From the latest issue of Absolute Sound
Onkyo’s DX-7555 is a single-disc twochannel
CD player with advancements once
found only in the priciest products—a highisolation/
anti-resonant chassis, a low-jitter
clock circuit, and a Wolfson Microelectronics
digital-to-analog converter capable of
192kHz/24-bit resolution. Unusual features
include two user-selectable output filters,
either the factory-default “sharp” setting,
claimed to be flat to 20kHz, or a gradual highfrequency
roll-off. The “direct digital” coaxial
output (via a dedicated cable instead of circuit
board traces) can be shut off while using the
analog outputs; the analog output’s phase can
be reversed “on the fly” using the remote; and
the display can be dimmed in four steps.
An extremely unusual feature allows some
alteration of the clock frequency, faster or
slower than the factory setting. Onkyo claims
this can affect the clarity of sound or the size
of the acoustic image. I have many doubts
about the wisdom of giving users easy access
to precision settings—especially one hyped
as accurate within ±1.5ppm—and didn’t
experiment with the clock. On the other
hand, it does give tweak-obsessed audiophiles
something to play with.
The DX-7555 supports standard CD,
CD-R/RW, and MP3-encoded discs, in
sequential play, random play, memory
playback, or repeat modes. Coupled to the
A-9555, driving the Paradigm Studio 20
v.3, the Onkyo disc player offered a fine
combination of easy use, stable playback,
immunity from external vibration, and
airy, open, grain-free sound. It’s as capable
of communicating the emotional truth
of superb vocal music (Renée Fleming,
above) and instrumental nuance as any
disc player on the market up to a few
thousand bucks—in the two-channel realm,
it held its own against the Lexicon RT-20,
a $5000 multichannel universal-disc player.
It’s a great bargain at $600, one especially
recommended for those with no interest in
SACD, DVD-A, or multichannel playback.
Some very practical, textbook technology
types still believe that cables can’t make
much difference, especially with inexpensive
equipment. I would argue that they can make
a proportionally bigger improvement with
products like the Onkyo and Paradigm than
they do with big-bucks gear. AudioQuest,
Kimber Kable, and Nordost are but
three high-end cable makers known for
demonstrating the sonic improvements cable
upgrades can bring to budget electronics.
Here’s a simple example: The standard
throwaway interconnect that came with
the disc player was adequate, but rendered
an uninvolving acoustic. Simply replacing
that generic cable with a Chord “Siren” of
the same length changed everything for the
better: deeper, more enveloping soundstage,
richer harmonics, more cleanly etched detail
with a decrease in harshness. You might be
tempted to hook up $800 loudspeakers with
hardware-store zip cord, but upgrading to
something like the Red Rose 336 (a steal at
$5/ft.) can elevate a high-quality entry-level
system into something extraordinary.
With a Tributaries TX-500 line conditioner
supplying the power, I went “all the way” with
cabling, trying the Onkyo/Paradigm system
with the best stuff I had on hand, Nordost
SPM speaker cables and interconnects. The
irony of using cables that cost many times
more than the components they connected
wasn’t lost on me, but doing so eliminated
the “choke points” that would ordinarily
prevent most listeners from hearing all that a
system has to give. Running “flat out,” so to
speak, the Onkyo/Paradigm combo was an
absolute delight. As a team or as individual
components, they offer incredibly high value
at astoundingly reasonable prices.
