Audiolab 7000CDT CD Transport

Audiolab 7000CDT CD Transport

Die-in-the-wool fans of the Compact Disc know something that many don’t. CD’s played through a quality transport have the capacity to sound better than digital streams with higher bit depth and sample rate – at the equivalent price bracket. And it’s true. For serious fans of digital’s original format, the CD reigns supreme. And if you don’t believe me, and you don’t have to, you might believe Mr. Darko Audio. He gives us 15 Reasons Why He Still Buys CDs and one of those reasons is that they sound better. Again, I’ll link you to that video here and in the description below. So, with all that said and done, let’s dive into to what makes 7000CDT so dang special.

Specifications

7000CDT is a CD Transport. Transport! Not CD Player. And I’ll go into the differences in just a minute. It features a new low-friction loading tray, an electromagnetically-shielded enclosure, read-ahead buffering, temperature operated anti-jitter, USB HDD support, and a 2.8” full colour IPS LCD screen displaying settings, format, folder, and track details, including the exact resolution of the CD or stored music file you’re playing, which is nice! And, again, 7000CDT, like both the 7000 series amplifier and network streamer, is housed within a robust external chassis made of high-grade aluminium available in Audiolab’s quintessential matt silver and black finishes.

The Power of CD

So, what makes CDs so great and a quality CD transport such an essential component within any serious listener’s arsenal? Well, there are a couple of reasons actually. For one, they sound amazing. Yes, you top out at 16Bit, 44.1kHz, well below that 24/192 base range of what most audiophiles might consider high-grade, HiRes digital audio. And yet, a quality CD transport within an equally good system will sound, at least according to ears more refined than my own, just that little bit better.

Why is this the case? Honestly, who knows? The truth is that listening is a subjective practice, one that cares very little for both bit depth and sample rates – measurements of any kind really. And it’s this subjectivity that gives relevance to a whole bag of music formats that, for all intents and purposes, probably should’ve gone the way of the Dodo a long time ago: vinyl, reel to reel, cassettes, and of course the mighty CD. If sound quality were a dull science that could be reduced to mere numbers we’d all be listening to one format, one speaker, one genre of music that could be emperically determined as “the best.” But it’s not! It’s subjective. And subjectively, at least according to ears more refined than my own, CD actually sounds better streaming.

Other than sound quality, CDs are cheeeeaaap. These days they cost next to nothing. In Australian, you can head to your local thrift store – Vinnies, Salvos, Red Cross – and find, among a ton of absolute trash mind you, incredible secondhand albums for two bucks a pop. Two dollars. Now, you’re gonna have to put in the man hours to build a serious collection of quality CDs at two dollars a pop. You’re gonna have to sift through a lot of sh!t. But it can be done. I’ve done it. Amassing a collection of over 400 CDs so far having, for the most part, paid not a single cent more than two dollars. By comparison to my vinyl collection, that’s roughly a saving of $19, 200.

On top of this there’s:

• the reduced space they take up in your home
• recordings you won’t find available on streaming services
• Liner notes
• and more.

Seriously, watch that Darko video. He’s got 15 good reasons for you. But even the cheap audio man has a great video on this as well, and I’ll link that one below also.
So, what makes a transport over a CD player so good, and, more specifically, what makes Audiolab’s 7000CDT so damn good.

The Power of Audiolab CDT

The difference between a CD player and a Transport is super simple. It’s the Transport’s lack of internal DAC. That’s it. One comes with an internal DAC and the other passes the signal straight on to either a standalone DAC or one within, say, your integrated amp or pre amp. And while at first glance this sounds like you’re getting less bang for your buck. It’s not. Because with a CD Player you’re forever limited to the quality of the DAC within the unit. And as we all know, every year DAC quality gets better and better and better and better. And so, if you’ve got a transport designed to do nothing but maintain the quality of that signal and push it on, presumably, you’re sound quality is only limited to the quality of the DAC you pair with it.

Now there’s a great video example of this by The Audiophile Man and I’m going to link to that both above here, and in the description below. And what he reveals, to his complete astonishment mind you, is exactly this premise. He’s reviewing the Audiolab 6000CDT, and the higher the quality of DAC he pairs with it, the better and better the 6000CDT sounded. It just kept going. His argument, and the argument I’ll put to you as well, is that the 6000CDT – like the 7000CDT – is a specialist tool. It has one job. And because it only has one job, it’s very very good at what it does. The best analogy to consider here is the Swiss Army knife. This is a multipurpose tool designed to get you out of pinch in remote places. But when you’re at home filleting fish, which would you prefer: the Swiss Army knife or the filleting knife? Nobody is going to argue that the filleting knife is limited tool to take with you on a camping trip. But, equally, that Swiss Army knife won’t do close to the job of the filleting knife when it comes to filleting fish. And that’s because the filleting knife a specialist tool, designed with a single job in mind. HiFi is no different.

So if the 6000CDT is so good, what makes the 7000CDT better? Well, 7000CDT upgrades the loading mechanism, trading up to a loading tray over a slot-loaded design. Now, this upgrade further reduces the risk of CD scratches and is on a whole more durable. In addition it features a USB HDD input for playback support with WAV, AAC, and WMA files. It’s no secret that CD freaks like to rip and store digital copies of their collections. Audiolab has listened and 7000CDT lets you connect that Hard Drive of stored goodies and pass it straight on to your DAC. And finally, 7000CDT comes with an all-new 2.8” full colour IPS LCD screen displaying settings, format, folder, and track details, including the exact resolution of the CD or stored music file you’re playing. This feature partners well with the USB input for Hard Drives, allowing you to visually sift through folders of music to find what you want. They’re significant upgrades. They make a real difference to the listening experience of CD lovers and they’re perfectly inline with the quality and cost of the rest of the 7000 Series.