Denon unveiled the “world’s first high-end Blu-ray player”, DVD-A1UDCI, back in December last year, saying the device supports Blu-ray discs, SACDs, CDs, audio and video DVDs. The company then said the player will hit Japanese stores in January 2009 and will be available in the US one month later. But that never happened.

After saying in January that the player will be delayed until March, Denon now pushed back the Japanese release date to May 2009 [JP]. They are apologizing and saying they need more time to optimize the device, whatever this may mean.

If the DVD-A1UDCI ever gets released, Americans will have to pay $3,800 for the device, while us here in Japan will be set back a whopping $5,800 (the MSRP is about the same in Europe).

Denon is citing production problems for the delay. No word on consequences for other markets yet, but I doubt Americans will get the player in February as promised.

Denon outed the amazing DVD-A1UDCI Blu-ray player – which we predicted back at CEDIA – just the other day and thankfully, us here in the States will not have to deal with the exchange rate. You see, the European model carries a MSRP of 4,000 Euros which works out to be a whopping $5,800 in US dollars. The US-bound model, however, will sell for only (LOL) $3,800 which works out to be 1,000 Euro less. Ouch. All the universal goodies remain so chances are this player will become the de-facto reference player when it drops in February ‘09.

Ecoustics via EngHD

Denon today announced what they say is the the world’s first high-end Blu-ray universal player [JP], meaning it can play Blu-ray discs, SACDs, CDs, DVD-Audio and DVD-Video. The DVD-A1UD (strange name) is the successor of the DVD-A1XV.

Denon says its DENON Link 4th technology (in combination with HDMI 1.3) dramatically reduces jitter, leading to an improved sound quality from all digital sources. Hirofumi Ichikawa, the company CEO, claims Blu-ray, DVD, SACD and CD users will get the best audio and video results they have ever seen.

Internal DTS-Neo6 and DolbyPro IIx doesn’t sound too bad but there is no 24p output for DVDs. Also, BD-Live isn’t integrated yet but should become available with a future firmware update.

The DENON DVD-A1UD will hit Japan at the end of January (price: a whopping $5,800). At time of writing, DENON said the device will become available in Europe in March 2009 with an MSRP of 4,000 Euros. Buyers can choose between a black and a silver version.

Denon Japan announced it will start selling a turntable [JP] that features a USB port to transfer music from analog records to USB memory sticks as digital music files at the beginning of next month. The DP-200USB will be available in black and silver  (price: $300).

Denon says all that users have to do in order to save music as MP3 (in 192kbps quality) is to play their 30cm or 17cm records and press the “record” button.

There is no word yet if the turntable will ever be sold outside Japan as well, but chances should be pretty good.

Most large manufacturers at CEDIA this year are showing off their latest Blu-ray players. A good amount of the ‘new players’ are unfortunately profile 1.1 and therefore, not BD Live capable, but there was a buzz going around the show floor concerning Denon’s upcoming super player. Something about a $3800-$4000 Blu-ray king coming out early next year.

I managed to snag sometime with the Director of Product Development & Systems Integration who told me straight-faced, that they will have it at CES. Initially, he wouldn’t comment on anything else, but he eventually indicated that yes, it will be a Profile 2.0 player. I can’t wait for CES — and the obligatory early leeks.

And you wonder why people are still uncommitted to Blu-ray. Denon, by no means a cheap brand, mind you, has said that they’ll begin shipping its “low” priced DVD-1800BD this October, for $749. Denon hasn’t even released its full specs yet, so it’s impossible to evaluate if this is even worth the money.

Once again, I think I speak for most of the gang here: if you’re thinking about going Blu-ray, especially in time for the holiday season, your best best is to go with the PS3. Not only is it future-proof, but, eventually, it’ll have some decent games on it, with apologies to MGS 4.

Denon, purveyor of reasonably-priced Ethernet cables, will be releasing its natural wood and mahogany AH-D7000 headphones in mid-September. You can currently grab the lesser AH-D5000 headphones for about $700.

The AH-D7000 cans will have an MSRP of 800 Euro, which is just under $1,200 USD – roughly 1/3 of what my first car cost. It was a 1990 Mitsubishi Mirage.

[Press Release (translated) via Akihabara]

NBC has turned to Denon with help on the audio control for this years Olympics. As it turns out, this is the fifth straight Olympic games that Denon has been involved with. The AV company suppled NBC with their top of the line gear for work in post-production. Denon’s flagship audio/video receiver, the AVR-5308, plus a DVD-1940 are installed in the Executive Board Room, while two AVR-2808 and two DVD-1940’s are elsewhere for NBC meetings. 

If you ask us, this says a good deal about Denon products – or Denon paid good coin to be at the games. Your guess.

Today Denon announced [JP] they will start selling their first noise-cancelling headphones at the begining of August. The on-ear AH-NC732 will be available in black and silver.

The headphones come with a frequency response of 5Hz-28,000Hz, an impedance of 40Ω and a maximum power input of 100mW. Denon claims noise will be cut by 99%. One AAA battery is needed for 40 hours of active noise cancellation.

The headphones will cost $350 in Japan. Denon already offers a number of headphones in the USA, for example, so it would be no surprise to see the AH-NC732 find its way to markets outside Japan soon.

Reviews for that $500 Ethernet cable being sold by Denon are in full swing on the Amazon.com product page, located here. Here are a couple of choice tidbits…

“A caution to people buying these: if you do not follow the ‘directional markings’ on the cables, your music will play backwards. Please check that before mentioning it in your reviews.”

“I installed one of these cables between my gigabit ethernet switch and my Canon Pixma 6700 color printer. I know it’s not a sanctioned use, but I was looking for the ultimate in speed and color fidelity. I’m freaky that way.

The first time I downloaded a picture to the printer over this cable, the bits moved so fast the printer collapsed into a naked singularity, right there in my office.”

“Marked down 1 star because it still won’t let you do the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs.”

“Like a fool, I bought these cables on a whim because of the low price. However, I got what I paid for when I installed them in my TARDIS. Before long it shorted out my chameleon circuit and Amazon refuses to pay for repairs! I guess it’ll be stuck looking like a 1963 police call box until I can somehow get enough money for a replacement.”

"I accidentally dropped one end of my Denon cable into a glass of Tuscan whole milk I was drinking. Later when I finished my milk (yeah, I still drank it; should I not have done that?), my right arm (lost in an accident in 1987) spontaneously grew back.
Is that normal?"

"I used 6 of them to connect up my time machine to my Starship. But now my cell phone won’t work. Must be interference from the planet being out of phase with my blue tooth headset.

On the bright side…it negated the affects of the Aurora Borealis over my house."

Customer Reviews: Denon AKDL1 Dedicated Link Cable [Amazon] via Newsvine

Denon DJ DN-HS5500

This week: Computers, set-top boxes (like AppleTV), and AV
receivers are battling to be your household hub, streaming music and
movies back and forth across your pad until you become sterile and
glow in the dark. All this gear is versatile, but it’s hard to know
which one to pick — especially when hefty sums of money are involved.
Sonos and now Denon seem to have the most promising solutions, but
life is passing their equipment by while gadgets like the iPhone and
Archos’s 605 WiFi threaten to swoop in and take all.

If I can get my digital music from any place to any other place with
no wires in between and control it easily, I’m a happy audio geek.
But assuming you have a reasonably sized budget, how do you choose
among dedicated streaming hardware (Sonos, Squeezebox, etc.), Media
Center-type PCs, straight-up networking gear (AirPort Express,
Sondigo), and networked home stereo components?

At a press event the other day, Denon introduced some very cool
networked stereo gear that has a lot of potential, thanks to a TV-
screen interface that functions as your command center. But it’s
going to have a tough time competing with some of the stuff already
out there, not to mention what’s just on the horizon.

What’s new
Denon turned over its entire line of AV receivers for the first time
in 10 years, but the most noteworthy changes came at the top end:
Denon’s 5308CI ($5200) and 4308CI ($2500) both have built-in WiFi and
USB inputs for hard drives and some portable players. The WiFi is for
things like remote maintenance, multizone music distribution (similar
to Sonos), and Internet radio, and streaming music from an iPod (via
an optional $129 dock).

Of course, these aren’t the first WiFi receivers and won’t be the
last, but it does show that the big boys like Denon and Sony are
trying to retain the living room control they’d had in the pre-
wireless era. And other WiFi-capable stereo components are garnering
attention, like Olive’s line of high-end CD players, which can stream
music from anywhere on your network — or as I accidentally found out
back in my days in PC Magazine Labs, it can take down a swath of a
corporate network).

The hottest thing Denon introduced the other day, though, was an iPod
dock that also turns any stereo component into a wireless music
system. You just hook it up to your receiver and/or TV, and it can
access files from anywhere on your home network using your TV screen
as a navigation interface.

Impressive, but even with their reliance on handheld remotes, all of
these tether to your TV screen for browsing and controlling your music.

Best of what’s around
Sonos’s wireless digital music system and handheld controller (with a
big LCD and iPod-like scroll wheel) seems to hold the most promise in
terms of convenience, and the entry point there is $1000. It’s hard
to beat taking your music around with you and wirelessly controlling
it in every room in your home. But honestly, that controller is
pretty ridiculous to lug around while you’re hosting a party, and the
other remotes on my living room couch are scared of it.

Sonos is on the right track, but the controller could just as easily
be a bitchin’ WiFi music player (iPhone? 6G iPod?), not a big brick
with only a few more features than a paperweight. The current iPhone
could easily be rigged up to transmit signals to WiFi-capable gear
with a simple firmware upgrade — in fact, someone should do an
infrared transmitter attachment so you could use it to turn on your
TV! (Might as well… no one really talks on the iPhone
anyway, do they?)

What’s next
I remember being amazed 7 or 8 years ago when I saw a buddy of mine
take out his PDA and turn it into a fully customizable remote for the
TV set — it was brilliant! Where did this idea go? Hopefully into next-
gen music players from companies like Apple, Archos, iRiver, and
even Microsoft.

If you’re wondering whether you should make a big investment in a
wireless streaming audio setup, consider that in the next year or so,
the iPhone/iPod/Zune combined with something along the lines of
Apple’s AirPort Express or Denon’s new WiFi gear could be what keeps your digital music — and
probably video — pumping to every nook and cranny of your house.

The image above was created by Leah Perrotta, a Brooklyn-based artist and all-around lovely gal. Check out her stuff every week right here on the AudioFile, and Flickr.

Best of all, it gives you a TV-screen interface and remote to work with, so you can see what’s going where, and you get metadata and album art on songs that are playing off your iPod. Not bad for $229.99 (available in September), though if you don’t need the WiFi, you can pick up the non-wireless ASD-3N for $179.99 (available in August). Both models have Ethernet ports, RCA outputs, and S-Video outputs on the back.

The criteria of the contest are thus:

Tell Your “Home Theater Horror Story”…

Consumers will be able to enter the contest via a specially created web site, www.makeshifters.com, where they’ll be able to post homemade videos and photo essays that tell personal “home theater horror stories” about their makeshift home entertainment systems. Such makeshift systems might include a mix-and-match of outdated components (for example: a 13” CRT television hooked up to your grandfather’s 1960s-era stereo system, with PA speakers left over from your high-school garage band days).

True to Web 2.0 form, the contest is conducted with social networking features such as community tagging, rating and reviewing of entries. Users can spread the entries around through embeds and such as well.

In addition to the grand prize, the first runner up will receive a La-Z-Boy recliner and a $500 Circuit City shopping spree. Four third-prize winners will each receive home entertainment components from Denon and Boston. All entrants will receive a $10 Circuit City gift card.

MakeShifters.

Denon finally returned to the consumer headphone market, and they’ve made a big splash with their latest offerings. I spent some quality time with the AH-C700 (available in black or silver), and the upshot is that I’m not going to wait 2 days to call. They’re not cheap dates, though, at about $200. But they have such nice extension in both the bass and the treble that they rival similarly priced favorites from Etymotic and Shure, and they’re pretty tough to beat on comfort and build quality.

The bullet-shaped earphones have sturdy aluminum housings and symmetrical cables that are just rigid enough to resist tangling (there’s no anti-tangle slider though). The cables terminate in a gold-plated 3.5-mm miniplug that’s set in a small aluminum cylinder; where it comes out of the cylinder, the cable is protected by a short rubber sleeve, which means that part of the cable isn’t likely to wear out or fray from being tossed in a backpack or pocket.

The fit is nearly identical to that of Sony’s popular MDR-EX series–comfortable and relatively nonintrusive. They don’t block out as much noise as Shure or Etymotic earphones, but they do a decent job at saving you from hearing every detail of those drunken inane conversations on the subway.

One thing that’s of some concern is that the large hole where the sound comes out is covered by a thin fabric filter that’s very exposed and thus prone to getting dirty or clogged. I’ve mangled fixed several pairs of Sony EX-71’s, which have a similar design, by using a pin to pierce the filter when it gets so clogged that sound stops coming through. But while that’s fine for a $50 set of ‘buds, I’d be wary of doing that with a $200 pair.

Strangely, Denon missed the mark in the accessory department. Ultimate Ears has the metal “squircle” case, Shure has its zippered nylon case, and Etymotic includes a soft pouch. Included with the C700? Nada. Not even so much as a quarter-inch adapter or cleaning tool, though you do get some extra silicone tips. The lack of a case also adds to the danger of damaging the exposed filters.

The C700’s sound quality makes up for other shortcomings. I tested them against other single-driver headphones at various price ranges, including the Shure E2c, Shure E3c, Etymotic ER6i, Etymotic ER4P, and Creative Zen Aurvana, and the Denons stacked up very well. The Denons came in behind only the Ety ER4P in terms of detail and bass response, though every other model blocked out way more ambient sound.

The Denons have excellent extension in the bass register, though I can guarantee some folks who are deaf as a post from listening to hypercranked iPodswill complain that there’s not enough bass, but it really is there–you’ve just got to get a good seal between the silicone and your ear canal.

They really shine, though, in the upper register, with sparkling highs and a nice lively sound for acoustic music. You’ll hear it most in music with a lot of dynamic range–sudden cymbal crashes can be downright startling. The mids aren’t honky or recessed; they’re just a bit up front, so vocals really pop without being out of balance.

The rated electrical impedance of the C700 is 16 ohms, which means any music player will have no trouble driving them. I used a 30GB video iPod, and I rarely had to turn it up past around two-thirds of the way up for a satisfying listen in a café–a bit more on the subway, and a bit less at home. For efficiency, the Creative Zen Aurvana is tough to beat (partly because they blocks out so much noise), but the Denons do pretty well.

If you want thumpier bass, go dual-driver (Shure SE420, UE super.fi 5 Pro). If you want accuracy for seriously critical listening, the Etymotic ER4P or ER4S is a better fit. But if you’re looking for well-balanced high-definition sound and don’t want to be completely isolated from the aural landscape around you, the Denon AH-C700 is a very good–but pricey–choice. The Denon’s comfortable fit and solid construction are nice bonuses, but you’ll have to DIY your own accessories.

Speculation has the receivers being released in two waves, with two high-end models arriving in July and three less-expensive units hitting in September. The top models—the $2,500 AVR-4308CI and $1,600 AVR-3808CI—will “include four HDMI 1.3 inputs, support for internal Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD audio decoding, built-in Ethernet connectivity for digital media steaming (plus Wi-Fi on the AVR-4308CI)” and you can expect some new GUI action as well.

The more-budget-friendly AVR-1508, AVR-1708, and AVR-2808 will follow in September and will share similar connectivity options as the more expensive models, just fewer of them. For example the 2808 is expected to have HDMI 1.3 support and internal Dolby TrueHD/DTS-HD decoding, but the lower models will lose built-in support for decoding the newer audio soundtracks.
]]> http://www.crunchgear.com/2007/02/22/denon-crave-worthy-home-audio-products-leaked/feed/ 1 http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/12/19/holidays-2006-great-tech-for-the-clueless/ http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/12/19/holidays-2006-great-tech-for-the-clueless/#comments Tue, 19 Dec 2006 05:34:55 +0000 Josh Goldman http://crunchgear.com/2006/12/19/holidays-2006-great-tech-for-the-clueless/

Backup System: Buffalo DriveStation

Getting a technologically challenged person to back up their computer can be a trying experience. The best way around it is to set up a “set it and forget it” type of system, but even these can turn out to be more trouble than they are worth. Buffalo Technology’s DriveStation series of external hard drives on the other hand is pure backup bliss.

Mobile Phone: LG VX3400 from Verizon Wireless
Many times people buy things that do way more than they need them to. Mobile phones are a good example. If all you do is make phone calls and send the occasional text message on your cell, buy the LG VX3400 or something like it.

Since it’s light on features, technophobes won’t get lost in never-ending menu systems. No camera means you don’t have to worry about environments where camera phones aren’t allowed. And no extra keys means straightforward operation.

Computer: Apple iMac (or any other computer from Apple) with Mac OS X
Seriously people, don’t even try to argue with me on this. Windows is a horrible OS for people that don’t know their way around a computer.

From constant popup bubbles to the need for extreme security measures—especially for those that can’t help opening every e-mail in their inbox—right down to the procedures for uninstalling software, Windows is a giant pain in the ass for the less technically inclined. I’d like to say this’ll all change with Vista, but it won’t, because it’s still Windows.

Mac OS X is a clean, simple solution and the definitive handholding OS. Setting up everything from a Bluetooth keyboard to a wireless network is done almost for you. Since almost all viruses, spyware and malware are made to infect Windows-based systems, there’s little need to worry about security beyond the built-in FireWall and an effective spam filter. And with Intel’s CPUs now running the show, performance is no longer an issue.

True, many, many things —software, peripherals, MP3 players, etc. —don’t work on a Mac. But the technically clueless don’t care and won’t notice. Microsoft Office is available and all the basics for media creation and management are included in the iLife suite on every system.

Alternate: Can’t afford to give that special someone — or yourself — a new computer? Pick up a copy of Xandros Desktop Linux, an easy-to-use full Linux installation that is impervious to pop-ups and other junk. I know there are better Linux versions out there, but if you want fire and forget installations for the non techie, this is probably the best we’ve seen. Feel free to flame in the comments regarding your favorite Linux installs, however.

Wi-Fi Router: Belkin N1 Wireless Router
There are a ton of wireless routers on the market. Belkin’s N1 is one of the easiest to setup thanks to its efficient software and detailed Network Status Display on the front letting you know at a glance the health of your connections.

At $150, it’s not cheap. But if you find the idea of putting together a wireless network daunting, it’s a small price to pay. Plus, it’s loaded with just about every modern capability a router can have and looks pretty sweet.

Television: Mitsubishi Sets with ClearThought Easy Connect and NetCommand with IR learning
If you’re not using a receiver for video switching and don’t know a component input from an HDMI, you’ll appreciate Mitsubishi’s ClearThought Easy Connect and NetCommand features.

Basically, as soon as you connect something to one of the TV’s inputs, the set will recognize the occupied jacks, ask the user to name it (such as DVD or Xbox) and then enters it into the Device Menu, which only shows the inputs that are filled. That way, no matter who uses your TV, they’ll be able to find the right input to watch a DVD.

The NetCommand feature lets you teach the remote control included with the TV to control all your other electronics. Yes, you can find similar features on other sets, but Mitsubishi’s are superior and work very well.

Denon S-301; Sony DAV-FX900W
Properly setting up a home theater is a hassle even when you know what you’re doing. Add in complete inexperience with electronics or inability to grasp certain concepts like inputs and outputs and you’re in for a mess of trouble.

A home-theater-in-a-box system is the definitely the way to go, since it not only makes shopping easier, but set up has generally been refined to nothing more than a few cables and a power cord.

If you can afford to layout some coin and don’t need more than 2.1-channels of sound, Denon’s S-301 system ($999) is the way to go. The only cables needed run from the two satellites to the subwoofer, and then a cable runs from there to the head unit that contains a CD/DVD player. Just connect cables from the S-301 to your TV, plug it in and you’re done. If you get confused, there’s onscreen help to get you out of a jam, accessible through the well-designed remote control.

Back in my round up of HTIBs, I picked the Sony DAV-FX900W for its wireless rear speaker design. But what I didn’t mention was how easily you can get it up and running. Color-coded cables make sure you get your connections right the first time around and an Auto Calibration function helps you place your speakers for the best sound. It can be found for about $640, but it’s a very complete 5.1-channel home theater with a built-in CD/DVD player.

Digital Camera: HP Photosmart R927
While there are plenty of cameras that take better pictures on the market, the R927 is the one you want to give to someone who is completely in the dark about digital photography. The top of HP’s camera line, the $270 8.2-megapixel R927 is at its base a simple point-and-shoot compact camera.

The menu system is uncomplicated, yet packed with the company’s Real Life technologies to help even novice shooters take great shots. It gives you real-time feedback on how to improve a specific picture and settings are given simple in-camera explanations so there’s no guessing what a particular feature does.

Sharing options are plentiful, including a button to directly send for prints through SnapFish.com. There is also automatic in-camera red-eye removal, a design gallery for adding artistic effects and borders and a slimming feature to help you shed a few pounds before you print.
]]> http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/12/19/holidays-2006-great-tech-for-the-clueless/feed/ 7 http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/11/17/holidays-2006-the-seasons-best-home-theater-in-a-box-systems/ http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/11/17/holidays-2006-the-seasons-best-home-theater-in-a-box-systems/#comments Fri, 17 Nov 2006 20:14:41 +0000 Josh Goldman http://crunchgear.com/2006/11/17/holidays-2006-the-seasons-best-home-theater-in-a-box-systems/
To make things easier, we broke them down by a single, unique feature—be it price point, looks, size, or connections/options. They’ll all provide good sound for movies and music, but as always, some perform better than others. Also, we didn’t load this feature up with products that are so new you won’t be able to find a deal on them come next week when Black Friday rolls around.

yamaha.com

panasonic.com

onkyousa.com

samsung.com

soundmatters.com

usa.denon.com

usa.philips.com

sonystyle.com
]]> http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/11/17/holidays-2006-the-seasons-best-home-theater-in-a-box-systems/feed/ 6 http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/09/11/denon-dj-hd2500/ http://www.crunchgear.com/2006/09/11/denon-dj-hd2500/#comments Mon, 11 Sep 2006 20:55:09 +0000 Blake Robinson http://crunchgear.com/2006/09/11/denon-dj-hd2500/

Well this was announced a few weeks back, but we have some firm specs on it now. The HD2500 is designed to be a sort of one-stop DJing utility. It provides a built-in hard drive, external memory, CD playback control, catalog backup, special effects and “more.”

It includes Denon DJ Music Manager for easy navigation of files, seamless looping, hot starts and stutter points. Users can also hook it directly to external storage devices like iPods, jump drives or laptops, or can use the internal hard drive for playing digital music. It features USB 2.0 and can completely control several Denon devices, such as the D4500 and the D4000. No word yet on pricing, but it will be available in Q4.

Denon DN-HD2500 Information Page
Denon DJ