I am still looking for a dvd player for my home theater setup. I was wondering about the Denon 2900. I know it is a few years old but they were quite expensive when they came out. They seem to be $300 or so on ebay now. I had a newer Denon that I returned because I did not like the Farouja chip. I believe the chip in the 2900 is different. I would like some input on how this unit might work with a new plasma tv. I wonder how it would compare to the OPPO 970 which is high on my list. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
Denon 2900 - anybody have one and care to share info.
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I can't comment on the Oppo, but my main recommendation for the Denon 2900 is if you are looking for a good DVD-A/SACD player. The invisible layer change is nice but I've had a lot of reliability issues with my Denon and have only owned it for about a year. The main problem (with my unit, anyway) is that it randomly chooses to not play discs. You put in a DVD, the machine spins for awhile and then says "no play." Usually if you eject the disc and try again it will work but sometimes it takes several tries. There's no reason a DVD player that once cost $999 should have that much difficulty initializing. Also, it is very picky with discs that are only a little bit scratched. My LG DVD/VCR recorder always works as a backup, but this can also be pretty annoying. Thirdly, I've had a random problem with the color shifting; it seems to be a loose connection with one of the component video outputs on the Denon and can usually be fixed by giving the cable a little jiggle. Honestly though I haven't tested the cable to verify if the problem lies with the cable or the Denon.
Around Christmas time all these problems seemed to be happening a lot so I was starting to look around for a new player and considered the Oppo as a cheap alternative, as well as the Denon 1920/30 or even the recently reduced-price 3910, but I'm concerned about reliability. If I'm going to spend $600 on a DVD player I want the darn thing to last me more than a year. As it was the 2900 was fairly expensive and in some ways has been a disappointment, although I am living with it for now and do like it a lot when it's working properly.
Around Christmas time all these problems seemed to be happening a lot so I was starting to look around for a new player and considered the Oppo as a cheap alternative, as well as the Denon 1920/30 or even the recently reduced-price 3910, but I'm concerned about reliability. If I'm going to spend $600 on a DVD player I want the darn thing to last me more than a year. As it was the 2900 was fairly expensive and in some ways has been a disappointment, although I am living with it for now and do like it a lot when it's working properly.
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I have one and have never had a problem with it. I bought it new and after three years still works great.
I also had the Denon 2900 and also found it to be somewhat picky with some DVDs. When it worked correctly, it was very good.
I have had the OPPO DV-970HD for about a month now and so far it has been excellent. Image is excellent, sound is very good, and it has not been picky with any DVD. In addition, I have never noticed a layer change. One thing that was mildly annoying was the pause between tracks on SACD. I know there is a beta firmware that addresses that, but I believe that firmware is based on an older firmware than that which is in my machine. Since I do not play SACD's very often, I chose to just put up with that issue.
IMHO, the OPPO is a better value than a used Denon 2900 for twice the price.
I have had the OPPO DV-970HD for about a month now and so far it has been excellent. Image is excellent, sound is very good, and it has not been picky with any DVD. In addition, I have never noticed a layer change. One thing that was mildly annoying was the pause between tracks on SACD. I know there is a beta firmware that addresses that, but I believe that firmware is based on an older firmware than that which is in my machine. Since I do not play SACD's very often, I chose to just put up with that issue.
IMHO, the OPPO is a better value than a used Denon 2900 for twice the price.
Same here. Never a problem after nearly 2 years. I sold it, but not for any reasons other than that I was upgrading to a modified 3910.
I remember reading positive reviews on the 2900 (maybe at Secrets of HT). Also from memory, but I think that the 2910 afterwards was sort of a step down in core video quality. It just added new features. Maybe upscaling. Except for that 1 post above, I've never heard anything bad about the 2900. How it compares to a new Oppo unit, no opinion.
I remember reading positive reviews on the 2900 (maybe at Secrets of HT). Also from memory, but I think that the 2910 afterwards was sort of a step down in core video quality. It just added new features. Maybe upscaling. Except for that 1 post above, I've never heard anything bad about the 2900. How it compares to a new Oppo unit, no opinion.
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I suspect I just got unlucky with my unit, which seems to happen occasionally to people with any variety of electronics equipment; although I have read other reports of people having difficulty with recordable DVD playback on the 2900 as well as excessive vibration (mine vibrates a lot but it's pretty well isolated from my other components).
I suspect I just got unlucky with my unit, which seems to happen occasionally to people with any variety of electronics equipment; although I have read other reports of people having difficulty with recordable DVD playback on the 2900 as well as excessive vibration (mine vibrates a lot but it's pretty well isolated from my other components).
I bought a 2900 less than two years ago. It has always been "picky" but it has gotten worse over time. Now, if we rent a movie from Blockbuster there is a 50% chance I will see the dreaded words, "No Play". Even though I have a DVD repair kit, it doesn't seem to help but 20% of the time. And it won't play any of my DVD-Audio or SACD discs at all. Period. All in all this was a bad purchase since repair cost now would outweigh the advantage of buying an entirely different new player. I think I would be extremely reticent to plunk down $300 for one of these off ebay with no warranty. Given the choice I would buy the Oppo with warrantly. It isn't really the overall player the Denon is in terms of audio quality, but it would have HDMI and better picture quality according to some. Overall Denon quality is probably fine, but I won't be buying one again. In fact, if you want it, I'll send you mine for low low price of shipping cost after I buy a new one.
I purchase B stock and demo items all the time. But one thing I have learned not do this with is DVD players. Unless the deal is incredible and I know what I'm getting into. I have always assumed it to be a laser alignment issue, but I have had the NO DISC issue many times before. Just never with the Denon. Even recently when I purchased a PS3, I looked at the boxes for any sign that it might have been dropped. Which I assume would contribute to alignment problems. I seem to recall that years ago, a DVD player would come shipped with some kind of screw underneath to keep the mechanisn aligned during shipping. Not sure. Very vague memory.
In reading the tech stuff on Bluray and HD DVD I've been a little concerned because with the smaller size of the pits, it seems much more important that it be aligned perfectly. And the problems I'm having with my Sony Bluray haven't helped that concern.
In reading the tech stuff on Bluray and HD DVD I've been a little concerned because with the smaller size of the pits, it seems much more important that it be aligned perfectly. And the problems I'm having with my Sony Bluray haven't helped that concern.
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Yeah I owned one for over 3 years. It stopped playing CD's and SACD after 2 years or so,It played every DVD-V and Audio however I inserted.Sold it got an Oppo 970, better video, and so far play everything, not to mention they've been fixing all sorts of bugs. You only get that with Denon if you buy the succeeding model.
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I had the dreaded "no play" appear as well on many discs. However - mailed unit to Denon for laser re-alignment. Been perfect since.
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No disagreement here. I've not had the problems listed here with my 2900 (nor had the previous owner), but my 970 has a better pic (at least @720p over HDMI into my AE900) and holds its own sonically.
No disagreement here. I've not had the problems listed here with my 2900 (nor had the previous owner), but my 970 has a better pic (at least @720p over HDMI into my AE900) and holds its own sonically.
Hey everyone , thanks for the info. I think I will leave the denon 2900's alone based on the majority of the posts. I burn alot of dvd's and rent , most of the time , so I would probably have too many no play errors. I really think the oppo 970 is the way too go now. So many seem to be happy with it. It really is a shame that the big electronics companies are putting out players that apparently aren't tested as well as they should be. Also someone sent me a PM and my popup blocker came on and I somehow lost there message. Please resend it and I will try to get it right this time. Thanks again.
I think that the "at least" caveat might be important. And he acknowledged that in the post. It could be an unfair comparison because I don't think the 2900 upconverts. It was just fast and with good core video. Based on what I remember from reviewed. I never A/B anything. Lazy.
So this empirical observation might only indicate that with the scaling in that particular TV, one is better off with an outboard scaler, at least one with the quality of the Oppo. But the Denon might still be better for any enhanced def displays or HD displays which have scalers which are equal to the Oppo.
I think that the "at least" caveat might be important. And he acknowledged that in the post. It could be an unfair comparison because I don't think the 2900 upconverts. It was just fast and with good core video. Based on what I remember from reviewed. I never A/B anything. Lazy.
So this empirical observation might only indicate that with the scaling in that particular TV, one is better off with an outboard scaler, at least one with the quality of the Oppo. But the Denon might still be better for any enhanced def displays or HD displays which have scalers which are equal to the Oppo.
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