Classe SSP-800 controller
-- Wed, 05/06/2009 - 21:08
Hi,
I am in the process of evaluating various controllers for my system. One that I am particularly interested in is the Classe SSP-800. As I am 350 miles from the nearest Classe dealer and he won't have one in stock for at least 2 weeks, I will have to rely to a certain extent on the experiences of others. Therefore, I would appreciate comments from those who have had a chance to audition the SSP-800.
I am fairly certain I read somewhere that Robert Harley was in the process of evaluating an SSP-800. Perhaps he could chime in with some comments.
One thing I would be particularly interested in is how well the SSP-800 takes 2-channel material and matrixes (or synthesises) it into a 7.1 multichannel system. Currently I have a Lexicon MC-12B which does that quite well; however, it is getting a bit long in the tooth. I am a music aficionado first and as (like most people I suspect) the vast majority of my recordings are still in 2-channel and will be for the forseeable future, this is of considerable importance.
Thanks in advance.
J.R.
Any comments on my above post.
J.R.
Hasn't anyone had any experience with the Classe SSP-800?
Thanks in advance for any comments.
J.R.
Hi J.R.,
you should check out the Classé discussion group over at www.htguide.com/forum. Several people there have first hand experience with the SSP-800.
Rgrds.
Hi Nemesis,
I have followed your suggestion; the discussion on that forum is quite informative. However, I was looking for additional viewpoints and I have found one very good one: Robert Harley's comments on this thread.
Thanks.
J.R.
I have just finished reviewing the SSP-800; my review will appear in TAS Issue 194 (August cover date, June 23 mail date).
I can say that the SSP-800 is the best-sounding, most feature-laden, and friendliest (in terms of user interface) controller I've ever used. The sound quality of its preamplifier section (in pure analog mode) is equal to that of many $5k stereo preamps. In the review I also compare the DAC stage to that of the Classe CDP-502 CD/DVD player. The sound of the two is very close, despite the fact that the CDP-502 sells for more than the SSP-800.
R.H.
Thank you for your comments. This is the sort of thing I was looking for short of a review. Speaking of which, I will certainly be purchasing a copy of TAS 194 when it comes out.
Your comments are what I would have suspected given my experience with Classe amplifiers (3 X CA-M400 and 2 X CA-2200).
A general question. I have recently discovered that the Jitter rejection specifications for the SSP-800 are <10 psecs for 2-channel and <20 psecs for multi-channel. I am assuming that this is very good. What would be the threshold for good/excellent jitter rejections specifications?
Thanks again,
J.R.
There are no universally agreed upon standards and methods for measuring jitter, so I would ignore jitter specs from any manufacturer. Based on my extended technical discussion at the factory with Alan Clark (Alan was the author of the stunningly great Linn CD12 CD player), it was apparent that he had fully researched the problem of jitter and had helped to develop circuits and techiques to minimize jitter. I'd be surprised if there were another multichannel controller on the market with better jitter performance.
If I use the DACS in the ssp 800 rather than in any cd player, will there be any difference in using a cheap cd player (merely to transport the 1s and 0s via coax to the ssp 800) in comparison to a super expensive cd player? In theory, I imagine there can be no difference.
Although there are sonic differences between transports, well designed outboard DACs and controllers can minimize this difference by high-quality input receivers and insightfully designed clocking circuits. The variation in transport quality will vary with the quality of the component it is driving.
Given the quality of the dacs on the ssp 800 do you think it would be worth while upgrading from my £300 denon dvd player (which I currently use as a transport)? Thankyou in advance for your help Robert. :-)
I have purchased the processor and find that it is well matched to my Mark Levinson Amplifier as well as my B&W 803S speakers. I also use a CDP 100 player which works very well with the unit. I use an older Sony NS999ES for super audio discs and connect through the 5.1 connections. The sound is wonderful. The speakers spring to life when listening to Mozart, Wagner or Handel. What I like about the unit is the clarity and fullness that are apparent at low volume levels of listening. The movie listening modes really make a difference although the DTS HD etc upgrade are due out this year -can't wait.
I have the SSP-800 processor that is paired with several sources and has been subjected to some obsessive-compulsive experimentation. The aim of this was to optimize audio quality. The summary of my experiences (according to my room, ears, etc, etc) follows:
In order of preference: CDT-300 > Denon DVD-3910 > Oppo DV-970HD.
What is interesting to note is that the Redbook 2-channel fed via HDMI from the CDT-300 is superlative compared to all other sources (caveat below). This includes SA-CD media playback using the Denon sending an analog signal, as well as the Oppo sending SA-CD as a digital PCM bitsream (88k) to the SSP-800 via HDMI.
The caveat -- the best audio quality on this system has been 24/192 (and 24/96k) DVD-A sources played via the CDT-300. Having said that, it would be useful to reiterate that Redbook CD sounds better played via the transport than any of the other sources sending ANY other hi-res signal via any link.
Robert Harley prefers the D-A conversion taking place in the CDP-502 as compared to that in the SSP-800 marginally. His follow-up comment on the variability of transport quality should be well-heeded by all prospective purchasers. If one is spending the kind of money required to purchase the SSP-800, one will not be hearing the full potential of this piece unless it has a good transport mechanism feeding it via HDMI.
To the person with the $300 player and the 999ES, I would recommend doing yourselves a favour and auditioning a well-heeled transport. At the current special that Classe offers, the CDT-300 is highly competitively priced, although I would expect that if you can get your hands on any ell-respected transport you avail yourselves of that opportunity. I, myself, am hoping to hear/read Mr. Harley's impressions of the Meridien 808.2 feeding the SSP-800, or for that matter hooking up a Meitner transport/DAC combination.
As a last note, kudos to Robert Harley owing to the fact that, like many well-bred electronics, the SSP-800 is a very difficult piece to review in that it has no sonic signature. It is a testament to good writing ability that he can every so often when required, he can convey the message that nothing is better than anything or everything out there. (That last statement is not a typo.)
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