Ladies and Gentlemen. The time has come to replace my Sony DVP-NS755V DVD player. The two that are in the running are, the Sony DVP-NS999ES, and the Denon DVD-2900. If you have opinions, or if you know of reviews that have been posted on the web they would be helpful in making the final decision. The prices are about the same. The Sony is an outstanding unit. I have seen it demoed in a number of stores, and in my buddy’s system. I have never seen the Denon, but it has the advantage of SACD and DVD-Audio, plus a great offer on financing. What’s a guy to do?

[This message has been edited by Oil Can (edited September 25, 2003).]

Have you looked at the Denon DVD-2200? I just noticed it on Denon's DVD player product page , and the feature list and price look very nice, but I haven't even heard of it until just now.

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

I too like the look of the 2200. My question is how it compares to the 2900. There are got to be some differences in quality. I would love to see a comparison done between the two.

If you're looking for commentary on the 2900, I would suggest the AVS forum. There are a ton of posts on there about that machine. Here's the catch: I haven't seen many posts there about audio quality as compared to a high cost, i.e. 999ES, SACD player. For that type of comparison, you may need to listen to both players yourself and decide.

From what reviews I've read, I think the video quality of the 2900 is just as good, if not superior, to the 999ES.

Good luck and please do share your findings.

I was on the Denon web page last week just lookin at the 2900. I have never owned a Denon product, anyone have any opinions as to the quality of their products, Consumer Reports doesn't rate them too high, (based on owners reporting mechanical and electrical problems)?

Well, the Sony got the nod. I had the Denon demoed at a local Tweeter store Sunday, and in the end I liked the Sony better. True it doesn't play DVD Audio, but I don't believe that will be a problem long term. The audio performance of the Denon was fine in all formats (CD, SACD, DVD Audio, Etc.), but the video looked strange to me. To my eye it was not as clear or, precise as the Sony in either interlaced, or progresive modes. Some of the video output looked like the pictures had been processed, but were left with a strange cast or, hue. I found this on a number of disks. This might be correctable, but I was not completely sure of this. I was assured that the display had been calibrated recently, so I factored that out of the equation. The Sony has a five year parts and labor warranty compared to the one year warranty for the Denon. The audio performance of the Sony was equal to the Denon in the formats that it supports with a slight edge in SACD output. The video performace was clearly a step up from the Denon. All things considered, for me, the Sony was the winner.

[This message has been edited by Oil Can (edited September 30, 2003).]

I was just at J and R here in NYC and they have the 999ES for $699.99

Man, if I only had some dough...

www.jandr.com

Oil Can, not sure if Tweeter's set up is the one you want to make this decision by. I was also assured that a widescreen tv was calibrated by them but its picture quality was in the toilet. I purchased the tv from another dealer and its picture is far superior to Tweeter's. Also, does anyone believe that these chain stores really take the time to calibrate tv's, they barely know what the equipment is capable of let alone know how to calibrate them. The Denon has an unbelievable amount of menus for setting up the video output, I find it hard to believe that a Tweeter salesperson would even know how to get into these menus let alone how they would interact with the tv's set up menus. I am glad you are happy with the Sony. I'm still on the fence, can't make a commitment yet though the Denon looks good, just not sure of its quality control.