MBL Corona C31 CD Player Review

All in the Family

At The Home Entertainment Show Newport Beach 2013, I encountered two exhibits that paired the Corona C31 with Corona C15 mono power amplifiers. One used Totem loudspeakers, the other was MBL’s own exhibit with MBL 111F Radialstrahler hybrid loudspeakers. In both rooms, the sound was exemplary. Hence, I turned to the Corona C51 integrated amplifier with the expectation that it would also prove a near ideal mate for the C31… in my system, at least.

Long and short, the pairing produced a full dose of the wonderful MBL warmth that I find so captivating. The sound may not have been as transparent as I’ve heard on my system, but the two Corona products in tandem produced clearer and more vibrant highs than I heard through either the Parasound or MBL Noble preamps. The C31/C51 pairing also gave me a generous helping of the lovely shine that I have come to associate with MBL electronics. And, quite surprising, the Corona C51 integrated amplifier was better than the Pass monoblocks when it came to fleshing out lower midrange and upper bass detail.

First up on my CD playlist was a very natural recording of soprano Ailyn Pérez with piano. While Pérez’s highs did not ring as naturally as they do through my reference equipment, and the presentation was neither as three-dimensional nor as airy – the dCS / Pass Labs combination is exceptional in these regards – the Corona combo’s beautiful warmth and lovely sense of space were thoroughly engaging.

On a file of percussion recorded by Todd Garfinkle of M.A. Recordings, I admired the fine sense of decay and reverberation conveyed by the MBL combo. No, slam was not as crisply rendered as by the far more costly dCS /Pass chain. Nor was the sound as neutral in timbre; it verged toward the sweet and warm, which should come as no surprise to anyone who has read this review so far.

It will also come as no surprise to learn that when playing the PCM stereo layer of the San Francisco Symphony’s hybrid SACD issue of Adams’ Short Ride in a Fast Machine, the highs were a little less brilliant, the soundstage less wide, and the presentation a bit flatter than with far most costly equipment. Regardless, the sound was as lovely as can be. Above all, it had a “rightness” to it that declared, “You are now hearing the C31 as Reis and his design team at MBL intended it to sound.”

Final Thoughts

MBL designer Jürgen Reis’ assertion that he seeks to achieve a “family sound” in each of MBL’s three product lines was validated by listening to the Corona C31 CD player in three different equipment configurations. By far, the C31 mated best with one of its own kind, the Corona C51 integrated amplifier. I found its sound invitingly warm and romantic, laid back rather than overly etched, and delightfully relaxed. Just as MBL’s unique design aesthetic seems to announce that listening will be a pleasure, the MBL C31 CD player’s inviting, non-fatiguing sound rests easy on the ears through hours of focused or background listening.