Refurbished Denon DVD 900 & what to do with Tosh SD4800 (1 Viewer)

[SeanA]

I just ordered a factory refurbished Denon DVD 900, even though I am happy with my Toshiba SD4800. All this talk about the Faroudja chip and such a good deal ($100) on the DVD 900... I just couldn't resist !!!

Does anyone have any thoughts on what I should do with the Toshiba player ? The Toshiba has one big feature over the DVD 900 in that it plays DVD-Audio discs, but to be honest, I really don't see myself getting into DVD-Audio. The video performance is more important to me. My options are:

1) Sell the Toshiba. I think I can get $100 for it being that it is only 3 months old and the top-of-the-line Toshiba player.

2) Keep it as a back-up in case the DVD 900 dies after the 90 day warranty period (actually I will get 180 days because my MC doubles any warranties up to 2 years total).

3) Keep it as a CD and DVD-Audio player. Is DVD-Audio really worth it ? I am not into most of this new music, and I don't think they can turn some of the classics like Pink Floyd, Fleetwood Mac, etc. (at least in my book) into true surround sound format since this stuff was originally recorded in stereo. Am I right ?

 

[DanaA]

Well, I had, well still actually have, the Toshiba 4700, which has been replaced by the Denon 1600 in my main viewing area. The 1600, imo, has superior audio capability than the Toshiba, but, correct me if I'm wrong, the 900 doesn't have DVDA capability.

I never used my 4700 for DVDA. I heard some bad things about it in this regard over at Audioreview.com. However, I heard the 4800 is definitely improved in this regard.

Yes, DVDA has some fantastic recordings and, like redbook CD's, some klunkers. Overall, they're better than CD's, although, unlike a lot of people, I think a well recorded CD sounds pretty darn good in and of itself. Of course, I use a costly, for me, dedicated CD player in my system. What I'd suggest is that you look at the software available for DVDA and see if there's enough of it to justify the expense of the additional cables, although you already have the player. You might also try to hear how it sounds at your local hifi shop.

Great price on the 900 though. I just wish both it and the 1600 has that great zoom feature of the Toshibas.

 

[SeanA]

Hey Dana,

The 900 does not have DVD-A capability and I think that is the main difference between it and the 1600. Also, the 1600 has a little bit bigger buffer (3 MB vs. 2 MB).

Thanks for your suggestion about testing out the DVD-A capability of the Toshiba, but I don't have 5.1 cables and I am not sure it is worth it to buy them just to test the sound quality. When I bought the Toshiba, I didn't realize DVD-Audio would not pass through the optical or coaxial digital outputs. A sampler DVD-A disc came with the player and I tried and tried to get it to play until I realized I needed the 5.1 connections. :b BTW, do you know of any source that would provide available titles in DVD-A ?

 

[DanaA]

The best listing I've found is here and has some pretty good prices too.

Hope it helps.