Need a cd/sacd player- Sony Owners please give opinions ?

[mykenytemare]

I have asked question before and have gotten some advice but it doesnt seem to be exactly what I need.
I have about $400 or so to get a CD/SACD player at the moment since I currently have no CD player (will have money for modifications later on -like those performed by sacdmods.com).

I want to get something that has a real good lens/transport with good sound. I really just want a solid one disc or 5-disc player that is silver in color (to go with my vintage stuff).

I have seen and heard new players like the Sony DVP-NS9100ES and the DVP-NS999ES and they are okay, but they are built more for DVDs and I have been told that the older SCD* (C555ES) and CDP* models are better.

Sony owners, please speak up with opinions!

[Whitehall]

The better Sony DVD players allow you to turn off the video circuits. The marginal cost of video in chip count is small so hardware doesn't force economies elsewhere in the design. It is more than recouped in amortization of design, marketing, and distriution costs.

In other words, don't be scared of a high grade machine with DVD video.

Some of the older SACD/CD machines were purpose built for music and have an edge, however small. Of course, I've never A/Bed a SCD-1 against a contemporary DVD player but there can't be that big of a difference.

One thing to look for is stereo only audio. A Sony would use the VC24 chip set for filtering. A multichannel player will may use a DSP chip to give you control on speaker distances and time delays. I like to bypass that if possible and keep it as simple as possible. A stereo unit usually has a bit better audio output amp - discrete rather than op-amp.

All that said, there ain't that much difference in sound quality between units. Absolute Sound came to the same conclusion in a moment of honesty in a recent article.

[MarantzDance]

There is a ton of "getting cheaper by the minute" HD DVD players that will work fine as a SACD unit :)

[prisoners]

There is a ton of "getting cheaper by the minute" HD DVD players that will work fine as a SACD unit :)

I don't know of any such player, could you be specific?

[Lady Ayeka]

I don't know of any such player, could you be specific?

you know, the perishable items that are sure to hit WAL-MART any day now.

[prisoners]

you know, the perishable items that are sure to hit WAL-MART any day now.

Yeah I know, I bought a Toshiba at Walmart just before thanksgiving. Works great for real cheap. I was asking about a player that does both HD-DVD and SACD. But now I realize that the previous post was meant in jest. Sarcasm can sometimes be difficult to detect in print, even for someone with my twisted and caustic sense of humor!

[riverrat]

Many owners of high end DVD/CD/SACD players that are a few years old are upgrading to new players capable of the new HD DVD format, not sure what it is called since I am not a home theater fanatic. But some of these players that were high end in their day can be had for very nice prices.

One example is the Sony DVP-S9000ES. Sold for $1500 new and built like a tank. Has the Sony V24 chipset just like the SCD-1 and SCD777ES (might not have those model numbers exactly right) both of which sold for several grand.

The 9000 sounds phenomenal on SACD and very very good for regular redbook CDs. I just picked one up for $240 shipped, and there are several others on the bay right now for similar prices. One of the better deals in CDPs right now, IMO.

EDIT: Just noticed you are looking for a silver player. The 9000 is black, but they did make a champagne colored version for Europe...

[Whitehall]

The 9000ES will often need a new laser block but Sony will do that for you.

I've had mine changed and it is indeed my favorite player. I never use it for DVD, BTW.

[riverrat]

The 9000ES will often need a new laser block but Sony will do that for you. I've had mine changed and it is indeed my favorite player. I never use it for DVD, BTW.

The seller of the one I bought is en electrical engineer and replaced the laser block himself. I guess he knew what he was doing- it works great.

As you noted in your review awhile back, the user interface is kind of a funky design, but at least it is not cheaply done. I don't use mine for DVD either, bought strictly for CD/SACD.

[F1nut]

mykenytemare,

Do you like the Sony "house" sound?