|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
Hi everyone!I am a newbie to the DVD-Audio forum and my experience with multichannel audio would be classified as "slim and none." In the past I have felt like Kalman, if God would have wanted us to hear 7.1 channels then He would have supplied us with enough ears to process it. I recently have been listening to SACD (Marantz SA-8260) and several Sony offerings, very unimpressed. Then listened to a poor setup with a Panasonic F85 Changer and Wow!
I don't subscribe to the audio mag reviewers' notion that SACD is a superior format, no offense. I can hear more music through DVD Audio, and considering the possibilities the format has, I feel it will overtake SACD (Remember BETA...you no where I'm going with this).
But let me get off my soapbox...I'm needing opinions on players. Needless to say I cannot audition any of the following players for myself so I am soliciting your knowledge and experience.
Panasonic F87 (HDCD, etc.)
Harman Kardon DVD 31 (Wolfson DAC's)
Rotel RDV-1062
Adcom GDV-850
Any help would be most appreciative.
Follow Ups:
I have the Pioneer Elite DV-45A. It has a number of options (CD, Dolby and DTS 5.1 via coax and fiber optic digital outputs), all formats, plus SACD and DVD-A via 5.1 analog outputs.I like two-channel audio, particularly if the imaging is good ... which is one reason I still like vinyl. However, I find some DVD-A recordings are remarkably good, with effective use of the center and rear channels enhancing the overall experience. AIX recordings are noteworthy, as are DVD-A recordings of Natalie Merchant and Fleetwood Mac. (I tend to prefer classical and jazz, but these are good recordings).
I think the Pioneer is quite a good value. It has good DACs and I think its analog outputs outperform my former Rotel-plus-Musical Fidelity DAC combination for normal (Red Book) CD listening. In fact, the Pioneer's analog outputs stand up well in comparison to using its digital output via the DAC onboard in my Cary home theater preamp (and the Cary is quite good).
Don't know what you're prepared to spend, but the Pioneer approach is a relatively affordable way to find out what you like, explore the available offerings, and build a library.
I've got the Adcom player, and though I havent' bought any DVD-A's to play on it, it sounds very good with DVDs and CDs. Great picture quality also.
I have the Pioneer 563a, but there are plenty that perhaps offer better build quality, etc.
Wondering how it would compare to the Sony CE775 SACD/CD player and also the Technics DVDa10 players. I'm interested in a universal player and was eyeing the Denon 2900 but too rich for my blood at this point. I know the price will drop sooner or later on the 2900.I believe the 563a is available for about $149 at Best Buy. I suppose it cannot hurt for me to try it. A co-worker picked it up and is enjoying it but I'm not sure if he compared it to other players.
I enjoy it. It works well for me. I've got it hooked up to a Panny SA-XR45 w/Mirage Omni 60's and a Adire Rava Sub. The Marantz and Denon units are to rich for my blood as well. For $150 I doubt you can go wrong. Just think of all the $ you'll have left over to by music with.If I were to have any complaints, I would say that the load time is a little slow and so is the track advance. It's certainly not a deal breaker, it's just not the fastest player on the block.
I may give this a try. I'm quite interested since this player has gotten some pretty good remarks and the price is right.I suppose I should not be over optimistic though as I'm pretty spoiled with the players I already own. I wouldn't mind giving it a go though for the money.
I purchased the 563 just to see what all the buzz was about with this player. In my system the sacd/redbook playback was decent for the money but my modded CE775 blows it away big time! But anyone on a budget who wants to "test" the waters on high-rez, its not a bad machine. I'm really not interested in dvd-a, though.
Just my .02 worth.....
Is the Sony CE775, I was wondering about the playback for SACD and CD versus the 563A. Note I bought the CE775 even though I already own the XA777ES cause I thought it to be an absolute steal for $200.I did not have the CE775 modded so I'd be talking straight up comparisons versus 563A. I think I will have the mods done to the CE775 done eventually. For DVD-A and DVD playback, I have the Technics DVD A10 and also wonder about the 563A playback versus that player. I got the A10 for $300 so I took the plunge.
I guess there is only one way to find out. I'm more curious than anything else since people have said good things about the 563A for the money.
I got a 563a modded my Alex. He completely redesigns the output stage with his discrete circuit and transformer couples the DAC to it. I'm pretty pleased what you can get for $695 (total).I've looked at the 775 mods before going with Alex mod but I found Alex's more extensive for the money and unlike the 775 does DVD-A. :)
--Lenard
I'll see if I can find it Best Buy. Thanks for your opinion on this player.
NAD have one DVD Audio player (cheap), Rotel has also another new DVD Audio player 1052 (I think), have you thought about Arcam?About those you already have listet - I would go for the Rotel player! (IMO)
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors: