Eclipse CD7200 mkll Source Unit

These days all kinds of electronics are built to multi-task: a refrigerator has a TV in it, portable nav devices are multimedia players, phones are little computers with browsers for surfing the Internet and so on. What's next? A car with a kitchen under the hood? Or maybe a hair dryer that's also a Bluetooth phone so you don't miss calls when you're drying your hair. It's kind of nice to see a product, like the CD7200 mkll, that isn't designed to be many things to many people; rather it's made to serve a single purpose, audio fidelity. OK, the CD7200 does offer built-in Bluetooth. But given that more and more states are forbidding the use of mobile phone handsets in the car, practically every new source unit should include Bluetooth as a standard feature. And if you want to stream music from your phone, you can. I don't recommend it, but it's a nice option to have.

The CD7200 mkll is what's referred to as a deadhead; it has no internal power or amp section. In addition, it has a copper-plated chassis that isolates the unit from electrical interference or noise. Add the gold-plated connectors, the 24-bit DSP and an impressive 8V preamp output and you have a terrific audiophile-grade CD player -- and at a very tantalizing price of $549. Eclipse did include other music options naturally. Man does not live about audio quality alone; sometimes you want content for content's sake from satellite or HD radio; or you may want to play those (lossless) songs you loaded onto your iPod. You can also connect a flash drive to the USB cable and play MP3 or WMA files. It's as simple as just plugging it in. The CD7200 immediately recognizes the tracks and will provide a readout of the file names.

For people that love to tweak their own sound, you can get geeky with the CD7200, having the ability to control crossover settings, phasing and time alignment. There is a 7-band EQ as well and you have the option over using Circle Surround ll, which I employed sparingly. For newer enthusiasts perhaps, who would rather not sit there trying to tune for themselves, they can utilize Eclipse's E-iSERV. Register on the company's website, input information about your car and you can get audio parameters appropriate for your ride. When you get to inputting the settings yourself -- well, that was one of the frustrating aspects of the source unit: the physical controls are a bit fussy and it's too easy to click your way right out of a menu window. The four-way select buttons, at least for my shaky fingers, were kind of tricky and using them did require some extra patience on my part. If you're better coordinated than I am you may not experience this. Regardless, in the end, it was a minor issue and not a huge impediment to accessing the functions, but it's worth noting.

The only other problem I had with the unit was the display. It's easy enough to read the larger text, such as song titles, but the digital clock and the volume number may make you squint slightly. The CD7200 does compensate for that somewhat with its aesthetic illumination. There are various colors and color combinations you can choose from. For a more traditional-leaning source unit that's all about sound, it has a contemporary look and feel that new audio enthusiasts or even show car fanatics will appreciate. As for the motorized and removable faceplate, in terms of cosmetics, it's utilitarian and, aside from the four-button select controls, fairly sound ergonomically with the rotary mode and the decent-size and well-spaced individual buttons.

I did appreciate -- and I'm sure those of you in the market for an aftermarket source unit will as well -- the fact that the Bluetooth was built-in. No need to buy a separate accessory. Registering my Razr was simple and I was hands-free without a hitch. The microphone is also built-in and worked exactly as you would expect, clearly and without echo. The CD7200 will download your phonebook but does take some time to transfer the information. Overall I was quite happy with the unit as a Bluetooth device.

Listening to my favorite audition CDs and tracks, including the new Audison demo and standbys such as the Focal disc, through some Seas speakers, I was impressed with the CD7200's processing power and overall sound quality. This is a great SQ source unit that gives you the necessary control over the audio and delivers a pure signal. Because of its price it would make a great first purchase to start an audiophile system; you may even have enough left in the budget to buy some amps and higher-end speakers soon thereafter. With the way many people listen to music, it was probably mandatory that Eclipse include the other complementary features such as USB and Bluetooth streaming. While it does undermine the idea of the source unit, I did find it handy to be able to grab a friend's flash, connect it and listen to his tracks. For being a dedicated source unit that is all about great audio, the CD7200 mkll reveals itself as a really fantastic all-around CD player/media hub, and represents a truly excellent value.Go to www.eclipse-web.com for further details.

Key Features
-Plays CD, CD-R, CD-RW, -Plays MP3, WMA files from USB flash-Built-in Bluetooth for hands-free phone use and music streaming-Parametric 7-band EQ and crossover control-E-iSERV for audio settings with registrationon www.eclipse-web.com-Copper-plated chassis and no internal amp-Satellite radio, HD Radio and iPod ready-24 station presets for FM/AM-Remote included