Ugh...frustrated

[HeyWaj10]

Yesterday I picked up a Pioneer Elite DV-45A universal player (CD, DVD-A, SACD) for $50 on Craigslist. Not a bad pickup at all - looks beautiful in the system, no issues, sounds great. The "hope" was to be able to have a disk player that I could quickly access when I just want to pop a CD in and press play - one that would even potentially edge out the computer setup in performance.

Well - then I did the old A/B (and C) comparison (not properly matched) to my computer setup. The combinations consisted of the following:

• Pioneer > analog RCA (Monster RCA cables) > AVR
• Pioneer > digital coax (Mediabridge) > AVR
• Mac > Schiit PYST USB > Nuforce uDac2-SE > C2G SonicWave Interconnects > AVR

I don't have proper comparison equipment, and level matching was near impossible, let alone the fact that the remote with the B&K makes switching inputs a 5-10 second process...not exactly a quick back and forth.

The Pioneer via analog out is nice, but softer vs. the other methods. Whether it's the internal dac or the Monster cables, it just doesn't offer the level of detail or bass output. The Pioneer via coax to the B&K internal dac sounds a bit crisper, slight enhancement in timbre and detail.

But the computer setup offers this: more gain (was surprised by this - at least 4 dB louder), more detail, greater resolution, bass depth, treble clarity, and more defined vocals...so what gives?

At this point, it's now hard to justify having the Pioneer, since the computer outperforms it, even in its entry-level state. I am continuously bothered by the computer audio process, which is why I even pulled the trigger on a disk player. Would an upgraded dac improve both the computer and the disk playback? Or should I just re-sell the Pioneer and buy better interconnects with the cash?

Would be a long while before I have disposable cash to burn on a significant dac upgrade (Schiit Modi Multibit at least). Looking forward to the discussion.

 

[PapaVerde]

Could it be an output setting in the Pioneer? maybe it is set to multichannel output versus stereo or something along those lines. I had a similar issue with a Sony SACD and that's what it was. Often the menu is an on-screen, so you wouldn't know without first connecting to a TV screen.

 

[HeyWaj10]

Hi Roy,

I initially thought the same thing, so I hooked the player up to a tv and set everything up to output stereo, even utilized the "video off" feature of the player (said to deactivate the video processors to "improve" audio). Still doesn't quite match the performance of my computer system - to my disappointment.