Digital Drive: REVIEW: Cambridge Audio 740C CD Player/Recorder by Luminator

Model:	740C
Category:	CD Player/Recorder
Suggested Retail Price:	$1100.00
Description:	CD Player
Manufacturer URL:	Cambridge Audio

Review by Luminator on July 05, 2011 at 16:45:22
IP Address: 38.122.6.26 Add Your Review
for the 740C

Peer pressure. What normal person doesn't cave in, once in a while?

An audiophile wrote to me: "You're such a bastard. You're onto the [Cambridge Audio Azur] 840C, but you never did a review of the 740C."

Okay, I'll cave in.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with my reviews, here is how they work. First, you need to click on the links below. Do not just look at the pictures. Be sure to read the words. They will tell you about the music, and why it moves me. They will tell you about ergonomic, aesthetic, and operational characteristics. And they will also tell you about the 740C's sonics.

History Of Modern
Hounds Of Love
The Cars Greatest Hits
Cupid & Psyche 85
5 Man Acoustical Jam
I'm Your Man
Test & Burn-in CD
West End Girls
Dead Winter Dead
Bridge
Living In Fantasy
Do You
Circle Of One

Now that you have opened all the links, and read the material, let me sum them all up.

In high school, I had a friend named Samantha. She argued that, some people, if you ignore their heads, had "attractive bodies." Obviously, she was under the influence of too much Greek and Roman mythology.

Samantha put her hands on her hips, and declared, "I have a sexy body. We have a sexy body."

So when it came time to put together our intramural softball team, we had to come up with a name. Samantha ~~laughingly~~ boldly announced, "We should call ourselves the Sexy Bodies."

Uh, we stared at each other's bodies. Samantha's was short and skinny. Mine was like a skeleton in Sinbad, Dungeons & Dragons, or any RPG video game. Margaret's, in her own words, was a "dumpling." Catherine's, in her own words, was "dumpy." Wayman had jack rabbit speed, but looked like a miniature and malnourished Bruce Lee. Julian was our human bowling ball. Micky's was like Winnie The Pooh's. Lina had those fat, un-sculpted, milky thighs. Lilian's body was like a big tub of fresh Play-Doh. Damon was like an infant blown up to 5'4". If Mark Messier were 60 years old, that's what Larry would be. And so on and so forth.

"Sexy Bodies" was not only factually incorrect, it was embarrassing. It set us up for ridicule and failure. But hey, that would prepare me well for being an audiophile, which, by definition, is prone to ridicule and failure.

So while I am on the topic of Sexy Bodies, let me tell you that the Azur 740C comes standard in silver. But if you are really hell-bent on being the stereotypical audiophile, fine, you can order the 740C in black. As for the silver finish, it looks more like a computer. Thus, if you place the 740C in the company of classier-looking hi-fi gear, the 740C will look like some geek's CPU or router.

I do not know why the rest of us Sexy Bodies remained quiet, and did not suggest other team names. On a happier note, the 740C's transport operates quietly. Thus, if you place the unit next to you, you won't hear the disc spinning. Or, if you use the 740C as your bedroom source, you will not hear the disc spinning. This is in contrast to, among others, the dCS Puccini, whose drive makes a whirring noise.

When I was in high school during the late-80s, boomboxes, Walkmen, and Discmen were considered contraband. Nevertheless, no student got her electronics confiscated, unless she blatantly used them while in class. Indeed, none of my friends had her electronics confiscated. My friends and I would swap cassettes, Walkmen, and even headphones. During these swaps, I found that some headphones were better than others at letting me hear the quality of the Walkman. But sometimes, the "better" headphone did not always produce the most synergistic match.

While I did not feel that the 740C "needed" expensive interconnects, make sure you find one which maintains the 740C's strengths, but does not introduce distortions. In many ways, I found the XLO S3-1 (see my review of this interconnect on Cable Asylum) to be the best overall match. However, its price creeps too closely to that of the 740C itself. So, the next best thing was the clear, open, transparent, and honest Q-Audio Tao.

And just what are those strengths? After coming down from the dCS Puccini, Simaudio Andromeda, and Wadia 781i, I had to get used to the 740C's smaller, whiter, hashier sound. But once I got acclimated to the 740C's class, I found it to possess very good speed, focus, and image outlines. The stereotypical audiophile prefers a rounder, warmer, sweeter, more seductive sound. So if you are from this camp, you can stop reading. Just kidding. But do be warned that the 740C may not be your cup of tea.

I had a classmate who swore and insisted that his JVC boombox (complete with Hyperbass) sounded better via batteries, than the AC cord. He even played selections from Motley Crue's Girls, Girls, Girls to prove it. Several of us were under intense peer pressure to agree with him. Reluctantly, I had to admit that the two power types showed, at least to my ears, slight differences. I thought that the batteries were slightly quieter, but also deader. I thought that the AC was noisier, but livelier.

No, the 740C is not powered by batteries. But it is somewhat reflective of AC quality and powercords. The 740C sounds absolutely detailed, when run from the Nordost Thor or Power Wing (equipped with Oyaide XXX outlets). But these powerline conditioners cost more than the 740C itself. The 740C sounded a little less resolving, and more rounded, when run from an API Power Pack II. Nevertheless, much of the pop, verve, and energy remained.

In absolute terms, the 740C maxed out its potential when used with the $5000 Pranawire Maha Samadhi. In the real world, the Acrolink 6N-P4030 (with Oyaide P/C-046 plugs) was head and shoulders superior to the other similarly-priced powercords I had on hand. But you do not have to cave in to pressure. Just go with whichever powercord bends the 740C to your taste.

When you don't have a good team, it is easy to compare yourself to the good teams. And that is exactly what the Sexy Bodies did.

Most audiophiles keeping up with my blog are curious as to how the 740C matches up against its big sister, the 840C. The 840C sports balanced analog outputs; the 740C does not. The 740C and 840C sound very similar, obviously cut from the same cloth. However, the 740C has a grainier texture. Furthermore, the 740C reins in the soundstage, so that it has a little less depth than the 840C (which does not possess great depth to begin with). So if you do not need balanced outputs, and can tolerate a rougher, more 2-dimensional sound, you can save some bucks, by going with the 740C.

When I took summer sports after completing 6th grade, a girl was mad and frustrated at us for getting slaughtered in flag football, volleyball, softball, and basketball. She was especially peeved at us on defense, where we timidly refused to take a charge. She admonished us to "Suck it up," and "Grow a pair of ovaries."

As a male, that has always made me cringe. And it would be the first of several times I have heard that expression. Most of the time, someone will say "guts," or "balls." But once in a while, someone will say, "ovaries."

I no longer use digital separates. Nor do I run my computer through the stereo system. Therefore, I did not examine the Azur 740C's digital inputs and outputs. Guts or no guts, balls or no balls, ovaries or no ovaries, I am letting someone else investigate the 740C's digital inputs and outputs :-)

-Lummy The ~~Sexy Body~~ Loch Monster

Product Weakness:	illegible LCD display; no balanced outputs; looks more like a computer
Product Strengths:	entire chassis is silver-colored; all 4 time modes; quick-loading; relatively quiet operation; no heat

Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: numerous
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): numerous
Sources (CDP/Turntable): CAL Icon Mk.II PB; Cambridge Audio Azur 840C; dCS Puccini; Simaudio Andromeda; Wadia 781i
Speakers: numerous speakers and headphones
Cables/Interconnects: numerous
Music Used (Genre/Selections): rock, pop, R&B, dance, Hawaiian, show tunes, TV
Time Period/Length of Audition: 1 year
Type of Audition/Review: Home Audition

Amplifier:	numerous
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	numerous
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	CAL Icon Mk.II PB; Cambridge Audio Azur 840C; dCS Puccini; Simaudio Andromeda; Wadia 781i
Speakers:	numerous speakers and headphones
Cables/Interconnects:	numerous
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	rock, pop, R&B, dance, Hawaiian, show tunes, TV
Time Period/Length of Audition:	1 year
Type of Audition/Review:	Home Audition