[catdog]

I have two 2014 CTS sedans. One came with a CD player as part of the leather seating package. The other does not have that option package and thus no CD player.

I had my local dealer swap the CD player but they stated that it would not work. They said it sent the CUE system into an "access mode."

Anyone know what is going on?

Thanks

 

[CTSVsport]

Personally, I would rather have to deal with ripping the CD to my iPod or memory stick than have the CD player eating up the glove box space

 

[catdog]

I understand that opinion: convenience over sound quality. I, however, value sound quality, especially over glove box space. The issue is the Bose Speakers already produce a compressed sound. In short, the system is of poor quality so I am looking for help. I-tunes "lossless" is not lossless. CDs produce a much better sound, so a CD player would help. Finally, I have 2000-3000 CDs. Want to rip them for me?

 

[CTSVsport]

Then why not put in a turntable?

Even as quiet as the CTS is, I would argue the most "golden ear" would be hard pressed to consistently identify correctly the source in a blind A/B comparison due to the noise floor of a moving car.

Bose = compressed. It is their core fundamental philosophy. If you want different sound, you'll have to change things out and that can be tough with CUE.

(Oh, and BTW, I was a world champion in competition car audio back in the day - I know a thing or two how to make a car sound well balanced, properly 3D soundstaged, and with accurate and precise imaging)

 

[catdog]

Turntable would have issues with vibrations and space limitations, but good idea.

I do not know if I have a "Golden Ear," but if you cannot tell the difference between a CD and say the XM Radio, you probably played that world champion bass way too loud. In all seriousness, why the hostility?

I am looking at changing out the entire system (minus the CUE headset), probably with JL Audio. JL is a recognizable brand for a home stereo enthusiast and made in America which I like. In the alternative, I would like ribbon tweeters. Know any good ones? Too directional?

I run MartinLogans at home with a Simaudio Moon amp and a ($5000) Lexicon CD player. It has never had world status, but at one time my I could have bought a new Cadillac for less than my home stereo was worth, so yes I too like quality sound.

I find the Cadillac very quiet, so I am not too worried about that. Again, I am looking for an alternative to the compressed "No Highs No Lows" Bose.

thanks for the comments, but any advice?

 

[CTSVsport]

I was sponsored by JL. They were into car audio long before home audio. Their subwoofers are unrivaled IMHO, and their mids/highs easily hold their own with anything else. They now make a lot of electronics to help interface aftermarket equipment with built in systems like CUE.

There are a number of ribbons available, I always preferred the smoother sound of a soft dome tweeter myself, but in car audio, installation and aiming are more important than equipment. Directionality can either be really good or really bad depending on where you have available to mount them and amount of EQ.

The home setup is B&K preamp and amp with Paradigm all around for speakers. AudioQuest ruby interconnects (pulled out of the truck when I wrecked it)

The car audio setup in the truck was Clarion 9255 (dual 48 bit DA conversion) to AudioControl processors and EQ (dual 31 band EQT), custom USAmps (basically unlimited head room) to JL Audio coaxials in custom kick panel enclosures and a JL 8W6 subwoofer in the dash.

I think the big question is how you are going to get around CUE compressing the signal.