Alan Parsons wishes it wasn't so. But like it or not, the senior vice president of Pioneer's industrial solutions business group has become a wary foot soldier in the battle over the future of the DVD format. As music blares from a band playing at a nearby exhibit at the 2005 International CES, Parsons sits at a small table in a meeting room contemplating how the next couple of years might play out. He remains relatively reserved, trying not to let his passion for the next-generation Blu-Ray Disc format devolve into vitriol against rival format HD-DVD. "I don't like the rock throwing," he insists. "I just want to excite consumers."
That may be true, but Parsons still finds it hard to resist getting in a few digs on the HD-DVD rival, which at about 15 gigabytes per layer has roughly 40 percent less storage capacity than the Blu-Ray format. "They might end up with something ho-hum," he says. "They're saying that [their capacity] is good, but people used to think that five gigs was good enough." Parsons shrugs his shoulders a bit, wearing a look of calm but certain exasperation. "Why would we limit ourselves to a lower capacity?" he asks.
To be sure, Parsons is among several CE manufacturers backing the Blu-Ray format, which they claim is superior to HD-DVD. But the HD-DVD format has its own backers, who while fewer in numbers, are equally adamant that their format will win out because of its lower transition and manufacturing costs—as well as other technical benefits and its expected quicker time to market. Indeed, either format is a vast improvement over the current DVD design, which maxes out at about 4.7 gigabytes. Even at standard-definition quality, that's barely enough space for a two-hour movie and a few hours of special features. And with that much space, forget about high-definition TV.
VHS vs. Beta all over Again?
Both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD discs enable HDTV reproduction because of their massive storage capacities. Using dual-layer techniques, HD-DVD can store as much as 30 gigabytes of data while a Blu-Ray disc can pack in a whopping 50 gigabytes. In the lab, techies already are working on several-layered discs that could allow more than 100 gigabytes of storage on one disc. That's enough for several HDTV movies, special features and compelling interactive content. Or a content provider could put more than 100 hours of standard-definition quality programming on one DVD. All 180 episodes of Seinfeld on one disc, anyone?
The benefits for backward compatibility are clear: new players will be able to handle both old and new DVD formats in the same machine (outfitted with both red- and blue-laser diodes)—a major consumer benefit that manufacturers hope will drive unit sales.
Blu-Ray and HD-DVD both use blue lasers, which operate at lower wavelengths (405 nanometers) than current red lasers (650 nanometers). That microscopic difference goes a long way. Longer wavelengths suffer more diffraction, which limits their ability to focus tightly on a surface. But a blue laser's shorter wavelength allows it to read and write data over a much tighter surface area, which in turn allows storage of far more data on a disc that's roughly the same diameter of current DVDs. The benefits for backward compatibility are clear: New players will be able to handle both old and new DVD formats in the same machine (outfitted with both red- and blue-laser diodes)—a major consumer benefit that manufacturers hope will drive unit sales.
But while consumers won't have to worry about obsolescence when it comes to their old DVD collections, the format war brewing between new Blu-Ray and HD-DVD discs does present an age-old problem that evokes the VHS vs. Beta fiasco of the 1980s. The HD-DVD format—like the VHS format that won out over Beta—could become far more widely available to consumers sooner and at a lower price (at least initially) than Blu-Ray discs. That's because the HD-DVD format utilizes manufacturing techniques very similar to those used for the current generation of DVDs. Translation: Third-party duplication houses won't have to retool their factories significantly to make HD-DVDs a reality. That means that HD-DVD discs likely will be the first to market by at least several months, probably by the end of 2005.
On the other hand, Blu-Ray discs require an entirely new manufacturing process with transition costs borne largely by duplicators (unless Blu-Ray backers devise a subsidy system. That, along with other issues, is expected to delay the introduction of Blu-Ray discs until sometime in 2006, which could hand a major advantage to the HD-DVD format. (add hard return here) "In this kind of battle, the guy who is out there first and cheaper is going to be the winner," says Fariborz Ghadar, director for the Center for Global Business Studies at Penn State University. "The more expensive and later one is going to be the loser." (The Blu-Ray camp contends that it will bring manufacturing costs nearly in line with HD-DVD during the next year. Parsons says that HD-DVD's cost advantage will amount to only "pennies" per disc over the Blu-Ray format). (add hard return here as well) "Unlike Blu-Ray discs, HD-DVD discs can be manufactured with similar equipment in the same plants that make current DVDs," said Jodi Sally, vice president of marketing for Toshiba America Consumer Products digital audio video products.
Duking It Out
Still, the nature of the next-generation rollout itself may force consumers to take sides early. Because of the vastly different physical attributes of Blu-Ray and HD-DVD discs, it's cost-prohibitive for manufacturers to produce next-generation players that can handle both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD formats in one machine. "You would need two pickup heads, and it would be very expensive," explains Stephen Balogh, business development manager at Intel's corporate technology group. So manufacturers have lined up on opposite sides of the fence, ready to produce players that only work with one or the other format. That could spell consumer confusion as buyers fear picking the wrong one and ending up with an obsolete player and content library.
Each side wants to convince consumers that they should avoid the other side's format. HD-DVD backers are planning a "you want it, and we're here now" marketing strategy, whereas the Blu-Ray camp largely plans to adopt a "we won't be first, but we'll be better" campaign designed to warn consumers away from HD-DVD.
So what's the breakdown of forces on each side? On the Blu-Ray side is a large group of CE manufacturers, including Dell, Hewlett Packard, Hitachi, LG Electronics, Mitsubishi Electric, Panasonic (Matsushita Electric), Pioneer, Royal Philips Electronics, Samsung Electronics, Sharp, Sony, TDK and Thomson. Some content providers also are onboard. In addition to obvious backing from Sony-affiliated movie studios Sony Pictures Entertainment and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the Walt Disney Company and its home-video division Buena Vista Entertainment offered its non-exclusive endorsement of Blu-Ray in December. In addition, video gaming powerhouse Electronic Arts, along with Vivendi Universal Games, both came out for Blu-Ray at the 2005 International CES in January.
Most gaming companies have yet to pick sides, although Blu-Ray's larger storage capacity may win some of them over. "If you show Blu-Ray to a game manufacturer and say you can have an extra 20 gigabytes of storage, it's a drop-dead deal," says Blu-Ray backer Richard Doherty, managing director for Blu-Ray and professional AV at Panasonic Hollywood Labs. Of course, most PC-based games haven't even moved up to the current generation of DVDs from CDs, so it's unclear whether most gaming companies will utilize high-definition DVD formats for some time.
The main backer of the HD-DVD format is Toshiba, which by itself has more market dominance than several CE backers on the Blu-Ray side combined, along with smaller players NEC and Sanyo. Toshiba plans to launch its first HD-DVD players in late 2005. In December, even Thomson—which is actually a Blu-Ray disc backer—announced that it also would sell HD-DVD players by late 2005. And an impressive list of entertainment content companies has thrown their weight behind HD-DVD, including Paramount, Universal Studios and Warner Bros. (along with Time Warner-owned New Line Cinema). All of these studios have already announced a significant amount of titles on HD-DVD to be available at the time HD-DVD players are introduced.
Toshiba is dedicated to the HD-DVD format and executives staunchly believe they will win the marketing battle for consumers even before Blu-Ray gets its format off the ground in 2006. "The key part of this is going to be driven by content," says Maciek Brzeski, vice president of marketing in Toshiba's storage device division.
He says consumers won't care whether the disc has 30 gigabytes or 50 gigabytes of capacity—only that the content they want is ready and available at a good price. Brzeski questions the Blu-Ray camp's ability to jazz consumers about a format that he says offers little more than a few extra gigabytes of storage. "They're going to be marketing technology, and we're going to be marketing products," he says. "It's hard to sell technology to consumers."
"Our rich heritage in the development of DVD technology means that we are well equipped for the market transition from DVD to HD-DVD," added Sally, who also serves as Vice-President for the Digital Entertainment Group. "With proven backwards compatibility and real software titles available at launch, we are certain that we can deliver the very best solution in HD-DVD technology for both consumers as well as the content providers."
In December, Toshiba and other HD-DVD backers formed the HD-DVD Promotion Group to promote the format, and to ensure early product launches and subsequent market penetration.
Other pros and cons seem to bleed together as both formats offer similar features. For example, while HD-DVD touts the ability to create discs with red-laser standard DVD format on one side and blue-laser HD-DVD standard on the other, a Blu-Ray Disc Association spokeswoman points out that JVC announced in December a disc that allows both standard DVD and Blu-Ray content on a single side of the disc. The Blu-Ray camp has argued that single-sided discs are more consumer friendly.
The Pricing Strategy
In the vital area of picture quality, both formats also have a difficult time differentiating between one another. "Either format can produce a very good image," says Richard Dean, director of technical business development at THX Inc. "To me, it boils down to the price of the equipment and the availability of content."
Dean, who has helped master the DVD releases of the Star Wars trilogy and other blockbuster movies, says that consumers won't notice any real quality difference between the formats. But he says HD-DVD may end up with an advantage if it can under price Blu-Ray discs and players. "I think that's going to play a very large role." As for Blu-Ray's greater storage capacity, "more space is always an advantage," Dean says, "but the question is how much more space is really needed." Notes Parsons: "If you start doing HD bonus features, it will suck up capacity very quickly."
Intel executives, who first got involved in the working groups for next-generation DVD formats to help avoid a format war, already are bracing for an era of consumer confusion as a Blu-Ray-vs.-HD-DVD scenario takes shape. "We didn't want two formats coming out," says Balogh. "Now we have an even standoff, so neither side wants to compromise whatsoever." Making matters worse, he says, the entertainment studios also are split between Blu-Ray and HD-DVD, although more big studios have backed HD-DVD at this point.
"The studios will be the kingmakers here," he says. Ultimately, consumers may struggle to figure out what kind of players and media to purchase during the next couple of years. "The most important benefit to the consumer is that the HD-DVD players that we'll be introducing to the market this year will be fully backward compatible with the current DVDs that are already in consumers' homes. With the Blu-Ray formats' backward compatibility isn't so simple," adds Sally.
Still, many are wary. "It would be best if we went to market without two formats," says Panasonic's Doherty. "We're very disappointed that we're in a format war." As the battle heats up in 2005 and well into 2006, consumers will decide which format will succeed.
http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/129058.html
Monday, July 30, 2007
Reimyo CDP-777 CD Player
The first thing I noticed about the Reimyo CDP-777 CD player was not its sleekly solid appearance nor, when I hit the Play button, its big, full, transparent sound. It was the price tag of $17,000 USD. That’s 17,000 big ones. Or 1700 $10 bills. Or 850 twenties. Or, if you don’t like carrying duffle bags crammed with greenbacks, 170 hundreds.
In short, that’s a lot of loot for a single-box CD player without SACD or DVD-Audio capability, much less the rest of the alphabet soup of new media options. Yes, there’s upsampling, but no external power supply or other visible accoutrements common to upper-tier high-end equipment.
But sticker shock is something we audiophiles are used to in the rarified reaches of our hobby, and the Reimyo’s not even at the top of the food chain. Burmester’s CD turntable-DAC combination goes for $57,000; the dCS Elgar DAC and upsampler are $23,000; Krell offers a $25,000 one-box CD player-preamp; and a handful of others weigh in above $17,000, including a Goldmund DVD/CD player-DAC combo whose $65,000 price should make it a popular item among Colombian drug lords.
The Reimyo and its pedigree
The CDP-777’s high performance is the result of a collaboration among three powerhouses of Japanese audio who came together in something called High Tech Fusion. JVC contributed the transport mechanism and Extended K2 Processing, the signal-processing elements that subject 16-bit/44.1kHz, "Red Book" CDs to a 24-bit, 4x-oversampling D/A conversion rate to yield 705.6kHz. Design and assembly are by Kyodo Denshi, maker of high-precision measuring instruments. And Kazuo Kiuchi’s Combak Corporation contributed its resonance-control processes.
Kiuchi is one of the high end’s great gentlemen -- a diminutive, softspoken innovator with whose work I’ve been familiar for many years. His array of tuning devices was laughed at when they first landed on these shores. That was when distortion-causing resonances were thought best controlled through massive construction and/or expensive, space-eating panels strategically (and intrusively) placed on or in front of walls and furniture. His quarter-sized stick-on dots were thought to be off the wall until people put them on their walls (and their equipment) and discovered that they worked.
My first audio equipment review was of Kiuchi’s Harmonix RFA-78 Room Tuning Devices. That was back in 1993; for several years -- until my wife decided she no longer wanted her living-room walls to look as if they had measles -- the RFA-78s were both conversation pieces and a remarkably effective way to rid the listening room of unwanted resonances.
Most of the CDP-777’s parts, including the power transformer and circuit, were designed specifically for the player. The Reimyo package doesn’t come with an AC cord (what do you expect for $17,000?), but Combak recommends using the Harmonix X-DC Studio Master power cable, loaned to me for this review. A 2m length will run you only $1305; there’s no need to run to your local hardware store to get a Belden.
I mentioned the CDP-777’s "sleekly solid" looks. That description extends to its well-laid-out remote control, with a silver finish that matches the faceplate of the ’777, whose black side plates and top are broken by a centered window that slides back to reveal the disc bay. After a disc is slipped over the drive’s thick shaft, it’s secured with a neatly finished silver puck. Close the window and play. Forget the puck, and nothing will happen other than a bright "Err" notice on the display.
The front panel is logically laid out, with all the usual suspects in their usual places, but with the added convenience for armchair dwellers of LEDs above key buttons that light up when that function is turned on. The display indicates not only track number but index number as well, harking back to digital’s early days, when tracks were often subdivided. And despite the unit’s thick chassis and rigid aluminum plating, its 33-pound weight shouldn’t cause undue back or groin strains.
Having recently spent time with CD players that triple as video and SACD players, I found the CDP-777’s rear panel refreshingly clean. In place of the puzzling multiple-choice hookup options are balanced and unbalanced analog outputs, digital coaxial and BNC output pins, and the power-cord receptacle. The CDP-777 also comes with a manual that’s as well-thought-out as any I’ve seen. In text and diagrams, it tells you all you need to know about operating the unit, and it’s in understandable English, with none of those ugly translations that drive party humor ("Listen to this line, guys . . . "), and no tech gibberish that only a PhD candidate can figure out.
Setup
I wasn’t prepared for a long break-in period for the CDP-777 -- its importers, May Audio Marketing, said the sample on its way to me had been in use for a while. But the time that unit spent in transit, then sitting snug in its carton waiting for me to finish another review, meant that, once installed in my equipment rack, my review sample sounded decidedly underwhelming, its tonal balance tipped up with a shrill mid-treble. Continuous run-in brought it closer to expectations, and supporting it on Harmonix footers yielded an improvement that was later trumped by installing the Harmonix power cable, which eliminated any system noise and further tamed the treble.
I listened to the CDP-777 through the Wyetech Opal preamplifier, Jadis JA-80 monoblock power amps modified with Siltech internal wiring, and the Von Schweikert VR4 Gen II speakers, replaced in mid-review by the latest model, the VR4 Gen III SEs. Wiring consisted of the Siltech Classic SQ110 interconnects and LS188 speaker cables, which have proven outstanding in keeping noise below audible levels and delivering well-balanced sound with flawless timbral integrity.
Sound
My listening sessions consisted of a variety of CDs new and old, ranging from vintage historical reissues to state-of-the-art audiophile favorites, and included a wide range of classical music, jazz, and blues. I spent considerable time just getting accustomed to the CDP-777’s sound; only after I felt thoroughly familiar with it did I move from listening for pleasure to focusing on selected items, pen and notebook in hand.
The first thing that caught my attention was the wall of sound thrown by the Reimyo. This player projected life-sized images. When I played JVC’s CD reissue of the 1959 Mohr-Layton RCA "shaded dog" LP [LSC-2341] of Saint-Saëns’ Symphony 3 [JMCXR0002], the Boston Symphony had a tactile, wall-to-wall presence in my room. That huge orchestral picture was staggering; so, too, was the way the Boston strings positively glowed with warmth in the poco adagio, and the heretofore unsuspected range of organ colors in the last movement. There was no exaggeration of the organ vis-à-vis the orchestra, and as the movement progressed, the passage with two pianos was well-detailed and scaled just right -- the pianos embedded within the orchestra, not in front of it.
If the Saint-Saëns sounded a bit better than my 1S/1S copy of LSC-2341, JVC’s new reissue of Solti and the Chicago Symphony’s recording of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring [JVCXR0225] turned out to be far superior to the London LP [CS6885]. This analog fancier found JVC’s XRCD transfers equal to or better than the original LPs without falsifying the originals, and in this instance the Decca bass is still not ideally defined (though improved over previous releases). But what this disc drove home was the Reimyo’s ability to reproduce complex orchestral passages with unusual transparency and detail. I could also clearly hear the different microphone techniques employed by the RCA engineers and their Decca counterparts.
Being able to hear more deeply into the music can change one’s estimation of a performance. I used to think Solti’s Rite exciting but not among my favorites. I had to revise my judgment after hearing the JVC reissue through the CDP-777, with its huge dynamic range and transparency. For the first time, I was able to connect with Solti’s Rite on an emotional level.
That kind of visceral involvement was also present as I listened to a superb performance of Shostakovich’s Symphony 5 that’s in danger of being overlooked because it’s on a small import label and performed by a conductor and orchestra known to few on this side of the ocean: Oleg Caetani leading the Giuseppe Verdi Orchestra of Milan on a well-engineered CD [Arts 47668]. The CDP-777’s tight, extended bottom end did justice to the extraordinarily realistic balances captured by the engineers. Finally, in a Shostakovich recording, the cellos and basses hold their own against the violins, precisely as they do in the concert hall. Again, the Reimyo reproduced massed string sound that was warm, but with ample bite in the violins.
What convinced me that the CDP-777 was a truly special musical instrument was a brief passage in the Britten Violin Concerto [EMI 57510]. There’s a moment in the Vivace when Maxim Vengerov’s violin sings in its highest register; then, at about the three-minute mark, it’s joined by a solo flute for a brief duet. Through most CD players and/or systems it can be difficult to tell that not one but two instruments are playing; even when they go their separate ways, one needs to listen closely to distinguish them. But with the CDP-777 there was never any doubt -- the player’s separation and transparency allowed me to hear an effect I had previously heard only in the concert hall, one too often muddled even by good systems.
I often check on a new piece of equipment’s handling of recording flaws such as the relatively small one that slightly mars tenor Werner Güra’s Schumann song recital [Harmonia Mundi HM 901766]. He’s well-recorded, but there’s a sibilance that can be bothersome in some songs, such as "Im Rhein," from Schumann’s Dichterliebe, where s sounds, especially at the beginnings of words, sound disturbing through several models of CD player. Through the Reimyo, those sibilants were less intrusive -- and, as a bonus, Güra’s lovely lyric tenor was reproduced with greater weight and density, the voice surrounded by more room sound and air.
That observation held true for massed voices as well. A recent favorite is the superb set of Bach’s Leipzig Christmas Cantatas led by Philippe Herreweghe [Harmonia Mundi HM 8017181/82]. My pleasure was greatly enhanced by the three-dimensionality of solo voices, the tonal colors projected by the chorus, and the CDP-777’s transparency, which let me clearly hear each of the three high-voiced soloists in the "Suscepit Israel" section of the great Magnificat, and easily trace the lines of the fugue in "Sicut locutus," in the same work.
The CDP-777 displayed similar virtues with jazz and blues recordings. Playing Junior Wells’ Come On In This House [Telarc SACD-63395], it projected a wall of sound from the electric slide guitar, drum kit, and wailing small band. Listening through the CD layer, Wells’ piercing harmonica and gravelly voice were captivating, and the CDP-777’s deep, firm bass was especially welcome on the shuffle blues "Tin Goat," in which the acoustic string bass and visceral power of the drums made it hard not to bounce along with the band. Our British colleagues are fond of referring to "slam" as a defining characteristic of a unit’s rhythmic precision. The Reimyo had "slam."
It also had delicacy. Whether listening to Bill Evans’ live chamber jazz and delicate piano filigree on Sunday at the Village Vanguard [JVC JVCXR0051] or Sonny Rollins’ classic Way Out West [VICJ60088], I heard nuances I hadn’t been aware of through other players. The sheer variety of timbres produced by Shelly Manne’s cymbals and rim shots in "I’m an Old Cowhand" amazed me, and at the same time confirmed the Reimyo’s speed and ease with transients. So, too, the warm, fur-wrapped sound of Rollins’ tenor sax in "There Is No Greater Love" confirmed the accuracy of the CDP-777’s tonality. There as elsewhere, the Reimyo’s presence gave the illusion of watching Ray Brown’s fingers moving along the strings of his bass.
Any flaws? Perhaps just one, and it’s not really a flaw but an indication of the Reimyo’s extended frequency response and a neutrality that’s uncolored, accurate, and at times ruthless. On some early digital recordings -- those peddled at a time when the suits bragged about "perfect sound forever" -- mid-treble peaks were closer to chalk on a blackboard than LPs ever managed. Well, dig some of those out of the closet and you’ll hear the harshness and glare that more forgiving units gloss over. What you get with the Reimyo is the complete, unfalsified, unsweetened truth. As we all know, the truth can sometimes hurt.
Conclusion
I love my music so much that any piece of equipment that reveals it in all its glories is worth getting excited about, and my time with the Reimyo was terrifically exciting if somewhat frustrating. The frustration came solely from its price, which puts it far out of my reach, even as its sound fed my fantasies of ownership. To paraphrase Mae West’s famous line about conscience, the Reimyo’s price was the only thing that hurt when everything else felt wonderful.
Except for those early CDs, or otherwise flawed recordings that often fare better on systems that roll off the nasties, the CDP-777 made every CD played through it sound better than I’d heard it in the past. On great recordings, the Reimyo’s soundstaging, transparency, detail retrieval, and tonal integrity enabled natural, relaxed listening sessions characterized by my forgetting about audio and becoming fully involved in the music itself. Because of all that, my enthusiasm for the Reimyo CDP-777 is strong.
The importer’s website claims that the Reimyo CDP-777 is "the best-sounding CD player there has ever been!" I can’t say that, partly because I haven’t heard them all; in fact, this was my first test drive of a five-figure CD player in my home system. But I can say of the Reimyo what a grande dame of the Gilded Age once wrote of a different pleasure: "A private railroad car is not an acquired taste. One takes to it immediately."
http://www.ultraaudio.com/equipment/reimyo_cdp777.htm
In short, that’s a lot of loot for a single-box CD player without SACD or DVD-Audio capability, much less the rest of the alphabet soup of new media options. Yes, there’s upsampling, but no external power supply or other visible accoutrements common to upper-tier high-end equipment.
But sticker shock is something we audiophiles are used to in the rarified reaches of our hobby, and the Reimyo’s not even at the top of the food chain. Burmester’s CD turntable-DAC combination goes for $57,000; the dCS Elgar DAC and upsampler are $23,000; Krell offers a $25,000 one-box CD player-preamp; and a handful of others weigh in above $17,000, including a Goldmund DVD/CD player-DAC combo whose $65,000 price should make it a popular item among Colombian drug lords.
The Reimyo and its pedigree
The CDP-777’s high performance is the result of a collaboration among three powerhouses of Japanese audio who came together in something called High Tech Fusion. JVC contributed the transport mechanism and Extended K2 Processing, the signal-processing elements that subject 16-bit/44.1kHz, "Red Book" CDs to a 24-bit, 4x-oversampling D/A conversion rate to yield 705.6kHz. Design and assembly are by Kyodo Denshi, maker of high-precision measuring instruments. And Kazuo Kiuchi’s Combak Corporation contributed its resonance-control processes.
Kiuchi is one of the high end’s great gentlemen -- a diminutive, softspoken innovator with whose work I’ve been familiar for many years. His array of tuning devices was laughed at when they first landed on these shores. That was when distortion-causing resonances were thought best controlled through massive construction and/or expensive, space-eating panels strategically (and intrusively) placed on or in front of walls and furniture. His quarter-sized stick-on dots were thought to be off the wall until people put them on their walls (and their equipment) and discovered that they worked.
My first audio equipment review was of Kiuchi’s Harmonix RFA-78 Room Tuning Devices. That was back in 1993; for several years -- until my wife decided she no longer wanted her living-room walls to look as if they had measles -- the RFA-78s were both conversation pieces and a remarkably effective way to rid the listening room of unwanted resonances.
Most of the CDP-777’s parts, including the power transformer and circuit, were designed specifically for the player. The Reimyo package doesn’t come with an AC cord (what do you expect for $17,000?), but Combak recommends using the Harmonix X-DC Studio Master power cable, loaned to me for this review. A 2m length will run you only $1305; there’s no need to run to your local hardware store to get a Belden.
I mentioned the CDP-777’s "sleekly solid" looks. That description extends to its well-laid-out remote control, with a silver finish that matches the faceplate of the ’777, whose black side plates and top are broken by a centered window that slides back to reveal the disc bay. After a disc is slipped over the drive’s thick shaft, it’s secured with a neatly finished silver puck. Close the window and play. Forget the puck, and nothing will happen other than a bright "Err" notice on the display.
The front panel is logically laid out, with all the usual suspects in their usual places, but with the added convenience for armchair dwellers of LEDs above key buttons that light up when that function is turned on. The display indicates not only track number but index number as well, harking back to digital’s early days, when tracks were often subdivided. And despite the unit’s thick chassis and rigid aluminum plating, its 33-pound weight shouldn’t cause undue back or groin strains.
Having recently spent time with CD players that triple as video and SACD players, I found the CDP-777’s rear panel refreshingly clean. In place of the puzzling multiple-choice hookup options are balanced and unbalanced analog outputs, digital coaxial and BNC output pins, and the power-cord receptacle. The CDP-777 also comes with a manual that’s as well-thought-out as any I’ve seen. In text and diagrams, it tells you all you need to know about operating the unit, and it’s in understandable English, with none of those ugly translations that drive party humor ("Listen to this line, guys . . . "), and no tech gibberish that only a PhD candidate can figure out.
Setup
I wasn’t prepared for a long break-in period for the CDP-777 -- its importers, May Audio Marketing, said the sample on its way to me had been in use for a while. But the time that unit spent in transit, then sitting snug in its carton waiting for me to finish another review, meant that, once installed in my equipment rack, my review sample sounded decidedly underwhelming, its tonal balance tipped up with a shrill mid-treble. Continuous run-in brought it closer to expectations, and supporting it on Harmonix footers yielded an improvement that was later trumped by installing the Harmonix power cable, which eliminated any system noise and further tamed the treble.
I listened to the CDP-777 through the Wyetech Opal preamplifier, Jadis JA-80 monoblock power amps modified with Siltech internal wiring, and the Von Schweikert VR4 Gen II speakers, replaced in mid-review by the latest model, the VR4 Gen III SEs. Wiring consisted of the Siltech Classic SQ110 interconnects and LS188 speaker cables, which have proven outstanding in keeping noise below audible levels and delivering well-balanced sound with flawless timbral integrity.
Sound
My listening sessions consisted of a variety of CDs new and old, ranging from vintage historical reissues to state-of-the-art audiophile favorites, and included a wide range of classical music, jazz, and blues. I spent considerable time just getting accustomed to the CDP-777’s sound; only after I felt thoroughly familiar with it did I move from listening for pleasure to focusing on selected items, pen and notebook in hand.
The first thing that caught my attention was the wall of sound thrown by the Reimyo. This player projected life-sized images. When I played JVC’s CD reissue of the 1959 Mohr-Layton RCA "shaded dog" LP [LSC-2341] of Saint-Saëns’ Symphony 3 [JMCXR0002], the Boston Symphony had a tactile, wall-to-wall presence in my room. That huge orchestral picture was staggering; so, too, was the way the Boston strings positively glowed with warmth in the poco adagio, and the heretofore unsuspected range of organ colors in the last movement. There was no exaggeration of the organ vis-à-vis the orchestra, and as the movement progressed, the passage with two pianos was well-detailed and scaled just right -- the pianos embedded within the orchestra, not in front of it.
If the Saint-Saëns sounded a bit better than my 1S/1S copy of LSC-2341, JVC’s new reissue of Solti and the Chicago Symphony’s recording of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring [JVCXR0225] turned out to be far superior to the London LP [CS6885]. This analog fancier found JVC’s XRCD transfers equal to or better than the original LPs without falsifying the originals, and in this instance the Decca bass is still not ideally defined (though improved over previous releases). But what this disc drove home was the Reimyo’s ability to reproduce complex orchestral passages with unusual transparency and detail. I could also clearly hear the different microphone techniques employed by the RCA engineers and their Decca counterparts.
Being able to hear more deeply into the music can change one’s estimation of a performance. I used to think Solti’s Rite exciting but not among my favorites. I had to revise my judgment after hearing the JVC reissue through the CDP-777, with its huge dynamic range and transparency. For the first time, I was able to connect with Solti’s Rite on an emotional level.
That kind of visceral involvement was also present as I listened to a superb performance of Shostakovich’s Symphony 5 that’s in danger of being overlooked because it’s on a small import label and performed by a conductor and orchestra known to few on this side of the ocean: Oleg Caetani leading the Giuseppe Verdi Orchestra of Milan on a well-engineered CD [Arts 47668]. The CDP-777’s tight, extended bottom end did justice to the extraordinarily realistic balances captured by the engineers. Finally, in a Shostakovich recording, the cellos and basses hold their own against the violins, precisely as they do in the concert hall. Again, the Reimyo reproduced massed string sound that was warm, but with ample bite in the violins.
What convinced me that the CDP-777 was a truly special musical instrument was a brief passage in the Britten Violin Concerto [EMI 57510]. There’s a moment in the Vivace when Maxim Vengerov’s violin sings in its highest register; then, at about the three-minute mark, it’s joined by a solo flute for a brief duet. Through most CD players and/or systems it can be difficult to tell that not one but two instruments are playing; even when they go their separate ways, one needs to listen closely to distinguish them. But with the CDP-777 there was never any doubt -- the player’s separation and transparency allowed me to hear an effect I had previously heard only in the concert hall, one too often muddled even by good systems.
I often check on a new piece of equipment’s handling of recording flaws such as the relatively small one that slightly mars tenor Werner Güra’s Schumann song recital [Harmonia Mundi HM 901766]. He’s well-recorded, but there’s a sibilance that can be bothersome in some songs, such as "Im Rhein," from Schumann’s Dichterliebe, where s sounds, especially at the beginnings of words, sound disturbing through several models of CD player. Through the Reimyo, those sibilants were less intrusive -- and, as a bonus, Güra’s lovely lyric tenor was reproduced with greater weight and density, the voice surrounded by more room sound and air.
That observation held true for massed voices as well. A recent favorite is the superb set of Bach’s Leipzig Christmas Cantatas led by Philippe Herreweghe [Harmonia Mundi HM 8017181/82]. My pleasure was greatly enhanced by the three-dimensionality of solo voices, the tonal colors projected by the chorus, and the CDP-777’s transparency, which let me clearly hear each of the three high-voiced soloists in the "Suscepit Israel" section of the great Magnificat, and easily trace the lines of the fugue in "Sicut locutus," in the same work.
The CDP-777 displayed similar virtues with jazz and blues recordings. Playing Junior Wells’ Come On In This House [Telarc SACD-63395], it projected a wall of sound from the electric slide guitar, drum kit, and wailing small band. Listening through the CD layer, Wells’ piercing harmonica and gravelly voice were captivating, and the CDP-777’s deep, firm bass was especially welcome on the shuffle blues "Tin Goat," in which the acoustic string bass and visceral power of the drums made it hard not to bounce along with the band. Our British colleagues are fond of referring to "slam" as a defining characteristic of a unit’s rhythmic precision. The Reimyo had "slam."
It also had delicacy. Whether listening to Bill Evans’ live chamber jazz and delicate piano filigree on Sunday at the Village Vanguard [JVC JVCXR0051] or Sonny Rollins’ classic Way Out West [VICJ60088], I heard nuances I hadn’t been aware of through other players. The sheer variety of timbres produced by Shelly Manne’s cymbals and rim shots in "I’m an Old Cowhand" amazed me, and at the same time confirmed the Reimyo’s speed and ease with transients. So, too, the warm, fur-wrapped sound of Rollins’ tenor sax in "There Is No Greater Love" confirmed the accuracy of the CDP-777’s tonality. There as elsewhere, the Reimyo’s presence gave the illusion of watching Ray Brown’s fingers moving along the strings of his bass.
Any flaws? Perhaps just one, and it’s not really a flaw but an indication of the Reimyo’s extended frequency response and a neutrality that’s uncolored, accurate, and at times ruthless. On some early digital recordings -- those peddled at a time when the suits bragged about "perfect sound forever" -- mid-treble peaks were closer to chalk on a blackboard than LPs ever managed. Well, dig some of those out of the closet and you’ll hear the harshness and glare that more forgiving units gloss over. What you get with the Reimyo is the complete, unfalsified, unsweetened truth. As we all know, the truth can sometimes hurt.
Conclusion
I love my music so much that any piece of equipment that reveals it in all its glories is worth getting excited about, and my time with the Reimyo was terrifically exciting if somewhat frustrating. The frustration came solely from its price, which puts it far out of my reach, even as its sound fed my fantasies of ownership. To paraphrase Mae West’s famous line about conscience, the Reimyo’s price was the only thing that hurt when everything else felt wonderful.
Except for those early CDs, or otherwise flawed recordings that often fare better on systems that roll off the nasties, the CDP-777 made every CD played through it sound better than I’d heard it in the past. On great recordings, the Reimyo’s soundstaging, transparency, detail retrieval, and tonal integrity enabled natural, relaxed listening sessions characterized by my forgetting about audio and becoming fully involved in the music itself. Because of all that, my enthusiasm for the Reimyo CDP-777 is strong.
The importer’s website claims that the Reimyo CDP-777 is "the best-sounding CD player there has ever been!" I can’t say that, partly because I haven’t heard them all; in fact, this was my first test drive of a five-figure CD player in my home system. But I can say of the Reimyo what a grande dame of the Gilded Age once wrote of a different pleasure: "A private railroad car is not an acquired taste. One takes to it immediately."
http://www.ultraaudio.com/equipment/reimyo_cdp777.htm
Kenwood DPC-MP922 Portable MP3 CD Player Review
Editor's Note: Kenwood has recently discontinued this product. Although this is the case, you might find this unit around on the web.. Crutchfield still has it up for $179.99.
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Is this the MP727?
Kenwood recently released the new DPC-MP922 MP3 player, but it looks remarkably the same as the MP727. What I wondered at first was whether there is a real difference, so I borrowed my friend's MP727 and compared the difference. As you might expect from the manual alone, they should operate in the exact same way since they share the same manual. So what was the purpose of a new model? Well, taking a look at the product specifications, it seems as though the new model has 2 differences: car cassette adapter and car power adapter, and the price reflects this as well since you are paying an extra $20 for it. So, if you want all the accessories, then you can pitch in for the new model otherwise the MP727 will be adequate. Actually, what I would have liked instead of the car adapters is a remote control and a nice pair of AA Ni-MH batteries. You would think that for the price of the unit, you would get some nice batteries.
First Impressions
The first thing I noticed about the Kenwood MP922 upon glancing at it, was the physical design of the player. In my opinion, I feel that the design team could have made it more attractive. It is too conservative and boring for the MP3 listening crowd out there. The buttons are small and too close together to distinguish them easily, so most of the time you have to look at the buttons in order to do what you want. Furthermore, the expansion battery adapter makes the unit even worse. You get more playing time, but what you get is an even bigger and uglier system. I think Kenwood just decided to go for a safe design and I think the unit suffers in that sense because of it. Another aspect that I don't particularly like is the thickness of the unit. I feel they could have tried to make a smaller unit if possible. I think that always gives CD players out there bonus marks. Overall, I would give the design average marks.
http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Hardware/Reviews/kenwood_mp922/
Car CD Player -- What To Look For
Car audio cd players are on the rock. To get the best in the world of music and sound, you need to have a cd player. There are many manufacturers of car audio cd players. They are . . .
• Kenwood
• Pioneer
• Goodmans
• Sony
• Boss
Most decent CD players have a detachable faceplate. I will not recommend buying one that does not have this (They are usually the lowest models offered by any company). The last major item to consider is whether the unit will fit in your dash.
Look for a control layout that you are comfortable with. Generally a simple layout is better for finding buttons quickly. A crowded and busy display looks great in the showroom but can be confusing and dangerous when driving at highway speeds. Beyond these basics, you need only worry about which features you wish to have to in your cd player.
Since the head unit is the most noticeable part of your system, most CD player manufacturers have designed several ways for you to express yourself in the dash. Many receivers or players feature motorized and fully detachable drop-down front panels. They also come with wireless remote controls, front and rear RCA outputs and a dedicated sub woofer output as well.
Features that are usual in a CD player . . .
1. ISO DIN mounting.
2. Multicolor vacuum fluorescent display
3. Fully detachable front panel motorized, slide-down, for easy access.
4. PLL synthesized tuner
5. Station presets
6. Illuminated control buttons
7. Quartz digital clock for you
8. CD changer controls
9. CD Mute and track repeat
10. CD-R and CD-RW compatibility
11. Subwoofer output
12. Anti-skip mechanism
13. Balance and fader controls
14. Dual RCA outputs with loudness control
There are more. You can look around if you need other features. Car audio product manufacturers are going overboard these days. Who knows, you may even find one that allows you to read your emails.
Visit car-audio-products-and-accessories.com to read more car audio articles. Check CarAudioPlus for your car audio products and accessories.
Chimezirim Odimba writes for CarAudioPlus.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Car-CD-Player----What-To-Look-For&id=377791
• Kenwood
• Pioneer
• Goodmans
• Sony
• Boss
Most decent CD players have a detachable faceplate. I will not recommend buying one that does not have this (They are usually the lowest models offered by any company). The last major item to consider is whether the unit will fit in your dash.
Look for a control layout that you are comfortable with. Generally a simple layout is better for finding buttons quickly. A crowded and busy display looks great in the showroom but can be confusing and dangerous when driving at highway speeds. Beyond these basics, you need only worry about which features you wish to have to in your cd player.
Since the head unit is the most noticeable part of your system, most CD player manufacturers have designed several ways for you to express yourself in the dash. Many receivers or players feature motorized and fully detachable drop-down front panels. They also come with wireless remote controls, front and rear RCA outputs and a dedicated sub woofer output as well.
Features that are usual in a CD player . . .
1. ISO DIN mounting.
2. Multicolor vacuum fluorescent display
3. Fully detachable front panel motorized, slide-down, for easy access.
4. PLL synthesized tuner
5. Station presets
6. Illuminated control buttons
7. Quartz digital clock for you
8. CD changer controls
9. CD Mute and track repeat
10. CD-R and CD-RW compatibility
11. Subwoofer output
12. Anti-skip mechanism
13. Balance and fader controls
14. Dual RCA outputs with loudness control
There are more. You can look around if you need other features. Car audio product manufacturers are going overboard these days. Who knows, you may even find one that allows you to read your emails.
Visit car-audio-products-and-accessories.com to read more car audio articles. Check CarAudioPlus for your car audio products and accessories.
Chimezirim Odimba writes for CarAudioPlus.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Car-CD-Player----What-To-Look-For&id=377791
Sanyo X200 - Portable MP3/VCD Player Review
You may wonder, why I reviewed this product. Yes, We found Sanyo X200 CD Player as the best, when we compared this with all other Panasonic and Sony CD Players.The main advantage of this player is, it's only Rs.3000, while Panasonic SLM V60 costs Rs.4500 and Sony NF800 costs Rs.6000. The sound and product quality is also amazing when compared to other players.
It is thin and compact comparing to other portable players and we wonder hearing the sound clarity with it's inbuilt headphone. We have also tested the Panasonic and Sony players, but both results poor clarity.
And with it's extra Bass Xpander, you can get the best possible Bass, you can imagine. It supports MP3, ACD, VCD, CD-R and even CD-RW.
You can attach this player with your TV using the bundled AV Cable to watch VCD movies. The video quality is also good.
It also features an ANTI Shock system of 100 seconds for MP3 and 40 seconds for other formats. The earphone attached with this player is looking very professional and the remote control is also thin and compact.
http://www.itportal.org/News/Reviews/Sanyo_X200_-_Portable_MP3%10VCD_Player_Review/
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