Kiwimeat finally decided on his new DVD Player....

kiwimeat · 29th November 2006, 7:10 PM

Well after possibly setting a record for procrastination, umm-ing and ahh-ing, driving local Hi-Fi stores (one in particular :blink: ) to distraction, prevaricating and generally not being able to make up my mind......

I have finally decided on my DVD player upgrade.....
/drum roll

Denon DVD2930 in Black.

/drum roll off

I have one of the last six (in black) of pre-Christmas stock (i.e. no more until New Year) at Audio Products winging it's way to me tomorrow ETA Friday hopefully.

So get thee hence Sony NS50 and make way for my new deck of godliness.

So why did I choose the 2930?

1. Decided to wait out the first couple of rounds of the HD format wars
2. I wanted improved audio playback and support for SACD and DVD-A as well as HDCD
3. I wanted a non-Faroudja chipset - 2930 has HQV Reon
4. Best of the SD-DVD players I reviewed (deliberately didn't view a 3930 or Marantz 9600!)
5. Good to very good reviews in media and on net.
6. Wife doesn't know how much it cost

Closest contender was the Pioneer 989AVI - very good but no black and Denon was just that bit better and worth the extra IMHO.

Eliminated after evaluation were the Cambridge Audio DVD89 (v.good audio but only good video and inserts pause in SACD playback!), Denon 1930 (good video, but big lip sync issues), Marantz 7600 (excellent audio, but some slight performance yips and other weirdness in video menus in my demo plus retailer didn't want to move much on price).

Eliminated as they aren't available - Marantz DVD7001 (no ETA for Oz), Yamaha DVD-S1700/S2700 (again no ETA for Oz), Toshiba HD-E1 (no ETA, Castel have no reliable info, doesn't play required audio formats).
This will be my last SD-DVD player.

Denon 2930 Brochure (PDF format).

This PDF shows differences between current Denon DVD player line up.

crustydemon_r1 · 29th November 2006, 7:46 PM

Congratulations dude.... Good choice, enjoy......

R3xx · 29th November 2006, 8:59 PM

Very nice dude!!! Dun worry I won't tell the wife.. How much did it cost?

disci · 29th November 2006, 9:16 PM

Nice job Kiwi'. I got something a bit similar on Monday.

Did you get it from Videopro, Stereo Supplies, Living Sound, or somewhere else?

D

kiwimeat · 29th November 2006, 9:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by disci

Nice job Kiwi'. I got something a bit similar on Monday.

Did you get it from Videopro, Stereo Supplies, Living Sound, or somewhere else?

D

"A bit similar"? 3930 perhaps? Do tell.....I hate hints....

I ordered from Living Sound - John does me very good rates based on past purchases and extra business I sent them.

Videopro were pretty competitive though and Stereo Supplies are Gold Coast only so it's too far to travel.

disci · 29th November 2006, 9:35 PM

Ah... ' don't want to hijack anymore: that Denon will be great.

I'll try to update my photo in the home theatre photo thread some time soon.

Do you have any unfinalised DVD-RW's recorded in VR mode on an old consumer DVD recorder? I'd love to know if they play perfectly on your new player when you get it. Mine recorded on a Pioneer DVR-7000 played in a very jerky fashion on the new un-named player. Sorry, another hijack

Regards

D

Amfibius · 30th November 2006, 6:57 AM

Out of curiosity, why did you want a non-Faroudja chipset?

kiwimeat · 30th November 2006, 8:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amfibius

Out of curiosity, why did you want a non-Faroudja chipset?

The Faroudja chipsets whilst have many excellent features do have an issue with macro-blocking which is common across all implementations regardless of manufacturer although the actual degree does seem to vary.

I've seen macroblocking first hand on Denon 2910, 1930, Oppo 971, and CA DVD89. I probably could have lived with it (i.e. been mostly blissfully unaware), if some kind soul hadn't demonstrated the difference to me. Hence my choice of the 2930 with it's HQV Reon chip. The Pioneer 989 also doesn't have a Faroudja chip and is also excellent.

kiwimeat · 1st December 2006, 3:59 PM

No new toy this weekend.

My 2930 is in stock at Audio Products but is in pre-delivery being checked out.

Revised ETA is middle of next week

flu!d · 1st December 2006, 5:53 PM

Predelivery for a DVD player?!

Working as a service manager i'm more than aware of PD's on new cars, but PD's on DVD players?! A little over the top don't you think?

Also, I feel that it needs to be stated that macroblocking is very much display dependant also.

I also tried to avoid the Faroudja chipset. but i'm afraid that no matter how much money I looked at spending the Faroudja chipset produced the best PQ on my display device.

kiwimeat · 1st December 2006, 9:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flu!d

Predelivery for a DVD player?!

Working as a service manager i'm more than aware of PD's on new cars, but PD's on DVD players?! A little over the top don't you think?

Also, I feel that it needs to be stated that macroblocking is very much display dependant also.

I also tried to avoid the Faroudja chipset. but i'm afraid that no matter how much money I looked at spending the Faroudja chipset produced the best PQ on my display device.

I believe they check it out and flash it with region free firmware...or so I'm told.

It's not a cheap volume sale DVD player stacked high at the likes of JB or HN, hence the better service.

The Reon chipset is staggeringly good and will see me through until I decide to go HD.

29th November 2006, 7:10 PM	#1
kiwimeat Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Brisbane, QLD, Australia Posts: 1,825	Kiwimeat finally decided on his new DVD Player.... Well after possibly setting a record for procrastination, umm-ing and ahh-ing, driving local Hi-Fi stores (one in particular :blink: ) to distraction, prevaricating and generally not being able to make up my mind...... I have finally decided on my DVD player upgrade..... /drum roll Denon DVD2930 in Black. /drum roll off I have one of the last six (in black) of pre-Christmas stock (i.e. no more until New Year) at Audio Products winging it's way to me tomorrow ETA Friday hopefully. So get thee hence Sony NS50 and make way for my new deck of godliness. So why did I choose the 2930? 1. Decided to wait out the first couple of rounds of the HD format wars 2. I wanted improved audio playback and support for SACD and DVD-A as well as HDCD 3. I wanted a non-Faroudja chipset - 2930 has HQV Reon 4. Best of the SD-DVD players I reviewed (deliberately didn't view a 3930 or Marantz 9600!) 5. Good to very good reviews in media and on net. 6. Wife doesn't know how much it cost Closest contender was the Pioneer 989AVI - very good but no black and Denon was just that bit better and worth the extra IMHO. Eliminated after evaluation were the Cambridge Audio DVD89 (v.good audio but only good video and inserts pause in SACD playback!), Denon 1930 (good video, but big lip sync issues), Marantz 7600 (excellent audio, but some slight performance yips and other weirdness in video menus in my demo plus retailer didn't want to move much on price). Eliminated as they aren't available - Marantz DVD7001 (no ETA for Oz), Yamaha DVD-S1700/S2700 (again no ETA for Oz), Toshiba HD-E1 (no ETA, Castel have no reliable info, doesn't play required audio formats). This will be my last SD-DVD player. Denon 2930 Brochure (PDF format). This PDF shows differences between current Denon DVD player line up.

30th November 2006, 6:57 AM	#7
Amfibius Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Melbourne, Victoria Posts: 6,584	Out of curiosity, why did you want a non-Faroudja chipset? __________________ -Amfibius

1st December 2006, 5:53 PM	#10
flu!d is a dad at last :D Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Mt Martha,Victoria,Oz Posts: 8,508	Predelivery for a DVD player?! Working as a service manager i'm more than aware of PD's on new cars, but PD's on DVD players?! A little over the top don't you think? Also, I feel that it needs to be stated that macroblocking is very much display dependant also. I also tried to avoid the Faroudja chipset. but i'm afraid that no matter how much money I looked at spending the Faroudja chipset produced the best PQ on my display device. __________________ Show us yer HTPC! 2700k @ 4.8 1.36v, 8GB Corsair Vengeance C8, ASUS Maximus IV Extreme Z, 2 x EVGA 670FTW @ 1231/3420, Sandisk 128GB Extreme SSD, OCZ 60GB Vertex 2, 5TB WD green storage, 3 x Acer V243HQ in Surround, 1 x Acer AL718 4th accessory display, Windows 7 Ultimate, Corsair H100, Heavily modded Zalman GS1000.

29th November 2006, 7:46 PM	#2
crustydemon_r1 Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 81	Congratulations dude.... Good choice, enjoy......

29th November 2006, 8:59 PM	#3
R3xx (Banned or Deleted) Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Melbourne Posts: 2,453	Very nice dude!!! Dun worry I won't tell the wife.. How much did it cost?

29th November 2006, 9:16 PM	#4
disci Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Brisbane, Aust Posts: 1,370	Nice job Kiwi'. I got something a bit similar on Monday. Did you get it from Videopro, Stereo Supplies, Living Sound, or somewhere else? D

29th November 2006, 9:35 PM	#6
disci Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Brisbane, Aust Posts: 1,370	Ah... ' don't want to hijack anymore: that Denon will be great. I'll try to update my photo in the home theatre photo thread some time soon. Do you have any unfinalised DVD-RW's recorded in VR mode on an old consumer DVD recorder? I'd love to know if they play perfectly on your new player when you get it. Mine recorded on a Pioneer DVR-7000 played in a very jerky fashion on the new un-named player. Sorry, another hijack Regards D

1st December 2006, 3:59 PM	#9
kiwimeat Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Brisbane, QLD, Australia Posts: 1,825	No new toy this weekend. My 2930 is in stock at Audio Products but is in pre-delivery being checked out. Revised ETA is middle of next week