Raysonic CD-128

Raysonic CD-128 We are glad to introduce our modifications for the Raysonic CD-128 tube CD player. The stock player was a superb value and one of the finest stock players that we are aware of for under $2,000 whe n introduced

Please note that our modified CD-128 is clearly better than the stock CD-168.

The CD-128 received a Blue Moon award at 6moons.com for Build, Design, Musicality & Value in the under $2,000 price range.



We take this machine and make it dramatically better. Our Level-2+ mod makes it superb and as good as any stock player that we have heard under $5,000. Our modifications were designed by Chris Johnson, the founder and former president of Sonic Frontiers. Premodified machines carry the full Raysonic 1-year warranty. Retrofits are warrantied for 1 years for the mods only.

The following details our Level-1 modifications for the Raysonic CD-128's single-ended outputs [$1,190 + freight retrofit]:

  • We add one pair of premium machined Vampire direct gold plated over copper body Teflon insulated RCA female jacks on the output to replace the cheap stamped jack modules. 
  • 11 x BlackGate STD and FK grade PS caps, NX grade DAC PS Caps and N grade output coupling capacitors 
  • 2 x Riken Ohm ½ and one watt signal path 1% carbon comp. resistors with gold-plated leads 
  • 2 x Audio Note Tantalum film resistors 
  • 2 x Kiwame 2-watt carbon film resistors 
  • 8 x CREE 1A 600V high-voltage SiC Schottky rectifying diodes installed in the power supply 
  • We replace the stock I-V op amps with world's best - Burr-Brown OPA-627 in a special dual DIP module – 2 pcs. total, one for the I-V and one for the output buffer 
  • 4 x 4.7uf Mundorf M-Cap metalized polypropylene coupling caps 
  • 4 x 0.01uf with Rel Cap TFT Teflon film and tin foil bypass coupling cap 
  • 4 x large EAR compliant Sorbothane feet 
  • WBT high silver content (4%) solder used throughout 
  • 1 x sheet of SoundCoat chassis damping material cut & applied where applicable, to control chassis resonances 
  • 4 pieces of DH LABS 99.999% pure solid-core long-grained silver output signal wires, with foamed Teflon tape wrap dielectric 
  • 6 hours labor

The 12-month factory warranty is covered on all modified players if they are purchased new. Modified customer units will have a one year warranty on all work performed.

Sonic improvements

The unit is quieter. Black are blacker, resolving more low-level detail for better ambiance retrieval. The tube stage is now smoother with a more liquid midrange and more inner detail while at the same time being more dynamic. Transparency is much improved and you can now look farther into the soundstage. Images are sized better and more defined. Stage width and depth are both improved. Bass slam and extension are dramatically improved, with fuller weight and authority. The tube output stage sounds more like solid-state in this area.

The following details our Level-2 modifications for the Raysonic CD-128's single-ended and balanced outputs [$1,750 + freight retrofit]:
Level-2 includes all Level-1 mods above plus:
  • 10 additional Riken Ohm ½ and one watt "signal path" 1% carbon comp. resistors (gold-plated leads) in the I-V section 
  • 2 additional Audio Note Tantalum fil resistors 
  • 2 additional Kiwame carbon film resistors 
  • 4 additional 4.7uf Mundorf M-Cap metalized polypropylene coupling caps 
  • 4 additional 0.01uf with Rel CapP TFT Teflon film and tin foil bypass coupling cap 
  • 2 matched pair New-Old-Stock Reflektor mil-sec ultra low noise 6H23p-eb (these are Super 6922s) 
  • 4 additional Burr Brown OPA-627s used in 2 additional modules. 2 duals for the I-V and 2 duals for output buffer 
  • 5x20mm 1A, slo-blo Pure Silver HiFi Tuning fuse (German made). 
  • 8 hours total labor (2 additional) 
Improvements for the Level-2 are similar to the Level-1 but just at a higher level in single-ended mode. Highs have even more sparkle and extension. Bass goes lower with more authority. Transparency is further improved. Level-2 also adds all parts needed to use the unit in balanced mode. Balanced, it is quieter with more resolution and even greater dynamics than the RCA Level-2.

OptionsAdd an upgraded Clock to dramatically lower jitter $480
The clock improves the midrange naturalness, adds better detail retrieval, makes soundstaging better and adds even more weight to the bass. The full Level-2 + clock is sold as a package for $3,690 + frt. It easily outperforms the Shanling T-200 that we received superb reviews on. That machine was compared to players selling for over $13,000.
Raysonic