I agree with above- keep your XA7es- I currently have them both hooked into a Ht/music system [primarily HT] using Lexicon DC1 pre/processor, Classe CAV 150 amp, PSB speakers- Stratus Goldi main. Since this is mostly a HT system the speaker placement is not optimal for music. Xa7es sound on Cd is richer, fuller, more tonally accurate and mainly cleaner- when I listen to cd on this system I always use the XA7es- I do, however enjoy the Sacd option on the 9000es and considering it also is a DVD player I think it is a very good value in todays market- but I would not own it unless I had a HT system and needed a DVD player. You also have the option of using the XA7es as a transport with an outboard dac- I think it is a much better transport than the 9000es, although I haven't done this in my system. Hope this helps
Keep my XA7ES, or get a DVP-S9000ES for CD play?
My digital front end is currently the venerable, built-like-a-tank Sony XA7ES, a CD player that was considered a reference unit when first unveiled.
But I wonder if it isn't time to upgrade, and whether I would be well served by obtaining a Sony DVP-S9000ES.
The "wrinkle" here is that I'd be using the 9000ES solely as a CD player, because (1) I have separate home theater and stereo systems; and (2) I don't plan to get into SACD, because I'm hoping that better and less expensive upsamplers will eventually come to the rescue of the thousands of red book CDs I already own. The S9000ES has a "stereo only" selector which allows you to shut down its unnecessary circuits during stereo only play.
To round out the picture, the XA7ES feeds into a Plinius CD-LAD preamp, which outputs to 2 Adcom 555II amps (both bridged to mono), each one of which drives a Snell A Reference Tower Speaker. A Snell SUB-1800 passive subwoofer is fed by the Hsu 250 watt sub amp. Lieder all-silver interconnects and Bear Labs Silver Thunder speaker cables. Various homemade and commercially available isolation devices used in combinations (granite, sorbothane, brass cones, wood "boxes" -- nicely finished -- & compressed air). On the analog side, a heavily modified Denon DP59L, sporting a Grado The Statement, and feeding into a Plinius Jarrah phono stage. (Also a very cool homemade record cleaning machine). API power conditioners. FIM outlets fed by dedicated lines.
I'd appreciate hearing from you wonks out there who truly understand the differences between these two machines, and who have themselves perhaps played both side-by-side.
Thanks in advance for your helpful and friendly input!
Best regards to everyone,
Paul Frumkin
But I wonder if it isn't time to upgrade, and whether I would be well served by obtaining a Sony DVP-S9000ES.
The "wrinkle" here is that I'd be using the 9000ES solely as a CD player, because (1) I have separate home theater and stereo systems; and (2) I don't plan to get into SACD, because I'm hoping that better and less expensive upsamplers will eventually come to the rescue of the thousands of red book CDs I already own. The S9000ES has a "stereo only" selector which allows you to shut down its unnecessary circuits during stereo only play.
To round out the picture, the XA7ES feeds into a Plinius CD-LAD preamp, which outputs to 2 Adcom 555II amps (both bridged to mono), each one of which drives a Snell A Reference Tower Speaker. A Snell SUB-1800 passive subwoofer is fed by the Hsu 250 watt sub amp. Lieder all-silver interconnects and Bear Labs Silver Thunder speaker cables. Various homemade and commercially available isolation devices used in combinations (granite, sorbothane, brass cones, wood "boxes" -- nicely finished -- & compressed air). On the analog side, a heavily modified Denon DP59L, sporting a Grado The Statement, and feeding into a Plinius Jarrah phono stage. (Also a very cool homemade record cleaning machine). API power conditioners. FIM outlets fed by dedicated lines.
I'd appreciate hearing from you wonks out there who truly understand the differences between these two machines, and who have themselves perhaps played both side-by-side.
Thanks in advance for your helpful and friendly input!
Best regards to everyone,
Paul Frumkin