Denon DVD-3910 vs CD-only Player

Tvad wrote:

> However, the author's question is specifically limited to
> stock players (as indicated by the last sentence in the
> post), and in that scope a dedicated $1000 CD player like
> a Rega Apollo or a used Audio Aero Prima will outperform
> a stock Denon 3910, IMO.

Correct. I'm looking for a CDP in the under-$1000 range, but I'm also considering going the DVD route, if there's a player that's still decent on redbook CD. If someone has a suggestion for something other than the 3910 that might fit that bill, I'm happy to hear about it.

Mike1000 mentioned the Underwood "Ultimate" mod, and I don't doubt at all that it makes for a wonderful sounding CDP. I imagine the mod doesn't do anything but improve the video performance as well. But it's a $3000 mod, which is way out of the price range in which I'm playing. That's why I asked about the performance of the 3910 as a stock unit.

> How will a stock CD player be better? Primarily, in a
> quieter, less grainy, and therefore more resolving
> presentation due to a superior power supply design (which
> by the way is the primary area that would be addressed by
> a modification of the Denon).

If I can follow up on this, these sound like important, but not earth-shattering, differences. In other words, it sounds like the 3910 is a decent player to begin with, just one that can be bettered on its redbook playback at its cost point by a dedicated CDP. The rest of the system isn't a super-high resolution setup anyway (Audio Research SP-6A preamp, Quicksilver KT88 amps, Thiel CS1.2 speakers), so maybe the Denon would work OK there.

Thanks to all who have responded, and I certainly would like to hear from Bob_reynolds when he's had a chance to hear the 3910 in his system.

Lou

I hope you don't mind me going slightly off course here; another contender in the DVD players for playing CD's is Arcam.

Lhf63 - I have been doing some very similar stuff lately.

I recently picked up a nice TV (panasonic plasma) and as such, have been interested in a quality DVD player to go with it. I have a Jolida 100 CD player, which is widely regarded as a "contender" in the ~$kilobuck CD players. It's a really good sounding player.

I have been experimenting with universal players. If I can consolidate all my digital into one player, that would be ideal.

I started with an Onkyo SP1000.
http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=DV-SP1000&p=i&class=DVD

This player easily has the best build quality of any universal cheaper than the $5 or $6k Esoterics. It is build like a tank, and does all the formats.

When I got it, I did plenty of A-B testing compared to my Jolida. The Onkyo definitely sounds better than the Jolida IMO. It really doesn't give anything up, and has a more "open" midrange. The music is a couple steps more transparent - sounds more like music, less like digital.

However - it had a problem with SACD. There was some strange background noise.
http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?forum=hirez&n=230106&highlight=onkyo+sp1000&r=&session=

So - I returned the player. When I returned it, I found out that I "accidentally" bought a refurb player. Yes, it was my fault, but the vendor had the "refurb" thing pretty discreetly on the page, so...

I then bought the Marantz9600. About the same price as the Onkyo, but with much worse build quality. Flimsy transport. The interfaces for DVD were not as good as the Onkyo, and the remote was much more cheaply made. But of course the important thing, the Jolida sounded better to me on CD than the Marantz. The Marantz had an artificial sounding bloom on some of the upper mid-bass notes which I found distracting, and the midrange had a somewhat "hard" effect.

So - back went the marantz.

I bought the Onkyo again from another vendor (not a refurb this time!) and the issue with SACD is gone, and I love the player!

So - there you go. Good luck. I haven't tried the Denon, but I'm a bit put off by the build quality.