very liquid, musical playback on SACD. Very good CD playback.

Still somewhat harsh-sounding on some CDs.

I bought this player strictly to play SACDs, and on that score I've been very impressed. The format on most discs lives up to the billing. On Dylan's "Blonde on Blonde," a very sharp-sounding recording, you get the feeling you're there with him. Same goes for Billy Holiday on "Lady in Satin." Lately, however, I've been listening more and more to regular CDs on this machine. I had assumed that the 333-ES wouldn't come close to my Rotel 991, but it turns out that it's often very close. I still find the Rotel to have a more together and musical sound, but the Sony is very satisfying as well--certainly much more lively and detailed than my old Sony 8-ES changer. All in all, a great buy.

Similar Products Used:

Rotel RCD-991; Rotel RX-972 receiver; Snell K-5 speakers; Monster and MIT Terminator 2 interconnects.

Detailed, warm and smooth on both CD and SACD

none so far, no multichannel but who cares

I bought it mostly for CD playback since SACD releases are still sparse. Out of the box this player reminded me of good old vinyl days. I haven't heard analog source in a while and I almost forgot what I was missing. This player should get you at least half way there. Very detailed but warm and natural sound, well staged with good depth. Recently I also purchased Technics DVD-A10 DVD-A player which has the ability to upsample CDs to 88/24 bit. Although very good in detail, it is nowhere near as musical as 333es even on DVD-A disks.

SACDs sounds awesome but I don't have too many disks yet. I can only state that owning both hi-resolution formats I much prefer SACD over DVD-A.

This is the best $500 I have ever spent on a CD source. It does not play multichannel SACD disks but it will be a while before i get a 5 channel setup in my listening room.

If you were considering spending $1200 on a source or a DAC, you must audition it. Apparently after mods by D. Wright ($300) it is sensational. But try a stock unit first - this player shoud not dissapoint.

Go get it while you can. J&R should sell it for $500 but you must be firm.

Similar Products Used:

Rega Planet, Technics DVD-A10

Great sound, open sounstage, very musical

no remote on/off switch

The sound quality on this cd player was very impressive just playing standard cd's. Very musical; clean and open sounding with almost any cd. This is a very nice surprise, I really was not expecting anything so nice when I purchased it. Separation is very good and voices come across extrememly well. I actually use the analog outputs from this unit because it sounds so much better than using either optical or coax output. I realize that it may seem somewhat expensive for a cd player(because there are not that many sacd discs out yet) but if you are looking for really good sound, something very musical, then you should at least give it a try.

Similar Products Used:

dvp s7000 dvd 3300

Execellent highs Midrange and Bass SACD CD are Excellent

none

This CD Player is a Bargin, I am still reeling from the Excellent Super Audio CD playback.Sony thanks.

Similar Products Used:

None

Red Book Play back, Digital Filters, Dual R-core power transformers.

No detachable power cord, changer is clunky.

Just got the player about 2 weeks ago and I honestly believe this player is the greatest deal on the market!

Much to my surprise after about 300 hours of break in the player opens up and smooths out noticeably.

I also plan to get modifications done by Richard Kern (Audiomod.com). He is the one who knows the most about my player and how to modify it depending on the sound I'm looking for.

With the mod this player is a step behind if that from the 777ES!

This is my first nice CD player and if you have right equipment then it can really shine.

Get em before there gone if there not already this player is a no brainer.

Not as good as the 777 but the 777 cost 2-3 times what this player does and is a slow loading single disk player.

I will post another review after the modification is done.

Smooth, natural, musical.

Doesn't have HDCD chip.

I was thinking about buying the more expensive 777ES model, but I am thankful that I did not. A friend and I did a straight comparison of his 777 to the 333 and were pleased to find that the two were almost indistinguishable. On a system using BAT amplification, an Audible Illusions Preamp and a pair of Von Schweikert VR4's, it was truly difficult to perceive any distinctions between this popularly priced unit and one costing more than three times as much.

Critical listeners will almost immediately be taken by the expansive, open, airy sound stage that is available only through the SACD medium. Despite what many will say about standard PCM encoded software, there really is a rather obvious difference, although standard CD performance, too, is just about as good as one could expect. If the unit was capable of decoding HDCD, I would not be the least bit reluctant to dispose of my Rotel CD player.

The 333 requires a rather extensive break-in period for it to come into its own. Upon receiving mine, I loaded both SACDs and CDs into its 5-disk carousel, put it on auto replay, and allowed it to play continuously for an entire week. I could not be more pleased with the 333ES; it is, without question, one of the two best purchase decisions for audio equipment I have made.

Similar Products Used:

Rotel RCD-971

Great CD playback

still waiting for some to show up...

Let this unit burn-in for a couple of weeks before being critical of its performance. I've been shocked at the result of the burn-in. The 333es is a dynamite contender for the the under $1200 category.

One of the biggest surprises is how it makes my older ADD and AAD compact disks (mostly classical and jazz) sound. They've taken on a whole new dynamic: transparent and present, like a veil has been removed. DDD discs sound stunning. Even the discs burned from 192kbs and higher MP3's (mostly older recordings of blues and rock) sound better than I ever could have hoped.

I've been a hold out, thinking my mid-fi Yamaha cd player provided a suitable front end for my system. The 333 has shown me the error of my ways. The entire system has lit up in the presence of the 333. Plus I was reluctant to shell out a grand for a single CD player. The audio sales guys just shook their heads when I said I wanted a changer. The 333 has great sound and a changer!

The Sony SACD demo disc sounds terrific but I've yet to hear a newly SACD-recorded and mastered CD. I bought this solely on the stregnth of standard CD playback. No buyer's remorse on this unit.

the gear:
Rotel RB-1080 200 w/c amp
Rotel RC-995 pre
Rotel RT-940 tuner
Sony SCD-C333es cd changer
Rotel RR-969 remote (great entirely programmable remote - works for everything)
Dynaudio Contour 1.8mk
Synergistic / Alpha interconnects
Synergistic / Alpha speaker cable

Similar Products Used:

Rotel, Cal labs, Rega Planet, Yamaha, Thule, Denon

Some have asked how to get a '333 player for $400. I suggest that you get on The Good Guys website and they can answer all questions. Unfortunately, I don't think that they will mail order the 333. The website address is http://corporateinfo.goodguys.com/about_us.html

or simply search for The Good Guys California. I think that works also.

Good luck

Very smooth sound; plays classical and acoustic music as good as I've heard from a cd player; I'm able to turn it louder on music without it sounding edgy; excellent build quality

none so far

I highly recommend this cd player. Get it while you can (sony is no longer making this model). The original list for this player was 1200.00 I paid 650.00 for mine, and I'm glad I bought it.

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denon dcm 460

SACDS sound great, good looking unit, better build quality when compared to other es carousel players..

very, very, very limited number of titles that can only be found on web. I have only one sacd title by TOTO (yuk).That is all I could find locally, must purchase via web $25.00+.

I like this player a lot it sounds great. Regular cds DO NOT sound as good as these sacds. The sacds sound much more clear and alive than any cd I have heard. The music just seems to come right at you. I listen to the sacds through the analog direct input on a strda-777es and yesssssss bose 701s and it sounds great.
If you are interested in those high end sony cd players contact sony factory outlet in wrentham Ma. they had three of them. these things weighed about 60 lbs with some kind of weight to hold the cd down. I'm sure you can figure out which one it is from that description. They want $475.00 for this thing well worth it.
P.S. Crutchfield is asking 1200.00 for this sacd player, I would not pay more than $700.00 for this under any circumstances.

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Had a choice between this and very high end sony single cd player same price (brand new in box)regular price 2000.00 with balanced outputs or something.NO sacd though. They said they are cutting price because of the sacd players.