My first thought had to do with streaming Qobuz directly from my laptop into the MCD600, but the port was designed for thumb drives. First, it has a USB DAC with a port right on the front panel. Once I got it home, however, I immediately noticed that the MCD600 had a lot more to offer-especially considering my digital habits in 2020.
#AUDIOPHILE PLAYER FOR MAC MAC#
So that was the biggest reason to bring this Mac back to Rochester.
I own many CD/SACD hybrid discs from the likes of 2L Recordings and Analogue Productions and more, but I’ve never been able to do an A/B comparison between the two digital formats. I’ve heard countless SACDs over the years, but never in my own system. My first reaction to the MCD600 and its cornucopia of modern features was that it played SACDs. When the MCD600 SACD/CD player was mentioned, I immediately liked the idea and we made plans for a swap.
I’d just returned to the Binghamton NY factory with the magnificent MC2152 power amplifier I reviewed for The Occasional No.6, and we had discussed a second review of something else. There is such a beast, and it comes from McIntosh Labs. I still need a good-sounding CD player, but with the connectivity options to cover whatever happens in the next few years. But I stream via Roon and Qobuz 33% of the time and the remainder is still devoted to LP. I bet if I kept a log, a good 33% of my listening sessions involve the little silver discs. In 2020, where are we? Should CD players still be a thing? I’m one of those audiophiles who still owns thousands of CDs. Digital inputs and outputs became the norm. As audiophiles discovered the joy of hi-rez streaming, CD players had to provide a way for the DAC to be used separately from the transport. Over that decade, however, that strategy evolved as our digital options grew. Yes, there was still a need for a limited number of CD player models in a manufacturer’s digital line-up because there are still quite a few audiophiles who have a large collection of CDs and want to hear them on a good-sounding machine. The answer back then, of course, was yes. Is there still a market in the USA? Should we just switch to DACs and servers? What type of customer are we looking for? Every year there had to be a discussion about the relevance of these products. All through the 2010s I represented high-end audio manufacturers that still sold basic CD players. “I’m very tempted to get rid of my CD collection after I rip everything to a server,” Audiophile #1 said.Īudiophile #2 responded, “You know that in a few years CDs will become the same niche market as LPs, and I’ll have to listen to you bitch endlessly about selling off your discs.” Just a couple of weeks ago I overhead a conversation between two audiophiles who were discussing the continued role of compact discs in their lives. Before I discuss the McIntosh MCD600 SACD/CD player, I have to tell a story.
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