Years ago I bought two TEAC Hi-Fi separates. I think they were both pretty pricey n’all. Although I forget now exactly what I paid. One component was an amplifier. Which I still have. The other was a DVD-player. But it was a DVD-player that – I was told/sold – would play back audio CDs very well.
But, alas, the DVD player never worked. And I took it back under warranty to have it fixed. They say on it for over a year. And when I eventually said ‘it’s the working omachine back now, or a full refund; I’ve paid for a device I’ve not had for aeons…’ etc, they fobbed me off, as I saw it, with this unit.
I’m only just learning – maybe 15-20 years later? – that whilst it doesn’t look remotely like the replacement of like for like that I wanted, it might actually be an ok machine. And here’s why…
In seeking out various 50th Anniversary reissues of numerous ol’ musical favourites, I’ve learned that Sony Japan are reissuing lots of early Santana, including such wonders as Caravanserai and his Sri Chimnoy themed Mahavishnu collab’ Love Devotion & Surrender, in super-deluxe SACD versions.
I had a better than religious epiphany to The Life Divine, off this album, in my late teens. So this record has a very special place in my heart! But I was lamenting the fact that – out of around 1,000+ albums I own on CD, only one or two are SACD (eg Steely Dan’s Everything Must Go) – meaning I thought I’d have to fork out for an SACD player for the sake of a paltry two or three discs in my entire collection. Obviously not worth it!
But in researching ‘affordable SACD players’, I learned that I’ve already got a machine that’ll play SACD, and indeed have had one for donkeys years. I just didn’t know it! The people at Cambridge Hi-Fi, where I bought the two TEAC units originally, prob’ sold it to me with this as part of their patter. But I either didn’t hear; didn’t comprehend; and/or did, I forgot!
So, having discovered I have an SACD playing DVD-player, I’ve finally ordered a new remote for it. The old one ceased working several years ago. This might also mean I can finally watch Police Squad without g’damn English subtitles!?