Audio Blog: Playstation as a CD player!

thetawave2

http://paugustinos.blogspot.com/2011/12/vii-playstation-scph-1001.html

Here's a link to the blog I've been neglecting. The notes from this listening session have been rotting in googledocs for far too long haha

Hope you enjoy! Feel free to check out my older posts on the Macbook's optical port, my Tannoy D100 speakers, and other fun stuff.

Another post on my new Yaqin MC-100B integrated tube amp to follow soon.

Any feedback (constructive criticism included) is more than welcome.

codyc1ark

Ummm.... Can you post the review here? I can't access the sight from my work comp, thanks? :redface:

thetawave2

haha it's quite long but here goes... brace for wall-o-text:



Before I left on a vacation in Europe, Mike and I decided to have one last listening session. He’d told me that he had a surprise in store. I had no idea what it was, and it could hardly have been a more exciting surprise. When I opened the door he had a big grin on his face and a Playstation game console in his hands.

A long time ago, I saw an article on Stereophile magazine’s website reviewing the original Playstation as a CD player. I assumed it was a joke. Yet as I did more reading on the website, I saw references to the Playstation in other articles. Could they be serious? The original Playstation?? When I went back and read the review, I realized they were serious. Dead serious. The reviewer had some very impressive things to say.

The catch was that the miraculous audio only came out of the built-in RCA outputs of the SCPH-1001 model. The one I got for Christmas when I was 8 years old, while it still was a Playstation, had a later set of hardware with a proprietary combined AV out instead of RCA jacks. I had planned to get one once I came home from my semester abroad in Europe, but in the meantime Mike had found one for a song on Ebay. So, we brought my speakers and amplifier downstairs and gave it a go.

At first, our results weren’t so great. We started off with “Angelicus,” a song on Nuages Du Monde by Delerium. The low end just didn’t seem there. Searching for a little bass response we popped in 4x4=12 by Deadmau5 and had a quick listen to “Some Chords” and “One Trick Pony.” The sound seemed kind of top-heavy, lacking in the bass and a bit forward up top. I brought down my equalizer and put it between the Playstation and the amplifier, and it seemed to help quite a bit. The slight bass reinforcement I’d already been using helped round out the sound, and a gentle taper to the very highest frequencies took a bit of the edge off.

We listened to a little Ben Folds and some jazz as well. I noticed that pianos especially sounded very percussive, each note taking on a shape of its own. But the fun really started when we popped in Ixnay on the Hombre by The Offspring and had a listen to “Change the World.” The pace and dynamics of the intro were so involving that I could feel my pulse quicken. Then, we moved on to some Sinatra. Vocals were rendered wonderfully, with crisp but silky smooth sibilants and plosives.

One of my personal favorites, Lovers and Leaders by Sacha Sacket, was next in our stack of CDs. We planned to listen to a couple tracks and move on. However, we just couldn’t stop listening! The third track, “Stay,” has a very distinctive sound with no cymbals or bright percussion, and slightly muted piano. The honesty and clarity with which the vocals came through made the song a near-visual experience; I could clearly see Sacha singing in my head. His voice was very emotional and emphatic with not a hint of strain. The detail of the Playstation transformed the synth at the end of the song, giving it an entirely new level of texture. This was an effect continued in “Brandon Boyd,” the beatcrushed effect at the beginning sounding appropriately grainy. Mike’s analogies came through again, this time likening the sound to the gently abrasive feel of pumace. The subtlety with which each part was voiced in this song added an important and meaningful aspect. There seemed to be a vast distance between the distant electric guitar, crying for attention, and the upfront vocals. This distance seemed to be a very empty one, giving the song undertones of isolation that were very appropriate thematically.

We almost skipped the next song, “Maybe You Can Save Me (from you),” but by the end we were very thankful we hadn’t. It turned out to be one of our favorite tracks in the listening session. Again and again Mike and I commented to each other how real, how live it sounded. Acoustic guitars rang true. The vocals were rich, with a subtle touch of reverb. The piano was soft and humble and gave a lot of support to the other parts. Overall, sound and imaging came together to construct for us a medium-sized room, a very intimate venue.

By now we were absolutely hooked on Sacha’s music. Though we’d planned on swapping for another disc by this time, we kept on going. “How Low?” had spot-on vocals and a wonderfully rounded and controlled bass guitar. Everything sounded exactly in its place doing exactly what it should have been doing. “Jove” showcased piano and vocals, truly a match made in heaven. The final chorus was insistent and strong, just begging to be heard. And hear it we did, to the subtle and delicate end. “Hallowed (Show Me How)” had a wonderfully crisp percussion part and a determined piano that teamed up to give the song purposeful momentum. The final track, “Time to Go,” was personal and poignant, with a delicate and even vulnerable sound. I found myself completely wrapped up in the music, and even realized I had been holding my breath after the final notes.

After that, we decided on a bit of a change of pace. Troubadour by K’naan had some wonderful music to offer us. The backup vocals of “Wavin’ Flag” were put right in their place, taking a background but strongly supporting role in both the mix and the imaging. The lead vocal seamlessly joined them to make an integrated ensemble, while retaining the emphasis it deserved. The driving beats from bass and drums along with a bright sound gave the song a sunny, optimistic sound. But, the brightness was perhaps a touch too much, as Mike found fault with the electric guitar during the refrain. This was no glaring issue as was the topheavy sound at the beginning of our session, but I think it was representative of a lack of synergy between the Playstation and my other components.

The instruments in “Fatima” helped to tell the song’s story just as much as the lyrics did. The soft, muted brass sounded like a blush on the girl’s cheek. The bass, like a heartbeat, sounded organic, vital, strong, and sanguine, even if it was a touch on the lighter side. The organ toward the end of the song made K’naan’s speech like an uplifting sermon. In “Take a Minute,” the easy but constant flow was handled quite well by the Playstation and made for a matter-of-fact tone. The line “to give is priceless” comes when all parts fall away but piano and vocals and sounded like a piece of private and poignant advice to the listener. Again, the detail and nimble pace of the Playstation made for an involving, emotive presentation.

Our last disc of the night was Begin to Hope by Regina Spektor. I looked forward to the way her piano and voice would sound, and all my expectations were far surpassed. The first track we selected, “Samson,” had a stronger presence to the vocals than I had noticed before. This made the song much more personal, as if the listener could look Ms. Spektor right in the eyes as she sang. Strings sounded more compelling, and joined the piano in very involving ebbs and flows of phrasing.

“That Time” was a bit of a lighter, conversational song. The vocals were extremely nuanced and the Playstation allowed them to help tell the story through inflection and emphasis. Mike pointed out what he believed to be a touch of over-compression, which unfortunately caused the cymbals to steal some detail away from the vocals.

Somehow, it had gotten quite late. Unfortunately for us and for the large stack of CDs we had yet to play, Mike had to go. This would be the last time we’d see each other (and the last time I’d have access to a respectable stereo!) for four months while I was studying abroad in Europe. We took a couple pictures with my brothers, who had joined us, to remember the occasion.

All in all, the Playstation was a wonderful player, but I can see where there would be some issues getting it to work well with a brighter system. If your amplification and speakers are a bit more on the warm side than mine were, I’m sure it’d be a great fit. Still, I found the benefits of this player to outweigh the slight mismatch. The Playstation was able to present details crisply, even transforming some of my favorite tracks. It might sound a little silly to have an early generation game console as a source in your Hi-Fi system, but I was certainly looking forward to buying a Playstation of my own.

BlueFox

Is this that old review? However, the original Playstation has a firmware bug that allows you to use it to copy SACDs. There is some interesting articles on that to be found via Google.

In the current stereophile there is a comparison of the original Playstation to the Emotiva CD player. The Playstation is better in the mids, but the Emotiva is better in bass and high-end. At least according to this comparison.

thetawave2

The Stereophile review was from 2008. http://www.stereophile.com/cdplayers/708play/index.html
I think I'll add the link to the blog for anyone else who's curious.

Without having heard the Emotiva, I would definitely believe that comparison. I really loved the mids of the Playstation, but the bass was a little lacking and the treble had a bit of an edge. Both of those shortcomings have been addressed by my recent amplifier upgrade, about which I will be blogging soon. So stay posted!

codyc1ark

Interesting, I had read about the PS in another thread here awhile ago. This may be a good way to tide me over until I can get my hands on something a little more high end. Nice review.

thetawave2

codyc1ark wrote: »

Interesting, I had read about the PS in another thread here awhile ago. This may be a good way to tide me over until I can get my hands on something a little more high end. Nice review.

Yeah if you have the right system for it, it can be a huge improvement. Definitely has a bunch more character and detail than the DVD player I'd been using (Denon, I forgot the model number). Someday I'm sure I'll upgrade to a more serious transport but for now I could hardly be happier, especially with the pricetag ($25 on ebay). If you do decide to buy one, make sure you get the 1001 model with the RCA outs, as there are relatively newer Playstation models that still came out before the Playstation 2 or even the PSOne but have different hardware. Just ask your seller to provide a picture of the back of the unit.

Also, I'm glad you enjoyed the review! Thanks for checkin it out

cnh

An interesting review. I've also read the stereophile review before and I own this version of the PS. A lot of older Polkies around here are of the opinion that all the PS does is roll off the highs and the lows and not much more. And, frankly, I am inclined to agree with that. In comparing my PS to my more contemporary HK HD 990; the 4-500 dollar Harman Kardon runs circles around it. Decent bass, clean highs and mids. The PS sounds just a little better than your average portable CD player to me, it can't hang with a good $500+ player, let alone a more "elite" player in the $1000-2000 dollar range.

In addition, one of the "strengths" of the PS One in the Stereophile review was that it "was not" bright, did not have the typical digital glare in the high end. That part (since it does seem to roll off the highs) seems true enough on a number of different systems I've used it with, so I'm surprised you heard "any" brightness above?

The review, itself, though, is really well done and an exquisite example of review writing...almost a template that others could learn from. But the subjectivity involved here in what one hears and another does not is apparent. What can we do, we don't hear the same thing?

cnh

thetawave2

@cnh:

I've never heard a very serious CD player. The only comparison I could draw for this review was with the fairly uninspiring Denon DVD player I had been using previously. I'm sure there is much improvement to be had from a serious CD player (for several hundred dollars I certainly hope so!), and I am very excited to upgrade someday. I definitely wouldn't say the Playstation is the miracle component some people make it out to be, but it definitely gave me some of the detail I was looking for, especially in the midrange.

I'm aware that with my limited listening and general lack of experience, the review was very subjective. I am writing this blog mostly to increase that experience I have and to hone my critical skills so I can better enjoy this hobby. I very much appreciate your kind comments on my writing and the opinions and experience you shared. Thanks for checking out my review!

cnh

No problem...Loved the review. It was a nice piece. Thanks for sharing that. And I could see using this player, actually I do use it with my Monitor 5s and a Technics integrated from the '80s--a Technics 85 watt x 2 (so-called New Class A--not really). The player is a reasonable match there--not the most detailed set up but you can listen to it for hours and hours with little fatigue.

CD players can be a rarefied atmosphere. I bought a Jolida (tube stage) player a while back which sounds quite good but will be even better once I figure out what tubes are best for it? Really, there's "no end" to this.

cnh

dudeinaroom

I believe the palystation article has been linked to before, at least one such type of article, and it has to be one of the original models that had the RCA jacks on the back of it, not the ones with the multi av out only. How can you use a playstaion to copy an SACD???? The ps1 was a cd based system incapable of reading DVD dics, and SACDs are a DVD based disc. Also the ps1 did not have any type of digital connection. Maybe with a PS3.

thetawave2

dudeinaroom wrote: »

How can you use a playstaion to copy an SACD????

I don't know anything about SACD and I hadn't heard about that feature before. Your guess is as good as mine haha

Fongolio

BlueFox wrote: »

However, the original Playstation has a firmware bug that allows you to use it to copy SACDs.

Actually that would be the original PS3, NOT the first Playstation, and only with older firmware and a special download.