Quad 99 cdp

From british hifi company quad this is a midi sized player in a smart silver metal case and has the added bonus of not only being a cd player it also has a built in pre amp. The pre amp itself will take three digital inputs so things like tuners and televisions will be fine although not turntables.

If you have a turntable you will need a separate pre amp. The build of the unit is impressive and it connects in the usual way using rca connections and it also has something called a quad link which connects it to other quad components. The player retails for a penny under £1000 so is faced with some pretty stiff competition.

How does it sound?

This is a strange one as it does not sound anything like its competitors! First impressions are that the tone and colour are excellent. This is far from grey sounding. It fleshes out and gives body and weight to just about everything, it is like a musical elephant! It is also very, very smooth sounding and is the absolute opposite of thin.

The sound stage is big and full and it has a very neat trick of making most of the instruments sound at roughly the same level. Depending on what you want out of a player this can be good or bad. For me singers are not as prominent as I would like and when a lead instrument takes centre stage it can sound a little muted.

This obviously helps you pick out the background noises with very little fuss but some of the dynamics are not what I am used to hearing. It does however make for quite a relaxing listen, nothing jumps out and scares you like in so many other systems.

Timing is good it is not a fast sounding machine but coherence is excellent. Musicians will sound perfectly in time with each other and I always value that much more than just sounding fast. There is also a nice flow to rhythms this is probably due to the bass being very full and strong. One word about the extension at both ends of this machine is that high treble and low bass are rolled off.

This is probably why the quad player sounds so smooth and if you have very high end equipment you will hear this, it is not necessarily unpleasant but it is there. However if it is mid range you are after this machine is awesome! It is as good as anything regardless of price. It is smooth as silk, colourful and just sounds beautiful! If you want mid range magic at mid range prices this is a player to treasure.

Now for the bad bits. Like any piece of equipment that is particularly strong in key areas it does let its self down in others. Although presence and realism are first rate it is certainly not the most sophisticated of players. Subtlety is lost and it often sounds a bit heavy handed with certain music.

Lightness of touch is something it simply can not do, this machine does not sound like a linn cd player! It always sounds big bold and bright no matter what type of music you put in the tray. Things like fine details are smoothed over and lost and texture is not a strong point.

The other thing is the preamp. It isn't one! It is more of a volume control. It works very well if plugged directly into a quad power amp but if you are looking for flexibility then you will probably need a proper preamp.

Personally I really like this machine and while it is nowhere near as even handed and accomplished over all as something like the rega jupitor the mid range, realism and colour are far superior. I suppose it is a question of looking at the pros and cons.

If you like the sound of this player what I will say is that to upgrade it in the future will cost big! To get the same kind of mid range, presence and colour with increased subtlety, speed and dynamics you will have to spend double if not three times the amount, that is how good it is in those key areas. In terms of using it with true high end equipment it could hold its own up to a point.

You could certainly hook it up to much higher priced power amp and speakers and I am sure it would sound great. Over all then a good solid choice and well worth a look. It has a good blend of strengths and some genuine hi end qualties if you can live with some of the short falls then this machine makes a lot of sense.

Ebay Alert!

Quad has practically got a cult following. This means 2nd hand values are among the highest. I have seen these machines go for over £800 2nd hand! If the machine is fairly new and good condition just look at it as a handy saving over the new price!