Cheap CD player to hook up to Yamaha MG16X 16-Channel Mixer and how?

[punkyfish]

Hi,

I want to hook up a CD player to our mixer but need help with:

1. A relatively cheap CD player that will do the job playing backing tracks
2. What cables I need to be able to do it

Am based in UK, thank you for any help

[Drew Stephenson]

Any separates CD player with a set of RCA (also called phono) outputs, an RCA-RCA cable, plug into the RCA inputs on either of the last two channels on your mixer.
As to the actual player itself, you're almost certainly best looking second hand. Richer Sounds cheapest standalone CD player is £159. You'll get a perfectly good one from any of the main Japanese brands for about £30 from a second hand shop.

[Hugh Robjohns]

All CD players have unbalanced outputs on RCA-phono sockets.

And your mixer has unbalanced stereo inputs on RCA-phono sockets on the last two stereo channels 13/14 and 15/16.

So all you need is a standard stereo RCA-phono lead. The CD player may come with one in the box. If not you can find them easily on Amazon or other outlets.

As for the CD player, again you'll find plenty to choose from on all the usual online retailers.

However, CDs are a bit clunky and bulky these days. I'd replay tracks stored* on a phone or mp3 player. You'd need a 3.5mm mini jack to dual RCA-phono plug lead to run from the player's headphone output to mixer input.

*Make sure they are downloaded and stored on the player, not streamed live over the Internet or 4G! Mr Sod will ensure that streaming will work during the soundcheck but not the gig!

[Wonks]

It may be more convenient to have a battery powered (but maybe with a PSU) portable CD player. I’ve used one in the past.

In that instance you’ll probably only have the headphone output, so you’ll need a 3.5mm TRS to two RCA connector lead.

Do you need the facility to play certain tracks or loop back to the beginning?

[punkyfish]

As for the CD player, again you'll find plenty to choose from on all the usual online retailers.

However, CDs are a bit clunky and bulky these days. I'd replay tracks stored* on a phone or mp3 player. You'd need a 3.5mm mini jack to dual RCA-phono plug lead to run from the player's headphone output to mixer input.

*Make sure they are downloaded and stored on the player, not streamed live over the Internet or 4G! Mr Sod will ensure that streaming will work during the soundcheck but not the gig!

Thank you, struggling to find a CD player online though with outputs, one that isn’t ridiculously expensive anyway. The MP3 idea sounds good, the only thing is all of our backing tracks are on CD

[punkyfish]

Thank you for your quick reply. It needs to be new as work are purchasing but I know they won’t pay that.

[punkyfish]

It may be more convenient to have a battery powered (but maybe with a PSU) portable CD player. I’ve used one in the past.

In that instance you’ll probably only have the headphone output, so you’ll need a 3.5mm TRS to two RCA connector lead.

Do you need the facility to play certain tracks or loop back to the beginning?

If we could play back certain tracks and loop that would be good, I have seen lots on Amazon with a headphone socket but it states they are input only. Is that what you mean? Thank you for the reply.

[The Elf]

The MP3 idea sounds good, the only thing is all of our backing tracks are on CD

If you only have your audio on CD you risk the chance that a disc becomes damaged and your audio would be gone for good! Hopefully you have backup CDs.

CD was never an ideal backing medium - one slight knock on the player and all hell could break loose.

It's simple to rip the audio from CD and render to a file. I would actually rip to WAV files and use those, unless you are really struggling for space on whatever device you use for playback.

Ripping from CD is simple and can be done from any computer format (as long as it still has an optical drive - most don't now). I'm sure there are loads of YouTube videos that will guide you through it.

[punkyfish]

Thank you for the reply. We do have backups. If I rip to a Wav file, what would I use to playback and what lead would I need? I have an iPod but to be honest I have never had success with it nor my iPhone. I have never been able to either get stuff off my phone or put stuff on it. Hence the CD idea

[Hugh Robjohns]

Thank you, struggling to find a CD player online though with outputs, one that isn’t ridiculously expensive anyway.

Try searching for rack mount CD players. You do get what you pay for, but much depends on what facilities you require.

The MP3 idea sounds good, the only thing is all of our backing tracks are on CD

It's trivially simple to rip the CD to audio files and load those files on a player or smart phone.

[Mike Stranks]

I stopped using CDs for live-work I guess in about 2010...

For a while I used a small laptop - 11" screen, but fairly quickly switched to a 7" Android tablet... using WAVs...

Small, easily portable and utterly reliable IME.

[Sam Spoons]

The issue with domestic CD players skipping if moved is a real one, even the slightest knock or floor bourn vibration can cause real problems* (I know this from personal experience ). The only sensible option is to use an .mp3/.wav device.

* A professional CD, rack mount or DJ type will have decent shock resistance but will cost many times more than a domestic CD player.

[OneWorld]

I use the Alesis Masterlink 9600

They have phone and SPDIF i/o and you can also copy the contents of a CD to the internal hard disk.

You can have a maximum of 16 playlists on the HDD and each playlist can have a number of songs in it, I can't remember how many now but it is a significant number.

Alesis stopped making these eons ago, but they still turn up on the usual 'pre-loved' sites and at reasonable prices. Erm - I just checked on eeebHay, WOW the prices have shot up Might be worth keep checking though

I have found mine to be very reliable (fingers crossed )

[Rene Asologuitar]

Hi,
I want to hook up a CD player to our mixer but need help with:
1. A relatively cheap CD player that will do the job playing backing tracks
2. What cables I need to be able to do it
Am based in UK, thank you for any help

++++++++++++++++++++++
I have a Yamaha MG8x, and I use an RCA cable to hook the player to, and it works great!!!

[punkyfish]

If a CD player has a headphones input Jack, will that work with a cable to my mixer? Struggling to find a CD player

[Drew Stephenson]

A headphone socket is an output rather than an input, but yes, it should. As Wonks said above, you'll need a lead with a 3.5mm jack at one end and two RCAs at the other.

[punkyfish]

Thank you very much

[sonics]

If you have a CD player, use the line outputs, NOT the headphone socket, please!

[punkyfish]

I'd replay tracks stored* on a phone or mp3 player. You'd need a 3.5mm mini jack to dual RCA-phono plug lead to run from the player's headphone output to mixer input.

If the mo3 player has a usb-c input, will a usb-c to rca work as well? Thanks

[Sam Spoons]

USB is a digital connection and the headphone socket analogue. A USB C to dual phono lead must have a D/A converter built in. You are more likely to find a USB C to 3.5mm TRSF socket though.

* Unless, I suppose, it is SP/DIF I/O or a video format but I've never seen one of those.

[OneWorld]

Struggling to find a CD player

There are lots on eBay, from £20.00

CD Recorders too.

Might be worth checking out charity shops, the one local to myself has them in each week, though the majority tend to be those mini-bookshelf 'music centres' you could still detach the tuner and whatever and just use the cd player

[Mike Stranks]

Struggling to find a CD player

There are lots on eBay, from £20.00

CD Recorders too.

Might be worth checking out charity shops, the one local to myself has them in each week, though the majority tend to be those mini-bookshelf 'music centres' you could still detach the tuner and whatever and just use the cd player

Yup!

This time last year I helped dispose of the gear of a late friend (Covid victim).

There were 4 or 5 CD-players/recorders... and good ones too!

I had no trouble disposing of them via eBay, even though I'm reasonably rural and it was 'Buyer Collects'.

(A word of caution on the mini-systems. Some of the ones I've seen that appear to be 'separates' use proprietary 'all in one' - mains and signal- interconnects between the units, so not easily used in standalone mode.)

[Wonks]

As has been said, CD players are prone to vibration issues. You can live with the occasional glitch if just for interval music, but not during performance if it’s a backing track.

Which is why if you must go CD, I’d suggest a portable ‘Discman’ style one (normally round). These at least would be designed to cope with a certain level of vibration on the move and have a much larger internal read-ahead data buffer than a domestic hi-fi CD player so that they can play back from the buffer whilst the device tries to re-read any disc data lost due to the player being shaken.

But as has been said, a phone or tablet is a much better playback device for playing backing tracks and that’s what I’d use.

[BigRedX]

These days I would even think about considering a device with moveable parts for audio playback in a live situation.

[OneWorld]

As has been said, CD players are prone to vibration issues. You can live with the occasional glitch if just for interval music, but not during performance if it’s a backing track.

Which is why if you must go CD, I’d suggest a portable ‘Discman’ style one (normally round). These at least would be designed to cope with a certain level of vibration on the move and have a much larger internal read-ahead data buffer than a domestic hi-fi CD player so that they can play back from the buffer whilst the device tries to re-read any disc data lost due to the player being shaken.

But as has been said, a phone or tablet is a much better playback device for playing backing tracks and that’s what I’d use.

Yep I have one of those. And it plays faithfully everytime I use it, and it's at least 20 years old

[punkyfish]

Thank you for all replies.

I think I am going to look at an mp3/lossless audio player something like this, however they only seem to have a usb c socket. Can someone suggest something that might work with something like this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09 ... R097K&th=1

Thank you

[Sam Spoons]

That has a headphone socket (as I'm sure nearly all do even in our wireless world) which, while it's not the perfect solution, will work fine as an output to the PA desk. You could buy one of these https://www.amazon.co.uk/VENTION-Auxili ... B085DYRDXZ but I doubt you'll see any quality improvement over using the headphone output.

BTW do you have an old iPhone/'droid? With a suitable playout app that would be better than a cheap .mp3 player.

[Wonks]

You’d use the 3.5mm headphone output to connect to the mixer.

Either a 3.5mm TRS to 2xRCA cable if you use the RCA inputs on the mixer, or 3.5mm TRS to two 1/4” TS jack plug cable if you want to use a stereo channel.

I’ve used both in the past, though I normally prefer the stereo channel approach as you normally have tone controls available and with the RCA inputs you tend not to.

Being a headphone output, it is possible to overload and distort the mixer inputs at full output volume on some players, so play with the output level (and any input gain control you may have) for best results.

[sonics]

One of best little media players would be an older LG phone in the "V" series. The V20/30/40 etc. They have a great-sounding DAC. I'd suggest using UAPP or PowerAmp for playback.

An iPhone with the official Apple DAC (headphone) cable is another great option.

[Sam Spoons]

An older iPhone with a headphone socket (iPhone 6S or earlier) would also work well, still capable of running the latest iOS and apps and pretty user friendly.