Yamaha 5-Disk CD Changer CDC603B

The CD-C603 holds five CDs on a full-size tray. PlayXchange is the feature that earns its spot in a modern setup: while one disc is playing, you can open the tray and swap any of the other four discs without interrupting playback. The playing disc stays loaded and spinning. No pause, no skip, no gap in the music.

This sounds simple, but most multi-disc changers require you to stop playback to access the tray. Yamaha's mechanism keeps the active disc isolated from the tray movement. If you're hosting dinner and want to queue up different albums, or if you rotate through a mix of jazz, classical, and rock in an evening, you just swap as you go. The tray also opens fully for loading all five discs at once when you're setting up a longer listening session.

Pure Direct is a feature Yamaha put in their high-end receivers first, and the CD-C603 gets the same treatment. Press the button on the front panel or the remote, and the player shuts down the digital audio output and turns off the front display. Every non-essential circuit goes dark. The goal is minimum electrical noise reaching the analog output stage.

The numbers back it up: 0.003% total harmonic distortion, 96 dB dynamic range, and 105 dB signal-to-noise ratio. Those are strong specs for any CD player, let alone a multi-disc changer. The analog output runs through unbalanced RCA jacks on the rear. If you're feeding a quality integrated amp or a tube preamp, Pure Direct mode gives you the cleanest source signal this side of a dedicated single-disc audiophile transport.

The front-panel USB port reads flash drives loaded with digital music files. Format support covers MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, and FLAC, with WAV and FLAC supported up to 96 kHz / 24-bit resolution. That's hi-res audio territory from a USB stick, no computer or streamer required.

The frequency response stretches accordingly: standard 48 kHz files get 2 Hz to 22 kHz, while 96 kHz files reach 2 Hz to 44 kHz (-3 dB). For anyone who ripped their CD collection to FLAC and wants to play it through a proper component, the USB input makes the CD-C603 more versatile than a disc-only player. The remote handles navigation through folders and tracks.

The CD-C603 is a standard component width at 43.5 cm, with a height of 11.6 cm and a depth of 40.5 cm. It stacks with Yamaha's A-S series integrated amplifiers and R-N series network receivers without visual mismatch. Weight is 5.6 kg, sturdy enough to feel like a real component, not a plastic toy.

Rear panel connectivity includes unbalanced stereo RCA output and an optical digital output for feeding a DAC or digital receiver. Remote in/out jacks (3.5 mm) let you daisy-chain Yamaha components with a single remote sensor. The included remote control handles all transport functions, disc selection, and Pure Direct toggling. Black finish matches the rest of Yamaha's current hi-fi lineup.