[thomas]

pedexing: How did you determine that the 915 uses 40 second memory? My results on the D-ej01, which should use the same circuit as the 915 always has a maximum of about 10-15 seconds. (I can actually stop the disc from spinning on my CDP, and count the time before it skips, if you are just shaking it, the cdp can almost always recover inbetween shakes and partially refill the buffer) Its actual antiskip performance is on par or better than almost all 40 second memory players because the read heads can recover after a shock much faster than older players.

The sound is very mushy and distorted through the headphone out (particularly with low-impedance headphones), but that is strictly an issue with the quality of the headphone amp and RF pickup...

In contrast the line out is the best i've heard, and probably one of the best of any portable. There are absolutely no compression artifacts, and sounds more detailed, "airy", and smooth than any other portable, almost as good as a home cdp. (many have noted this; even kevin gilmore uses it with his portable Stax over "classics" like the 777) which makes it seem extremely unlikely that compression is involved. (and compressed 10 second memory would be totally out of place in a modern CDP, much less a top-end CDP)

Most likely, the new CDP's ADDED option of compression- As sony and panasonic each try to release new models each year, they constantly try to "one up" the other in size, weight and battery life. There is not much room left to go for any of these criteria, particularly battery life- they've already redesigned the motors, electronics, removed the LCD from the main body, cut down the power of the headphone amp, etc. THe latest power saving feature, used on all CDP's after the D-ej01, is to quickly fill up the antiskip memory, then shut off the transport until data is needed again... With 10 seconds linear, it can only shut off for about 5 seconds before having to power up again, whereas with 40 seconds compressed, it can power down for 30 seconds, giving substantial power savings... This would account for the sudden 13 hour increase in battery life from the 915 to 925 models, even though they use basically identical circuity (other than the option of compressed antiskip) and the same batteries.

 

[mulciber]

Quote:

The sound is very mushy and distorted through the headphone out (particularly with low-impedance headphones), but that is strictly an issue with the quality of the headphone amp and RF pickup...

This is what I thought Pedxing meant when using the term "mushy" - the headphone out, not the line. Imprecise thought the term may be, there's no mistaking the mushiness when using most headphones with this unit. That used to drive me crazy.

Quote:

There are absolutely no compression artifacts, and sounds more detailed, "airy", and smooth than any other portable, almost as good as a home cdp.

You've summed it up here. This is how I perceived the sound amplified from the line out, and yet most commentary here talked about the compression effect due to anti-skip being very pronounced. It just didn't connect with my experience.

The thing that I like least about the line out is that it's a combination analog/optical unit. These seem unreliable to me over the long term. I don't think they're made for people who switch cables a lot.

DGI

 

[jlo mein]

oh....the 915 is THAT cd player....

i was about to buy this used from my friend....opted out when he wanted $150 canadian (i personally thought that was too much, i dont kno the value of it anyways though...)

it SEEMS like a nice unit....digital line out, slim, remote, etc...

but is it as bad as ppl say, or is it a good unit?

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Hmm... my brother has that model... (the 915... I only knew after looking at the picture) I won't comment on the sound because I haven't listened to it--but I'd just say that the remote that comes with it is superb--much better than the one for the 725--I've permanently 'borrowed' his remote for my 725 now

A problem with this model is that it won't read the last tracks on CDs that last over 74min.

!

 

[pedxing]

I got a little sloppy with the descriptions in the previous message. With cheaper low impedance sony headphones, the ej915 actually sounds good. When used with higher impedance headphones like the HD570 or the ER-6, the ej915 doesn't work so well and the sound is not as full and the details in my music are lost (hence mushy.... bad use of words). My EJ915 sounds very bubbly with less of a bass extension compared to all my other newer and older sony pcdp's. I actually think mine is somewhat defective.

The remote on the ej915 is compatible with the remote jack of the EJ725. I actually use the ej915's remote with my EJ725.

Determining 40 second memory: You can't do this with the EJ01 because you don't have a lid to open.

Basically, I hold the refrigerator button down and hit play for over a minute. Then I stop the CD gently by pushing down on it (takes a while to break). When the sled or carriage starts doing funny things, I start the timer and wait for the music to run out and the CD player to die. Usually I get around 25-35 seconds of buffered music with the G-Protection on. On the EJ725, the buffers run out in less than 10 seconds with the G-Protection off. Since people say pcdp have a ~40 second buffer on this forum, I assume its the 40 second buffer.

 

[mulciber]

Quote:

With cheaper low impedance sony headphones, the ej915 actually sounds good. When used with higher impedance headphones like the HD570 or the ER-6, the ej915 doesn't work so well and the sound is not as full

Yeah, this rings absolutely true. I used it with MDR-e888's unamplified for a long time and it was quite satisfying. But put anything over 16 ohms in there and you get the most horrid "mush" imaginable. Also, even with low impedance phones, depending on the recording, you often have to struggle to find a "sweet spot". You could put the volume up and then have ridiculous roll-off at the bottom and screeching at the top, or keep the volume low and push the lame-o equalizer to get muddy, artificial tonality. I just wonder what Sony was thinking.

 

[thomas]

Quote:

Determining 40 second memory: You can't do this with the EJ01 because you don't have a lid to open.

Sure i can

By sliding the disc eject lever a few mm, the CD will be lifted off the motor and stop spinning, but it isn't lifted high enough to trip the limit switch, so the player keeps on playing, until the buffer runs out... You must start the test immediately after a read cycle on battery mode or the buffer will be much less than 10 seconds... sometimes only about 3-5 seconds...

Quote:

Basically, I hold the refrigerator button down and hit play for over a minute. Then I stop the CD gently by pushing down on it (takes a while to break). When the sled or carriage starts doing funny things, I start the timer and wait for the music to run out and the CD player to die. Usually I get around 25-35 seconds of buffered music with the G-Protection on. On the EJ725, the buffers run out in less than 10 seconds with the G-Protection off. Since people say pcdp have a ~40 second buffer on this forum, I assume its the 40 second buffer

Did you do both tests on the 725, or was the first test on the 915?

My interpretation is the latter, if you actually did use the 915 then ignore everything i say after this point

"G-protection" does NOT mean the same thing in the different model years, as i mentioned in my above post- on the first models, it is uncompressed 10-20 seconds and can never be turned off. On the new generation, "g-protection" is 40 compressed for extra battery life...So the results from the 725 don't apply to the 915... Repeat the test with the 915's, i'm sure you will get about 15 seconds...

And if you still get 40 seconds, then the 915 would be the most amazing player ever made since it would have to have 40 seconds linear memory because compressed audio can't possibly sound that good though the line out

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I just wonder what Sony was thinking.

Obviously, they weren't thinking...

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Something I've been wondering about for a long time thomas... what's that headphone in your avatar?

 

[pedxing]

Quote:

Originally posted by thomas Sure i can By sliding the disc eject lever a few mm, the CD will be lifted off the motor and stop spinning, but it isn't lifted high enough to trip the limit switch, so the player keeps on playing, until the buffer runs out... You must start the test immediately after a read cycle on battery mode or the buffer will be much less than 10 seconds... sometimes only about 3-5 seconds...

If you only get 10 second buffer on the EJ-01, that probably only means it is using linear compression which is good. Too bad, I tested my EJ915 again and it doesn't have an off switch for the G-protection. It quits about 30-35 seconds, so I assume its always compressing my music.

 

[thomas]

Joe- Koss A/250

pedxing... hmm, that's strange, i always thought the 915 and 01 used the same circuit...

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Oh I see

Then what is the JVC MX-GT80?

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Quote:

Originally posted by mulciber http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/.../base_id/56034 This is the unit, and this is an absolutely amazing price. I didn't really look too carefully, but I wonder if it's a refurb. or something. If new, that's amazing. I took this link from a poster in the Gear For Sale forum. DGI

Quote:

from Musician's Friend This product has been discontinued.