DENON, November 2002 DCD-αSA10-N - CD players

An 8-page brochure for the DENON DCD-αSA10-N - a premium SACD player and a continuation of the α-series eight years after the DCD-αS1 and DCD-αS10. The manifesto reads “with limitless passion for pure audio, DENON opens another door in digital sound”, followed by a slogan about inheriting the prologue of the α-series CD players. The main technological step beyond the old αS units is SACD support and Direct Stream Digital (1-bit, sampling 2.8224 MHz = 64× CD), with frequency range up to 100 kHz, 120 dB dynamic range and a 6-channel multichannel output for the new format. The successor to ALPHA Processing is called AL24 Processing Plus - implemented on a dedicated chip and lifting 16-bit CD to 24-bit through waveform interpolation. The internal architecture uses separate dedicated circuits for CD and SACD plus a two-section DAC: multi 24-bit for the multichannel outputs and single 24-bit for the stereo path. The transport is a newly developed tray-loading S.V.H. mechanism with a copper-gold shielding box in the αS family style, mounted in a rigid chassis with vibration damping and cast insulator feet, alongside custom-designed high-end components (page 7 lays them out as a “family portrait”). At ¥350,000 before tax the model sits exactly between the ¥180k DCD-αS10 and the ¥500k DCD-αS1; weight 15.7 kg, THD on SACD is 0.0008%. A telling detail from the colophon: from October 2001 the DENON brand was transferred from 日本コロムビア株式会社 to the new company 株式会社デノン - this November 2002 brochure already carries the new publisher’s name.