⌈ Founded in 2009, Foshan ShuangMuSanLin Electronics (S.M.S.L) is a manufacturer based in the industrial part of China, in the province of Schenzen. It offers nicely made products aimed at the audiophile part of society, such as: D / A drivers, headphone amplifiers and power amplifiers. We are testing its Compact Disc PL200 player. ⌋
TWO MORE, MAYBE THREE YEARS AGO writing about the Compact Disc player I would explain why I do this. I would probably recall my own experience with this format, only very good, I would say something about the sound quality, still better (in my opinion) than what we get with the files and often competing with analog discs, I would definitely also refer to the convenience of using that the format gives, and finally I would mention the millions of CDs that you can buy for pennies at the moment and
that these will be OUR CDs that we will be able to listen to anytime and anywhere, unlike streaming files that are today and may not be tomorrow.
Today I don't have to do it anymore, it's obvious. And that's because the trends are slowly but still changing. While until recently, producers from the so-called mainstream argued that "only streaming and nothing else", now they have to admit that they exaggerated a bit with this stream enthusiastism. As it turns out, there are still many audiophiles, because they are mainly concerned, who have a lot of CDs of this type and
who do not want to part with this medium.
The financial aspect is also not to be despised - streaming is made mainly by the studios, not the artists, and if anything, only the most famous (clickable) ones. In addition to the LP releases, many of them are also pushing to release the material on CD. This can be seen in the statistics on the sale of CDs, which show that the
downward trend has slowed down and may be slightly reflected in the future.
Audio producers also noticed it. And it's not only tiny manufactors like Polish Ancient Audio, Italian Norma or Slovak Canor, but also medium and heavyweight players. It is enough to mention that Cambridge Audio has CD transports in its offer, that the British company Leema Acoustics also offers devices of this type and that the American company Ayre has never, in fact, left this format, and the Austrian Ayon Audio offers both transports and complete players. Transport Compact Disc also offers JBL (!).
And then
there are Technics, Yamaha, Denon and Marantz
SACD players, companies like Ruarek mount CD drives in their all-in-one systems, which makes the silver (CD) and gold (SACD) discs do well. I would say there is something to it.
▌ Compact Disc+
I DON'T KNOW IF YOU remember, but the Compact Disc format was created as a result of a very long research and development process and cost millions of millions of dollars. It was a breakthrough format that
completely changed the music map, in every way, and at the same time "froze" it for many years. Because it was so handy, and the publishers and hardware manufacturers made so much money from it that - literally - they didn't know what to do with this sudden harvest. The people managing them thought that it would always be so, which is why streaming surprised them so much and spread their business models.
Already at the time of the premiere, it was known that the edge parameters of the digital signal that can be written on the disc, i.e. 16-bit depth and sampling rate of 44.1 kHz, are a compromise. It resulted both from the agreements between the two creators of the system, i.e. Sony and Philips, as well as from the physical limitations of the most widespread
digital mastering systems, stereo cassette recorders U-Matic PCM-1600/1610/1630, which worked with such parameters.
But relatively early, because already in 1995, the first new format based on CDs was created, namely HDCD - High Definition Compact Disc. Developed by "Prof." Keitha O. Johnson and Michael "Pflash" Pflaumer from Pacific Microsonics Inc. allowed to write a 20-bit signal on the disc. To decode it, you needed a player with the right Pacific Microsonic chip. On the other hand, however, these discs
were backwards compatible with regular CD players. Although the Super Audio CD format presented by Sony in 1999 was promoted as a successor to the CD, we know that it is a completely different format, differing from the Compact Disc in virtually everything, except for the size of the disc.
Nothing happened in this respect until 2018, when Ultimate HQCDs with a signal encoded in MQA appeared on the market. MQA is a data compression format developed by Meridian, designed to transmit a signal
of up to 32 bits and sampling rates of up to 384 kHz over
limited bandwidth Internet links. At the beginning of 2018, MQA and Universal Music Group in a material titled "The World's Greatest Hits".
MQA and Universal Music Group are working together on advanced hi-res streaming on request announced the cooperation and availability of UMG titles on Ultimate HQCDs with MQA signal; more of these techniques →
HERE.
Ordinary Compact Disc and SACD players
"see" this type of discs like ordinary CDs, and those with an MQA decoder can unpack the signal as if it were streamed. Until now, almost all the players I knew that MQA decoded were SACD players, from companies →
CH PRECISION, →
ESOTERIC, Luxman, Pioneer and Technics. Compact Disc player of this type had (ma?) Meridian company (808 V6), TEAC (VRDS-701) also has it, and it is also offered by Chinese companies. And it is with them that devices of this type are the cheapest. One such producer is S.M.S.L.
▌ PL200
S.M.S.L IS AN AUDIO EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER from China. Shenzhen Shuangmusanlin Electronics Co., LTD, because that's its full name, together with a separate brand VMV technology (HK), they produce amplifiers, headphone amplifiers, file players and D/A converters. In addition, in addition to production, the company has
its own research and development (R&D)
department, thanks to which - as we read - "they are up to date with the development of technology, as well as with the demand of customers, whose requirements they try to effectively meet". The S.M.S.L. brand has its sales networks in more than 30 countries, including the UK, Germany and Japan.
The manufacturer in the press materials on the PL200 in his description asked: "
CD player, or digital-analog converter?" And immediately he replied: "Now we no longer have to choose, because we can have the best of both worlds". Because the latest product of the S.M.S.L brand is to be an offer for those who want to have a digital-to-analog converter, but also want to be able to play CDs on the same device. And this is because the PL200 has a CD transport, using a specially developed P.A.S.S. servo system. (Precision Access Servo System) designed to be characterized by "fast operation and high resistance to reading errors". One of the most important features of the device is also the presence of an MQA decoder.
PL200 is therefore a Compact Disc player. In fact, if we were accurate, we
should say that it is an MQA-CD player, because with compatibility we go down and start with the highest common denominator; similarly, players with an HDCD decoder should be called HDCD players, not CD players, just like SACD players are not SACD/CD or CD/SACD players, but simply SACDs. But - let it be.
APPEARANCE • The device is tiny because S.M.S.L targets the market of "desk" devices. In its offer, the player would therefore complement the AO200 integrated amplifier (test →
HERE). It measures only 200 x 42 x 175 mm and weighs less than 2 kg, so it is tiny. Its execution is excellent and perhaps that is why small sizes work in its favor -
the player looks really Cossack.
It owes this to both extremely precise execution, the housing is made of milled aluminum, as well as the manufacturer's choice regarding disc loading -
this is a classic top-loader player. That is, one in which we put the plate from the top immediately on the axis of the engine, without the mediation of a drawer. We press the disc with a small aluminum circle, and cover the whole with a large lid, also made of aluminum. The same way to load the disc, although using other materials, can be found in Ayon Audio players, including the CD-35 HF Edition I use. Thanks to this solution, and I say this from my own many years of experience, the playback of discs uses the physicality of the medium, it is very sensual.
The cover and pressure are low, it was about keeping the form of the device, but
they are not very easy to use. People with slightly thicker fingers may have a problem with their operation. So it would be useful to knarsles on their edges or rubber rings that would prevent these elements from sliding out of their hands. However, already the control of the disc playback is convenient and really cool. Four buttons on the top wall, about which the manufacturer says "piano", because they really resemble the keys of this instrument. On the company's website you can even find a joke about the fact that in your free time the buttons in question can be used to broadcast the Morse alphabet
However, we also get a plastic, but even handy, remote control.
There is a knob in the middle. The element is unusual for CD players, but justified here. The knob in PL200 is used both to move around the device menu and to change the voice strength on both the headphone and analog output; the latter can also be set in the menu to a fixed output with a voltage of 3.75 V (XLR sockets). We will also turn on the power and turn it off with the knob.
On its left, on the black part of the front (the entire remaining surface is silver, unfortunately there is no black version), there is a
large IPS (In-Plane Switching)
display. Although his indications are white, it is a color display. We will see this when a blue or green dot lights up next to a nice MQA logo, informing you what type of MQA file it is, as well as when we enter the menu, where we approve the selection with orange squares. It's a pity that when playing CDs you don't display their logotype, but only a boring 'PCM'. The display was covered not with acrylic, but with a tempered glass plate.
FUNCTIONALITY • PL200 is both a Compact Disc player and an MQA-CD player. What's more, the device can also work
as a digital-to-analog converter. It offers an asynchronous USB-C input that accepts a high-resolution digital signal up to and including PCM 768 kHz and DSD512 and through which we will also send an MQA signal, for example from the Tidal service. And it can, finally, work as a DAC or CD player with a preamp; the volume control is done in the digital domain.
It's not the end. The antenna visible on the back is part of the Bluetooth receiver (5.1). This is one of the newer Qualcom decoders, thanks to which we will collect
signals encoded in SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD and LDAC, i.e. high resolution (24/96). The company writes:
Such a wide and unique set of functions makes the latest proposal an interesting bite for all those who want to have a very good CD player without giving up the wide functionality of modern DAC and Bluetooth connectivity with codecs in the latest standards.
And there is something else that turned out to be an extremely successful addition - a headphone amplifier. His nest was placed in the back so as not to disturb the clean front, but I didn't have much of a problem with that. The signal is sent via a TRS socket (large jack) with a diameter of ø 6.3 mm. The amplifier has a power of 1 W per channel at a load of 32 Ω, which is a lot. Its design was based on the
original and patented system with the acronym PLFC (Precision Linear Feedback Circuit) providing not only - as the manufacturer writes - "extremely low distortion", but also "clean, natural and organic sound known from dedicated, external headphone amplifiers". It is based on the Texas Instruments TPA6120A2 integrated circuit.
Outside, we will send a line signal with both RCA balanced sockets and balanced XLR sockets. We can also use digital outputs, RCA and Toslink, which makes sense - the mechanics of the player is from a high shelf - which is about in a moment. Now let's say that
in the menu we can change many parameters of the device, such as digital filter, oversampling, amplification for the headphone output, active outputs, etc.
TECHNIQUE • We mentioned mechanics - not coincidentally. Its upper part received a carbon fiber plate,
characteristic of the latest CD-Pro8 transports designed by the Austrian company StreamUnlimited Engineering. We will find it players of Pro-Ject, which participated in their creation (more →
HERE), as well as Gryphon (more →
HERE) or Ancient Audio (test →
HERE).
The company designed its own servo, but it does not perform mechanics - it's too complex a process, even for such a specialist. Their physical production
is handled by one of the Taiwanese companies (ASA Tech). The Austrians offer three different versions of mechanics, but the one in PL200 seems to be slightly different from them. First of all, the fact that there is no cast body, it also has a slightly different shape of carbon fiber cap and plastic, not a metal plate on which we put the plate. However, the sled and stroller with optics look identical to DM-3381 Pro, a module used in CD- Pro8.
Whatever one say, it's high-class mechanics. In addition, it is controlled by
software written by the company, named by it P.A.S.S. Precision Access Servo System is to be characterized by "fast operation and high resistance to reading errors". The CD drive used in PL200 is mounted on anti-vibration insulators.
Equally high-end, there is nothing to wrap in cotton, they are used by the manufacturer of the digital-analog converter bones: these are the top chips from
Asahi Kasei Microdevices (AKM), Verita AK4499EX model. In addition to devices from China, we find them in very expensive products, and here we have as many as two such bones, one per channel. As we wrote in the news, it was first shown at IPS / HIGH END 2022 in Munich, so it is a new product. Their special feature is the built-in MQA decoder (more about the system →
HERE). OPA1611 integrated circuits work at the output.
The digital section is clocked by the
author's CK-03 clock system, which guarantees, as we read, a very low level of jitter. And the additional PLL loop is to further reduce this type of distortion from digital signals fed to S/PDIF and TOSlink inputs. The power supply is provided by a tiny pulse system, but - as the manufacturer assures - it is a high-end system. It is a pity that the player does not have a socket for an external 12 V power supply.
In a word -
high-end in a good edition for completely not high-end money.
▌ LISTENING
HOW WE LISTENED • The S.M.S.L PL200 player
was tested in the HIGH FIDELITY reference system. He stood on the top, carbon shelf of the Finite Elemente Pagode Edition Mk II table on his legs. Its sound was compared to the SACD player AYON AUDIO CD-35 HF EDITION and the Lumin T3 file player.
The PL200 was combined with the Ayon Audio Spheris III preamplifier with Crystal Absolute Dream cables. One of the features of Ayre devices is a balanced signal path and probably a fully balanced system would be worth trying this option as well. The HIGH FIDELITY system
, however, plays better connected with RCA cables, which is why I decided on such a system. Power supply for PL200 was provided by the Harmonix X-DC350M2R Improved-Version cable.
⸜ Discs used in the test | selection
→ COMPACT DISC
⸜ CZESŁAW NIEMEN,
Niemen Aerolit, Polskie Nagrania MUZA/Polskie Nagrania | Warner Music Poland 50541 9 79358 9 3, "Polskie Nagrania catalogue selections - Limited Edition SACD Hybrid" ˻ SERIES 4 ˺, SACD/CD (1975/2024), review →
HERE.
⸜ MICHAEL JACKSON,
Thriller, Epic/Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab UDSACD 2251, series "Original Master Recording, Ultradisc II", SACD/CD (1982/2022).
⸜ HAPPY END (はっぴいえんど),
Hapy End, URC Records/Sony Music Labels MHCL 30914, BSCD2 (1970/2023).
⸜ BILLIE EILISH,
When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?, Darkroom | Interscope Records/Universal International UICS-9161, “7” mini LP”, CD (2019), more →
HERE.
⸜ BILLIE HOLIDAY,
Jazz at the Philharmonic, Clef Records/UMG Recordings UCCV-9476, "David Stone Martin 10 inch Collector's Selection", SHM-CD (1945, 1946/2013).
→ MQA-CD
⸜ VARIOUS,
Jazz Hi-Res CD Sampler. Jazz, Universal Music LLC UCCU-40126/7, CD + MQA-CD (2018).
⸜ VARIOUS,
Jazz Hi-Res CD Sampler. Rock & Pops, Universal Music LLC UCCU-40217/8, CD + MQA-CD (2018).
⸜ VARIOUS,
2L - the MQA experience, 2L-MQA-CD-2021 (2021).
»«
JUST YESTERDAY WICIU, a member of the Krakow Sonic Society, wrote in the group's chat that he was just listening to the new version of
Niemen Aerolit's album, i.e. with a remastered by Damian Lipiński, and that he felt
like he was listening to an LP in the 1970s. As he says, although one can find the fascination of the Mahavishnu Orchestra in this music, but that - if I understood correctly - these are good associations and that it is one of CZESŁAW NIEMEN's most interesting albums. I think so too.
Listened to via the PL200 player, it sounded exactly the same way, that is, dark, dense, low. There is not much higher mountain here, which Damian captured brilliantly, but there are also a lot of things going on on this CD, we don't have time to get bored. Also when, as in ˻
2 ˺ Pilgrim, we are dealing with electronics and vocals. The player from China
wonderfully, really perfectly captured it.
Niemen's voice was large, with a clear echo in the left channel, with a nice depth and a mastered higher center of the band, that is, resolving, but not bright. And when Mellotron speaks in the right channel, every now and then, he has weight,
we almost feel his gravitational gravity. The tested player, although an inexpensive device, showed these things effortlessly, calmly, as if all his life "doing" in high-end. And even heard sometimes underneath, under the instruments, the overtones that Damian - fortunately - did not eliminate with aggressive "cleaning", adds to the whole taste.
So we have a low, dense high-resolution sound. It is also
a sound with a strong and dense bass. We have such a principle in audio that large equipment for a large sound, and a large sound is built by energy and depth of low tones. That's why we reach for large, strong amplifiers, we are happy to see overgrown power supplies and smile at the very sight of a solid, large housing. Well, PL200 is an exception to this rule.
That's why, when at the beginning in ˻
5 ˺ Beat It, a song coming from - we all know, but for the sake of order - MICHAEL JACKSON's
Thriller is hit by a synthesizer, a bit like the bells of a cathedral, but a cathedral from the late 20th century, and therefore deconstructed, it
can be heard in a really big, powerful way. Eddie Van Halen's solo, which enters right after, maintains this illusion of fullness and "cathedral" reverb, because it is massive and simply - large.
