Review: Sony SCD-XA5400ES CD Player

Metralla rising...and with candor! Good to know there is hope afterall. The XA5400ES is an amazing player, especially considering the cost. It has pure grainless accurate tone across the spectrum with great dynamic range. Extension is beyond reproach and it operates flawlessly:O) I must say that it has an uncanny sense of just enough warmth and humanity without being colored..of course it demands the best connections.

Aarif's comment was mildly funny. What really put me over the top in laughter was the comment about $15K products and hifi tuning fuses. :-) I suppose there was a point there, though.

All humor aside, thanks for the review and break-in reports, Dave b. Much appreciated! I'm considering this player and quite interested.

Anyone compare this player to separates or SOTA one boxes like Esoteric, Levinson, Meridian, etc? Any comparisons to computer audio systems?
Thanks for commenting.
And Dave you've done a great job with the review so far!

No Meridian player will play SACD. FWIW.

Kal

Well how does fare against other top Redbook CD players, DACS, transports, and computer audio systems?

May Stereophile 'Music in the Round' Kal Rubinson's Part 1 review of the now discontinued Sony XA5400ES is totally accurate It makes a change to find a 100% correct review. The XA5400ES takes a long while to fully burn in and then becomes the best value best sounding CD/SACD player on the market as Dave B said it is a steal. However what is going to replace this excellent player ?

This player is not discontinued as far as I know...it just came out last fall to replace the XA9000ES. As I've said, I have owned most of the top shelf offerings and the Sony puts you squarely in the ballpark with the others. The price to performance ratio is off the charts. Clarity, dimensionality, natural warmth, extreme extension, tonal accuracy, lack of any grain-distortion or other digital nasty's...it just does the balancing act so well:)O

Apparently, it is nearly impossible to find in Europe and that has created some annoyance over there.

Kal

Kal is correct...I didn't say it would be easy to find one! The US outlets seem to get orders filled within 2 weeks.

Oh yeah, almost forgot to mention, I owned a Meridian G08 and thought it to be uniquely one of the most a-musical players I have owned. Cold, sharp and grey sounding.

Possible to find in Germany from hifiberlinshop.de for ~1200euros incl. shipping. Just as many reviewers / buyers, I am impressed by the blend of qualities getting out of this player, and would go even further and say that it lost the "explosive" sound that Sony elements traditionally carry, to a more refined and measured experience. I use the XLR outputs to a Plinius pre/amp and a pair of Magicos, and am very pleased with SACD playback. CD playback is excellent too, although there is a very faint amount of sibilance likely associated with linear phase upsampling that could yet improve, but this is really a minor defect.

Hi Cyrilmartin! After a few months (depending on your play time), the XA5400ES becomes smoother, warmer and purer sounding with an increase in dynamic shadings. Also, the Sony is extremely extended and WILL show up any ancillary distortion introduced into the audio chain, whether it be from external or internal sources. I use a Transparent Reference MM Powerlink and MIT V1.2 IC's. If you don't address the power line noise and intercomponent distortions with your cabling, then there may remain some residual "sibilance", that you refer to.

Thank you- I have another source and the problem isn't there, nor does it happen with vinyl (although frequency extension is very different). I would attribute this to the Sony, and as previously stated, the type of filter selected to perform the CD oversampling. I have another piece of digital gear allowing to choose between 1) linear phase Half Band FIR upsampling, 2) Linear Phase Full nyquist attenuation and 3) minimum phase upsampling- settings one and two seem to lead to about the same amount (faint!) of sibilance, but with filter 3 it is completely addressed. What I am hearing on the Sony SCD-XA5400ES sounds similar, and is completely gone on SACD playback. Hopefully, first and second stage upsampling filter is performed in the SACD IC, and it may be possible to update the filter coefficients using a software update... Wouldn't that be nice? :)

How long have you had the player? Breakin time is crucial for the Sony till it smooths out. With my PC it has the cleanest, purest most extended high frequency range of any player I've owned. I still think you have a problem elsewhere in the chain that the XA5400ES is showing up or passing along:O)

Dave, this only happens on CD- SACD is clean... Digital hardly needs any break-in, analog does, and the analog signal chain is the same for both CD and SACD- IMHO this is related to their CD upsampling filter choice (although they may have had no choice in the matter if they use the filters embedded in the DAC). Also, and as previously stated, this happens with outboard DAC when regular FIR are in use, but disappear when minimum phase filters are used instead...

This does certainly not eclipse the many qualities of this player- and although it competes with the best SACD players out there, it will fail when confronted to the best CD players (or network players) because of this.

Now, regarding my signal chain- I am not too worried as I can clearly hear the personality of each source, and each change, even the smallest, clearly impact what I am hearing... But, that makes me think, maybe your Sophias do not have enough high frequency energy for you to hear the sibilance... Or, and this is quite usual, your hearing doesn't extend that high anymore? :) (I.e. right back at you there).

Last but not least- and this is because you seem to respond to everyone on this thread, but also because you attempt to knock down any criticism related to this player: who do you work for?

I saw a 5400 on the workbench at Allen Wright's (Vacuum State Electronics) studio in Schaffhausen the other Saturday. It had the Terra Firma bit clock fitted, and Allen or his technician were going to fit the Level 7 VSE modification board the next week.

As you know, the 5400 is a totally different chip architecture to what Allen's mods worked with previously. Interested to know what changes were necessary to make it work.

I hear that it's done now and I hope to get a chance to hear the VSE modified 5400 before it returns to its owner in the US.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating, but it will be great if this well-priced unit turns out to be a nice platform for modifications.

Regards,

Cyrilmartin, I have Maggie 3.6R's now so I think 40khz + is enough extension to hear what's going on up top on the Sony! I am Mr. Mom...no company affiliation. Attack would be wrong, I am just very impressed with the 5400 and like to correct any misunderstandings regarding it's performance characteristics. As for breakin? Well, if you don't think digital needs a long time to burn in and settle down then you are sadly mistaken:O(

Alright, I did some digging and have a bit of information to offer to the general public!

The DAC used in this unit is a DSD1796 (Burr Brown / TI) - The "Triple SADAC" topology used in the 9000es is gone, likely because it isn't very cost effective, and unless properly time-shifted "à la Accuphase", offers limited benefits; it does reduce the noise floor somewhat, but getting lower than -115dB FS seems ludicrous. The DAC is followed by a OPA2132 FET input dual opamp per channel as I/V converter, followed by one JRC2114/channel for buffering the balanced outputs, and again an OPA2132 for the unbalanced one. This selection of opamps clearly highlight the midrange ambition of this player as there are many well regarding (and much highly priced) opamps to choose from. Good news for us: there will be a lot of possible mods available in the form of opamp replacement and power supply improvements! The headphone output is driven through a JRC2043 dual opamp- but, and this to my surprise, the volume control is inserted in series between the output of the opamp and the headphones- this doesn't guarantee performance at all output levels as the impedance (and by association the damping factor) of the headphone output will change with the level. Apparently the quality of that section was considered "secondary" and not worth spending money on...

The decoder IC is a CXD9927R from Sony- there isn't much available regarding this particular chipset, but my guess is that it is Sony's newer integrated DVD/SACD chipset (there is even a CVBS composite video output onboard). It is clocked by at 27MHz, another clue that this IC is dedicated to video as well. RAM and Flash are attached to it for system software storage and operations. This chipset supports the HDMI output natively, but also the S/Pdiff output, and the laser head. There is also an (unbranded) microcontroler, with a cute little connector that goes to the back of the device, likely for reprogramming. It is accessible through a small hole on the back panel, on top of the right balanced audio outputs. Both SACD and PCM signals are going to the DAC as expected, seemingly indicating that SACD is supported natively without downsampling.

The power supply is composed of 3 transformers, a small laminated unit for the control circuit, and two 0 core ones for the analog and digital sections respectively.0 cores have the primary and secondary windings located "side by side", reducing high frequency coupling, at the cost of a lower efficiency. They seem however oversized and do not get too hot during operation. The supply is classically built on 78xx/79xx series regulators with relatively large heat sinks. No frills there! They are located on a separate board on the right side of the transport.

The control panel located behind the bezel is completely passive except for the display control. The jog button is a cost down version inherited from their low-end DVD players, and isn't very practical because 1) the steps are a tad too smooth and 2) the system software response is a tad slow. However, most of us will use the remote, making the point moot... The transport is a classic DVD drive similar to the ones that can be found in Sony DVD players. The chassis has a couple of beams to support the transport and make the player more rigid. There is also a small "shelve" to support both analog and digital boards. Manufacturing techniques are pretty standard for an audio product, although careful (through hole resistors in the audio section, sealed film caps for decoupling, surface mount film from Panasonic...).

All in all, this is a well designed unit where money was spent in the right places, leading to an accessible price tag. I must admit that it sounds much better than the sum of its parts- my compliments to the Sony engineers!

Update 2: I obtained the design white paper from Sony regarding the XA5400ES... As a side note, this paper should have been peer-reviewed as it contains many contradictory statements, and hints to the player having multichannel analog outputs, which it doesn't. However, it clearly states that CD upsampling is performed by the DAC IC, the DSD1796 from Burr Brown. The datasheet for this IC is available here.
As one can see in the datasheet page 8, the CD upsampling filter is a "regular" half band FIR filter; recent developments in digital filtering points to the pre-echo of that type of filter to being detrimental to sound quality, in particular sibilance (countless papers available on the AES). There are several alternative approaches to fix this issue: one of them is to use IIR filters instead of FIR, at the cost of a lot of phase distortion. Another approach is to use a "minimum phase" transform FIR filter, which translates the traditional symmetrical impulse response to asymmetrical at the cost of some phase distortion. This enables the designer to trade off pre-echos and phase to the optimal blend. The results are quite evocative, with better high-frequency extension and integration, especially when vocals are recorded with a large amount of high-frequency content. This filtering technique is in use in the Wolfson WM8741 DAC, but also in some outboard DACs such as the Cambridge Audio MagicDAC II (in conjuction with Anagram Technology Q5 upsampler), where the user can select his favorite upsampling method.

The SACD section of the player does also use a symmetrical FIR filter, but the very smooth LPF response required for SACD filtering enables the use of a very short sequence with limited pre-echo duration (see p. 39 and 40). This would explain why the 5400ES is so good at playing back SACD, but CD playback shows a slight hint of high frequency grunge. It is small though, and will be noticeable only compared to the best players out there.

All in all, it is a very good player. You would have to spend much more to get to this level of quality, and this is true for both CD and SACD playback. But it is possible to find a better CD player out there- it'll cost you though!

Wow, good stuff Cyrilmartin...thanks:O)

Cyrilmartin Which is a better CD player than the XA5400ES ? .I find it sounds excellent with both RB CD & SACD especially via HDMI.I will be very suprised if Modwright can make it sound any better.

Disbeliever writes:

I will be very suprised if Modwright can make it sound any better.

I wonder if you were referring to my post about Allen Wright (Vacuum State Electronics). I hope to hear this unit on Saturday.

Modwright is Dan Wright and his website indicates that he is almost ready with his modified 5400.

http://www.modwright.com/modifications/15

Different fellow to Allen Wright.

I would be very surprised if the Modwright 5400 does not sound a lot better than the stock model via the analogue outputs. But since you listen via HDMI, the $2000 modification is probably not for you.

Regards,

Well Metralla...how does the Mod sound on the XA5400ES?

Dear Cyrilmartin, thank you very much for your research on this player. More than 1 months ago, I have added my technical comments in my audio web page:

http://digilander.libero.it/agostino.manzato/audio/reportage/sony_xa5400es/sony_xa5400es.html

Now, after about two months of break-in (during which the player improved its sound) I can confirm that I hear some problems in the high frequencies. This problem is subtable and not easy to describe. I can hear it in particular with female voices, which appear "veiled", but also with well recorded classical music, where the highs are not so shining and lively as they should be. I thought that it can be due to the OPamps output stage and I'm waiting the Wrights (Dan Modwright or Allen VSE) mods to see if they can improve the overall performances, but now you draw my attention to the digital filter in the Sony decoder. That could be really the origin of the highs problem and it should be a very difficult one to solve.
Have you tried to compare the digital output of the Sony via the Cambridge Magic DAC II with minimum phase?
Best regards, Tino

Tino,

yes, I have compared the Sony with the Magic DAC II using the Sony as a source for both- the Magic DAC in minimum phase mode definitively adds transparency and a sense that "the timing is right" at high frequency. As soon as the DAC Magic is switched back to "half band filter" (Filter #1), the effect at high frequency is back, leading me to believe that what I am hearing on the Sony is the 44.1K brickwall. However, you are describing a "lack" of high frequency that I have not noticed; this could be attributed to many effects, one of them would be a noticeable decrease of distortion compared to your previous player? For most of us, distortion = loudness (at least frank, top-bottom clipping). You *could* borrow a DAC Magic from one of your favorite stores for comparison purposes. I also noticed that you used an Acoustic Zen loudspeaker which sports (if my memory serves me well) a... ribbon tweeter. As much as I like the delicacy of those devices, I also usually think they are lacking slam in the lower part of their spectra (3~6kHz) and will sometimes overemphasize the 10K region, especially since the midrange of the Zen is quite a large driver.
Now, could Sony update their digital filters? Well, that's a tricky one- I do not know what processing abilities are left in the DSD ASIC, but this is how I would do it:
- Migrate the first two stages of digital filtering to the Sony ASIC; this stage would perform the critical 44.1K -> 176.4K upsampling. I would use minimum phase filtering there (many good papers to chose from in order to design the filter).
- Set the DAC for a 176.4K input, and use the "slow slope" filter as the upper region of the spectra will already be empty (20~80kHz).

There would still be pre-echos in the output stream as some filters are still half-band FIRs, but the longest filters (x2, then x4 have the largest number of taps) would not have pre-echos, thus limiting the duration of this effect in time. Now, does Sony read this column? I am ready for a flash update CD:)

Regarding modding the player- most dual opamps have the same pinout, so you should not have any issue trying some new friends. Keep in mind that opamps used in various locations need a different subset of optimizations, in particular:
- I/V converter needs fast settling time and slew rate, low current noise, and stability when a capacitor is connected from inverting input to output. This means that current feedback opamps are not recommended in this location. Sony selected a FET input device (OPA2132) for this application, also bringing very good DC characteristics and possibly removing the need for AC coupling capacitors between this stage and the LPF/Buffer stage. I would look at high performance, high slew rate opamps from ADI and National here. Please keep in mind that the noise of this circuit will be largely defined by the value of the feedback resistor (the lower the better), so output drive of the opamp also matters.
- Filter / buffer: low voltage noise, high slew rate and high output drive are a must to keep the performance up. I do not know the exact topology of the Sony's output stage, but I would also consider keeping good DC characteristics in order to minimize offset. A new, fully differential audio opamp was just released by National- it may just be the right device for this player, as nothing indicates that they are using an "auto-balancing" ciruit on the XLRs... This however would require the addition of a small PCB as it has a non-conventional pinout.

A side note regarding the NE5532 / 5534: they definitively bring a signature to the signal- signature that we have been hearing for over 25 years. Aren't we ready for something a bit more transparent? :)
Another side note regarding Tube output stages: properly designed SRPP stages will likely be the only topology that will keep the inherent noise floor and low distortion of this player, while adding the "glow" so many people seem to love. I would shy away from SET circuits as there is almost no voltage gain needed (the I/V brings the signal to the proper amplitude, not the output filter/buffer). The supply for a SRPP stage will likely be high (250 ~ 300V) and will make the integration in the player difficult. Another valid approach would be to use a discrete transistor based output stage, which would not require a very high supply...

I have to say guys, that this is a case of a little understanding can be a dangerous thing. I have owned Levinsons N0. 39, 390S and 37/360S, Wadia 850SE, BAT VKD5SE, ARC CD3, Sony SCD-1,777ES,9000ES and others. I use some of the best cables and power cords available. My Maggie 3.6R's definately let you know what's going on up top. Bottom line is that the Sony has the most natural and extended high frequencies I've ever heard...pure, clear, complex and tonaly accurate. If you guys are hearing something different, then somethings wrong with your setup or ears. This is not an opinion, it is a fact! Tell me your setups and maybe I can help identify the problem for you:O)

I forgot to mention that I am around acoustic instruments in my house everyday (my children play piano, baritone, cello, drums, flute). I have recordings of concerts I have attended (jazz, classical and rock). I have owned many 50K plus rigs. I have no dog in this race. My opinion has merit based on the above facts. Oh, and I have no hearing loss...yet! Keep in mind I use true reference recordings with realistic high frequency content. Examining the brush strokes of a Monet painting may be interesting to an art major, but it kind of misses the whole point doesn't it? Please do list your equipment, cabling and music for reference however.

So much for the case of "little understanding"... http://www.linkedin.com/in/cyrilmartin

Now Dave B., when it comes to your extensive ownership of expensive digital gear, all of them with no exception were using symmetrical FIR designs. Sad, very sad... Your offer to debug a system "a distance" is presumptuous at best- a bit like phone psychics.. And the statement about "not having hearing loss" is always incorrect- everybody does, that process is called "aging"... unless of course you also have a potion to reverse Corti organ damage (and did it ship with the Sony player?).

As many will notice, that "discussion" is going nowhere. I will summarize as best as I can: if you have $1K laying around and you want a very good all around player, the Sony is for you. If you also have a soldering iron and are not afraid of playing wizard with SMT packages, you may even have the pleasure of doing some experimentation with opamps and see where you get; you will notice that Sony is pretty much in bed with TI (Burr Brown was acquired by TI in 2001) so you have all the ADI and National offering at hand, likely unexplored by the Sony design team.
Now, if you want the best redbook CD player available today (and you are independently wealthy!) go check our the Meridian 808.2 CD player- You will not regret it... And, if you also want to check how devilishly good your SACDs can sound, check out the DCS stuff (N.B: look at the pro gear- it is precisely the same as the audiophile offering in a more rugged packaging, and at more realistic prices... *realistic* still means a wad of cash though!).

And this was only naming a few :)... Contrary to some, I tend to avoid definitive statements as the future would too often prove me wrong!

Peace.

Wow, I am amazed again! I owned a meridian G08...sucked; Sterile, whitish and flat sounding. Knowledge is a terrible burden for some..it dictates their perception despite any evidence to the contrary. Ironic that you would pick my least favorite examples of digital for a rebuke. Obviously you have never been to Boston Symphony Hall...now that's a reference standard:O)

New cable find for the frugal and acousticaly astute. A comprehensive evaluation between my MIT Oracle V1.2 Proline XLR IC's ($6500) and a pair of Monster Cable Proline SP1000 XLR cables ($99.98/pair) has floored me!!
The SP1000's are every bit their equal in every audiophile category one can imagine plus just a scrim more warmth added. These Monster Proline cables are a Godsend to anyone who want's to have world class sound on an extreme budget:O) Sweetwater.com has them and even has a no hassle return policy..I dare you to try them.

No not at all Tvad. In fact I am getting quite fed up with the idol worship of gear and technology at the expense of good common sense and a love of music. I've been guilty of it and I must say I regret it deeply. These days I'm looking to maximize what I own and seek out real bargains for the modest budgeted audiophile. 5ft is hardly that much longer than 1Meter, unless you read the ad wrong...they sometimes read 5M but the length is actually 5 feet for $49 each:O)

I'll check it out...the SP1000 comes with pro velcro straps for securing and rolling extra lengths neatly behind the gear.

Proline Velcro...says so right on the strap so it must be true. Right? Ohmy God, I've been duped...crap, I hate that:O( HeeHee! Anyway, the reason I love it is because it just smokes the best I've heard. Crushing dynamics, warmth and a huge open soundstaging.

Hi Dave!

Do you think the RCA version of the Monster Cable SP1000 have the same great characteristics you described for the XLR's version?

Regards,

I'm not sure an RCA version exists for the SP1000 cable. I did have an RCA version of the Monster Audiophile Cable Z200i which I was told by Monster was the same cable as the SP1000, just priced higher for us audiofools:O) The Z200i has been discontinued due to lack of sales and product confusion for Monster, even though it was their best sounding cable ever. So, that said, the RCA version of the SP1000 clone (Z200i) was very much in the same camp as far as performance. The XLR version has a slightly lower noise floor and more of a sense of ultimate power and slam, but almost identical otherwise.

I was recently at Vacuum State Electronics in Switzerland and listened to the VSE modified 5400 with the Terra Firma Lite clock. Included in the listening session was a comparison between the 5400 and the VSE Level 7 SCD-777ES with the Terra Firma Uber clock. I was very impressed.

If you don't mind following a link, I posted a review on Audio Asylum.

http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/hirez/messages/26/260611.html

Regards,

The setup at VSE looks a little disturbing to me:O<> Talk about narrow rooms and the speakers looked close to the front wall. Power cords can address alot of issues that maybe Allen's trying to compensate for in his mods...not to ention his use of silver IC's! Don't think I'd chance the mod myselfO:)

Dave_b,

The speakers are very close to the side walls - is that what you meant to write? In fact, they are right on them. I thought when I first saw them that they would not work well. But they do. The room is not that narrow - perhaps the picture is slightly misleading.

Regards,

hi everyone. this sony seems a very capable player. my question is: concerning only the RB performance, in what "leage" would you put this player among the only RB players? can it compete with MF A1CD pro or esposure 3010 or primare c30 or Quad cdp-2 or naim cd5x or rega saturn? (just to give you an idea...)

Crimhead, yes, yes, yes, yes and most definately yes! In some aspects it is competitive with several over $5k players. Deep controlled textured bass, full warm mids and extended grain free natural sounding highs. Transparency is exceptional and dynamic contrast is superb. Tonality (pitch) is dead on accurate.

is there any review available on this cdp? i've not found any. moreover i'd be very much interested in some measurement results like the ones in stereophile reviews. some say that the sound of sony is a lttle 'technological': do those of you who listened to this cdp think so?

techradar.com has a full review and Kal Rubinson mentioned it as the best RB/SACD player he has heard to date in Stereophile. With great PC and IC it is definately not "technological" sounding.

techradar realy praises this cdp, but comparison is made with xa9000 only, which it bettered for much less money, this is promising. however they mentioned the yamaha s2000 as a competitor for sony xa5400, and they wonder what would be result in a competition... this realy implies no high leage presence, since they would say mcintosh, accuphase, nagra,wadia or whatever otherwise... i would be interested in any direct comparison of this cdp... on the otherhand stereophile reviewers use quite a few times sony xa9000 (or other sony, if i remember well) as a reference (which surprised me at first, because i thought sony had small reputation among audiophiles), which again means xa5400 could be in reference leage...

Crimhead, I owned Levinson No. 39, 390s, 360s&37combo, Wadia 861se, MFA5, ARC CD3, Sony SCD-1, Meridian G8 and a few others. I love the XA5400ES...maybe that helps a little:O)

NO DIGITAL INPUT? I reviewed the official specs and did not see a digital input. This would mean that one cannot access the DAC to stream digital from computer. Seems an odd and severe limitation these days. Am I reading this correctly?