Yes, and a major turning point would have been the launch of the Pioneer A-400. Ironically, good as it may have been, this was essentially a stripped down A-445, slapped with a higher price tag to boot. Japanese gear in its heyday was simply unbeatable, not only in terms of value but also ultimate performance. The A-445, its predecessors and successors, were insanely good for what they cost. Not to mention stuff by Technics, Yamaha, Marantz, Rotel, among others...
"But maybe:
"This type of absurd extremism is what drives many moderate users away from ASR."
Aaaaannnnnndddddd - you'd be way wrong.
Reeeeeeeaaaaaalllllllyyyyyy? Why is that exactly? Would you care to elaborate?
Hi-Fi News also did regular gear measurement, especially in their (best) Paul Miller era...
You're forgetting the biggest of them all, Nokia. Quite tragic and precipitous downfall...
Wow! That's a very impressive piece of gear indeed. I had never read about it. Japanese engineering at its finest, no doubt!I'll put my Technics SL-M3 ([from 1984-88, around $500 USD], at the time, likely the second best Technics TT built) & specifically the tone arm (which is limited to T4P cartridges, so the supply is limited [but I have many, at least enough to last my lifetime]) against any TT & TONE ARM Rega has ever sold on the open market.
Technics SL-M3 specifications:
Audio Database
Technics SL-M3
- ¥ 99,800 (around 1986)
Commentary
A full-auto player with linear tracking system.
It is equipped with a unique linear tracking arm that can make tracking error, which causes distortion during playback, and inside force, which causes channel imbalance, close to 0.
The tracking error angle is within ± 0.05 ° by detecting the arm deflection angle with an optical sensor and obtaining a high-precision detection signal.
The tone arm uses a unique dynamic balance system, and the arm bearing uses a 4-point support system gimbal suspension system.
In addition, the arm has a low mass design with an effective mass of 13g including the cartridge.
Diameter 32.5 cm, Weight 2.5 kg, Inertial Mass 427 kg / cm2Large and heavy aluminum die-cast turntable has been adopted.
Continuously variable pitch adjustment within ± 6% is possible.
Equipped with an electronically controlled full auto mechanism.
Equipped with plug-in connector system MM type cartridge.
TNRC and high-density particle board are used for the cabinet.
.JPG "Gimbal suspension bearing structure")
Model Rating
Type Quartz DD full auto player system <Turntable portion> Drive system Direct drive Control system Quartz control Number of revolutions 33 1/3, 45 rpm Wow flutter 0.022%W.R.M.S(JIS C5521)
0.008% W. R. M. S (Rotating Part Only)Signal-to-noise ratio 82 dB (DIN-B, IEC98A weighted) Cartridge Section Type Plug-in connector MM type stereo cartridge Exchange needle EPS-P205ED4(¥15,000) <General> Pwer 100 VAC, 50Hz/60Hz Power consumption 22W External dimensions Width 526x Height 202x Depth 426 mm Weight 13.5kg
While this one is not mine & is in the shop for repairs, that allows a very good look at it in this video:
It’s really is about the emotional appeal and the resultant projections back onto the gear, influencing sound perceptions.
Thank you!
www.axiomaudio.com
I have also voted not terrible, but given the choice, and assuming a similar feature set, I would choose a competitively priced and high performance modern DAC such as Topping 9/10 times. Alas, I have got neither. I run both an Audiolab M-DAC Plus and a Benchmark DAC2 HGC in my admittedly large and complex system...Thank you!
Alan Lofft know what he's doing. THD has to be 3% before it can be detected by the listener at 1.8 kHz. Look at all the graphs on here complaining about something that had measured over -100 db below the level of the source.How Much Distortion Can We Hear With Music?
How much distortion can we hear with music? An experimental study at Axiom.
The idea that, "Lower distortion equals better sound, so we must strive to keep it as low as possible" doesn't apply, due to its poor relation to real world instruments and voices which have harmonics and aren't test tones. Most recordings I have, probably don't have over a 50 db dynamic range.
Would most musicians who made the music even care about their work being played on a system that has the lowest measured distortion? I feel like Topping and SMSL are in some pointless race to be able to claim their product provides THD that measures as low as in the fourth decimal place, betting most of their customers aren't knowledgeable enough to know how inconsequential those numbers when seated in the listener's chair (and not in a lab looking at a computer).
I don't understand all of those posts about how bad this number or that number is on this DAC, so we're not recommending it (complete with a multicolored chart to show how that IMD or SINAD "problem" stacks up against its peers). What do those numbers amount to, compared to what my speakers and room are doing to the sound? Or the distortion that's in the recording? Not very much.
The vote is a verdict on the quality of the engineering, not the sound quality which everyone accepts will be indistinguishable from a Topping or SMSL or pretty much any other DAC.
Lower distortion doesn't equal quality of the engineering as it relates to real world music. It's not a game where whomever gets the best SINAD ratings wins. I'm out.
I never had such behaviour before with other brands. For me: never again Rega. Way too expensive for what it is. Btw. i was proved right in court.
It went to court? Please tell us more.@dan3952
I had those thingens. I can tell you, its the worst i ever had. There was also a professional opinion that was created by an engineer (because all that went to court). There were so many problems, not only the buzz/hiss. I bought the complete Rega "set" with DAC, CD Player and Amp. The CD Player crashed a couple of times
That's awful! Here in the UK, Rega would have stepped right in if the dealer was incompetent or didn't look after you properly. Usually here, you go to the dealer who only has to phone the factory for a satisfactory conclusion and even in the EU, the factory isn't far away FFS!
