wallijonn
Throwin' tantra.
- Joined
- Oct 15, 2002
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The Panasonic DVD-S55 is a twin beam (658nm/790nm) CD/DVD-A player. The video circuitry can be turned off and the audio portion has 3 oversampling possible settings. The LCDs can be dimmed. There is no headphone output, although there is an audio setup (accesed through the DISPLAY button on the Remote) to change between speaker and headphone. I was hoping that in the Speaker setting the sound would become fuller, but I could not detect any change. When viewing DVD movies, the HP setting did become flatter and it was possible to use the Audio Surround Settings and Dialogue Depth Enhancer (even in 2.1) to simulate surround sound and fill in the centre channel for a fuller sound.
This unit is very slim (about 2" high) and is about 1/4 less deep than a standard sized DVD player. The light tan coloured remote must be used for almost all operations.
I paid $115 after shipping from ecost.com. The Onkyo was $173 after shipping.
Auditioning CD: Basia, "Brave New Hope," Special Edition CD5.
Using my DT880, magna wire ICs, and Parasound HCA-1000A THX amp, the DV-S55 is very clean and analytical. It lacks the warmth and smoothness of the Onkyo (which has Burr-Brown DACs). But while the Onkyo has "more bass," the bass on the Panasonic is tighter.
On "Until You Come Back To Me," the vocals are warmer and more intimate on the Onkyo than on the Panasonic, which produces a slight lisping. The bass kicks are tighter on the Panasonic and have more body on the Onkyo. The Piano is much more airey on the Panasonic than on the Onkyo.
On "Crusin' For Bruising," the first thing that I detected was the scrapper. It just comes out and hits you immediately. The Panasonic has a really nice high end, especially when used with oversampling, of which my favourite is setting #3. The horns lack the warmth of the Onkyo. They seem to be more forward projected. The piano stairway at 1:00 - 1:14 is absolutely clear and clean. At 2:10 the vocals seem to be disjointed (as compared to the Onkyo). The vocals seem to be closer to you (again, more forward). The piano swings (from left to right and back) at 4:24 are, again, clear, clean and crisp. Horns and trombones really stand out.
On "Masquerade," the male vocal seems to lack intimacy (when compared to the Onkyo). The Audio Surround settings didn't seem to have any auditory effect.
On "Come to Heaven," on the Onkyo the vocals at 0:45 seem to have a nice middle, while on the Panasonic they sound more spacious.
Ultimately the Panasonic has a more "Sony" type of sound. Even with my DT880 I started getting fatigued. Perhaps it is acting just like the Pioneer 563AS, although the Pioneer is not twin beam. Otherwise I would just say that it suffers from "digitalis". I can only hope that the sound mellows out with continued playing.
As for the video - the Panasonic is top notch. I set it for Cinema 2 and the blacks are truly black with very little artifacting. The Onkyo, even with the contrast and chroma set to max, still had a little artifacting, especially when it is set too sharp.
If you love horns, pianos, triangles and like firm bass, the Panasonic should suffice. It will tend to make "slow" headphones "faster". It, however, has a very wide forward soundstage. I could see where it may mate well with a DT770, but not a CD3000, as it will only make the CD3000 even more revealing (if that is possible); it may also exacerbate the high end even more. I shutter to think what it would do to a Grado, although HD600 owners may like the crisper high end, albeit with a possible perceived lack of bass, even though it will tend to be 'tighter bass'.
It mates to the K501 very well. While I usually perceive an exaggerated left / right separation with the Onkyo, on the Panasonic it feels just right, helping to fill in the middle and making it more airey and transient.
Like the Pioneer DVD-A player, the DV-563AS, one is left with the question of whether one really needs a second transport, albeit one just for DVD-A listening. At least with the Pioneer being able to play SACD, one has one more medium to listen to.
This unit is very slim (about 2" high) and is about 1/4 less deep than a standard sized DVD player. The light tan coloured remote must be used for almost all operations.
I paid $115 after shipping from ecost.com. The Onkyo was $173 after shipping.
Auditioning CD: Basia, "Brave New Hope," Special Edition CD5.
Using my DT880, magna wire ICs, and Parasound HCA-1000A THX amp, the DV-S55 is very clean and analytical. It lacks the warmth and smoothness of the Onkyo (which has Burr-Brown DACs). But while the Onkyo has "more bass," the bass on the Panasonic is tighter.
On "Until You Come Back To Me," the vocals are warmer and more intimate on the Onkyo than on the Panasonic, which produces a slight lisping. The bass kicks are tighter on the Panasonic and have more body on the Onkyo. The Piano is much more airey on the Panasonic than on the Onkyo.
On "Crusin' For Bruising," the first thing that I detected was the scrapper. It just comes out and hits you immediately. The Panasonic has a really nice high end, especially when used with oversampling, of which my favourite is setting #3. The horns lack the warmth of the Onkyo. They seem to be more forward projected. The piano stairway at 1:00 - 1:14 is absolutely clear and clean. At 2:10 the vocals seem to be disjointed (as compared to the Onkyo). The vocals seem to be closer to you (again, more forward). The piano swings (from left to right and back) at 4:24 are, again, clear, clean and crisp. Horns and trombones really stand out.
On "Masquerade," the male vocal seems to lack intimacy (when compared to the Onkyo). The Audio Surround settings didn't seem to have any auditory effect.
On "Come to Heaven," on the Onkyo the vocals at 0:45 seem to have a nice middle, while on the Panasonic they sound more spacious.
Ultimately the Panasonic has a more "Sony" type of sound. Even with my DT880 I started getting fatigued. Perhaps it is acting just like the Pioneer 563AS, although the Pioneer is not twin beam. Otherwise I would just say that it suffers from "digitalis". I can only hope that the sound mellows out with continued playing.
As for the video - the Panasonic is top notch. I set it for Cinema 2 and the blacks are truly black with very little artifacting. The Onkyo, even with the contrast and chroma set to max, still had a little artifacting, especially when it is set too sharp.
If you love horns, pianos, triangles and like firm bass, the Panasonic should suffice. It will tend to make "slow" headphones "faster". It, however, has a very wide forward soundstage. I could see where it may mate well with a DT770, but not a CD3000, as it will only make the CD3000 even more revealing (if that is possible); it may also exacerbate the high end even more. I shutter to think what it would do to a Grado, although HD600 owners may like the crisper high end, albeit with a possible perceived lack of bass, even though it will tend to be 'tighter bass'.
It mates to the K501 very well. While I usually perceive an exaggerated left / right separation with the Onkyo, on the Panasonic it feels just right, helping to fill in the middle and making it more airey and transient.
Like the Pioneer DVD-A player, the DV-563AS, one is left with the question of whether one really needs a second transport, albeit one just for DVD-A listening. At least with the Pioneer being able to play SACD, one has one more medium to listen to.
