Customer Reviews

Denon DVD-2910 Universal DVD/CD/SACD/DVD-Audio player with HDMI and DVI output Black

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'll reiterate the couple of previous comments made in earlier reviews -- the 2910 is well made, feels solid, and makes you want to watch all your DVDs again just to see how much they've improved. In 720p mode, even regular DVDs look great. If you put in a Superbit DVD, it looks amazing. It has HDMI and DVI outputs for fixed-pixel displays. If you don't have a fixed-pixel monitor, component output is available.

However, where the 2910 really shines is in the control you have over both the audio and video output. If you are using the Denon's 5.1 playback, you can set every aspect of your speaker system, from listening distance to size of the speakers to sub-woofer crossover point. If you are using a 5.1 receiver, you can disable these controls and not worry that they are interfering with your receiver's setting. In fact, if you are primarily using this player for it's audio features, you can disable the majority of its video features to ensure that no signal degradation occurs.

But if you are using the video features, you'll be delighted at the complete control you have over black levels, white levels, chroma delay, and the like. These work in conjunction with your monitor's settings, so you can achieve truly remarkable fidelity, and you can save up to 5 settings for easy recall. Like your movies a little more saturated, but your TV broadcast more muted? No problem whatsoever.

I was amazed at the picture improvement, especially in black levels, that I achieved when I recalibrated my Panasonic TH-50PHD7UY plasma monitor using the 2910's video controls. Especially in setting black levels, using just the monitor's controls again would feel like trying to play the piano one-handed; it can be done, but it has limits.

***One year update***

I am still quite happy with this DVD player, although new tech is already looming large over it and it's debatable whether its price has dropped adequately in response. Also, I found that with the HDMI connection, the image took on a magenta shift (and with HDMI being pure digital, you can't adjust the chroma). It wasn't overwhelming, but it was there. When I reverted to my component inputs I noticed it was still there, but with chroma control restored I was able to calibrate it out. Since I had not honestly been able to see a noticeable improvement with the HDMI, I went ahead and stuck with the component inputs.

Otherwise I am very happy with the sound and the picture, and at the one year mark I haven't had a peep of mechanical problems with it. Is it perfect? Probably not -- but at this price point I still maintain it is an outstanding value.

The new breed of HDMI/DVI players fall into 3 groups: first, the low-end players, typically under $250; second, the mid-tier entries that range from the mid-hundreds to about a thousand; and third, the top-line boxes that cost thousands.

The first group fits a niche but is cheaply made, and if that's your bag, go for it. However, the next group up makes a giant difference in reliability and quality. You can see it, you can feel it. The Denon fits into this group, and the quality of the picture using HDMI/DVI is quite remarkable. I am seeing things on my movies that I didn't realize were there, and almost every frame, I'm thinking "wow, that looks incredible." The last group is worth it to those that think its worth it (and it is), except that I believe all our DVDs will be somewhat obsolete in a year or two when a new HDTV-like DVD standard emerges, with new players and media.

For me, the 2910 is the perfect mid-range box: well-built, extremely good picture and very good sound, and at a price point where I will feel okay replacing it in a couple of years when the new standard comes out.

I purchased this unit a couple of weeks ago after returning two Yamaha DV-C6770 units that quit working. This unit costs twice as much, but the build quality and improved sound make it well worth the price. This unit plays DVD-audio, SACD and HDCD formats in addition to everything else. It is quick to load and play discs of any format. Compared to the Yamaha and an older Sony unit, the sound from the 2910 seems very warm and natural. Sound quality on DVD-audios and SACDs is amazing. Video quality is outstanding too. I have this connected to NAD T761 AV receiver and a Sony XBR TV.

I got this player for Christmas after buying a new rear-projection TV (Samsung 4674W). I spent an afternoon in the store trying players and the Denon was the lowest-priced player which didn't show weird artifacts in the picture like strange colors, flashing white lines, "snow" or "bugs" flying around in midtone areas of the picture, etc. The picture just blows away the "average" $100-$200 players I looked at. The unit seems well constructed, with a satisfying "clunk-click" when the door closes. Speed of operation is just average, though layer changes are fast (under 1/4 second most of the time.) Remote has discreet on/off switches which is great for universal remotes with macros. Highly recommended!

Have been using the Denon DVD 2910 now for 2 months and it's perfomance/value is terrific. As a pure CD player (using the "all off" mode) its performance is much better than my previous CAT CD player, which cost $1800--- sweeter highs, clean lows, and a full mid-range. And the DVD player out clases my previous Sony and JVC high end players, too. All in all, the 2910 does everything you could ask for in a DVD/Cd player that would cost less than $2k---and it cost less than my interconnect cables!!---what a great value.

Purchased my Denon From ovation.. 1st ones off the truck about 1 1/2 years ago.. THe display went out 2 months later... Sent it in..

Shipped it off.. Was gone for 7+ months. Display was fixed however now the TosLink Audio and 5.1 surround is missing high freqs..

THe tech support is VERY hard to get a hold off. If not existant.

DO NOT BUY A DENON IF YOU WANT SUPPORT.. honestly I will never buy a another "denon" product To much hassle.. Now the warranty is run out and I'm stuck with a broke audio player.. However The picture/playing/control is second to non. If I did not have any problems I would buy another one. But not now.. It's feature rich without a doubt just wish it did not have so many problems..

We recently installed a home theater and thought we'd save a little money my keeping our cheap DVD player that worked fine with a 27" TV. This cheap DVD player produced numerous annoying video artifacts. Tried the Denon 2910 and the difference was amazing! At least to this price point you really get what you pay for!

Denon DVD-2910 is a nice dvd player. Images are bright, detailed and colors pretty natural. Film sound is more than acceptable but when moving to 2 channels (CD or SACD) quality is not as good as I hoped. SACD sound is pretty poor when compared with multiformat cd players or dedicated sacd players.

When coming to other formats situation can get a little complicated. I have several mp3 cds made from my own cds, none of them is recognized by the DVD-2910s. I have recorded them with Nero, Roxio, iTunes, and nothing...no mp3 reproduction

I upgraded to get the best DVD player money could buy (under $1000 of course). One of the reasons I bought this was the ability to play other region DVDs with a little work and that it had HDMI output. I connected the player up to my 43" 1080P LCD and made sure everything was connected and configured correctly.

I was amazed to see that on one DVD the THX logo had a green tint to it. Not only that but the faces of people had this as well. It's hardly noticeable. Not only that but there was much more blockiness and pixelization in movies then on my other DVD players. I noticed this immediately and was majorly disappointed. I almost thought I had a defective unit at first. Sadly, I connect my older player and all was fixed. Back in the box and to the store it went. Yes, I did try changing the configuration with no luck.

I will admit that the sound quality is great. I was very impressed with it and definitely noticed the improvement over my older DVD player. The build quality is also extremely good. I loved the remote. It's near perfect. I can't believe people can actually complain about the remote!

This unit is very expensive. If you think it's a good deal for what you get, you're only lying. To me, if the picture quality isn't any better than my cheaper player, than why bother? The extras on this unit still don't make it worth the extra few hundred dollars.

Perhaps I had a defective unit and yours is fine. That's good. Just be sure to keep your box and receipt!

My Denon DVD-2910 quit playing 5.1 audio. Denon has no tech support available that works. The phone system does not allow a person to hold for a tech support person for more that a few minutes. The system asks you to speak louder and asks how you want to send the message. What message, I was never asked if I wanted to send a message. Over all Denon's tech support is unusable. Plan to spent long hours reviewing the manual and hopefully you can figure out things on your own. My question was not in the manual. My question is why did I go from 5.1 output to 2 channel output when I changed nothing? And how do I change it back to 5.1? When working correctly the Denon DVD-2910 is a 5-star dvd player but when things go wrong the tech support is a 0-star and the 2910 becomes a very frustrating block of plastic and wires.