muon* Posted March 5, 2023 Share Posted March 5, 2023 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted March 5, 2023 Author Share Posted March 5, 2023 12 minutes ago, Misternavi said: @MattyW & @muon* there is a version without a case and it used a 1540P chip and has op amps (I can swap op amps) do you think it will be the same/similar? it's cheaper and all it needs is the right power supply, I've asked the seller (on Aliexpress) what the voltage is required. unless you know? Personally I’d splash the cash for the version with all the tweaks and to TDA1540D…… Bear in mind that choice of transport and coax cable you use heavily influences overall sound. Duelund pure silver coax cable give guaranteed great results. I believe you’ve a CEC on the way to pair with your a DAC @muon*. I hope it’s a nice improvement Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted March 5, 2023 Share Posted March 5, 2023 Just now, MattyW said: Personally I’d splash the cash for the version with all the tweaks and to TDA1540D…… Bear in mind that choice of transport and coax cable you use heavily influences overall sound. Duelund pure silver coax cable give guaranteed great results. I believe you’ve a CEC on the way to pair with your a DAC @muon*. I hope it’s a nice improvement Yes, fingers crossed it pulls in front of my modded Marantz with the CEC's help, not an easy task. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misternavi Posted March 5, 2023 Share Posted March 5, 2023 24 minutes ago, MattyW said: Personally I’d splash the cash for the version with all the tweaks and to TDA1540D… I just want a taste to see if it's to my taste. Have tried a budget multibit PCM56 DAC ($60) and it was surprisingly good. Instrument separation wasn't as good as my Topping DAC but bass was warm and full. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBurns84 Posted March 7, 2023 Share Posted March 7, 2023 (edited) On 05/03/2023 at 7:48 PM, Misternavi said: Have tried a budget multibit PCM56 DAC ($60) and it was surprisingly good. Instrument separation wasn't as good as my Topping DAC but bass was warm and full. @Misternavi which topping do you have? Edited March 7, 2023 by MrBurns84 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted March 7, 2023 Author Share Posted March 7, 2023 (edited) 9 minutes ago, MrBurns84 said: @Misternavi which topping do you have? My guess would be one of these..... They're rather popular: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002680056072.html So are the little 8x and 4x TDA1387 DAC's Edited March 7, 2023 by MattyW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misternavi Posted March 7, 2023 Share Posted March 7, 2023 12 minutes ago, MrBurns84 said: @Misternavi which topping do you have? D50 and Ex5 6 minutes ago, MattyW said: My guess would be one of these..... They're rather popular: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002680056072.html So are the little 8x and 4x TDA1387 DAC's That's the PCM56 that I bought. I might change the output caps for better ones. Think I might DIY a power supply for it and add a B1 buffer afterwards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted March 7, 2023 Share Posted March 7, 2023 (edited) 11 minutes ago, Misternavi said: D50 and Ex5 That's the PCM56 that I bought. I might change the output caps for better ones. Think I might DIY a power supply for it and add a B1 buffer afterwards. Wow, not much going on in there, would definitely benefit from better power supply. Does it have a clock crystal in it? what's the output stage...I can't even see any op amps there, It's very confusing. Edit: ah now I see the little SMD op amps on the underside. Edited March 7, 2023 by muon* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted March 7, 2023 Author Share Posted March 7, 2023 (edited) 4 minutes ago, muon* said: Wow, not much going on in there, would definitely benefit from better power supply. Does it have a clock crystal in it? what's the output stage...I can't even see any op amps there, It's very confusing. It's a very basic little unit. A mate of mine has one (also the various TDA1387 DAC's and a PCM63 etc). He reckons the best DAC he possesses is this discrete R2R DAC after giving it a full recap. He had to grind a couple off mm from the cover though so some of the caps would fit: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004637902054.html Quoting him: "Put genuine Burr Brown opamps in. Replaced film caps with genuine Wima caps. Replaced electrolytic caps with Panasonic fm series. Silver plated RCA plugs. Some Duelund wire. The improvement is night and day, very clear and detailed sound while having the big sound r2r DACs are known for. I have never heard another r2r DAC so can't compare but its above the other chip based DACs I have" Edited March 7, 2023 by MattyW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 Matching CDM4 based transport 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 2, 2023 Author Share Posted May 2, 2023 Looks really very smart….. So in comparison with your Marantz player….. Sounding good? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 Yes, slightly better than my modded Marantz. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 2, 2023 Author Share Posted May 2, 2023 Definitely a win. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockRolley Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 1 hour ago, muon* said: Matching CDM4 based transport Ooohhhh. Interesting. Are you able to send a link to where to buy the transport? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 56 minutes ago, RockRolley said: Ooohhhh. Interesting. Are you able to send a link to where to buy the transport? Be aware that I haven't been able to compare it to anything else of note as far as transports go, yet! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted May 6, 2023 Share Posted May 6, 2023 (edited) OK, this is starting to sound very good as far as digging out details I have not heard before. Edit: I guess I haven't been ready for what a half decent transport could bring, and I can only imaging what a Jay's would offer! Edited May 6, 2023 by muon* 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 30, 2023 Author Share Posted May 30, 2023 Soooo…. Any updates on your Philips stack @muon*? How’s it all sounding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted May 30, 2023 Share Posted May 30, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, MattyW said: Soooo…. Any updates on your Philips stack @muon*? How’s it all sounding. Fairly much same, the transport extracts more detail from many CDs than I had before. Edited May 30, 2023 by muon* 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted June 28, 2023 Share Posted June 28, 2023 (edited) Got inside the transport for a look, it has a DC blocker on the mains like the DAC. Servo board is Philips made. Layout is different from stock pics on Ali, but essentially same, PS boards have nice big 8200uf Elna for Audio caps. Still not the sort of extensive power supplies like in a Jay's. Modded the Puck using a coaster made of MDF with a thin layer of cork on the bottom, this I think made a slight difference, maybe, can't tell if chassis damping has made a difference. Edited June 28, 2023 by muon* 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted June 28, 2023 Author Share Posted June 28, 2023 Funny, its essentially a Phillips transport in nearly every way.... Not just the mechanism though also a portion of the electronics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted June 28, 2023 Share Posted June 28, 2023 (edited) 14 minutes ago, MattyW said: Funny, its essentially a Phillips transport in nearly every way.... Not just the mechanism though also a portion of the electronics Yes apart from the digital interface board/s, power supplies, display and clock. Clock crystal is a Crystek CCHD- 957 Femto ultra low phase noise oscillator. Edited June 28, 2023 by muon* 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted June 28, 2023 Author Share Posted June 28, 2023 Just now, muon* said: Yes apart from the digital interface board/s and clock. Clock crystal is a Crystek CCHD- 957 Femto ultra low phase noise oscillator. Well, those non Philips parts are a step up over those in original Philips or Marantz players so it makes sense it gives a better result paired with the TDA1540D DAC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockRolley Posted June 28, 2023 Share Posted June 28, 2023 38 minutes ago, muon* said: Got inside the transport for a look, it has a DC blocker on the mains like the DAC. Servo board is Philips made. Layout is different from stock pics on Ali, but essentially same, PS boards have nice big 8200uf Elna for Audio caps. Still not the sort of extensive power supplies like in a Jay's. Modded the Puck using a coaster made of MDF with a thin layer of cork on the bottom, this I think made a slight difference, maybe, can't tell if chassis damping has made a difference. Mate, you really did crack it open. Well done!!! So cool to get a nice look inside. It’s great to see your mods, thanks for sharing. I can’t speak to the specific electronics advantages or disadvantages, but I like that it retains some original Philips parts and has the new elements you mentioned. Looking forward to further impressions as you get to listen more. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted June 28, 2023 Share Posted June 28, 2023 (edited) Mods are pretty superficial, but hopefully helping a little. I think the Philips servo board is NOS but looks like they replaced some caps with Panasonic FC and BC electrolytic caps. Pretty hard to find a third party servo board for the CDM4, have seen one but It's about $600, and who knows if It's any better they could have just followed the Philips schematics, Where I think Jays, and Denafrips made their designs from scratch possibly. Edited July 5, 2023 by muon* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockRolley Posted June 28, 2023 Share Posted June 28, 2023 9 minutes ago, muon* said: Mods are pretty superficial, but hopefully helping a little. I think the Philips servo board is NOS but looks like they replaced some caps with Panasonic FC and BC polymers. Pretty hard to find a third party servo board for the CDM4, have seen one but It's about $600, and who knows if It's any better they could have just followed the Philips schematics, Where I think Jays, and Denafrips made their designs from scratch possibly. Jays is quite a bit more expensive though right? So far are you thinking it’s competitive in its price range? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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