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Proud new Rotel RCD-855 owner... - Page 2

post #16 of 37
2/26/06 at 10:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by fewtch

What am I gonna do when the Olympics closing ceremonies start at 7:00 tonight... maybe I'll listen to music and just watch the picture on the TV set .
Tivo
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post #17 of 37
2/26/06 at 10:15pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Teerawit
Tivo
Heh, with the money drain from audio stuff, who the heck can afford Tivo?

This player is turning out to be a real revelation to my ears. I noticed Stereophile mentions it on their website several times as a high end player... my first taste of really high end sound (albeit entry level), it's like candy to my ears after decades of cheap sources. Can't say enough good things about what I'm hearing from this CDP. Even my crappier recordings sound much better.
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post #18 of 37
2/26/06 at 10:15pm
Wow, good find there! Certainly much easier and quicker than modding your Toshiba, and looks much better to boot.

Quote:
Originally Posted by fewtch
What am I gonna do when the Olympics closing ceremonies start at 7:00 tonight... maybe I'll listen to music and just watch the picture on the TV set .
Now you're talkin' my style!
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post #19 of 37
2/26/06 at 10:31pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Iron_Dreamer
Wow, good find there! Certainly much easier and quicker than modding your Toshiba, and looks much better to boot.
Should last longer too, even though the Toshiba was made in late '05 and the Rotel probably in '91.

Quote:
Now you're talkin' my style!
First source I've ever owned that makes me want to never take off my headphones. And right away too, no "getting used to" the sonic signature like I usually have to do with cheaper sources before I can enjoy them. I really had no idea that a source could make this much difference... I thought even with better sources the improvements would be more subtle. This is just effortless ear candy I'm hearing.

Edit -- some reviews, for those now contemplating finding one of these:

http://www.audioreview.com/cat/digit...9_1586crx.aspx

Now that I've heard it a bit more, I'm noticing that the soundstage isn't as wide as the Toshiba SD-3980... I attribute this to having an older DAC. Dynamics are good, but could be better. Also, it's a little bit light on bass and (as previously stated) lacks the resolution of newer DACs. Otherwise, no complaints. So musical and smooth on top, what more can you ask from a CDP.
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post #20 of 37
2/26/06 at 11:23pm
I still have my 955 and I am not selling it any time soon. I am not sure if they use blackgates, but they do use high quality components in their older stuff. I believe the 855 and 955 are very similar and use the same DAC (TDA1541A) as the Scott Nixon Dac. The 955 is just more fancier in the buttons.

The only problem with the 955 and the 855's is that they sometimes have drawer issues. My drawer slides back in after it opens, unless I stop it. I had an 855 that always produced an error, and it had to do with the stackup of how the drawer mounted to the circuit board.

Here is a link to 855 threads in DIYaudio forums.

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/searc...der=descending

Enjoy your new CD player!
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post #21 of 37
2/27/06 at 12:50am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by meat01
Here is a link to 855 threads in DIYaudio forums.

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/searc...der=descending

Enjoy your new CD player!
Thanks... very interesting links. As expected, the DIYers there feel that the 855 doesn't sound good unless it's modded . Gee, people believing that modding is necessary, on a board for modders... amazing. What will they think of next!

The mod to remove the muting transistors looks interesting, but I like the muting effect when the player is turned on/off so I probably won't do it. And I certainly would not do anything that might "improve" this player while screwing with its amazing musicality. Rotel achieved a delicate balance here, and I'm not going to futz around with it. Very much a sound that one could listen to for hours without fatigue (the player's strongest point IMO).

I did pick up a useful tip in case the laser tracking needs tuning sometime in the future (trim pot), but I hope it won't be necessary.. this player is in amazing condition for a piece of vintage gear and appears to be working like it was new.

I'm so happy with this purchase ... $500-$1000 worth of sound for $100, nothing turns my crank like finding a near giant-killer for peanuts.
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post #22 of 37
2/27/06 at 12:54am
Wow... Nice find. Talk about rapid upgrade ascent. Fom PCDP to Toshiba to Rotel.

Thanks for the impressions too.

Garrett
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post #23 of 37
2/27/06 at 1:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by fewtch
Wow, what a day this has been so far... Earlier this morning, I saw a listing on Audiogon for a Rotel RCD-855 (sans remote) for $105. I happened to have an extra $100 burning a hole in my wallet, and the seller lives in Seattle, so guess what... two hours after contacting the seller, I'm listening to some sweet music on the Rotel!
Did the seller remove the ad? I did not see any listing, sold or otherwise, at Audiogon.
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post #24 of 37
2/27/06 at 1:05am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by kramer5150
Wow... Nice find. Talk about rapid upgrade ascent. Fom PCDP to Toshiba to Rotel.

Thanks for the impressions too.

Garrett
My pleasure...

Yep, I've been tossing money around on sources, trying to find the right one that won't bust my wallet. This seems to me like a good stopping point.

It's really strange -- the Toshiba SD-3980 is better than the Rotel as far as resolution, soundstage width, dynamics and frequency extension on both ends. Yet I could sit there and yawn myself to tears listening to it, while the Rotel draws me deeply into the music and I just can't stop listening.

Quote:
Originally Posted by replytoken
Did the seller remove the ad? I did not see any listing, sold or otherwise, at Audiogon.
Yes, he removed it... dunno why, maybe to prevent mistaken Emails asking if it was still available. Fwiw, I bought it from this guy.
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post #25 of 37
2/27/06 at 1:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by fewtch

Yes, he removed it... dunno why, maybe to prevent mistaken Emails asking if it was still available. Fwiw, I bought it from this guy.
Thanks for the link. Being local, I was just wondering if he had anything else for sale that might interest me. All the best on the Rotel!
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post #26 of 37
2/27/06 at 2:25pm
Congratulations on your purchase Some years ago, I had a Rotel transport of similar vintage, and it was wonderful...happy listening
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post #27 of 37
2/27/06 at 7:22pm
Thread Starter 
I've had another day to evaluate this source, and must say I'm very impressed. The player has a vivid, rich tonality with more "there-ness" to the notes (as silly as that sounds).

An analogy to a picture would be taking a nice nature photograph and turning up the contrast and color saturation two notches, while turning the brightness down a notch. It's really a gorgeously rich sounding player, and even sounds a lot better (than Toshiba SD-3980) with my Portapro2 headphones. Couldn't be happier, I really lucked out finding a sound I genuinely like.
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post #28 of 37
3/1/06 at 10:13pm
Good find. I have an RCD-855 that I bought new probably back in '89 or '90 that I still use as my main deck. This deck was a Stereophile bang-for-the-buck recommended component back then... Corey Greenberg used to rave about it when he wrote for Stereophile, and is probably the product that put Rotel on the map.

I have slightly modified mine with UF diodes in the two bridge rectifiers (which I am going to change to 11DQ10 Schottkys pretty soon), and socketed the opamps (have used LM6172s and AD826s in it). Yes it does have BlackGate output coupling caps (it would be better with NO coupling caps but for some reason the DC offset is ~3.3V with 0V on the input of the opamps from the DAC.) And no, the opamps are not oscillating... it is the same with the stock NE5532s. This deck uses the TDA1541 DAC, typical Philips-based design done right for the time.

I'm not sure that I would go for removing the muting transistors (the signal doesn't actually run thru them... the transistors just short the output to ground, so I'm not convinced that these are sonically a problem). The non-OS mod is probably also a no-go, but I'm going to look into that and possibly the advisability of something like a Tent or Kwak clock.

BTW, I have the service manual w/schematics if you want an electronic copy. You can get this right from Rotel also for free (just email them).

Enjoy!
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post #29 of 37
3/1/06 at 10:48pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pars
Good find. I have an RCD-855 that I bought new probably back in '89 or '90 that I still use as my main deck. This deck was a Stereophile bang-for-the-buck recommended component back then... Corey Greenberg used to rave about it when he wrote for Stereophile, and is probably the product that put Rotel on the map.
I figured as much, after googling for info about the player. It's interesting that the 855 really doesn't compare to my unmodded Toshiba SD-3980 DVD player in any specific way... the Toshiba (with its newer DAC) has better soundstaging, bass extension and resolution. The Rotel is so much more musical though... I find myself just forgetting about the stupid "audiophile" characteristics and getting into the music... to me, that's what it's all about.

Quote:
I have slightly modified mine with UF diodes in the two bridge rectifiers (which I am going to change to 11DQ10 Schottkys pretty soon), and socketed the opamps (have used LM6172s and AD826s in it).
Wish I was a little handier with a soldering iron. I've always liked the sound of NE5532 opamps though, so no complaints there... they seem very neutral/organic to my ears.

Quote:
Yes it does have BlackGate output coupling caps (it would be better with NO coupling caps but for some reason the DC offset is ~3.3V with 0V on the input of the opamps from the DAC.) And no, the opamps are not oscillating... it is the same with the stock NE5532s. This deck uses the TDA1541 DAC, typical Philips-based design done right for the time.

I'm not sure that I would go for removing the muting transistors (the signal doesn't actually run thru them... the transistors just short the output to ground, so I'm not convinced that these are sonically a problem). The non-OS mod is probably also a no-go, but I'm going to look into that and possibly the advisability of something like a Tent or Kwak clock.

BTW, I have the service manual w/schematics if you want an electronic copy. You can get this right from Rotel also for free (just email them).

Enjoy!
Thanks for the info... I would indeed like an electronic copy of the service manual, if you could drop me an Email I'll reply, then you'll have my address to attach a copy with your standard Email proggie. Gracias!
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post #30 of 37
3/2/06 at 11:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pars
Good find. I have an RCD-855 that I bought new probably back in '89 or '90 ...and is probably the product that put Rotel on the map.
It is a great CD player but Rotel were already known as a semi serious manufacturer especially for amps. It was the iconic RA820 range of amps from 1984 onwards that did it. It was the combination of affordable minimalist design (straight wire with gain) and tuning by European engineers that made these amps popular when most Japanese manufacturers were working out how to get even more swithes, lights and filters onto their amps.
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