CD/SACD-проигрыватели и транспорты — Audiolab 8300CD

The 8300CD is a CD player from Audiolab that also works as an external DAC and digital preamplifier for other digital sources. Announced in 2015 with availability planned for the end of October that year, it replaced both the 8200CD and 8200CDQ, and Audiolab's product page now marks it as discontinued. Finishes were black or silver in fine textured aluminium.

Key specs that matter

Audiolab built the converter section on an ESS Sabre32 9018 chip working at 32-bit resolution. The optical, coaxial and AES inputs accept 32 kHz to 192 kHz, while the USB input for a computer takes PCM from 32 kHz to 384 kHz and DSD64, DSD128 and DSD256. Digital inputs number two coaxial, two Toslink optical, one AES/EBU and one USB, and digital outputs are one coaxial, one optical and one AES. Analogue output voltage is 4.2 Vrms on balanced XLR and 2.1 Vrms on unbalanced RCA, both at an output impedance of 10 ohms. Frequency response is 20 Hz to 20 kHz within 0.2 dB and THD is below 0.002%. Audiolab gives signal-to-noise and dynamic range each at 98 dB via RCA and 100 dB via XLR, with crosstalk below -120 dB and -130 dB respectively. The chassis is 80 x 444 x 317 mm and weighs 6 kg.

Engineering and use context

Unlike the earlier drawer-type design, the 8300CD uses a slot-loading CD mechanism, which plays CD and CD-R. Inside the DAC section, the Sabre32 9018 provides 512 DAC elements, 256 per channel, each running at 84.672 MHz. The digital preamplifier mode adds volume control in the digital domain, which lets the player connect straight to a power amplifier. Audiolab pairs the digital circuitry with a sophisticated power supply and Class A analogue stages. A 2.7 inch POLED display with 128 x 64 pixels shows status, a standby function is fitted and a 12 V trigger loop allows switching together with other components. The AES/EBU input and the XLR-type digital output were additions over the retained connections of the outgoing models.

Pairing

The balanced and unbalanced outputs connect to any line-level input, and in digital preamplifier mode the 8300CD can run straight into a power amplifier with no separate preamp. Audiolab designed the 8300A integrated amplifier in the same 8300 series, which offers a balanced XLR input and shares the 444 mm width.

Alternatives

The Audiolab 8300CDQ is a closely related CD player that adds analogue preamp circuitry with three stereo line-level RCA pairs and a dedicated headphone amplifier.