The new CD transport from English manufacturer Ruark Audio is designed to complement the British brand’s 100 series products. Ruark Audio has focused on creating a range of stylish all-in-one audio systems, table radios and DAB radios, but there are still billions of CDs in circulation that need to be played. The R-CD100 naturally aims to meet that need.
The Ruark Audio CD transport is only a transport and does not have a DA converter on board. When the R-CD100 is connected to devices such as the Ruark R410 , R610 or R810 , the transport will appear as an option in the source list of the device it is connected to. DA conversion is then handled by the device connected to the R-CD100.
The R-CD100 looks good, better than your average optical drive sold in a computer store. The R-CD100 has precision-machined top and bottom platters with a hand-crafted walnut cabinet sandwiched between them. Underneath the aluminum top platter is what Ruark claims is a high-quality slot-loading CD drive, coupled with what the manufacturer claims is a custom CD servo to USB interface. Additionally, Ruark claims, the specially designed cabinet isolates the CD mechanism from external vibrations, resulting in better sonic performance.
The R-CD100 gets its power from a USB cable. Apart from pressed CDs, the R-CD100 can also read self-burned CDs.
Delivery will start at the end of November. The Ruark Audio website lists a price of 249 British pounds.
