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Sony SCD-XA5400ES-Best SACD for under $10,000

This Sony player supplanted my Ayre C5-XE 3, which I still have, months ago. I paid $6000 for the Ayre after determining that it was the best-sounding unit for under $10,000. The Sony blows it away!!!
A unit costing $1500 besting all others under $10,000? That is exactly what it does!
For reference, I am using Audio Research electronics and Vandersteen speakers and subwoofers (about $30,000); a similar system has repeatedly been lauded as "best of show" at CES, so we are NOT talking second-rate stuff here.
This Sony is the only SACD/Cd player I have EVER heard that puts a classical piano live in my living room; nothing I ever had before even comes close.
This unit is a small miracle. I would have gladly paid $8000 for it, but if they want to give the thing away for $1500, who am I to argue?
This unit is going to send the engineers at Audio Research, Luxman, Esoteric, and Ayre back to the drawing board; their current units at 4 to 5 times the price are not even close. Some engineer at Sony is a freaking genius!!!
wa6itd
prsmccarty
23 posts
 
At this time it appears as though I have traced the issue to another part of the system (after I so boldly proclaimed it wasn't) and the Sony was not the culprit. I'll need another day or so to be sure, but for now things sound pretty awesome. Glare is gone and nothing touches the 5400ES when it comes to detail, dynamics and soundstage as you have stated.
If my preliminary observations are correct, I'll post a more detailed report. Special thanks to my friend who loaned me the Arcam. If I had not had such a different sounding player to swap into the system I never would have traced the problem.
Also, special thanks to Audiogon for allowing me to have this forum as a vehicle to show the rest of the audiophile community just what a flaky basket case I can be! I promise you guys, I'm not this screwed up when it comes to the REST of my life. :-)
jwm
908 posts
 
we are cool this is just a hobby where you are suppose to have fun.
prsmccarty
23 posts
 
Yeah, maybe I was too hard on Tgyeti, I really DO love tweaking this stuff. I think I'm going to try and DIY that pebbles tweak he was talking about :-)
edorr
714 posts
 
I used to own one and even had it upgraded. It sounds pretty good, but in my view the 10K+ giant killer claim is pure hype. I now own the Marantz ud9004 universal player, which sounds better analog out. The marantz as digital transport into my PS audio perfectwave DAC is better still.
budt
157 posts
 
I think it all depends on the rest of the system. The only thing I know for sure is at a mrsp of $1500 the Sony is truly amazing in my system and I have no plans to change it anytime soon.It replaced an Esoteric X-03 se .
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