, from 100$ to 10 000$ cd player. I can tell you right now that you will need to spend 4000-5000$ to equal that player. This player is very neutral, you will hear the music like it should play when it was made, no less no more. I strongly suggest that you use the XLR cable for this player as well as good amplifier (i'm using a NAD M3 master series 2 x 180 Watts mono bloc and its very surprising for Nad equipement...) and good speakers (i use paradigm reference studio V40 wich are fine too). You will never find another player that will be better than this one at this price, it is a real bargain. The bass are deep and precise, the mid are stunning, you get into the music.

See Above VALUE,VALUE,VALUE!!!!!! Reality of sound...

Not the most attractive player I've seen,but that's not why I bought it...

The prior review mirrors my experience with the 840C.An exceptional player regardless of price,but a HUGE bargain at it's current price.Depth of soundstage is the best I've EVER heard.Extraction of ALL info on discs is simply incredible.Bass is so realistic I finally feel like I'm hearing what was intended when the cd's were recorded.Tonality on stringed instuments is uncanny,percussion as well.Decay on piano is REAL!!!You can actually feel and hear the timbre of wood instruments. Vocals are as though the artist is standing in front of you.Overall soundstage is pinpoint and huge...I've personally never heard a $10,000 cd player,but if I'd spent $5-10K on a player I would want it to have all of the virtues of this one.Great job Cambridge!

Customer Service

N/A

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Sound. Looks. Build quality. Ease of use. Gorgeous remote.

None

Dazzling, subtle, realistic, sweet, gorgeous, beautifully made, easy to use, great remote, handsome are a few of the adjectives that come to mind when I think of this marvelous player. I've used EAD, Wadia, Cary, Proceed and Ayre players and I prefer this to any of them. The higher upsampling rate must be extracting more than I've ever heard from other players. The imaging is very accurate with wonderful bleed between instruments and singers and yet distinct and clearly etched in their onstage locations. The interconnects, not surprisingly, are critical. Balanced is better as the reviews say, but the better the interconnect the better she will sound. Also, I find that using isolater cones makes a huge difference in the clarity of the image and ambience of the playback. The review is right I believe. . . . it IS the best CD player under $5000.

Customer Service

Ain't needed it.

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EAD Ultradisc 2000. Wadia. Cary 306/200. Proceed CDD.
Ayre CX7

Details, details, details, air, soundstage.

Do NOT put in a system which is already bright.
Needs at least 24h continuous use to sound right. This is the first time I REALLY recommend break-in.

The 840C is a stunning CD player. My main system consist of Magneplan MG12 speakers, Rotel RC-1082 preamp, Rotel RB-1080 power amp. The system, before the addition of the CD player, sounded a little veiled, or laid back. Now, with the 840C, things are back on track ! Lots and LOTS of details, huge soundstage, 3D like, LOTS of air, space between instruments. The CD player is STUNNING. Best addition to my system so far. Really brough the system ALIVE!

Customer Service

Don't know...

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Cambridge 340C.

Clear and rhythmic with a sense of real people playing real instruments
Presents the emotion message of the music
Preserves the magic

Can sound a little thin if not matched correctly in the system,.

The last review summaries my experience with this player to a T. In the wrong system is will sound a little thin. The cable is very important and when it clicks in it is stunning. Stunning. That is how I describe this player to friends. I have been listening to CD players for over 20 years and this is the first player than prefer to my turntable. It has me eying it for an upgrade.

Prior to purchasing the 840C I had decided to go the all in one route, cd/dvd-v/dvd-a/sacd and purchased the marantz dvd 7600. I wrestle with that player for months trying to be satisfied with it. I finally got to a place where I enjoyed listening to it.

Well it is not a fair comparison but the 840c not only blew it out of the water once it was broken it but I have no urge to tweak it. It sits on its own feet in a salamander synergy cabinet.

I have the Wilco live album, kicking out your television, and it really highlights what this player does well. The music is clear and expands all around the speakers with the music played on real instruments in a real space. At the same time it is warm--not like a Rega or some of the players, like the 7600, that soften the sound to warm it up but in a real way. Now I do use a tube interegrated, a VAC avatar but it not a ovely warm tube amp. Some even say it is bright. I have played around with the tubes to get it my liking but it is not warm.

What this player has also done is make me realize how good my system really is. I have come to really appreciated how the Avator and my silverline Sonatina II's to present music in a real space and at the same time covey the emotion of the music.

I found the cable made a big difference, taking it from very good to excellent. I ended up with a Van den Hul D102 mark III. It really opened up the sound spreading the soundstage across the wall behind the speakers.

I mainly listen to rock and folk and the player holds the timing together superbly. It rocks.

Finally, I probably infer this above but it has great truth of timbre. The instruments sound real and alive, not like cardboard cutouts, which is what I always found with previous CD players.

Like the last listener it takes awhile to break in and once it does you don't want to stop listening and i get drawn into the music.

I also love that it can be used a dac. As I only watch movies through 2 channels, I use this dac rather than the one in the Marantz. The movies sound clearer and have more impact. I have also put my tv through for the off the HDTV I watch.

All in all even after 10 months I am still enjoying it. Highly recommended.

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Just when you thought the days were numbered for the plain old compact disc format, the brilliant design of the Cambridge Audio Azur 840c makes the ordinary CD reign supreme once again. The basic concept is to upsample the Redbook CD from its 44.1kHz/16-bit audio into a 384kHz/24-bit high definition sound. When played on a good sound system, the end effect is absolutely staggering.

Out of the box, the Azur 840c makes a great impression, but the best is yet to come over a 100 hour 24/7 burn-in period. During this period it morphs into an incredible holographic sound machine in which the performers are appearing to be playing live on a huge soundstage. Every instrument detail is captured perfectly and focused within its own space. The human vocals are hypnotic and mesmerizing for their realistic definition. You would swear the singer is performing live, right in front of you. Spectacular room filling performances by K.D. Lang in Hallelujah, The Calling by Mary Chapin Carpenter, Rod Stewart's The Great American Songbook, Truth and Bones by Heather Nova, The Space Between by Dave Matthews and the arresting harmonies of Robert Plant and Alison Krauss in Raising Sand. Even my recordings from the 1960's and '70s were upsampled to sound far superior to any other previous CD player. As an added design bonus, Cambridge Audio included two digital imputs to plug in outside digital sources for the benefit of upsampling these sources for higher definition. You can link up your iPod or a DVD player, so that no matter what the future holds for digital playback, the Azur 840c can always play an important role.

There is also an intangible musical timing effect from the Azure 840c, where the listener can FEEL a realistic foot stomping performance by the musicians. An example of that came from Bob Dylan's Modern Times. Dylan has always been noted for having his whole band play together for a one-take studio recording. The Azur captured the driving rhythm of the group's performance to such a realistic point that Modern Times has been elevated near the top of my favorite play list. It's these deeper discoveries and holographic presentation in any old CDs that makes the Azur 840c a must hear demonstration.

To clearly hear the 840c's detailed music and layered instruments within the soundstage, it's critically important to have high end interconnects. A trial test of different brands is the best way to find what interconnect matches to your personal system. For me, Synergistic Research Alpha Sterling matched well with my system and gave a rich, warm body to the instrumental sound. Without the Alpha Sterlings, I did find the Azur 840c to sound a bit on the lean side even though it remained highly detailed. The right interconnects can correct that issue and remove any perceived veiling to open the soundstage wide and make your room completely disappear when the music is playing.

Clever and refined noise shaping.

Neutral but detailed sound that can, to some degree, be tailored to taste and other equipment.

Does not have a sealed transport and is prone to dust in the laser assembly area. Try not to stack the 840c to create the chimney effect.

These comments are based upon the use of the balanced outputs of the 840c into a Krell KAV 400xi and Martin Logan Advantage electrostatic speakers. The 840c’s dither is set to “off” (do play with the circuit, its educational and sometimes useful, usually on early DDD recordings). The 840c’s transport is also used to supply raw digital data (16 bit mode) to a Lexicon DC2/ 24 bit digital controller, used in two channel modes, for the cross feed of interaural time differences as well as the creation of a spectral tilt (as in the old Quad tilt control).

Used as a transport for the Lexicon, the 840c sounds “just like” my 17 year old Sony EX7SD. The Sony is a 32 pound “tank” that in feel and mechanical smoothness is superior to the 840c, but in today’s money it would cost more than $4,000. When plugged into the 840c for digital processing and analog output, the Sony EX7SD sounds “just like” the 840c!

The balanced and unbalanced outputs of the 840c sound almost the same. As the Krell’s volume control is a resistive ladder network, I cannot match outputs closer than 0.3db. Thus the small differences, if any, can be the result of this volume difference.
As to sound, I did not compare (in home) the 840c to any CD player or digital converter still in production. Yes I auditioned a few in dealers’ show rooms, but with different speakers, preamps, amps and rooms, one does not know what part of the system is responsible for the difference in sounds.

The “big” difference I found between 840c and other CD players (in home) is in the handling of the leading edge or bite of musical instruments such as violins, flutes, horns and so on. This is especially true when the musical instruments are being taken to their limits. There is a fine line between what I call bite and hardness and the 840c manages to stay on the “correct” side of the line more often than not. Older digital converters often go too far over the line and the “truth” becomes hard and distorted. The Lexicon DC2 on the other hand over compensates, sometimes the DC2 lacks bit or life. Some would say the DC2 is “too black.” (I call the sound “dithered twice” sound – that is why you may want to play with the 840c’s dither circuit, you may like the sound of “dithered twice”).

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The Lexicon DC2 also uses Anallog Devices 24 bit converters and the Black Fin digital filter but the programming is different.

This unit is like a magnet that draws you in the music. Performs wonders with string and wind instruments. The tonal accuracy is exceptional. Piano key notes decay very naturally.

When music can send shivers down your spine. You have reached the sweet spot and need look no further.

Is this unit a giant killer?. I do not know this. To some it may just be a giant killer that prevents them from spending much more money than they have to.

This unit was not engineered by intelligent apes.It was engineered by music lovers.

None

The Audio Review website does not seem to consider that reviewers can post reviews for audio components manufactured in 2008. This site appears to think that model years end in 2006.


My review pertains to Cambridge Audio's excellent Azur 840C CD player.
I was experiencing many problems with my older YBA CD Integre player. The tray loading machanism manufactured by TEAC was allways requiring repairs.

Although the sound of the YBA is excellent. I prefer the sound quality of the Azur 840C as it permits the use of balanced XLR cables in addition to RCA cables.

At the price I paid I consider this unit a real hi-fi bargain.


This unit raises the Redbook norm to a much highier level as it allows for playback of enhanced 20 and 24 bit recordings. It really gives old recordings a breath of fresh air as previously subtle musical details not revealed in older players come to life with the Azur 840C.A nice bonus provided by this player allows the owner to upgrade the units firmware thru it's RS-232C serial interface. If Cambridge-Audio develops improved decoding algorythms you can benefit from this technological improvement at no additional cost. This feature is rarely found in units in this price range. Build quality is excellent for both the player and the remote control. My Loreena McKennitt recordings have never sounded better as they do today.

If you are looking for SACD and DVD-A playback look elsewhere, this unit is purely for Redbook CD recordings.

You will be pleased to know that it does render them in a very musical manner.This unit delivers where it counts the most, the sound quality that you will come to appreciate greatly.This unit as actually manufactured in the U.K. unlike some other U.K. audio component manufacturers that have their units built in Asia. I own a Denon DVD player manufactured in Malaysia and it stinks with it's dismal quality control. When you pay very good money for any audio or video component, you expect reliability along with good performance. Quality control does not mean to test one unit in a thousand but every single one. These Asian chain gang assembly plants cater mostly to mass market in which you do not belong in. Your ears deserve much better.

Customer Service

Not required to date.

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None.

I know what I like when I listen to it.

Musicality - Musicality - Mucality - Musicality - Musicality and More Musicality

Very long break in - at least for me - almost gave up - i kept saying "what's the big deal?"

Incredibly musical player that really impresses even after weeks and months of playing - In certain ways it keeps getting better and better. I think there are players that do things that are better than the cambridge like, depth, soundstaging, imaging, etc.

But come on this is a such a wonderfully musical machine that you just want to keep listening to - really draws you in - music to die from - many I have bought over the last 17 years - every once in a while you get stoked by something - this is definetely it. I would give it 10 stars if I could.

Don't get discouraged early on - this player need tons of break in - keep staying with it - it pays off - finally

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everything.
sound, build quality, finish, features.

remote control (although very good) is universal type.
however, this is just a very small thing and really does'nt make any difference.

great. great. great.
well built.
fantastic sound.
very detailed.

Customer Service

great.
i bought it and it broke down after 3 days.
it was changed for a brand new one immediately and since then (march 2007) working great.

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