Comments on Sony XA777ES vs SCD 555ES (1 Viewer)

[KevinYS]

Keith,

I am hoping to get it with that price as well. I will find out tomorrow.

Any input on the 555ES break-in experience?

Kevin

 

[KeithH]

Kevin, I can't say that I have experienced break-in on any of my SACD player, though some will say that 400 hours are required for both the CD and SACD sections for break-in. If you are thinking that there is a break-in period, I would suggest that you don't run the player 24/7 to get through it. Some people on Audio Asylum have reported tracking problems and TOC reading errors with SACD players, and in many cases, it seems they ran the players 24/7 to break them in. I can't see how that can be good for these players. To me, that's overdoing it. Just run the player when you are listening and see what happens. Yes, it will take longer to break in, if anything happens at all, but it will be worth it in the long run.

 

[KevinYS]

Keith,
I agree that running the players 24/7 can't be a good idea, and I don't think I need to do that either. Since I am working while I listened to the music, I will let it "break-in" like that. On the other hand, what was your impression of the player when it was new and right out of the box? Was it pretty the same as you have used them for a while? No break-in time will be fine with me ...
Regards,
Kevin

 

[KeithH]

Kevin, I was immediately impressed with the 'C555ES out of the box. It replaced a Sony CDP-CA80ES carousel CD changer, and it was immediately obvious that the 'C555ES was much better. Again, I can't say that the sonic signature has changed in any way. I am still very pleased with the 'C555ES.

 

[BeatCrazy]

Hi,

I've been a C555ES owner for over 9 months now. I was one of the first to get one and paid WELL over the current price. Sigh, such is the price for early adopters.

My experience with the unit has been fantastic. Great sound, build quality and ease of use. In fact, I wouldn't trade it for any other player out there, regardless of price. Yes, even the XA777ES. The reason being that this model makes you use a different set of L&R outputs to listen to CDs or 2 channel SACDs. My pre-amp only has an analog pass through section for the 5.1 inputs. IMO there's very few pre-amps out there that will do analog bypass on anything other than the 5.1 inputs.

My suggestion for anyone debating a $499 555ES or $2K XA777ES is this: Buy a '555 and spend the extra $1500 on a nice 2 or 5 channel amp upgrade (or even better speakers). This would probably yield greater sonic results than '555ES > XA777ES.

 

[KevinYS]

Sam,
Thank you for the input on your experience with 555ES. The price on 555ES is very attactive in deed, and I am going to check on the price tomorrow once more, if I can still get the price I got today, I am going to take the unit and see how I like it. I might, in the long run, end up with both models, and I am glad I don't need to upgrade my amp any time soon. In my back up system, I will be connecting the CD player directly to the amp, so I don't need a pre-amp either. I hope 555ES will work well in my set up. By the way, do you think you can share the sonic impression you had with this player? If you have compared it with XA777ES, I would love to hear that as well. Thank you.
Keith,
Once again, thank you for the information. How quite is this player? Does it take long for disk change? And how about the track access time? I guess getting a disk changer can be convenient.
Regards,
Kevin

 

[Mike Matheson]

Oade Brothers currently offers the 555ES at $525 (just ordered one two days ago). Perhaps they'd come down a bit more if someone mentioned J&R was offering $499?
Oade also offers some sort of mod to the 555ES to improve its analog sound ($175 for the mod).
I've had trouble finding feedback (on the web) regarding exactly what the mods include and how they might improve things. Ordered them anyway.
M

 

[BeatCrazy]

Kevin,
Unfortunately I've never heard the XA777ES. The DSD DACs are the same in both units: Burr-Brown 1738's. The XA777ES is reported to have better sound in 2ch mode due to the "tripling up" of the DACs, hence the need for a seperate 2 channel output. There are other differences as far as capacitors, etc. go. The absolute sonic differences in these two models varies upon who you talk to. I think Stereophile says its a significant difference. I've heard others say not so.
Plus, the carousel feature is often nice, and I'm sure I'd miss it with a single-disc-only model.
Oh yeah, sonic impressions, I almost forgot. Well the C555ES leaves me wanting nothing from CD or SACD playback. SACD provides vocal smoothness that CDs can never match IMO. Compared to the outputs of my Panasonic RP-91 DVDA player, redbook CDs seem smoother and more laid-back on the '555 with no loss of detail.

 

[KeithH]

Kevin,
I don't use the 'C555ES in shuffle mode, so I can't say how quickly it switches discs in that sense. Usually, I load up five discs and play each one all the way through or a few tracks from each one before switching to the next one. Switching discs manually (i.e., stopping one disc and loading up another one via the remote) is a rapid process as far as I am concerned. The player also reads a disc's TOC after closing the drawer within a few seconds. All in all, I feel the player is pretty fast. Some of my single-disc players are faster, but as far as carousel changers go, the 'C555ES is good.
Mike,
You should be able to find some information on the Oade Bros. 'C555ES modifications on the Hi-Rez Highway board on www.audioasylum.com . Do a search, and then you can post any questions you might have there. Just note that such modifications void the five-year warranty.

 

[Kevin Deacon]

I think those of you that purchased the 555ES for 499.00 at J&R are in for a big surprise when you receive a 400 disc changer.

I just called J&R and asked them how much the SCD555ES is and they quoted me 599.00. I asked why some people are getting quotes for 499.00 and he said that price is for the 400 disc cd player CDP-M555ES that also happens to contain 555ES in the model number.

Those of you that ordered the 555ES for 499.00 may want to call J&R to clear things up!!

 

[Dzung Pham]

Oade Brothers currently offers the 555ES at $525 (just ordered one two days ago).

Bummer, I just received a quote from them today for $575. Still a good price though.

 

[KevinYS]

Sam,
Thank you for the reply, sounds like most people are having the similier impression of the player, and this is a good thing. I am going to do some checking around to find out where I can get my player from today, we'll see...
Keith,
Sounds good. I don't think I will be using the shuffle mode either, I always load up the player and let it go while I do my work, I won't even get up until the disk is over. With the disk changer, I may not even need to get for a much longer time. I guess the only possible danger is I might start growing root under my feet
Kevin,
Thank you for the tip, when I call J and R later, I will make sure which model they quote for $499. I don't mind getting a disk changer, but five is enough, and I for sure don't need 400 that does'nt player SACD. I am glad you point that out.
Regards,
Kevin

 

[KevinYS]

Well, I could'nt get the $499.00 price from J and R, and Kevin was right, that price according to the sales person I was talking to, was for the 400 mega disk changer. So far the best price I got was from www.oade.com their price was $600.00 shipped, and it will take about a week to get to me.
So the decision has been made. I ordered the unit and are now waiting for the player to arrive. It will be interesting to find out how well the unit fits in with the tube amplification.
Thanks everone for the information. Now can you guys suggest some SACD title for me to try out, and where are good places to get them from? I am going to check out my local Best Buy store, as I recall, they have some reasonable level of selections.
Regards,
Kevin

 

[Mike Matheson]

Dzung Pham,

My bad! I just checked the email from Oade and I in fact did pay $575, not $525. Sorry to mislead!

Mike

 

[KeithH]

Kevin, although I am not doubting that some people got the 'C555ES for $500, that just sounds too low for it to be the standard price. I just got a 'C222ES for my second system the other day ($380 from J&R), but I briefly considered exchanging it for the 'C555ES this morning if J&R would sell it for $500. I called J&R this morning, but they once again quoted me $600. I then spoke to Jim Oade at Oade Bros., and he quoted me $600 delivered. He said that he would match an authorized dealer's price if I could find it cheaper. When I told him that I had heard that J&R was selling it for $500, he said he had heard that too and had called them as if he were a customer out of curiosity. J&R quoted him $600. Jim said he was convinced that J&R could not sell the 'C555ES for $500. Anyway, $600 is still a great price.

 

[KevinYS]

Keith,
I was not too concern for the difference in $100.00, actually my decision was more like which model should I get. Now that decision is over I am waiting for the delivery now, do you have some recommandations on the SACD titles for me to try out?
Thank you.
Kevin

 

[KeithH]

Kevin, what kind of music do you like?

 

[KevinYS]

Keith,

Jazz, vocal, classical, and sometimes new age.

I do have one that I MUST have, it is the Friday Night in San Francisco by Al DiMeola,John McLaughlin and Paco De Lucia.

By the way, does 555ES have detachable power cord?

Thank you.

Kevin

 

[KeithH]

Kevin, unfortunately, the 'C555ES has a fixed power cord. Since you like jazz, I agree that Friday Night in San Francisco is a must-have SACD. I have the CD and it's great. Of course the music is great. I need to get the SACD.
As far as jazz on SACD is concerned, you may be aware that there are a lot of Miles Davis albums out. Also consider Dave Brubeck Time Out, Weather Report Heavy Weather, Herbie Hancock Head Hunters. I've only scratched the surface with jazz on SACD, but the Miles, Brubeck, Weather Report, and Hancock SACDs are great. Note that the Brubeck and Hancock SACDs were originally released in stereo but were recently re-released in multi-channel.
You might be interested to hear that www.amusicdirect.com will be putting out some Patricia Barber titles on the resurrected Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs label. Also, I have heard that Jacintha's SACDs sound very good. I definitely want to pick them up.
If you like newer jazz trumpet, check out Wynton Marsalis Hot House Flowers. Standard Time, Volume 1 is also out on SACD, but I haven't picked it up yet. An SACD I really like is Chris Botti Night Sessions. If you are not familiar with Botti, he has a few albums out, and Night Sessions is his latest release. He played with Sting at one point. Night Sessions is smooth jazz trumpet, and I really like it. The SACD sounds great (actually the CD sounds great too).
For vocals, consider Rebecca Pidgeon The Raven on the Chesky Records label (www.chesky.com). If you are not familiar with Pidgeon, she has a beautiful voice, and it's hard for me to pinpoint her style. Somewhat folky at times, but she is great. She does a cover of Phil Spector's "Spanish Harlem" on The Raven that has to be heard to be believed.
Check out Best Buy and Circuit City for a reasonable selection of Sony SACDs. Also, if you have a Tower Records in your area, check out their SACD selection. They usually have good stock. Also check out the following web sites for SACDs:
www.amusicdirect.com
www.digitaleyes.com
www.acousticsounds.com
www.towerrecords.com
www.elusivedisc.com
There are other web retailers of SACDs, but these are some of the better ones out there.

 

[KevinYS]

Keith,
Thank you for the suggestions, I checked a few of the web sites you recommanded, and I have already found several titles that I like. This weekend will be a CD shopping weekend for sure... . This is getting fun now.
Regards,
Kevin