TEAC PD-301-X CD Player Slot-in Type Black Released in 2022 (Silver)

After having a large collection of vinyl and CDs in storage for some time, I’m finally putting together my “dream HiFi system” for our combination home office and listening room. I originally planned to use my 33-year old Yamaha CD player as a transport as it was in great shape and has digital output. Unfortunately, I found it would not consistently interface with modern Digital Analog Converters (DACs) with the exception of the one in my Yamaha AV receiver, so the search was on for a decent CD transport. Research quickly led me to this TEAC PD-301-X unit. It’s compact, but not too small, beefy and bulletproof, while elegantly and simply styled. Truly a quality piece of kit.When the unit arrived, everything was in great shape, but I was disappointed to find the RC-1323 remote missing, despite batteries being in the box and the remote being mentioned in the directions. BTW, the included directions were in Japanese, but an online English PDF is available on the TEAC website. I contacted the seller through Amazon, and they were great. Within 24 hours, they advised that a new remote was being shipped, and it arrived via FedEx a few days later. Outstanding support - BIG THANKS!As mentioned, I’m using this as a CD transport (vs player) with the digital signal sent via a Blue Jean co-ax to a FIIO K11 R2R ladder DAC, then on into my Willsenton R8 Tube Amplifier. This conditions the CD digital signal using a ladder array of ~200 resistors to take on some of the qualities of a true analog source like vinyl, before feeding the Tube Amp which also helps mellow any possible digital “glare” (if such a thing truly exists… 😀). I’ll mention that so far I’ve had zero issues with the TEAC playing a variety of different CDs. Operation is simple, crisp, and fairly quick.I decided to perform some informal audio testing. I happen to have both vinyl and CD versions of one of my all-time favorite albums, with songs I’m quite familiar with. I set the output levels the same and played both formats staggered by a few seconds through the R8. This allowed me to use the R8 remote to A/B test the two back and forth, while remaining seated in the sweet spot. I’m listening through mass-loaded Totem Arro loudspeakers, reputed to be among the best for smaller rooms. My vinyl turntable is a U-Turn Theory with an Ortofan 2M Blue cartridge feeding a Pro-Ject Tube Box S2 analog phono stage. I’ll admit I’m not likely the world’s most discerning audiophile, but to my ear, I’d be hard pressed to detect any obvious differences between the vinyl and the CD, at least for this particular album. They both sounded warm, deep, and smooth, way more detailed and musical than I’ve ever experienced before. I will note, I could pick out the vinyl mainly due to an occasional click, as my old vinyl still needs proper cleaning.I already knew I had a great sounding vinyl setup, and I’m thrilled now that this TEAC unit coupled with a ladder DAC and R8 Tube Amp will really bring my CD collection to life. As I can also run USB-C digital into the DAC, streaming is covered as well, so I feel my system is fairly well future proofed.

This is a nice smaller size CD player which works great in my headphone system without occupying a lot of space. Slot type CD decks with slot load are hard to find as most small players use top load design meaning one can’t stack anything on top of the unit. It’s not the most resolving DAC but I use it as a transport using the optical toslink connection into my Ifi zen signature+ DAC

i initially looked into the chifi options (fiio + moondrop + smsl) before purchasing the teac and although this is the priciest alternative, it is the best option for my needs. my current set up includes an aune dac + amp combo with a jds labs eq. i'm also currently using argon headphones and there's a noticeable difference in quality vs listening to spotify. it's a shame that cds are not as abundant as they were during the heyday but the teac has allowed me to keep building on the current cd collection and enjoy listening to music again (that you actually own without streaming restrictions).i did try the fiio dm 13 prior to this and did like the aesthetic/builld quality of the unit but is probably a more viable option for portable rather than desktop use. i also was not a fan of not having a dedicated stop button. i opted for the "clear" model which was around $180 at the time of purchase so for another $60, you have a superior unit with the teac (and also saved on desk space since i was able to stack the eq on top of it). i also appreciate the minimalist design and the remote is a nice bonus.

This CD Player fit into this old audiophile's analog system very well. I was looking to replace my failed CD unit with one having excellent audio performance with a well-designed form factor, and was happy that it included an integrated FM Tuner as well. I did not need a multi-disc changer. The TEAC PC-301 certainly fulfilled my needs and performs exceptionally well.I was pleasantly surprised when the shipment from Japan showed up in about 2 weeks. The stated delivery from Amazon at time of order was over 4 weeks.

Well constructed compact CD player. I use it in my hifi setup as a transport, connected to an external DAC. When the player worked without issues, CDs did sound great, better then streaming and on par with my reference vinyl setup. Unfortunately they also skipped and stuttered frequently. My CDs are generally clean, plus skipping happened with even new CDs. So while having clean media may have helped sometimes, it didn't prevent skipping that much. In the end I decided to return this unit (turns out it's a Japanese model), and get a US model instead from elsewhere. What a difference - not a single issue since. I'm leaving three stars primarily for Japanese models available on Amazon and recommend getting a US version instead. It is perfect!

If you order something in the US then I assume you would get the English instruction set. I received the instructions set, however, in Japanese. I contacted the seller and Amazon. Amazon said to return it… poor support. The seller directed me to the manufacturers’s website. The set is 31 pages long.After setting up the unit with a Fosi mini stereo amplifier/streamer (< $90) and Monitor bookshelf speakers ($1,500) I found the sound quality to be excellent. If you don’t want or have a large available footprint for equipment then this is a great setup. Just make sure your amp has a quality DAC and the speakers are of good quality. I tried the Ceihoit CD player (< $40) and it didn’t sound anything close to the Teac. Not always, but in this case you get what you pay for. By the way, I found the sound quality of the CD player to be superior to the streamer (Spotify). You do need to test it side by side, however, to tell the difference so for daily use you won’t be able to tell the difference.