Onkyo A-977 Digital Amp with C-777 CD Player

Onkyo announced A-977 digital amplifier to go along with new C-777 CD player . The VLSI (Vector Linear Shaping Circuitry) is the main emphasis on the CD player and is reported to improve the noise reduction. I personally do not trust any buzzwords myself even if it is backed up by a patent. In some cases I turn out to wrong and hope to see that more and more. Anyways, A-977's VLSC reported to remove all pulse-width modulation noise that C-777 DAC introduces.

Here is the list of specs that matter and facts that one does not want to miss:

A-977:

Power output:
2 x 100W at 8 Ohm 1kHz, THD of 0.5% or less
Frequency Characteristics:
10Hz - 60kHz ( +1dB/-3dB ) on CD
Signal to Noise Ratio:
100dB (CD IHF-A), 70dB (PHONO IHF-A)
Speaker Adaptation Impedance:
4 Ohm to 16 Ohm
7 Analog Inputs:
PHONO, TUNER, CD, TAPE, MD, HDD, LINE, MAIN IN
Price: 126,000 Yen ( about $1100)
Availability: Mid November 2005 in Japan. Rest of the world waits for now.

C-777:

Playback: CD, CD-R/RW, MP3
Frequency Characteristics: 2hz - 20kHz -
Signal-to-Noise Ratio: 111dB - Dynamic Range: 100dB - Total Height Harmonic Wave Total Total Harmonic Distortion: 0.0027% (1kHz)
DAC: Wolfson WM8740 192KHz/24-bit
Price: 73500 Yen (about $640)
Availability: Mid November in Japan

Source:AkihabaraNews and Onkyo Japan ( Google Translated from Japanese )