Backgroove BGCS-41 review. a stellar but affordable CD player
Expert rating
Side:
- Audiophile quality compact disc playback
- 24-bit DAC
- Balanced XLR and RCA audio outputs
- Excellent Bluetooth streaming
- Sales of this unit will support your local record store
Against
- The CD eject mechanism should push the discs out a little more
- Some remote support buttons not included in this player
Our verdict
CDs are an underrated music format, and it’s nearly impossible to find a truly high-quality player at a reasonable price. The Backgroove CdPRO BGCS-41 is your best bet.
Whether you’ve kept an old CD collection or are interested in checking out what’s still the best-selling format in audio history, the Backgroove CdPRO BGCS-41 delivers audiophile-quality CD sound and Bluetooth streaming. surprisingly great price. There really isn’t anything else on the market right now that can compare.
Why would anyone want a CD player these days?
For all the great press that LPs get, it would be a mistake to underestimate the compact disc. A properly mastered CD has a wider dynamic range than any LP, and the media is much stiffer than vinyl. It’s also easier for a touring band to get CDs for their tours, and bands make a much bigger profit on each sale (musicians get next to nothing from streaming royalties).
Digital jazz recordings on many CD players have rousing and sharp textures. Trumpets and tenor saxes sound like they should on Backgroove.
And then there’s the used CD market. A classic album that might sell for $40 on LP these days will often still be available for less than $5 on CD at a used record store. If you’re willing to hit the thrift stores, there are often hundreds of used hit titles that you can pick up for just a quarter.
The Backgroove BGCS-41 CD player features both unbalanced RCA and balanced XLR analog audio outputs.
James Barber / The Foundry
It’s important to note that playing your CD collection on a cheap DVD player won’t give you the experience you want. When manufacturers cut corners to deliver these players at affordable prices, the digital-to-analog converter (DAC) is the first place they skimp.
Buying a CD or DVD player at a thrift store is likely to produce a similar result. There’s an outside chance you’ll find an old unit with a quality DAC, but you’d have to be more than the average customer to know what the finds are. Also, the odds are close to 100 percent that the player won’t have their remote.
Who is Backgroove?
The Backgroove CdPRO BGCS-41 player has an interesting history. Rob Shelley worked in professional audio design before retiring and opening his own Mill City Sound record store in Hopkins, Minnesota, just west of Minneapolis. Frustrated with the quality of the low-cost audio equipment he saw his customers buying, he first developed the AccuTRACK line of turntables to counter the poor experiences his customers were having with popular, low-priced brands sold by mass-market retailers.
Like many audioheads who came of age in the first digital era, Shealy was acutely aware of the benefits of the CD format and realized that there was no quality compact disc player on the market at an entry-level price. . Seeing that huge hole in the audio market, Shiley and Backgroove set out to fill it. What they shipped is a unit loaded with professional audio features that retails for $219.99.
Backgroove CD CdPRO BGCS-41 Feature Set
The Backgroove BGCS-41 CD player has a full set of controls on the front of the unit.
James Barber / The Foundry
Shealy used his contacts in the audio production industry to partner with a company that specializes in creating consumer and professional audio that is branded by other companies and sold under different names around the world.
The CdPRO BGCS-41 features a 24-bit DAC that handles digital-to-audio conversion for both CDs and Bluetooth signals. Sheeley emphasizes that the DAC is designed for high-end audio use.
The player itself is sturdy and comes in the form of a rack-mount professional audio kit. Shelly says many buyers are professional live DJs who have incorporated the unit into their live racks.
The back of the player gives you a choice between professional audio balanced XLR connectors or unbalanced RCA connectors. Most buyers will use the RCA connectors, but it’s rare to find a player at this price equipped with XLR connections for audiophile systems or professional applications on a rack in a live rig or recording studio. There’s also an on/off switch and a socket to screw in the Bluetooth antenna.
The Backgroove BGCS-41 CD player ejects only a small portion of the disc. You have to pull your CD out with your fingertips.
James Barber / The Foundry
The CdPRO BGCS-41 does not have a mechanical tray that slides out of the unit to load a CD; instead, you’ll insert the disc into the front slot, just as you would with an in-car CD player. Only the edge of the CD would stick out of my unit when ejecting, but getting it out from that point was no big deal.
In addition to standard commercial CDs, the device plays CD-R, CD-RW and thumb drives with MP3, WMA, WAV, FLAC or APE files.
It has a USB port on it forehead device that allows you to load a USB drive with high-resolution music for live playback. Does every USB port have to be on the front of the unit? It is clear that many manufacturers are looking for a special look with their kit and remove the inputs to an inconvenient place on the back of the device. The one exception where this is okay is if the USB port is only used to download firmware updates. The aux input is also on the front, so it’s no problem if you want to quickly connect a tape player, phone or portable digital audio player.
The standby button reduces power consumption when you are not actively using the player. You’ll also find a sophisticated array of buttons that hearken back to late 1980s audio equipment; Volume up, volume down, next track, previous track, skip forward 10 tracks, skip back 10, play/pause, stop and eject are the obvious ones.
There are also Folder up and down buttons that allow you to navigate through the file folders on the data disks. You can also program a custom song order using the Prog button; turn off the illuminated screen; set CD to repeat on an infinite loop; and choose between CD, Bluetooth, USB and auxiliary inputs.
Backgroove remote control
The Backgroove BGCS-41 CD player is great, even if it has a few awkward buttons that don’t work with this unit.
James Barber / The Foundry
The CdPRO BGCS-41 comes with an excellent remote control that is clearly labeled in a logical layout. It’s obviously a remote that doubles as another device, as there are buttons for AM, FM and station scanning, features not available on the BGCS-41. The contrast between the buttons and the remote’s body makes the buttons relatively easy to see, even though there’s no backlight.
Backgroove CdPRO BGCS-41 Audio performance
The Horace Silver Quintet’s 1999 Blue Note Records classic LP. A song for my father was a fantastic showcase for this CD player. There’s both depth and detail to the opening piano riff, something Steely Dan ripped off so clearly for their hit ‘Rikki Don’t Lose That Number’.
The problem with CD remasters of classic jazz albums is that trumpets can sound harsh in the digital world if they’re not processed properly and the DAC on the CD isn’t up to the task. The BGCS-41 does the job with ease. The trumpets and tenor saxophones have just the right amount of decay and never have the irritating and sharp texture that digital jazz can present.
2018 Intervention Records remaster of the 1970 LP Burrito Deluxe The Flying Burrito Bros. is another stellar showcase of the BGCS-41 DAC. There’s a color and thickness to Gram Parsons’ lead vocals that you’ll never hear from a Spotify stream or get from vinyl unless you’ve invested in an audiophile cartridge and turntable.
Turntables get all the attention these days, but CDs played on a player like the Backgroove CdPRO BGCS-41 can knock your socks off.
James Barber / The Foundry
The BGCS-41 has five built-in EQ settings accessible from a button on the remote: Flat, Classic, Rock, Pop and Jazz. I generally preferred the Flat EQ, but found the Rock setting useful when listening to AC/DC’s 1997 album. Let there be rock. the movie live in paris. It’s the band’s last recording with original lead singer Bon Scott, and it’s a pretty slim sonic document of a great live band. Rock EQ boosted the low end and compensated for many of the flaws in the original recording and mastering.
Bluetooth streaming was equally outstanding. Playing a Hi-Res version of Fleetwood Mac’s “You Make Loving Fun” from the band’s 1977 album. Rumors Going to the same song on Qobuz and then on Spotify, the difference was dramatic. This DAC produced much better results than the cheap Bluetooth receivers you can buy online.
Should you buy Backgroove CDpro BGCS-41?
Whether you’ve amassed a massive CD library and are looking for a new player, the Backgroove CdPRO BCGS-41 has a great DAC and can double as a Bluetooth receiver when you’re looking for the convenience of streaming your music. the phone to the audio system. If you are new to CDs, this player will best represent the format.
And if you’re the kind of person who’s been lining up for Record Store Day for the past decade and wants to support your local small business, that retailer will be able to sell you one of these players at its low list price and still turn out great. profit. This outfit is a win-win for everyone involved.
Where can you buy Backgroove CdPRO BGCS-41?
Unlike almost every other audio component you’ll see reviewed online, you can’t order the Backgroove CdPRO BGCS-41 CD Player from Amazon or pick it up at big box stores like Best Buy. The unit was designed to be exclusive to independent record stores, and this distribution model gives store owners far more profit than they’ll ever see selling LPs, CDs, or cassettes.
You will find a list of retailers selling Backgroove CdPro at the previous link. Any of these stores should have the player in stock or be able to order it for you. If your local independent retailer is not on that list, the store owner can contact Backgroove and set up a wholesale account.
