Philips 963SA

Jay S · « **on:** 12 Sep 2003, 08:22 am »

I'm planning on getting a Phlips 963SA to use both as a standalone player (SACD, DVD-V) as well as a transport (feeding my Mensa Plus DI/O and Scott Nixon TubeDac).

It looks like the 963SA has good mod potential! http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=298015

I had tried a Pioneer 47Ai. It wasn't as good a transport as my Cary but I imagine that the 47Ai and the 963SA would be better when modded.

My Cary cd player, which I am now using just as a transport, is up for sale on A'gon.

Anyone have any comments on the 963SA or 47Ai, particularly the stock 963SA and either machine when modded?

Thanks,

- Jay

randytsuch · « **Reply #1 on:** 12 Sep 2003, 03:55 pm »

Never heard either one, but I have heard more the one person say the 963 sounds good for a $400 machine, very good bang for the buck.

I have spoken to Ric Schutz of EVS, he mods both of these, and I think he prefers the sound of the 963 after mods, but I also think he said they were close after mods.

Randy

subhuman · « **Reply #2 on:** 12 Sep 2003, 04:34 pm »

This is one of the reasons I didn't end up with the 963SA...

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=4646

I'm pretty sure the mod doesn't fix it, either. Even though the mechanism is still very noisey, evidently there is a ROM update for this unit that you can burn onto a CD and install into the player that "quiets" the ticking.

The machine has a "warm" smoothed out sound that IMO lacks detail. It also doesn't throw a wide or "complete" soundstage, but it sounds MUCH better than anything that I've heard that costs less than it...

dave'straya · « **Reply #3 on:** 14 Sep 2003, 10:36 am »

I have the Philips 963SA . I like it very much

. Its a superb DVD player (pal progressive is stunningly good on my Sanyo Z1 projector, the 1080i is even better, usually)
I have also been using it as a transport with my Mensa Dio (@96khz) with great success BUT it has surprisingly good cd sound out of its own analog outs

!!. Not quite the bass 'grunt' of the Mensa but very detailed and never harsh. very musical and easy to enjoy longterm listening.
I am seriously thinking of selling my Mensa

and getting the 963 modded now

I dont think you will be disapointed if you buy a 963sa Jay
cheers
dave
ps. i am still waiting for that descrete output stage Dio ( Dio number3)to arrive. Trouble in the lab i guess

gary · « **Reply #4 on:** 14 Sep 2003, 12:08 pm »

damping the inside of the case with joint sealing tape from home depot tamed the noise issues with this player. i can no longer hear it from my listening position, even with my amp turned off.

-gary

Ears · « **Reply #5 on:** 15 Sep 2003, 04:11 am »

Quote from: gary

damping the inside of the case with joint sealing tape from home depot tamed the noise issues with this player. i can no longer hear it from my listening position, even with my amp turned off.

-gary

I couldn't agree more.

Anyone looking for pro mods done to your 963sa,I reccomend www.asi-audio.com

Jay S · « **Reply #6 on:** 15 Sep 2003, 05:04 am »

Thanks for the help! I'm pretty much sold on the 963SA now. I'll get one as soon as I can sell my Cary 303.

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/auc.pl?dgtlplay&1064020880&view&1063595819

hoxuanduc · « **Reply #7 on:** 15 Sep 2003, 09:06 am »

Jay,

Where can you get the 963a in Southeast Asia? Is it avalable in 220v? I just moved to Vietnam and it's pretty tough buying stuff here.

Thanks,

Duc

Jay S · « **Reply #8 on:** 15 Sep 2003, 09:19 am »

Duc,

www.hivizone.com will sell it to you mailorder for US$599 + shipping. Price in stores in HK is from US$475-$577. I think all 963sa's are multivolt (110v/240v). The ones sold in HK are region-free. I would not be surprised if this were the case elsewhere in Asia (pretty much SOP as far as I know).

I'm not sure where else in SEAsia you can get it, but perhaps www.philips.com can point you to local retailers.

hoxuanduc · « **Reply #9 on:** 15 Sep 2003, 11:13 am »

Jay,

Perhaps I can buy them next time I go to HK. Do you know where I can buy one in HK?

Thanks for your help,

Duc

Jay S · « **Reply #10 on:** 15 Sep 2003, 02:30 pm »

Duc,

www.chineseclub.com.hk has them for HK$3,980, and you may be able to bargain the price a bit lower. They have several stores in HK -- you can find addresses, tel nos and maps on their website. By the way, they don't list the Philips (or many products for that matter) on their website. Don't worry. Just call them and they'll let you know what's available. For the Philips, you may need to give them 1-2 days advance notice so they can make sure they get the product to the store you want to pick it up from.

randytsuch · « **Reply #11 on:** 16 Sep 2003, 04:38 am »

Hi Guys,
Not really for you guys in Asia, but if you're in the states and want a modded 963, I would go with Ric from tweakaudio.com.

Not heard the 963, but I have heard other stuff from him, and he's the real deal. For the money, I would think his mod is better.

Randy

Ears · « **Reply #12 on:** 16 Sep 2003, 05:09 am »

Hmmmm...does Rick even offer the Superclock 2?
Don't listen to the hype,all the pro modders out there do a great job.

The difference is, some will tell you which players sound the best when fully modded and others sit on the fence when asked.

The reason I reccomend Doug for the 963sa is because he will do custom mods as opposed to one package for everyone.

For instance if you want just a Superclock2 and signal caps, thats what you will get.
I have a Sony 9000 with Modwright mods and will soon have Doug at ASI finish the mods on the 963sa that I can not handle.

Jay S · « **Reply #13 on:** 16 Sep 2003, 05:59 am »

There seem to be several really good modders; the hard part is to choose!

I had been in touch with Ric in the past, but never quite pulled the trigger. I would prefer to not ship a player to/from the modder, both for the cost and the risk of damage. In that regard, getting the mod done locally here in HK is attractive.

I did a quick comparison of the description of Ric's upgrade, and that done here in HK. Ric replaces the entire output stage with a single ended FET (vs. an opamp and capacitor upgrade) and seems to do more with chassis dampening. On the other hand, the local modder triples-up the AD1955 dacs (yup 3 stereo dacs paralleled for the Left and Right channels) and upgrades the upsampling chip from the AD1895A to the AD1896A. I also like the idea of putting high precision crystal into the stock clock circuit rather than putting in a whole new clock circuit (much cheaper, and about as effective).

The ideal mod may combine all the best ideas from the various modders, but it isn't clear if that's possible. Who knows, they may not be synergistic.

That said, my first priority is selling my Cary cdp so that I can fund the purchase and upgrade of the Philips.

randytsuch · « **Reply #14 on:** 17 Sep 2003, 01:56 am »

Quote from: Ears

Hmmmm...does Rick even offer the Superclock 2?
Don't listen to the hype,all the pro modders out there do a great job.

Hi Ears
What hype are you talking about? And yes, all the modders out there, that I know of, do a good job, based of all the stuff I've read. But, they also have different philosophies, and take different approaches to modding stuff.

Quote from: Ears

The difference is, some will tell you which players sound the best when fully modded and others sit on the fence when asked.

Have not had that happen to me, any modder I have ever asked always told me what he thought, based on the players he had worked on.

Quote from: Ears

The reason I reccomend Doug for the 963sa is because he will do custom mods as opposed to one package for everyone.

For instance if you want just a Superclock2 and signal caps, thats what you will get.
I have a Sony 9000 with Modwright mods and will soon have Doug at ASI finish the mods on the 963sa that I can not handle.

As with most things, it comes down to what you are looking for. Ric completely replaces the existing output stage with his own, and adds a linear power supply, amoung other things. Here is his discription of it, http://www.tweakaudio.com/Philips%20DVD963SA.html

I like his mod because he makes changes I cannot make (I don't know what his output stage looks like, and he's not telling

.) I can, and have installed a superclock and blackgates and made other changes to my old SACD 1000 (before the transport gave out).

I also know Ric has spend a lot of time and effort coming up with this change, and you can see from the pictures that's it quite extensive. That's why I think he does not offer "custom configurations". He came up with a change he really likes and that's what he sells.

I just got a SA-14 from Ric (so yes, I am bias towards Ric), that he had modded for someone, but the transport developed a noise when the drawer retracts. Ric could not fix the noise, so he refunded the guys money and bought him a new 14. He sold me this 14 really cheap, and it sounds really good.

Really, I just want to offer another option, so people can see what's out there, and decide for themselves.

Jay,
If I was you, I would just go with the guy from HK. Sounds like an interesting mod, and I would think it sounds pretty good when he's done.

Randy

_scotty_ · « **Reply #15 on:** 17 Sep 2003, 09:43 am »

Hi Randy,you might check with Alex at aplhifi.com .He might be able replace your transport for a reasonable price

Jay S · « **Reply #16 on:** 17 Sep 2003, 10:48 am »

Sounds like they really know what can go wrong with the Philips SACD1000... and how to fix it! Lots of people have had their 1000's go bad so I'm sure this service will be much appreciated.

Ears · « **Reply #17 on:** 17 Sep 2003, 10:02 pm »

Randy, "for the money,I would think ricks mods are better"

You claim to have not even heard a stock 963sa,but yet claim ricks mods are better, even whitout knowing what AIS offers.

This is the quote I take exception to as it sounds like hype as opposed to opinion based on listening.

On the other hand I would love to own a modded sa14 on the cheap and will call Rick a "modding god" if I can get one cheap

How do you like your digital amp with your monitors?
I built five similar speakers with scan speak woofs and rev tweets about for years ago that also have the alpha core/hovland inducters and x overs.
Digital amps designs of late , have peaked my interest.

Greg

randytsuch · « **Reply #18 on:** 18 Sep 2003, 12:03 am »

Hi Ears,
I was going to write a rebuttal, but thought better of it, it would lead to a response from you, which would end up leading nowhere.

I will say than anyone in the states with a 963, who is considering a mod, should at least look at Ric AND AIS, and any other 963 modder with a good reputation, and decide who's mods will fit their needs better. Not all mods or modders are created equal, IMHO, so you need to do some research and decide who will work best for you.

Peace

BTW, I don't have a digital amp, have a modded Adcom. I am building a gainclone right now. I am keeping an eye on the Sony all in one's though, if Ric can mod one (He plans to try), and make it something special I might have to try that route.

Randy

Ears · « **Reply #19 on:** 18 Sep 2003, 12:32 am »

Sorry, that was Jays amp I was reffering to with your speakers doh.

No need for a rebuttal, as even Doug at ASI speaks well of Ric....and I really would like a modded sa 14.....who wouldn't?
You want to trade for my Modwright 9000es level 3 + maybe some cash?

I was fully aware of rics mods on the 963sa, when he first talked of doing them, and would never particpate in a which modder is the best discussion anyway.
Its just nice to live in a great Country were we have options on such luxurys, and I agree that everyone should explore all avenues when looking for mods.

Greg