Denon DCM-390 5 Disc CD Carousel w/ Built in HDCD Decoding

by Denon

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 16 x 17 x 5 inches ; 14 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 17 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
• ASIN: B000FPHJ0E
• Item model number: DCM-390
• Batteries: 2 AA batteries required.
• Average Customer Review: 1.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #50 in Electronics > Home Audio & Theater > Stereo Components > CD Players & Recorders > CD Players

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Enjoy continuous play from your CD collection as well as CD-R/RWs burned with MP3 and WMA files with the Denon DCM-390 5-disc CD changer. It also provides encoding for HDCDs, the newest audio playback format that provides pristine sound reproduction. The carousel changer's play exchange feature lets you swap up to 4 discs while a fifth is playing, and you'll only hear the music, thanks to Denon's quiet changer mechanism.

The DCM-390 features a Multilevel Noise Shaping DAC, which removes the adverse effects of jitter and, because it is built into the output amp, provides a clean analog output with suppressed high-frequency interference can be directly obtained. The 8x oversampling digital filter makes possible an extraordinary degree of attenuation and reduces frequency irregularities in the audio range to an absolute minimum.

Ensuring top-flight sound regardless of the source disc, the DCM-390 features a multilevel noise-shaping digital-to-analog converter. Multilevel modulation removes the adverse effects of jitter. And because the feature is built into the player's output amp, the player directly obtains a clean analog output with suppressed high-frequency interference.

You can customize a song sequence with 32-track programming, which lets you create a a custom music mix from the remote control. Program any combination of tracks from the 5 discs. Three-mode random playback includes full random, program random, and disc sequential random modes. The display shows total remaining time on the disc, elapsed track time, and remaining track time. Four-mode repeat play loops 1 track, 1 disc, all 5 discs, or a programmed sequence.

When this changer is connected to an amplifier or receiver that supports the Remote Control IN/OUT feature, you can operate the DCM-390 via the remote sensor on the amplifier or receiver, which is handy for controlling the player from another room. It offers the both coaxial and optical digital audio outputs, a headphone jack on the front of the unit, and RS-232C terminal.

Tech Talk
The HDCD (High Density Compatible Digital) audio CD format is encoded with 20 bits of information instead of the 16 bits found on standard CDs. A player or receiver with an HDCD decoder chip is required to achieve the true sound of an HDCD disc, but it can be played on a standard CD or DVD player (minus the enhancement). Additionally, because an HDCD decoder chip includes a high-precision digital filter, HDCD-equipped players help to improve audio quality for even traditionally recorded CDs and DVDs.

What's in the Box
5-disc CD changer, remote control (with batteries), printed operating instructions

Product Description

Denon DCM-390 5 Disc CD Carousel with Built-in HDCD Decoding

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great sound but unreliable operation, November 19, 2008

By 

songstreet (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Denon DCM-390 5 Disc CD Carousel w/ Built in HDCD Decoding (Electronics)

I've had 3 of these machines over the past couple of years. The first one, bought brand new, sounded great. After a few months, it started acting up - would not read discs at all or would skip, etc. Then I began to clean it regularly using a lens cleaner. That helped, but about a week after the each cleaning the machine would once again begin to function defectively.

After about 6 months, the tray (which is all plastic and not very substantial) would simply not open at times for no apparent reason. Turning the player off and back on helped alleviate this situation for a while. But eventually the tray just would not open at all. The machine was history.

I phoned Denon at the number on its website, but the phone went unanswered. It was a regular weekday so I was pretty amazed. The phone rang and rang - no voicemail, no machine...? This is supposed to be a high tech audio company, after all. Of course I tried a few more calls over the following couple of weeks, but always got the same result - A phone that rang and rang with no answer whatsoever. Since no one answered the phone, I assumed that if I sent the unit to Denon for repair no one would open the box.

Well, because the DCM-390 sounded so good - big, three dimensional soundstage; excellent detail and timbral balance - I bought another. This one was refurbished. It too sounded great, and worked flawlessly for about 8 months or so. Then it began to skip. I cleaned the lens and the machine worked fine - for about a week. Then it began skipping again.

I found myself cleaning the lens once a week - and also spraying the back of the tray (into the machine) with compressed air. This really helped, but was too much maintenance as far as I was concerned.

One day, after about a year or so, I was listening and suddenly the sound became distorted. Cleaned the lens; it helped somewhat but the distortion remained. Long story short - the machine had given up the ghost. Distorted sound regardless of the CD. Soon the machine ceased to read any CD at all. Denon DCM-390 (number two) was history.

Denon DCM-390 (number three) - also refurbished - was defective right out of the box. It emitted a horrendous grinding noise while playing any CD. I took the machine apart in an attempt to fix it, but the grinding noise appeared to be coming from the play motor itself. I lubed the motor and did some other work on it, but it soon became clear that this machine was history as well. Number three went into the trash.

When and if any Denon DCM-390 will operate properly is apparently a very dicey proposition, based on my experience. I won't be buying another.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Simply TERRIBLE, and I've gone through TWO of them., October 19, 2008

By 

D. Beck (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Denon DCM-390 5 Disc CD Carousel w/ Built in HDCD Decoding (Electronics)

FEATURES:

Deceptive "Denon" Name. Not your father's Denon, let me assure you.

Weight. If it were any lighter it would be made of balsa wood.

Remote Control. The remote does not light up when used and does not have a power on/off button.

5-CD carousel, reads multiple formats, digital output: I have been unable to verify if these features exist because I haven't owned a Denon DCM-390 that works, and I've been through two of them.

EXPERIENCE:
I bought the Denon DCM-390 because it offered a lot of decoding features (mp3, wma, wav, HDCD decoding) and, well, it's a Denon. My last Denon CD player lasted over 20 years.

The DCM-390 didn't work out of the box. It would only sporadically read CD's -- and I'm talking about REAL CD's purchased from Amazon, not discs I burned on my computer. The problem was incredibly aggravating because it was nearly impossible to get the carousel to stop spinning as it searched through all the CDs, unable to read any of them.

So I received a second CD player. This one was worse -- it would lift a CD out of the carousel and never return it. Tapping and jostling the player didn't help. In fact, it made the problem worse because the CD dropped while the carousel drawer was out. When I pushed the button to close the drawer, CRUNCH! There went my CD -- eaten. No way to get it out, no way to either close or open the carousel.

Support from Denon? NON-EXISTANT, as others have pointed out in their reviews.

CONCLUSION: Denon is not the company it once was. The DCM-390 is light-weight, poorly manufactured, and unsupported by Denon. I wouldn't recommend buying this product for any price -- I wouldn't even accept one for free, considering the damage it did to my CD's.

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A solid base for your Hi-End audio system, July 21, 2007

By 

Oleg Moskvin "scientist & photographer" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Denon DCM-390 5 Disc CD Carousel w/ Built in HDCD Decoding (Electronics)

The higher bit digital-to-analog conversion and the propriatory Denon signal processing really work here. The sound is bold, clear and natural at the same time. This device made me start to enjoy my collection of classical music CDs, as well as music in other genres. It revealed the potential o my AKG-240 monitor-class headphones as well. I recommend this player as a base for your future audiosystem if you want to upgrade from a general $200 stereo system. The good news is you don't need to spend a lot right away for other components to start enjoying the upgrade: believe it or not but simple plugging of this player to your existing system as an external signal source will make a noticeable difference! Yes, technically speaking, your $200 all-in-one system may have one or two orders of magnitude more harmonic distortions and you probably think it will ruine all the advantages of the clear signal from this player? Not at all! The right low-level signal processing will be immediately noticeable as much more clear sound with extended frequency range. And if you use the hi-end headphones (as my AKG mentioned above), the audiophile-class system will be already complete. I also added a $240 headphone amplifier from Xenos Audio Systems as a final touch. Also, if you think your demands for the audio quality does not fit into the modern MP3 world, this player is the answer: I never heard such fine MP3 conversion! So, if your music exists as MP3 files originally, DO NOT convert them on your computer! Burn a disc with MP3s and let this device reveal the full potential of your audio files. You will be surprised by the sound quality. The downside of this is inability of this player to browse file folders, so prepare to spend some time rearranging MP3 files to have all of them in the root folder of the disc, however your ears will thank you for the trouble.