Sound Quality, Easy to use, HDCD, PRice

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Well....I don't know why people are complaing about the noise of the player when it's changing disc, because I don't even pay attention to that. Its when the music play when this player gets my full attention. The sound quality is absolutly amazing, especially playing HDCD....give this player five please....

Similar Products Used:

yamaha, sony

Value, quick CD exchange, DAC, sound

No dimmer, Denon's remote sign can't be copie by my Yamaha "learning" remote, remote can't turn off power, construction (but at price - good)

You'll like this CD player! I was fairly happy playing CDs in my DVD player (Pioneer DV-606D) but still felt I needed a dedicated CD player. My spending cap was $400 dollars and after reading reviews from this site, I narrowed the field down to two players: the Yamaha CDC-775 and the Denon DCM-370. With the Denon, I feel I've made the best choice.

Here's my audio equipment:
Yamaha DSP-A1 (Intregrated Amp)
Pioneer DV-606D (DVD Player)
Denon DCM-370 (CD Player)
Klipsch Heresey IIs-1997 model(mains)
Klipsch KSF-C5 (center)
Klipsch KSW-12 (sub)
Infinity SM-65 (rears)
Monster interconnectors

Hooking this unit up both analog and coax digital out is a must. When using the Denon's DAC, a lot of music seems warmer and the highs aren't as forward. But I get more kick and clarity in my bass and a better front stage presence when going digital out to my Int. Amp. Sorry, haven't had a change to listen to HDCD recordings yet; will update this review when I do.

For the price I paid, the construction seems good and should last quite a while. The exchanger operates quieter and quicker that units I've had in the past.

So, if you want a good sounding player at a budget price, I strongly recommend you put this player on your list of possible choices. There's better out there but starting at $400 and better.

Happy Listening!

Similar Products Used:

JVC, Pioneer

Good DAC, built well, Detail

Remote doesn't turn the power off

Much better than my old Technics cd player, this one makes the music sound so much better. I compared it to my Sony DVD player and there were fairly close, but the Denon came out on top. HDCD decoding is a nice feature to have but I am not sure how much I will use it. For 241 shipped to my door in under a week, I think this cd player is a steal. It is not as good as some of the Rotel cd players that cost $600 plus, but unless you really need to hear that slight difference in detail I would not suggest spending that much more money. This is a nice component to have if you want to get the most out of a mid-priced system.

My System
B&W 601S2 Mains
B&W CC6S2 Center
Denon AVR2800
Sony DVP530D
JVC 32 Inch D-Series
Denon DCM 370
Monster Cable

Similar Products Used:

Old Technics cd player, Sony DVP-530D, Rotel Line

incredible HDCD performance considering the price. this unit does not polish a turd in a high end system!!!

first production run units (like mine) are extremely static sensitive!!!

this player rocks.
o.k., i know thats not really something that you'd expect to hear from an audiophile, but this is my first 'upper mid-fi' player that i've had the priveledge of using.
understant that i am a die-hard vinyl fan with a medium size collection of CDs (about 600), so i obviously needed something a little better than the piece of crap sony changer that my wife brought in when we got married (4 yrs ago).
i am not going to say that this unit trounces vinyl, but it does retrieve a hell of a lot of info off the disc!
HDCD is incredible, very 'vinyl like'- that is there is more naturalness to CDs w/HDCD that those without.
bottom end is very taught and punchy. systems with smaller speaker or a light tonal balance will benefit from this units bottom end- my neighbour actually thought i got new speakers!
static sensitivity on first run units was a problem. when i switch out components, the door on the unit won't open, or if it does, it won't acknowledge that is a disc in the tray.
unpluging the unit for ten minute sorts it out.
this is the only reason i'm giving it four stars. if it didn't have this porblem, i'd give it five just because you can get it so damn cheap!!!!
remarkable...

Similar Products Used:

Sony, Rotel, NAD, Anthem (believe it or not!), Linn (too expensive at the time)

A word on the sometimes reported coldness associated with these sanely priced HDCD components: HDCD is paired with 8 times oversampling, which decreases errors and generally increases detail, transparency, and imaging -- exactly what the rest of HDCD tries to do, hint, hint. Anyway, the only way to get rid of the coldness is to either allow users to turn it off when needed (which is not an option here), or to include dithering options. The only players I've seen with dithering options start at $5000. I personally only have a problem with this on a small number of my CD's, and even then, it's usually minor.

The other HDCD players in this price range are by Harman Kardon. They are the older, marked down FL 8550 and the brand new FL 8370. The Denon has better specs than either of these.

Excellent sound, it is probably the best performing 5 disk player in the $300 to $400 price range, HDCD decoding, Quality build.

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After listening to an extensive selection of HDCD's, standard CD's and several Chesky high resolution encoded CD's, I came to the conclusion the DCM-370 is the best player in the $400 price range. I also believe you will not get substantial improvement in sound by spending more.

I use the analog out via high quality monster interconnects to a Denon AVR 4800 receiver. The sound is warm, accurate, detailed and spacious. Highly recommended.

My equipment:

Denon DCM-370
Denon AVR-4800.....receiver
Nakamichi .........rear mono amp
PSB - Silveri's...fronts
PSB - Bronze......rears
PSB - C6..........center
Advent.............surround mono(THX-ES)
Velodyne...........sub
Pioneer............DVD
Hitachi............PTV

Similar Products Used:

Rotel, NAD

Warmth of the Burr Brown DAC's, HDCD decoding, Price.

Noisy transport, minor

Unfortunately with a blowout of my beloved Carver unit I was forced to begin looking for a replacement changer unit to complement my musical tastes. I was loaned a Yamaha CDC-775 from a friend. I played the Yamaha for quite a while and was actually going to purchase a new unit. I then was referred to the Denon by a local Hi-end audio store. I was skeptical of the Denon at first and proceeded to look up the 370 in these archives. As I read review after review I was amazed at the positive feedback associated with this player. I trudged off to the store to compare side by side the Yamaha and the Denon. After listening to some of my favorite jazz tracks off of a disc, I came to the following conclusions. The denon compared to the Yamaha on a conventional CD was significantly different. The Yamaha was brighter and much more hard edged compared to the Denon which was warmer and not fatiguing to listen to. I then compared the two units to each other using a HDCD formatted disc. I was blown away. The comparison was no contest in my estimation looking at both separation sonically and the imaging between the two units. The hundred plus dollar difference was a no brainer and helped make my decision that much easier. Denon I think you have made a huge impact in terms of value. You will not find a comparable sounding and quality deck in this pricerange and do not even mention a Harman Kardon as I think the quality is an afterthought in this line.

I then brought the deck home and hooked it up to my system:

Carver M1.5t amplifier
Carver CT-17 Preamplifier
Denon DCM-370 CD player
Dahlquist DQ-10 Speakers
Kef-Q90 Speakers
Velodyne Subwoofer

When I popped in the new Neil Young HDCD formatted disc and played it I was truly amazed and I think anyone who thinks that this is a gimmick should really investigate as I feel they will be favorably impressed. If you go on CDconnection.com you can sort through almost 1000 titles that are formatted in HDCD with more coming out every day. I would highly recommend this unit and Denon You have made me a convert.

Similar Products Used:

Carver sd/a 360, Yamaha CDC-775

excellent value, very good sound from the 20 bit DAC, HDCD may or may not be a good feature

none so far

The reviews below pretty much say it all concerning this unit. The 20 bit Burr Brown DAC sounds very good. I have the unit's analog output connected to the external input (no digital processing) of my Denon receiver until I decide which new format (SACD or DVD-A) to go with. I have heard HDCD encoded discs played through the Pacific Microsonics chip before and have never really been amazed by it. I use this player mostly as a transport because I like the sound of the receiver's DAC better than this unit's, but it is still an exceptional sounding player at it's price. I don't feel I have to treat this unit with kid gloves like the Harman Kardon, which I believe is also a good unit but it has too many mechanical problems. These players are now being auctioned on uBid and are going for $141-142, which is a good price even for a refurbished unit. The box that my unit came in said that the player may have a cosmetic defect, but I couldn't find it. The player is working flawlessly.

Similar Products Used:

JVC XL-115TN, Technics SL-PD5, Harman Kardon FL8350

HDCD definitely makes a difference; affordability; rugged solid construction; Denon reputation

Small one, but still one- mainly you cannot turn the player on or off from the remote. A remote should duplicate EVERY function on the player itself. I wish manufacturers would realize this already!

Out of curiosity, I borrowed this player from my best freind Joseph, whom I just got into higher or high end audio this past Christmas. This player is a total steal! It really does sound refined and warm, much like a tube player or a good LP setup. I would not have believed it myself until I gave it a critical listen on my reference sytem. The Burr-Brown DAC is good enough, and then some, to stand on its own without an external converter. The icing on the cake is the HDCD decoding, which sounds just superb in every way! Evident is improved imaging, air, detail, and warmth to the music. It almost sounds as good as SACD with revealing speakers! No kidding! I only have about 11 HDCD encoded discs myself (many CD's are encoded unbeknowst to the listener), but I am noticing that whereas only a few of my 'regular' CD's sound truly extraordinary soncially, ALL my HDCD's sound very reference like!!! The more revealing your speakers are, the more you WILL notice the sonic improvment of HDCD. HDCD is NOT a gimmick! And there are TONS more titles than SACD to boot. I cannot say enough great things about this player. It has satisfied me, and I am a very critical audiophile. A stellar product (5 'stellars' to be exact)!

My scintillating setup for this test (yes, i'm close to broke):

Magnepan 3.6R's
Krell pre and amplification
Cardas cabling end to end
Marantz SACD source

Similar Products Used:

Cambridge, Rotel, Adcom, Onkyo, Marantz

Very clean sound!!! Nice remote. Coax digital out.

No known weaknesses.

I just bought the Denon DCM-370 from shop4.com for $219. It was the best purchase I have ever made!! It has a very clean, pure sound. This CD player has playback quality that you would find in most $500 units. I am very impressed! The remote surprised me as well. Denon is known for their very cheap, poorly laid out, and just plain ugly remotes. This remote is very straight forward and looks great, I just wish it would operate my Denon reciever instead of the other way around. Unlike most of these reviews, I am pleased with the changer mechanism. It is very smooth and more quiet than other models I have tried like Sony ES and HK. It is a second or two slower, but definitely worth the wait when you hear the superior sound quality!! I recommend this CD player to everyone!!!!

Similar Products Used:

Sony.......HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA