DVD player for stereo use

arvindrjh

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Dear pals,
Please can anyone suggest,how I can enhance sound quality of my Sony DVD player using for stereo output. Below are the details of my music set up.
1. Sony DVP SR660P
2.Amplifier Yamaha AS 500
Mostly I listen to old Hindi songs of HD quality & sometimes MP3 too.
Will an external DAC worth to invest, like Audiolab m dac mini?
 
Arvind,
The design of a DVD or a Bluray player or any universal player for that matter is not optimized for 2 channel music. For causual listening they perform fine but for a serious 2 channel music performance they are not the right product. You need to invest into a well designed CD player or a CD Transport/DAC combo for this purpose.
Thanks.
 
Dear pals,
Please can anyone suggest,how I can enhance sound quality of my Sony DVD player using for stereo output. Below are the details of my music set up.
1. Sony DVP SR660P
2.Amplifier Yamaha AS 500
Mostly I listen to old Hindi songs of HD quality & sometimes MP3 too.
Will an external DAC worth to invest, like Audiolab m dac mini?


There are certain High end models which work well for stereo purposes.....besides the HT duties they perform....these are expensive and have built in DAC / specialised circuitry for the same.

If you are using mp3s, ensure they are at least of 320kbps quality. Interconnect cables between the Amp and player does matter too.
 
Yes dedicated CD player always better but I need more connection options so will investing in external dac worth?
 
I have my songs in computer which can be taken in pan drive, stream via Android phone or burn audio CD & play on CD player. Does burning files on CD makes sense or any other way to get best sound from digital media?
 
A CD Player will not improve mp3 files. A DAC might marginally improve the sound over the current DVD player. It will depend on the speakers too as below average speakers will not sound any better.
 
Speakers are JBL Studio 230
I have a collection of HD songs purchased from Saregama & itune. And audio CDs are ripped so that is also available in digital medium, so does it make sense to use CD only or direct play from mobile using external DAC also alternate way of getting best sound.
 
Arvind,
I would go with a good DAC instead of a CDP. Do you also listen to DSD files? If you do then go for a Delta-Sigma DAC but otherwise a good multibit ladder DAC might be a better option for non SACD (Redbook CD) files. Don't forget to audition the product preferably in your room before buying it.
Thanks
 
Speakers are JBL Studio 230
I have a collection of HD songs purchased from Saregama & itune. And audio CDs are ripped so that is also available in digital medium, so does it make sense to use CD only or direct play from mobile using external DAC also alternate way of getting best sound.

Hi,

Your DVD player has a USB, so I assume you are using that to connect to your digital media. Stereo Out from player to your Stereo Amp. If yes, then I do not think there is more you can do connection wise apart from using good quality cables and speaker cables.

Now to use an external DAC the options are unlimited and a lot of dependent on your budget and the DAC you decide to buy. Something as simple as a Chromecast Audio can get you started. Its a good DAC and is used by many members here.

MaSh
 
Hi,

Your DVD player has a USB, so I assume you are using that to connect to your digital media. Stereo Out from player to your Stereo Amp. If yes, then I do not think there is more you can do connection wise apart from using good quality cables and speaker cables.

Now to use an external DAC the options are unlimited and a lot of dependent on your budget and the DAC you decide to buy. Something as simple as a Chromecast Audio can get you started. Its a good DAC and is used by many members here.

MaSh
well said Sir... right now U am doing so... but planning to add a DAC with coaxial output DVD player. someone suggested we can use it like this so that all connectivity as per DAC will be available & CD will be read by DVD player & signals will purify by dac so it will produce CD player like sound... is it so?
 
well said Sir... right now U am doing so... but planning to add a DAC with coaxial output DVD player. someone suggested we can use it like this so that all connectivity as per DAC will be available & CD will be read by DVD player & signals will purify by dac so it will produce CD player like sound... is it so?

Yes if your player has a Coaxial Out, then you can connect a DAC that has a Coaxial Input. The Stereo out from this DAC can go to your Amp. Quality of sound would depend on how well the DAC performs. However, Digital Media playback might not be close to an Original CD Playback in my opinion. Your CD player would still be a limiting factor.

I was in the same situation as you, only with a Philips Blueray player. A simple Raspberry Pi with an external DAC connected to a Stereo amp sounded better. Blueray playback on the other hand was brilliant. These players are cheap players with made to a cost components.

MaSh
 
Still I have some doubt if best sound can be achieved by CD player only... Any other method to get the best of digital files like now a days we have steamers, media players, Bluetooth/USB DAC etc. Anybody has any idea about that?
 
I am considering you experts advice that CD player is must for pure stereo music and dac+dvd player will not work... I have started another thread for CD player & getting advice for Marantz CD player & only CD5005 fits in my budget. Should I go for it?
 
Still I have some doubt if best sound can be achieved by CD player only... Any other method to get the best of digital files like now a days we have steamers, media players, Bluetooth/USB DAC etc. Anybody has any idea about that?
For Any intended Improvement in Sound quality go by RSS way ( most of it is available in detail on YouTube self help videos)
R - room acoustics, basic thick center mat, absorption at first reflection point, seating arrangements etc
S - speakers positioning, distance from sidewalls, distance between speakers, isolation, towing angle etc check your speaker manual. Getting right stereo imaging etc
S - Sources optimization & Synergy , pure Power Supply, Stabilizer for HT room sockets etc
Assuming you're through with the basic requirements for best possible SQ at your place in your budget,

Let's move on to the source discussion
Good Source files ( you already have ripped Wav files), Now get a Source player which can extract maximum information from your looseless files, a DAC which converts maximum source player retrieved information into the best possible analog output without losing the details. I don't think your Sony DVD player is designed for getting an audiophile quality by any means. Information retrieving ability of your source and its DAC will be the weakest link in your chain. I think u need to move beyond sticking to any DVD player for audio SQ.
A good media player and streamer with decent in built DAC will cost you more than 25k onwards. Some say 60k onwards but it depends upon everyone's experience and budget.

My suggestions for your budget would be to get DAC + Media Player + Streamer option like Yamaha Wxc50 at 25k instead of Marantz CD 5005. If you can drop the idea of Streaming option and want a CD player, better buy will be Marantz CD 6006 at 37k, with USB flash drive support for your ripped Wav files. By the way, don't bank too much on Wav files downloaded from Saregama, they're poorly mastered and you should instead use the Cds or your own ripped Wav files.
 
Last edited:
For Any intended Improvement in Sound quality go by RSS way ( most of it is available in detail on YouTube self help videos)
R - room acoustics, basic thick center mat, absorption at first reflection point, seating arrangements etc
S - speakers positioning, distance from sidewalls, distance between speakers, isolation, towing angle etc check your speaker manual. Getting right stereo imaging etc
S - Sources optimization & Synergy , pure Power Supply, Stabilizer for HT room sockets etc
Assuming you're through with the basic requirements for best possible SQ at your place in your budget,

Let's move on to the source discussion
Good Source files ( you already have ripped Wav files), Now get a Source player which can extract maximum information from your looseless files, a DAC which converts maximum source player retrieved information into the best possible analog output without losing the details. I don't think your Sony DVD player is designed for getting an audiophile quality by any means. Information retrieving ability of your source and its DAC will be the weakest link in your chain. I think u need to move beyond sticking to any DVD player for audio SQ.
A good media player and streamer with decent in built DAC will cost you more than 25k onwards. Some say 60k onwards but it depends upon everyone's experience and budget.

My suggestions for your budget would be to get DAC + Media Player + Streamer option like Yamaha Wxc50 at 25k instead of Marantz CD 5005. If you can drop the idea of Streaming option and want a CD player, better buy will be Marantz CD 6006 at 37k, with USB flash drive support for your ripped Wav files. By the way, don't bank too much on Wav files downloaded from Saregama, they're poorly mastered and you should instead use the Cds or your own ripped Wav files.
Thanks expert sir,
I decided to buy a CD player as I can't spent much and usually I listen to a set of songs only... So if any new entry comes I will burn it on CD.... I saw specs & DAC is same in Marantz 5005 & 6006 but price is more than twice... Is there any huge difference in both except USB play?
5005 will cost me 15k which seems to best option for me.
 
I am considering you experts advice that CD player is must for pure stereo music and dac+dvd player will not work... I have started another thread for CD player & getting advice for Marantz CD player & only CD5005 fits in my budget. Should I go for it?

What aspect of music do you miss with your current DVD player? What do you want improved?
 
Thanks expert sir,
I'm not an expert, just sharing my experience. Even I was preoccupied with DACs for improving SQ few years ago, just wanted to highlight that, there are so many small but important things that affect SQ depending upon your listening environment; unless "THE offending factor" in your listening environment is tackled the SQ may not improve a lot.

Say you buy CD 5005, and then you realize that it isn't a great improvement in SQ (this happened with me when I changed from pioneer DVD player to Basic Cambridge CD player) , then what? Dissatisfying upgrades hurt the budget conscious people the most (again from experience) .


. I saw specs & DAC is same in Marantz 5005 & 6006 but price is more than twice.
Again come out of the obsession with DAC and DAC chips, for me it's the 5th preference (after RSS) in improving the SQ. For example, DAC on my SR7010 (Dsd capable, Flac, 32bit)is way superior on Paper than DAC on my CD 6006(no Dsd only Wav) . But the CD player analog out to AVR analog in, trounces the SQ by a huge margin, if the Same Wav file were to be played by the USB input of AVR vs USB input of the CD player. The optimization of DAC differs a lot. AFAIK Most R2R DACs don't do DSD.

5005 will cost me 15k which seems to best option for me.
Yes I agree with you here, but again with 500 odd Cds and a good Cdp, I'm mostly listening to ripped Wav, from pure convenience point of view.
 
I'm not an expert, just sharing my experience. Even I was preoccupied with DACs for improving SQ few years ago, just wanted to highlight that, there are so many small but important things that affect SQ depending upon your listening environment; unless "THE offending factor" in your listening environment is tackled the SQ may not improve a lot.

Say you buy CD 5005, and then you realize that it isn't a great improvement in SQ (this happened with me when I changed from pioneer DVD player to Basic Cambridge CD player) , then what? Dissatisfying upgrades hurt the budget conscious people the most (again from experience) .



Again come out of the obsession with DAC and DAC chips, for me it's the 5th preference (after RSS) in improving the SQ. For example, DAC on my SR7010 (Dsd capable, Flac, 32bit)is way superior on Paper than DAC on my CD 6006(no Dsd only Wav) . But the CD player analog out to AVR analog in, trounces the SQ by a huge margin, if the Same Wav file were to be played by the USB input of AVR vs USB input of the CD player. The optimization of DAC differs a lot. AFAIK Most R2R DACs don't do DSD.


Yes I agree with you here, but again with 500 odd Cds and a good Cdp, I'm mostly listening to ripped Wav, from pure convenience point of view.
I agree with convince but my budget does not allow me to spent 30+K.
 
Till now what I learnt from this forum that if I need pure sound there is no alternate of CD player. Now can anyone suggest if basic CD player like Marantz 5005 is OK or I must go for higher players like Marantz6006.
My existing setup consists of
Yamaha A S500 Amplifier
JBL Studio 230 bookshelf speakers.
I never used/heard source as CD player so don't know if it will make a huge difference in my setup.
One of my local vendor said your existing stop is not hi-fi & no need of any other source, DVD player is also OK for your amplifier. I live in Indore.
 
What aspect of music do you miss with your current DVD player? What do you want improved?
On low & mid volume I can not hear the background musical instruments although voice is OK. In higher volume it is OK. It was good in my old Philips DVD player which I got repair twice but still produces some noise when CD is played. My problem is I never heard a CD player or hi-fi source as there is hardly any vendors for stereo in my city. I got my Yamaha amplifier locally but supplier could not demo it. Now investing 20-30k in source without hearing it with existing setup is risky.
 
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