Pioneer PD-D9 Mk2

The Pioneer PD-D9 Mk2 is instantly recognisable to anyone who ever saw the original D9, not least from the unusual front-panel design, but also from the display (which has actually changed slightly, being a different colour and rather easier to read off-axis) and the unusually small number of front-panel controls.

Yes, you'll find just two buttons here. One opens and closes the tray, while the other alternates between Play and Stop. We complained about this last time and we'll say it again. No means of selecting tracks from the front panel is horribly, damnably irritating.

Having no search facility is annoying enough, but it's so common we've got used to it. But needing a remote to find a track is beyond the pale. As you have to walk up to the player to insert a disc, you are likely to use front-panel buttons to start play.

But quite often, you'll want to start by playing a track other than Track 1, so you might as well do that from the front panel, too. Minimalism is all very well, but not when it impedes handling. All right, enough whining.

The player's build and specification is otherwise very good. It's a heavy unit, thanks in part to a reinforced base that should help reduce unwanted mechanical vibration. The sides and top are also strong and non-resonant.

The transport is brisk and responsive for an SACD-type and reads discs in about eight seconds. Internally, there is a well-specified power supply with two R-core transformers, one for analogue and one for digital circuits, plus a much smaller standby transformer.

There's also plenty of screening around to keep digital signals and mains hum out of harm's way. The digital outputs are placed alone on copper-plated screen between them and the audio parts.

If that's not enough, you can switch them and the display off entirely with the 'Pure Audio' function engaged.

The audio functions are achieved by an impressive array of recent integrated circuits, starting with a sample-rate converter chip, which upsamples CD audio to 176.4khz. Conversion to analogue is carried out using a pair of Wolfson's latest and highest performance parts, operating in parallel mode to give a small improvement in distortion and signal-to-noise ratio.

Analogue filtering and output buffering is done by high-grade op-amps, for which Pioneer has selected through-hole parts. All the others are only available as surface-mounted.

Passive component quality is good, too with through-hole resistors in key positions and the power supply has been fitted with low noise Schottky rectifiers and unusually large reservoir capacitors. Pioneer's own slow roll off digital filtering scheme, 'Legato Link Pro', is included, but switchable. The alternative is a conventional near-brickwall filter.

Sound quality

We had quite a long review period with this player, which gave us a chance to try it with tracks familiar and unfamiliar on both CD and SACD. By and large, we had a thoroughly enjoyable time with all of them.

This is a player that enjoys its music and isn't unduly fussy about what kind it is asked to deal with. It's not entirely devoid of opinions, though... It's at its best with recordings that could be described as 'civilised'.

Classical, of course, is the obvious example, but plenty of jazz, pop, country and even rock recordings have been made with an emphasis on clarity and cleanliness. With recordings that are more inclined towards blatant overload and sheer noise (think punk and anything in that direction), we found the D9 to be a shade timid, as if embarrassed to replay such an aural assault.

Since a replay device is meant to be neutral, this counts as a limitation, but given all the other things this player does so well, it's not a huge drawback.

For a start, there's an excellent sense of involvement in the music, a feeling that the musicians are getting stuck in and, moreover, are right there in front of you. Not, we hasten to add, any closer than they should be.

Imaging is natural in both width and depth and extends to a considerable distance. Tonally, the player is very close to neutral, though we felt the bass may be just a touch more present than the ideal. It's not so much that its level is lifted – rather that it isn't amazingly well controlled and can, thus, sometimes seem slightly overdone. Then again, most listeners will probably prefer that to lean and thin – we certainly would.

Pitch definition is excellent at low frequencies and the upper bass has plenty of kick, so it's never less than enjoyable. Midrange is lovely, with a beautifully even handed approach to the tonal qualities of different instruments and voices.

That said, the 'Legato Link' filter seems to have some effect on this, slightly favouring the higher midrange so that bright instruments and female voices are a little more present. At the same time, Legato Link brings with it a slight veiling of detail and also a subtle reduction in the scale of images.

Overall, it may make the sound more immediate, but we were unconvinced and preferred the sound with the normal filter-in service. As for treble, it is open and nicely balanced between sparkle and control.

Funnily enough, given that the most obvious differences in technical performance between digital filters are found in the treble, we found it much the same with either normal or Legato Link selected. Perhaps the latter is ever so slightly more delicate, but it's a very close call.

We've mentioned detail briefly, but that's perhaps the most appealing aspect of this player. With good recordings, it is unusually adept (within its price range) at finding detail and presenting it coherently as part of a bigger picture. As a result, there's more than a hint of that classic high-end trait, the ability to hear just as much or as little detail as one wants, without any effort on the part of the listener.

Detail can be something of a double-edged sword for some listeners, as in some cases it seems to come at the expense of overall integration. We didn't at all feel that to be the case here, though. on the contrary, the D9 always keeps detail in proportion to the musical whole.

We listened to a few opera tracks and were struck by the way this most complex of musical forms was always homogenous and dramatic, but still clearly composed of individual voices and instruments. It's a bit like the ornate front of a cathedral – you can admire its outline from a distance or walk up close and appreciate the details of the stone-carvers' art.

We wouldn't suggest that the D9 is without peers in this regard, but for the sheer technical brilliance of its performance, it is one of the best we've encountered short of the expensive high-end. As such, it clearly makes a strong case for itself and we welcome it warmly.

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