hey archer
marantz 7007; the sony SACD, whose model number eludes me, is over 15 years old and just won't die.
i have tannoy and SVS subwoofers. the bass management in the marantz uses on screen programming and is very good. so it's used.
my toslink cable broke and I've ordered another, which rekindled the topic. i'm sure you're right. analog cables have traditionally been preferred, but with the digital tweaking of modern receivers and pre/ pros, it's likely best to convert to analog as late as possible, and therefore only once.
one last question:
would an oppo or equivalent newer CD player, connected with an HDMI to my receiver, sound that much better?
cheers
Mmo
Archer just cracks me up! He is kind of like the 13 year old in an adult body as played by Tom Hanks in the movie, "Big"!
Look at it this way. The recording is digital on the CD.
If you use toslink, it stays digital all of the way through the Marantz's processing of bass management, Audyssey (if used), time alignment of speakers, etc. Then it gets converted to analog to go to your speakers and sub. So only one D to A conversion!
If you use RCA, you are using the Sony to do a D to A conversion, then the Marantz does an A to D, performs all of the processing, then D to A.
The ideal is to avoid unnecessary conversions. Only one D to A conversion is the best you will ever get.
Which I see is more or less what you said!
You will likely get several opinions on the worth of upgrading to Oppo.
I am of the opinion the reading a CD is a pretty mature and fool proof endeavor. My advice is to look for quiet operation, a good remote (if you will not use another remote), and good build quality. I use my Sony BD-S590 BluRay player to play SACDs for my HT. I've never noticed any sonic difference between it and my Marantz VC-6001 or Parasound ZCD (not SACD capable). If your 15 year old Sony is refusing to be a source of trouble, that says a lot for build quality, hang onto it!
