What's a good Multi-disc DVD Player for $300 or less? (1 Viewer)

[Lanny_B]

I just bought a Denon 910 because of a lot of recommendations around here, but, because of my setup, I'm thinking about returning it for a Multi-disc player - be it 3 or 5 discs or whatever. The thing I want to get is good quality and value.

The Denon 910 seemed to be a pretty good player, so I'm basically looking for it's multi-disc equivalent. I'm also trying to stay under $300 if possible.

 

[Charles Gurganus]

Lanny, I pm'ed you.

 

[Mort Corey]

The Denon 1815 is the same player with a five disc changer...so if you liked the 910 you'll like the 1815. It may be in the $350 range however.

Mort

 

[Lanny_B]

With some more research I found some mention of these models:

Denon DVM-2815
Denon DVM-1815 (I have an Onkyo SR600 Receiver that can do the decoding, but maybe Denon does it better?)
Yamaha DVD-C920

Some of those I can find at acceptable prices, though they are used or on eBay. Others I've heard mention are the Panasonic CP72, but I don't know much about it.

Any others, or thoughts on these above? I've heard some complaints about the black level on the Denon 2815.

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

Ecost has refurbished 1815s for $170.

 

[Mort Corey]

The only difference between the 1815 and 2815 is that the latter plays DVD-A...the chipset is the same. All three players passed the "blacker than black" test on the Secrets shootout..FWIW.

Mort

 

[Lanny_B]

But doesn't the 2815 also decode the DTS sound itself?
I have an Onkyo SR600 receiver, so I don't know which would be better for doing the decoding.

Also, doesn't Onkyo make a DVD changer too? How's that one?

 

[MeghanA]

Lanny-Onkyo makes a 6-disc dvd changer, model DV-CP701 in black or silver. I picked one up last week to go with my new widescreen TV and I like it very much. I was a little worried because I had seen some reviews stating that it added a green tint to the picture, but mine has great picture quality. The disc change is quiet and relatively quick, and you have the option to change other discs without stopping the one that's playing. Various tweakable picture settings for both interlaced and progressive mode, no auto-play on close (which I LOVE cause you can go straight to a menu) and On and Standby codes in the remote, which can be useful depending on how you program a universal remote if you have one.
Whoops, maybe a little more info than you wanted. Can you tell I like my player? The best price I found was from JandR.com $229 shipped, that includes free ground shipping (or at least it did when I ordered) and no tax outside of NY state.

 

[George Fogel]

Meghan: Does the DV-CP701 allow you to adjust the aspect ratio if your TV locks into "Full" mode when it gets a progressive scan image?

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

George:

The only 5-disc player I know of with this option is the Denon 4800. It's built on the Panasonic RP91 with the addition of 5-disc, bass management, and burr-brown dacs. Most of the info-sheets for the other Denon players say they have this function but they do not.

As for the Onkyo CP701, ecost has it factory-refurbished in black for $112 and free ground shipping. They also have it factory-refurbished in silver for $108.

Black
Silver
Hope this helps

 

[Minesh Patel]

Does anyone have any recommendations on multidisc players that also do SACD? I already have a Panasonic RP82 for video & DVD-A, but I'd like to have another player for redbook cds & SACD.

Sorry to detour the thread.

 

[MeghanA]

George-It doesn't look like the DV-CP701 allows you to change the aspect ratio, but it does allow you to turn off progressive scan. That produced noticable changes in picture quality for me, but that might be related to my TV's abilities, so it might be fine for you.

 

[George Fogel]

Meghan/Stephen,

Thanks for your responses. I'll look into the Denon 4800, but I'm really interested in a single disc player. Do you know of any?

It may be that I'll just have to turn off the progressive scan (or revert to my interlace player/laserdisc combo player) when I'm not playing an anamorphically enhanced film.

Question: Is my TV unusual, in that it locks into "Full" mode when it receives a progressive scan signal? If I'm not alone, I'm kind of amazed that there aren't more aspect ratio variable progressive scan players on the market. What gives?

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

If you're looking for a single disc player with aspect ratio control consider the Panasonic PR91. If you have a DVI input you may want to consider the Bravo D1. If you're in a pinch and have a newer version of the PS2 that has progressive scan (PS2+) then it will properly handle 4:3 material on a display that locks into full. If I find a DVD Player I really like in the future that doesn't have aspect ratio control I will probably get it anyway since I know I can do it on the PS2 w/ acceptable PQ.

Hope this helps

 

[Jay Blair]

I wouldn't consider the Bravo D1. There are numerous posts of the problems with this player. It's very poorly built. I'm not even sure if it is still available. In place of the D1 I would recommend the Momitsu V880, which itself early on had some problems, but currently shipping players have a new loader and firmware that has cured the major problems this player once had. The Momitsu has great aspect ratio control with either progressive or interlaced output. The RP91 only has that feature with progressive output. I have the RP91 and it is a great player, but may be hard to find a new unit since it is long discontinued.

I'm glad to hear that the Denon 4800 is a multidisc version of the RP91, I may try to find a cheap refurbished version of that as a back up for my 91.

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

The D1 can be a bit flakey, but I have had very good luck with mine. VInc also has the D2 which is supposed to be released soon. It's essentially a D1 w/ better loader and remote. They're also releasing the D3 which adds WM9.