Underwood Mod to Denon 5900

I had the complete mod done on a 5900 that I purchased from them at the same time. Cost was appox 4K. I am using the unit with a Krell 7.1 processor along with a SimTitan 7 channel amp. This has been the best improvement that I have made to my system that I notice everytime I play my system. I would put the difference almost as much as upgrading my speakers from Dynaudio 3.3 to the new C-4's. I did not hear this much difference from upgrading my processor or my amp. My old dvd player was a Denon 4800 changer which I still am using for the 5 disc capability but if I want to get serious the 5900 is the choice. Wally at Underwoods treated me fair and right he also did what he said. Unusal sometimes today? Go for the complete mod including clock if you can afford it. Not a review or ad hype for a Dealer it is just that I am completely satisfied.

Ken

Yes, I have it and am really impressed. IMO, It easily competes with any player in its price range. In particular, the redbook performance is astonishing. I find the bass extension and low end to be better than most players. The dynamics and sound staging are excellent with lots of detail. The highs are crisp and clean without being bright. The noise floor is very low. Imaging is accurate. I have preferred the Underwood Denon on redbook to several other more expensive players I've had in my system, i.e. Audio Aero Capitole MKII, Burmester 001, Sim Audio Moon Eclipse, and Cary 306/200. I'm not as impressed with the component video perfomance although I have not taken advantage of the activated DVI. I'm sure that will throw it over the top! I love its performance with DTS surround sound 5.1 recording. Obviously, that means movie soundtracks are top notch! Its the best I've heard. SACD is very good depending on the recording (!). I have not tried the DVD-A. I have also not taken advantage of the SACD surround aspects.

I would conclude that if you are looking for an excellent all around universal player with an emphasis on redbook 2- channel audio, this is the one to get and price wise, compared to the Linn, the Esoteric and the Goldmund, its a steal!

Brundal, Haven't spoken to Underwood yet; thought I'd wait for some feedback on the product first. As you can see from the other posts, sounds very positive.

Dogguy, Thanks for the splendid review. I just ordered a Cary 8 processor, hence the hunt for a universal transport.

Twopippis, Great to hear that it does such a good job on redbook CDs as I have a large collection and i'm about a 75% stereo/25% video user. I'm a little surprised about the video preformance, as that was touted as a strength.
Does anyone else have a comment on the video aspect?

Does anyone have any concerns about a 90 day warranty on a 3+K product?

My video comparison is slightly jaded in that my reference has always been the Camelot Roundtable MKII which retails for $5k. Its video performance is hard to beat and often wins shootouts. However, the redbook on the Camelot is greatly lacking IMO so it really becomes a DVD only player. As I said, Underwood told me up front that the only upgrade affecting component video would be the power supply. They put their money into upgrading the DVI aspect of the video which I have not utilized.

Their is alot of talk on the Denon 2900 mod performed by
Exemplar Audio.Go to digital forum and look for the title:
Denon 2900 Mods