Onkyo DX-C390

Pros: Excellent construction, high-end features, and functionality.

Cons: Missing some minor (unnecessary) features.

Summary: I bought this unit recently because I was looking for a dedicated CD player for my home system. They are certainly a lot harder to find these days, even vs. three to four years ago. I read up on this CD player and loved its features (multi-disc, quality construction, good brand, digital outputs, multi-format capability, etc.). I ended up choosing it over some of the low-end Sonys, the new ES Sony CD/SACD changer, and several home CD recorders, mainly because of the quality to price ratio.

Let me say, I love this unit! It functions smoothly and flawlessly right out of the box. When coupled with my Denon AVR-3805 receiver through the digital coaxial out, the sound is tight and true to the source material. It is a big step up from the previous CD recorder/player I had (a Phillips). I have had no problems with CD recognition or playback, and the overall aesthetics of the unit (aluminum face, display, dimmer, etc.) are outstanding. For the money, you would be hard pressed to find its equal on the market today. It lacks some minor convenience features (such as CD text display, headphone output, etc.), but makes up for it in clean lines and excellent sound.

I highly recommend this unit to anyone out there who is looking for a true CD player, not simply a DVD player that "by the way" plays CDs, too. It is worth the investment to get the most from your pure audio sources, in my opinion.