Multi-disc SACD changer?

 

New member
Username: Exander

Post Number: 8
Registered: Nov-04
I'd like to get a good quality SACD player that can hold 5-6 discs. I'd like to keep the price under$700 if possible. IS there anything out there?
I saw a Sony but it got mixed reviews.

Thanks.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Sulfur

Post Number: 66
Registered: Dec-03
Try Yamaha or maybe Onkyo if you can find it, although I'm not sure how good they are.

Personally I'm a Denon/Marantz fan. :-)
 

Silver Member
Username: Smitty

Canada

Post Number: 162
Registered: Dec-03
I've had the Yamaha DVD-C750 for about a month now and am happy with it. Street price is US$250 . SACD, DVD-A and redbook CD playback is very good. It plays PAL/NTSC and can be made region free. It also decodes HDCD (although this is not mentioned in the manual) and has 2x and 4x CD upsampling. Changing disks is slow. The crossover is fixed at 120Hz. Previously I had the Pioneer 578a and was satisfied with DVD-A and SACD but redbook CD was lacking.

I'm guessing Yamaha will eventually release a DVD-C950 version that will likely have more video features (i.e. Farjouda and possibly DVI/HDMI).

Other options to look at would include the Onkyo CP802 (which is in the US$450-500 price range). The video is reportedly poor on this unit though. I heard something about a CP602 model but haven't seen it announced anywhere.
 

Silver Member
Username: Smitty

Canada

Post Number: 163
Registered: Dec-03
Some info on Yamaha's upcoming products (I actually guessed right this time :-) )

quote:

Yamaha showed the DVD-C950 universal changer for $499 and the more upscale DVD-S2500 priced at $699. Both feature upscaling of video images, Faroudja DCDi video processing, and HDMI output. The DVD-S2500 includes dual i.Link (IEEE 1394) outputs.



from CES 2005 News
 

Bronze Member
Username: Sulfur

Post Number: 67
Registered: Dec-03
Smitty did you compare the single disc version, eg S1500, vs your changer? I was considering the Yamis before I got my 578A.

Please share your thoughts on:

1) S1500 vs C750 if you have comapred them. I didn't audition them but S1500 has better specs:
- SNR: 115 dB vs 105 dB
- DR: 100 dB vs 95 dB
- THD: 0.0017% for SACD vs 0.003%

2) Is the C750 (or S1500) noticeably better than 578A on DVD-A & SACD decoding? In a separate thread I've echoed your conclusion that the DAC on the 578A sucks. Regular CDs sound much much better via a digital out to the DAC on my Marantz in Source Direct (no additional signal processing) mode.

3) the Yamis vs the much talked about entry level Denon 2200/2910. :-)

The S1500 is about 2x the price of the Pioneer 578A, and C750 a bit less than 2x. I still have a couple weeks option to return my 578A. :-)
 

Silver Member
Username: Smitty

Canada

Post Number: 165
Registered: Dec-03
Anthony, no I didn't compare the S1500. I had a changer before the 578a (older Sony DVP-670D model) and missed having a changer once I got the 578a. I wasn't impressed with the build quality of the 578a either.

1) I suspect the S1500 audio is better than the c750 based on the specs, but how noticable that would be probably depends on your setup.

2) I didn't actually A-B the C750 and 578A on my system. Without having done that I can say CD playback is noticably better (even when the 578a was just used as a transport). I thought SACD and DVD-A sounded very good on both players --- I couldn't say they're noticabley better on the c750 just going from memory. I had all speakers set to large in both cases.

3) I didn't want to purchase an older model (2200), there just seems to be too many DVD-A/SACD incompatibility issues (not particularly with the 2200 but older models in general) and the 2910 is out of my price range --- besides I really wanted a changer. I think the Denons are definately better at video than the Yamahas.

Personally, I think the C750 is worth 2x the price of the 578a. If I wasn't looking for a changer I'd go for the S1500 unless you have a need for DVI/HDMI in which case I'd have a look at the Denons. It's really disappointing that the Cambridge Audio 540D doesn't do SACD, I keep reading how it has outstanding redbook CD playback.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Sulfur

Post Number: 70
Registered: Dec-03
Thanks Smitty. I planned to reply earlier but still haven't found time to head down to A&B Sound to audition the Yamaha(s). Hopefully this weekend. :-)

Not too many Yamaha dealers here in Vancouver that would stock the S1500 and/or C750.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Sulfur

Post Number: 73
Registered: Dec-03
Forgot to ask, Smitty did you buy your unit in Ontario & if so how much did it cost you?

A&B Sound in Vancouver is showing list price of C$399.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Sulfur

Post Number: 74
Registered: Dec-03
Just checked their flyer, on sale for C$348. :-)
 

Silver Member
Username: Smitty

Canada

Post Number: 167
Registered: Dec-03
Anthony, no I ordered one from etronics, it was US$243. The total landed price was C$400, it took a bit less than 2 weeks to arrive.

Locally, they didn't have any available, but could get one for me for C$500 plus taxes.

I would have bought one locally for C$348 though.
 

Jonny Z
Unregistered guest
Smitty - did you have a problem with the fact that the disc carousel doesn't rotate when the tray is open? I find this awkward if you want to use the 4 and 5 slots on the 750. Does the 950 solve this issue? If it does, I'd consider upgrading. Thanks - jz
 

Silver Member
Username: Smitty

Canada

Post Number: 173
Registered: Dec-03
Jonny,

I do find that awkward as well. My older Sony DVP-670D rotated the disks and that made it easier to insert disks.

I doubt that the c950 would be any differnt, but you could always ask Yamaha.
 

Jonny Z
Unregistered guest
Smitty - Thanks. I also have a Sony changer - DVP-NC600 - so am used to that as well. I noticed last night that the Sony tray does not extend as far out as the Yammy when opened. With the Sony, the ONLY way to insert multi discs is to rotate the carousel. With the Yammy, you can insert and remove all 5 without the rotation, but 4 and 5 are awkward. I guess I'll learn to live with it. I agree that the 950 probably won't improve on that - the key differences from the 750 will be the adddition of Faroudja DCDI, enhanced video sampling, and HDMI for roughly $200 more. Over and out. :-)
 

Anonymous
 
You might noe as i just returned mine because of disc's coming out of the slots and i got one stuck and had to return it. I got my money back as not having disc skip is stupit. Also the 750 goes to PL when playing a cd. You have to switch it to stereo after each disc so if you use random and it switchs disc,you have to go temote and find stereo.
 

New member
Username: Shokhead

Lakewood, CA USA

Post Number: 2
Registered: Jan-05
Anyone know about the DVP-NC555ES? I'm waiting on delivery. Not much info out there about it.
 

New member
Username: Rinflux

MA

Post Number: 1
Registered: Feb-05
Smitty, are you sure about the Yamaha C750 decoding HDCD. Subjectively, I know my HDCD disks sound better in HDCD, but objectively, how do you know that the Yamaha is actually decoding the HDCD layer? I'm looking for a budget changer that will decode HDCD and SACD disks and the Yamaha, if it can decode HDCD, would seem to be just the ticket.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Shokhead

Lakewood, CA USA

Post Number: 87
Registered: Jan-05
Yamaha says it does.
 

New member
Username: Rinflux

MA

Post Number: 2
Registered: Feb-05
Where do they say that? I've checked the available references on the web and can't find anything that claims HDCD decoding or any reference to what kind of HDCD decoder it uses. I'll probably get the C750 anyway and continue using my Denon CD-changer for HDCD disks, but it would be nice to have just one changer, for simplicity's sake.
 

Silver Member
Username: Smitty

Canada

Post Number: 179
Registered: Dec-03
Rich,

When playing an HDCD the on-screen display shows 'HDCD' and when playing regular CDs it shows 'CD'. This is the only bit of information I have that leads me to believe it plays HDCD, I haven't seen it mentioned in the manual or anywhere else.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Shokhead

Lakewood, CA USA

Post Number: 93
Registered: Jan-05
Hows this,i had a 750 and got NY greatest hits in hdcd and it worked.
 

New member
Username: Rinflux

MA

Post Number: 3
Registered: Feb-05
Smitty,

Thanks for the information. At least the C750 recognizes HDCD disks. Whether it decodes the HDCD layer is another matter, I guess I'll just have to get the thing home and see if I can hear the difference. My guess is, if it had an HDCD decoder, Yamaha would mention it.

There's a lot of information regarding HDCD at www.hdcd.com. One of the interesting things is that the technology is now owned by Microsoft, which means that the licensing and certification process for OEM's is both rigorous and byzantine. Also, the site does not list Yamaha as one of the HDCD manufacturers, but that just may mean that the list is not up-to-date.

Anyway, as I said, I'll probably pick it up anyway and if it doesn't decode HDCD, I'll just keep my Denon DCM-380 for that purpose.

DS: HDCD disks are backwards-compatible. This means that if you put an HDCD disk in a non-HDCD player, it will play as a normal CD, but you won't hear the HDCD-enhanced layer.
 

Silver Member
Username: Shokhead

Lakewood, CA USA

Post Number: 103
Registered: Jan-05
I know that,it plays in my car fine,thanks. You know you can still play DVD-A on a non DVD-A player. Why? Because its also DD or DTS sometimes. You wont need to worry about that as the 750 plays everything. Also,i'll tell ya whats way better then HDCD and imo,darn near as good as DVD-A and SACD is DTS music disc's.www.dtsonline.com
 

Silver Member
Username: Smitty

Canada

Post Number: 181
Registered: Dec-03
Microsoft...great ;)

So, I'm curious on how obvious this difference is, do you have a regular CD that you compare to?
 

Silver Member
Username: Shokhead

Lakewood, CA USA

Post Number: 109
Registered: Jan-05
Cant compare a cd to it. Cleaner with great bass and you getting it from all your speakers like DVD-A and SACD. One reason it sounds so good,imo is the reciever's better bass management,better compared to dvd players. Quite a few of the DVD-A disc also will have DTS.
 

New member
Username: Zibawal

Post Number: 2
Registered: May-05
Did any one get C950 Yamaha yet? What is your opinion? can you make it region free?
 

Unregistered guest
Did anybody get the C950? Does it do HDCD too?

Apparantly you can make the C950 region free the same way you can make the C750 region free.

Anybody know if the C750 has the chroma bug (CUE) or if the C950 has the chroma bug on component out? I know the faroudja chip masks it on the HDMI output.

Also, I guess you only get 720p and 1080i via HDMI and not via component?
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