This player is in good cosmetic condition and in great mechanical and functional condition. Boy, Duncan is not lying about the headphone amp on this beast...it is one of the most powerful that I have ever hear in any CD player...portable or not! This sale includes the CD player and the docking station which has the RCA line out and wall plug. The D5 really made my A900LTD's sing like it never has before. I am starting to OD on PCDP's so it is time for me to unload this classic. Looking for offers...let's hear em people!
Here are some photos (Sorry they're so bad...I'm quite a lousy photographer):
Just to save you some work...here is probably the most definitive review on the D5 on headfi. Thanks Duncan!
The Early Years ~ 1984 - 1990
Sony D5 (D50 in Europe and the Far East) (Manufactured 1984)
This isn't technically a Discman, Sony hadn't invented the name 'Discman' at that time... This is Sony’s second ever commercially available player, after the CDP-101 full sized unit, and came in at around $450 way back in 1984... It’s built like a tank, being about as square as a CD jewel case, but being about four deep.
Technically, it is portable, if you have the battery pack to fit onto the back (used 4 'C Cell' batteries, which would last about 2 hours) but the unit has no internal battery (so its either use the additional battery pack, or docking station with wall wart), no shock protection of any description, no sound EQ settings whatsoever, and you can only fast forward / rewind through a track, by changing the mode of the player from ‘AMS’ to ‘Search’... this unit really is a bare bones player from a technical point of view, but we mustn't forget that this was only Sony's first ever venture into making CD players smaller...
Button layout is very minimal, as is the display on the unit, although you can find out how much CD playtime is left by holding down a 'Remain' button, which for its day is a pretty cool feature... apart from that button count is very limited, with Play / Pause, < & > (Track Skip), Stop, and 'Mode' which has some very basic programming options...
Its greatest asset to me, is the amount of volume this unit can push out... I don't have any proper measurements, but it can go louder (if you're insane enough to do the same) than my META42 portable amp!
On the downside though, this players motor (and accompanying wall wart) run very hot with prolonged use, I would strongly advise for this player to be used on a hard surface (table top) rather than say... a bed, just to avoid any potential melt-downs
Power Requirements:
Internal Battery: Not Applicable
External Battery: 4 x C Cell batteries
Mains Power: 9v docking station (9v jack, centre negative)
Main Features
Headphone out power : Undetermined, but VERY loud.
Volume Control: Analogue, rotary
Line Out Options : 3.5mm jack plug if not using docking station, else RCA jacks
Bass Boost: Non Applicable
Disc Retaining method: Overhead Clamp (in the lid)
MultiBit DAC (Brick Wall Filter)
Current Availability: Limited to die-hard fans here on head-fi, and EBay ~ finding a fully working unit is getting harder to do, purely for the age of them - Expect to pay between $50 ~ $100 for a good condition unit
Headphone Output
Wow! - That was the first word that entered my head when I heard this unit a week ago... Something so old shouldn't sound so good, what with old-school DACs, and original lasers (that if you even breathed on them, they broke) and the like... Using the D66 Eggos is a pure revelation!
In operation, this unit is perfectly silent, what you hear is literally what is on the CD, there are no added artefacts like volume hiss, or being able to hear the unit processing commands (a series of squeals and pops can be heard on some units, when you press a button) ~ It appears that Sony were really out to impress with this unit, and eighteen, maybe even nineteen years on, they've done just that... with me!
Listening to S-Club 7s 'Reach', there is a nice punchy bass, with instruments placed on top with a seemingly incredible amount of separation, and clarity... and the vocals, Hmm Hmm, these little Eggos really do sound like full sized 'phones, this is one incredibly deceiving unit!
Moving to a much slower track, Tori Amos 'In Your Cloud', the instruments are placed deliciously around the headspace, you really do get the impression that Tori is stood in front of the other band members, with some of them stage left, and with the piano being closer, and to the right, and her vocals are so sultry... again, these little Eggos are showing themselves as true, full sized headphones in a small package... true, Tori's vocals aren't the last word in ultimate realism, but that improves dramatically when going up to the Sony CD1700s, so to me is more of a deficiency of the D66 than of the D50 player
Finally, moving to 'More Music From The Motion Picture Gladiator', Track 4, Homecoming... I'm at a total loss for words, this really isn't supposed to sound this good! - huge grinding bass notes replayed with impact, and yet at the same time delicacy, guitars that are plucked but with an air that is more appropriate for a full sized player... The movie inserts aren't of the best sound quality, but I think that could be mastering quality rather than playback, as the music around them sounds very clear, punchy, and concise... also, this is the only player that I’ve heard so far that can reproduce the crescendo at 3:05 cleanly through the headphone out!
Other members here have commented that this player has a bright treble, I must confess that there is a subtle hint of sibilance on certain tracks (seemingly, more often than not modern 'pop' songs), but that is certainly not enough to detract from the unit, and other instruments appear to be in place, and not splashy ~ on this brief comparison, the S-Club song did exhibit small traces of sibilance, whereas neither Gladiator, or Tori did... So I put the perceived brightness down to recording quality (or lack of it) but what people are hearing with this player is treble extension... something completely different, and highly sort after!
Line Out Output
The first thing that must be noted with the D5, before any ‘review’ gets underway is that it has a much louder output (read that as full sized unit level) than any of the other Discmen here
If the D50 is starting out how the line out comparison means to go on, then I’m highly impressed already! The bouncy S-Club 7 tune has a perfect weight to the bass, sounding amazingly controlled, the midrange, whilst certainly not being classed as rich ~ I would say is well defined, and above all accurate, the vocals do not offend in any way, and the treble is well in check, sounding sparkling, and clean... Separation isn't as good as through the D311s headphone output, but it is certainly acceptable enough, placing instruments in their place with ease, its just that very final "I can hear every instrument separately" factor that is missing, but apart from that, a highly enjoyable listen, one that I'm glad to have had the chance to do...
Tori's voice sounds totally captivating through the D50s line out, closing your eyes, you can imagine the sultry songstress to be placed about three feet in front of you, singing her ballad - especially the last word she sings... "Cloooooud", oh wow, that’s good! with the piano player just behind her, the soundstage seems much improved on this track than on the S-Club one, positioning is far improved (CD mastering quality issues??)... The bass is once again kept in check nicely, making this a nice warm listen... Age does not hold this player back, easily to my ears competing with my full sized, current spec CDP-XE570 deck, non-fatiguing is how I’d describe the sound... maybe not the last word in speed, but it is so delicate, so smooth... how could you want for more?
The first word that hits me when once again, when listening to the Gladiator sound track is 'Clarity', the bass notes sound superbly crisp, and detailed, in actual fact, that’s wrong, the whole frequency range is crystal clear, there is none of the 'exaggerated treble' that is sometimes apparent through the headphone output, even though this player is as old as they get, it is astounding me with its clarity, depth, soundstage, speed... This player really must have been groundbreaking in its day, seeing that even now, it still does not sound out of place when driving modern headphones, and a modern amplifier... If you want aggression, and attack out of your sound, this probably isn't the player for you, but if you want amazing clarity, with a superb quality bass... I heartily recommend this unit!
Personal Rating
Headphone Output :
*****
Line Output :
*****
Build Quality :
*****
Portability :
*****
Overall Rating :
*****
Only the occasionally noted grainy treble through the headphone out, and the complete lack of portability stops this being a giant killer!
[
Here are some photos (Sorry they're so bad...I'm quite a lousy photographer):
Just to save you some work...here is probably the most definitive review on the D5 on headfi. Thanks Duncan!
The Early Years ~ 1984 - 1990
Sony D5 (D50 in Europe and the Far East) (Manufactured 1984)
This isn't technically a Discman, Sony hadn't invented the name 'Discman' at that time... This is Sony’s second ever commercially available player, after the CDP-101 full sized unit, and came in at around $450 way back in 1984... It’s built like a tank, being about as square as a CD jewel case, but being about four deep.
Technically, it is portable, if you have the battery pack to fit onto the back (used 4 'C Cell' batteries, which would last about 2 hours) but the unit has no internal battery (so its either use the additional battery pack, or docking station with wall wart), no shock protection of any description, no sound EQ settings whatsoever, and you can only fast forward / rewind through a track, by changing the mode of the player from ‘AMS’ to ‘Search’... this unit really is a bare bones player from a technical point of view, but we mustn't forget that this was only Sony's first ever venture into making CD players smaller...
Button layout is very minimal, as is the display on the unit, although you can find out how much CD playtime is left by holding down a 'Remain' button, which for its day is a pretty cool feature... apart from that button count is very limited, with Play / Pause, < & > (Track Skip), Stop, and 'Mode' which has some very basic programming options...
Its greatest asset to me, is the amount of volume this unit can push out... I don't have any proper measurements, but it can go louder (if you're insane enough to do the same) than my META42 portable amp!
On the downside though, this players motor (and accompanying wall wart) run very hot with prolonged use, I would strongly advise for this player to be used on a hard surface (table top) rather than say... a bed, just to avoid any potential melt-downs
Power Requirements:
Internal Battery: Not Applicable
External Battery: 4 x C Cell batteries
Mains Power: 9v docking station (9v jack, centre negative)
Main Features
Headphone out power : Undetermined, but VERY loud.
Volume Control: Analogue, rotary
Line Out Options : 3.5mm jack plug if not using docking station, else RCA jacks
Bass Boost: Non Applicable
Disc Retaining method: Overhead Clamp (in the lid)
MultiBit DAC (Brick Wall Filter)
Current Availability: Limited to die-hard fans here on head-fi, and EBay ~ finding a fully working unit is getting harder to do, purely for the age of them - Expect to pay between $50 ~ $100 for a good condition unit
Headphone Output
Wow! - That was the first word that entered my head when I heard this unit a week ago... Something so old shouldn't sound so good, what with old-school DACs, and original lasers (that if you even breathed on them, they broke) and the like... Using the D66 Eggos is a pure revelation!
In operation, this unit is perfectly silent, what you hear is literally what is on the CD, there are no added artefacts like volume hiss, or being able to hear the unit processing commands (a series of squeals and pops can be heard on some units, when you press a button) ~ It appears that Sony were really out to impress with this unit, and eighteen, maybe even nineteen years on, they've done just that... with me!
Listening to S-Club 7s 'Reach', there is a nice punchy bass, with instruments placed on top with a seemingly incredible amount of separation, and clarity... and the vocals, Hmm Hmm, these little Eggos really do sound like full sized 'phones, this is one incredibly deceiving unit!
Moving to a much slower track, Tori Amos 'In Your Cloud', the instruments are placed deliciously around the headspace, you really do get the impression that Tori is stood in front of the other band members, with some of them stage left, and with the piano being closer, and to the right, and her vocals are so sultry... again, these little Eggos are showing themselves as true, full sized headphones in a small package... true, Tori's vocals aren't the last word in ultimate realism, but that improves dramatically when going up to the Sony CD1700s, so to me is more of a deficiency of the D66 than of the D50 player
Finally, moving to 'More Music From The Motion Picture Gladiator', Track 4, Homecoming... I'm at a total loss for words, this really isn't supposed to sound this good! - huge grinding bass notes replayed with impact, and yet at the same time delicacy, guitars that are plucked but with an air that is more appropriate for a full sized player... The movie inserts aren't of the best sound quality, but I think that could be mastering quality rather than playback, as the music around them sounds very clear, punchy, and concise... also, this is the only player that I’ve heard so far that can reproduce the crescendo at 3:05 cleanly through the headphone out!
Other members here have commented that this player has a bright treble, I must confess that there is a subtle hint of sibilance on certain tracks (seemingly, more often than not modern 'pop' songs), but that is certainly not enough to detract from the unit, and other instruments appear to be in place, and not splashy ~ on this brief comparison, the S-Club song did exhibit small traces of sibilance, whereas neither Gladiator, or Tori did... So I put the perceived brightness down to recording quality (or lack of it) but what people are hearing with this player is treble extension... something completely different, and highly sort after!
Line Out Output
The first thing that must be noted with the D5, before any ‘review’ gets underway is that it has a much louder output (read that as full sized unit level) than any of the other Discmen here
If the D50 is starting out how the line out comparison means to go on, then I’m highly impressed already! The bouncy S-Club 7 tune has a perfect weight to the bass, sounding amazingly controlled, the midrange, whilst certainly not being classed as rich ~ I would say is well defined, and above all accurate, the vocals do not offend in any way, and the treble is well in check, sounding sparkling, and clean... Separation isn't as good as through the D311s headphone output, but it is certainly acceptable enough, placing instruments in their place with ease, its just that very final "I can hear every instrument separately" factor that is missing, but apart from that, a highly enjoyable listen, one that I'm glad to have had the chance to do...
Tori's voice sounds totally captivating through the D50s line out, closing your eyes, you can imagine the sultry songstress to be placed about three feet in front of you, singing her ballad - especially the last word she sings... "Cloooooud", oh wow, that’s good! with the piano player just behind her, the soundstage seems much improved on this track than on the S-Club one, positioning is far improved (CD mastering quality issues??)... The bass is once again kept in check nicely, making this a nice warm listen... Age does not hold this player back, easily to my ears competing with my full sized, current spec CDP-XE570 deck, non-fatiguing is how I’d describe the sound... maybe not the last word in speed, but it is so delicate, so smooth... how could you want for more?
The first word that hits me when once again, when listening to the Gladiator sound track is 'Clarity', the bass notes sound superbly crisp, and detailed, in actual fact, that’s wrong, the whole frequency range is crystal clear, there is none of the 'exaggerated treble' that is sometimes apparent through the headphone output, even though this player is as old as they get, it is astounding me with its clarity, depth, soundstage, speed... This player really must have been groundbreaking in its day, seeing that even now, it still does not sound out of place when driving modern headphones, and a modern amplifier... If you want aggression, and attack out of your sound, this probably isn't the player for you, but if you want amazing clarity, with a superb quality bass... I heartily recommend this unit!
Personal Rating
Headphone Output :
*****
Line Output :
*****
Build Quality :
*****
Portability :
*****
Overall Rating :
*****
Only the occasionally noted grainy treble through the headphone out, and the complete lack of portability stops this being a giant killer!
[
