CD Mega-Changers (1 Viewer)

[KeithH]

Chip, I saw your e-mail and the thread on Audio Asylum. $775 is an incredible price on the 'C555ES. Just last week, Oade Bros. quoted me $1075 delivered, and yesterday, OneCall told me they would match that price.
I agree that OneCall's return policy blows. I've bought two components from them at very good prices, but I researched the items first to be sure I knew what I was getting. In the case of the 'C555ES, I would feel comfortable buying it from OneCall from the standpoint of the quality of the component. I've lived with the 'C333ES for the past six months, which shares the same chassis design as the 'C555ES, so build quality and basic operation of the latter is not an issue for me. I am also familiar enough with the sound quality of the 'C555ES that I couldn't see any reason to return it except if it were defective. On the other hand, I like the people at Oade Bros. better, and I would probably buy through them. With Sony products, it always seems like Oade Bros. sets the prices and everyone follows. I've ordered from Oade Bros. twice with good results. They are a great operation.
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[Scott DeToffol]

I'm stuck.
I'm not sure I want to pay more for ES. I understand that the build quality is better, and that is important. But how much better? I don't need a heavier unit. If the changing mechanism is significantly better then the ES is probably worth it.
The second point of contention is the DSP. I believe that the ES DSP is probably better than the non-ES. But is the ES DSP better than my Nakamichi AV10 receiver DSP? I know, I know - its a personal choice. But I don't have a way to compare before I buy. If the DSP quality is similar, then I don't think the ES is worth it.
I'll probably keep this player for 5-7 years at least. I'll probably upgrade my receiver before upgrading the changer, but not for quite a while.
Comments?

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Scott's Link Removed - By Appointment Only
[Edited last by Scott DeToffol on October 16, 2001 at 02:33 PM]

 

[Chip E]

Keith, i bought the last SCD-C555ES muti channel SACD player Oade Bros. had in stock. Apparently, according to "Ben" at Oade, that thread over at Audio Asylum about the new low price caused a flood of orders for this unit. I should have it Friday or Monday! Ugggghhh, i need cables! Lol.. $800.00 including shipping. Did you pick one up too?
- Chip
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[KeithH]

Chip, congratulations on your purchase. I did not get a 'C555ES myself yet. I spoke to Jim Oade yesterday to confirm the $775 price, and he told me $775 includes shipping. You might want to call them back about that. Anyway, I also wanted to find out if he had received word of the 'C555ES being discontinued. He said it is not being discontinued at this point, but Sony just dropped the retail price. Jim also told me that he had a flood of orders come in after they dropped the price and that the player was a slow mover at $1075.
I will get a 'C555ES, but now is not the best time. I just bought a crossover box to connect a subwoofer to the stereo amp in my main system and a pair of Energy e:XL 25 speakers for my second system. That's all for now. I will be checking Audio Asylum and Oade Bros. every so often to see if the 'C555ES is discontinued. At this point, I see no rush to buy it.
Definitely post a review of the 'C555ES when you get a chance. Can't wait to hear what you think of it.
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[Wayne Gallupe]

Scott,
I have the Sony CX450 megachanger hooked up to a Nak AV-10 using the Nak's internal DACs via optical digital input. Hooked up this way, the CX450 sounds just as good as the Nak Cd player it replaced. What I mean is that it sounds very good. I believe the AV-10s DACs are decent quality.
I also struggled with the issues you raise:
"I'm not sure I want to pay more for ES. I understand that the build quality is better, and that is important. But how much better? I don't need a heavier unit. If the changing mechanism is significantly better then the ES is probably worth it."
I spent considerable time compareing the 555ES to the CX450. They were sitting side by side at my local Tweeter store. Opening the transport doors and looking inside revieled no physical difference in the transports. I e-mailed Sony to ask what was different and they gave me the run-around. The 555 suposedly has better DACs but that did'nt matter to me. The tranport mechenism and chasis are identical to the naked eye. I believe what you get for the extra $ is better DACs and an extended warrant. period.
"The second point of contention is the DSP. I believe that the ES DSP is probably better than the non-ES. But is the ES DSP better than my Nakamichi AV10 receiver DSP? I know, I know - its a personal choice. But I don't have a way to compare before I buy. If the DSP quality is similar, then I don't think the ES is worth it."
As I said above, the ES is not worth it. You will be happy with the AV-10s DACs.
"I'll probably keep this player for 5-7 years at least. I'll probably upgrade my receiver before upgrading the changer, but not for quite a while."
I've been using the CX450/AV-10 combo for almost two years. Still like the sound and the convenience.

 

[KeithH]

Wayne, you make good points. I feel the ES megachangers are built a bit better than the non-ES units, but the difference isn't that significant. Before buying my two Sony ES 300-disc players last year (discontinued models), the difference in build quality between those units and the non-ES 300-disc players seemed more significant to me than with the 400-disc models.
One reason someone might go with Sony ES is if he or she ever considers daisy-chaining a second megachanger because that requires use of the analog outputs on both units. I knew I was going to daisy chain when I bought my first megachanger, so I went with ES. The five-year warranty on a player with a lot of mechanical parts was also appealing. However, one must weigh the cost difference into making a decision, and I understand that.
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[Wayne Gallupe]

Kieth,
Ya, I also noticed that the older ES megachangers did have better chasis than the equivalant non ES models. I was disapointed when the 555ES came out.
For the reasons you mention it would be better to go with the 555ES for daisy chaining.
If I was going to rely on the megachanger's DACs, I would also give the Pioneer Elite models a listen. They claim to have superior DACs. But I don't think they have a 400 disc model.

 

[KeithH]

Wayne, I too have heard good things about Pioneer Elite megachangers. You are right in that they don't make a 400-disc model. The PD-F27 holds 301 CDs. Also, it is not easy to get a discount on Pioneer Elite products from authorized dealers. Sony ES megachangers tend to be cheaper, as a result. Authorized discount mail-order dealers such as Oade Bros., J&R Music World, and OneCall sell Sony ES, but not Pioneer Elite.
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[Kit_C]

The Sony website says Custom FileTM/ CD TextTM Memory for up to 800 Discs. Hmmmmm?

This is just saying that if you daisy chain two megachangers the master can access all of the title info on the slave. As I understand it, CustomFile memory is related to the Album, not the Artist. I have 400 discs loaded into my M555Es, and have more than 200 Artists, so I've lumped my more obscure discs into a "Various Artist" Artist name. I do the same with Soundtracks, and with Compilations.
Even though I have a Slink-e, I find the Artist mode to still be useful in locating CD's in the player, since my PC is in another room and is not always on. I can hit the artist mode button on the front panel (or remote), select an Artist, and the disc selector knob cycles between all of the CD's from that artist. This is very useful if (for example) you want to pull out all of the CD's by one artist to make a compilation CD-R.
Since I entered all of my CD information prior to CDJ (the Slink-e jukebox software) being able to upload artist info, I've never used this function. But I understand that CDJ picks which Artist names to download based on some simple logic (i.e. it picks Artists whose CD's are present in greater numbers in your changer).
One thing about the Slink-e that has not been mentioned is that it really needs to have the Megachanger (analog daisy chaining) function of the CD players disabled to work reliably, otherwise the Slink-e will be continually fighting the master changer for control. This means running the digital outputs from the CD players into separate inputs on your recevier/pre-pro, or running the analog outputs from each changer into an analog mixer and then into an analog input on your receiver/pre-pro. In the later case, this is another argument for buying an ES model with its better DACs.
I'm very pleased with my ES megachanger, and am planning on buying another soon. Since I already have the 2-way remote, I'll get the M333ES.
And I second the recommendation for Oade Bros., I wouldn't buy Sony equipment anywhere else.
Kit