My Denon 2910 is on its last legs. It no longer plays SACDs or CDs. I fear it won't play DVD-As much longer. I also fear DVD-A players will disappear from the market. I only know of two still around - the Ayre universal and the Oppo 95. Even Meridian seems to have given up on the format. I only have a few DVD-As, but they're important to me. I don't want to lose the ability to listen to them. So I'm wondering if I should buy a good player while I still can. Maybe one of the last Meridians, used? Or a new Oppo? I'd have to keep it under $4,000, preferably way under $4,000, unless it was also the best CD player I had ever heard. Any suggestions?
Michael--why not get one of the releatively inexpensive Universal Players, such as the NAD that I mentioned, or the Oppos (range $400-1200), that play DVD-A?
Yes I would have a backup of course. But I still think the hard drive will crash sooner if I was accessing it for music. Here's why: I sue the computer for at most two hours in a given day. The rest of the time it's asleep. If I were to add a couple hours use to it, but listening to it through the stereo, haven't I just halved its lifespan? And if I crash my hard drive, I've nnot only wrecked a component in my sound system, in this set up, but I've not got a computer offline, which is always a huge pain. Why do you say the hard drive is being constantly accessed? You must have aleady thought through this. Let me know your ideas. Thanks.
Surely this will lead to premature hard drive failure. And the loss of all that music
Your fears are unfounded. Your hard drive is being accessed constantly anyway and that is how it is designed to be used. If it does fail, and yes, eventually they all fail, you simply restore the files from one of your back up copies.
You do keep back up copies don't you?
2 Terabyte external drives now cost less than $100. It is foolish not to have a couple with complete backup copies of your files.
I'm assuming I can't afford an Esoteric player, but I'll keep my eyes peeled for a used one. I'm having second thoughts about saddling my new iMac with thousands of music files and accessing them constantly. Surely this will lead to premature hard drive failure. And the loss of all that music. Goading me on, my Denon now won't play the Rush and Milos Karadaglic albums I burned onto DVD-A from HDTracks. It skips on certain tracks. I've made two copies and each one skips in a different spot. The second copy was burned at the slowest speed available (2x). So I think I will soon be without any hi rez digital capability.
OK, I've thought a lot about this and here's what I plan to do: get a Logitech Squeezebox Touch and a suitable DAC, maybe the Naim DAC, but we'll see. I already have an MSB Link DAC so I can get started as soon as I get the Squeezebox. (Although I doubt my old MSB can handle 24/96 from my DVD-As, it's a start.) Thanks for all the helpful advice, Michael
Just checked Audio Advisor. My NAD T-535 Universal Player still available for about $350. At that price, and given your budget you could could by half a dozen and a good DAC to feed them into.
I thought that Marantz and Denon both still made Universal Players, playing DVD-A, SACD, Blu Ray, CD, and virtually every format. I play may DVD-A on the same Denon that you have, and in my two channel system I use a NAD Universal player that feeds a DAC. Not sure if the NAD is still around.
What file type do you rip DVD-A to, using what program, and will any DAC play it back?
I use DVD Audio Extactor. You can rip to whatever format you like pretty much. I rip original resoltion/bit depth, typicaly to FLAC. It should work with any DAC that supports the resolutions you rip. I use JRiver Media for a server as it will serve the files in their native resoltion.
Due to the devalued prices these days, go find a modded Denon by Underwood or Partconnexion really cheap. You could get something with tubes for much less.
At your price range you may look at the Mcintosh line as well. I see a new MVP871 new in box listed from time to time here for 2100.00 I think RecycledAudio a memeber sells them.
Wow, thanks for the tips. I'm intrigued by the Arcam and Muse suggestions, as well as the PC scenario. I'm not willing to buy another Denon player, however reliable they've been for Elizabeth. I'm on my second one and it's failing the same way the first one did. It's too bad, too, because they sound great.
The new Oppo and the Ayre listed above are good choices. You should look at the upgrades offered for the Oppo on the Modwright website. Another good choice is either of the two players currently offered by MUSE, a company with a long track record of offering well built, good sounding, high quality digital products. Their Polyhymnia is a true universal player and their Erato II (which they indicate is even better sonically) plays DVD-A, DVD, CD, and CD-R, but not SACD. Both are also video players, but not Blu-ray. One great thing about MUSE is that they will upgrade any product to their latest models.
You may want to consider the Ayre C5xe. Very reliable and the company has a track record of longevity and servIce. It's not just DAC's, the implementation in the analog stages count for a lot. Good luck with your search.
You can rip the audio from a DVD-A and play it back on a computer based sever and a DAC if you have to. Better yet, I would suggest you explore that now since you need a new player.
+1. This is exactly what I due and stream it to my PS Audio DAC/Bridge.
You can rip the audio from a DVD-A and play it back on a computer based sever and a DAC if you have to. Better yet, I would suggest you explore that now since you need a new player.
The Arcam DV137 and DV139 will play DVD-A. I have the DV-137 and it's a nice player. Not state of the art, but pretty nice. The DV-139 is a little better. I don't know if either player is still in production, but I have seen new ones offered here for a real good price. Used come up pretty regular too.
I just sold my 3930ci and purchased the Oppo 95. I think the 95 is a terrific audio player but also a great video player. Give it a shot plus you have a 30 day money back guarantee so it's a no brainer.
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