Denon DVD 2900 I got, but no bass.

I had the same "where's the bass" issue on DVD-A material with my Denon 3800. What I did was raise my 3800 channel calibration main/center/rear speaker levels to +7/+8, and left the sub level at "0". Then on my processor I had to raise the sub level to +8. Only at this point was I able to get a balanced sound level reading on all channels w/sub.

In general though, the Denon doesn't impress on bass. I did an a/b (using a CD) with the Denon and a Marantz 8260, for a friend, and when I switched to the Denon his comment was, "where'd the bass go?".

My "el-cheapo" Pioneer DV45-A bass management works just fine on all kinds of discs.

My pre can compensate for it, so Im sure it would work well in my set up. However down the line if the upgrade bug strikes, I think this issue may hurt its re sale value here on Audiogon.

I have a question in this regard, since I know nothing about the MC HT arena. I'm interested in getting a hi-rez universal player for my stereo set up (CJ-11a, Melos 222 pre, ProAc 1sc's which have a limited bass repro, tho satisfying for my small room situation). Does the bass management concerns I'm reading about affect my situation? I assume I will only be using the analog stereo output of the 2900 to my pre, will my bass reproduction be degraded? Or is this strictly a Multichannel issue? Thanks.