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Are Sony SACD Machine Owners Crazy??

I am sorry about the "tabloid" title..but another
post I did got little response on what, I think, is a real
question. Ie:.. many people have stated that the playback
of standard format cd's (16/44) on these SACD machines is
very good...indeed beyond things like Levinson..etc. The
question is ..in this age of "upsampling" 24/96..and beyond, how can these one bit/bit-stream (in "redbook" format) units
be so good? This is asking the owners of the model 1, 777,
9000..etc. Sony players..how can this be so. I had owned
the Xa-7es at one time, and thought that the excellent
playback was the FET analog stage...these new SACD machines
are all using OP-AMPS....not very "high-end". The concern
I have is that while we all hope for a format that will give
us analog sound in a digital format, the near-term concern
is what any unit...SCAD or DVD-A will do with my collection
of standard CD's?
whatjd

Showing 3 responses by whatjd

whatjd OP
1,139 posts
 
Thanks guys...I think? Sorry if some of you may have
thought I was questioning SACD...I'm not. Both SACD and
DVD-A have real merit. The question was talking about
the 1-bit type of D/A and the use of OP-AMPS rather than
discrete components for the audio section. When Sony made
the XA-7ES they were very verbal about the Class A discrete
FET audio section...and now all of their units are using
OP-AMPS. I don't recall there being people offering
mods for the XA-7ES..and now there are several people
offering mods for the Sony SACD units. I have stated this
is threads before..that if OP-AMPS were so great..shouldn't
ARC, Conrad Johnson, Krell, Levinson...etc be using these
"great" OP-AMPS in their pre-amps? The reason people are
doing these mods..is that the audio section of these units
are not where they should be. Nothing wrong with OP-AMPS in
and entry level SACD changer...but in the $5000.00 reference
unit?
So.....what I was questioning was the 1-bit/redbook side of
these players...where most high-end units have gone to 24/96
upsampling...and the audio section being OP-AMPS...and
OP-AMPS generally not being thought of as "State-of-the-Art"
for audio amplification.
whatjd OP
1,139 posts
 
Frap......thank you! You are so right, and this has been
my point. We may be able to buy great pre-amps, power amps,
cables...and speakers, but without great source components
much of our efforts are lost. Why labor over choices
in the rest of our systems..and debate the tube vs. solid-
state, CJ vs. ARC, Krell vs. Levinson..etc., if we are
placing a $1.00 OP-AMP in the chain? An OP-AMP is a kind
way of saying..big IC chip..integrated circuit. Even the
best are not up to real tube and real transistors..they
are a cost saving device...and until we start getting
source components with excellent audio sections...we are
running in circles.
How can we debate formats, tube vs. transistor, dynamic
vs planer/electrostat..etc...when somewhere in the path of
the signal we place a one or two buck OP-AMP?
whatjd OP
1,139 posts
 
Thanks for all the above posts and comments. This site
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