[hciman77]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sarchi /img/forum/go_quote.gif The funny thing is that of all the people crying foul, not a single one has given any personal experience of actually trying it.

I just cant resist it I am going to buy one on eBay and try it for myself. How do you control CD playback ? - there is no display on the unit itself.

 

[acp6s]

herandu, you make a good point. i'm sure most of the haters here could never hear the difference in a double blind test

 

[kramer5150]

OK... OK....

I have an old PS1 gathering dust in my son's bedroom. I have no idea what "vintage" it is or what it is date coded...etc...

I'll give it a try tonight and post back my findings. I am going into it with an open mind. I have found that audio components don't necessarily need to be "high end" to put a smile on my face. Yet, they do need to portray "some degree " of detail resolution, spectral balance and sonic fidelity.

 

[spritzer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hciman77 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just cant resist it I am going to buy one on eBay and try it for myself. How do you control CD playback ? - there is no display on the unit itself.

You use the wired remote control. Start is play, stop is stop and the L&R buttons are previous/next track and rewind/fast forward. You can also use some of the DVD remotes. I use the PS2 one that was made for the first PS2's as it has a separate receiver.

 

[Sarchi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hciman77 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just cant resist it I am going to buy one on eBay and try it for myself. How do you control CD playback ? - there is no display on the unit itself.

I would check craigslist or yard sales first. eBay seems like more headache than needed.

BTW - I don't like the sound of vintage turntables. (just for the record)

 

[Filburt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sarchi /img/forum/go_quote.gif The funny thing is that of all the people crying foul, not a single one has given any personal experience of actually trying it.

Huh? I have tried it; not that it really demonstrated much beyond what I could have figured out independently. Contrary to popular belief, audio really isn't voodoo, and data coupled with proper analysis is a willing substitute for subjective testing in providing reasonable estimates of performance. People do this routinely when it comes to other aesthetic judgments, such as deciding not to order certain types of foods due to their contents based on experience and reasoned analysis. Audio really isn't much different; it's just the relevant data and proper analysis involved are considerably more esoteric, so it ends up getting considered mysterious, mystical, 'black magic', etc. and thus nothing other than subjective impressions (despite the considerable epistemological problems this presents) are taken seriously by many participants in the hobby. That doesn't mean I think testing is useless; it is implicit in the above statements that it is quite useful. However, I don't think it is always necessary in order to come to reasonable conclusions.

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

The Toshiba SD3950 was considered a 'giant killer' a few years ago. You should be able to get one for well under $50 these days.

 

[joneeboi]

Most of the logic people are using in here is exactly why Bose is the number 1 rated name in audiophilia today.

 

[Marc303]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sarchi /img/forum/go_quote.gif The funny thing is that of all the people crying foul, not a single one has given any personal experience of actually trying it. Ah, well....whatever. To me it sounds about on a par with the Naim CD3.5...not the world's best player, but very smooth, unoffensive, quick, nice sense of PRaT, and decent resolution of detail. Fwiw, I think the priciest cdp I've heard is the 47 PitTracer, my stepdad owned one for a few years. It did not sound like music to me. But yeah I'm an analog guy.

I had one when they first came out plugged into my hifi.

I did try a few times playing audio cd on the psx but it come across as toylike to me. It didnt stand above my musical fidelity electra cdp i had at the time and the electra wasnt even classed as a good spinner

to round it up - i put a cd in and it played music , it didnt strike me as some great cd player , it just made a noise like every other budget cd player

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blitzula /img/forum/go_quote.gif Can we hear more from people who have actually used the PS1 as a player? There are way too many posts saying it can't sound the same as expensive players from people who seemingly haven't even heard it. You're brainwashed by high-end pricing if you think the dollars spent directly correlate with the sound that's returned to the point where this isn't even possible.

It's common sense. I don't have to race Carl Lewis to know that he will win the race.. PS-1 better then a 2000-10,000 CDP? I heard my PS1 play CD's it was nice, but nothing special.. But I never heard the 'special' PS1 that rivals Hi end CDPers..

 

[Herandu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kool bubba ice /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's common sense. I don't have to race Carl Lewis to know that he will win the race.. PS-1 better then a 2000-10,000 CDP? I heard my PS1 play CD's it was nice, but nothing special.. But I never heard the 'special' PS1 that rivals Hi end CDPers..

Common sense tells scientists that the bumble bee can't fly. Our forefathers said the same about aeroplanes and helicopters.
Common sense also tells me that that the U$50K Zanden DAC with its TDA1543 NOS IC can't be better sounding than a far more modern chipped DAC. But some people disagree.

I accept fully that price sells. But your 2000-10,000 CDP laser, CD mechanism, and DAC circuit cost less than U$200 in terms of components cost from the component, laser, and mechanism manufacturers: guaranteed.

 

[greggf]

" accept fully that price sells. But your 2000-10,000 CDP laser, CD mechanism, and DAC circuit cost less than U$200 in terms of components cost from the component, laser, and mechanism manufacturers: guaranteed."

So?

The chemicals, molecules, and H2O that make up Jennifer Aniston's body cost roughly the same as those that make up my dog's. Yet one is beautiful and the other, while still nice, is a dog.

Some people, for whatever reason, prefer dogs.

My $100 Sony DVD player will play CDs, but it sounds congested and rolled off and bland and undynamic compared to a Rotel $700 cdp, which likewise sounds rough and undetailed next to my $2500 Arcam cdp.

To tell the truth, I really, really think that you think that a PS1 sounds great. Good! Go enjoy it!!

 

[Herandu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by greggf /img/forum/go_quote.gif " accept fully that price sells. But your 2000-10,000 CDP laser, CD mechanism, and DAC circuit cost less than U$200 in terms of components cost from the component, laser, and mechanism manufacturers: guaranteed." So? The chemicals, molecules, and H2O that make up Jennifer Aniston's body cost roughly the same as those that make up my dog's. Yet one is beautiful and the other, while still nice, is a dog. !

Those parts I listed are the ones that extract and convert the digital data to analogue. Talking about hifi and Jennifer/dog is clutching at straws at your end to justify profiteering.

 

[greggf]

It's not straws that I hope to clutch!

Profiteering? Geez, that's kind of paranoid, isn't it?

But, seriously, I'd love to have representatives of some of the more responsive high-end companies that make cd players come here, and explain to us WHY it isn't profiteering, as you say. I'm thinking of Ayre, or Cary, and so on. I'd love to see them break down the costs and justify their pricing.

I've already said that a Rotel doesn't sound as good, to me, as an Arcam. Today a $600 Onkyo arrives, and I'll see if that still holds up.

Perhaps your viewpoint stems from the admittedly minor, minor gains - the diminishing returns - that occur, very soon in the $$ curve, especially when it comes to cd players? If so, do you think other classes of gear are nearly as bad, pricing-wise?

So far, I hear what Arcam is giving me compared to cheaper stuff (and I've had $3-4k cdps in the past that were better, too). I'm willing to let them profit egregiously at my expense for that marginal gain. Up to a point....

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

Some of the older DVD players like the Sony S7700 have very good analogue stages and are dirt cheap on ebay because of their lack luster video capabilities by modern standards. You could get a S7700 for less than $50 locally.