Denon DVD-2900 DVD2900 SACD CD DVD player

[dwayne.aycock]

Hello friends, I happened to snag a Denon DVD 2900 SACD CD player for $149.00. The unit is several years old, but the seller swears that it's a top performer.I have not ventured into the realm of SACD because of the format war between SACD and HDCD. Looks like SACD won the format war, but I was wondering what you audiophiles thought. Since I already have a great Blue Ray player that I am satidfied with, I was wondering about the the Denon DVD 2900 as a sole music producer in stereo and SACD multi channel modes. Looks like there are several SACD lables out there, as well as the hybrids. (Chesky, Telarc, blue note).
I was wondering two things:
1. Do I connect the player with the 5 channel analog feature? or
2. Is the Toslink (optical) connection the best for accurate reproduction? I am connecting this to my Denon AVR 5800.
I have already ordered a few TELARC SACD recordings from John Williams (star wars trilogy) as well as a few others fom Peter Griffin. I ordered the Pink Foyd "dark side of the moon" SACD as well as a few other recordings from Mahler, Grieg and Masorski (the planets). What is the purest most flexible connection I can make? I don't want to get reproduction CDs, but rather SACDs that are supposed to turn my listening habits up side down. Player is due in on Saturday 5 November. So where do I start? I have read the critic's opinions, but on the other hand, I am not getting paid to like they are, so the best critics would be you.
Your thoughts?
Thanks, Dwayne
Thanks for the info....Dwayne

[Woochifer]

Hello friends, I happened to snag a Denon DVD 2900 SACD CD player for $149.00. The unit is several years old, but the seller swears that it's a top performer.I have not ventured into the realm of SACD because of the format war between SACD and HDCD. Looks like SACD won the format war, but I was wondering what you audiophiles thought. Since I already have a great Blue Ray player that I am satidfied with, I was wondering about the the Denon DVD 2900 as a sole music producer in stereo and SACD multi channel modes. Looks like there are several SACD lables out there, as well as the hybrids. (Chesky, Telarc, blue note).

Yeah, the DVD-2900 is a solid choice. It uses the same tried-and-true transport and chassis that Denon developed for the DVD-3800 (as opposed to the problematic components used in the DVD-2800 series).

There was no format war between SACD and HDCD (the war was with DVD-A) -- HDCD is simply an embedded code format used with conventional CDs. The encoding slightly raises the maximum dynamic range when played through a HDCD-compatible player. Otherwise, HDCD is completely backwards compatible with all CD players.

SACD is a separate format that happens to be available in a hybrid disc format with separate CD and SACD layers (under this scenario, the CD layer can actually include the HDCD signal as well).

Keep in mind that SACDs are getting hard to find. Very few stores carry them, or at least provide dedicated sections for SACDs. If you have Fry's Electronics in your area, they still have a section for high res audio discs.

Also, the titles coming out nowadays are mostly classical or jazz.

1. Do I connect the player with the 5 channel analog feature? or

Yes, with your setup, the analog output is the only way you can listen to SACD or DVD-A.

2. Is the Toslink (optical) connection the best for accurate reproduction? I am connecting this to my Denon AVR 5800.

The optical connection will only work with CD audio and DVD tracks from the video-compatible layer. SACD and DVD-A are copy protected and can only be outputted digitally using HDMI (or other copy protected format. Toslink does not have the bandwidth to support high res multichannel audio, though it can carry a two-channel high res PCM signal found on some regular DVDs.

I have already ordered a few TELARC SACD recordings from John Williams (star wars trilogy) as well as a few others fom Peter Griffin. I ordered the Pink Foyd "dark side of the moon" SACD as well as a few other recordings from Mahler, Grieg and Masorski (the planets). What is the purest most flexible connection I can make? I don't want to get reproduction CDs, but rather SACDs that are supposed to turn my listening habits up side down. Player is due in on Saturday 5 November. So where do I start? I have read the critic's opinions, but on the other hand, I am not getting paid to like they are, so the best critics would be you.

The Mahler series from the SF Symphony is a great place to start. Excellent combination of performance and audio quality. The multichannel SACD tracks in particular are very true to how Davies Symphony Hall actually sounds.

I would also look for the Concord Jazz releases. Those are hybrid releases, and often stocked alongside the other CDs.

Also, the releases from Mobile Fidelity are very well done (most of them are two-channel, but they do have some surround releases that use the original quadrophonic masters).

[dwayne.aycock]

Thank you very very much. I was confused. I know I am buying an older technoogy but with a 2 year old, I have to make a few sacrifices. I can forgo the software and equipment that came out yesterday for something a bit older. I have a lot of high end gear, but I see no need to keep throwing good and hard earned money after the newest technology. Some of the older stuff has been tried and tested, so if I can save a few bucks here and there it is in the best interest of me and my family. Maybe after my 2 year old goes off to college will I be able to get back into the cutting edge market. Thanks for the honest heads up. I will get by for now until I am ready for the next latest and greatest. But for now, I have to be satisfied with so called "vintage" equipment.
Thanks again.... Dwayne

[Woochifer]

Thank you very very much. I was confused. I know I am buying an older technoogy but with a 2 year old, I have to make a few sacrifices. I can forgo the software and equipment that came out yesterday for something a bit older. I have a lot of high end gear, but I see no need to keep throwing good and hard earned money after the newest technology. Some of the older stuff has been tried and tested, so if I can save a few bucks here and there it is in the best interest of me and my family. Maybe after my 2 year old goes off to college will I be able to get back into the cutting edge market. Thanks for the honest heads up. I will get by for now until I am ready for the next latest and greatest. But for now, I have to be satisfied with so called "vintage" equipment.
Thanks again.... Dwayne

I hear you! I have a four-year old, and my purchases have been curtailed dramatically since she started going to preschool full-time. And now that I will soon need to replace my car, that's yet another priority that has landed in front of that receiver upgrade I've been trying to swing!

SACDs can get quite expensive, but on occasion they do show up in a used CD bargain bin. If you've never heard some of these albums in multichannel, it can be akin to rediscovering the music all over again.

[blackraven]

The 2900 is a very capable player. As for finding SACD's, buy them online from Elusive disc's and CD universe. Eastwind imports is another place to buy them as well as XRCD's which IMO (for the most part) sound much better than redbook CD's just because of the mastering process and they wil play on any CD player.

[filecat13]

In a pinch, the 2900 can also function as a karaoke player, but you need to have the remote to get to the setting that allows switching off the vocal channel on formatted karaoke DVD discs.

Of course you need a pre with a mic or a mixer, but it's a stalwart karaoke machine.