Inexpensive DVD deck with good sound?

Hi,

Check out the Sony 7700 and the Toshiba 9200 players. A few years old, but still hold their own. Both players, flagships at the time.

Mike

You can get a new Denon 2910 for between $400 and $500 if you look around online and a used one would be less, of course. If you're willing to buy used, a well-kept Philips 963 would be a good option.

Durabrand top loader from wallmart-$27.95 with digital out. Sounds very good for the price and you can add a Dac Ah NOS dac for $200. more.

Check out the SAMSUNG DVD-HD841 DVD PLAYER. I picked up one for about $80 two years ago and it hasn't let me down yet. It does, DVD-A, DVD-V, SACD, CD-R, CD-RW; you name it, it will most likely handle it. It even has 6 discrete analog outs, digital outs, component video output, and up-converts to 720p/1080i resolution. A great do it all player.

I've seen it on ebay this morning for about $20, but don't let the price fool you. I haven't had much of a problem at all. I added a little weight to the top of it, and it now plays just as good as a player 20x its price.

I use a combination of the Denon 1920 and a Lite Dac-AH. The combo should cost you around $400 give or take.

I use the coax out to the Dac-AH for redbook, the Denon's internal dacs for SACD and DVD-Audio, and toslink out to my preamp for home theater stuff.

It's a pretty great setup, very tough to beat for the money. You might also check out the Cambridge universal player; it's right around your budget and is well regarded.

The guys at RAM seem to like the Samsungs also,they must know something...good luck,Bob

Check out the Sony DVP-NC555ES. You should be able to find one new for <$400. Used for less than that. I have 2 of them and they've replaced a Sony 7700, and Denon DVP2200. The fact it's a 5 disc changer is a big bonus for me - though it's a larger footprint than you may be looking for. It's far better on redbook than anything else I've tried in the price range. Oh, and it's a multi-channel SACD player too.

Below is a description of them from SACDMods.com

http://www.sacdmods.com/NC555ES.htm

Check out ThePerfectVision's (Winter '07) review of the OppoDigital DV-97HD. Universal player for SACD & DVD-A. HDMI outs with 720p/1080i upconversion.
And, it's only $149.
I have no personal experience but at this price point I've already recommended a couple of MidFi friends take a look. I may pick one up for secondary rooms.

Panasonic DVD-S25 or DVD-S35. In my search for sound I tried Sony XA777ES, Rotel, Cambridge Audio and then listened to Panasonic and realized that there is no reason to waste money. I don't even use it as DVD and I can't comment on it's image quality since I don't have a TV, I'm into sound kind of a guy.
It was recommended to me by Sean, knowledgeable poster on this site and audoasylum. Here is his review. Several month after his post this thread appeared. Once again, Sean knew what he was talking about!