BP-2/PS-3 Phono Preamp/Power Supply

[ylee]

I've had a Rega RP-10 turntable, Grado Statement 2 cartridge, and Bryston BP-2 phono preamp powered by the PS-3 outboard power supply for about a year now (thanks Ivan!). I have to say this combination of gear provides very detailed, smooth, and musical sound quality for a reasonable price in today's audiophile terms.

The BP-2/PS-3 combo costs a mere $2750 total MSRP. I have to admit when Ivan recommended this I was a little skeptical. He assured me their performance would far exceed the expectation set by their price. Well sure enough, he's right! The power cord I have (WW Platinum Electra) powering them costs more than the BP-2/PS-3! The preamp does it's part to provide a highly revealing presentation of records. The other day, I was listening to a remastered Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon album which I had purchased without doing thorough research. The reviews for this particular record were highly positive, and indeed it does sound very good. But the thought hit me part way through the album - "hmmm, this sounds more digital than analog." Being curious if my ears and my system were telling me something I hadn't expected, I started looking into this particular remastering background. Sure enough, it was remastered in the digital domain. This is a sign of a great phono preamp. Revealing and highly truthful. I have no desire to spend more for a much more expensive preamp. At least not in the near future.

[Formerly YB-2]

There is nothing that Bryston has ever made that doesn't punch with the 'big names' (which one could argue, they have become). My only complaint is that Bryston does not offer a CDP that reads SACDs. I especially like their smaller form-factor gear.

[ylee]

Originally Posted by Formerly YB-2

There is nothing that Bryston has ever made that doesn't punch with the 'big names' (which one could argue, they have become). My only complaint is that Bryston does not offer a CDP that reads SACDs. I especially like their smaller form-factor gear.

It does seem odd they won't offer SACD disk playback when their BDA-3 plays DSD via HDMI.

[James Tanner - Bryston]

Originally Posted by ylee

It does seem odd they won't offer SACD disk playback when their BDA-3 plays DSD via HDMI.

Hi Folks,

SACD requires a different circuit topology than Redbook CD. SACD Sample rate and BIT rate and Clocking are different.

We wanted the Bryston BCD-3 CD Player to be optimize for Redbook CD playback and therefore the Clocking Frequency, the BIT Rate and the Sample Rate are perfected for Redbook CD playback.

james

[gbaby]

I have been collecting SACDs since its inception with my best player being a Sony XA-5400ES using a Bryston BDA3 as a D/A converter. As good as hi res music sounds with this configuration, I find that I enjoy regular 44.1/16 bit PCM better. It sounds more natural at least when I play it back using either the USB or Balanced digital input to my SP3. I am also using the two music surround surround algorithms on the SP3 in 7.2. In addition, my playback is through a digital player, the Bryston BDP-3 which gives me access to my entire music library. The BDP-3 has also caused me to buy more CDs than ever and I have discovered many good recordings from the 60s and 70s buying those Classic Album Series in both pop and R&B genres. You get 5 CDs of an artist for the price of one, and the majority of the ones I've purchased have great recordings. In addition, I still buy the latest smooth jazz CD I like that I can put instantly on the BDP3. The convenience and sonic benefits from accessing quickly current regular music far exceed the difference in sound hi res offers in an extremely limited catalog. I have a couple of hundred SACDs, DVDs, and hi res downloads I listen to maybe one day out of a year. I listen to the PCM from CDs daily.

[ylee]

Originally Posted by gbaby

I have been collecting SACDs since its inception with my best player being a Sony XA-5400ES using a Bryston BDA3 as a D/A converter. As good as hi res music sounds with this configuration, I find that I enjoy regular 44.1/16 bit PCM better. It sounds more natural at least when I play it back using either the USB or Balanced digital input to my SP3. I am also using the two music surround surround algorithms on the SP3 in 7.2. In addition, my playback is through a digital player, the Bryston BDP-3 which gives me access to my entire music library. The BDP-3 has also caused me to buy more CDs than ever and I have discovered many good recordings from the 60s and 70s buying those Classic Album Series in both pop and R&B genres. You get 5 CDs of an artist for the price of one, and the majority of the ones I've purchased have great recordings. In addition, I still buy the latest smooth jazz CD I like that I can put instantly on the BDP3. The convenience and sonic benefits from accessing quickly current regular music far exceed the difference in sound hi res offers in an extremely limited catalog. I have a couple of hundred SACDs, DVDs, and hi res downloads I listen to maybe one day out of a year. I listen to the PCM from CDs daily.

I agree not all SACD versions of a particular recording sound better than Redbook, but many do. Regardless of the merits of either format, my playback option for Redbook is my Totaldac d1-twelve DAC, so I'm extremely well covered there. If I want to listen to my SACDs, I currently use my Oppo as there are very few options for ripping SACDs. The Oppo UDP-205 is a very good unit, but it's distinctly inferior to the best DACs (as well as players) made by a host of companies ranging from Bryston and Ayre to dcs and Totaldac. So I plan on buying the BDA-3 to convert DSD sent by the Oppo via HDMI. Unless of course Bryston decides to add a CD transport to the BDA-3.

[gbaby]

Originally Posted by ylee

... So I plan on buying the BDA-3 to convert DSD sent by the Oppo via HDMI. Unless of course Bryston decides to add a CD transport to the BDA-3.

Very good plan.