nowallet Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 Hi folks I own a Cambridge Audio CXA60. I've loved its performance outside of the issues I've had with its input board (repaired twice and we've been good for a while now). I took a chance on a Cambridge Audio CXC CD transport despite the CXA60 experience and up until today I've had no issues. I decided to test out the coax output: it worked for 1 minute (i.e. perfect sound) but then the sound cut out and was replaced by a faint clicking sound. The sole other output (SPDIF) works fine. And the coax cable works fine with my streamer. 1. Has anyone else experienced similar issues with other Cambridge CXCs? (potentially an output board issue?) 2. What are your experiences with other Cambridge Audio products? After these issues there is no chance I am investing in this brand again. Cheers, Dan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jobd2212 Posted January 5, 2021 Share Posted January 5, 2021 Hi Dan Ive had a stream magic, an azur 650 amp and CD player for approximately 5 years. Had no real issues other than I mistakenly thought a channel had gone until I realised the terminal was loose. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candyflip Posted January 5, 2021 Share Posted January 5, 2021 I've found them great. Had an Azur amp, and the 640p phono stage. Both went well, and great re-sale value when it came time to upgrade. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbz Posted January 5, 2021 Share Posted January 5, 2021 I'm into vintage... The Azur 540R is a bit of a lemon, has problems with the volume control. Picked up another 2 units for parts, all with the same problem. Needed a IC, local support was not great but they did eventually (8months) provide the IC. The A500's do chernobyl taking out a lot of real estate in the power amp. Got 2. Don't think I'd spend more than $200- buying anything CA, can do better elsewhere. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nowallet Posted January 5, 2021 Author Share Posted January 5, 2021 @mbz @candyflip @Jobd2212 Thanks for the insight. It seems none of you touched the CX range - maybe that's where I went wrong and perhaps to be expected in the entry-level range (my wife would laugh if you told her it was entry level ). I tested the CXC transport the following day and it started working again - will have to monitor it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candyflip Posted January 5, 2021 Share Posted January 5, 2021 Apologies - just checked old records. My amp was the Cambridge Audio TOPAZ SR10 Stereo Receiver. Never gave me a day's trouble. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethro Posted January 6, 2021 Share Posted January 6, 2021 (edited) @nowallet I have a CXA-60 that has been faultless for the last 5 years - not a single issue, concern or fault. it is only no longer my main amp because I picked up an a Cambridge 851A at a steal Edited January 6, 2021 by ethro removed irrelevant comment line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nowallet Posted January 6, 2021 Author Share Posted January 6, 2021 3 hours ago, ethro said: @nowallet I have a CXA-60 that has been faultless for the last 5 years - not a single issue, concern or fault. it is only no longer my main amp because I picked up an a Cambridge 851A at a steal Happy to hear that! It's great when it works Just looked up the specs of the 851A and it looks amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruceathome Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I have an 851A, bought second hand through SNA a couple of years ago, which hasn’t missed a beat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powerglide Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I have this problem with my Azur 351r seems like a common fault my remote works fine, I have not tried the detox fix yet. Same amp sometimes won't turn on while in standby from either the remote or the front on/off button, have to reach round the back and reset. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nowallet Posted January 7, 2021 Author Share Posted January 7, 2021 1 hour ago, Powerglide said: I have this problem with my Azur 351r seems like a common fault my remote works fine, I have not tried the detox fix yet. Same amp sometimes won't turn on while in standby from either the remote or the front on/off button, have to reach round the back and reset. This sounds similar to the issue I had with the CXA60. The power button was lit up but wouldn't turn on via button press + remote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juzbear Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I have a CXN V2, and have been looking for an excuse to trade up, but it has kept working, and firmware updates mean it is more capable than it was when I first got it- used to be limited to 16/44 via airplay and now it can do 24/192 via ROON RAAT. And it sounds good too! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doogie44 Posted January 9, 2021 Share Posted January 9, 2021 I have a CXN V1 which has very good sound indeed from its double up-sampling Wolffson converters. Unfortunately it won't let me play 'some' digital files from an external Seagate HD. Some, not all, won't play when the general various FLAC files in the drive are actually alike/similar/OK size, and not 'complicated' formats. My IT son-in-law suggests that the processing power of the CXN just can't handle the request sometimes. Very aggravating. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warweary Posted January 29, 2021 Share Posted January 29, 2021 I had a loud turn on thump from a CA AVR 650. Still worked fine though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurti Posted March 20, 2021 Share Posted March 20, 2021 (edited) Owned an Azure amp. My take is cheap components, buttons are plastic with chrome coating, soon wore off and left with white plastic on most used buttons. Tone control range insufficient. Could hear powerline communication signal noises, not filtered out in power supply. Mains transformer died. Replaced with a Yamaha S501, day and night difference. Edited March 20, 2021 by Kurti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dingbat Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 640C CD Player - After a few years, kept refusing to play discs until eventually it was unusable. 640A Integrated Amp - Still working, I think. Stuck in a cupboard somewhere. 551R AV Receiver - After a couple of years, no sound from any digital inputs - HDMI, toslink, whatever. Only analogue stereo in worked! Out of warranty. Became a large paper weight at that point. So from my own personal experience - 2 out of 3 components ultimately failed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broadz Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 I've had a few: - Azur 551r - Bought with broken AM/FM tuner. The rest worked flawlessly until I temporarily decommissioned it in favour of a 2 channel system - Azur 751bd - Bought and used with my Azur 551r until I changed to a 2 channel based system. Worked flawlessly the entire time - Azur 840c - Bought in unknown condition and for the most part works fine. The CD draw needs a little attention as i believe the limit switch which tells the main board that the tray is now open is faulty and it only stays open for 5 seconds before closing automatically. The IR doesn't seem to work either but not an issue when connected to the 840a and using the IR in the 840a - Azur 840a - Bought in unknown condition and unfortunately my gamble didn't pay off as is was in non-working condition with distortion across all inputs/channels. After a strip down and partial rebuild, using much higher quality components, it is operating flawlessly and sounds terrific. Somehow, the notorious volume pot issue on these hasn't surfaced on mine as yet. I've ordered a new one for when it finally happens. - Azur 640t - Bought with the 840a & 840c and haven't had the chance to connect it to try it out yet. I'll be looking for a Stream Magic and 551p phono preamp at some point in the future to complete my Cambridge based Audio/Visual AND 2 channel listening system. I'll use one of the selectable fixed gain inputs of the 840a from the front preouts of the 551r to have the best of both worlds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dingbat Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 23 minutes ago, broadz said: - Azur 551r - Bought with broken AM/FM tuner. The rest worked flawlessly until I temporarily decommissioned it in favour of a 2 channel system Lucky you. I actually liked the sound of the 551R, it had excellent presence. I would have kept it if it had not broken down. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broadz Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 From what I've seen and what I've read, Cambridge make some terrific gear that really does compete against considerably higher priced rivals however reliability seems to be a common gripe amongst owners. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dingbat Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 1 hour ago, broadz said: From what I've seen and what I've read, Cambridge make some terrific gear that really does compete against considerably higher priced rivals however reliability seems to be a common gripe amongst owners. Same as the OP, after my prior experiences, I am never touching the brand again. The store I bought the Pioneer N-70AE from had trouble "fulfilling" the order, and suggested a CXN instead. I said No Way! The CXN rated highly in reviews (whatever that means), but in any case, I was pleasantly surprised by the high musical quality of the Pioneer. There are other interesting CA products like Edge, but I've probably moved on from its sound anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broadz Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 If you no longer want to persevere with the brand that's fair enough. Luckily, I'm friends with a competent repairer so the issues I have with my 840C will get fixed when he has the chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surprisetech Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 Another 751BD owner here. Purchased new in 2012 and has been my main spinner of all the shiny disk formats since then as well as most of my network streaming. Haven't had any problems at all. (I recommend giving disk spinners an annual treatment with a good lens cleaning CD) Despite having considered CA products for other purchases, the 751BD is the only one I've ever owned. Not because of quality concerns, just edged out by slightly better features &/or performance from other brands. I looked seriously at the 851A and the CXA80 for my last integrated amp upgrade, but neither have phono inputs, 851A lacks digital inputs and the CXA80 has no HT bypass & less power. Neither quite suited my current setup. Also liked the look of some of their tuners, but we were in a fringe reception area for over 20 years and all the CA tuners lacked the extra sensitivity and features that some of the Japanese tuners provided for those conditions. Horses for Courses. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJGopal Posted March 31, 2021 Share Posted March 31, 2021 I heard a DacMagic once. Boy that thing was a problem. One of the worst pieces of "hi fi" equipment I've ever heard. Absolute garbage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.K. Posted April 1, 2021 Share Posted April 1, 2021 (edited) The Cambridge Transport CXC has been very reliable in my set up. Sound wise it's as good if no better than the previous CEC 51 I used, which I had to get rid off, as there's no replacement laser mechanisms available. As for the CXC: There's no issues at all with it. If I could improve something on it, it would be its display in terms of brightness. There is an internal adjustment for it but the improvement is hardly noticeable. In day light conditions it can hardly be seeing, at night, not too bad but hopeless from a little distance. A nice large and bright display would make this a top transport IMO. Edited April 1, 2021 by A.K. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steever Posted April 5, 2021 Share Posted April 5, 2021 (edited) My 551R sounded great but I had trouble getting a consistent subwoofer output from day to day. The volume button on the front wouldn’t function when I wanted to turn the volume down (the IR remote had no issue). Sometimes all functionality would freeze and I had to switch it off/on via the rear switch to fix. Then the fan started groaning. shame really as it provided better audio performance than my Yamaha RX-V1400 and a similar Denon unit I owned. Edited April 5, 2021 by Winno 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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