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(More customer reviews)Ergonomically, I find the DBP-4010UDCI to be the best universal player on the market and a step above all the recent OPPOs in that regard. I was very interested in buying it until I discovered a flaw that will sorely disappoint those of us interested in obtaining high-resolution sound from CDs, SACDs, and DVDs. I have engaged in a string of e-mails with a Denon technician to learn what I tell you below.
According to the DBP-4010UDCI's user manual, all CD/SACD output via HDMI is at 44.1 kHz/16 bit, LPCM format (i.e., Redbook standards) and DVDs at 48 kHz/16 bit. The sampling rate and bit depth on the source material is irrelevant. The player down-converts - make that "dumbs down" - everything. I was certain that had to be a misprint because no manufacturer do such a thing, especially in this price range. Alas, Denon has confirmed that the manual accurately reflects what is happen within.
There are four issues that trouble me:
1. SACDs are recorded at one bit resolution at 2.8 mHz sampling rate and should pass that way to the D/A converter in bitstream format, although the signal often is down-converted (in the recent OPPOs, for example) to 88 kHz/24 bit for LPCM output (still high-res). With the Denon DBP-4010UDCI converting everything to 44.1 kHz/16, the sound is likely no better than a standard CD track, although it does retain SACD's multi-channel capability.
2. DVDs are likewise limited to 48kHz/16 bit sampling even though high-res DVDs are at 96 kHz/24 bit.
3. HDCDs are recorded at 44.1 kHz sampling, but an additional four or eight bits are also encoded in the recording. The result is a CD compatible with standard Redbook playback but that can be decoded to retrieve those "extra" four or eight bits and the additional resolution they provide. The DBP-4010UDCI has such a decoder but negates its own work by down-converting the decoded 20 or 24 bits to 16 just as it would be without decoding. (Down-sampling is not the same as tossing away the additional eight bits, but you're still left with 16 bits when the recording offers 24.)
4. Those of you who want to decode in your surround processor, forget it. The DBP-4010UDCI cannot output a bitstream (at least not while playing a CD/SACD).
"Universal" for the Denon DBP-4010UDCI only refers to the software it can play, not to what it can output. Why they chose to design it this way is inexplicable, especially at this price range. I consider the use of "universal" to describe this product as bordering on false advertising.
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