[Alexx]

Hi everybody!

I'm looking for a new source. My budget is around $700-800 (actually it's bigger, but our prices are much higher than yours). What I want is the best CD/multichannel SACD possible (for the money, of course). DVD-Video would be nice (it'll reduce the number of boxes in my rack), but not obligatory. The same about DVD-Audio - nice bonus, but not obligatory. There are several restrictions, however:

1) No used models.
2) No Sony players (we have European models, which are completely different from the US).
3) Most probably, no modded units (I have nothing against modding, but most modders are located in US, and sending the player to the mod and back will cost me more than a mod itself).

I see several possible ways of spending the money:

1) One player for both CD & SACD (most probable variant). Right now I'm leaning towards Denon 2200 or 2900, but maybe there's some other player worth considering?
2) $400 CD + $400 SACD
3) SACD player + DAC (for CD)
4) Something else?

Please take a moment and help me at least to choose the way to go. Any opinion is highly welcomed. Thanks!

 

[OceanEnthusiast]

i just got the denon 2900. i think it's a good deal (MSRP was $1000, and can now be had for $600 + tax + shipping), has very nice DACs, i enjoy the sound, and no problems whatsoever. one nice option is that you can turn off all of the extra features (ie, video out, digital audio out, and the LCD display) while you're listening to music to clean up the circuitry on analog audio out. the sonic difference is pretty small, but i do notice a slight difference when turning off video out. i dont think this feature alone should sell you, but i appreciated this in part because denon was making nods towards audiophiles. Since I'm not going to use this for a DVD, this nod was significant to me, as so many universal players seem to be primarily DVD, with SACD tacked on as nothing more than an extra feature. the DACs on the 2900 were the same DACs used in their more expensive top of the line universal player, the 5900. build is very solid, slightly industrial looking rather than looking really slick and stylish, but it definately looks like its a quality player.

i haven't tested DVD yet, but this unit seems popular among home theater folk.

this was my first SACD player, and so far i am enjoying the novelty of SACD. Listened to some Miles Davis and the fidelity of sound was noticeably good.

redbook sounds great to me too. i was on the fence too about whether i should be buying a redbook player or SACD, but i made a decision and i'm really enjoying the denon player. at some point you have to quit worrying about A/B'ing everything or whether there is something better out there, it can be such an endless farce, and the truth is that there are a lot of good, adequate players out there. this is especially important if you are just getting your feet wet.

other universal players i've heard about were the new Yamaha, an Onkyo, and there's a Pioneer that gets pretty hot reviews. I can't recommend any of them (haven't heard them), but these along with the Denons seem to be the hot universal player picks in that price range.

 

[Alexx]

OceanEnthusiast, thank you for the input. Glad to hear you're happy with 2900. BTW, did you have a chance to compare it with it's younger brother, 2200? I've heard that audiowise they're quite comparable.

Does anybody know, how Denon 2900 compares to a good $400-500 Redbook player like Cambridge Audio 640C or Rotel RCD-02? I'm thinking that if difference is big, I'd better buy 2200 and one of this player for Redbook. Unfortunately, I cann't audition all the units (our local dealer has only RCD-02 in stock).

 

[OceanEnthusiast]

i didn't compare it to the 2200, but i know the 2200 has the same DAC's as the new denon 2910. the 2900 has what i'm assuming are better DAC's (the line was 2200 --> 2900 --> 5900, the 2900 and 5900 have the same DACs), but whether they sound all that different or whether it is worth the difference in price, i really dont know.

 

[Jose Garcia]

The Denon 2910 is the replacement of the Denon 2200. That's why they seems to use the same Dacs. Model 2900 was replaced with the new 3910.

 

[OceanEnthusiast]

yes