Help with Shanling SCD-T200 please

This is amazing. I own this player (and owned the T-100 before that). There is a SIGNIFICANT difference between the tube output and the solid state one. The reviewers also agree on this one. ''My own conclusions'' Khyr, is that unfortunately your other components may not be revealing enough - or regretfully, you just cannot hear into it like most people can. Hey, there is a sound for everyone out there. You seem to imply that the Shanling is all show - it's not. It IS a very refined player, the fact that it is also a good-looking machine should not be held against it.

Open the bottom plate, remove the cable plug that lead from the DAC board to the tube board, you will experience a major upgrade of the sound. From the solid state output only, of course. This tweak is reversable, so you will not loose anything by trying this.

The other thing you can do is remove the bottom cover that is in the middle section of the digital drive, and also do not put the main bottom cover back. This will relieve all the RFI that had been bottle up inside the chassis and will give you another boost of performance.

Finally if you have your own pre-amp and do not need the volume control of the Shanling, unplug the direct out cable from the DAC board, and plug it into the the empty socket on the left side (looking from outside the upside down CD player) that marked 'Front Out'. This will not only bypass the volume control, but also some very bad electrolytic capacitor. Another reversable tweak with the highest level of sound improvement.

Jefftech, I heard a difference between the tube and SS outputs of my T-100 but not the T-200. As dchan88 points out above the T-200's volume control basically sucks and is likely the source of the homogenized sound.

What I really want to know is how do you explain a T-200's tube output playing with none of the tubes lit?

Must be his other components or his hearing, right?

This is very interesting. I have the USA Silverline version that was modified by Parts Connexion in Canada. I have always heard a MAJOR difference between the tube out and the SS out. I have also swapped the stock tubes with the WE tubes and I could hear a difference there also.

Dlstephenson - I got the level 1 mod plus superclock 3 also. You should try the reversable mods I mentioned above, you will be glad.