Arcam CD62 CD-player
r range of players (the CD72 and CD92) was joined by both this entry-level version as well as a new version (the CD82) in-between their existing versions.
One selling point of Arcam CD players and amplifiers has been their upgradability - you could purchase one Arcam model and afterwards swap the internals for the following version up. Based on various hifi retailers I Have talked to, this has been a favorite reason for people to purchase an Arcam over another brand.
But to reach at the low price point of the CD62, something had to give.
Luckily the CD62 can stand as a powerful model in this part of the market.
Externally there is just the name on the disk drawer to discern the CD62 from its larger brothers. The CD62 has got the same understated look as the rest of Arcam's Diva range. The 62 can be acquired in both silver and black.
The CD62 uses a 24-bit multi-level Delta Sigma converter. The output period is a bit simpler than its larger brothers and is AC, rather than DC coupled.
The output signal of the CD62 appears to be slightly higher than some other CD players (the technology specs list the output signal voltage at 2.3 volts instead of the typical two volts. This could become significant when comparing CD players, as one that's slightly louder will often seem better (more dynamic with better bass) than another version. So take care with any comparisons.
Sounding away
But taking that into account, how did the CD62 sound?
It is obvious the Diva variety continues to be popular with hifi buyers since their intro. For the CD62 is a wonderful CD player at an excellent price.
On the Live CD of Alison Krauss Union Station Krauss' voice had both her purity of body and tone to her voice that regularly goes missing with lesser players. Her voice can often sound light and sibilant on poorer hifi equipment, but through the Arcam there was no surplus sibilance.
The crowd sound at the start of the CD was copied well. Bunch sounds and applause in live records can quickly become spitty; here the applause sounded realistic and you got some notion of the hall size.
The jazz trio CD Revelations of Cyrus Chestnut really showed the strengths of the Arcam. In revealing the excellent time something the Marantz CD7300 couldn't pull off to the same degree, between these jazz musicians, the CD62 revelled. The piano and double bass on this particular recording were meaty and really solid sounding, with plenty of weight and body to the sound.
Nevertheless, I did become conscious that the Arcam didn't have the free-breathing dynamics of Rotel RCD-1070. This could make the music sound a little homogenised.
Playing with music that was other confirmed the favorable attributes of the CD62. Listeners discovered their feet tapping and head bobbing along to the music, revealing that an excellent sense of rate replicates and does a tremendous job with rhythms.
Judgments
Arcam's CD62 is superior value and a very good CD player at its $1599 price. Music reproduces with body and power and is consistently gratifying to listen to.
