Denon unveils DVD-1930 1080p upscaling universal DVD player

Denon has a proven track record in the 1080p upscaling game, and its latest entry-level player looks to be yet another winner. Replacing the DVD-1920, the DVD-1930 sports a "premium" silver enclosure, HDMI output (HDCP compliant), optical / coaxial digital audio out, and support for SACD / DVD-Audio in addition to DVD. While you won't have much luck tossing any HD discs in here, this device sports a Faroudja DCDi chipset and 11-bit video DAC to fool your eyes into seeing 1080p footage from those plain ole DVDs. On the audio side, it touts 5.1-channel surround via analog outs for SACD, while DVD-Audio can take advantage of HDMI's single cable simplicity. Of course, you can expect the usual MP3, WMA, and JPEG playback here as well, and it even boasts built-in Dolby Digital / DTS decoders. So if you're still patiently waiting for that ever-elusive HD DVD / Blu-ray combo player to emerge, or just want a solid upscaling universal player in your AV cabinet, you can pick up the DVD-1930 now for ¥49,800 ($423).

[Via Impress]

[Deathwish238 Posted Nov 9th 2006 4:37AM]

Probably isn't worth $400...

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 9th 2006 5:17AM]

Last year I bought the 1080i Denon-1920 for $350. Of course, this was before the next-gen DVD battle kicked off.

This time around I would spend the $400 on a Toshiba HD-A1. That way I can upscale my DVDs and watch HD-DVD.

Also, what exactly makes this a "universal" player? SACD and DVD-Audio? Big whoop. I have a cheapo $90 Lite-On Burner/Divx Player/Region Free 480P that can play any crap video content I can burn onto a spindle of brand-X blanks that my Denon won't even read. It's the true swiss army knife of my home theater. That is what "universal" is all about.

http://www.hdformatwar.com
http://www.shopforbluray.com
http://www.hdmoviesales.com

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 9th 2006 7:41AM]

Silly - why buy this when you can get the A1 for 399. It gives you upconversion and the bonus of HD-DVD. Even if the HD-DVD looses you still saved money and have your upconverting player.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 9th 2006 8:17AM]

Whats the point of HDCP if its not HD-DVD or BD?

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 9th 2006 9:23AM]

I've owned the black version for about three months, and have really enjoyed it. It's only fault is not supporting HDMI 1.2 or 1.3. It would be nice to output SACD over HDMI.

[Bochi Posted Nov 9th 2006 9:33AM]

Being able to do both audio formats is nice but Denon doesn't appear to have included their 5.1 lossless single cable audio output for their receivers. If it doesn't support HDMI 1.2 or 1.3 or their own lossless single cable audio output it wouldn't be worth the cost.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 9th 2006 10:58AM]

Smeagol -

In order to upconvert to 1080p the DVD Nazi's have mandated that HDCP be a requirement. So those without HDCP sets are left out in the cold.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 9th 2006 5:31PM]

Ummm, this has been in stores for weeks (black) selling for $350, maybe even as low as $300 if you shop. Why the inaccurate yen to USD conversion?

[WesleyHester Posted Nov 9th 2006 10:49PM]

Powered by Award Winning Faroudja "macro-blocking and we aren't going to ever do anything about it but charge full retail" DCDi.