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The Absolute Sound Editors' Choice Award 2025 🏆
The Absolute Sound Editors' Choice Award 2024 🏆
The Absolute Sound Editors' Choice Award 2023 🏆
The Absolute Sound Editors' Choice Award 2021 🏆
The Absolute Sound Editors' Choice Award 2020 🏆
MBL C31 CD Player and D/A Converter
The feeling never wavers – that moment of quiet anticipation when you slip a CD into the C31’s precision slot drive. You watch the disc silently disappear into the custom housing before it rotates up to speed, completely noise and resonance free – exactly what you expect from a top-end CD player. The C31 features a Bit-Stream digital-to-analog converter with a psycho-acoustically optimized digital filter. It flawlessly operates with an analogue output stage to deliver measurable perfection. Functioning as a Bessel filter, the analogue section ensures that all signals pass through with a time-aligned linear phase response. In today’s world of digital music files and digital streaming, the C31 provides a flexible and well laid out rear panel of digital inputs. Here, the C31 accepts digital signals in PCM resolutions up to 24-bit depth, and sample rates up to 96 kHz via RCA (S/P-DIF), optical (TOSLINK) and USB. To ensure incoming digital signals are synced, a built-in master clock immediately takes charge and removes any disruptive jitter from the working data. What remains is powerful harmonic joy, making every musical performance on the MBL C31 a memorable listening experience.
Cutting-edge Digital to Analog Converter
Audio purists have their own preferences when it comes to single-bit or multi-bit technology, yet both converter principles have their advantages and disadvantages. Single-bit converters demonstrate their precision at low levels, while 18, 20 or 24-bit converters show their dynamic prowess at higher signal levels. The C31 unites the two in a unique, MBL way. The all-important transition point from 1-bit to multi-bit does not take place abruptly at a certain level, but is distributed over four paths that switch at four different levels. The result is a gentle, undetectable changeover that faithfully maintains studio sound quality and reproduction.
iPhone and iPad as Digital Sources
With their dedicated audio apps, the iPhone and iPad can deliver exceptional digital sound quality to music lovers. Songs provided in 24 bit / 192 kHz, or in other Hi-Res formats such as DSD (and even with lossless codecs such as FLAC), are effortlessly streamed with no discernible loss in quality. Even with the finest mobile DAC, any differences in sound would be perceptible given the mobile devices’ limited sound quality. Fortunately, what is not possible via the portable device headphone connection becomes possible via the docking connection. With an Apple Lightning USB adapter, the high-quality digital signal can be sourced from Apple mobile devices* and converted into the purest sound. The USB port of the C31 ensures the signal is perfectly processed, benefiting not only from the clean power supply of the converter section, but also from its own master clock for jitter- and interference-free music enjoyment. Brilliant sound…directly from your pocket.
*(iPhone 5/iPad 4th generation onward)
The C31 at a glance
- State-of-the-art D/A converter with integrated CD slot drive
- Resolution and sample rates up to 24 bit and 96 kHz
- USB Audio Class 1 input with phantom power supply for playing music from PC/Mac
- Effective jitter reduction with Bit True playback and digital output
- iPhone and iPad connectivity as source
- Firmware update via SD card
- MBL SmartLink for complete system operation
Technical Specifications
Digital Inputs: 1 x Toslink (Snap-in-type), 1 x S/P-DIF (RCA), 1 x USB Audio Class 1 (Typ B)
Digital Outputs: 1 x S/P-DIF (RCA)
Analoug Outputs: 1 x RCA, 1 x balanced XLR
Other Inputs/Outputs: MBL SmartLink, SD slot for updating
CD section: Frontloader Slot Drive
Formats: CD, CDR, CD-RW (Multi Read)
Resolution / Sample Rates: 16 / 24 Bit, 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96 kHz
Weight: 15.5 kg / 34.2 lbs.
Designed and Made in Germany
