To Mod Denon DVD-5900 or not?

Thanks to all who responded, I appreciate the honest feedback so I can make a better decision.

John(Jmcgrogan2),
Sounds like the safer way would be to look for already used modified players or higherend stock players. My question is, if you go with the higherend stock units, where do I start? What level retail should I be looking at to compete favorably with modded Denons? Would for an example, a used modded Denon 3910/5900/5910 compete with stock units costing in the retail $5k-$7K, or would I have to look higher or lower to get an equal increase in performance? You know what I mean? Where do I draw the line to start? I am assuming that the modded Denons would beat the stock players ranging from $3k - $5k, or am I wrong to assume that? This is where it gets confusing and too many choices, if i can weed out most and isolate a shorter list of possible candidates, that would help. To clarify, if I spent (hypothetically) $2,500 on a used stock unit that costs in the $5k -$7k msrp, would that same $2,500 amount spent on a used modded Denon give me better performance? Or would that stock player be on the same level if not better than the used modded Denon? Or do I have to look at used stock units costing more in msrp say from $7k-10k to have an equivalent level of performance as the used modded Denon?

cuttingedge168@hotmail.com, if indeed that is your real name, do you mind if I call you ce168@h.c for short?

I think I know what you're asking. Since I currently own two highly modded players, I guess I would recommend you look for a used modded player. I think the modded units represent a good value. To use your example, I just bought a modded cd player for $2600. It is a unit that listed for $3500 in stock form and had $3600 worth of modifications. IMHO, I would have had to spend over $4-5K on a used $8-10K stock player to equal or top it. Does that make sense? Don't get me wrong, I do think that modded units perform very well, at least the mods that I've heard. Better than stock units and better than many more expensive units. Stock units have other associated costs that drive up their list price, as Chuck states.

As Mike says, since I know how much a mod adds sonically, and how much it depreciates on the used market, I spend my money on used modified units. To get a $3000 worth of mods for $500 is too good to pass up.

That being said, I'd never be the one to originally purchase the mod. If you plan on keeping your unit for a very long time, this may be a worthwhile investment. However, I know myself, not much lasts longer than 2 years in my system. I'd take a beating if I was only getting back 20-25 cents on the investment dollar. Then again, it might force me to keep gear longer.....

FWIW ce168@h.c, why are you only interested in modded Denon's? There are many modded Esoteric's, Marantz's, Sony's and others out there too. One word of warning, make sure it is a reputable modifier, someone who can repair the unit if there are any problems, since most mods will void any factory warranty and some manufacturers have balked at even repairing a modded unit. Perhaps that's one reason that re-sale on a modded unit is so tough.

John

John(Jmcgrogan2),

Can you email me, or what's your email address? I would like to ask you some stuff offline.

Thanks,
Dan

Second the comment concerning only purchasing a modded unit from a reputable modder; this is an absolute must do. Also agree that there are many other models and manufacturers to chose from.

Chuck

I went the modification route once and I would not do it again. The sound of the modified player was better in terms of individual audiophile parameters that so many of us talk about but in the end the overall sound was less musical to my ears and I didn't like it. If it had been a different player or a different modification company maybe I would have been extremely happy but you don't know what you are going to get and once you get it back its yours. I don't think any of these modification guys are going to return your player back to its original condition and return your money if you don't like what they did to it.