Sansui QSD-1 Decoder

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330437143979&ssPageName=ADME:B:BODO:US:1

a qsd1000 and a qsd-1 in the same week - when it rains it pours.

i offered 501 dollars - DECLINED.

thats all my dough.

w.a.reid

And I was considering $400-450 I guess it wouldn't have mattered even if I had. That's been 2 QSD-1's in last month. I've been so tempted but I spent over $1K on QRX9001 repair work (sniff-sniff) so it's hard to justify having 2 decoders. We're probably seeing these finally showing up on ebay (I think 4 QSD-1's this yr!) from estate sales or old farts like me moving out of quad. Maybe someone is buying and flipping for profit. The one several weeks ago went for $460, but since it ended with a BIN, no bidder info shown just like this one.

It would royally suck if someone is buying them up just to flip and make a few bucks.

is this even better than the x001 series?

ss9001 said:

And I was considering $400-450 I guess it wouldn't have mattered even if I had. That's been 2 QSD-1's in last month. I've been so tempted but I spent over $1K on QRX9001 repair work (sniff-sniff) so it's hard to justify having 2 decoders. We're probably seeing these finally showing up on ebay (I think 4 QSD-1's this yr!) from estate sales or old farts like me moving out of quad. Maybe someone is buying and flipping for profit. The one several weeks ago went for $460, but since it ended with a BIN, no bidder info shown just like this one.

It would royally suck if someone is buying them up just to flip and make a few bucks.

Click to expand...

well - more is better - right?
this has the same decoding board as the qrx - X001 series - but instead of one decoder board - it has THREE - one for treble - mid and bass - so same decodeing from stereo - just better.

now the qsd1000 - has only one board - the same as the qsd - 2 ........but is a juiced up version of the same decoding board - so here is my opinion

qr - quad series - lame decoding - but better than none - look pretty good too.
qrx - x500 - series of receivers - better decoding - not the best -
qrx - x500A - - a little better than qrx - x500....but just a little - u will see qrx 7500-a , and the qrx-5500A - decent machines - look pretty
qrx-x001 series - 5001, 6001,7001 - best decoders in a RECEIVER.....period. and receivers were not sound problematic - but their display lights were off-and-on again.
qrx-8001 and 9001 - highly coveted for looks and power - but the same decoders as the other 5,6, and 7001 - and had issues.
qsd-2 ..exact same decoding synth quad from stereo as the x001 series - just a pure outboard - no power - scarce.
qsd-1 - - like i said - a qrx-x001 multiplied by three - smoother decoding - scarce
qsd1000 - supposedly very scarce - but theres one on ebay now - one huge X001 decoder board - but given better bits and pieces - so it is considered by some to sound better ...than what? im not sure.

im sure i left something out - but thats why its a forum - add to - -- or correct me.


william

well I've got the prototype X2 which is supposedly identical to the qsd 2...

ChristopherLees said:

well I've got the prototype X2 which is supposedly identical to the qsd 2...

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for sale?

well maybe I haven't used it for a while..

Cai Campbell posted impressions of his QSD-1 a few yrs ago. I believe he thought the difference between it and QRX-xxx1 decoder was slightly better but the improvement was very subtle. IIRC, William's use of "smoother" would be consistent with Cai's comments. Do a search & you can find Cai's posts.

I've only had the QRX-9001 to work with & I've been quite happy with its sound over 30 yrs, if not its long term reliability. To me, the advantage of the standalone decoder over what's in the QRX-8001/9001 is the simplicity of design, not having to disassemble a whole receiver and un-solder controls from boards just to clean them! That would be my own sole interest in a QSD-1 or QSD1000 - a backup in case my 9001 craps out again :yikes

Sound-wise, with differences in individual room acoustics, speakers & quality of the source (buying used vinyl on ebay??) - I'm not sure it would make that much difference to go from a QRX to a QSD.

I owned a QSD-2 for a couple of years. Worked pretty well but I could always hear it steering the positions of sounds when other sounds would influence the decoding. I heard the same unstable imaging effect with a friend's QRX-9001 receiver, not surprised since they shared pretty much the same single band decoder. When I got my QSD-1 I immediately noticed HUGE improvement in the stability of the synthesized 4 channel surround. Rock solid imaging! Things stayed put and didn't drift around! Much more than a just a subtle difference. My friend with the QRX-9001, after listening to the difference, got rid of the receiver and bought a QSD-1.

^^
Thanks for making it harder for me to resist trying to get one
There was one on Ebay just listed yesterday evening or 1st thing this morning. It didn't last the day, someone snagged it. That makes another one right on the heels of one last week - I think 5 this yr!!! Next one I may have to dig into the wallet.

ss9001 said:

^^
Thanks for making it harder for me to resist trying to get one
...

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Sorry! I have a habit of doing that. I can think of 4 people who came over and heard mine, and ended up buying QSD-1s for themselves. That was back in the late '70s, when you could buy a new one for around $300 as I recall.

Hi All,

I just spoke with a recording engineer in Colorado today who is on the hunt for a QSD-1 to rent or borrow. This would be to decode a Beach Boys QS encoded recording for official release (I am not sure which title). Is there anyone in the Denver area who can entertain such a possibility? Either post or PM and I will connect the two parties.

Hopefully there will be more like this to come. I think it is to be released as SACD through Acoustic Sounds.

Thanks!

Ken

Fourplay said:

Hi All,

I just spoke with a recording engineer in Colorado today who is on the hunt for a QSD-1 to rent or borrow. This would be to decode a Beach Boys QS encoded recording for official release (I am not sure which title). Is there anyone in the Denver area who can entertain such a possibility? Either post or PM and I will connect the two parties.

Hopefully there will be more like this to come. I think it is to be released as SACD through Acoustic Sounds.

Thanks!

Ken

Click to expand...

Has he thought of picking up one of the new Surround Master units that is said to have performance equal to - and perhaps better than - the QSD-1 ?
http://www.involveaudio.com/products/surround-master
http://www.involveaudio.com/products/surround-master-sq-edition

bmoura said:

Has he thought of picking up one of the new Surround Master units that is said to have performance equal to - and perhaps better than - the QSD-1 ?
http://www.involveaudio.com/products/surround-master
http://www.involveaudio.com/products/surround-master-sq-edition

Click to expand...

Hi,

I am sure he has not considered this piece of equipment, and I will share the links with him. Are all the tech guys (or more than 50%) convinced that this is the best way to decode QS??? This is for a definitive (hopefully) decode, so the real question is, what equipment that exists now will most accurately reproduce the surround mix? This is assuming that the original 4 track mix master is not available for transfer.

Thanks!

Ken

Also someone may want to mention to him that as far as I know, none of the known Beach Boys Material was encoded in QS. The most notorious example of Surfs up, which says it can be decoded with a Dynaco decoder or an EV-4 decoder. I think the general consensus was that it was recorded with a Dynaco Dynaquad encoder. While the EV-4 and QS decoding of dynaquad encoded material is MUCH MORE awe inspiring, running it back through a quadapter would probably be more technically accurate to what was encoded. You can usually get a quadapter for $15-$30 as they are not technically complex or rare.

Q8 said:

Also someone may want to mention to him that as far as I know, none of the known Beach Boys Material was encoded in QS. The most notorious example of Surfs up, which says it can be decoded with a Dynaco decoder or an EV-4 decoder. I think the general consensus was that it was recorded with a Dynaco Dynaquad encoder. While the EV-4 and QS decoding of dynaquad encoded material is MUCH MORE awe inspiring, running it back through a quadapter would probably be more technically accurate to what was encoded. You can usually get a quadapter for $15-$30 as they are not technically complex or rare.

Click to expand...

I was wondering the same thing. I remember Beach Boys material being decoded by fans with an EV-4 decoder vs. QS. Hmm....

surfs up states ev-4 and dynaco on the lp cover but the rolling stone magazine interview about the lp at the time states ev-4...and both systems available outboard decoders are pretty basic which means they probably need to contact somebody with an EV-4 computer script...like AOQ or OD

on the other hand the sunflower may well by dynaco not ev-4 as it's an earlier release...and for that you'd need OD's help for sure..

Hey All,

Thanks, these are all great comments. Looks like the Quadaptor is pretty basic. Is this the state of the art? He says he wants to avoid a digital step such as what a software decode would introduce. So is the Quadaptor the best possible analog decoder for this format?

Ken

I guess "state of the art" might be the wrong choice of terms. Optimal solution?

Ken

Fourplay said:

Hey All,

Thanks, these are all great comments. Looks like the Quadaptor is pretty basic. Is this the state of the art? He says he wants to avoid a digital step such as what a software decode would introduce. So is the Quadaptor the best possible analog decoder for this format?

Ken

Click to expand...

Quadpter is not really state of the art. The sepertion is minimal. It really depends on wht format this is. If it is truly QS, the best "state of the art" option for someone who doesn't want to mess with a computer is the Surround Master. The surround master is also good for decoding other formats, but the channel presentation may not be correct for other formats. If it was encoded in DY, the most "authentic" choice would be the quadapter. If it is encoded in EV-4, I would look for a non-universal EV-4 decoder. A lot of people underestimate the EV-4 decoder, but honestly I think it was the best decoding without some sort of advanced logic system. Channel seperation is very clear. So, probably if its QS, I would get a Surround Master or a QSD-1 in a pinch, if its DY or EV-4, I would lean towards a non-universal EV-4 decoder. The first thing hew should do is make "darn" certain what format it's in. Once again, the Surround Master and QSD-1 should be able to decode anything impressively, but if it's not QS, it may not be how the engineer intended it to be heard. If anyone else wants to throw in their 2 cents on this feel free.