Arcam DV79 review (kind of long)

DVD-Audiobahn

New DVD-Audio music releases and talk about the latest players.

This weekend I tested the DV79 and CD33 head-to-head through my Arcam A32 integrated amp (the A32â€™s remote control makes the testing easy). I first played Bela Fleck's Tales from an Acoustic Planet, Volume II. I put the CD in the CD33, and the DVD-A in the DV79. The result here was that it was tough to judge the winner. The advanced resolution (in two channels) didn't make a dramatic sound improvement to my ears. The only difference I could detect was a bit more space between the instruments on the DVD-A. Both players sounded excellent with this acoustic material: the bass was tight, the banjo plunked reassuringly, and you could hear the metal in the guitar strings, as if the musicians were in the room.
I also A/B tested the players using the same CD: Lucinda Williams' Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. Wow -- the DV79 did very well against the CD33. In this first test I had a tough time distinguishing between the two. I used headphones (Sennheiser HD650s) and speakers (Definitive Power Monitor 900s). I'm not certain I could tell the players apart in a blind test. Of course I only tested one CD in this case; Iâ€™ll try some other CD tests soon.
On the audio front I conclude that the DV79 can do very well as a combined CD/DVD-A player. On the other hand, owning the CD33 makes two-channel, advanced-resolution audio less relevant, at least on my system, especially in light of the very limited DVD-A selection. Iâ€™m curious if anyone can point out where I should listen for differences between the two players.
I also wonder at what price point will one notice a significant improvement with DVD-A music in two channels. The audio components in my system are audiophile grade (and not cheap), and yet DVD-A doesn't jump out as a major improvement. Do I need $10k speakers to get smacked in the face by DVD-A? Or does a good CD player give you sufficient two-channel resolution?
Finally, the DV79 looks great via HDMI on my Panasonic 6UY ED plasma. This is the picture Iâ€™ve been waiting for. I even got the chance to compare Matrix Reloaded in HD (from HBO) with the DVD on the Arcam player. I viewed the HD broadcast and DVD a day apart, but suffice it to say that the DVD held its own on my display. I also watched scenes from Finding Nemo: not my favorite movie, but a great test piece. I'm not a video expert, but I canâ€™t imagine getting a better picture from a DVD player. The all-digital image was stunning, and the colors were vibrant. I got to enjoy what I was watching, instead of thinking about what was wrong.
So at this point I can sit back and enjoy music and movies. For a while, at least. ;-)

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Topic - Arcam DV79 review (kind of long) - gregeas 08:26:09 05/10/04 (1)

Re: Arcam DV79 review (kind of long) - Jesper 12:28:17 05/10/04 (0)

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