Amazing cheap CD tweak

I used to really dislike the sound of CDs when I first started out in the 1990s and it was the new format of SACD - with the Sony SCD-777ES got me back into digital audio too, because it offered a glimpse of a more natural sound which seemed to resemble analogue.

It didn’t last long and I pretty much gave up when I realised that SACD was a dead format and it wasn’t going much further (or that most music I liked would never be available on it).

In the intervening years standard Redbook/PCM playback has moved on in leaps and bounds to the point where I now really like it and enjoy it even more than records - particularly when it comes to bass reproduction. The difference compared to what was available in PCM playback really is night and day.

1 Like

Very interesting! I recall some here preferring PCM to DSD, as they opined it had a certain edginess which they enjoyed.

Thanks!

1 Like

I’ve had CDs get static, particularly in the dry winter months, and the Zerostat gun works just as great on CDs as it does LPs. I don’t notice any difference in sound, just less static, so less dust attracted to disc.

1 Like

I’ll see if I can get one of those because my CDs seem to attract a lot of dust. Also I have cats and their hair seems to get everywhere too. I dread to think the nightmare I would have if I still had a large record collection.

Now and then, when pulling out one of my back records that I have not played in quite some time, I will come across cat hair from a beloved but long deceased and my heart drops a little.

5 Likes

I can imagine. Pets are just as much family members as humans.

1 Like

We are going to the vet in 10 min and our cat will most likely be put to sleep. very sad. that being said some company makes a static remover and vacuum just for cd’s! I think it is Furutech.

3 Likes

Very sorry to hear that.

Sad day, sorry to hear that.

Thank you folks. She is gone. I loved her so much. Bad day. I took today off. The animals and people in my life are much more important than any stereo or any “thing”. I believe they should be. You cannot replace life. Sure we will get another cat but not the same. I will always miss her.

2 Likes

I didn’t really want a poodle. But there’s women in the house; We got a poodle. Turned out, Henry was my best buddy for 20 years. I miss him terribly even after two years gone.
Now, there’s Charlie and Ernest–cats. They great me at the door every day. And they seem to like Chet Baker.

2 Likes

When I met with Gus Skinas during my visit two weeks. We both agreed on DSD being better than PCM. Even the cheap equipment you will notice a difference in SQ. He did mention if the actual mastering is crappy, no amount of DSD sweetening is gonna help.

Nothing wrong with PCM just like there’s nothing wrong with Analog Vinyl or Tape. It’s everything to do with our ears.

Just reading through this thread again because I’ve come to a different conclusion regarding CD treatments with memory players. I’ve been treating my CDs with a product called Brilliantize for years, and it made a difference with every CD player I’ve owned, except I never noticed much if any difference when I had the DMP. Just tried treating some CDs and playing them on the PST and I definitely noticed a difference. Not sure why this is, but maybe it’s because the combination of the new transport and Sunshine have lowered the noise floor enough to notice subtle differences. So I’m back to treading all my discs again. Don’t believe this product causes any damage to discs like Armor All as none of the CDs I’ve treated 20 some years ago show any signs of deterioration.

2 Likes

Coming two years late to this thread, but the idea that CD and vinyl listeners hear the same objective reality but respond differently to it makes a lot of sense. I’ve moved more to vinyl listening over the past couple of years and I feel like I’ve become more sensitized to problems with digital disc playback. I’ve tried several of the tweaks mentioned and I’ve sometimes heard a difference, but it was never nearly enough. Lately though I am hearing very good results with a particular (unfortunately very expensive) CD mat. I’m not an engineer and couldn’t say why, but maybe it corroborates the idea that some of the problems with digital disc playback have a mechanical or optical cause.

1 Like

And this CD mat is…?

1 Like

Available at reduced price.

1 Like

Probably Marigo Labs Aida CD Mat!

I didn’t actually know about the Marigo Aida mat, so I had to google for it. Interesting! But no, the one I’m using is the SteinMusic Perfect Interface mat. It’s a flimsy piece of fibrous paper cut to the shape of a CD. At $140 it’s almost as expensive as the Marigo. But I’ve found it to be very effective at removing digital hash while letting everything else through.

3 Likes

Anyone remember these? It was essentially a plastic band that fit around the CD and was supposed to stabilize it during playback, and protect it when not in use. I’d gotten one as a freebie with something else. It did absolutely nothing.

P1030101_zps315e0c1c
I guess the most gimmicky items I bought were the Discwasher (which did actually clean disks, just no better than a soft cloth) and “music” CD-Rs. Those were the days. Snake oil these days is much more expensive.

Whether this damping ring had any effect would depend on the machine the disk was being played in. It affected the servos that control the disk speed and reduced the power supply noise caused by the operation of the servos. No snake oil to be found.