Fast loading. Great picture and sound.

Not easy to set for correct audio transfer. For example, need to turn off progressive scanning for SACD's or surround does not kick in.

Had a fairly new Sony DVD player which never worked right, skipped and went dark in the middle of almost every DVD. This one plays DVD a and V, SACD's and has a great picture and sound quality, never skipped once and these are the same Rock concerts that Sony did not play well.

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Sony NS 725P Toshiba SD2800

Multiformats, awesome SACD and DVD performance. A killer product.

only average or better on the CD playback (compared to dedicated cd players in the $1,000 plus range), so I am just nitpicking.

SACD, DVD-A, CD, DVD-V plus other formats and for only $550? This is a bargain if I have ever seen such a thing. The DVD video is a huge upgrade over my aging RCA. The blacks were blacker, the colors were more vivid and the scenes exploded to life. SACD playback is why you would buy this player. Anyone that doesn't think that SACD kicks CD butt is not from this world. I have 2 SACD disks that I have just purchased. Playing the SACD side by side with the CD versions make you realize that CD was a step down from Analog whereas SACD is closing the gap with the superior analog. I have yet to try DVD-A, but will soon after the holidays. To sum up, we have a top notch DVD player, a great SACD player, an average or better CD player (its only minor weakness), a DVD-A player, and a player that plays a myriad of other formats for a bargain basement price. I hardily recommend this item.

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Rega Planet 2000 CD player Integra Krell Myryad NAD

Video Playback is excellent. SACD playback is excellent.

At it's price point, this unit has no weaknesses. However, the Owner's Manual is terrible.

I bought this unit as a replacement for my cheap Sony DVP-NS415, and I am very glad I did; the difference is incredible. The picture quality from the Marantz is much higher than the Sony, so much so that I discovered I had a defective Component Video cable. Because the video output on the Marantz was of much higher quality, I was able to see how the defective cable had been distorting the picture. The Sony showed no difference at all between Composite, S-Video, and Component Video. But, I suppose maybe that is the case when you go from a low end product to mid-range product. Also, I found that the Marantz sent a much cleaner digital signal to my Yamaha receiver. I can hear things in movie soundtracks that I never knew were there. As for the SACD playback, I was very impressed at how much nicer the SACD format sounds when compared to CD. My first test was with Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. Not only was the sound much cleaner and warmer, but the 5.1 mix gives you a completely new experience. I then listened to some Bob Dylan and David Bowie and found that they also sounded much nicer. Unfortunately I have yet to test the DVD-A playback. I have been unable to find anything I want on DVD-A. The only negative aspect of the Marantz is the Owner's Manual. It is poorly organized, and a bit confusing. Also, the remote could use a redesign.

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I compared this unit to the Denon 2200

- very good audio playback - did I mention : very good audio playback - nice design (clean and simple)

- feels light - slow layerchange on DVD playback - SACD sound output only via analog 5.1 outputs. This means that you will need a lot of interlinks. - no region free hacks (except via dealer at a charge of $100)

Needed a new player to replace my 13 year old Denon. Got the advice to listen to the Marantz. The sound for normal CD is very good, I like to openess and crisp quality. I think it's got pretty good staging as well. The videoplayback is fine as far as I can tell, although it is a bit slow on the layerchange. The real surprise for me was that SACD is only played back via the analog 5.1 outputs on the DV6400. I have a setup where I use a PM7200 for stereo playback (so 2 interlinks running from DV6400 via analog 2 CHN output to 7200) and a Yamaha DSP-E800 for surround (1 digital interlink from DV6400 to Yamaha and 2 analog from Yamaha to PM7200). Now I need another *6* interlinks from the DV6400 to the Yamaha to playback SACD.

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- Denon DVD2900

plays everything and sounds good

has incompantibility issues with some DVD-A, and has a delay between scene changes during DVD playback

Seems nice enough to me, I like that it can play SACD and DVD-A, you can really here the difference. The problem that I have found in this model is that during DVD movie playback when there is a scene change there is a pause in the video that is kind of long, it is not the end of the world but it is kind of annoying, It also seems that the DVD-A menu system is incompatible with certain DVD-A disc, Makes wierd noises and video is kind of choppy, does not do it when listening to content though, So say as before, not the end of the world but kind of annoying, beyond those two complaints it is very nice. Metal finish on front looks good and it has a 6 channel output which is cool.

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playstation 2, plays DVDs with no pauses between scene changes

Plays SACD, DVD-Audio, DVD-Video, DTS, VCD, CD, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, picture CD's. Great sounding, very good image quality.

Packing. Very light. Manual could be better. Poorly designed remote.

My old DVD player of 6 years has been slowly degrading to the point a replacement was necessary. I decided the smart investment would be in a Universal DVD Player - one that plays any type of disk you throw at it. I looked at 3 models: Pioneers DVD Universal (sorry, I forgot the model), and Marantz'z DV6400 and the 8400. I cannot see spending over a thousand dollars on any one piece of equipment, so I blindly purchased the DV6400. The price was right and it had the features I want. When I received the unit, I was dissapointed in the packing. Somewhat lacking for a $500 plus piece of equipment. It included the usual items: owners manual, warantee paper, remote, batteries, a single pair of audio cable, a composite video cable, and of course the player itself. The player does not weigh that much, maybe 5 pounds. Out of curiosity, I removed the cover and looked inside - not much there either! For a brief moment, I thought I wasted my money. Then I plugged it in. I had already purchased some DVD-A and SACD titles even before I bought the player. My first choice was Peter Gabriel's Passion (Theme music for the Last Temptation of Christ - very good movie!). I was blown away! I have the CD version and know what it sounds like, but the SACD version and the DV6400 was sooooo much better. I could hear every nuance, every instrument in crystal clear clarity. It was as if the already lowered noise floor was completely removed! Next was Toto IV on SACD. My main complaint with CD's is the unrealistic drum sounds (as a drummer, I notice this). This is something that LP's have over CD's any day, more open and realistic drums! At least until SACD came around. Jeff Pocorro never sounded so good! Next was Zepher Voices Unbound on DVD-Audio. This is a group composed of only vocalists. The surround sound was phenominal and the voices so real it gave me goose bumps! Then the ultimate test (in my opinion): acoustuc guitar. John McEwans Acoustic Traveler is just short of miraculous. I closed my eyes and was convinced he was in my room playing his guitar. OK - so the 6400 is great for music. What about movies? My main gripe with older DVD's is the slow load time and that delay when the layer change occurs. DVD loading with the 6400 is improved by 30% and the layer change is 50% faster than my former Panasonic DVD-A310. Image quality is also fantastic! I would say much better than my former Panasonic (and I was very happy with it as well). A very cool feature is a switch on the back that changes interlace to progressive scan. My Loewe TV does not accept progressive scan video (because it has its own) so I have no idea if the progressive shows any visual improvement. The sound and image quality of this player far exceeds the visual dissapointment of the unit itself. Its quite, fast loading, great sounding and fairly reasonably priced for what it does. I do not regret the purchase and would strongly recommend this unit!

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Panasonic DVD-A310

Sound! Sound! Sound! for the price Video, features, looks, build quality Nice remote in my opinion

Only Feels very light, small chassis, but who cares as it's not an amplifier and fancy d/a chips and things don't weigh much

I bought my DV6400 along with the new Marantz SR5400 receiver, after upgrading from my Pioneer DV-355k and Denon AVR1801. The Marantz is only 2 weeks old and apparently hasn't yet played in, but sounds really musically rounded, warm and smooth. CD playback on the DV6400 is truly amazing, detail is excellent, sound is balanced, clean tops to a full deep bass (using Monster analogue interlinks for better cd playback in stereo mode). DVd playback is very good, video sharper then that of the Pioneer (which wasn't bad) and sound is really out of this world. I haven't yet got any SACD or DVDA titles, but judging from reading reviews elsewhere I believe the 6400 is especially good on SACD. Mp3 playback, although a waiste on such equipment due to the nature of being a compressed file, is very good, and I enjoy the quick mp3 loading, quick track skipping and fast forward/rewind feature when playing mp3s. User interface is great and the feature to turn off the video and display circuitry for purer audio just gives it that sonic edge. Unit feels a bit light for that grade of component, but it's solidly built and looks nice in silver. Outputs for all video connections are available, as well as 5.1 channel sacd/dvda analogue audio outputs, as well as a stereo rca analogue output for best cd playback and of course your coaxil and optical digital options too.

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Grundig GV130, worse then the Pioneer but ok Pioneer DV-355K dvd player (Good for the money)