Cost effective mods for a Sony SCD-777ES

Sony SCD-777ES loaded with Kern mods listed now for $1550. Thats the best you'll ever do value-wise on a 777ES with mods...

I agree - Tvad. Mine did not have as many Kern mods as the one on sale know. That is OK. There is no doubt in my mind that the transport is excellent. Playing with different DACs can become a new interesting aspect to get the sound right. A friend of mine has a Meridian 566 - 24 bit. Let me start there.

Tvad,

Of 30 odd mod/test cycles I've been through with the SCD-1, all but one or two changes were steps in a positive direction without any downside. The one or two mods I would consider "flavor" preferences-- i.e., mods that improve in one area while compromising in another, as you describe, usually in a trade-off between resolution & musicality-- were later corrected with improvements to power source. The experience of continuous improvement with a single player convinces me that absolute, not relative, comparisons are applicable when judging CDPs. Give me a player with high resolution, and mod it to add musicality. After the modding is done, one is finally up against the brick wall of the type of DAC or upsampler and the limitations of basic transport mechanism-- which doubtless together define the ultimate "flavor" of the machine. But there are so many compromises in most commercial players that short of SOTA, judging their quality based on type of DAC or upsampler is likely a red herring. This is why I'm inclined to restrict use of the "flavor" adjective to the best machines.

Dcaudio

Who did the cap and resistor work on your player.......or did you buy it that way? Also, hope the DAC works out for you.

Chuck

Dgarretson, I believe we are essentially members of the same camp.

However, I don't believe a different "flavor" necessarily entails compromise. I simply believe three SOTA digital players will sound differently. I have the sense that you are suggesting that three players...maxed with mods...will sound similar. Perhaps I misunderstand. If this is your position, it is one I cannot accept based on my listening.

IMO, the bottom line regarding modding is that other than user reports, reviews, or personal auditioning of a similar player, it is impossible to know how a digital player will sound after all the mods are complete. There is no doubt in my mind that it's tonality, or "house sound" will be changed. I have heard this in an Electrocompaniet EMC 1-UP SE that I had modded to the max. After mods, it had no semblance of the Electro house sound. It sounded very good, but it was no longer an Electro.

There are enough owners of Kern modded Sony SCD-777ES players that one can probably get some idea of the sound of the player post-mods by communicating with other owners, but once the mods are done, they're done. There's no going back, and recouping the cost of the mods upon resale will be impossible.

I write this as an owner and past owner of seven modded digital players. Do I believe in modding? Yes. Am I considerably more cautious than I was after selling number six? You bet.