DAC Differences
On Monday, December 3, 2012 7:51:08 PM UTC-8, Arny Krueger wrote:
"Audio_Empire" wrote in message
...
Since my opinion of the CDP-101 is essentially the same as yours, and
since someone else also made a similar observation about the CDP-101's
sound and add to that the fact that it was reviewed by several magazines
at the time as being of an audio quality that did not bode well for the
future of CD as an audiophile format, I'd say that the preponderance of
evidence suggests that the Sony CDP-101 was not a very good-sounding
player. I'm not sure what it says about the two posters to this NG who
insist that the CDP-101 sounds fine.
It says that at least one of them actually tested it in accordance with the
formal definition of a test, which means a dreict comparision to a reliable
standard. My comparisons involved comparison to the source file that was
used to burn the CD being listened to via the CDP 101.
Unfortunately, if one tests the wrongs things, then a device that measured well can still sound bad.
FWIW the DBTs that were published in Stereo Review agree with me. To the
best of my knowlege every other review ever published was based on sighted
evaluations.
I can tell you that I listened to a CDP-101 for several weeks before rejecting it. My comment to friends at the time was that if this is what we have to look forward to with Compact Disc, then I'd stick to LP. Luckily a week or so later I heard the same CDs played on a Magnavox CD-100 and T remember that my opinion flipped almost 180 degrees. Where the Sony was harsh and ugly sounding, the little Magnavox was sweet and clean. I still have that little player and it still works and it still sounds OK.
There was a lot of hysteria about digital when CD players first came out,
Oh, yes. I clearly remember a lament from a reader published in "The Absolute Sound" where he was bemoaning that digital had ruined recorded music. (you could almost feel the man's tears) and that to him CD sounded like a "cartoon" image of the music. Good thing most people didn't pay any attention to opinions of this type. And CD did improve vastly in the medium's first 5 years.
some of which is yet to be dispelled.
I dunno, I don't see that kind of rejection of CD at all any more.
Audio_Empire
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