[Eagle_Driver]

My home CDP, a nine-year-old low-end Sony CDP-C265 five-disc carousel, is growing long on the tooth. And it sometimes fails to read some comercially-pressed CDs. I am thinking about replacing it with a decent lower-end budget player. My current price cap is about $200 plus tax and/or shipping.

Right now, I am torn between a Sony SCD-CE595 audio-only 5-disc SACD/CD carousel changer for $149.99 (only $20 more than a comparable Redbook-only Sony CDP-CE375 carousel changer) and a Samsung HD841 single-disc universal player for $199.99. Unfortunately, my main TV set is only a tiny 13-incher, and my main home audio system is 2-channel stereo-only.

Given that I hardly watch any movies or videos at all, which should I choose?

Please feel free to offer suggestions.

Randall

 

[soundboy]

If you are going to use the player for audio, I highly recommend the CE595. It's a very good SACD player and not bad at all on CD either. Here's a very long thread on the CE595.

Do you want an universal player? Or a DVD/SACD player? Another alternative is Sony 's new single disc SACD/DVD player. I don't remember the model number but it's available at Best Buy for $130.00.

Otherwise, there're the inexpensive uni players from Toshiba, Samsung, and Pioneer.

 

[saxphile]

Pioneer DV-578A-S might be another option for you. It's $150 from Amazon . It's a good player for the money.

 

[Welly Wu]

Eagle_Driver:

At this time, I would have to say that you should keep two things in mind. First, picking one hi-rez format over the other one is playing Russian Roulette because there are so many different factors to consider. Both DVD-Audio and SA-CD have been out on the market for nearly an entire decade (or the better part of it) and they have not caught the interest of the mainstream public as of yet. To entice more consumers into hi-rez and copy protected music, SONY and Phillips are coming out with SA-CS2CD which will incorporate Red Book CD, SA-CD, and DVD-Video onto one side of a double layered disc. The other major four record labels are countering with DualDisc which is a double-sided and double layered DVD-9 disc combining both Red Book CD and DVD-Audio/Video. Second, I would urge you to consider getting a universal DVD player because it will enable you to play virtually all 12cm optical discs and it will let you choose which format you prefer based on the content of the music rather than the format onto which it is recorded.

I don't mean to sound like a snob, but I highly doubt you will hear much of a difference between an audio only and universal DVD player priced under $200 USD MSRP. However, you will notice a big difference in the long run when you can enjoy just browsing through your favorite record shop and buying virtually any 12cm optical disc without worrying over whether it will play or not on your digital source component.

Choose the universal DVD player -- the Samsung HD-841. It will probably save you money in the long run from the standpoint of giving you the ability to enjoy the full entertainment value of any 12cm optical disc and you can build a nice digital system around it because it is so darn flexible.

 

[Eagle_Driver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by saxphile Pioneer DV-578A-S might be another option for you. It's $150 from Amazon . It's a good player for the money.

I didn't give any serious consideration to that player - because I have read a report (unconfirmed) that the DV-578A-S actually isn't true DSD as far as SACD playback is concerned (it resamples DSD signals to 88.2/24 PCM). Nor does it play back DVD-A discs in true hi-res sound (all "protected" DVD-A's get downsampled to 48kHz).

 

[Welly Wu]

That's right!

 

[Sovkiller]

I ordered a DVP-NC685V universal player, for 180.00...I will let you know how it performs against my oldies....if you want to wait....I'm not expecting anything really fancy, but at least better than others I have tried for around this price.....

 

[soundboy]

Quote:

DVP-NC685V

Isn't that a Sony? Sony wouldn't support DVD-A.

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soundboy Isn't that a Sony? Sony wouldn't support DVD-A.

Well, he never asked for a DVD-A player. Just for curiosity, as I love music (not sound) how many DVD-A are there in the market already released? Or how many do I have? I have absolutelly none, and the last time I checked on stores, there was about 50 titles or even less, and none of them were anything really similar ot what I liked, so what do I want DVD-A capability for, just ot say it has it....

 

[bundee1]

Yeah but you stated that particular Sony is a Universal player which implies DVD-A playback. Take a look around your local BestBuy and look for closeout Pioneer 563's for around $100.

 

[Welly Wu]

That would be a wise investment. You would get a tremendous bang for your buck return in the Pioneer DV-563A universal DVD player for well under $100 USD.

 

[Puddleglum]

Has anyone reviewed the Samsung HD-841? Price wise that's perfect, but is it better than the 563a, despite it's price?

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bundee1 Yeah but you stated that particular Sony is a Universal player which implies DVD-A playback. Take a look around your local BestBuy and look for closeout Pioneer 563's for around $100.

Most universal players, do not playback DVD-A....

 

[jpelg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sovkiller Most universal players, do not playback DVD-A

Isn't that (part of) the implied definition of a "universal" player?

 

[ted_b]

Sovkiller,
C'mon, with 5000+ posts you especially should know that the term "universal player" means that it will play back cd, sacd, dvd-a and dvd-v. ALL universal players play back dvd-a, or they are just another SACD or SACD/DVD-v player (like my modded 999ES; a tremendous SACD/redbook player due to the mods, but not dvd-a...I use another deck for that. It plays DVD-v's, but I use another deck for that, too)

Personally I'm not a big universal player fan cuz I don't want one machine or one component being a jack-of-all-trades, especially if it breaks down. But I understand the appeal.

ted_b