What to do with these Philips TDA 1541 chips?

[Fidel Costar]

These last days, I had a few listening sessions with two of my old CD players coming out of the closet after years of somnolence. A Philips CD 480 and a 582. Not surprisingly, they do not sound very good .

But, doing some research on the net, I realized that these two creatures embed a Philips TDA 1541 chip, which seems highly prized by connoisseurs.

So what shall I do? Take the TDA 1541 out of the machines and dump the rest? That said, I do not really know what I'd do with the TDAs. Do they fit other Philips based players like my Marantz CD38 or my Meridian 506?

I could also sell the TDAs, I guess they are worth more than old Philps CD players...

[flavio81]

These last days, I had a few listening sessions with two of my old CD players coming out of the closet after years of somnolence. A Philips CD 480 and a 582. Not surprisingly, they do not sound very good .

But, doing some research on the net, I realized that these two creatures embed a Philips TDA 1541 chip, which seems highly prized by connoisseurs.

So what shall I do? Take the TDA 1541 out of the machines and dump the rest? That said, I do not really know what I'd do with the TDAs. Do they fit other Philips based players like my Marantz CD38 or my Meridian 506?

I could also sell the TDAs, I guess they are worth more than old Philps CD players...

The TDA1540 and 1541 have an excellent reputation for sound quality by the DIYers. Maybe you can check diyaudio.com to either sell them, or to find a schematic to create your own USB DAC based on the 1541.

Another option is to modify your CD player for better sound. Have a look here:
http://www.lampizator.eu/lampizator/TDA1541%20corner/TDA1541.html

I have a Marantz CD63 (1982, first model ever by Philips) that uses two TDA1540 chips. I've done some of the modifications, and i'm pleased with the sound, although i don't use the CD player too frequently.

[GP49]

These last days, I had a few listening sessions with two of my old CD players coming out of the closet after years of somnolence. A Philips CD 480 and a 582. Not surprisingly, they do not sound very good.

But they COULD!  With proper rework the Magnavox CDB 582 is highly thought of.  There's nothing wrong with what comes out of its TDA 1541!

[Fidel Costar]

All right Gene, we all know that the TDA 1541 is a good little chip. But is it really worth spending money to tweak an old CD player with a mech of uncertain lifespan (hope that makes sense in English).

[nic]

Hey there,

Not sure how handy you are with a soldering iron, but don't junk those TDA1541s!

I have a Naim CD3 (which needs repair presently) and love its sound. Very low on digititis.
More mellow, less harsh. Dare I say analogue-like.
Doesn't give up much in the way of detail to my more contemporary Oppo 980.

I like to leave it on 24/7 which could well be the reason it died....

Would really like to try out a Monica DAC one of these days.

[Fidel Costar]

Hi Nic,

I am the worst electronic surgeon in this galaxy, but if I succeed in taking one of these little buggers TDA 1541 out of the CD player, I'll send it to you for free...

Best,

Fidel

[GP49]

All right Gene, we all know that the TDA 1541 is a good little chip. But is it really worth spending money to tweak an old CD player with a mech of uncertain lifespan (hope that makes sense in English).

Depends on the lifespan of the mech, probably. It is not difficult to give it a whole new back end from the TDA 1541 on, and a good power supply.  A good, low-hours CDM 4 transport is near-unbeatable despite its seemingly humble origins and all-plastic build.  There are a surprising number of them out there; a lot of people only use their CD players the way they used to use their turntables: to play Christmas records (CDs).

[flavio81]

But they COULD!  With proper rework the Magnavox CDB 582 is highly thought of.  There's nothing wrong with what comes out of its TDA 1541!

Hear, hear!!

[LeeS]

TDA1541s are rubbish!! You should pack them all up safely in an envelope and send them over to me for "safe disposal" immediately. 

[flavio81]

TDA1541s are rubbish!! You should pack them all up safely in an envelope and send them over to me for "safe disposal" immediately.  

 

A multi-bit DAC implemented using current summing, there's nothing inherently wrong with the chip design. It was a further refinement of the TDA1540 (14-bit) that was used in many applications before the CD was invented, so it was a mature design, not something rushedly made from scratch.  It is a known story that Philips wanted CD audio to be 14-bit while Sony wanted 16-bit, this because Philips already had the TDA1540 and was confident enough of its audio performance. And we're talking 1978-80, the pinnacle era of analogue equipment. Philips engineers did not compare their CD prototype performance to an MP3 player, or to a cheap Numark USB turntable; they compared the audio performance to serious turntables.

All in all, it is obvious that today there are much more refined DACs, by far; but there are many users that really like the sound of the TDA1540 and TDA1541 machines, and multi-bit DACs in general.

As far as i have seen, this decade has seen a little bit of a resurrection of the multi-bit DACs, as opposed to the 1-bit high-oversampling converters.  Maybe there are some digital distortions on 1-bit DACs that do not appear on the multi-bit DACs. That is not to say they're perfect, of course. Engineering is an art of tradeoffs.

http://www.adventuresinhifiaudio.com/28/06/2010/is-the-tda-1541-dac-still-relevant-today-the-amr-cd-77-compared/

[daiwok]

TDA1541s are rubbish!! You should pack them all up safely in an envelope and send them over to me for "safe disposal" immediately. 

LeeS is joking  you can see his  smiley 

[flavio81]

LeeS is joking  you can see his  smiley 

Yes, i forgot to read twice. I've edited my post now 

[daiwok]

Yes, i forgot to read twice. I've edited my post now 

nice of you to edit, but you are of course totally correct ! 

[skippingjack]

Hi Fidel,

It's interesting that you weren't impressed by the 582. I've got one and although it's not mega detailed in the way that my meridian is I think that it has a nice analogue quality about it (plus I think if I ever got round to modding it it could be really special).

Oh and it might be worth taking the bonnet off and having a look, mine had a TDA1541A fitted (even though most lists say TDA1541).

Alex

[GP49]

I've actually got two CDB582; both date from when the dealer I worked for sold them, brand new.  One is a regular CD-spinner with new analog stage and power supply; the other is a salvage, which always had problems playing CDs, skipping occasionally and unpredictably.  Philips/Magnavox replaced it for the customer under warranty and told us to throw the old one away but I kept it for spare parts (except the CDM 4 transport, which is probably defective) but never stripped anything out.  It still survives in that condition today, TDA 1541 and all!

From what I remember of the stock CDB582 (has it been THAT long?), it was smooth and "euphonic."  Unlike many CD players, one could listen to it for hours at a time without fatigue.