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New member Username: BerslyConcord, CA United States Post Number: 4 Registered: Feb-09 | It seems like Rega makes a point of the fact that DVD transports that can play Cd are not as good. What is it about the DVD transport that makes it less than suitable for redbook CD payback. |
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Silver Member Username: JawPost Number: 248 Registered: Mar-06 | Me too. Maybe, there is a Rega engineer hanging around that could enlighten us on their magic. I'm here to learn something, too. |
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Gold Member Username: DmitchellOttawa, Ontario Canada Post Number: 2104 Registered: Feb-07 | That's a good question Brad. I have no idea why a dedicated player would be better than a DVD player in a technical sense, but I can tell you that my Sony Blu-ray player (while not bad) doesn't sound nearly as good as my Cambridge Audio 640C. There's a good review in Stereophile on the Rega Apollo that gets into the design and construction of the Apollo. I found it interesting: http://www.stereophile.com/cdplayers/606rega/ |
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Platinum Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 13343 Registered: May-04 | . DVD transports aren't all that inferior to the cheap CD transports used on too many players. The better CD transports are superior to either of the cheap transports. One issue in DVD or universal players is the more complicated laser assembly which must acomodate two different pit sizes, how it's focal dimensions are altered to accomodate both types of digital playback media and the amount of error allowed by the DVD format that isn't there in the best CD transports. Other problems exist in a DVD player being used as a CD player but your question concerned only the transport mechanism. . |
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Gold Member Username: My_rantzAustralia Post Number: 2033 Registered: Nov-05 | I have a Marantz Dvd-9500, had a NAD M55, two Denon Universal players and a lower end Pioneer. In each of them DVD-A and SACD reproduction has been reasonable to quite good, but the big let down and been the cd department in each of these things. A shame as the cost of a good cd player could have been avoided. Whether or not a much higher end universal player would address this issue satisfactorily or not is out of my audtioning scope in my area. But my guess is that it would have to be substantially in the upper leagues to be on par with a good cdp. As for BluRay players forget CD - I've had two Panasonics and I won't even bother to try a cd on the Pioneer (although it's a much better player than the other two). I'm hoping for music only BluRay releases, but there will need to be big improvements in reading response times before that could succeed. I googled the subject and got lost in the mire of technical gobbley-gook, but things like jitter and laser types and alignments came into play - but generally DVD does not do cd all that well. |
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Silver Member Username: HawkbillyNova Scotia Canada Post Number: 500 Registered: Jul-07 | I think at a high level the answer lies simply in the attempt to be "all things to all people". In every affordable design there are compromises. If you want to do everything, then you'll have more compromises. DVD's are first and foremost video pieces, so redbook audio is likely going to play second fiddle. |
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Gold Member Username: Frank_abelaBerkshire UK Post Number: 3562 Registered: Sep-04 | Never has the expression 'jack of all trades, master of none' been more apt. Quite apart from the physical requirements to manage more than one format, there is the configuration and software setup of the transport that has to be considered. Specialist brands like Rega go to great pains to optimise the performance of the mechanism by pushing the mechs to their limits. Once you're in the game of compromising because of the other format, you've lost the edge, and in the case of most DVD mechs, you don't even get the same configurability as dedicated CD mechs. |
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Bronze Member Username: 007bPost Number: 52 Registered: Oct-07 | Would one really expect anything else from Rega? If they manufactured and sold expensive DVD players, they would be saying something entirely different. No different than Ford maintaining their products are better than those of GMC. Consider the source. |
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Silver Member Username: HawkbillyNova Scotia Canada Post Number: 502 Registered: Jul-07 | Baxter, a lot of companies DO sell both audio and video equipment. If you ask the good ones whether their video gear plays audio as well as their audio gear what do you think their answer is ? Your Ford vs GMC example is a brand vs brand argument. I believe what we're discussing has nothing to do with any particular brand. But your "consider the source" remark is particularly ironic. |
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Bronze Member Username: PeterheadPost Number: 44 Registered: Apr-08 | There may be quite a few companies that dabble in both, but not at the top echelon. Sure JVC and Sony make both, but how many of you guys would consider their audio offerings to be anything close to reference quality. Baxter's right. Rega is simply blowing its own horn. |
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Silver Member Username: HawkbillyNova Scotia Canada Post Number: 510 Registered: Jul-07 | "There may be quite a few companies that dabble in both, but not at the top echelon." Define upper echelon. Simaudio makes some pretty special gear in both audio and video, and some nice pieces that do both very well. For a price. The point being, if you want the performance without paying top dollar, going the specialty route will get you more audio bang for your buck. JMO. |
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Silver Member Username: KbearCanada Post Number: 107 Registered: Dec-06 | Arcam is another example of a pretty high end company that also does both. I don't know why it would be shocking that a CDP plays audio discs better than a DVD player. I would think it's the same idea as why separates are generally better than a receiver. And I'm sure this is just generally speaking. A universal player by Arcam or a high end Denon would likely beat a specialty CDP by the likes of Sony or Panasonic. These higher end companies tend to put more focus on audio quality. It would be their number one priority in a specialty CDP, and a high priority in a Universal DVD player. For Sony/Panasonic type brands, CD playback is probably an afterthought on a universal player, where they know most people are buying it for video. |
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Gold Member Username: Nickelbut10Post Number: 2465 Registered: Jun-07 | "DVD and Universal players have trouble clocking at the multiples of 44.1khz which is the CD standard. Due to their video requirements" - James Tanner, VP and owner of Bryston Then to add, much better master clock system with the drive which highly reduces jitter. Higher end DAC's. Oversampling. Separate, heavily filtered power supplies, separate analog and digital stages. All of these are reasons why a redbook cd player in most cases is better than and DVD player. - These were just a few reasons Bryston Ltd say why a cd player is superior. |
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Gold Member Username: DmitchellOttawa, Ontario Canada Post Number: 2531 Registered: Feb-07 | Very good point Nick. One of many reasons why I'd not use a DVD player as my primary CD player. My Sony BD-550 sounds alright, but nowhere as good as my 640C. |
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Gold Member Username: Nickelbut10Post Number: 2467 Registered: Jun-07 | I hear ya David. The Apollo chews the floor out of any dvd player that touched my setup. |
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New member Username: SpiroviousPost Number: 2 Registered: Jun-09 | What abt Oppo980 & Nad CDP? |