I just got my WM-DD9 today. Fresh from the shop for calibration. He got a new battery door hinge, buttons oiled and completely reconditioned. A polishing and complete timing check and demagnetization. I have for many years wanted to own one of these. Previously the closest I got was a seller from Norway on Norway's own local "classifieds". The seller had a completely perfect cosmetic condition device with the box, manuals, accessories etc. everything. However, it had not been calibrated, looked at etc. just unused for almost 2 decades. He wouldn't post the item and even though I am not too far from Norway, it would have meant taking a flight and then train etc. to go and get it. The asking price was €1999 excl. the flights I needed. Other times I have seen them popup on eBay etc. and dozens of other places. It's not necessarily a super rare device though the price is always north of €1500. Yet the condition has been anywhere between C- tier to A- tier. Finally I found one that is S+ tier condition. I won't mention what I paid for it. It was a lot... Right before sending the seller worked hard with me to fix some issues on his eBay listing. Additionally they realised when testing everything that there were a few problems (battery door wouldn't open, plus some other things). So it was taken in for full repair, which the seller paid for entirely. Apparently the repairman only works on Sony models and has been fixing them much of his life. It was checked and fixed very quickly and then I got a video showing everything and was very excited. Well I got it today. Put a few tapes in and plugged it into the back of my PC which has an X670E motherboard with extremely good sound card. The sound is just sublime. It performs in such a different way to my WM-DC2, WM-DD3 and my HS-P202 and HS-PX587. I am yet to compare it to my WM-EX2000 which is also in completely brand-new condition, with all its accessories and so on and has been professionally calibrated because I need to go pick it up from Australia still. That is still some months away. Everything about this DD9 just oozes quality. It is near totally silent in operation. The lights which tell the direction of the tape playing, the responsiveness of the buttons. The lack of buzzing and static or any other feedback when starting, stopping, changing sides and so on. The inability to hear part of the side of the tape due to azimuth alignment. Walkman Archive et al. might say that the DC2 is the real crown jewel and many people might prefer the look of those late 80s models. I do like my DC2 but I will be honest that I am a little disappointed in the sound quality and even mine was fixed by the wonderful Marian and he said I had one of the best condition ones that he had ever seen. This isn't some complaint about Marian's work, my DC2 and my DD3 which he also serviced 3 years ago. Both sound just incredible. Yet if I compare the DC2 to the DD3, I often feel like my DD3 sounds better??? somehow. The DD9, despite the complaints about how difficult it is to repair and how many things can go wrong with it, the short battery life etc. I simply don't care. It by far and large both looks and sounds the best out of my collection. There is simply no comparison to my ears, between the DD9 and the DC2/DD3 etc. the DD9 is the hands-down winner. One day I will get a DD30 to maybe replace my DD3 or have alongside it and then compare again, when I can find one which is in mint condition. When listening to the sound reproduction. It is just incredible. I cannot hear any noise created from the motor. There is no "bleed" from the other side of the tape. There is no popping, no excessive white noise etc. It just sounds like a true HiFi device. Even with basic Type-I tapes. It just breathes life into tapes that I never thought possible. Even all the buttons have such a satisfying click and the door latch closes with a really satisfying "snap!" My original carry case it came with is also in perfect condition and the only complaint is that whilst the buttons on the side are kind of accessible in the case, I would have liked specific cut-outs for them so I basically never have to take the case off. All that is left is to get a proper AC adapter so I don't have to always go through batteries. I have some new 2024 Eneloop Pros though and they do last a very, very long time and charge rather fast. 1 John 2:15 says "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them." So I won't go so far as to say to use the "L" word. However, I really really like this device.
I got a test tape off eBay that is supposed to be pretty reputable. Though NAK-T100 marks all of my Walkmans as 1.5-2% too slow. Not sure if that is something to do with the tape or my soundcard or something. I certainly can't hear any distortion whatsoever. Still learning how to use the software though. At least at this stage I am pleased with the results.
Great unit,just dug mines out the other day after chatting to valentin.A wee clean off the pinch rollers and it was sounding amazing. Then i dragged out another few!!
Another DC2 with green LED battery light. Did you buy it like this?. There seems to be a few around with this mod.
Hi,no the light modification was done by the repairer on this forum. Was sent away for repair and service and it came back with the green led.must be his signature touch.
Interesting what you write about sound quality, the different players definitely have different sound signature and maybe it is about taste what you prefer. Below my thoughts about sound on my players. I do realise that because of age the result can differ between units even thought I have refurbished and adjusted mine. DD9: Sounds very clean, nice high end. Would say it's more close to "digital" if I would put a word on it. Weak output. DC2: Fuller sound, better bottom end, more "analogue" sounding. More fun listening, prefer it to DD9 most of the time. Strong output. Note, my DC2 have yet to have the modification for better bottom end. D6C: much like DC2 but even better bottom end and even stronger output.
I actually prefer the dc2 to the dd9,also had my d6c out and it was good,just not very portable. In my conversation with Valentin i mentioned that my toshiba kt-as10 stood up extremely well to these other units. i am very impressed with the performance of that. I am actually more of an admirer/collector than an end user but every now and again i dust them off and have a good play. i pride myself on the fact all my high end players actually function as they should and that congratulations must go to Valentin for keeping them going.
Yes Rune Lindman, you are correct in saying it’s a matter of taste. People do miss describe the sound of a DD9 like they also do with the sound of Nakamichi CR-7, mistaking them for cold sterile digital sounding. I think this is lazy / bad generalisation. I have heard analogue sound clinical & cold also at the other end I have heard digital sound warm and woolly. It’s all about implementation. To my ears the only way the DD9 & CR-7 can be compared to digital is in one area, they are very clean sounding. That is the only resemblance to digital. I have all 3-units D6C, DC2 and DD9. The D6C is very analogue, big fat sound heavy weight sound a bit coloured in its sounds signature. Meaning it adds a bit of its on signature onto the sound. The DC2 still analogue not as heavy hitting as the D6C, less coloured not as warm sounding compared to the D6C. DD9 very clean sound signature, reaches higher, good instrument separation appears to be thinner in the bottom end, but I assure you the bottom end is there just several db down compared to the rest of the frequencies. You should resist using the bass boost, unless it kind of works with the headphones you are using. The only time I have heard the bass boost sound remotely pass able is when I tried it with my Bang & Olufsen A8 and that was only the mid setting. The DC2 is the best blend of both units, falls right in the middle of both units hence the best of both worlds. The CR-7 & DD9 are so clean and neutral that people accuse them of being digital sounding. I would describe both the CR-7 & DD9 as chameleons, they impart very little of their own sound signature on to what they are playing because they have very little to add. What’s on the tape is pretty much what comes off. Comparing D6C to DD9 is like comparing Nakamichi Dragon to Nakamichi CR-7, They are both very good but sound different. The Dragon is good but coloured, the CR-7 is neutral, and people mistake this neutrality to being digital like. Nothing could be further from the truth. Don’t know if you ever use to watch Cassette Comeback, he had most of the good cassette decks then he bought a CR-7 then he got what I am saying above. Have a look at this link Cassette Comeback
Yes, I do watch Cassette Comeback. I came from a purist point of view a couple of years ago with a resonable high end B&W setup with all lossless digital audio and I realised I stopped enjoying music. The sound was great but did not really engage me. Then I started with cassettes again and naturally Walkmans and I now listens a lot and enjoys it a lot. Now I choose walkman based on choice of music and mood and it works very well. Even get out some lower end WMs for some music.
Yes Bowers & Wilkins are a bit clinical, but all that can be changed with the correct source and amp. I am not a fan of fixing one sound characteristics by covering it up with another equipment of the opposite sound characteristics. So, Bowers & Wilkins are not my first choice of speakers to own.
The NAK T-100 Audio Analyzer software, is it good/worth the money? I'm looking for a SW like this for Mac OS, currently I use Windows computer to measure W&F.
I love it. Super green, super mean. Here's my own experience with those devices: DD9 - Still the best out of my group, but I now noticed there's a little bit of "noisy" motor if I stand the device up. Though it doesn't always happen. Not sure what causes it, if it is the motor or maybe even the specific tape I use (eg. old wobbly tape). Sometimes it happens other times it doesn't. It might also be a sign battery is just getting low because it's been about 3h of listening. Though with the Eneloop Pro 2024 AAs I have I should have at least another 90 mins left on this battery. All said, the DD9 has extremely strong lows, even with zero bass amplification. Listening to eg. some kind of rap, even the mid Mega Bass is just so excessive. I am going to actually say something maybe unpopular and mention that at this stage I kinda actually prefer the DSL on my Aiwa HSP202 vs. the Mega Bass on the DD9. I'm yet to find a tape that I actually like having Mega Bass on. That said, I don't have a whole lot of tapes where I'd like to increase the bass anyway. In terms of usability, it's my favourite. Auto-reverse is super handy, the feather touch buttons are really nice and the volume knob doesn't "scratch" at all. However, there is a little bit of a audible 'scratch' when even slightly touching the Mega Bass or switching between it. DC2 - After some more listening, I can't really tell the difference between this and the DD9 except to simply say that it is "different". Neither better nor worse. It's definitely not got as much 'depth' on the lows. I am kind of unsure whether or not this is a good or bad thing in my case. I've felt with some tapes that I would like deeper lows with it (or at least some basic Mega Bass) function. Boy oh boy though is it much louder than the DD9 in terms of driving my headphones. In a way there feels to be much less distortion at much higher volumes with the DC2 than the DD9. Maybe it's just the condition of my model, I don't know. With the Line Out, well I haven't found anything clearer (read: better) for recording straight into my PC. Yes the head might not have the highest dynamic range but that Line Out is really something special. D6C - I no longer own one of these but I used to. My model was in fantastic exterior and interior condition and came with the case and manuals and I am a little sad that I sold it. Especially has the price has now basically doubled or even tripled for it. Portability was a huge issue and taking 4 batteries was also a big ask even with the low battery life. I sold mine years ago. It definitely had some of the best sound, maybe it was in a way even the best of the bunch. I remember that there was basically nothing I could fault the device for at all when I listened to tapes on it. Except that it's anything but portable in my mind. I wish I had a nice deck to compare it to. Some nice Sony or Nakamichi etc. Sadly only Walkmans for now. Might have the money for these but I don't have the $10k for a Dragon and then the $3k needed to have it serviced lol.
Aiwa’s DSL was always superior to Sony’s Mega Bass, if you had an Aiwa with BBE as well, now that really enhanced the midrange. So, Aiwa with DSL & BBE is just amazing, way better than anything Sony ever put out. Controversial but Sony’s Mega Bass is for deaf people, because 99 times out of 100 you would have to be deaf to like and use it.
In most units I looked at, Sony relied on the proprietary CXA1249(A)M or the off-the-shelve NJM2106M/RC2106M ICs for MegaBass / (EX) DBB. To no surprise, the CXA1249 can be found in Aiwa units too, for example in the PX30, PX303, and PX900. Aiwa used other ICs too, for instance the XRC5484 for BBE & DSL in the JX707 & JX707D, or the ASP-5410 in the PX50 & PX505 for BBE without DSL (discrete components). Judging your statement and from many others, Aiwa must have better configured the electronics around the IC.
Emiel I agree with you, it’s not the chip but the implementation. The units I owned from new were the Aiwa HS-JX101, Aiwa HS-JX303, Aiwa HS-JX505, Aiwa HS-JX707, Aiwa HS-PX1000 and many others that I cannot remember them all. All these units are at the top of the tree in Aiwa’s line-up, all costing £250 each except the Aiwa HS-PX1000 which costed £200, I think. In the 90’s that was a lot of money for a personal stereo, but they had good sound for that money. They all had both DSL & BBE circuits in them, or they had at least one of those circuits. Those were the days, till Sony bought Aiwa then slowly wrecked them. From the HS-JX101 - HS-JX707, all had one common fault that ran through them all, they must have used the same software in all of them. I don’t know if the HS-JX909 had the same fault, as I had given up on them after the HS-JX707 and I got the Aiwa HS-PX1000. I do not remember if the Aiwa HS-PX1000 had the same fault. I did not own them all at the same time, these models came out every year. A bit like iPhones these days, I guess same internals just in new skin and one or 2 more features. Japanese are the masters of giving you something new-ish every year to make you spend money, to be honest I don’t think they changed much. Apple learned from the masters.
Great read on your device history, Aiwa it is! Somehow it seemed that Sony was stronger marketing their portable devices in the Netherlands. It for sure was the case in the stores that I could visit in the 90s. I recall spending ~200 Dutch guilders end of '96 - early '97 on a Sony WM-EX618, and roughly a year later even a bit more on the Aiwa HS-EX2000. That was a heck of a lot of money, more than 360 EUR nowadays for a playback only, nice but not top range portable. In that light, the DX100 was 649 guilders in 1991, which is 1350 EUR today. [/off topic]
I am going with TooCool4's opinion also. Previously when I owned a reconditioned WM-DD33. I was really disappointed with how distorted and low quality the Mega Bass seemed. So much so that it was one of the reasons I sold it. It doesn't sound any better with the DD9. I've gone through dozens of tapes and not found a single one where I'd even like it in the "Mid" position. With some tapes that already have enhanced bass as part of the recording (half of Eazy-E's tapes). The "Mid" position already distorts the vocals so much I can't hear them properly. That said, the DSL is a completely different experience. It raises the bass without completely muffling the highs. The "2" position on DSL shakes the bones in my ears (if ears had bones). It's probably the deepest bass amplification I've ever heard. Somehow (and despite still being excessive) it also doesn't destroy the highs. It kind of feels like "magic". The "1" setting is still a bit too strong but at least it doesn't destroy the highs like Sony's does. That said, I wish there was a "0.5" setting (aka "Low") which would likely be perfect. I'm curious to see what the WM-EX2000's bass circuit will sound like when I get it. Surely it has to be an improvement over the DD's line.
