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SONY S,A vs. SONY X - digital amp

post #1 of 40
10/21/09 at 4:49pm
Thread Starter 
Hi!

I bet many would like to hear opinions about the SONY X's digital amp vs. the SONY S,A analog amp. Does the SONY X sounds better for $400. How much better if that's the case? It would be nice to avoid the "I shelled out $400 so I must justify the difference" phenomenon. So? Anyone tested both with two good ears? What is your experience? Thank you.
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post #2 of 40
10/21/09 at 7:39pm
I've owned the A729 and now have the X Walkman. The A729 to my ears was severely lacking in the bass department with no sound effects enabled. It also had grainy mids when coupled with the AD700. The X Walkman meanwhile has a more distinct low end and exudes less grain. It's also more natural sounding while exuding a smoother signature. To me, it was a worthwhile upgrade.
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post #3 of 40
10/22/09 at 12:13am
I have both, but I don't have good ears, so I guess you are on your own, chief.
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post #4 of 40
10/22/09 at 12:56am
I have only heard the Sony X on occasions with good earphones, but in a noisy place. It is an excellent sounding player, but not a huge upgrade over the market. If you find the actual bass output lower on the A729 (which should be powered by the same amp as my 829), then the new X should disappoint. It isn't as able to drive headphones for bass resolution. It may have more boom however, but the older sony's do a bit better for resolution.

As noted, however, the older Sony's no matter how close they sound to the new one, are a bit more grainy, but that is really nitpicking.
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post #5 of 40
10/22/09 at 1:14am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by estreeter View Post
I have both, but I don't have good ears, so I guess you are on your own, chief.
Thank you for your contribution. Don't worry about those ears, you aren't on your own!
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post #6 of 40
10/23/09 at 9:24am
I used to have the A808, now I've the X1060.
The difference is not night and day, both players sharing the Sony sound signature I love, but the X sounds more organic and more musical, less edgy/digital, the best DAP I even heart for sure, I absolutely love its SQ!
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post #7 of 40
10/23/09 at 10:55am
i have the x and i like the way it sounds. but i am a basshead but it seems my nano + icon is clearer than the x. maybe its just me.
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post #8 of 40
10/23/09 at 11:26am
I think the biggest advantage to the digital amp is that it requires less power.
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post #9 of 40
10/23/09 at 11:53am
i prefer x1k sound over S n A
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post #10 of 40
10/23/09 at 3:14pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by lamewing View Post
I think the biggest advantage to the digital amp is that it requires less power.
Nice! It makes sense! And the biggest advantage (?) of the X is the touch screen, wifi and the sort of "useless" DAP features. I mean sound wise the X has no more feature than the S,A series, now does it?
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post #11 of 40
10/23/09 at 6:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack Mono View Post
Nice! It makes sense! And the biggest advantage (?) of the X is the touch screen, wifi and the sort of "useless" DAP features. I mean sound wise the X has no more feature than the S,A series, now does it?
Not sure where you are going with this. the same useless DAP features you are mentioning are on A,S and X series. I have both A729 and Sony X. Agreed Wifi and browser are a gimmick on Sony ( IMO they are a gimmick on any DAP), but sound wise Sony X blows Sony A out of water. Initially i couldn't tell much difference but as player has opened up i can barely listen to Sony A. However if the argument is it worth that kind of money .. it depends on how picky listener you are. IMO it is worth every penny .. Also touch GUI is blazing fast and i can navigate my huge collection much faster than i could on A series

PC
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post #12 of 40
10/23/09 at 11:36pm
animalsrush-
Agreed on the convenience of the touch screen for navigating the music collection... it does make it very quick to go to exactly what artist you want. I also like the letter swipe feature at the top. If I know I want to listen to the White Stripes, a quick breeze across to W, and I'm right there. It's so nice. I think these things alone make the touch screen worth it!
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post #13 of 40
10/24/09 at 10:33pm
is there any hardware differences between this two players？who has opened these palyers and saw the chips they use？upload the pics
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post #14 of 40
10/25/09 at 12:23am
Thread Starter 
The problem is that I included the SONY A in the original post. It should be more like the SONY S vs. SONY X. I was pointed out in many posts that the SONY A isn't up to the SONY X, however the S series really gives it a run for its money. (I only heard the S series, so I have no way to compare these players, that is why I started the post). The only DAP I have seen where wifi is not a gimmick is the Touch.
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post #15 of 40
10/25/09 at 2:07am
Hi,i'd already just got the Sony A829.But extensively looked through loads & loads of threads & posts on here(& other forums a bit).Regards sound quality of 'A' or 'S',you can find Fanboys of both,diff of opinion even from peeps who have or have had both.To be honest both get good opinions regards sound quality,from peeps who had or have had both,the 'A' seemed to just get the edge.But its prob more do you want a Radio,or do you want Bluetooth.
Sold A829 to the brotherinlaw(listened to it & he had to have it ,BT HPhones will suit him also,& they are pretty good).So got a 'X',only done it a couple of times for short listen,when visting my sister/brotherinlaw,but initial impression when i plugged my FX500's into the A829,sound certainly didn't sound as good as the 'X'.Sony 'X' just seems to have that little bit more,well at least on a listening to the 'X',then a quick swap to the A829 for a short listen,more a impression really than a full comparison thou .So nothing conclusive.


Cheers BOB
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