Denon DCM-280 CDP Review

izafar
izafar Posts: 814
edited February 2003 in Electronics
ATN: Lengthy one, but I need your input on questions raised at the end.


Background:
To improve the sound of 2ch music, I was considering upgrading my cd player for a long time and bought the denon unit a couple of weeks ago. It replaced my Technics 60+1 CD changer. My option included this unit and the AMC CD8B. Both uses the same Burr Brown DAC (PCM1716), but I went for denon player as it was available in my area and I was able to listen to it before buying.

Musical Performance:
I found Denon's sound to be a litter different and better then my older player. The main difference was that I can listen to it at much higher volume and music sound much more involving and less harsh. The best thing is that I can crank up the volume and still enjoy the music. In contrast to the technics, on which i was not able to go above a certain point on volume (-20 on Denon AVR 2802).

A/B Comparison:
After getting the new player I put the older one on eBay and it was sold last week. Today I received the payment and will ship the technics tomorrow. While i was packing the unit I remembered that I had exact two copies of Pink Floyd’s Division Bell and i can use them to A/B testing. So I plugged the technics back in and went to my favorite track (#8) and hit play simultaneously on both players.

Results:
I started listening at lower volume and started to focus on tonal/timbre differences. To my surprise I couldn’t find any. There was exactly the same music coming out from both the players. This was at volume level -30 on my receiver. Then I increased the volume to -25 and immediately noticed that technics has more open/brighter sound than denon. This was again a surprise as my pervious impression was that Denon sound better then Technics. Then I increased the volume to -20. Now on most tracks technics still sounded better but on complex sound passages it starts sounding harsh. My understanding says that it can be due to one or both of the following reasons:

Difference in DACS (Techincs' 1 Bit MASH vs. Denon's 18bit/96Kh; though both use multistage Noise shaping algo)
Difference in line output level.

To test the second point I used the Ratshack meter to check the SPL on both players(keeping the receiver volume same). This was tough a i don have test tones on CD. However after testing for the same segment of a track on both players, I found that technics is playing around 2db louder then Denon.

Open Question for you guys:

Why does Denon sound better then technics?
1. Due to a better DAC
2. Due to a better line stage
3. Both

Can technics sound the same as Denon if its line output is decreased by 2db?

__________________

izafar:

RTi70 Mains
RT25i surrounds
CSi30 Center
PSW250 Sub
Denon AVR 2802
Carver AV 405 Amp
Denon DCM 280 CDP
Sony 32" Wega
Sony NS415 DVDP
-izafar

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