Guest Moon 600i V2 Posted January 4 Posted January 4 Has anyone heard a Denon DCD A 110 or the new DCD 3000 NE SACD players against their competition in the under $5k range? I can only web order these units in my area. I currently have a Marantz SA KI Pearl with upgraded clock and discrete analog output stage. Some SACDs sound great and others are just OK, even the MoFi editions. This also happens in the analog world of LPs. It's all about the provenance of the recording and mastering/production. I have no way of comparing the sound of these players as there are no stores near me that will let me demo my unit side by side. I have heard that the Marantz sound is softer than Denon but my player does not use the HDAM module. My player has not given me any trouble in fourteen years so maybe I should just count my blessings. BTW, if you think that I am chasing unicorns, I would appreciate those comments also. On another topic, I have a still functioning Rotel 991 AE, for HDCD, that I bought two laser assemblies for as a backup and have never needed. I use a Berkeley Audio Alpha DAC for HDCD now but I don't feel that I'm slumming it if I go back to the Rotel. It's a tank!
rockeater Posted January 4 Posted January 4 1 hour ago, Moon 600i V2 said: Has anyone heard a Denon DCD A 110 or the new DCD 3000 NE SACD players against their competition in the under $5k range? I do not, but a guy I bought this Marantz SA11S1 from, now has a Denon DCD A110 which he bought as a replacement after the Marantz failure and his inability to successfully replace a laser (I fitted one of the lasers he sent me with the unit and it works just fine). His opinion is that they sound pretty much the same on SACD but that the Denon is superior on Red Book CD playback. A$5000+ though and Marantz he had SA11S1 goes for $2k and sound really good (in some countries for a bit more). 1 hour ago, Moon 600i V2 said: n another topic, I have a still functioning Rotel 991 AE, for HDCD, that I bought two laser assemblies for as a backup and have never needed. It uses Sony KSS-213B, the most common laser there is and quite reliable. No need to stock up on lasers. They do not fail as much as people think. 1 hour ago, Moon 600i V2 said: I use a Berkeley Audio Alpha DAC for HDCD now I would love to get my hands on one of these.
Guest Moon 600i V2 Posted January 4 Posted January 4 (edited) 4 hours ago, rockeater said: I do not, but a guy I bought this Marantz SA11S1 from, now has a Denon DCD A110 which he bought as a replacement after the Marantz failure and his inability to successfully replace a laser (I fitted one of the lasers he sent me with the unit and it works just fine). His opinion is that they sound pretty much the same on SACD but that the Denon is superior on Red Book CD playback. A$5000+ though and Marantz he had SA11S1 goes for $2k and sound really good (in some countries for a bit more). It uses Sony KSS-213B, the most common laser there is and quite reliable. No need to stock up on lasers. They do not fail as much as people think. I would love to get my hands on one of these. Thanks. That is informative. The Pearl is based on the 11S2 and cost me $3000 initially and then $530 in mods. I use the Pearl coax output for Redbook into the Berkeley and it is quite stunning. In some cases it matches or surpasses the SACD out on SACDs. I have the same problem auditioning cartridges. What sound do I like? How can I test without buying? Written reviews about sound are as useful as audio books about art. What biases are involved? I am going to have to commute my Pearl 230kms to test it against a Denon or the new SACD 10 ($14k CDN ouch!) if they are put on demo. I think the CDN winter is giving me pause on this as I am sequestered inside longer than usual. Or, just stop wondering and get on with it. Edited January 4 by Moon 600i V2 Add picture of mods while adding laser shield..
rockeater Posted January 4 Posted January 4 1 hour ago, Moon 600i V2 said: I use the Pearl coax output for Redbook SPDIF output trace of Marantz players is pretty average and much the same over the decades, regardless of model. 1 hour ago, Moon 600i V2 said: the Berkeley and it is quite stunning. In some cases it matches or surpasses the SACD out on SACDs. Similar situation was discovered by me and another friend from SNA. We compared cheap Pioneer D-06 SACD playback vs Wadia 16 (Red Book layer of course) and the Wadia was vastly superior to his surprise, because he was into SACD big time. It appears that even though Red Book layer is often compromised on hybryd SACDs, good player or DAC can still make it shine. 1 hour ago, Moon 600i V2 said: Written reviews about sound are as useful as audio books about art. What biases are involved? I do not think that the main problem is even that of bias. We simply do not know what the reviewer's likes are. If you read that a certain car handles well, it is pretty much meaningless if you are a sports car enthusiast but review was written by a guy who only ever drives SUVs. He just expects different things from his car and drives on a different surface. As far as trying to audition items before you buy, I have had a similar experience to you when trying to borrow a DAC for a weekend. Shop owner looked at me as if I was a Martian. I offered to pay a full price but wanted to be able to return it if it did not sing in my system. 40 years ago, I had had 5 pairs of speakers in my house for auditioning and it was normal for shops to lend them. Two of the five shops just gave them to me without even asking for my name or address. I could have just kept them.
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