Price Paid:  $1695.00 from Primus Audio KC

Summary:
I have an all Creek system.I replaced the CD43mkII with the CD53 hopeing for even beter performance. I can say that the improvements are noticable.It took 3 months to burn in! Now it sounds nice with all forms of music. It does a wonderful job of pace and resolution.Nothing about the performance is trite.Just honest,uncolored music reprodution.The mids and highs are special on this player.A very relaxed presentation throughout.Well recorded cd's are served best,while older recordings also sound enjoyable. It's a damn good CD Player. A bit expensive for Creek,but attention to detail by the design team is rewarded by a true high quality player. Upgrades are also possible in the future such as SACD,etc. Sounds best with an after-market powerchord. I have the sunrise II from sonic horizion. Also recommended. {$75 for a 2 meter PC}. I prefered it over other brands costing double.

Strengths:
Clear and Accurate Non fatiguing

Weaknesses:
Modest but Sufficient bass. No complaints actually

Similar Products Used:
Arcam CD23t Cary 308

Price Paid:  $0.00 from Hi Fi Fo Fum (Toront

Summary:
A few months back I purchased the Creek 5350 SE integrated amp from Steve Thorne at Hi Fi Fo Fum (see review). Up until recently I had been happily using a Cyrus PCMII cd player. Due to some "non-electronic" problems with the player, I was placed in a position to look at a new cd player after many years. I had the opportunity to audition quite a number of good players (around the US$2000+ range) including the Arcam FMJ-CD23 and the Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 3-D. I found the Arcam to sound very similar to the Creek (in pretty much all aspects - dynamics, clarity, sound stage, etc.). The MF did "sound" a bit better but at more than double to price, I found it difficult to justify considering it over the Creek or the Arcam. I ended up choosing the Creek both for it''s audio qualities as well as the fact that it matches my 5350 SE. I picked up the player from Steve and when I brought the unit home, the most obvious thing that I noticed was that the CD 53 sounded quite better than my PCMII - there were details that I never noticed before on several recordings - in particular live recordings - it was like hearing my CD''s for the first time. I have to admit, I was not planning on spending this much for a CD player but after listening to various players in various price ranges, I am very pleased with the CD 53 and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a very high quality, audiophile grade CD player.

Strengths:
Strict tolerances with electronic components used. Design and build quality. Flexibility of outputs. Future upgrade options available.

Similar Products Used:
Arcam FMJ-CD23, Talk Electronics Thunder 2/3, Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 3-D, Roksan Caspian and Rega Jupiter.

Price Paid:  $1500.00

Summary:
The Creek CD53 is simply a fantastic machine and represents a tremendous value for the money. I''ve had a number of CD players over the years, including some that cost well over twice that of the CD53, and none compare. I also have the CD43MkII which is also a great player but the CD53 is even better. I know some people who have favorably compared the CD53 with current model Krell and Cary CDPs, which is no surprise. Since I have well over 1000 CDs, none of which are SACDs, the CD53 will certainly make me think twice about investing DVD-A or SACD, at least for the immediate future. I would highly recommend the CD53 to anyone looking for a good CDP in the $1-2K price range.

Strengths:
Sound Build quality Looks

Weaknesses:
None

Similar Products Used:
Creek CD43MkII

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
The Creek CD-53 took a long time to finally hit the mass market late last year. It replaced in some respects the cd-43MkII which was a great spinner. The CD-53 has a great quality fit & finish & upgradeable parts within. It boasts a 24/192 dac...Unfortunately although excellent specs & dynamics NO cd''s playback 24/192 khz. All cd''s still playback 44khz/16 bit. The DSP tweaking in some Quasi-Upsampling players boast 96/24 resolution. The real way to actually HEAR 24/192 mastered media is DVD-Audio players & Limited 24/192 software. As a red book player the 53 is a non fatiguing listen after warm-up. It has got favorable reviews in the audio press & alike. Jazz & Classical fare the best with tight dynamics & sweet highs. Rock also performs well from the quality A/D conversion. There is no need to use this unit as a tranport only due to it''s great quality internal parts selection care of Creek. An overall excellent player bettered only by the Cary CD 303/200 & the Krell kav-280cd ..but at a higher price tag.

Strengths:
Quality parts Sound Build Dac''s A/D conversion

Weaknesses:
Price in comparison to NAD''s & Lesser competitors.

Similar Products Used:
Creek CD 43MKII Krell KAV-280cd Adcom GCD-750 NAD s-500......& Many Others..