Post by hammer April 7, 2015 (1 of 13)
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Hi all, my first post. I'm looking for recommendations for repairs to my Sony sacd player. It's a SCD777ES and over 15 years old but too good to leave behind. It's not easy to find a tech who knows about sacd players. Hoping someone can point me in the right direction.
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hammer said:
Hi all, my first post. I'm looking for recommendations for repairs to my Sony sacd player. It's a SCD777ES and over 15 years old but too good to leave behind. It's not easy to find a tech who knows about sacd players. Hoping someone can point me in the right direction.
My advice, hammer: Since your SONY is 15 years old perhaps it's time to consider 'upgrading' to an OPPO BDP~103 for $499. Guaranteed, it's better than your 15 year old SONY. And OPPO's service department is top notch and very responsive to consumer concerns. Additionally, it's a Universal player and will bring you up to date regarding newer technologies.
Repairs are costly and you're correct in assuming that finding competent repairmen is nigh impossible, these days.
BTW, hammer, I purchased the highly touted Sony 5400 SACD player and felt it was a bit recessed and when I added the older OPPO BDP~95 to my system, I disengaged the SONY from my system. The 103 is EVEN better.......this, from firsthand experience.
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Post by hammer April 7, 2015 (3 of 13)
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Thanks, Rammiepie. Seems the I'm getting the same advice from different sources. Might have to go PC storage and dac playback!!
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Post by bmoura April 7, 2015 (4 of 13)
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hammer said:
Thanks, Rammiepie. Seems the I'm getting the same advice from different sources. Might have to go PC storage and dac playback!!
The Oppo 103 and 105 provide playback of music files as well - including DSD 64fs files. They are very universal products! :)
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I'd go with the 105 if you want DAC playback.
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Post by Claude April 8, 2015 (6 of 13)
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hammer said:
Hi all, my first post. I'm looking for recommendations for repairs to my Sony sacd player. It's a SCD777ES and over 15 years old but too good to leave behind. It's not easy to find a tech who knows about sacd players. Hoping someone can point me in the right direction.
Is it no longer reading the SACD layer of some hybrid SACDs? This is a common problem with early Sony players.
What helps is replacing the laser assembly. This will cost you at least $300 when done by a Sony repair service, or you can do it yourself by getting a replacement laser assembly on Ebay (less than $50).
There is a lot of info in this thread, which is about the SCD-XA777ES:
http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/sony-scd-xa777es-optical-pickup-block-replacement-with-photos.185565/ (you need to register to see the pictures)
I did such a replacement on my XA777ES some years ago and it solved most of the hybrid SACD playback problems. I'm not a technician and taught myself to use a soldering iron for this purpose (only an easy de-soldering operation on the spare part is necessary here) The replacement is easily reversible in case the new part doesn't work.
I've been looking for a "perfect" replacement for my Sony for a long time, offering top quality sound and a DAC with DSD input, and I think it's finally there: The Teac Esoteric K-05X or K-07X (the K-01X and K-03X have been available a while ago already but are over my hifi spending limits).
BTW, I've had an Oppo 95 for a short time, and I didn't find it nearly as good as the Sony SCD-XA777ES. So while the Oppo 105 is a great universal machine, it might not fully replace your Sony.
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Post by sylvian April 8, 2015 (7 of 13)
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I would recommend SA5400ES as a replacement - fully satisfying performance with m-ch option through HDMI and also balanced stereo output - get it while you can.
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rammiepie said:
My advice, hammer: Since your SONY is 15 years old perhaps it's time to consider 'upgrading' to an OPPO BDP~103 for $499. Guaranteed, it's better than your 15 year old SONY. And OPPO's service department is top notch and very responsive to consumer concerns. Additionally, it's a Universal player and will bring you up to date regarding newer technologies.
Repairs are costly and you're correct in assuming that finding competent repairmen is nigh impossible, these days.
BTW, hammer, I purchased the highly touted Sony 5400 SACD player and felt it was a bit recessed and when I added the older OPPO BDP~95 to my system, I disengaged the SONY from my system. The 103 is EVEN better.......this, from firsthand experience.
My first hand experience is that I much prefer the dedicated Sony 5400ES to the universal Oppo 103 , the dedicated Sony BDP-1000ES is better than the Oppo 103 for watching video easier on the eyes and the HF is vastly better, probably because I am using the Sony STR-DA5400ES UK version with HATS as a combo with its virtually jitterless HDMI connection. Finally avoid rip-off HDMI cables excellent inexpensive ones can be found on Amazon.
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Post by Claude April 8, 2015 (9 of 13)
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rammiepie said:
BTW, hammer, I purchased the highly touted Sony 5400 SACD player and felt it was a bit recessed and when I added the older OPPO BDP~95 to my system, I disengaged the SONY from my system. The 103 is EVEN better.......this, from firsthand experience.
Are you talking about digital output?
The Oppo 93 and 103 have a rather modest analogue section, while the 95 and 105 are audiophile versions of these players.
I guess hammer is connecting his SACD player to an analogue amp. An Oppo 103 will not be able to compete with a Sony SCD-777ES as far as analogue output goes. (I have an Oppo 93)
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Post by sylvian April 8, 2015 (10 of 13)
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Agreed Claude,
while i praise OPPO 105 D as the most competent flawless universal player I would go into dedicated SA-CD player as well. And if so I would not hesitate much longer.
For Ralph: I would buy your SCD5400ES without hesitation :-))
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