Returning to High-Resolution Audio: The Shanling CD80 II Player

Indeed, have you returned to the world of High-Fidelity (Hi-Fi) audio thanks to Compact Discs (CDs), after being a vinyl enthusiast? This Bluetooth-enabled CD player might be the perfect upgrade you're looking for, especially if you're a fan of using headphones.

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I've heard a lot about the magic of vinyl records, but there's much less talk about Compact Discs (CDs), and this might be to your advantage. The relatively low popularity of CDs means that their cost in excellent condition is often much lower than what you'd pay for the same album on vinyl. If, like me, you value saving money as much as you enjoy music, owning a high-quality CD player is still a smart choice for your audio system.

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Introducing the Shanling CD80 II

Chinese company Shanling offers a range of interesting CD players, some with built-in amplifiers. Recently, the company launched a new player called CD80 II, which features the ability to powerfully drive wired headphones and In-Ear Monitors (IEMs), in addition to supporting high-quality Bluetooth streaming, allowing you to play music from your phone or computer easily.

The Shanling CD80 II is based on the compact CD80 player design, but it comes with an entirely new Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) system and an improved disc loading mechanism. The loading mechanism is the fourth generation used in the more advanced CD-S100 model, featuring an HD450 laser and a familiar disc tray.

Internal Components and Advanced Features

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Internally, the previous model's ESS Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) has been replaced with a Cirrus Logic CS43198 chip. The DAC is an essential component in any digital audio device, converting digital data (0s and 1s) from music files into an analog audio signal that headphones or speakers can play. This chip is paired with two SGM8262 dual headphone amplifiers to power the 3.5mm and 4.4mm balanced outputs, delivering up to 215mW and 850mW respectively at 32 ohms, with a low output impedance (less than 1 ohm) suitable for sensitive In-Ear Monitors (IEMs).

The Bluetooth 5.0 input works with LDAC codec support, which is a wireless audio codec that allows you to stream high-resolution music over Bluetooth at a data transfer rate of up to 990 kbps, significantly outperforming the standard SBC codec. The device also supports the usual AAC and SBC codecs. Additionally, there is a USB input that supports drives up to 2TB for direct playback of audio files, including high-resolution audio formats like PCM up to 384 kHz and DSD256.

Design and Price

Despite all these advanced features, Shanling has managed to design the device with compact dimensions of just 28 x 20 x 5 cm, making it suitable even for confined spaces.

The recommended price for the Shanling CD80 II player in the United States is $359. Prices for other regions have not yet been announced, but for reference, the first generation typically retailed for £339 in the UK.

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