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Pioneer's first CD player is the ???

Dr. Strangelove

Dr. Strangelove

Super Member
Banned
We all know that the P-D70 was the first CD player from Pioneer available in the US, from 1983 to 1985. And we also know that the P-D1, as rare as it is, was available in late 1982 in Europe and Japan. But, was it the first CD player from Pioneer? Perhaps not.

I have received a catalog from October 1981, in Japanese, which shows their DAD player. It looks similar to the P-D1, but is not the same unit. And, while all of the other components in this catalog have a price attached to them, the DAD does not.

I have attached three images: The DAD, P-D1, and a description of the DAD (which I cannot read). Also, Axel has information on the P-D1 (and owns one as well). See his P-D1 at this link:

http://www.thevintageknob.org/DAD/PD1/PD1.html

Perhaps Axel can help us out.

So, was the P-D1 the first CD player from Pioneer? How rare is this DAD? Does Siamac have one? Was the DAD a prototype?

The DAD
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The P-D1
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The DAD description
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Doc
 

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I have none of them :tears: , but P-D70 :music:

Maybe this one was a kind of prototyp and never build in series.
In my opinion it even has no name, DAD is just the name of the Pioneer-System and not the unit :scratch2: - therefore also no price attached.
 
Maybe Axel can help with the timeline. Right now it looks like:

- Model 1516 - April 1981 (prototype)
- Model unknown - October 1981 (prototype?)
- P-D1 - October 1982
- P-L1000 - Mid 1983? Same as P-D1?
- P-D70 - Late 1983
- P-D90 - Mid 1984, Same as P-D70 plus IR remote, and black aluminum
- P-DX700 - Late 1984

Doc
 
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Al,

The Model 1516 somewhat conformed to the DAD standard as it was planned to be a... 4-Channel format - some things never die :) I have another image of it printed in june '81 but the one on TVK's Invisibilia is the best.

The model you just found is the pre-production version of the P-D1, a year before the japanese official launch of DAD/CD (october '82). It is tagged "Digital Audio Disc Player" so it probably did fully conform to the 2-Channel 16/44.1K DAD standard defined in 1979.
4-Ch digital would reappear later with analog DPL on Laserdisc, then DD/AC3, then SACD and DVD... some things really never die.

The P-L1000 is just a P-D1 with a different name, apparently only for the german market or even only for a hifi show - just to link the new format to the old one and Pioneer's staple "PL" moniker for turntables. My guess.

The P-D1 is Pioneer's first CD player commercially available worldwide.


Most brands made many many many protos, pre-prod samples and test models before the launch of DAD/CD, even those who finally didn't produce one of their own but only rebadged one. Denon had a competing format which was, like Pioneer's #1516, somewhat incompatible with the DAD standard, but have yet to find images of that dissident format. The difficulty is accessing corporate leaflets and old magazine reports - I have so far four Sony DAD/CD protos between 1977/78 and 1982 but there was undoubtedly many more made...
 
btw,

D.A.D. (Digital Audio Disc) is the early name of the format, later turned to CD (Compact Disc) when the Sony/Philips specs united everybody in '79/80. If the original name had stuck, we would use today DAD-RW, DAD-ROM, DAD-R etc


The Sanyo/Fisher players were tagged DAD, as were a few others, in keeping with the original name ; you can see "DAD" inputs on quite a few Luxman, Marantz (and others') separates from the '81/83 timeframe.
The DAD-8 btw was only avaiable in silver outside the US (EU & JP) while the Fisher version of it (AD-850) was only available in black worldwide, except in Japan where it wasn't distributed since Sanyo already had its local sub-brand "Otto"...
 
Axel, thanks for the information.

I have updated my information.


Here are the early Pioneer CD players (prototype, pre-production, and released to market) (Thanks to Axel and www.TheVintageKnob.org for the Model 1516, P-L1000, and P-D90 photos):

- Model 1516 - April 1981 (prototype)
- Model 1516 - October 1981 (Pre-Production P-D1)
- P-D1 - October 1982
- P-L1000 - Mid 1983? Same as P-D1
- P-D70 - Late 1983
- P-D90 - Mid 1984, Same as P-D70 plus IR remote, and black aluminum
- P-DX700 - Late 1984

Interesting to see the development/evolution of what is taken for granted today, and just 25 or so years ago...

Doc

edit: On the bottom of the P-D1 pre-production photo, there is some text. Because the catalog photo was so poor, it is difficult to interpret. I sent it to Axel for his thoughts. It looks like "PIONEER Digital Audio Disc Player Model ????". Axel thinks it looks like "1516", and that maybe Pioneer continued work on the prototype and did not change the model number. We may never know for certain what the designation of the unit that preceeded the release version of the P-D1 really is.

Doc
 

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Al,

I think the october '81 model still is "Model 1516" but in a wider body (P-D1-like and not Hitachi-like) in a redesigned set of functions/display.
The large scan you sent really looks like "Model 1516" is written on it... So: either Model 1516 v2 or P-D1 v0.5 ;-)
 
I had a friend translate the DAD desc. jpg. Japanese is his first language and English his second (as well as Spanish and I don't know what else), Thus the translation is a might broken. But here is what he came up with:

"This is a Digitalized Audio with a big possible future. We, Pioneer keep working very hard to find out a limit (?). We are developing products to realize all possibility in future based on our advanced technology on soft and hardware products from Laserdisc. Now we have developed a new Compact Disc Systems using recorded digitalized music signal laser from a computer chip. DAD player in the last show has same system as CD systems that become soon a global system. By digitalizing music signal, have successfully got a wide dynamic range, SN and high quality sound, also accordingly a high workability and performance. 12 CM disc with 60 minutes on one side is capable of playing. comparing to actual system, this is a smallest tough against dust and scratches. The sound quality will last forever because of indirect system. Also it is possible to set a first search and other search system by time calculation.
Dynamic Range(?) < 90db
Sequence(?) 20~20,000Hz +/- (?)db
? 0.01
Disc size 12cm
Playing time 60 min. on one side"

He is not a big audio guy, thus the reason for part of the broken translation. I am not sure what he missed because of the soft characters on the image I passed along to him. He was surprised to learn of a web site with a large group of people very interested in vintage Japanese audio gear.
Thanks Doc for sharing the documents and promo materials.
 
The translation makes good sense. Thank you, and thank your friend for doing this for us.

I have a lot of other brochures in Japanese I may need help with. The biggest problem I have is trying to determine dates, where there are no obvious characters or indication.

Doc
 
Interesting to see the development/evolution of what is taken for granted today, and just 25 or so years ago...

Doc

..... was quality gear, made from quality components. Then came the cheap, tacky, plastic fantastic black plague!! Now its progressed and gone to the depths of despair!!! When will audio components come full circle??? ........ Probably never again!!
Cherish your 70`s Pioneer gear :yes: :thmbsp:
 
Here's what I'm still trying to figure out...the Phillips prototype CD disc pictured on that link to the website of prototype CD players has a small label and is (possibly) two-sided, like a laserdisc....two sided redbook CD's, seem completely possible, if they can do it with laserdisc & dvd, why not CD? Seems like it'd work, so WHY was that never put into place....it would be good for, oh, say, live albums that have to be put on TWO separate CD's....thow them on one...if the standard was 74 minutes/side back then, that would have been 148 minutes, on one disc, or 160 with the updated 80 minute redbook format that we all know & love (well, subjectively) today....so why no dual sided CD?!!? Everybody says "oh licencing issues" or some other reason similar, I say BS!!

And no four channel ever implemented in any redbook release, sure SACD, DVD audio had that and more, but, QUAD was possible with redbook, so why didn't anyone take advantage, ahh well, technology has moved beyond the CD now :no: so I guess it'll never happen...
 
Dr. Strangelove said:
The translation makes good sense. Thank you, and thank your friend for doing this for us.

I have a lot of other brochures in Japanese I may need help with. The biggest problem I have is trying to determine dates, where there are no obvious characters or indication.

Doc
Click to expand...

Doc,

I just came across this older thread. I am by no means a fluent Japanese reader, but I would be happy to try to help you with specific parts of Japanese brochures if you like.

BTW, (and you may already know this) even when provided, Japanese dates are often hard to understand because in many documents a system is often used which is related to the reign of a given emperor. Whenever an emperor dies, a new calendar is started from year one. The good news all vintage Pioneer equipment was produced in the Showa era. For example, the year 1975 is referred to as "Showa 50", or the 50th year of the reign of the Emperor Hirohito, whose reign was known as the Showa era.

The Showa era ended in 1989, when Hirohito died. From what I gather from this site, quality Japanese audio products died about 9 years earlier....

Anyway, if you have any questions, feel free to PM me. Happy to help if I can.

Regards,
expatguy
 
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