Honest Opinion on Rotel DVD before I pull the trigger

[Nolan B]

OK. Some people say DVD players dont account for much when it comes to overall sound quality and some say they replaced thier rotel becuase it was their weakest link. I know I at least want Rotel becuase I want my system to look as good as it sounds.

If I am using an iScan HD to do my De-interlacing and scaling will it make any difference which Rotel DVD player I use for picture quality?

Can anyone detect an audible difference between the 1040, 1050 and 1060 when listening to regular CDs?

[jim777]

Don't know if it can help, but the CD sound of the 1050 is alot inferior to the Rotel RCD-1072 CD player. Thats for your regular (redbook) CD's.

For video I don't have a clue... but I think you can search the forum because I'm pretty sure that these have already been compared.

[Kevin D]

Honest? The 1060 is a good overall player. Very good audio section, real nice video. Letting the Iscan handle the output should lead to an awesome setup.

The 1040/1050 are $200 and $300 DVD players with a $300 Rotel case...

Now when the RDV-1090 comes out, lets talk again.. (I think it's also $1500 though!)

Kevin D.

[jim777]

Couldn't a Cambridge audio DVD player be a better value and fit in OK too (it's silver..)

[Nolan B]

Honest? The 1060 is a good overall player. Very good audio section, real nice video. Letting the Iscan handle the output should lead to an awesome setup.

The 1040/1050 are $200 and $300 DVD players with a $300 Rotel case...

Now when the RDV-1090 comes out, lets talk again.. (I think it's also $1500 though!)

Kevin D.

i think this is the way I may end up going.

[Blazar]

get a denon dvd player... what's with the rotel dvd player idea?

Rotel has all the bass management bells and whistles too.

For audio buy a benchmark dac-1 D/A converter.

Rotel won't hold a candle to a denon for dvd.

[Nolan B]

get a denon dvd player... what's with the rotel dvd player idea?

Rotel has all the bass management bells and whistles too.

For audio buy a benchmark dac-1 D/A converter.

Rotel won't hold a candle to a denon for dvd.

which Denon would the rotel 1060 most closley match? the 2910?

[Blazar]

hmm I'm not so sure about that... but secrets of home theater and hi-fi pretty consistently rates the mid-range denon products very highly in terms of picture quality.

The audio quality is supposed to be quite decent as well although I would never use a on-board dacs unless I was forced to (ie sacd, etc). Unfortunately no music I want is on sacd or dvd-a which makes the formats pointless to me.

[fordster]

A Rotel 1060 is almost a match for picture quality with a 2800MKII in my experience. The Denon has slightly richer colours (possibly too rich) but that's the only difference. Sonically the Rotel is streets ahead, for both DVD and (especially) CD. There's not much difference between a 2900 and a 2800MKII as far as I know and a 2910 is inferior by some way to a 2900 according to reports. The 3910 was the real replacement for the 2900.

[Nolan B]

A Rotel 1060 is almost a match for picture quality with a 2800MKII in my experience. The Denon has slightly richer colours (possibly too rich) but that's the only difference. Sonically the Rotel is streets ahead, for both DVD and (especially) CD. There's not much difference between a 2900 and a 2800MKII as far as I know and a 2910 is inferior by some way to a 2900 according to reports. The 3910 was the real replacement for the 2900.

so if I am reading you guys right the Rotel RDV 1060 is on par with the Denon 3910...would that be for both picture and sound quality?

Would that mean that the 2910 is closer to the rdv 1040 or 1050?

[Armbender]

I am pretty satisfied with the picture quality on my 1060 but i find it runs loud which bugs me at low volumes

[fordster]

I've not seen a 3910 in action but I'd guess it's not much different to a 2900 so I'd say the Rotel would be very slightly worse for picture quality but better for sound. Try and find a dealer that stocks both and do a comparison.

I found my Denon 2800MkII was noisier than my 1060. That's not to say the 1060 is quiet, just that the Denon was even louder!

[Nolan B]

I've not seen a 3910 in action but I'd guess it's not much different to a 2900 so I'd say the Rotel would be very slightly worse for picture quality but better for sound. Try and find a dealer that stocks both and do a comparison.

I found my Denon 2800MkII was noisier than my 1060. That's not to say the 1060 is quiet, just that the Denon was even louder!

what do you mean by noisy? Right now I have a Denon 800 which is about 4-5 years old and it doesnt make a sound. Actually it could be becuase I havent spend much energy or money yet, but the sound and picture quality is very good on that unit.

[grit]

I don't hear anything from my 1060. No extra noise whatsoever.

[jim777]

Well forget the Cambridge idea, I compared it to a Rotel 1050 (ok, the Rotel is twice the price...) but the Cambridge Azur looked like a 200$ player anyway...

Now I wonder if I should look at a Denon 2910 unless the 3910 is the minimum step... Does someone know how these compare to the Rotel 1050??...

[gianni]

Ever consider the Marantz DV7600? You may like it's music performance better than the 2910.

[fordster]

what do you mean by noisy? Right now I have a Denon 800 which is about 4-5 years old and it doesnt make a sound. Actually it could be becuase I havent spend much energy or money yet, but the sound and picture quality is very good on that unit.

You could hear the drive spinning when a disc was loaded. Once you started the film or CD the volume was not high enough to be noticeable unless I had the volume down low. The Denon was much noisier than the Rotel and was even worse when it came back from repair!

[soundhound]

I am more into music that HT, but the 1910 by Denon teamed up with the Jolida JD100
cd player is an excellent combo for $1250 or less depending on where you purchase. And this is coming from a true Rotel fan/ believer.

[Nolan B]

Now I wonder if I should look at a Denon 2910 unless the 3910 is the minimum step... Does someone know how these compare to the Rotel 1050??...

I would like like to know the answer to that question too, then know how the 1050 compars to the 1060.

I find its a bit hard to get my dealer to set up these different players to audition them, and since its a fairly small purchase i sort of feel guilty, so I will rely on your feedback.

[perato]

I have no idea how the RDV-1050 and 1060 compare to the Denon 2910 or 3910 but you can find a review of the 2910 at Audioholics. Clint DeBoer and Arvind Kholi reviewed the 3910. The 2910 is approximately the same MSRP as the 1050 and 1060 at about US$700 but the 3910 is significantly more at US$1500.

I have the 3910 and have had no problems with it so far. I bought the 3910 because it has just about all connections I might ever need. Unless you prefer the sound quality of the Rotel units or need a SCART or ethernet port, why would you buy the Rotel players? They have none of the future connections like firewire, HDMI, or DVI. Do the Rotel players even have bass management, channel level trim, and time delay for DVD-A and SACD?

[Nolan B]

does anyone know what a fair price in (in CDN $) would be for a rdv 1060? The dealer close to me has it listed at $1,260. They let me negociate, so what would be a good offer?

[roundmound]

Please forgive my ignorance, but what is the $US amount?

[jim777]

does anyone know what a fair price in (in CDN $) would be for a rdv 1060? The dealer close to me has it listed at $1,260. They let me negociate, so what would be a good offer?

I think it is listed at 1300$CAN so my dealer wouldn't let it go under 1200$CAN...

[IntegrateMe]

The 3910 is in a completely different league than any of the Rotel players and quite frankly when you factor in the additional features of the 2910, it is too.

The 1060 most accurately compares to the Denon 2900. The other 2 Rotel players are just JVC players from 3 years ago with a Rotel facplate. Don't get me wrong, I like Rotel, but I see no reason to buy a current Rotel DVD Player. As was previously mentioned, I would grab a Denon 2910 (or a used 2900 player).

If you want to spend more, the Denon 3910 is probably the best $1500 player on the market (really untouchable if you care about multi-channel high res music). Or wait for the 1080p Rotel 1090 whenever it becomes available.

[Armbender]

I got my 1060 for $1000 CDN taxes in

[Nolan B]

If you want to spend more, the Denon 3910 is probably the best $1500 player on the market (really untouchable if you care about multi-channel high res music).

this part puzzles me. I always thought the one thing the RDV 1060 was better at then any other DVD player in it price range (including the 3910) was its DVD-A performance.

[Taito]

The other 2 Rotel players are just JVC players from 3 years ago with a Rotel facplate. Don't get me wrong, I like Rotel, but I see no reason to buy a current Rotel DVD Player.

I was under the impression that the older RDV-985 and RDV-995 were JVC-based players. The RDV-1080 was Rotel's first crack at their own DVD player. This was replaced by the RDV-1060 and later followed by the RDV-1050 and RDV-1040 as more budget-friendly options.

Based on my auditioning when I purchased my RCD-1072, the RDV-1060 is very good at playing CDs (almost as good as the RCD-1072). I have also listened to the Denon 3910 (for CD) and thought it pretty terrible. I have not assessed either DVD player's video performance.

I know that Denon has a reputation for just about the best video performance around, but if sound is more important to you than video (especially if you will be using the unit as a CD player), get the RDV-1060 over a Denon. You should also try other brands, such as Marantz (as was suggested earlier).

Note: A also noticed some (not a lot) of noise coming from the transport of the RDV-1060 while playing discs (had to be right next to the unit).

-Ben

[RebelMan]

The other 2 Rotel players are just JVC players from 3 years ago with a Rotel facplate.

Which two and where did you hear this?

[Vicente]

Hello Taito and all,

When you say that Denon 3910 sound for CD is pretty terrible. What do you mean? Terribly good or terribly bad?

I have the RDV 1060 and I agree with you that sound is very good in CD and excellent in DVD, but I'm not so satisfied with the image quality.

I have a plasma Pioneer 435xde (Elite in the US) with a fantastic picture quality (HD Ready), and DVD pictures thru the 1060 with component connections are very grainy IMO. I was using a pretty expensive cable from JPS labs and changed to the Van den Hul Compolink but didn't get any better picture.

My dealer told me I could try the Denon 3910 but I'm pretty reluctant to change my 1060 cause of the perfect visual match it makes with my 1056.

My preferences are fifty/fifty sound and dvd so it's difficult to decide because with sound the 1060 is excellent.

Should I switch to Denon? The new Rotel 1090 is going to solve all this problems (PQ, HDMI connections)? My dealer also suggested me to try the Denon A1 universal player that it says it's probably the best player in the world, but I don't know if it makes sense to spend so much money today, thinking in the new technologies (HDDVD, Blue-Ray) coming.

What are your opinions? Thanks to all for making this forum so special

[fordster]

Personally, I would never go back to a Denon DVD player. This is not just because my RDV-1060 offers 99% of the picture qualrity and 200% of the sound of my old 2800MKII. It's primarily because my Denon was very unreliable. Now I know some people have never had a problem with Denon players but there is a sizeable amount that have (of all models, including the new ones). This makes me think there is an underlying problem with Denon players and no amount of feauture count or stunning picture quality would make me go back.

Just my opinion, I know other people will have theirs.

Also, as somebody has also said only the old Rotel DVD players were rebadged JVC's. The 1060, 1050 etc are not.

[Taito]

Hi Vicente, I thought that the CD performance of the 3910 was pretty bad. To me (relative to the RCD-1072), the 3910 sounded somewhat insubstancial. My biggest problem was with the treble, which struck me as quite harsh (although I was listening through some JM Lab Cobalt 826S's, which don't hold back in the treble dept.). Swapped the 3910 for the 1072 and all the nasties went away. I'm not sure how the 3910 does in the Hi-res audio stakes (I'm not into SACD or DVD-A). If you get the 3910 and have a dedicated CD player you may be happy. You may not.

Ultimately, you'll need to listen and decide for yourself. If you use your DVD player as a CD player, be prepared for a disappointment in going from the 1060 to the denon. As to video quality, I'm not in a position to offer experience there.

Good luck, Ben

[Vicente]

Thanks Taito for your opinion. Maybe I'll have to wait for the rdv 1090 and see how it performs in video.

Your comments are perfect for me as I'm using also the JM Lab Cobalt S, 816S's fronts, CC800S central and SR800S's for rears.

As many of you have tried the 1072 and the 1060 for CD playing. Can you value in percentage how much better is the 1072 vs. the 1060?

Thanks

[Nolan B]

Ultimately, you'll need to listen and decide for yourself. If you use your DVD player as a CD player, be prepared for a disappointment in going from the 1060 to the denon. As to video quality, I'm not in a position to offer experience there.

Good luck, Ben

Can you clarify that comment for me? Are you saying that you should be prepared for disapointment when using the 1060 as a CD player or the 3910, or both?

[grit]

Thanks Taito for your opinion. Maybe I'll have to wait for the rdv 1090 and see how it performs in video.

Your comments are perfect for me as I'm using also the JM Lab Cobalt S, 816S's fronts, CC800S central and SR800S's for rears.

As many of you have tried the 1072 and the 1060 for CD playing. Can you value in percentage how much better is the 1072 vs. the 1060?

Thanks

I recently did an in-home comparison between my 1060 and the 1072 (both in analog bypass mode). The difference is subtle, but noticible. With the 1072, there is more depth and width, the bass is deeper, and the music is smoother. By smoother, I mean that some instruments seemed more articulate and independent from the music.

In one piece I was listening too, a background guitar was more clearly present. In another, a triangle (or some such instrument) that had always been there became clear. I never knew what the sound was before; now I can take a guess.

Finally, the most pronounced example I have : Through the 1060 : On Norah Jones - "Sunrise". When she sings "Sunrise, sunrise," the "S's" crack, like Jones was too close to the mic when she made the recording. A slight static-ish sound. I hear it much less pronounced on other recordings too, but my Norah Jones is the newest and most distinct, and I was quite surprised to think that a very recent recording by this artist would have been so poorly recorded. That same track, same disk, through the 1072 is silky smooth, as it was meant to sound (the recording is just fine, and there isn't a scratch or smudge on the disc).

So, that got me to thinking... must be the analog converters in the 1060. If thats the case, the digital PCM signal through the 1068 should not have the same affect. Sure enough, no slight cracking sound through the digital signal. However, the 1068s analog section decreases the sound stage, making the music sound more compressed. I later upgraded my digital cable, which made a significant improvement. The digital out now has almost the same sound quality the 1060 analog had (without the slight cracking sound).

My best guess is that the DACs in the 1060 are optimized for 48k, 96k, 192k (all evenly multiples), and convert the 44.1k CD signal up to 48, whereas the 1072 is most likely optimized for 44.1k signals.

For some, this might be splitting hairs. If you're on a budget and can only afford one, get the 1060 for movie purposes and play CDs through the digital output. After hearing what a difference a dedicated CD transport (is that the correct lingo? transport?) can make, I've given some serious thought to buying the 1072... maybe tomorrow!

[Vicente]

Thank you very much Grit for your long and detailed comment. As I said before it's a pleasure to be member of this forum.

I'd like to be able to get also a 1072 only for CD's, but money and space make it very difficult in my case.

That's why I was asking your opinion on the Denon, because someone told me that this could be the perfect answer to match the CD and DVD worlds.

But it seems that there is not such a piece of equipment for the moment at least for a decent price. And probably it will be more difficult to find from now with the HD-DVD and Blue Ray discs.

I'm waiting now for the 1090 to see if it's better in the video section and compares too with the 1072 in music, but still it's a pity that this new machine would not bring SACD capabilities.

Anyone knows when will it be launched in Europe and how much would it cost?

[Nolan B]

Thank you very much Grit for your long and detailed comment. As I said before it's a pleasure to be member of this forum.

I'd like to be able to get also a 1072 only for CD's, but money and space make it very difficult in my case.

That's why I was asking your opinion on the Denon, because someone told me that this could be the perfect answer to match the CD and DVD worlds.

But it seems that there is not such a piece of equipment for the moment at least for a decent price. And probably it will be more difficult to find from now with the HD-DVD and Blue Ray discs.

I'm waiting now for the 1090 to see if it's better in the video section and compares too with the 1072 in music, but still it's a pity that this new machine would not bring SACD capabilities.

Anyone knows when will it be launched in Europe and how much would it cost?

My dealer told me that the 1090 would be about $3500 in canadian dollars. In Canada that is more expensive then buying the 1060 and 1072...or very close to the same price.

[Stev]

Interesting thread. Im considering the 1072 also - but weighing it up against the 1060. Also spec wise the 1072 is not much different to the RCD 02. Does it sound different ? Do either of the cd players play cd-r's without a problem ? The 1060 if it is close is looking like maybe a better proposition because of its ability to play other formats such as mp3 when required. However no SACD is a bit of a problem - decisions !

Steve

[Taito]

When I assembled my system (stereo only), I was primarily interested in CD performance. So, I A/B'd the RDV-1060 against the RCD-1072 with ONLY CD performance in mind.

This comparision took place about a year ago, so I don't remember specific differences. The RCD-1072 was noticibly better, but not leagues ahead. From a pure sound quality point of view, would I be happy with the RDV-1060 for CD playback duties if the 1072 wasn't right there for direct comparison? Yes.

I did find a few other points fell in favour of the 1072 over the 1060:
1) the 1072 was more responsive. ie. faster to read a disc, skip to tracks etc.
2) from very close to the 1060, you could hear the disc spinning. You could not for the 1072.

Althoug the extra features of the 1060 would have been nice, the fact that I was completely interested in sound, and that the 1060 was more expensive than the 1072 made my choice pretty simple. Having said that, I could happily live with the RDV-1060 as my only digital source (in fact, I may still buy one - I would still keep the 1072 of course).

Hope this helps, Ben.

[fordster]

The 1060 is noticeably better than a RCD-02, it has a better overall soundstage and picks out more detail. The RCD-02 does play CD-Rs with no problem at all, the 1060 does play them but is a little fussier (e.g. I usually have to burn the discs at a lower speed or the player can sometimes struggle to read it, you can hear the drive spinning).

[Taito]

I haven't encountered any CD-R probs with the 1072 at all.

[boe]

I purchased a new CD/DVD player about 8 months ago. Although it was better than what I had, I ended up returning it because it wasn't that dramatic of a difference and I'd rather save the money and put it towards my next BR/HD DVD player whatever it may be. I'm hoping the war is swift and decisive. I believe the war may actually help us as studios may want to put out everything possible on the first round instead of trying to get us to double dip with better sound or more space down the road.