The ARCAM CD5, a modern case for the Compact Disc
There is a particular pleasure in choosing an album, loading the tray and letting a record play from beginning to end. The ARCAM CD5 is built around that ritual. As the opening statement in the Radia range of ARCAM CD players, the ARCAM CD5 concentrates on a single discipline, reading Compact Disc, CD-R and CD-RW with precision, then presenting the music with the warmth and composure that has defined ARCAM digital sources for four decades. Nothing about the ARCAM CD5 feels reduced; every element, from the disc mechanism to the analogue output stage, has been analysed and reviewed for sound quality alone.
Conversion by ESS Sabre, voiced with restraint
Digital-to-analogue conversion in the ARCAM CD5 is handled by an ESS Sabre DAC, a component chosen for resolution without glare. The result is a presentation that favours texture and timing over spotlight detail, so strings keep rosin and air, voices keep body and breath, and long albums remain fatigue-free. A choice of selectable digital filters allows the balance to be tailored by ear, while the ARCAM CD5 keeps the signal path short and quiet from laser to line output. Fed into a capable amplifier, this hifi CD player sounds unmistakably like an ARCAM, generous, unforced and quietly authoritative.
Four decades of ARCAM CD players
ARCAM has been a pioneer of Compact Disc playback since the Delta 70 of 1986, the company’s own ground-up British design and the first in a long line of award-winning players. The ARCAM CD players that followed, through the celebrated Alpha and FMJ eras, have been distinguished by the same priorities, musical honesty first, specification second. The ARCAM CD5 inherits that accumulated experience directly. New components and materials were analysed against everything ARCAM has learned about disc replay, so a first-time buyer receives the benefit of four decades of refinement in a single, approachable source.
Radia design, purposeful yet playful
The ARCAM Radia CD5 wears the range’s signature look, black aluminium panels across the front, top and sides, lifted by the Radia family’s yellow accent. At standard full width, the ARCAM CD5 sits naturally beneath a Radia amplifier or alongside established separates, and the low-profile chassis keeps the visual weight modest. The disc tray glides with reassuring precision, the display dims or extinguishes at the touch of the compact remote, and the same handset will command volume and muting on a partnering ARCAM amplifier. Even the packaging reflects the design ethos, entirely plastic-free and easily recycled.
Beyond the disc, hi-res files and system flexibility
A rear USB socket extends the ARCAM CD5 beyond the silver disc. Music ripped or downloaded to a USB stick plays directly, and hi-res FLAC and WAV files receive the same unhurried treatment as the silver disc, with everyday compressed libraries welcome besides. Connection to an amplifier is equally open-ended, a fine analogue output for the classic route, plus coaxial and optical digital outputs for anyone preferring an outboard DAC or a digital input on an ARCAM CD player’s natural partner, the integrated amplifier. However a system evolves, the ARCAM CD5 remains a source to build around for years to come.
About ARCAM
For over 45 years, Cambridge-based ARCAM has been producing specialist hi-fi and home cinema components with a singular focus on musical truth. A pioneer of British digital audio since the Delta 70 CD player of 1986, ARCAM has always favoured long-term listening pleasure over short-term spectacle. The players alone form a long line of award-winning designs, each generation measured against everything learned from the one before, and that same patient engineering culture now shapes the contemporary Radia range across amplification, streaming and disc replay. Audio Lounge is proud to present the ARCAM collection at 138–140 Wigmore Street, London, where every component in the range can be auditioned in comfort and compared without haste.
Questions About the ARCAM CD5
What is the ARCAM CD5?
The ARCAM CD5 is a Compact Disc player in the ARCAM Radia range, built around an ESS Sabre ES9018K2M digital-to-analogue converter with conversion at up to 24-bit resolution. A menu of selectable digital filters lets the character of the analogue output be fine-tuned by ear, with the default Fast filter suiting most systems.
Does the ARCAM CD5 play hi-res audio files?
Hi-res playback is supported for FLAC and WAV files at 16-bit or 24-bit depth and sample rates up to 96 kHz, whether burned to disc or loaded on a USB stick. MP3, AAC and WMA libraries are also supported, so an existing digital collection plays alongside the Compact Disc archive.
Can the ARCAM CD5 play music from a USB stick?
A USB-A socket on the rear panel accepts flash drives formatted as FAT16 or FAT32, and music files play directly with no extension cable required. Switching between disc and USB takes one press of the navigation keys on the remote, which makes the ARCAM CD5 a tidy two-source solution.
Which disc types does the ARCAM CD5 support?
The ARCAM CD5 plays standard audio Compact Discs together with finalised CD-R and CD-RW media, including data discs carrying supported music files. CD-TEXT discs are read correctly, although the text information is not shown on the display. Recordable discs must be finalised before the player can read them.
What outputs does the ARCAM CD5 offer?
Three outputs are provided: a stereo analogue RCA pair fed by the internal Sabre DAC, plus coaxial and optical S/PDIF digital outputs. The analogue route suits most amplifiers, while the digital outputs let the ARCAM CD5 serve as a pure transport into an outboard DAC or a digital-ready amplifier.
Which ARCAM CD player suits a first Radia system?
The ARCAM CD5 is the natural entry to current ARCAM disc replay, carrying the Radia range’s character at the most accessible level and adding USB stick playback the flagship omits. The ARCAM CD25 sits above, with balanced XLR outputs and a converter for each channel. Audition both at Audio Lounge before committing — the difference is easier heard than described.
Where can I read an ARCAM CD5 review before deciding?
Coverage of the ARCAM CD5 has appeared across the specialist hi-fi press since launch, and searching for the model, sometimes written ARCAM CD 5, will surface a range of published opinion. Print only goes so far, though. A demonstration at Audio Lounge on Wigmore Street lets the player be judged within a system resembling your own.
Will the remote control an ARCAM amplifier as well?
The supplied compact remote operates the ARCAM CD5 fully and also adjusts volume and muting on partnering ARCAM amplifiers, so a Radia pairing runs from a single handset. Display brightness, playback modes and menu navigation are all covered, with two AAA batteries included in the box.
Does the ARCAM CD5 switch itself off automatically?
After twenty minutes without playback or user interaction, the ARCAM CD5 enters standby to meet international power regulations, drawing under half a watt. This Eco Standby behaviour can be switched off in the menu where continuous readiness is preferred, and the player wakes instantly from the front panel or remote.
What is supplied with the ARCAM CD5?
Inside the plastic-free packaging sit the ARCAM CD5 CD player, the compact infrared remote with two AAA batteries, region-specific mains leads, a quick start guide and the safety documentation. At 431 x 344 x 83 mm the full-width chassis sits low in a standard rack, and Audio Lounge can advise on suitable interconnects at demonstration.
