I can here the bass rumble on both my Mk1 and Mk2a, if I pause them and turn the amp right up. However, like you the amount of noise present on the output of my Mk2 is less than on my CD player (cost about $500).

The chirping noise on the Mk1 is very obvious when you pause it and turn amp up, that hasn't stopped me using it as a source through some large PA kit before though.