Disc Players

One of two partnering ‘front-end’ products for the Model 10, the SACD 10 offers a 4.07V analogue output from a 55ohm balanced source impedance (the N10 network player will appear in a future issue). The A-wtd S/N ratio is a very healthy 114.0dB with CD/LPCM inputs but, as we saw in Marantz’s older SA-12SE player [HFN Nov ’20], SACD media offers a higher 4.97V output and wider 115.6dB A-wtd S/N ratio (all re. 0dBFs). Switching between CD/SACD layers on a physical disc will result in a +1.7dB uplift in level, so beware A/B demonstrations...

With CD and LCPM inputs, the SACD 10’s response and stopband rejection depends on your choice of digital filter. ‘Filter 1’ is a very slow linear phase (almost NOS) type that trades minimal pre/post ringing [red impulse, Graph 2] against a mere 3.5dB image rejection and a roll-off of –4.4dB/20kHz (CD), –6.6dB/45kHz (96kHz files) and –15.9dB/90kHz (192kHz files). ‘Filter 2’ is a hybrid type [black traces, Graph 2], again with a relatively poor 22dB stopband rejection but a flatter response trend reaching out to –1.1dB/20kHz, –4.3dB/45kHz and –22.3dB/90kHz, respectively. SACD/DSD64 media stretch out to –0.4dB/20kHz, –2.6dB/50kHz and –15.8dB/100kHz. Jitter is low with 24-bit LPCM inputs and SACD at 38psec – high rate sidebands in both instances – while CD is limited by the 16-bit level of the J-test pattern at 116psec.

SACD usually has the edge in very low-level (audioband) resolution and so it is here with linearity good to ±0.2dB over a 110dB range and ±0.9dB over a massive 130dB range. LPCM has the edge in high frequency distortion, however [see Graph 1], achieving a minimum 0.00003-0.0002% THD over the top 10dB of its range (re. 20Hz-20kHz) with 0.00009-0.034% for SACD. PM