Acurus, when it comes to the Marantz, I don't think you've missed a thing. Considering its price, the capabilities it offers and those that it doesn't offer, the NA-11s1 is not a competitive product in this market. Unless the $3500 price tag can be justified purely on the basis of the quality of its DAC, the NA-11s1 is a ripoff.
Showing 22 responses by gz3827
Pumper, it seems to me that one would still need a computer in order to transfer one's digital audio files onto the Sony's harddrive. What leads you to believe otherwise? As for the lower priced HAP-S1/B, it may well turn out to be the better value bang for the buck; however, it is not true to say that both machines have the same functionality because there is at least one presumably significant functional difference (apart from differences in hardware parts): only the higher priced unit has the DSD remastering engine. Hopefully, reviews will help answer the question of whether the higher priced unit is work the extra grand. |
FYI ... Since Sony presumably began shipping the HAP-Z1ES yesterday, I just checked their site to see if they've posted any support documentation. Much to my surprise, they have. Here's a link for anyone interested: HAP-Z1ES Support Page |
After a quick look at the documentation on the HAP-Z1ES support page, the key takeaway for me (and it's not a positive!) is the realization of the extent to which Sony's implementation of an everything-in-one-box solution severely limits the software capabilities that are available to organize and manage one's music collection. As a Windows PC user, I currently use the JRiver software for managing my digital music collection. JRiver is a very robust software application. Were I to move to an HAP-Z1ES, software like JRiver appears to be totally out the window in favor of Sony's much more clunky Music Transfer and HDD Audio Remote software apps. Or am I missing something here? |
JRiver is not a computer. JRiver is a software application. Rather than say that the Marantz requires a computer to run, I think it would be more accurate to say that the Marantz needs to be connected to some other device (for example, Network Attached Storage) that stores and/or streams the digital music files that the Marantz is designed to play. Playback can be controlled with the Marantz remote app for iOS or Android devices. Computer-based software like JRiver is not necessarily required. PS. I wrote in an earlier post that I didn't think the Marantz supports gapless playback. I was wrong. It does support gapless playback with WAV or FLAC files. |
Just checked Sony's website. Regarding the HAP-Z1ES which was supposed to be available starting Jan 2, the Sony site no longer claims "In stock" as it did for the first few days of January. It now reads "In stock estimated ship date 02-27-2014." How's that for an oxymoron? I guess the good news is that at least we now know that it's not just the government that screws up product launches. Private enterprise is perfectly capable of its own miscalculations. |
Just checked Sony's website again. Now they are saying "In stock estimated ship date 1-16-2014." Hmmm ... I guess either a whole potful of orders evaporated overnight or else Sony has found a way to push out 6 weeks of production in just 24 hours. Maybe they're building these things with 3D printers! |
I totally understand the frustration of dealing with computers, but I guess I've gotten used to it. It really doesn't bother me that the Sony does not eliminate the need for a computer. What concerns me is the Sony's software about which very little has been published. I'm really looking forward to the yet-to-come reviews, and I hope reviewers will devote as much attention to software features as to hardware and sound quality. |
The thing that I find most compelling about the CES report is not that the player made a positive impression on JA (after all, what doesn't make a positive impression on JA?) but rather that Sony chose for its room at CES to use this $2,000 player in conjunction with $27,000 speakers and Pass Labs amplification! |
Rg58, thanks for your impressions so far. Looking forward to your further observations particularly since I also have B&W speakers (804 Diamond with Musical Fidelity). On another forum I did read a somewhat negative comment about the transfer software because apparently only 100 folders can be transferred at a time. My concern about the software has more to do with how easy it will be to find specific albums once the transfer is complete, particularly classical albums. I'm not sure but I suspect there's no way to search based on composer which would be a limitation for anyone with a lot of classical music. Another aspect of the software that interests me is if there are any hassles involved in creating playlists. And one hardware question I have is whether or not the harddrive can be replaced by the user should it fail or would this require shipping the player off to a service center. |
I see now that the hard drive replacement question I raised above does appear to be answered in the "Quick Reference Guide" that's posted on Sony's website, which states: "Do not replace or add hard disk drives on the unit." So much for user serviceability. But fear not! Additional language on page 7 of the Guide infers -- albeit with incredibly roundabout language -- that hard drive repair and replacement can be handled through Sony. On the other hand, however, absolutely no information is provided as to who one would contact to make any such arrangement. In fact, warranty information about the HAP-Z1ES of any kind whatsoever seems to be totally 'missing in action' from the product's page on Sony's website. I don't know about anyone else, but I find such omissions as these a little troubling particularly given this humdinger that also appears in the Quick Reference Guide: "Due to the nature of the hard disk drive, we do not recommend you store data on the hard disk drive for a long period." How's that for a disclaimer! Kind of reminds me of the drug ads on TV that tell you if you take this drug your arms are gonna fall off and then you'll go blind. |
Kr4, in an earlier post you wrote "it's not a dac or a renderer." The DAC part of that statement confuses me a bit. When starting with digital source material (in this case, computer files no less) I thought there always had to be a DAC somewhere in the equation for sound to emerge from a loudspeaker at the other end. Is that not true? My confusion also comes from statements on Music Direct's website that read "The Sony HAP-Z1ES is a true professional reference DAC" and "This digital to analog converter effectively reduces ..." and "This ideal D/A conversion system combines ..." Are these marketing statements inaccurate? If you have the opportunity in your review, I am hoping you can clear up this confusion because as it is the answer to the question of whether the HAP-Z1ES does or does not contain a DAC is about as clear as mud. |
As near as I can tell from the published specs, the feature that looks to be the most responsible for the price difference is Sony's proprietary "DSD remastering engine" (i.e., DAC) which the Z1 has and the S1 does not. Presumably this means that were one to play the same non-DSD file through both devices the sound quality would be noticeably better through the Z1 than through the S1 assuming otherwise identical systems. At least that's my take on it. |
Having just read a review of the Z1 at whathifi.com I am confused once again. Being otherwise a fountain of little useful information, I did learn from this review that the Z1's DSD remastering engine can be turned on and off (a surprise to me) which suggests that my previous characterization essentially equating the DSD remastering engine with the Z1's DAC is misleading. So now I am wondering if the S1 and Z1 might, in fact, have the same DAC even though it is apparently only the Z1 that has the so-called DSD remastering engine. Thoughts anyone? |
Sbayne, congrats on your purchase and thanks for sharing your impressions thus far. Can you be any more specific about the differences in sound quality that you are perceiving with 16bit, 44.1 kHz files when DMS remastering is turned on versus off? Also, what do you think of Sony's software? I am particularly interested in the initial process for transferring files from one's computer to the Sony and whether the user has any control over how the Sony organizes the transferred files for search purposes. For example, if I wanted to select classical tracks for playback based on composer name rather than album name would I be able to do that? |