Yamaha

CD-S2100 SACD/CD Player

£1,749

When I saw the Yamaha logo on the transport carton, it reminded me of how widespread this company is – not just in the audio industry but also in the wider music industry. Yamaha's focus is unique, both producing musical instruments and then replicating their sound via its audio systems. I can't think of many hi-fi manufacturers with the ability to do that, either on a local or global scale… 

This Japanese giant has a long history in audio, starting in 1954 when its HiFi Player record player was launched to spin people's (then) new-fangled LP records. Yamaha has grown its breadth and depth of audio components over the decades and was a very early mover and shaker in Compact Disc digital audio. Its first model came out right at the format's inception in 1982 and soon won many friends. 

Warp forward forty years to 2022, and the company still supports this venerable physical format. The £1,749 CD-S2100 that you see here sits squarely in the middle of the company's range, straddled by the CD-S303 entry-level player at £349, with an expected step up to the flagship CD-S3000 at £2,499. The CD-S2100 visually imitates the CD-S3000 with a handsome, clean-looking fascia and real physical presence. When unboxing the unit, its 15kg weight really makes a statement. 

The player's rigid chassis and twin power transformers (frame type and toroidal, for digital and analogue sections, respectively) signal that this is a serious Japanese CD spinner. Ergonomically the front panel is simply laid out with tactile buttons or switches that have a positive action. There's a choice of black or silver finishes with painted or wood side panels. The compact front panel display shows all the relevant information for playing discs, as well as the play mode and input selected. Yamaha uses a 'half mirror' type display that is lit when on, yet blends into the front panel finish with the display off. 

The CD tray loader is one of the best I have used. The rigid aluminium tray and mechanism operate smoothly and positively – it is not a springboard for silver discs! The loading mechanism is Yamaha's own design, which is a smart move since CD mech manufacturers regularly change types or – more recently – tend to cease production due to the lack of high volume demand. The disc tray has four rubber ribs to centre the disc on an otherwise sleek metal surface; it's a subtle detail but assists in loading CDs right the first time, every time.

The CD-S2100 is marketed as a 'CD player', but I struggled with this. Its functionality is more than just Compact Disc playback, as by accepting external digital sources, it's also effectively a DAC. The Yamaha uses the popular ESS ES9016 digital convertor chip; its USB and S/PDIF inputs play up to 24-bit, 192kHz PCM or DSD. Digital inputs and outputs come in both TOSLINK optical and coaxial electrical flavours. Analogue outputs are handled by Neutrik balanced XLR or RCA unbalanced connectors. The machine is compatible with other Yamaha components to 'link' together, simplifying on/off and remote-control actions. The USB input utilises the ASIO 2.3 protocol.

It's very hard to fault the CD-S2100 in terms of build quality or features; it sits in the audio consumer sweet spot where cutting edge design, materials, production techniques and technology trickle-down from flagship products. Even the remote control is weighty with a solid aluminium top plate with buttons that are positive to press. The remote can be used with other Yamaha components. The remote shape and weight are a positive, as it sits in your hand and you actually want to hold it – usually to replay your current track or hunt for others on the CD. The warranty is two years, and the manual is easy to digest and simply laid out.

An uncommon feature to point out on a CD player, but one which makes complete sense is that Yamaha has designed special isolation feet for this machine, which sit at each corner of the baseplate. These 'isolation points' come with magnetically coupled feet to sit on and can be removed, allowing the CD-S2100 to sit on the metal isolation points directly – or they can use another isolation platform, which you may already have.

I used my Primare i30 integrated amplifier throughout the review and compared the CD-S2100 to my Primare CD31 CD player and streamer (Bluesound Vault 2i). All analogue cables were Tributaries Series 8 with Audioquest on digital/optical test paths. Speakers were the SerhanSwift Mu2 on SolidSteel SS6 speaker stands with Les Davis Audio Entropics placed under the stands and electronics. 

My first challenge was what to listen to and how? Do I listen to the CD-S2100 as a standalone CD player, an SACD player, an external DAC, or a disc transport? Once you unpack the machine's capability, there is a lot of functionality! I spent my initial listening sessions using it as a standalone CD player, toggling the CD Direct function and validating if the magnetic feet and isolation points made a difference.

THE LISTENING

The big Yamaha presented every track thrown at it in a lively manner, with very fine pace and timing. The soundstage was always broad and deep – not just on my test tracks but on entire CDs that I got lost in as I played track after track. Its overall sense of involvement drew me in to listen to many more tracks than I'd planned to play. Its 'Direct' mode made things sound better still, giving a clearly audible improvement to pretty much everything I tried. Attack transients seemed faster and cleaner and decayed more naturally. As a result, I kept the machine in this mode for the duration of this review.

A good subject to start with is the CD-S2100's pace, rhythm, and timing. I spun up Jeff Lang's Cutthroat from Cedar Grove. From the initial drumming to bass and acoustic guitars, the CD-S2100 presented well-defined notes from the instruments, and the drumming had a real rhythmic snap. The rhythm was very good. The Yamaha delivered a broad and cohesive sound throughout the song across instrumental and vocal sections.

Driftin' Blues was cued up next, with Charles Brown's live vocals and piano from The New York Rock and Soul Revue: Live at the Beacon album. The CD-S2100 recreated the recorded acoustic with excellent spatiality while delicately conveying the subtle sound of piano and guitar. Tonally this album can sound a little forward, but on this track and others, it wasn't bright, forward or brittle. The musicality of the performance was such that I had my foot tapping all the way to the end.

There's also a lot of detail, as evidenced by this player's handling of Can't Get Arrested by Lloyd Cole from Bad Vibes. About halfway through, the track changes intensity, and the soundstage broadens and deepens as the musical energy steps up. The CD-S2100 delivered great instrumental separation, pace and timing. The energy carried into my room was substantial with a well-defined bottom end, clean midrange, crisp top, and absolutely no signs of brittleness. 

Likewise, the opening piano notes of Domino by Nicole Atkins – from her new Memphis Ice album – were presented with great detail and nuance. I loved how the fiddle fluctuated between feathery and light and intense and gripping. The emotion of her vocals was such that I wanted to play the track all over again. Not only that but they were located in the soundstage with pin-point precision, with satisfying space around each note that was played or sung.

There was a corresponding improvement in sound quality from SACD, as you would expect from a format that – although old – is truly high resolution and technically superior to Compact Disc by a good way. As ever, playing an SACD disc was no different to CD, as they come as dual-layer with both DSD and PCM music encoded into the one disc surface. The CD-S2100 duly lit up an SACD legend on the display, but other than that, there was no difference to using a CD apart from the sound quality… 

The Yamaha really began to sing with this format. My One and Only Love by Lorez Alexandria from Alexandria the Great was presented as a highly evocative, moody wall of sound – so much so that I came out in goosebumps. Vocals floated dreamily into my listening room, and the recorded acoustic sounded wonderfully spacious and immersive. Indeed it was conspicuously better than the streamed version.

I removed the magnetically coupled feet sitting the CD-S2100 on its metal isolation points during a later listening session. Timing and pace were there, but the blackness I had become used to had greyed a tad, and decay and attack were less easy to discern. I replaced Yamaha's magnetically coupled feet with Les Davis Entropics at each corner, and the blackness returned and benefitted the overall musical presentation. 

Compared to my own Primare CD31 CD player, the CD-S2100's musical signature was a positive one. Direct CD track comparisons told me that the Yamaha exhibited a smoother and more subtle top end than my Primare. The detailed and musical midrange of both units was on parity. I found the biggest difference in the lower mid, and upper bass regions, where the CD31 had a warmth that the CD-S2100 did not possess. Tonally, I would say that the latter has the more neutral reproduction of a recording and was on parity with the former for musical enjoyment.

Using the CD-S2100's digital inputs instead of its CD transport, I found that things correlated pretty strongly – there was no dramatic difference in performance. It was ever so slightly warmer in the bottom end than my Bluesound Vault 2i. Timing and pace were similar, but the sense of musicality improved via the Yamaha's DAC. I played a few tracks via the app through my computer, and the DAC's sound signature was there – but convenience through the Bluesound App won out for me.

THE VERDICT

Yamaha's new CD-S2100 is a very well engineered modern silver disc spinner. Across all sources, including its built-in CD/SACD transport, it really delivered the musical goods and is hard to fault at the price. Its built quality and feature count are excellent, and its performance over several months of listening was faultless.

I spent a lot of time listening to it, making direct comparisons, and testing the external interfaces. Considering its price, it delivered great results and wouldn't disgrace itself against considerably more expensive sources. It was the CD-S2100's musicality that drew me in – the pace, rhythm and timing are very good, and every note sounds realistic on both live and studio-recorded music. Its midband is transparent and detailed, while the top end is open yet never bright or brittle. Bass is extended, well-weighted and has reasonable warmth. 

So if you are seeking an excellent mid-priced silver disc spinner, you simply must put this on your shortlist. If you only need a DAC, then you get a CD (and SACD) player as a bonus because the sonic signature of the DAC is the same. Either way, purchasers had better set aside a good amount of time as they will play more music through this than planned. Many decades after the company's inception, Yamaha hi-fi goes from strength to strength, it would seem.

For more information visit Yamaha