Pro-Ject CD Box DS2 T CD Transport - Black

No Converter Inside, and That Is the Point

Pro-Ject built this generation of CD Box as a pure transport on purpose. A converter and a spinning drive in one box work against each other, so the DS2 T reads the disc and sends the data out to your own DAC.

What leaves the box is the Red Book data stream, bit for bit. Nothing is converted, filtered or adjusted on the way out, which is exactly what a good external converter wants to be fed.

It reads CD, CD-R, CD-RW and the CD layer of hybrid SACDs, all through a slot-loading mechanism. That is a wider range of discs than many dedicated transports will accept, home-burned ones included.

Four Layers, and a Servo Called Blue Tiger

The drive sits on a four-layer suspended mount inside a torsion-resistant chassis. The point is to keep the laser in position while the disc spins, because a drive that has to guess at the data will interpolate instead of read.

Steering it is the Blue Tiger servo board, which is what makes the 1:1 read possible and keeps jitter low. It is the same family of servo Pro-Ject uses further up the range.

Three digital outputs leave the back: coaxial S/PDIF, optical S/PDIF, and AES/EBU on an XLR. A 12-volt trigger in and out ties the DS2 T into the rest of a system, and a remote is included.

Who Is This CD Transport Best For?

• You already own a converter you rate — the DS2 T sends the disc out untouched, so the DAC you chose does the work rather than a chip somebody else picked for you.
• Your DAC has a balanced input — an AES/EBU output on XLR is fitted alongside coaxial and optical, so the best connection your converter offers is the one you can use.
• You own hybrid SACDs — the DS2 T reads their CD layer as well as CD-R and CD-RW, so home-burned and hybrid discs both play.
• You plan to upgrade the DAC, not the drive — converter technology moves faster than disc mechanisms, and a transport lets you replace only the half that changes.
• You run a system that switches on together — a 12-volt trigger in and out handles that. Browse our digital-to-analog converters for the other half of the pair.

How Does It Connect to Your System?

Run one digital cable from the DS2 T to your converter. Use the AES/EBU XLR if your DAC has one, or coaxial or optical if it does not.

The converter then feeds your amplifier as it always has. The external power supply plugs into the wall, and the trigger sockets can wake the rest of the system with it.

Pairs Well With

Building around the CD Box DS2 T? Here are some great companions:

• DAC: The half this transport was built to feed — see our Digital to Analog Converters.
• Preamplifier: The next box in the chain — see our Preamplifiers.
• Digital Cables: Coaxial or AES/EBU — see our Interconnect Cables.
• Equipment Rack: Keep the drive steady — see our Audio Racks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which discs will it read?

CD, CD-R, CD-RW and hybrid SACD, all through the slot-loading mechanism.

What outputs does it have?

One coaxial S/PDIF, one optical S/PDIF, and one AES/EBU on XLR, so you can use whichever input your converter does best.

Do I need a separate DAC?

Yes, and that is what makes this a transport. Your converter handles the sound, which is where the DS2 T puts the decision back in your hands.

What is the Blue Tiger servo?

The circuit that steers the drive. It is what allows a 1:1 read of the disc and keeps jitter to a minimum.

How big is it?

240 by 72 by 194mm, or 200mm deep including the sockets, and 2,070g without its external power supply.

What is the warranty?

Two years for the original owner, from an authorized Pro-Ject dealer. Register the product and subscribe to Pro-Ject's newsletter and they extend it to three. It does not transfer.

See It in Action

Henley Audio walks through what a pure CD transport is for:

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