Yamaha CDC-805 CD Changer Review

The Yamaha CDC-805 CD changer can play as many as five discs automatically in addition to operating as a conventional single-disc player. Its carousel-type disc-changing system uses a rotating tray that extends across most of the panel width. Pressing the open/close button on the panel causes the tray to slide forward, revealing numbered disc wells for five CD’s (either 5- or 3-inch diameter). A single disc is normally placed in Position 1; others can be added as desired for multidisc operation. A second touch on the button returns the disc tray to its playing position. Yamaha’s carousel system, which the company calls PlayX-change, enables the user to remove or change any nonplaying discs while one is being played.

The disc tray is at the top of the front panel, above the display window and two rows of small buttons. The display shows the disc numbers (1 through 5), the current track number, and its elapsed playing time in minutes and seconds. Other status information appears in the window as required. The level at the CDC-805’s line and headphone outputs is electronically variable, controlled by a rocker switch on the panel.

The standard CD-player operating controls, located at the right side of the panel, include play, pause, stop, track skip, fast scan (search) in either direction, random-play, and repeat. The lower row of buttons below the disc tray gives direct access to any of the discs for single-play operation as well as direct access to any track up to No. 99.

The CDC-805 has an unusual feature (for a CD player) identified as a Digital Equalizer. In addition to the normal flat response, four other frequency-response characteristics —identified as CLASSIC, vocal, jazz, and rock—can be selected by pressing the appropriate buttons.

The CDC-805 can be programmed to play the tracks of the designated disc in any order or to play as many as forty tracks selected from any of the five discs in its disc tray. A Program File can store track selections for as many as a hundred discs as well as selected equalization characteristics.

A novel Relay Play feature enables two CDC-805's to be linked for a total playback capacity of ten discs. The two can be programmed to play discs alternately or to play all the discs in one machine before going to the other. The audio output of the second player is connected to input jacks on the first so that the amplifier/speaker system can treat the linked players as a single unit.

The infrared remote control supplied with the CDC-805 duplicates every control on the main unit except its power switch. It also adds a few functions not found on the player itself, such as an index button that replaces the playing-time indication in the display with the current index number (where applicable). In the index-display mode, the track-selector buttons also serve as direct-access index selectors, a rare feature in CD players. A feature unique to this remote control is a duplicate set of disc-selector buttons that affect only the slave player in relay operation.

Yamaha’s specifications for the CDC-805 include a frequency response of 20 to 20,000 Hz ±0.5 dB, de-emphasis equalization accurate within ± 0.5 dB, and channel separation greater than 85 dB at 1,000 Hz. Total harmonic distortion plus noise (THD + N) is rated as less than 0.0035 percent at 1,000 Hz, signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) as 105 dB, and dynamic range as more than 95 dB.

The CDC-805 measures 17-1/8 inches wide, 14-3/4 inches deep, and 4-1/4 inches high, and it weighs 13 pounds, 10 ounces. Our test sample came with Yamaha’s attractive titanium-gray finish, but the player is also available in black. Price: $499.

Lab Tests

The Yamaha CDC-805’s output voltage from a 0-dB, 1,000-Hz test track was 2.07 volts, close to the standard 2-volt CD-player output. Its frequency response was very flat, well within ±0.1 dB from 15 to 15.000 Hz and down 0.5 dB at 20,000 Hz. De-emphasis response error was between +0.25 and -0.12 dB from 1.000 to 16,000 Hz.

Channel separation was 95 dB at 100 Hz, 91 dB at 1,000 Hz, and 69 dB at 20,000 hz. At 1,000 Hz the playback THD + N was -88 to -90 dB (0.003 to 0.004 percent) relative to full output (0 dB), depending on signal level. At a 0-dB recorded level, the distortion was -86 to —88 dB (0.004 to 0.005 percent) from 20 to 1.000 Hz, rising to a maximum of -75 dB (0.018 percent) at 10,000 Hz.

The maximum interchannel phase shift measured 2.6 degrees above 16,000 Hz.

Although the manual doesn’t mention it, the CDC-805 uses a 1-bit pulse-width-modulation (PWM) digital-to-analog (D/A) conversion system that includes the MASH noise-shaping circuit. As a result, low-level linearity of its D/A converters was very good, with errors typically less than 0.5 dB from -60 to -90 dB. The noise spectrum (with de-emphasis) of an un-modulated (zero-level) test track was between -120 and -130 dB from 30 to 20,000 Hz. Dynamic range (EIAJ) was 94.2 dB, and quantization noise was -88.5 dB. The A-weighted broad-band noise level was -104.6 dB.

We also measured the frequency response of the CDC-805’s Digital Equalizer circuit. The vocal response was peaked about 4 dB at 500 Hz and 2 dB at 4,000 Hz, relative to the 1,000-Hz level. The CLASSIC response had a broad 3-dB plateau from 50 to 100 Hz and another from 5,000 to 10,000 Hz. The JAZZ and rock settings produced similar characteristics, with a 5-dB boost at 100 and 10,000 Hz.

The CDC-805 was fairly good in its resistance to impacts: A moderate slap on the sides or top could induce a momentary skip or dropout. Defect tracking was adequate but hardly outstanding: The player tracked 750-micrometer interruptions successfully, but a 1,000-micrometer interruption caused it to jump to an earlier track. Cueing time between Tracks 1 and 15 of the Philips TS4 test disc was 2.9 seconds. Cueing time increased to about 10 seconds when a disc change was involved. The headphone volume was very good.

Comments

The Yamaha CDC-805 proved to be a very good CD player in almost every respect. Defect-tracking ability and impact resistance were its weakest points, though few users would ever detect any shortcomings in practice. Its sound was excellent, and mechanical noise was virtually inaudible even while it was changing discs.

The instruction manual is well illustrated and generally thorough, and the operation of the player is logical. We would not expect a user to encounter any difficulty operating this versatile player, although some of its special features are not mentioned in the manual or not emphasized enough to make one aware of their significance.

The Digital Equalizer did create the sort of sound that would seem compatible with the several types of program material indicated, and the amount of equalization was modest and never overbearing. Nevertheless, we question the desirability of including this feature in a CD player. It is more appropriate to a preamplifier or control amplifier.

All in all, Yamaha has created a very nice response to the need for longer uninterrupted playing time from CD’s with no sacrifice of performance or ease of use. The CDC-805 offers a fine combination of utility, versatility, and quality in a very handsome package at a moderate price.

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