Micromega CD 20 MM CD20SILVER User Manual
Product codes
MM CD20SILVER
The heritage of the CD range
CD20 is an enhanced version of the CD10 player, widely recognized as being a best seller in its
category due to excellent sound quality and first class reliability. At MICROMEGA we set our heart on
developing a CD player whose performances would be exceptional while maintaining unbeatable value
for money.
category due to excellent sound quality and first class reliability. At MICROMEGA we set our heart on
developing a CD player whose performances would be exceptional while maintaining unbeatable value
for money.
The chassis
Made entirely out of metal, the frame’s role is to provide a stable and rigid base for the CD mechanism.
It also protects the CD’s electronic circuits against external electromagnetic disturbances and high
frequency exposure, which are very common in today’s environment. The aluminum front panel adds a
special touch to all of the models of this range, providing an impression of elegant soberness, where
minimalism and user-friendliness combine harmoniously. The blue 10 character dot matrix display,
driven by MICROMEGA software, displays all necessary information in real time. The aluminum
anodized top cover, which comes in either black or silver, matches the front panel perfectly. The
brushed effect of the front panel gives the product an unrivalled distinctive touch.
It also protects the CD’s electronic circuits against external electromagnetic disturbances and high
frequency exposure, which are very common in today’s environment. The aluminum front panel adds a
special touch to all of the models of this range, providing an impression of elegant soberness, where
minimalism and user-friendliness combine harmoniously. The blue 10 character dot matrix display,
driven by MICROMEGA software, displays all necessary information in real time. The aluminum
anodized top cover, which comes in either black or silver, matches the front panel perfectly. The
brushed effect of the front panel gives the product an unrivalled distinctive touch.
The ACTS
®
power supply
Like all the players, CD20 depends on the user’s mains source for its power supply. Unfortunately this
source is increasingly subject to interference, especially since the arrival of switching mode power
supplies used by computers as well as by numerous other consumer electronics goods, for example TV
sets, DVD players, video tape recorders, and satellite devices among others. All these power supplies,
even if according to CE standard, they are supposed to prevent any input or output disturbance, emit
towards the mains high frequency signals likely to disturb the CD’s musical reproduction. The effect is
more significant the more powerful the device is. If that seems paradoxical, it should be kept in mind
that the maximum output signal of a CD player is 2V RMS; therefore the weakest signal that a CD
player must be capable of reproducing is about 30 micro-volts. That gives a good idea of the scale of
what we are talking about. The CD20’s transformer is an R-Core type for the digital section. These very
specific models have very interesting characteristics from the point of view of mains interference
filtering. Contrary to toroidal transformers, which have a very broad bandwidth, R-Core transformers,
due to the way there are made, have a very narrow bandwidth. This makes them the ideal choice when
the current requirement is low. The digital power supply provides the necessary current to the drive
mechanics, the servo and decoding circuits and all of the user interface section. To generate the
specific voltage to the VFD display used in CD20, we employed a specific technique making it possible
to isolate the power supply from this particular element. Purists are well familiar with the negative
effects this has on very high level musical reproduction. In addition, linear regulators with high power
supply rejection guarantee a perfectly noise-free power supply for all of the digital elements. For the
analog section, CD20 benefits from the latest MICROMEGA ACTS
source is increasingly subject to interference, especially since the arrival of switching mode power
supplies used by computers as well as by numerous other consumer electronics goods, for example TV
sets, DVD players, video tape recorders, and satellite devices among others. All these power supplies,
even if according to CE standard, they are supposed to prevent any input or output disturbance, emit
towards the mains high frequency signals likely to disturb the CD’s musical reproduction. The effect is
more significant the more powerful the device is. If that seems paradoxical, it should be kept in mind
that the maximum output signal of a CD player is 2V RMS; therefore the weakest signal that a CD
player must be capable of reproducing is about 30 micro-volts. That gives a good idea of the scale of
what we are talking about. The CD20’s transformer is an R-Core type for the digital section. These very
specific models have very interesting characteristics from the point of view of mains interference
filtering. Contrary to toroidal transformers, which have a very broad bandwidth, R-Core transformers,
due to the way there are made, have a very narrow bandwidth. This makes them the ideal choice when
the current requirement is low. The digital power supply provides the necessary current to the drive
mechanics, the servo and decoding circuits and all of the user interface section. To generate the
specific voltage to the VFD display used in CD20, we employed a specific technique making it possible
to isolate the power supply from this particular element. Purists are well familiar with the negative
effects this has on very high level musical reproduction. In addition, linear regulators with high power
supply rejection guarantee a perfectly noise-free power supply for all of the digital elements. For the
analog section, CD20 benefits from the latest MICROMEGA ACTS
®
power supply technology. A
specific leaflet has been produced to cover this rather complex subject. However it is important to put
things back into perspective to try to understand why such a power supply is so important and brings so
much listening benefit. The maximum output voltage at full scale for most CD players is 2V RMS. CD20
follows this rule. At the nominal resolution of 16 bits the player should be able to reproduce signals with
amplitude as small as 30µV. This is VERY small and gives immediately the perspective of what we are
trying to achieve. Also, the quality of the mains supply is getting worse every day and things are not
going to improve as we are already transmitting data like Internet or Digital TV through the mains supply
lines. These techniques will be exploited on a much larger scale in the near future. For the music lover
or the audio fanatic this is a shame and creates tremendous problems with equipment where this
aspect has NOT been taken into account. We strongly believe that the ACTS
things back into perspective to try to understand why such a power supply is so important and brings so
much listening benefit. The maximum output voltage at full scale for most CD players is 2V RMS. CD20
follows this rule. At the nominal resolution of 16 bits the player should be able to reproduce signals with
amplitude as small as 30µV. This is VERY small and gives immediately the perspective of what we are
trying to achieve. Also, the quality of the mains supply is getting worse every day and things are not
going to improve as we are already transmitting data like Internet or Digital TV through the mains supply
lines. These techniques will be exploited on a much larger scale in the near future. For the music lover
or the audio fanatic this is a shame and creates tremendous problems with equipment where this
aspect has NOT been taken into account. We strongly believe that the ACTS
®
technology will prove its
value over the years and allow audiophiles to enjoy music for many more years.