Why is Sony Digital sound more like vinyl?


I have had Levinson, BAT, ARC, Wadia, Meridian, Denon etc...players..and the top ones, yet when I purchased a Sony scd-XA777Es I was touched in a way none of the others could! The one thing in common with the other gear was Burr Brown DAC's. Also, I have come to believe that RCA (single ended)connections are more musical. Most of my gear has been balanced...when I went all single ended...ah!!!...music like when audio was new!! Lastly, I have found that if CD playback levels on a preamp rise quikly with low volume settings...musicality and low level detail is lost. Perhaps others out there in Audiogon land have pondered my musings...or maybe I've got way to much time on my hands!!
128x128dave_b

Showing 4 responses by sean

Audioengr: If you have a Philips 963 or even a 763 that sounds "clinical", that thing is MEGA-broken compared to the Philips units i've worked with. These pieces are anything BUT "clinical" sounding. If you told me it sounded round, soft and syrupy, i would believe it in an instant, but "clinical"??? NO WAY. Put the Ayre Acoustics disc on repeat for at least 72 hours at minimum and then come back with your thoughts. A full week or even two of this disc on repeat works wonders. Sean
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Audioengr: Playing music and playing a disc such as the Ayre that i mentioned are very different things in terms of how it "works" the component. This is due to the differences in spectral balance and average levels achieved. By working the entire audible spectrum at a high average level, the break-in is both faster and more thorough in my experience.

As far as the analogue outs vs the digital outs, my experience with this player is that they sound very similar if using a relatively neutral DAC. In effect, the transport seems to impart much of the sonic signature that the 963 brings along with it. Quite honestly, i was amazed at how much the sonics of a transport impart into a system. That is, once i had a DAC that was good enough to reveal these things : ) Sean
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Audioengr: Your paper basically confirms what i've said about audio design all along i.e. it is all about speed, stability, impedances and power transfer. Until the AF guys learn that these factors are the key to performance, most AF gear will always be "child's play". I'm sure that your background in digital electronics gives you a great edge in understanding these factors. That's probably why your looking for answers in places where some never knew that there were questions to begin with.

Rather than mess with all of that stuff, i simply went the route of finding the lowest jitter transport that i could afford. This feeds a digital cable that makes use of high grade conductors and dielectric materials and is end-terminated. As you described in your paper, end termination reduces problems with VSWR and therefore lowers jitter. This is connected to a DAC that re-clocks all of the incoming signals, which negates the effects of any remaining jitter present. Once all of that is done, the DAC then upsamples the signal while using minimal filtering after that point. This reduces in-band phase shifts while offering wider bandwidth, negating many of the problems associated with "standard" redbook playback. Needless to say, i'm pretty happy with what i've got. Sean
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Audioengr: I don't doubt that a faster and cleaner input signal would help any DAC. As i mentioned though, i bought my transport as it came factory stock with a "super-clock", extra regulation circuitry, AC line filtering, etc... Sean
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