"I don't know how you can say I, am wrong, as I have not tried the 3910, but plan to."
My point is you MUST try the deck before coming to the conclusion that the issues are there.
"For being a new model, there are far too many complaints on the 3910 imo."
There are NOT that many complaints! There are very few. And I would venture to doubt that some of those complaints are totally without merit...IE, they don't even have the deck.
If one were to base their purchasing decisions on what an audio forum's complaints were, you would be left without any equipment! There is no perfect DVD player, and there never will be.
The 3910 is the best video I've seen on any Denon decks to date, including the 5900. The audio is the best I've heard to date on ANY universal decks. Granted, I have not had the opportunity to listen to the Integra....but I'm very happy with the 3910, so why would I?
My point to you is this...
You seem fairly educated when it comes to DVD players, and you have a habit(like myself) of trying and auditioning much of what is out there. Before you come to the conclusion that there are "far too many complaints" or the "macroblocking challenges" try it for yourself. If you haven't tried it, than why recite other forum babble? Seriously, there are few complaints...but a ton of views and posts. Why? Because others are jumping on the bandwagon, or better yet, offering advice on how to remedy the problem.
I am a vinyl addict....most of my music listening is done on my analog front end. However, there is WAY too much music only available on CD to ignore the medium. That is why I bought the 3910. Finally, without an outboard DAC, the 3910 has brought me closer to the analog sound than any other deck I've tried...with the exception of my Benchmark/2900 combo....but the differences are negligible at best between the two.
BTW, I will NEVER watch Finding Nemo, or the obscure independent films mentioned with Macro blocking issues. But when I watch my high-def football on Sundays, a bit of digital distortion from sun-spots or whatever the hell it is, doesn't make me change out my Dish Net 6000 receiver, and does little to take away from my enjoyment of the games.
If you are seriously looking at buying the 3910 (and I'm not just speaking to you, but anyone interested in general) we are dealing with the cutting edge of electronics. Denon is putting as much technology as possible into these decks and there will be issues to resolve....just like Windows 98, XP, XPSP2, etc. It's the price we pay as bleeding edge purchasers and I couldn't disagree more that we shouldn't be the beta testers. At least Denon monitors the boards and provides what the majority wants.
There are also complaints that the layer changes are noticable??? I have played 30 titles at the exact layer change moment per one of the threads at AVS. Do you see the layer change, yes...but it is immediate, less than a quarter second.
Why do I mention this complaint? Because Denon was the first, and still the ONLY company to implement buffering systems on all of their decks, one thing I've loved since the 2800. I hate the layer changes, but chroma issues never bothered me.
I could go on and on, but my point is that you need to try it first, before assuming ANYTHING from online forums. Some of the best equipment I own and appreciate is very unpopular on online forums....Krell...fatiguing, grainy, too costly, etc. B&W Nautilus speakers...bright, expensive, ugly, mid-range suckout (Whatever the hell that is). I would've never managed to put a system together had I gone by online babble. It's all to be taken with a grain of salt. One mans mole-hill may be another dude's Mt. Everest.
That said...the 3910 is a phenomenal deck, period. I hope you get the opportunity to check it out and take the time to form your own, subjective opinion.
Jer
