CD/SACD-проигрыватели и транспорты — Rotel CD14MKII

The CD14MKII is a Rotel compact disc player updated from the earlier CD14 with changes to its power supply, circuit board layout, isolation techniques and audio components. It plays Red Book audio CDs and can double as a transport feeding an outboard converter through its coaxial output. It is available in silver and black. Rotel ties it to a run of CD players that began with the RCD-855 in 1989, and the MKII keeps the chassis at a front panel height of 80 mm.

Key specs that matter

A Texas Instruments 32-bit converter rated at 384 kHz handles digital to analogue conversion, followed by external analogue filters that Rotel tuned specifically for this player. THD plus noise is 0.0035% at 1 kHz, and the IMD figure is identical. Frequency response runs from 20 Hz to 20 kHz within 0.5 dB. Signal to noise ratio with A weighting exceeds 118 dB, channel separation exceeds 118 dB at 10 kHz and dynamic range is above 99 dB. Channel balance holds within 0.5 dB and phase linearity within 0.5 degree. Analogue output impedance is 100 ohm. The player consumes 15 W running and under 0.5 W on standby. Its case measures 430 x 98 x 314 mm and it weighs 6.51 kg net.

Engineering and use context

Inside, the digital and analogue sections of the converter each draw on independent voltage and current supplies, which also keeps the disc motor controls apart from the sensitive audio circuits. A smooth-action tray-loading mechanism takes the discs, and operation is possible through the front panel buttons, a graphic display and the supplied infrared remote. Outputs are one pair of RCA analogue sockets and one coaxial digital socket, the latter delivering 0.5 V peak to peak into 75 ohm. For installation work the back panel adds an RS232 port, a 12 V trigger input and an infrared repeater input, which allow the player to be tied into common control systems.

Pairing

Its RCA sockets connect to an ordinary analogue input of a stereo amplifier, while the coaxial output lets the CD14MKII feed a separate DAC or a digital input on an amplifier with a built-in converter. The trigger input can switch the player together with a Rotel amplifier or another component with a trigger output. Mains versions exist for 120 V at 60 Hz in the USA and for 230 V at 50 Hz in Europe.

Alternatives

The Rotel RCD-1572MKII is a CD player with a fully balanced XLR output alongside RCA and coaxial sockets, a toroidal transformer made by Rotel and a 2U chassis weighing 7.34 kg.