Draw one into music pleasingly and naturally.

Smooth, dynaimic, and loads of detail.

what a player!

No complain in this price range!

What a player! I'm a vinyl fans and despite owning quite a few cd players in the past Linn, Naim, Arcam, Quad...all have its strengths though, but inevitablyl let down by the digital format which its shortcoming is painfully obvious. Having audition this Rega Appllo and owning it for three months, I'm pretty sure this one is for the keeping. Its got an uncanny smooth smooth sound, with clear top end and sweet mid-range, OK bass, and most importantly an engaing and non-fatiqued sound that allow you listen to CD for many many hours. Dynamic and PRaT is as good as it gets. Loads of details. Bass is a bit soft.

A Fun player indeed if you just want to enjoy your silver disc.

Similar Products Used:

Linn, Naim Arcam, Quad......

Sounds great compared to older CD players. If you are still hanging onto a dedicated CD player from the 80's or 90's, and have money to burn, go for it.

Who really needs a dedicated CD player anymore? And truth is, a number of the DVD players "off the rack" at Circuit City sound just as good. Is $700 worth the subtle (if any) difference? Certainly Rega is leveraging their vinyl heritage with the top-loading mechanism, but this feels like blatant heart-tugging of the over 50 crown still longing for their vinyl.

In the dawn of CD technology, some players sounded thin and bright (my old mid-80's Yamaha); some warm and muddy (my Sony ES changer). I finally found a "good" CD player with the NAD C520 -- I loved it. Since 1998 or so, I've run into the occasional crappy sounding player... but for the most part digital/CD technology has refined to a point where the differences between mass-market and "boutique" are less significant. I think this is a big reason why the high-end shops have moved to insanely priced gear, as you can now get accurate reproduction from several budget players. See the forums for a number of people having epiphanies on this matter. Even the $150 Oppo DVD player gets a good review in Absolute Sound. The Squeezebox is rated 5 stars in What Hi-Fi.

The Apollo.... if I heard this 7 years ago would have thought it was worth every cent of the $800 I paid for it. It sounds 100% better than the CD players I used through the 80's and 90's. Details, depth, "soundstaging", etc etc. I *perceive* a slight emphasis in the 5khz range for brighter vocals... a slight rolling of the highs... a richness to the bass... but honestly, I don't know how much of this is real vs. imagined; as I can't reliably pick out the Apollo in blind listening tests vs. streamed lossles via Squeezebox. The differences are, at best, highly subtle.

The Apollo is nice to look at. It feels good in use. There's something to the top-loading that feels cool and analog-like (even though my kids' $20 circuit city "boombox" is a top-loader of disturbingly similar quality).

In 2007, it's not so much if it's worth $700 for better sound... instead I question paying any significant money at all for a dedicated CD player. I dig the Apollo, but still found myself using the Squeezebox for direct access to my entire collection, Pandora Radio, etc etc. The Apollo just sat there, looking pretty! Couldn't justify a $700 paper weight.

Similar Products Used:

NAD C520, Arcam CD73t, Sony ES changer, etc etc.

Apollo:

Smooth sound - no harshness or digital hash.

Naturally full and rich tone body (timbre) and good tone edge resolution combined (hard to get the two together).

Good 3-D imaging - tone encapsulated in space in proper localization (fore and aft as well as left and right) against an empty background surrounding the tone.

The Saturn is better, in every respect, than the Apollo. Saturn has more powerful bass but Apollo is quite good here. Both have excellent bass definition.

See strengths - Apollo is quite good but the Saturn is better.

I owned the Apollo, then bought the Saturn when it came out. Both purchased new. Never had any trouble with either.

The Apollo is great for the money but the Saturn is great for any price. I get a very natural and realistic sound from either, but better in every way with the Saturn.

My headphone system is highly resolving and natural - it takes the best of components to really appreciate the Rega CD players - a bad componet in a system reduces the system to the lowest common denominator of the bad sounding component.

Headphone: AKG K701
Amp: Bada PH12 with one RCA VT231 and two Sylvania W tubes (6SN7 type)
IC: Acoustic zen Silver Reference II
Power conditioner: Tice Micro
Power cord: Analog Research Silver Raincoat

Similar Products Used:

Eastsound E5 Signature

NAD 542

Apollo:

Smooth sound - no harshness or digital hash.

Naturally full and rich tone body (timbre) and good tone edge resolution combined (hard to get the two together).

Good 3-D imaging - tone encapsulated in space in proper localization (fore and aft as well as left and right) against an empty background surrounding the tone.

The Saturn is better, in every respect, than the Apollo. Saturn has more powerful bass but Apollo is quite good here. Both have excellent bass definition.

See strengths - Apollo is quite good but the Saturn is better.

I owned the Apollo, then bought the Saturn when it came out. Both purchased new. Never had any trouble with either.

The Apollo is great for the money but the Saturn is great for any price. I get a very natural and realistic sound from either, but better in every way with the Saturn.

My headphone system is highly resolving and natural - it takes the best of components to really appreciate the Rega CD players - a bad componet in a system reduces the system to the lowest common denominator of the bad sounding component.

Headphone: AKG K701
Amp: Bada PH12 with one RCA VT231 and two Sylvania W tubes (6SN7 type)
IC: Acoustic zen Silver Reference II
Power conditioner: Tice Micro
Power cord: Analog Research Silver Raincoat

Similar Products Used:

Nad 542

Eastsound E5 Signature

Apollo:

Smooth sound - no harshness or digital hash.

Naturally full and rich tone body (timbre) and good tone edge resolution combined (hard to get the two together).

Good 3-D imaging - tone encapsulated in space in proper localization (fore and aft as well as left and right) against an empty background surrounding the tone.

The Saturn is better, in every respect, than the Apollo. Saturn has more powerful bass but Apollo is quite good here. Both have excellent bass definition.

See strengths - Apollo is quite good but the Saturn is better.

I owned the Apollo, then bought the Saturn when it came out. Both purchased new. Never had any trouble with either.

The Apollo is great for the money but the Saturn is great for any price. I get a very natural and realistic sound from either, but better in every way with the Saturn.

My headphone system is highly resolving and natural - it takes the best of components to really appreciate the Rega CD players - a bad componet in a system reduces the system to the lowest common denominator of the bad sounding component.

Headphone: AKG K701
Amp: Bada PH12 with one RCA VT231 and two Sylvania W tubes (6SN7 type)
IC: Acoustic zen Silver Reference II
Power conditioner: Tice Micro
Power cord: Analog Research Silver Raincoat

Similar Products Used:

Nad 542

Eastsound E5 Signature

Apollo:

Smooth sound - no harshness or digital hash.

Naturally full and rich tone body (timbre) and good tone edge resolution combined (hard to get the two together).

Good 3-D imaging - tone encapsulated in space in proper localization (fore and aft as well as left and right) against an empty background surrounding the tone.

The Saturn is better, in every respect, than the Apollo. Saturn has more powerful bass but Apollo is quite good here. Both have excellent bass definition.

See strengths - Apollo is quite good but the Saturn is better.

I owned the Apollo, then bought the Saturn when it came out. Both purchased new. Never had any trouble with either.

The Apollo is great for the money but the Saturn is great for any price. I get a very natural and realistic sound from either, but better in every way with the Saturn.

My headphone system is highly resolving and natural - it takes the best of components to really appreciate the Rega CD players - a bad componet in a system reduces the system to the lowest common denominator of the bad sounding component.

Headphone: AKG K701
Amp: Bada PH12 with one RCA VT231 and two Sylvania W tubes (6SN7 type)
IC: Acoustic zen Silver Reference II
Power conditioner: Tice Micro
Power cord: Analog Research Silver Raincoat

Similar Products Used:

Nad 542

Eastsound E5 Signature

Analog type sound. Organic and musical.

Some operational bugs

I have used this for awhile so can now comment on the machines attributes. I will also refer to another machine I own- the Rega JUpiter 2000. As some who follow the industry know CD transports and processing software are no longer made by phillips and sony who choose to focus on DVD transports. This means sooner or later CD player manufacturers may want to find a way to make their own. Apparently Rega saw this coming and was the first to bring to market a machine claimed to perform better than previous transports and processing software were able to provide. That is the main difference, but also used is a discrete class A output stage (as might be used in a preamp) instead of the usual OP Amps. Though the Apollo is often mentioned as such, I have to say I don't consider 1000 dollars to be a budget machine. However if 1000 dollars can get performance as good or better than more costly machines it's a good value. The Apollo sound can be described as analog like. There is no major harshness or grain. Soundstaging is good, but could be outdone by others. It's the overall tonalit,y and as many say an organic quality of the presentation that make the machine appealing. The top end and midrange are smooth but still with good detail, the bass is well defined but not overpowering. Above all it is enjoyable to listen to. The machine lacks the dynamic impact some others provide (though its dynamics are still good) including Regas own Jupiter. Some say the Apollo is hands down better than the Jupiter, I'd have to say listen for yourself. The Jupiter comes closer to the dyanamics of live music, which can not be said of the Apollo, sax is more present, piano has a more "in the room" quality with the Jupiter. The Apollo is a bit smoother in the mid treble, whereas the Jupiter can have a bit too much "bite" on certain discs. Given its price the Apollo is an exceptional sounding machine. Have a listen and see. It has a great synergy with the Mira 3 amp, and together they make an excellent combination. Finally I did experience operational quirks with the new Apollo system. It is afterall entirely new software and so there were some bugs.......just like Microsoft gets. To sum up It all depends on your desired preference but I think most will find the Rega Apollo unbeatable at the price.

Customer Service

Excellent

Similar Products Used:

Accurus ACD 11
Arcam CD23
Rega Jupiter 2000

True musical joy. Never jumps or skips as the Rega CD playes use a ingenious buffer memory system.

Can sound just a bit cold/clinical and thin from new, after about 2 days use all that is gone and I am now left with just fantastic sounding music. I found out that the player needs some burn in time.

The Rega Saturn CD player is the best player I have ever owned! A good friend bought a Apollo which he lent me, then I heard the Apollo vs. Saturn at the Sound Gallery and I was hooked. I have a wide taste in music and wanted a player that did not put its footprints all over the sound. I would say the Saturn is the closest player to sound to a turntable I have ever had. No surprises a Rega make great turntables! Everyone that visits my home loves the sound, what else could I ask for? Note I bought the Saturn not the Apollo, the upgrade is worth the cash!

Customer Service

The Sound Gallery in High Wycombe are what audio shops should be, staff love to help you out.. and they make me laugh!

Similar Products Used:

Tried Arcam, Linn, Merdian, Naim, AVi, and on. But nothing made me smile like the Rega players.

Great natural sound

Nothing at or near this price

Have been using Rega /Planet / Brio / Ayla system for three years wanted to update so i tried the new Rega Saturn this gave a thin sound very dissapointing, so i tried the cheaper Apollo it was stunning far better than the planet and Saturn, better bass extension than the Planet and a fuller sound than the Saturn.The combination of the Brio and Apollo Really does sing. Trying the Sugden 21a amp did not out do the Brio Great value REGA.

Customer Service

Second to non.

Similar Products Used:

Arcam ,Quad,Marantz

excellent mids and highs.

Bass could be stronger
.

I went to my local Hi-FI store this afternoon in Tempe with the intention of buying the Cambridge 640. I told the guys there what I had in mind and they suggested I also listen to the new Rega Apollo. So much for reviews. The Cambridge 640 sounded shrill. I could not tell any difference between my old sony and the cambridge. Next I listened to the Rega. What a difference. Very smooth mid range and hi's. Tracks I listened to included Ricky Lee Jones, The Pretenders, Donald Fagan, Pheobe Snow and just for a change I had a copy of Jimmy Page OUTRIDER. The Rega was better on all the tracks. Just to confuse matters I also listened to a $1500 Quad machine the owner had on special and their top of the line $5500 cd player. The Quads low end was tighter. I was tapping my foot along to the music. I did not like the hi end of the Quad. It was not as bad as the Cambridge, but not by much. Lastly I istened to what I thought was an Audio Research CD player. VERY VERY GOOD. Best thing I have ever listened to. It had everything. Bass, mids and high were all there and in there proper places. However, for $5500, it as my wife said, better do something other than just play cd's.

Lessons learned today: 1) Never trust reviews 2) Always listen for yourself.
All in all the Rega for the money($995) is an excellent player that puts all but the most expensive players to shame. If you are thinking of buying a lesser priced player, give this a listen and then save your pennies until you can afford the Rega. I am going to give the Rega 4 stars for value. It is after all almost a grand. That can be out of the price range of very many people. Overalll I will give it a 4 as well. It is not perfect as the bass is not as strong as it could be. Also, if you know something is not the absolute best, than it must be judged relative to that standard.

Similar Products Used:

Cambridge
Quad
Sony