Genesis Digital Lens

I recently renewed my faith in CD transport, but only with a really good jitter reduction equipment like the now out-of-production Genesis Technologies' Digital Lens from the late 1990s.  A used but good condition sample can be found for around US$500 (holds amazing value for something this old).


I tried comparing excellent disc transports with Mac mini/USB based system and found that disc transports are more consistent in sound quality, that is - consistently inferior to the Mac mini.  Particularly the sound stage size and that annoying glare.  The few times that transports are better, it is in the bass, pace and rhythm area.  Rock music works quite well, for some reasons.  May be the Mac mini is too clean and too low on jitter? May be jitter is a good thing for rock music? hmmm....


The Genesis Digital Lens, a unique piece of audio equipment.  There are (were) other similar products such as the Theta TLC, Monarchy DIP, Audio Alchemy DTI Pro, Sonic Frontiers Ultra Jitterbugs, Meridian 518s and Apogee Big Ben.  But these use phase-locked-loop to reduce jitter, which is pretty common feature in most of today's DAC anyway.  Modern re-clocking units like Empirical Audio's Pace Car and Firestone Audio's Bravo focuses on de-jittering the USB data stream.  The Bravo also accepts S/PDIF coaxial and Toslink, but just synchronizes data to its clock with no memory buffer, so it will be much less effective as jitters are errors in time domain and you can't give it new rhythm without stopping it first.  


The Digital Lens uses a theoretically superior method which is a data buffer that holds the bits in its memory, re-clocks them, and then outputs a jitter-free digital stream (well..jitter in the stream removed, but the Lens' close-to-zero clock jitter remains).  Some disc transports do this (such as Theta Jade, Esoteric's higher end models), but it is quite rare.  Since the Digital Lens was actually part-designed by Paul McGowan of PS Audio (he co-founded Genesis Technologies and co-designed the Lens), new PS Audio Perfectwave Transport do this too, but there are no stand alone product like it that I know of.

The Lens is house in black aluminum face plate, high-quality input and output jacks.  The unit has 5 digital inputs (RCA, BNC, Toslink, AES, and Glass optical) and 3 digital outputs (RCA, AES and Glass).  Input is 16-bit only.  Other than buffering and re-clocking, it can also add bits from 16 to 20-bit, and with two type of dithering.  Dither 1 uses more advance triangular dithering and is considered superior.  The remote control lets you set the Lens' dither mode and 16/20 bits from your listening position. The Lens also measure the speed accuracy (in parts per million, "ppm") of the transport's clock to which it's connected.  My 47 Labs' Shigaraki transport measures at 18ppm positive while the Teac VRDS50 measures at 20ppm.  Ironically the cheaper Sony CDP-X5000 measures only 14ppm. Genesis says anything from 10-50 is of ok quality.

The sound from the memory buffered Digital Lens should be, in theory, identical from transport to transport, but it does not.  Let's just say it makes any CD transports sound more open with better definition.  There are less harshness which are common in older CDs.  The sound quality in general is as good as the Mac mini (via Halide bridge asynchronous USB/SPDIF converter feeding the DAC.) 


Stereophile 1996 review of the Digital Lens can be found here.


Having spent most of my time lately using computer-as-source, the benefit of having instant access to your full music library is something I am now so addicted to.  Reaching out for that CD, once seems like a ritual, now feel like labor.  It will be interesting to see how the Lens will fix jitter-prone output of an Apple Airport Express, and would it transform the sound quality to high-end levels.  I do really hope that PS Audio or someone will come out with a modern version of the Digital Lens with ultra accurate clock, 24/192kHz capable inputs, dithered digital volume control, asynchronous USB capability, and buffered digital output (see Lampizator Transport).  That would be a product to rule them all, wouldn't it?

Vintage of the month: Sony CDP-X5000

Recently we acquired a vintage Sony CDP-X5000 from the late 1990s.  Using it as a transport feeding DACs, it is very good, as good as the TEAC VRDS 50.  Better than any DVD-based transport.  It is a fixed-pickup mechanism, much like the famed Sony CDP-XA7ES.  Built quality is first rate and it can be had for very little money these days, if you can find one.  However, please note that the laser pick-up assembly and parts are very hard to find.  So make sure it works before buying.

From thevintageknob.org

"...This notwithstanding, the CDP-X5000 quickly became respected CD drives : 100% non-magnetic aluminium chassis, a Fixed Pickup Mechanism, an AES/EBU output, careful layout of the 4-layer glass epoxy boards, one R-Core transformer,Frame & Beam chassis.

Despite an elaborate Current Pulse digital-to-analogue section, the CDP-X5000 is an integrated CD player with, mainly, a drive vocation : the AES/EBU digital output isn't present for peanuts and that is probably why the X5000 doesn't have a VC filter section like the CDP-X3000 has.

Several dedicated audiophile accessories were made available as well for the X5000 : a brass puck, a Corian puck and an opaque Corian lid. None of these were distributed (or even mentioned) outside Japan - Sony's sky high silliness as usual.
The CDP-X5000 received rave reviews everywhere and excellent sales in Japan but the series nevertheless got shelved rather rapidly. Unlike what is commonly believed, the # 3000and # 5000 separates are NOT part of the ESseries.

The french and german Sony attempted to unload their stocks more easily, late in time, by adding an ES logo next to the model scripting, and on the cartons, and in the manuals. This however remained unseen elsewhere, including Japan, and was just plain bad marketing miscalculation.

The 5000s sold very well in Japan and didn't need an added ES logo to do so - adding it on EU models didn't boost sales either as ES, by then, already didn't mean much anymore."

Accuphase's discrete D/A conversion

From day one, 99.9% of all digital to analog conversion duties in commercial audio products are done by integrated circuit chips ("IC").  The 0.1% that I am aware of, are a couple of products with discrete D/A components from Accuphase of Japan.  It appeared in its 1988 DC-81 digital processor and DP-70 and subsequently DP-70v (1990).

Basically rather than using a chip to convert, they put together multiple current switches (from Intersil, a specialist in optoelectronics), which in turn form a 20-bit discrete digital to analog conversion network. 

pics from review33 website

At the time, this is the only method to get more than 16-bit resolution as all chips were only 14 to 16-bits.  Martin Colloms of Hifi-News and Record Review, the UK publication, gave the DP-70v the highest mark possible from digital players of its day, I was drolling.  It was, however, very expensive and difficult to get the matching and production done properly, Accuphase ditched the technology and opt for traditional IC-based machines in later models.


Discrete components, contrary to popular belief, are made to last.  So if anyone find a used one for sale, grab it.  It's a classic - and I bet it sounds as good as, if not better, than newer modern DACs.  I'm also a buyer so if you see someone selling it, please let me know!

47 Laboratory Shigaraki Transport

At last, I found a used mint 47 Lab Shigaraki 4716 Transport.  It is a very simple - zen like - transport based on cheap Sanyo mechanism but supposedly gives you 95% of the sound of the more expensive Flatfish ($6,500).  47 Lab also makes an even more expensive model called the Pi-tracer ($28,000), which is out of this world (and out of my league).

I figure simple transport like this would match well with my new found taste in simple "non-over-sampling-no-filter-16-bit-only" DAC. Very zen indeed.






The Shigaraki (name after a kind of Japanese ceramic, which is the material for the base), as opposed to most method used in other high end transports, is bare-bone, free spinning, and has no dampening material what so ever. It uses a rigid housing which the transport is mounted to directly, no suspension.  Digital output is as raw as it could be.  Someone measured it and posted traces on the web showing very nice square wave.


The Shigaraki has a very good following in the DIY scene.  Shiga-clone DIY projects have been posted all over the place (416-page long DIY thread, another one here, and here).  Even the Lampizator made one and felt that it beats his Theta data transport.


Will report back after some serious listening.