Pioneer DVD-V7400 as a transport: INCREDIBLE


I have been on a search for a nice transport for a while now. I am a very picky person and it might take me months to come to a solid decision when it comes to new components. For a while we have been trying to find something to replace our classic Technics SL-P999 as a CD transport. We finally found one and are completely blown away by the sound quality. It is none other than the Pioneer DVD-V7400 Professional/Industrial DVD Player.

This little machine is not a consumer-grade toy but a solid piece of equipment designed for heavy duty usage and flawless reliability. To give you an idea how burly it is the transport is rated for 37,000 hours of usage before failure. The machine has no onboard display to muddy the sound so you must use an external display for setup and configuration. This is easy as ANY modern TV will work. Once set up you can forget about it and let it blend into the background.

This is a no-nonsense professional machine which is not only at home in a million dollar facility but in any hi-fi setup as well. For those of you who like to impress and one-up your friends you'll have a DVD/CD player which has features which simply NO consumer grade one has or possibly ever will have. I am focusing on the sound quality of this unit because the video features are so impressive that they are worthy of their own review.

How does it sound? Absolutely breathtaking. The soundstage is massive. I am hearing details in well known albums that simply were hidden under a veil before. I am hearing the music better than ever before and forgetting that there is even a CD playing. The DVD-V7400 does vocals, strings, and can relay a sense of emotion into the music. I feel confident saying that I would have to search far and wide to find another transport this nice.

If you're not seriously looking at adding one of these to your hi fi rig then that's fine. Just know that the next time you go out searching for a digital transport there's an absolute giant killer which you could have bought instead. After all not everyone needs the utmost detail and musicality in their stereo. Leave the Pioneer DVD-V7400 for those who do.
oandj
I agree with your comments. I have bought several of these as they show up. Some only cost me $60. People don't realize what they are.
I am still using Pioneer DV-58AV. Had it modified with
Balanced Digital Out, and Balanced 2 Channel Analog out.
Playback SACD/High Rez. DVD-Audio the Balanced Analog outs.
Playback CD the Balanced Digital out to external tubed DAC.
Play all three through tube Buffer. Never sounded better,
but the SACD/DVD-Audio definitely takes it up more than a few notches.
Hello Oandj
I am just curious what transports have you compared the Pioneer dv7400 against? What other transports have you used in the past because I am looking to replace my transport in the near future. I did a casual check on Ebay and I see a few listed for parts only and you mention the transport is rated for 37,000 hours which seems a little suspect on quality to me for a industrial product to have so many failures this early. A giant killer is a term thrown around alot about a few digital products as the next best thing. I hope this is one. Thanks..........

Chuckie
Bought one today for my wife (yeah right) as a DVD player for $32 with 7 day return.

Now I only need a DAC to go with it. I don't think she owns a DAC either. I better get looking.
Hello Chuckie,
To compare the DVD-V7400 to I've used several other CD and DVD players as well a Pioneer Laserdisc transport for comparison. All of them were sold off once the DVD-V7400 took over. We also currently have a Marantz UD5005 Blu Ray which I can use as a transport but I prefer the Pioneer.

You have to remember that the DVD-V7400 is commonly used as an industrial high-reliability DVD player. It will be installed in mobile setups that get moved to conventions, shows, or displays. Failure will of course come if one has been dropped or subjected to an otherwise torturous environment.

For those of you buying these second hand remember that you will NEED either a remote control and a video display or some other method of controlling the transport. We use the video display on our Fosgate FAP-T1 but if that was not an option then we would use an external video monitor. Take time to read the manual because there are several key features and capabilities that you may not know about until you read the manual.
Oandj, I've been looking for a replacement for my Oppo 980H that I could afford and lucky me (so rare) I saw your post. After considering all the responses and comments I went to eBay and lucky me (again!) found a like new one for $129. plus S&H. Should arrive in a week or so.I'll update once it's up and running and I've given a listen. Oh boy!

Marvin
Hi all, would owners of the V7400 comment on the sound difference if any between analog and digital out.
The analog out on this machine is totally unusable. It is a mono output meant to be used with a small video monitor. The digital output is the only one to be used. It's a coaxial output and get a nice digital cable to enjoy the full effect.
I received my V7400 this am. The power is now back on here in L. A. and I've just connected the unit via the Lt. and Rt. analog outputs. Their is also a mono and a digital out. I connected the video to setup the unit and found that you can display the use time. The unit is BRAND NEW! It measures about 8.25"w x 16"d x 4.5"h. It will also play 24/96 discs and record DVD. I'll be using it as a transport though. So at this point I'm going to let it do some transporting. I'll be back in a week or so-see ya.

Marvin
I'm glad that you are as impressed with the V7400 as I am. I should have specified that the analog output is not "unusable" as in it won't work but rather it's not usable for high quality sound compared to just using this machine as a transport. Let us know what you think of the performance and the sound of this unit.
After approximately 120 hrs of burn-in I can say I made a great decision to buy this unit on eBay.My timing was perfect in reading the OP and going to eBay where I found a brand new unit and went for it. It has replaced my Oppo 980H for 2 ch playback. The Oppo will do duty as a SACD/5.1 HDMI source.
Presently I'm running the Pioneer V7400 via Morrow MA1 ic's. Next month I should have enough pennies saved to purchase a MF V-DAC MK2 and Black Cat Veloce coaxal cable.
The first thing I noticed on playing the Pioneer the first time was the soundstage was huge. Bigger, wider deeper and taller. Playing the Mercury Living Presence cd of Howard Hanson's "The Composer and His Orchestra" the instruments were more defined as to location, separation and clarity giving me more musical music. I also played a number of test tones and speaker set-up files resulting in my adjusting the speaker toe-in several degrees which resulted in even more focus to the music. Jazz music really love my Def Tech Mythos STS speakers or the other way round. Of all the kinds of music I play Jazz seem the most real. This is were I can feel the emotion from the music.
As to vocal music I know longer here the sibilance in Diana Krall's voice. Her and Frank Sinatra sound so much more real, clear, clean and present.
Oh, and I'm hearing more low level detail and dynamics. This probably is contributed by the Morrow MA1 ic's that just went over 500 hrs burn-in time.
So, I'm happy with my decision and looking forwards to the next step. The music just keeps getting better and better. What would we do if there were no audio forums?

Best regards,
Marvin

Keep going forwards.
I have a regular Oppo dvd player used for transport and I've been thinking if it's perhaps a weaker link in my system. I might compare it to this Pioneer and see what happens. It would be nice to know you don't have to spend crazy money to get a good transport.
Pixelphoto I'm so happy that you are enjoying the DVD-V7400! I've found myself re-discovering my CD collection and going back to listen to CDs I purchased a decade ago. The DVD-V7400 is such a great machine and you'll find that with a good DAC it simply comes alive. I'll often get spooked at how good this transport is at conveying the soul and essence of music.
Yes the DVD-V7400 has been discontinued just like many other great transports. Fortunately there were thousands of them made and they are easy to find on ebay. If you dig deep enough you can find new-in-box ones but that's not necessary. The transport is so heavily overbuilt that even a mildly used one still has tens of thousands of hours left. Remember this is a professional/industrial grade machine designed for heavy usage. Just because you find a used one it doesn't mean it is worn out.
I just got one of these and do have the remote, i got it used and just plugged it into as my transport and its great, but I'm wondering if I am missing anything because I didn't set it up? I don't have the manual. I got it from a trusted high end audio dealer. Thoughts? thanks!
Tim, setting it up just requires connecting the video output to a monitor and going through the available menu options to set them correctly for your application. Can't find a free manual online for you, the only one I found was being sold for $70! Not sure if you'll experience any improvement with the digital output after going through the setup, but you have nothing to lose but a few minutes to try it. Best of luck!
Looking at some images of the back panel online, it appears to only have a single RCA coaxial digital output.
I am going to pickup one of these and compare it to my JVC XL-Z1050TN that I use as a transport into my Angstrom 200 DAC.
Hi all - old thread I know but I just got a v7400 without the remote. Set up a universal remote which is working and hooked up to my TV. Also got the manual but still can't figure out specifically how to get the unit to play a cd - it just flashes green continuously but won't go to cd mode which I believe is supposed to flash orange. Went into the menu and set up 96khz to 48khz? No luck. I wonder if the universal I'm using has enough functions to access the audio function? Any help would be appreciated.