Receiver Ideas....

[Gov]

Glad you able to make a decision and it sounds like a good one!! The Denon feature pack is free now? What happened to the $100?

 

[Chopin_Guy]

The feature pack is now free for anyone purchasing a new unit....Denon is running this promotion off of their website...essentially anyone purchasing a unit between September 1 and December 31, 2008 can get the feature pack free. All you have to do from what I saw is register the serial number through them on their website and I assume they send it to you on a usb stick or something....I hope you don't have to bring it somewhere or send it to them....

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

how bout that TX/OU game today!

Who cares about college unprofessional school football, anyway?

 

[Gov]

The feature pack is now free for anyone purchasing a new unit....Denon is running this promotion off of their website...essentially anyone purchasing a unit between September 1 and December 31, 2008 can get the feature pack free. All you have to do from what I saw is register the serial number through them on their website and I assume they send it to you on a usb stick or something....I hope you don't have to bring it somewhere or send it to them....

Very nice! Tempting

 

[Gov]

Although I have read over on AVS that some people have been having trouble after the upgrade. I wonder if its buggy or something.

 

[Chopin_Guy]

Thanks for the heads up...I will definitely look into that before installing the package then...as I don't even know how beneficial these new Audyssey things will really be...have yet to hear anything about them....

 

[Gov]

Thanks for the heads up...I will definitely look into that before installing the package then...as I don't even know how beneficial these new Audyssey things will really be...have yet to hear anything about them....

There is a big thread on it over at AVS. Although, I always take what I hear over there with a grain
I like the truthful down to earth answers I get here.

 

[armaraas]

Testing out a new AVR with Norah Jones is similar to watching the Vikings and call it football!.....

Well that was a fun figure skating match without ice skates yesterday...
Once everything is setup tonight I'll be sure to start off with a little Type O Negative to balance everything out...

So can anyone tell me off hand what setting I may have missed that is keeping me matrixing 5.1 DD to 7.1 DD EX? I assumed my rear surrounds are fine since I changed the amp to 7.1 from Zone 2, but maybe I have to enable them somewhere else too (I admit I haven't gone through too much of the manual yet).

 

[Chopin_Guy]

OK so another question the accompany my 3808 which will be arriving on FRIDAY!!!! I was wondering about 7.1 audio...specifically I know that some of the Blu-ray titles that havethe high-def audio codecs are indeed in 7.1. However, I use a PS3 which decodes these codes internally....will it pass a full 7.1 channels of audio to the 3808??? And if so how does the receiver recognize it and then translate that signal to the amplification...

Or is the only way to receive the 7.1 accurately to have a player that will bitstream??? I ask all these questions as I still have some money left over from this round of upgrades and there are some good deals on matching Polk surrounds for my system on Ebay and thought maybe it would be worth going 7.1....not sure. As always your responses are most appreciated....

 

[ParadigmDawg]

Yes the PS3 will do 7.1 through PCM.

If you have the proper set up and room, you will benefit from 7.1 vs. 5.1.

 

[Chopin_Guy]

Thanks Paradigm...I decided to go with a better universal player to replace my dvd-757 and dcm-280....However, maybe I will be lucky enough to get a set of surrounds around the holidays.... As for now....I am DONE spending money for quite some time.... Thank you guys again!!!

 

[jostenmeat]

Or is the only way to receive the 7.1 accurately to have a player that will bitstream??? I ask all these questions as I still have some money left over from this round of upgrades and there are some good deals on matching Polk surrounds for my system on Ebay and thought maybe it would be worth going 7.1....not sure. As always your responses are most appreciated....

If you have at least a few/several feet behind the listeners, then yes it will be nice IMO. However, when you place the rears behind you, Id put the surrounds at 90 degrees. If 5.1 only, then place the surrounds at a more obtuse angle, say 110 degrees, so that they can straddle the side + rear areas. Also, even with your musical training, I'd still recommend a radio shack SPL meter. By the time you are an old man, it may pay itself off multiple times over... if you maintain the addiction. Test tones, calibration discs, etc. But simply for now, it'll help you level match. Ears are fine, but the meter is handy.

DOH, I missed your last post when replying. DOH. Why a better universal? Do you really need one? cheers

 

[Chopin_Guy]

Well, I got a fantastic deal on a brand new Denon DVD-3910 for $279 and I jumped all over it....it was brand new from an authorized dealer and I could not turn that down....yes I watch mostly blu-ray now....but this will be nice for my DVD's and especially for all my audio listening....

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Well, I got a fantastic deal on a brand new Denon DVD-3910 for $279 and I jumped all over it....it was brand new from an authorized dealer and I could not turn that down....yes I watch mostly blu-ray now....but this will be nice for my DVD's and especially for all my audio listening....

Awesome!

Turning into a Denon kind of guy, are we?

Yeah, I use my Denon BD player just for BD, but I still use my DVD-5910 for everything else (DVD, DVD-A, SACD, CD).

Congrats again!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

DVD-3910 vs AVR-3808

Here is the interesting question.

The DVD-3910 has the Burr-Brown DAC PCM-1796 for Audio and the Silicon Optix Realta for Video, which are also used in the Denon AVR-5308CI and AVP-A1HDCI.

Technically speaking, these are "higher-end" than what's in the AVR-3808CI. We probably can't tell the difference, but it's more of an interesting thought.

So the question is, will you use the Audio DACs & Video Processor in the DVD-3910 or the AVR-3808CI when you are watching SD DVD and listening to SACD/DVD-A/DTS-CD?

 

[Chopin_Guy]

Acu,

I do not know the specific specs on the 3910 actually....but I do know it does not have the Realta chip....that is the current model the 3930ci. The 3910 is the previous generation to the 3930ci....This is part of the reason that I got a such a steal on a $1500....You can't even get a refurb 3930ci for $279...they are $700 still. Which is why I went with this as it is new and with warranty...

Now as for your question I haven't decided what I want to do. I was thinking of running this unit directly into my tv with HDMI...as it does not pass audio via HDMI....at least not SACD and DVD-A. So seeing as how I was going to have to use an optical connection on that anyway....I figured I would direct line it via to my display with HDMI...and then just assign an optical input on the AVR for movie audio and music listening....

What do you think....and if you check the specs and could give me a recommendation that would be most appreciated....thanks man!!!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Acu,

I do not know the specific specs on the 3910 actually....but I do know it does not have the Realta chip....that is the current model the 3930ci. The 3910 is the previous generation to the 3930ci....This is part of the reason that I got a such a steal on a $1500....You can't even get a refurb 3930ci for $279...they are $700 still. Which is why I went with this as it is new and with warranty...

Now as for your question I haven't decided what I want to do. I was thinking of running this unit directly into my tv with HDMI...as it does not pass audio via HDMI....at least not SACD and DVD-A. So seeing as how I was going to have to use an optical connection on that anyway....I figured I would direct line it via to my display with HDMI...and then just assign an optical input on the AVR for movie audio and music listening....

What do you think....and if you check the specs and could give me a recommendation that would be most appreciated....thanks man!!!

Okay, the DVD-3910 has the Burr-Brown PCM-1796, Faroudja Video Chip, HDMI 1.1, D-Link3, and the AVR-3808CI has the Burr-Brown PCM-1791, Faroudja Video Chip, HDMI-1.3, and D-Link3.

The PCM-1796 is "higher-end" than the PCM-1791, although we most likely won't hear any difference at all.

To get DSD-Direct SACD, you will need to either use the 5.1 Analog Output or just 1 D-Link Cable.

For DVD-A, you could use either HDMI-1.1 or D-Link3 or Analog 5.1.

You cannot get DVD-A or SACD DSD-Direct via Optical or Coaxial.

If you just HDMI-1.1, you can still get SACD 5.1, but the SACD will not be DSD-Direct, which I think will be just fine.

So, if you are really hardcore, then use the D-Link cable (or Analog 5.1) for SACD & use the HDMI for Video and DVD-A/DD/DTS sound. Otherwise, just one HDMI cable for EVERYTHING, which I think will be just peachy.

 

[Chopin_Guy]

Thanks for that detailed reply....

If I were to use the Denon Link....would I have make setting changes just use it or would it automatically recognize it??

If I do have tomake setting changes then I will most definately just use HDMI to the receiver....Anyway you cut it this is a MUCH better player than my current DVD-757 and DCM-280....and now I cut down to one unit....

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Thanks for that detailed reply....

If I were to use the Denon Link....would I have make setting changes just use it or would it automatically recognize it??

If I do have tomake setting changes then I will most definately just use HDMI to the receiver....Anyway you cut it this is a MUCH better player than my current DVD-757 and DCM-280....and now I cut down to one unit....

Yeah, to use Denon Link, you will have to manually turn the Denon Link funtion to ON, which I believe turns the HDMI audio funtion OFF. Then you would have to turn the D-Link to OFF if you want to use HDMI. Inconvenient indeed.

Thus, you would have to make setting changes each time to want to use HDMI and D-Link.

Yeah, I would just use a SINGLE HDMI cable and be done with it!

Yeah, getting a $1,500 Universal player for < $300 is a great bargain.

 

[Chopin_Guy]

Ok so I finally had the chance to set-up the new 3808 this morning after if actually getting here EARLY on Thursday....not something that happens often with UPS. I just finished watching Transformers on blu-ray through my PS3 and it was fantastic....this little puppy certainly has plenty of power and sounds great. And the GUI was such a blessing when setting up the unit and renaming functions.....although I had gotten used to the old 'dos' style on-screen from my avr-987...

Now my question is I selected the dolby tru-hd 5.1 when watching Transformers...I set the audio to HDMI and PCM in the audio setting for the PS3....while watching the movie the display of the 3808 read out 'multi ch. in'---is this correct for what I should be seeing. I know it won't show tru-hd since the console is doing the decoding....thank for the help....