Need some guidance on DVD purchase.
Don't want to really spend the big $ for the Denon 5900, but am interested in DVI like the new Samsung. Any reviews to look at or shootouts with DVI?

There are not many players available yet with DVI outputs. The ones that I've seen discussed the most (aside from the Denon DVD-5900) are the Samsung HD931 and the Bravo D1. I'm not even sure if there are any others out there to choose from currently; a brief google search on dvi DVD players didn't turn up any beyond these three. I did find a review from TechTV comparing the Samsung and Bravo players; they preferred the Bravo. I also came across a decent review of the Bravo at Projector Central and another at ExtremeTech .

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

[This message has been edited by gonk (edited February 11, 2004).]

if you visit www.hometheaterhifi.com there is a dvd benchmark/shootout section. they definitely prefer denons. i think i am going to skip dvi and wait for hd-dvd (i have seen the samsung and as expected it is junk), in the meantime i will be buying the denon dvd910 (on a trial basis). trial because i am not convinced that a $300 player is going be as good as what i have now in terms of settings, audio, build, etc. right now i have the pioneer elite dv-37, which is the bottom of the barrel these days and has the C.U.E. problem which now that i know what it is called, drives me CRAZY. well at least crazier. i have not ever seen any "box" that upsamples video and does an amazing job of it, most are not even noticeable. I WOULD NEVER BUY ANY SAMSUNG PRODUCT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[This message has been edited by curegeorg (edited February 12, 2004).]

Tanx guys- I already was familiar with those articles. I wonder how long b4 the Denon or Pioneer elite prices start to tank?

Not anytime soon, I suspect. The Denon 5900 is at the top of a range of Denon universal players that range in price from $600 to $2000, and all of those players will likely stay at their current price points for their entire production runs. Pioneer's Elite line is always going to be priced higher than the regular Pioneer stuff, as well. You may see DVI show up in more of next year's models, but it will likely be a year or two before good DVI-equipped players appear at an affordable price.

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

The Samsung HD931 has a video issue. Samsung mistakenly used PC-Video standards (0-255) on their DVI interface instead of TV video standards (16-235). The result is some crushed blacks and clipped whites. It also stretches all 4x3 content to 16x9 *unless* you set it to output at 480p instead of 720p/1080i. The Bravo D1 doesn't have these issues. The HD931's component output is supposed to be solid, complete with Faroudja deinterlacing.

What the Bravo D1 has are numerous build issues. Sometimes when you eject a disc, the tray will close right back up on you again. If you're trying to load or remove a DVD, it could get caught. Sometimes it won't load a DVD properly and the sound will get all choppy and you'll see no video. So, gotta eject the disc, wipe it clean, maybe blow some air into the unit to dislodge dust, say 7 Hail Marys and try again. The component output is not to be used, it's just that bad. This player was designed with DVI only in mind.

I have the Bravo. I'll be taking my issues to them under warranty at about the time the Bravo D2 and D3 come to market and asking for an exchange credit towards the D3. The D2 is supposed to come to market within the next couple of months. Basically it'll be a D1, but *fixed.* The D3 will be a D1, but with Windows Media 9 HD capability. I think it's due out early summer.

Samsung will be coming out with two new units as well later in the year, though I don't remember their model #s. Hopefully they'll have their issues fixed too.

The price points for these units are low enough that I *still* want to get the Pioneer 59AVI for DVD-A/SACD playback-ability. That's my dream DVD player purchase du jour.

Rick