Sony Vs. Denon DVD Players

[jamison162]

I hold Denon receivers to be better thn Sony but I'm undecided as to whether Denon DVD players are worth the $$. I own a Denon 2200 but have tried out the Sony DVP-NS70H (See my review in a separate post). I'm now wondering if I should go to the trouble of trying out a Denon 1920 or even the 2910.

Another thing is Denon DVD players are usually bigger and heavier. What's in these things anyway. I mean the Sony is light as a feather, not much too it at all. Makes you really wonder what's in those Denon's - and it seems they SHOULD be a lot betterwith more inside???????

[caniac]

Maybe it's just me, but I've had two Sony DVD players and both were crap. The analog audio outputs gave out all kinds of hiss. The picture (in progressive scan, mind you) was worse than my older Pioneer that was purchased before progressive scan even existed. And the disc errors......oh my god.

Now, these weren't exactly Sony's top-of-the-line models, but I could get the same performance out of an Apex or some other Wal-Mart brand.

[N. Abstentia]

If I had to choose between Sony and Denon I don't know what I'd do! I've had nothing but trouble from Denon, and Sony is..well....Sony. That's not good.

Personally for 'mainstream' players I've found Panasonic and Pioneer to be tops, and of the mid-fi players I'm highly impressed with Onkyo and Marantz.

[jamison162]

What about the Oppo?

[shokhead]

I hold Denon receivers to be better thn Sony but I'm undecided as to whether Denon DVD players are worth the $$. I own a Denon 2200 but have tried out the Sony DVP-NS70H (See my review in a separate post). I'm now wondering if I should go to the trouble of trying out a Denon 1920 or even the 2910.

Another thing is Denon DVD players are usually bigger and heavier. What's in these things anyway. I mean the Sony is light as a feather, not much too it at all. Makes you really wonder what's in those Denon's - and it seems they SHOULD be a lot betterwith more inside???????

Did you check out the benchmark on those players? My Sony did ok on it.

[topspeed]

I've owned a lot of Denon & Sony products over the past 20 years and I've never had a problem with any of my Denon equipment. The Sonys OTOH, have always been on the fragile side. Reading errors invariably plague every dvd and cd player I've had. On a purely subjective side, there is a considerable difference between how Sony and Denon treat rbcd. Sony uses proprietary dacs while Denon usually uses Burr-Brown. To me, rbcd's thru the Sony sound very thin and sterile while Denon's have more body and warmth. The golden ear set feels that Sony does a better job with SACD, which would seem about right as they created the format, but I sure couldn't hear the difference, at least not to the degree that I heard for rbcd playback. Naturally, listen for yourself as ymmv.

Before I bought my 2910, I took a long hard look at the 1920. I chose the 2910 because it possessed better DAC's, faster clocks, more memory, and seemed to be built a bit better. The image quality, especially on a reference disc like SW III ROTS, is absolutely stunning. The main reason I bought the 2910 however, was because I never wanted to be in a position where I questioned my own decision. IOW, I didn't want to be using the 1920 and have a little voice asking if the experience would have been better with the 2910. Peace of mind is worth the extra $250.

BTW, if you want to know what's under the hood, do a google for 2910 reviews. There's a review (Soundstage? 6Moons?) that has pics and gives a detailed description of what's going on under there. That was another reason I chose the 2910.

Hope this helps.

[EdwardGein]

Get Harmon Kardon 31 DVD player

[Eric Z]

It's a total crap shoot with DVD players these days. I think they all are made pretty much the same- fast and with little money. That's exactly why some last for years and some break down after a year or so. My Sony DVD player from 6 years ago is my favorite- very easy to use and the quality is great- I just hate how it doesn't play all the formats like the newer models. Denon is usually priced higher than the average DVD player- you're paying for the name a bit, but Denon has a good reputation in electronics. I had a Yamaha 6760 I think and I didn't like how it worked- very clunky (slow). My point is you can and can't go wrong with any DVD player you choose- the nice thing is they're fairly cheap so if one stops working after the warranty, pick up a new one.

The 2910 is pretty pricey so be sure you need all the options it provides. Also, maybe pick up a Sony and Denon and see which one you like better- take advantage of the return policy.

Good luck and let us know what you decide.

[Woochifer]

Hey topspeed -

Does the 2910's bass management work with CDs in addition to the other audio formats? I ask because I'm looking for a universal player with the bass management active on CDs.

[Woochifer]

The Denons have definitely had their high and low points. I have an almost five-year old Denon DVD-1000, and it's still working fine. But, the build quality still seems somewhat on the gimpy side. Over the years, they've had multiple players with firmware problems and drive issues. But, when they work properly, the Denon picture and audio quality is quite good.

Sony though has also had their share of DVD player hiccups as well. From what I've been told, their DVD player reliability has been a step below Toshiba and Panasonic. The Pannys in particular have done very well on benchmark tests, and they have supplied DVD transports for Denon and Yamaha.


What about the Oppo?

Posted a response earlier. Oppo seems like a serious emerging contender in the DVD market. Their $200 DVD player is already the best all-region model on the market, and it got the second highest score ever on the Secrets of Home Theater benchmark tests. Previous thread linked below.

http://forums.audioreview.com/showthread.php?t=14811

[shokhead]

OK OK, Denon rules and all else is below Denon.

[topspeed]

OK OK, Denon rules and all else is below Denon.
I wouldn't say that...and I hope I didn't imply that either. Yammie, Panny, Marantz, and Pio also make excellent units worthy of anyone's consideration. I think brand loyalty has the potential to play a large factor as well.


Hey topspeed -

Does the 2910's bass management work with CDs in addition to the other audio formats? I ask because I'm looking for a universal player with the bass management active on CDs.That's a good question, and one I'll have to get back to you on. I never really thought about it as I turn my sub off when I'm listening to music. I'll let you know as soon as I can.

[stan2]

re: what makes the denon heavier than the sony?... can't say I've seen inside of their DVD players, but I did see a sony receiver opened up beside an onkyo. altho the sony was rated at 100wpc and the onk at 80wpc, there was no comparison about the interior build quality, at least in terms of heft... the heat disipator fins on the sony looked about the same gage as a beer can' the onkyo was much more robust. the amp on the onkyo, altho supposedly lower power, was much beefier than the sony. I imagine similar comparison would be found if you looked in the sony and denon dvd's...

[westcott]

Did you check out the benchmark on those players? My Sony did ok on it.

I don't think they did so I will try to make it easier.

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all

[edtyct]

DVD players don't need heat fins and hefty power supplies, so what goes on under the hood is not necessarily what gives a DVD player its mass. Denon makes it a point to obtain quality parts, like Burr-Brown, Faroudja, Silicon Optix, or DVDO chips, and to do the little things to enhance video and audio quality that you won't find in lower-priced decks. That doesn't mean that DVD players that don't go to all the lengths that Denons do can't possibly make comparable pictures and sounds. And even with the best of intentions, and components, the Denons can't be all things to all people or eliminate nagging glitches (like the famously documented macroblocking or chroma upsampling error). Nonetheless, Denon has clearly tried to elevate its DVD players to generate pride of ownership. They perform well, they look good, they carry weight and substance, and they cost a pretty penny. Personally, I appreciate a mainstream company that goes to such trouble, though they won't meet everyone's liking or budget.

In Sony's case, you have to reach the ES-level players to reach Denon's 2910, though I'm not altogether certain that Sony's lower-end DVP-NS models aren't as good at video and at least SACD audio as Denon's 1910. The NS-975V was a great deck at $250 or so for SACD and for digital video, when it worked, but that's a huge proviso. One thing that Sony does but Denon doesn't is to create its own video processing in house, and not to its own detriment. That aspect may lower its prices a bit.

I don't know how the two companies match up on quality control in general terms, but I suspect that Sony had a bad year in 2004/5. So far as TVs go, despite the fact that Sony's displays get a lot of bad press here, statistics from Consumer Reports et al. don't bear out that they have more problems than any other manufacturer. Despite the perception that Sony has a loyal following for whom it can do no wrong, the company stands to lose $93,000,000 this fiscal year. Only the x-box (is that the right console name?) made money. Sony certainly lost out on flat panel mania, having only ineffectual presence in the plasma and LCD market. Its signature components are hard to beat, but it isn't holding pace at the more popular levels. I hope that it doesn't dumb-down further to compete. It has some wonderful products, and some dogs.

Ed