Home Digital Drive

Upsamplers, DACs, jitter, shakes and analogue withdrawals, this is it.

I have an SL-P111 and it's much better than it should be!





PHOTO: Temporary Office system when the Cambridge Audio 640C was away for repair: Technics SL-P111 CDP (1987), Revox B160 tuner (1988), Sony 2X100W remote receiver (2000) [Infinity Primus 360 speakers]

attym,

I don't know the Technics SL-P230, but I have a Technics SL-P111 from 1987, a gift from my accountant in 1994.

And, it is strangely good sounding and 22 years after it was made- ultra-reliable.

As it was my first CD player- I've still never had a CD player in my main system (Oracle III/SME V > Audio Research SP10 > D115) and a gift, I didn't have much experience with CDP's, and small expectation, but the P111 was easy to listen to- a little dark, but was detailed and energetic enough without ever being harsh.

The P111 was my office CD player from '94 to '05 and though it was designed before CD-R, it read every CD-R and -RW and almost never missed, except on the few noticeably damaged disks. That CDP was completely reliable being used up to 18 hours per day. I had a radio programme 95 to 01 and the P111 was the machine I used to listen to CD's I intended to broadcast.

In 2005, I replaced the P111 with a Cambridge Audio 640C, and after four months it went wonky- one week after the warranty expired, and had to be sent to Canada- twice, I got out the Technics and realized how much I liked the Technics sound- it was not as airy and detailed as the 640C, and lacked a remote, but it was also not as dry. I was a bit stunned as it suddenly seemed that not wnough progress was made between 1987 and 2005!

I have other Technics stuff- a $140 cassette recorder from about 1982 or so and that player also worked without a hitch since that time- original belts. By contrast, my $450 Nakamichi BX-125 of about 1989 almost never worked and still has only about 30 hours. My trusty Technics SL-D2 (Shure V15) turntable from about 1975 likewise works better than it should. I designed a house for a movie director who could afford any gear in the world and at home he used all Technics for audio and TV sound.

Again, I'm not sure what the P230 model is like compared to the P111, but if it is like or better than the P111, in good order, and appropriately cheap, it may be a good "vintage" CD player!

Cheer,

Bambi B


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