DV88 Underwhelmed

[Stereo Steve]

I just bought a DV88 off the forums for my office, primarily as it is supposed to be superior at CD replay. I found this not to be the case, it's no better than my Pio 757. Certainly not a patch on the various CD players I have had or even the Tosh SD9000 which would destroy it.

I've read many people on this forum blindly telling people to get the Arcam if they like music or the Pioneer/Denon etc. if they like movies. Does this really apply to the newer models or is it a myth that's repeated by those who seek to sound knowledgable(as so many are on here)?

In the meantime I've sold the 88 and bought an Arcam A7se CD player instead which hopefully will do some justice to my CD collection.

This is not an Arcam bashing post by any means. As you can see I have bought another Arcam product. Just questioning the accepted facts that seem to abound. Maybe I had a dodgy DV88.

[sticker]

Steve,
I don't know what was wrong with your DV88 but certainly in my experience the DV88 is much better than the 757. A friend on mind owns one of these and previous to that he had a Pio 747 (which isn't that dis-similar to the 757) and the reason he sold teh Pio is because the Arcam was so much better than the Pio which he found "thin" & shrill in comparison.
In fact I have just purchased a dedicated SACD player (Sony SCD-XA777ES) and to my mind on straight CD replay my Arcam DV27A beats the Sony. I would have thought that something was amiss with your Arcam....................IMHO

Regards
John

[Stereo Steve]

As an aside, I would agree with the shrill comments about the 747, I had one. I did post in the DVD section when I moved up to a 757 about how much better is was at CD replay. No idea why as I also thought they were near identical machines. Maybe I had a dodgy 747 too!

Anyway, my 88 sounded dull and lifeless to be honest. Not warm either, just lacking in clarity and resolution. I guess there may have been a problem with it or maybe it was just my ears. It certainly didn't have the same 'sit up and take notice' effect that my old Tosh 9000 did when I first used that.

Anyway, I moved it on for the same money so no harm done. I now look forward to getting my hands on the A7se which I expect to do the the job properly.

[Barend]

Maybe treading on some toes here, but I don't think the build quality of Arcam gear is that great; my ex-AVR Sony STR-VA555ES, man, that baby looked the part when you opened it- and touch the front cover and it opens with a very cool sssss...

However, looks aren't everything, my CD-82 sings much better than most Sony and Denon etc. cd players no matter how tank-like they're built...

But I took a good look on the AVR300 today, well the best you can say is Very Minimalistic - would it be so bad to have just a few bells and whistles on the fascia?
We're all children at play, right?
Barend

[sticker]

I personally hate button loaded facia's, used to have a Sherwood that was "button city", trying to find teh right one if you needed was a nightmare and they all attracted the dust.

The Sony ES range are superbly built

[bjd]

Like everything else, it's a matter of opinion. Some people love Arcam and won't hear a bad word said about them. Others don't like the Arcam "sound" and have no desire to own their products. It wouldn't do if we were all the same.

[Barend]

Originally Posted by bjd

Like everything else, it's a matter of opinion. Some people love Arcam and won't hear a bad word said about them. Others don't like the Arcam "sound" and have no desire to own their products. It wouldn't do if we were all the same.

Course you're right, all a matter of taste: Some have taste others don't

Makes it a vivid hobby doesn't it?
Barend

[raven219]

Barend

If you don't like Arcam (based on your comments in this and other threads) why do you hang out in this forum?

Raven

[Daneel]

Originally Posted by raven219

Barend

If you don't like Arcam (based on your comments in this and other threads) why do you hang out in this forum?

Raven

To help give people asking for advice a balanced opinion?

[Barend]

Originally Posted by Barend

Course you're right, all a matter of taste: Some have taste others don't

Makes it a vivid hobby doesn't it?
Barend

First of all it's none of your business, second I wrote several times I LOVE the Arcam sound and third I did not know this was a fanclub.
Barend

[Stereo Steve]

Personally I don't have an opinion either way. Just dissapointed with the particular DV88 I had, which is my first ever Arcam product. It was a great DVD player but in no way did I think it deserved the CD playback reputation it has.

As I said, it may have been a duff unit as it was a few years old. Or, I have dodgy ears. Didn't want to start a slanging match.

As I also said, I have replaced it with another Arcam product so I'm not trying to diss the brand at all. I'll let you know what I think of the A7SE CD player.

[Barend]

I never listened to stereo on any DVD player that could match a good CD player like my Arcam CD82. Even my Denon 2900 doesn;'t sound very well on stereo cd's.
Well maybe the mergabuck units will sound OK, dunno.
BTW friends- just did the mp3 test, downloaded a few Alanis Morissette tracks from her new album "So-called chaos" and burned them to a cd, played it in my Arcam and man they sounded more like chaos than music: hardly any dynamics at all...
So I thought what the hell and bought the disc yesterday: What a difference! I will say no more...
Barend

[Stereo Steve]

Got my A7SE and what a difference? It's really very good and makes listening a pleasure. I'd describe the sound as 'dynamic'. For £90 this was a serious bargain that I will keep hold of.

AS for mp3's. Yes. I had some hi res (560kb) mp3's of Steely Dan and they sounded great, straight from the PC through an Abit USB-optical device. I burned them to CDR and they sounded naff. Not sure what this means but somewhere along the line, something was lost. Probably in the quality of the CD burn or the playback of the CDR.

[john R1]

i can assure you there was nothing wrong with the dv88 player you purchased from me, i found the cd replay ok on the dv88 considering i was using a naim cd2 before this which would knock spots of the dvd-cd players you are using

[Daneel]

Originally Posted by john R1

i can assure you there was nothing wrong with the dv88 player you purchased from me, i found the cd replay ok on the dv88 considering i was using a naim cd2 before this which would knock spots of the dvd-cd players you are using

Having heard the CDS3 a number of times now I'm not convinced of that.