Sony SCD-XE597 Super Audio CD

 

This player is designed to play back 2-channel and Multi-channel Super Audio CDs, and conventional CDs, and provides the following features:

Mounted with a Discrete Dual Laser Optical Pickup, capable of reading a Super Audio CD or conventional CD depending on the exclusive wavelength.

Quicker track access performance enabled by an advanced servo mechanism.

A Multi-Channel Management function that allows you to adjust the multi-channel playback environment according to the allocation and size of your speakers.

A Super Audio D/A Converter, which allows higher-quality sound reproduction.

A Super Audio CD can mark up to 255 track numbers. This feature applies to SCD-XE597.

The supplied remote is capable of controlling both the SCD-XE597 and a conventional Sony CD player

 

Compatible Disc Types:  Super Audio CD and Audio CD

 

Super Audio CD is a new high-quality audio disc standard where music is recorded in the DSD (Direct Stream Digital) format (conventional CDs are recorded in the PCM format). The DSD format, using a sampling frequency 64 times higher than that of a conventional CD, and with 1-bit quantization, achieves both a wide frequency range and a wide dynamic range across the audible frequency range, and so provides music reproduction extremely faithful to the original sound

 

Specifications

When a Super Audio CD is played

Playing Frequency Range:  2 Hz to 100 kHz

Frequency Response:  2 Hz to 40 kHz (–3 dB)

Dynamic Range:  100 dB or more

Total Harmonic Distortion Rate:  0.0035 % or less

Wow and flutter:  Value of measurable limit (±0.001 % W. PEAK) or less

When a CD is played

Frequency Response:  2 Hz to 20 kHz

Dynamic Range:  96 dB or more

Total Harmonic Distortion Rate:  0.0039 % or less

Wow and flutter:  Value of measurable limit (±0.001 % W. PEAK) or les

Output Level/Impedance

Phono Jack Analog 5.1 Ch Out : 2 V (RMS at 50 k Ω ) / over 10 ko Ω

Square Optical Digital CD Out Optical :  -18 dBm / Light emiting wave length 660 nm)

General

Laser:  Semiconductor laser (Super Audio CD: λ= 650 nm) (CD: λ= 780 nm)

Emission Duration:  continuous

Power Requirements:  230 V AC, 50/60 Hz

Power Consumption:  15 W

Dimensions (W x H x D):  430 × 95 × 283 mm incl. projecting parts

Weight  (approx.):   3,1 kg

McIntosh MCD 301

The CD/SACD player from McIntosh is constructed in a very solid way. Typical for McIntosh the front panel is made of glass with aluminum side strips, all the other sides of the enclosure are made from aluminum sheets. Central place of the front is occupied by the disc drawer, above it is a green lit logo, below it a blue display, divided in two sections. The left one displays the track number or time (depending on the chose configuration), and the right one displays the current volume on the variable output port. On both sides of the drawer two big, black knobs were placed, with an aluminum edge – the left one is used to skip forward and back, the right one controls the output volume. Below there are two rows of buttons used to access other functions of the drive, we can also select the layer of a hybrid SACD disc (we can play the CD and SACD stereo layer, the SACD MCh is not available), as well as place the player in standby. There is also a headphone socket available.
The back panel is also well equipped. There are two sets of analog RCA outputs and two XLR – one balanced and one unbalanced set are with fixed output voltage, the other variable. Unfortunately the RCA sockets are close together, what can prevent installation of cables with not typical plugs, or very thick ones. There are also digital outputs provided, a coaxial S/PDIF and optical TOSLINK (the digital signal is available only when playing a CD or CD layer from a hybrid disc). Besides those, there are also four sockets for Mac’s system bus and an IEC socket.

Interesting solutions are also to be found inside. The central place is taken by the drive, taken from Denon (a brand from the same financial group as McIntosh), closed inside protective shielding and placed on special support pillars. The audio circuitry is placed on one L-shaped PCB. The digital to analog conversion is done in the Burr-Brown DSD 1792 DAC chip. The output circuits are balanced and doubled – one complete set, with the addition of an integrated resistor ladder, is there for the variable output and the other handles the fixed set. The power supply has a separate PCB and split in many sections, powering the analog section, digital section and drive separately. It is worth noticing, that two unusual solution were applied there – the IEC socket is blocked with a mains filter, a not very common solution, but really recommended, and there is also the possibility to change the mains voltage by simply re-plugging a special plug connected to the primary windings of the R-core transformer to a different socket.
Simple, yet effective.

MCD 301 Technical data:
- TRUE DUAL MODE DSD/PCM converters
- RCA and XLR sockets with a fixed level
- RCA and XLR sockets with variable level
- High class headphone amplifier
- Optical and coaxial digital output
- Double laser for CD and SACD read
Played formats:
SACD, CD, MP3, WMA
Analog sockets:
RCA fixed 2VRMS
XLR fixed 4VRMS
RCA variable 6VRMS
XLR variable 12VRMS
Frequency response: SACD 4HZ-40kHZ +0.5dB/-2dB; CD 4HZ-20kHZ +/-0.5dB
S/N ratio: 110dB
Dynamics: 100dB
THD: SACD 0.002%; CD 0.003%
Power consumption: 35 W
Dimensions: (WxSxG) 15 x 45 x 40 cm.
Weight: 12.8 kg