[kelly]

Kubernetes
Thanks but the G-Protection needs to be able to be turned off completely even in battery mode for it to be a consideration given what aos said above.

dparrish
Thanks, I'll see what kind of deals I can get on that one. Yes, I am potentially going to use a portable DAC in my portable system but nothing definite yet. I just wanted to get an idea of what my options were.

 

[kelly]

Quote:

Originally posted by dparrish G protection CAN be turned off on the D-EJ1000. I got mine new from J&R for 169.00.

I gave in at Fry's last night and picked one up. The G protection CANNOT be turned off. It can be set to compressed or uncompressed, but not off. For that reason, I may take this one back to Fry's. (I admitedly only bought from Fry's so I could return it if it wasn't perfect for my needs -- their price was $199.95.)

Still looking for that piece of info on the EJ01. From my memory (which is rather imperfect by this point), it seems that the EJ01 sounded better than the EJ1000 from the analog output. The 1000 has a bit of a grainy quality in the treble and a slightly boomy bass (with bass boost OFF). I recall thinking the EJ01 was a smoother sounding CD player, but I'd only heard it once and that was last March.

My qualifications:
Must have GOOD quality OPTICAL output.
Must have ability to turn skip protection OFF.
Must be of good quality/not damage CDs.
Must have active optical out in either battery or wall wart mode.
Would be nice: good sound from ANALOG LINE OUT.
Don't care at all about: quality/voltage of headphone jack. Unit will be used exclusively with an outboard headphone amp.

Thanks for the help, guys.

 

[zzz]

Quote:

Originally posted by kelly The G protection CANNOT be turned off. It can be set to compressed or uncompressed, but not off. For that reason, I may take this one back to Fry's.

G-protection is a set of techniques of stabilizing the pickup mechanism and reducing the time it takes for laser to sync back after a bump. It's not a `let's stick a large buffer on it` sort of protection and you don't want to (and for all I know, can't) disable that. If having the ability to make the player skip is a matter of principle, Sony's newer models are not for you.

Quote:

Originally posted by kelly My qualifications: Must have GOOD quality OPTICAL output. Must have ability to turn skip protection OFF. Must be of good quality/not damage CDs. Must have active optical out in either battery or wall wart mode. Would be nice: good sound from ANALOG LINE OUT. Don't care at all about: quality/voltage of headphone jack. Unit will be used exclusively with an outboard headphone amp.

I can only talk about the models that were available last year because that's when I purchased my PCDP. Basically, I came to a London Drugs (chain of stores in BC/Alberta) that had an electronics department and listened to all the PCDPs they carried with line-outs with whatever I had at the time (TA and HD600). I decided that EJ-725 was by far the best. However, since at the time I wanted to buy a RioVolt, I later repeated this experiment in a store with a larger selection. Unfortunately, my Sony (which I didn't want to like) remained the best and I kept it.

I have no idea what its optical output quality is. I suppose I'll find that out this winter. aos uses the same player, he can tell you more about it. I didn't notice it damaging my CDs. I did notice CaseLogic carrying cases doing that though.

Phone out is so-so.

 

[dparrish]

Kelly,

Have you listened to the D-EJ1000 through the line out yet?
I've been very impressed with it going out to my Cosmic (analog out).

I'm afraid I don't understand your analysis of the D-EJs sound as "grainy in the treble" and boomy bass. Compared to what? Listening with what?

I find the J1000's sound to be VERY smooth overall listening with Ety ER4S either through the heaphone out or through the line out with Cosmic. I agree with Eagle_Driver though, that the heaphone out sound is a bit rolled off in the highs and not as "clean sounding" as the Panasonic PCDPs. The only boominess I hear is when engaging the bass sound emphasis (which DOES make it sound boomy, especially compared to Panansonic's "Xbass" or whatever they call it). And, of course, you can't listen through the headphone out at a very loud level without clipping the amp.

I realize this player isn't audiophile quality, but I've listened to quite a few players recently from Panasonic, Sony, Iriver, Audiovox, JVC, etc., and I think to get any better than this you're in for a long and probably fruitless search. If you want to play MP3s as well as CDs, the new Iriver IMP-400 has an EXCELLENT heaphone out (the best BY FAR of any currently-available player I've heard), but I don't gather that is your main plan of usage (I'm guessing you want primarily a good line out). But the Iriver units don't have a true line out. Neither do the Panasonic units, according to Eagle_Driver (doesn't bypass the opamp). It would seem the Sony units are the best present choice in this regard, and I've seen a number of posts saying the D-EJ1000s line out to be excellent compared to older Sony units. Plus, you have the Sony DACS, which are typically among the best of mass-produced units. My guess would be that to get anything significantly better you'd have to find a vintage Sony (as you've mentioned above).

Having had both a Sony D-5 and a JVC XL-P80 (I still have the JVC and it works great), I can say that the D-EJ1000's line out isn't as good as the D-5, but is at least as good as the JVCs (which is very excellent), plus it has VERY long battery life and doesn't skip when I'm on the road in the car or walking (which both of the other players did/do).

Regarding the G-protection, I really don't hear any sound degradation with it being set to the "1" position. And having done quite a search myself for one without some sort of anti-skip or the ability to turn it off completely, such an animal no longer exists to purchase new, so far as I can tell. And, quite frankly, as long as there is an "uncompressed" choice/option, I'd rather have that than no protection at all. I don't really want to hear skipping while using the player in the car or while walking. I bought a CHEAP Audiovox player a year ago (no longer available) which has an option to turn the skip completely off, but the player sounds very grainy and the DACs are cheap sounding.

Of course, only you know in exactly what application you'll be using the player, and it must fit YOUR needs. But I have a feeling that you're going to have a VERY tough time finding anything much better. If you do, please let me know. I'm interested