TRL Marantz Sa-14

La45
I have been interested in the TRL modded machines since reading the reactions of various Agoners who bought the TRL Sony 595. I emailed back and forth to Paul, at TRL, a few times and placed an order...Now, I have an Sa-14 coming from TRL in a few days. According to Paul, in its STOCK form, the Sa-14 is NOT a very good player. BUT, according to Paul, - after they re-work the unit, nothing else compares to it except one of TRL's own $30K
machines! Something tells me, that Paul Weitzel would not make that type of comparison lightly. We'll see soon.

I too have entertained purchasing the Marantz SA-11S1 and possibly modding it later down the road by TRL. But the TRL posts I've read so far leaves me wondering if the mods are really a significant improvement.

First it all started with the TRL Sony 595 (or the 777es?), then the 2000es, now the Marantz. With each successive modification, I keep on hearing it's almost like the $30k TRL unit. Leave me wondering if all of these units sound essentially the same after the mod - all almost like the $30k unit, a unit no one but Paul, the designer, has heard as far as I could tell. No one on Audiogon knows how the $30k TRL truly sounds as I have yet to hear from a real owner. So what are we really comparing these mods too? Could you really trust the words of the modder who has a vested interest in selling you his mods and tells you his latest mod is the closest to his ultra digital unit? I'm not trying to slam the TRL mods or Paul in any way, as I have not heard a TRL mod. TRL mods may live up to its hype. I just hate hearing the endless talk about the latest mod sounding like a $30k unit that no one seems to have heard. There is no end to it. Who will it be next, the Denons, Esoterics, etc.?

I, for one, will buy my next digital source from a retailer or manufacturer who will allow a home demo and just enjoy my purchase and not worry if my unit sounds like a $30k or $3,000,000 unit I have never heard or will ever own. Then after a week like a true audioholic, I will call Paul, Dan Wright, etc and ask them for their ultmate mod :) Ain't the life of an audiophile a bitch!

Not to be an sa-14 cheerleader, but its redbook was compared to the benchmark dac1 as being very, very close, a dac rated as first rate by every pro reviewer and recording engineer to get there hands on it. John Marks used it as a cornerstone suggested player for $30k'ish systems, if I recall, and there are tons of reviews of the SA-14 suggesting it is superior to anything Sony, denon, philips or most small company offereings under 2-3K. Are you quoting TRL when they say it is "NOT a very good player?" If you are, I'd presonally stay far away from TRL and their mods, as I find the SA-14 quire good and I'd deduce that the TRL house sound is not going to be to my tastes. I know a guy that thinks the SA-14 sounds better then the Esoteric DV-50 on redbook, and plenty of folks have commented that the SA-14 and Esoteric are nearly indestinguishable on SACD. ...ok, I'll put the pom-poms down. I don't own this machine but did at one time and hate to see people that have never listened to it give it a bad shake. I've owned it, among countless $3-5K digital rigs, and its near the top of my list for making music....

Uva hifi the thought never occured to me that the TRL may have a kind of house sound and that it did not matter which player one has. But I can't believe that this assumption could be true. Although Paul does not reveal what changes he makes with his mod, he did indicate that the SA-14 after treatment was comparable to his expensive reference and made no mention that this is true of the Sony players.

For me I am looking for bang for my bucks since digital is changing so quickly and mod ROI (return of investment) is minimal. I hope someone can comment on what effect the TRL mod has had on the stock Marantz SA-14 or any other hi-end player.

Thanks

UVA, the DV-50 was probably the worst sounding 2ch cd player I ever owned. By default, the Marantz 14 would most certainly have to "sound" better. It is my opinion these days, that there does not exist a stock player at or below approx the 8k price range that is worth my listening time. As far as TRL is concerned, I ordered a SA-11 to hear for myself how it compares to the stock unit I owned. Again, the stock SA-11 I view as worthless.