Build quality, great looks, smooth operation.

Well, my first attempt at a review, & with more questions than answers. After auditioning several CD players-Meridian 506, Krell 250CD, Theta Miles, & CAL CL-15, I bought the CL-15 over the others because I found a good deal on a nice used one (& reputation of CAL). My system currently consists of B&W Matrix 802's (S3), Krell 300i integrated amp, MIT T-4 interconect, & the cheapest Monster bi-wire cables.

The Cl-15 sounds excellent, although so far not noticeably superior to the Pioneer DVD-525 (which imho is a great CD player for the price) that I had been using. What I'm still missing is a sense of air around instruments, depth, a sense of "being there". Naturally, I'm wondering what to upgrade next, my inexpensive cables, or perhaps the Krell 300i (a very good piece for the money, but not quite up to the best seperates obviously).

One thing I haven't seen addressed here is the issue of
interconnects used with the CL-15--the Stereophile review
said the choice of cable was unusually critical.

The CL-15 is obviously a quality piece, & it looks gorgeous.
Any e-mails with advice or comments would be appreciated.....thanks

None better at the price! This player rocks and is far better than one star.

Natural sound

Display

I've just purchased the CAL CL-15 for use in my bedroom system along with B&W N804 speakers and McIntosh MC122 amp (no pre amp needed). I compared it to the Arcam Alpha 9, Arcam DIVA 92, Arcam FMJ CD23, Classe CDP .3, Adcom GCD 750, and Rotel RCD991. To me the CAL was head and shoulders above the others. It was by far the most musical sounding--much more dynamic, with much greater separation and clarity. By comparison, the others sounded dull and very compressed. The CAL was the only player that had a really rich and powerful (though definitely not boomy or bloated) bass.

I was very surprised by the comparison, because I'd heard such great things particularly about the new Arcams. I found, however, after listening to the CAL, the Arcam players left me bored and uninvolved in the music. The Classe and Adcom players were clearly the worst of the group--very flat, with the Adcom sounding kind of ragged. Another advantage of the CAL player (which I found out about after my listening test) was that it allowed me to forego getting a pre amp, saving the $1,500 I'd planned to pay for a McIntosh C15. It's important to note, however, that I would have easily preferred the CAL regardless of this saving.

My one minor complaint is that the display doesn't indicate volume level. If you're going to make a CD player with volume controls, have a volume display somewhere on the player.

Great Sound, Solid Construction

None so far

I've had this unit for about 6 month and still can not identify any weakness. Just produce music the way it should. I think this is the last Non-SACD cd player I will ever own!

CAL CL-15
Jolida 502B w/KT88 output tubes
Maggie MMG (running parallel with a Paradigm PDR-10)
Magnan Vi interconnects
JPS Labs Superconductor Speaker cables
Blue Circle BC62 Power Cord

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha775 to Dip24/96 to CreekOBH14, Sonic Frontiers(forgot the model#)

Open, Dimensional

Variable volume degrades sound

Hello I replied to the previous reviewer, thought it would be useful to post here too:

Are you sure about the comparison to the Adcom gcd-750?, Maybe it wasnt broken in, or defective (or the preamp)... thing is it uses the same circuitry as the CL-15, minus the variable output & it adds balanced outs...

(Not sure if adcom uses the cal design or vise versa...)

Anyway one tip: the variable output of the CL-15 actually degrades the sound, but If you max it, it disables that circuit (have to use a good preamp though or net result could be worse)

Maybe the adcom didn't sound good 'cause of the preamp & extra interconnect, (I use the GFP-750 & the sound can be amazing) and have compareed it to the CL-15 & found the CL-15 to be as good only when I maxed the volume...(& used the preamp)


Thanks,
Scott Kramer

The CAL CL-15 is a fabulous CD player. I had an fairly old (ca. 1989) Adcom GCD-575 which died and needed replacement. I first tried a Sony DVP-S7000 DVD player but didn't like the sound of CD's played through it. (See my entry for that player) I then demo'd the CL-15.
This player's soundstage has great depth and width. High frequency sounds are clear but smooth and not grainy. Bass is full but not overly so. It is very pleasing to listen even to older, less well recorded CD's through this player. The player has excellent dynamics. I compared this unit with the Adcom GCD-750 (also dual mono, HDCD, dual 20bit Burr-Brown, etc.) The Adcom was dynamic but more "in your face" and slightly grainy. The CL-15 was deeper, clearer, not grainy and more musical.

Nitpicks:
1. Display only shows elapsed time of the current track. No total elasped time, no time remaining on disc or current track.
2. No digital output. Only digital input (32-48khz). CAL calls this the "digital definitive" and seems to intend for the CL-15 to be the final destination for 32-48 khz PCM data.
3. Somewhat flimsy CD tray construction. My first unit arrived with sticking CD drawer (wouldn't open). CAL's manual warns against helping the drawer close. They seem to realize the flimsiness of the mechanism.
4. Remote control buttons a bit confusing. It's too easy to hit the power on/off button instead of CD drawer open/close.
The sound reproduction of this player more than makes up for any minor problems.

Associated equipment: Audio Research LS-3, Rotel RB990BX, Von Schweikert VR-3, inexpensive "Monster" type speaker cable and stranded interconnects.

Solid Sound Technology's review says it all - and he's absolutely not exagerating !
Related equipment:

Sonic Frontiers Line 1
Mc Cormack DNA-0.5deluxe
Snell C/V
Adcom GCD-700
Listening room: 12.5x18.5x6.5

I bought this unit about 6 weeks ago, after having lived with the Adcom for over a year, and after checking out about a dozen other players (except for the Sony, I have listened to or auditioned almost every CD player/changer between $1500 and $2500). Even after these 6 weeks I am still struck by the live-like, natural rendition of this player, that allows for hourlong fatigueless listening sessions. Minor quirks (missing volume indicator, no remaining track time, somewhat light weight) are easily forgiven considering the price/performance ratio. Overall (i.e. in world with money no object): 4.5 stars, price weighted 5 stars. Totals to 5 stars.

A note on the side: Some folks here seem to prefer using the CL-15 directly connected into the power-amp. I made the comparison, and though sounding really not bad connected directly, I love the match of the tubed Line 1 with the CL-15. Everything becomes a tad more life-like and three-dimensional.

I spent a long time looking for a $1500-$2000 CD player. I also auditioned the Theta, Anthem, CL-10, Rega, and Audio Note CD players, but found that the CL-15 was by far the best of all of these players, so I purchased it. Right now, it is paired with an ARC VT-100, ARC LS-5 MKII, Magneplanar 3.5, and Transparent cables. It is a wonderful player, with incredible bass, treble, and midrange. Moreover, the HDCD decoding is truly sublime!

I just purchased a Cal CL-15... I can't beat the previous reviewers comments, but I did compare th CL-15 against the new Adcom 750 and Macintosh's new entry in the compact disc market. The Adcom 750 was a bit harsh sounding, you could hear the roughness around the edges of vocals, a basic flaw of compact disc's to vinyl. For $1400 retail, I was a bit disapointed.. The Macintosh CD player was exceptional sounding with deep bass response, uncharacteristic of most CD players, smooth in the mid and high frequency ranges and not over present. The unit also impressed me with a very high quality transport, both solid and rugged. Disapointingly it lacked HDCD capabilities at $3500.. The Cal CL-15 seemed to fit the bill, generous bass, relatively smooth mid an upper end, though I could still hear a bit of crispness in vocals, but still less than most players in the same price range. The CL-15's HDCD capabilities are to say the least phenomenal, I would stop to say as close to vinyl as I have heard in a long time, which should speak volumes to vinyl enthusiasts.. Though I was extremly tempted to spend the extra $$$ on the Macintosh, I went back to the Cal CL-15. It offered the price/value/sound point I was looking for and also I have my suspicions that compact disc digital formats will change drastically over the next 5 years.
Though HDCD has been out for a while, many manufacturers are grouping together, creating consortiums to consider scraping the old CD formats and replace them with new high resolution technologies. Even DVD may become subject, as not all movie companies have lept into the new millenia, which in my mind is a danger sign to step cautiously and let common sense reign when thinking about investing a large amount of money, $3000 to $7000 for CD, HDCD, or DVD until the dust settles a bit in the industry. Remember DAT tape..

I'd heard great things about this cd player for a while from reliable sources and was anxious to audition this great piece. I believe that reviews are meaningless unless the complimentary components are listed and therefore I will list the components to and with which I auditioned at the end of my review. Please note that during my audition I used two #3 and one #4 Black Diamond cones underneath the CAL CL-15, which was then placed on my granite floor. I've always thought that these cones always smoothen out the sonics and enhances the harmonic detail when matched properly. Also, please note that it has an integrated volume control and so I auditioned this cd player via directly to the amps, thereby bypassing the preamp. I will first list the pros and then cons; the cd titles I played which produced notable differences are the following:
- Diane Krall, cd title: All of You , track 5 "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" (decent recording);
- Rippingtons, cd title: Moonlighting, track 4 "Dreams" ( a GRP recording, and although I think most GPR recordings are mediocre and a bit bright sounding, somehow this track is a very decent recording)
- Spyro Gyra, cd title: Collection, track 9 "Catching the Sun" (mediocre-decent recording)

Pros: One of the most salient characteristics I heard was its transparent detail, which didn't surprise me running it straight into the amps. I heard slightly more detail on one or two tracks with the CAL 15 than with my system. Guitar and bass strings were very tight and piano notes were prominent. Also, the soundstage, resolution, dynamics, and imaging are very decent.

Cons: The one slight notable weakness I found was its brightness. This was apparent on the cds I listed above. On Diane Krall's cd, the sibilance in her voice was just a bit bright, and the focus of the voice produced a slight microphonic or echoing effect caused by the sibilance. This slight brightness also carried on to the other cds. On the Rippington's cd, the highs in the bells and triangles were a bit bright and didn't hang in the air as naturally as I've heard from other superior front-ends. This was also noticeable on Spyro Gyra's cd when cymbals were played. The cymbals sounded just a tad bit bright and metallic intead of lively and natural.

It was unfortunate that I could not audition it more thoroughly as I had to return it to the dealer sooner than I wanted. I would definitely have played some classical titles and more vocals to give a more thorough review.. All in all, the cd player is very good for its price; I don't think anything can touch it for $1695 (unbalanced ends). It was so good that I had to a/b it with my front-end not once or twice, but about 3-5 times playing the same track. This got me thinking about the law of diminishing returns and whether I made a mistake paying so much for my front-end which retails for almost 5 times as much as the CAL CL-15. It didn't produce the smooth and lush harmonic detail I've heard from my other few systems, but for the price, you can't go wrong. A definite 5 stars for its price; 4 stars for its overall sonic quality.

My current system, to which I compared it are as follows:

- Audio Artistry Dvorak 4-way speakers (latest model) with electronic active crossover;
- BEL MKIIIa monoblocks for the speaker panels;
- Cinepro 600X amp for the woofers;
- Audio Logic 34 DAC (latest model);
- Throughly modified Phillips transport (convincingly beat the Levinson 37);
- Camelot Dragon Pro II ant-jitter/resolution enhancer device;
- Placete preamp;
- Tice Power Block III Line conditioner;
- Tice Infinte speed power cord (used with all electronic gear running into Power Block III);
- Magnan Signature interconnects and speaker cables.

Any questions, please email me.