rich and detailed, neutral and refined sound

nothing significant

After starting to have tracking problems with my kinergetic kcd 40, i tought my kcd 40 needed a serious repair. So i started to look for a cd player having at least a comparable quality sound. I listened briefly to the rotel 951 and 971. These units was not bad for the price, but far from the performance i was used too. The vendor recommended me to listen to the arcam alpha 7se or 8se. I found the arcam 7se (demo. unit) still far from being comparable to the kcd 40. For the arcam 8se, the performance was closer but the construction and look of this unit is so cheap for the price! I ended with the Meridian 506.24. This player sound very similar to my old kcd 40. It is not hard to feel the musicians and singers in your leaving room. The sound of this cd player is quite neutral and refined, having a natural warmth and richness through the sound. Compared to the kcd 40, the 24 dac of the 506.24 gives a sligthly richer balance trough the mids, the kcd-40 being nos as rich but slightly better articulated. The timbre of instruments is also slightly better on the 506.24. This unit is great for classical and jazz. It is not bad either with rock. In fact, it performs better than i expected with rock music (about as good as the kcd40). Suggestion: replace the poor power cord. This good cd player deserves a better power cord. Replacing the power cord (by a marigo power cord) leads to a tighter, fuller and more dynamic sound.

The story with my kcd-40 is that a technician fixed it for a mere $50.00 (only a cleaning and tracking ajustement, that's all!).

Nevertheless, i am happy with this cd player.

Similar Products Used:

kinergetic kcd-40, proceed pdp 3, rotel rcd 965, rotel 951, rotel 971, arcam alpha 7se and 8se

Build Quality & Sound

Programing tracks in the memory and the GIANT size Rmote.

I bought this CD Player second hand in excellant condition ( 506.20 ) and had it upgraded to a 24 bit.

I can't give an honest opinion on how much difference the new DAC made ( it was away for too long ) but I can tell you I am extremely happy with this machine.

The build quality is exceptional ( although I would expect so for the price ) with a very sexy and solid drawer loading mechanism.

This machine conveys music with a great sense of spaciousness and detail and if their was a weak point it would be that it can at times be a bit too laid back.
Compared to other machines I listened too ( Alchemist,Myrad,Marantz etc) the Meridian was simply more musical.

Yes I'm glad I took this baby home and I'm sure it's going to give me years of listening pleasure.

P.S- Stereo is not dead yet!

REST OF AUDIO SYSTEM.

Meridian 551 integrated amp (Driving the Tweeters)
Benchmark A201 120 Watt Power Amp
Mirage OM-6 Speakers
Audioquest Speaker Cable
Audioquest 'Ruby' Interconects for Cd (soon to be changed)
Monster & Cambridge Interconnects for everything else!
Audioquest & Neo-Tech Isolation Cones
Rega Turntable
Sony 20ES Mini-Disc Deck
Toshiba 2108 DVD Player
Apollo Hi/Fi Rack
Panasonic 650 VHS Machine