SMSL PL150 Review (CD Player)

[wgh52]

Hello everyone,

I'm considering to buy the P150 as a CD transport to Toslink-feed my digital chain driving DSP speakers.
A perceived contradiction bugs me regarding its power consumption:

- The back of the unit sais "5V/2A" meaning 10 Watts consumption
- The spec. states 4 Watts power consumption

My linear power supply has specified 5V/1A output, so would (only) suffice IF the 4 Watts P150 spec. is realistic.
I hope somebody can shed light or resolve this contradiction.

Thanks a lot!
Winfried

 

[Daniele CL]

With a my 5V/1,5A the PL150 It doesn't start, the average consumption is 4W but peak consumption is 2A.

 

[wgh52]

Grazie mille Daniele!
Winfried

 

[MrGlottis]

Hi, would a power supply and charger like these be suitable for the SMSL PL150, thanks?

Top CHARGEUR * Charger Adapter Power Supply Output DC 5 V 6 A 6000 mA 30 W CE Certification: 5.5 mm * 2.5 mm Replaces 5 V 1 A / 2 A / 2.5 A / 3 A / 3.5 A / 4 A / 5 A / 5.5 A / 6A : Amazon.it: Computers

Top CHARGEUR * Charger Adapter Power Supply Output DC 5 V 6 A 6000 mA 30 W CE Certification: 5.5 mm * 2.5 mm Replaces 5 V 1 A / 2 A / 2.5 A / 3 A / 3.5 A / 4 A / 5 A / 5.5 A / 6A : Amazon.it: Computers

www.amazon.it

DC5 V 6 A 30 W Charger Adapter, Replacement Power Supply for LED Strip, USB HUB, HDMI Splitter, Android TV Box, TFT LCD Monitor, DC Jack Connector 5.5 mm x 2.1 mm : Amazon.it: Computers

DC5 V 6 A 30 W Charger Adapter, Replacement Power Supply for LED Strip, USB HUB, HDMI Splitter, Android TV Box, TFT LCD Monitor, DC Jack Connector 5.5 mm x 2.1 mm : Amazon.it: Computers

www.amazon.it

 

[wgh52]

@MrGlottis

Well, power specification wise these would both "definitely work". My listening experience led me to the use of explicitly low noise linear power supplies, though, despite the fact that good ones start at ~10x the price of your proposals and despite the fact that switch mode DC-DC converters work inside modern 5V power devices.

Regards,
Winfried

 

[Daniele CL]

@MrGlottis exaggerated, a Little 2A Is enough

 

[MrGlottis]

@MrGlottis exaggerated, a Little 2A Is enough

Ok, I purchased this, I'd say it's fine, right? https://www.amazon.it/dp/B01I1LRCXW tnx

 

[Bleib]

Ok, I purchased this, I'd say it's fine, right? https://www.amazon.it/dp/B01I1LRCXW tnx

Should be fine, I've used the brand before. No problems

 

[arvinovane]

Hi all !
I got mine since 2-3 weeks from soundimports.nl. It looks and sounds great but I also got several issues. Disk aren't ejected right away (have to click 2-3 time until it does) and more annoying: there's an audio cut-off at the end of certain tracks (on different CDs) which is way more annoying (in my POV) than gapless playback issues. I am wondering if it's some players that got that issue (haven't read many reviews about it) or all players. I could send it back for a refund or exchange... but for what ? A "new PL150" player with the potental same issue or another brand ? (but what's the real alternative at that pricepoint ?)

 

[wgh52]

@arvinovane

Thank you for your feedback! Looking into Amazon Ratings 14% of the 42 available comments are negative about the durability of the product and some mentions of long waiting times for refunding exist as well. As I had technical issues with a newly bought SMSL DAC at first use before, which I then returned. I'll look for alternatives outside the SMSL brand altogether, had no issues with e.g. Topping so far

Regards,
Winfried

 

[arvinovane]

Thanks @wgh52 ;-)
Hopefully the fact I bought via soundimports.nl which offers a 45 days return period will help... I'd just so much prefer not to bother doing that...

Cheers,
ArVi

[EDIT]
Since my last message, my CD has stopped playing in the middle of a single track twice, then once on the next. It seems it's getting worse. I have asked for a solution or refund at soundimports.

 

[Daniele CL]

@arvinovane, having been a happy customer of SoundImports, on January 24th I notified them that the new production does not have the Philips transport and is having problems. I advised them to check their products to avoid misrepresenting the product description. The description still refers to a Philips transport and the ability to read 8cm CDs. From your post, it's clear that this is not the case; they deserve a return.

 

[Gamemaker]

I ordered one from Amazon today. Just wondering if it shows on the display if you are playing an HDCD or MQA CD. It says it’s compatible with these two formats. Thanks

 

[Daniele CL]

It definitely doesn't display HDCD or MQA formats. The manual specifically says DC/CD-R/CD-RW/MP3 CD.
It doesn't read HDCDs or MQA.
MP3 CDs are shown on the display. It can read more than 100 MP3 tracks (I have an old CD with 132 MP3 tracks), but you can't navigate between directories.

 

[Gamemaker]

It definitely doesn't display HDCD or MQA formats. The manual specifically says DC/CD-R/CD-RW/MP3 CD.
It doesn't read HDCDs or MQA.
MP3 CDs are shown on the display. It can read more than 100 MP3 tracks (I have an old CD with 132 MP3 tracks), but you can't navigate between directories.

If you look at the product description on Amazon, it shows that it supports HDCD and MQA. But, I would assume this is an error of the description. I do have a couple of HDCDs, but it’s not important. Thanks for the reply.

 

[Daniele CL]

I saw, Amazon America declares HDCD and MQA, Amazon Italy does not. The player lacks the XMOS chip for decoding MQA, don't worry about HDCDs, they can be read by all CD players, the 20 bits are cut to 16 and will sound like standard CDs.

 

[Gamemaker]

I saw, Amazon America declares HDCD and MQA, Amazon Italy does not. The player lacks the XMOS chip for decoding MQA, don't worry about HDCDs, they can be read by all CD players, the 20 bits are cut to 16 and will sound like standard CDs.

Thanks again

 

[aagstn]

Playing an HDCD as a CD is something all CD players can do so even mentioning it weird. SMSL just trying to be misleading.

 

[Gamemaker]

Just got my new PL150 today. I’m only using optical out into a DAC and then into my headphone amp. It’s working good, but the audio seems to be on the loud side, much louder than my other CD player. The manual doesn’t show what the output voltage is. My other player output is 2.2V. So, I’m assuming the PL150 has a higher output voltage. Does anyone else have the difference in loudness also? It doesn’t sound bad, no distortion, but the difference in volume is very noticeable. Thanks

 

[Daniele CL]

All SPDIF outputs, from any CD player, are DIGITAL, have no volume, have no voltage, and are not linked to the volume control. The PL150's RCA output is linked to the volume; its voltage, as far as I'm concerned, is the same (1dB less?) as that of the other player and the DAC output. The RCA output has an annoying click (like an electrical discharge) at the beginning of each track, but the coaxial output doesn't!!!