Phillips SACD-1000 SACD Player

[PMC7027]

Does anyone have any experience with this unit? Now that the price has been slashed in half I'm thinking of taking the plunge into SACD. I know HP had a few good comments in a brief paragraph in TAS. I only need two channel, and certainly can't aford Sony's SCD-1. I don't intend to use an SACD player for redbook CDs, I have a Theta DSPro Gen III w/HDCD upgrade for that.

I'd greatly appreciate any comments. Thanks in advance.

David Schwartz

[Wie Gehts?]

David,

I placed an order for the Philips SACD-1000 player last week with Oade Brothers (after deciding against the Sony SCD-C555ES). As soon as I receive it and have a chance to form an opinion, I'll post my impressions here. As you may have noticed, most of the reviews of this unit have been quite favorable. Unlike you, I will be using it for redbook as well as hi-res playback.

[pigmode]

I have one and am very pleased with both its SACD and redbook playback, but there is one caveat. I belatedly found out that the transport used in the SACD 1000 and a few other Marantz models has a spotty reputation for noisy and rough operation. Sure enough, a few of my redbook discs cause the transport to emit a racket loud enough to be an annoying disturbance during quiet passages.

Don't quote me but I think I recall that Oades would not warrant the SACD 1000 for this particular flaw. Search AA for more info.

[Marc Pool]

I also own the SACD 1000, and I only last week heard the racket Pigmode is talking about. I only have it with CD's that are made by PDO in Germany and they are all pretty old discs I bought in the 80's. And luckely I don't own to many off them.

[pigmode]

As an experiment, I bought another copy of a redbook CD that was causing noise, and the new disc runs great. (shrugs)

[Wie Gehts?]

Well, my Philips SACD-1000 arrived the other day, and I just finished boxing it up to return to Oade Brothers. What didn't I like about it? For starters, it has a flimsy and NOISY transport. It emits a constant clicking and whirring sound that can definitely be heard several feet away during quiet passages and between tracks on all the discs I played. Call me anal retentive, but that sort of thing bugs the hell out of me. (To their credit, the Oades did tell me before I placed my order that this player has a second-rate transport mechanism, but I went ahead and took a chance. Caveat Emptor.)

Secondly and perhaps more significantly, I didn't care for the sound of this unit at all. It alternated between harsh and bright and muffled and overly detailed, on both redbook and SACD discs. I will admit that the Willie Nelson Stardust stereo SACD sounded very good, better than the gold Mastersound by far. For the record, I auditioned it with the following SACDs: Abraxas, Tapestry, Blonde on Blonde, The Stranger, 52nd Street, Kind of Blue, and the aforementioned Stardust, along with several MoFi, DCC, and Mastersound CDs.

Perhaps I'm just used to the particular colorations and sound of my old CDP (which finally gave up the ghost recently), or maybe I need to let the SACD-1000 "burn in" for 300 hours, or maybe my other components lack synergism with this unit, or perhaps the high resolution of SACD is revealing for the first time what the master tape *really* sounds like and my ears aren't accustomed to such stark realism. Dunno. HP of The Abso!ute Sound had good things to say about it, as did several individuals on AudioAsylum, so who am *I* to knock it? To paraphrase the old saw, I may not know high-end sound but I know what I like, and this ain't it. I'll cut my losses, pay the Oades' 15% restocking fee plus shipping, and begin my search in earnest for a great-sounding redbook player. Viva la redbook! ;)

[PMC7027]

Thanks for your opinion Dreamcatcher! I was also interested in the unit based on HP's comments and the fact that I didn't want to spend more than $1000 on a machine.

I'll check out the Sony ES players when I get a chance. Does anyone have a new SCD-1 they will sell for $1000?

David Schwartz

[Marc Pool]

Well I'm afraid it sounds like you are to used to the sound of your old player to regonize the quality of the Philips player. The Philips sounds a lot warmer than the Sony players in both CD and SACD, so that won't be an option either.
I had my Philips on loan for 2 seperate weeks before I bought it, I was used to the somewhat laid back sound of the C.E.C. 5100z, and didn't like the Philips at cd at first either, but after I put the C.E.C. back I heard what I was missing out on. So I went back to the store after about a month, to it home for the second week after which I bought it. Never looked back after that, especially because of the fact the Philips sounds better after some burn in time.
I had a chance to listen to a out of the box version a while ago, and I'm happy with the burn in effect off my player, the Philips is like a good wine, it takes some time to age.

[NoTinEar]

Well if you check the earlier thread about the 1000 you will see some other comments from people who own the unit. The unit doesn't sound a little different after it burns in or breaks in or whatever nomenclature you want to use, it sounds significantly different. It's a different for the better. Now i am not sure what sounds your talking about the mechanism making, but my unit doesn't click or whir or any other loud noise when cd or sacd are playing. That sounds more of a defective unit. The 1000 also really needs good interconnects behind it. If you don't believe that interconnects make a difference, good for you, I don't want to debate the subject. Finally I agree with Marc Pool, that if anythingin regards to the way they sound, the Sony's in the same price range definitely sound more aggressive on the high end. Again your mileage may vary.

[Tullman]

David you have a pretty nice cd player now. You are probably used to hight quality ergonomics and sound. You probably won't like a cheap SACD player. I would look for the used Sony SACD 1 or the Classe. I am going to wait and see what comes out. I am hoping for a good universal player.

[lushlife]

Dear All,
Here's my 2 cents from a guy with more money than brains:) I own both the Musical Fidelity 3D CD player and have auditioned the Philips SACD 1000. I found the sonics from each about the same given the same music (CD on the 3D and SACD on the SACD 1000) but the soundstage is bigger in SACD. I didn't let it break in that much, (30 day refund policy), but personally find it warmer than I like. To be fair, it would kick the beejeus out of the Adcom CD player that I had befor I bought the 3D. I took back the Philips and bought a Sony SCD 1 from a place in NY advertised in Absolute Sound for $3000.00 including shipping. The sound of CD is similar in both players (ouch!) but I think CD sound in the 3D is a little more musical. However, in SACD (Patricia Barber, Miles Davis's Big Fun, Santana Abaraxas) the sound is much better-more detail, better bass, huge beautiful soundstage,etc.
I myself would not have bought an SACD player now if Steve Hoffman had not started mastering SACDs. I am not an "audiophile", so take my comments with a grain of salt; just a guy who wants music to sound as good as it did on vinyl with a Philips turntable and powered Advent speakers back in my dorm room. As Ansel Adams once said, "Isn't it amazing how much we've advanced without improving."
Cheers to all,
Lushlife