Arcam's CD players all look very similar. In fact, externally, this is identical to the CD192. It's considerably simpler inside, though, lacking the latter's upsampling function and highly specified DAC board.

Arcam has fitted the CD73 with a Wolfson DAC, which like nearly all such chips oversamples anyway, so the differences may not appear that vast, but other components are also considerably more modest, such as the op-amps performing filtering and output-buffering functions.

Disc replay starts with a familiar-looking audio CD transport, which is connected to the player's single main circuit board, and upon which all the major sections reside. The mains transformer is a medium-size toroidal affair, and a selection of familiar regulator chips are used to smooth its rectified output.

Passive components are good-quality, with particularly well-regarded plastic film capacitors in the audio path, while the op-amps are mid-range types. Among a few fillips to the basic spec are twin output sockets and CD Text display. We've long admired Arcam's CD player display, which is particularly clear and readable. We also like how separate front-panel buttons handle the track skip and search functions.

The casework is nothing fancy, with a steel tray enclosed by a thin aluminium lid, though a gently curved metal front panel adds a touch of class with its neatly flush-fitting CD drawer.

And, in fact, we'd count the thin lid as a plus, because it has very little tendency to resonate mechanically. Quite apart from the contentious suggestion of electrical microphony, mechanical resonance in casework can be a significant contributor to the 'sound' of audio electronics.

Lots of positive comments greeted this player. It evidently has the knack of presenting musical information pleasingly and in detail, without any effort on the listener's part. How else to explain such a variety of praise, for bass, treble, dynamic ebb and flow, singers' diction and more?

As one listener pointed out, this is a highly detailed player which makes it very easy to hear deep into the layers of any recording. Yet it doesn't make a big deal of it, offering up the detail rather than hurling it at you.

In keeping with this, imaging is precise and stable, with good depth as well as width. As for tone, none of our listeners' comments suggest any hint of unevenness in the midband, nor did we detect any in our later sighted listening.