Denon DCD-815

[Canonshooter]

Greetings to all, my first post here.

Background - been somewhat of an stereo/audiophile for about 35 years. My current "down-sized" system is as follows;

Denon PMA 2000IVR amp
Polk Tsi 400s
SVS 20-39PC Plus sub
Denon DCD-815
Semi-decent cables/interconnects

Over all, I am pleased with the system for what it is. However, I wonder if I'm missing anything with using such an old CD player. The player has low miles, works perfectly and I like the fact that the remote that came with the Denon amp also works with the CD player.

Since the transport works fine, I am considering buying an external DAC to use with the DCD-815. But, I'm not sure if (1) it would be of any improvement over the internal DAC and (2) what DAC I would have to go with to reap any noticeable improvement.

The DACs that I'm considering are the Cambridge Audio DacMagic and the Musical Fidelity M1DAC (which is about the most I'd want to spend). Are there any others I should consider in this price range? I would also use the DAC's optical input for connecting to my flat screen and the USB input for connecting to my PC.

Any insight and/or suggestions are appreciated!

 

[Canonshooter]

Update

I purchased the Music Fidelity V-DAC and have given the system some critical listening. I am using the coaxial connection between the Denon and the V-DAC, as well as the USB connection to my PC where I rip CDs to iTunes using their lossless encoder option.

Here are my initial observations compared to the internal DAC of the Denon;

1. The V-DAC is more open and has revealed depth and detail in the music that I had not heard before.

2. The V-DAC is smoother, especially in the mid range.

3. Bass notes are tighter and better defined.

4. Switching back and forth between the deck and the lossless files from the PC, I have not yet heard any major differences in the sound. In fact, I struggle to hear any difference at all.

I am not using the wall wart that was supplied with the V-DAC. Based on recommendations in reviews of the V-DAC, I also purchased a Pyramid PS3KX power supply.

So far, so good - I am very pleased with the improvement in my system. If you have an older CD deck like the Denon DCD-815, the V-DAC will improve its sound along with providing an excellent interface to lossless files stored on a PC.

Note - I also installed the JumiAmp Controller app on my iPod Touch, which allows me to access my lossless files on the PC via WiFi without having to leave my chair. Since I have yet to detect any degradation in sound vs. the Denon deck, using my PC as a music server is now becoming my preferred set up.

 

[Pyrrho]

Usually, people who buy new DACs believe, at first, that they sound better. Often, it is simply that they listen more closely than they did before, and therefore hear more details.

There is also the issue of level matching, as the output of one DAC may be slightly louder than the other, and that will subjectively be perceived as a difference in quality rather than simply as a different volume.

With level matched double blind tests that have been conducted in the past, generally speaking, people do not hear any difference between different DACs.

If you want real improvements in sound, I recommend upgrading speakers.

 

[Canonshooter]

With level matched double blind tests that have been conducted in the past, generally speaking, people do not hear any difference between different DACs.

Pyrrho, my sincere thanks for your reply and insight.

In this case, I will need to disagree. The difference in sound between the Denon with its internal DAC and using the V-DAC were immediately apparent. I should have been more clear with my post above - I heard the difference immediately and after critical listening, was better able to articulate the differences I heard.

If you want real improvements in sound, I recommend upgrading speakers.

The first system I owned over 35 years ago included a set of LWEs. If I recall, they were pretty horrible. I then stepped up into a set of AR-11s, which I had for a very long time. They were powered with a Marantz 240 amp (with the current limiting circuit disabled) and a Marantz 7C tube pre-amp. We used to stack a pair of the AR-11s on top of each other and power both sets with a pair of modified 240s, driven by the 7C. It was a hot system back in its day, and it would go stupid loud.

Then about 20 years ago, I got into Magnepans. I started off with a set of the 1.4s, which I really liked but the wife always complained about how large they were. By the time I switched to the Denon amp and CD player, I was quite pleased with the system. At the time we lived in a house that had a room that worked well with the Maggies, pulled about 3 feet from the wall without being in the way.

After the wires began delaminating from the diaphragms in 1.4s (after about 15 years), I sold them and picked up a set of Magnepan MMGs. They had the "Magenpan sound" but I thought were a little light in the bass. After a lot of research, I some how ended up with the SVS subwoofer. The SVS can move a house off its foundation and getting it to sound right with the Magnepans took some effort, but I was never really pleased with how they matched up. Big speakers and a big cylindrical sub didn't lend themselves to optimal sonic placement without causing a major clash with interior aesthetics (at least from my wife's POV).

We then moved out of state and the house we moved into - though it was larger - did not have an ideal room for my system. This was due mostly to WAF, so I ended up in the lower level (partially finished basement). Try as I may, I couldn't get the MMGs to sound right in that area.

So, I decided I wanted speakers with a smaller foot print that would not be as sensitive to placement as the Magnepans, especially since I had to move the Maggies out from the wall every time I wanted to enjoy some music. The Polk Tsi 400s fit nicely where they have to go (on the sides of a 46" flat screen, which sits on a small entertainment center) and I figured I would just make the best of them. No trips to audio stores to test drive - I just did some Internet research and ordered them "sound unheard." Once again, I was not thrilled with the system. But I never really took the time to set it up either.

Over the last 6 months, I've been spending time arranging the furniture trying to optimize the listening experience. I also tweaked the placement of the Tsi 400s and spent some time adjusting the SVS subwoofer to blend in seemlessly with the Polks. Finally, I got the system sounding mighty good - in fact, much better than I ever expected.

My listening habits have changed too - instead of popping sheetrock nails, I now listen to music at around 80db. With a clean signal in, the Polks sound just fine and the SVS takes care of everything under 50hz with incredible ease. Over all, the listening experience is really quite satisfying.

So now it's down to some minor tweaks - better speaker cables, some better interconnects and the V-DAC. While the improvements from cables/interconnects were less certain, the V-DAC made an unmistakeable difference.

The best improvement by far is that I was able to set the system up - including placement of the speakers - for optimum performance without doing battle on the WAF front. In fact, she now enjoys coming down to the man-cave to enjoy some tunes too. While I have no doubt that better speakers could make an improvment, based on 35 years of fiddling with this stuff and 33 years of marriage, I know when I have it as good as it's going to get. Luckily, that now appears to be really good.