Okay.... so anyone know somewhere other then AV-Land advertising the A11?

It's double what I wanted to spend on a DVD so I'm looking for some bargins.

Never mind, after 4 months of messing about waiting for a Pio 757 and then a 868 from one not so useful company I gave AVLAND a call and the nice chap there is going to drop my A11 off tomorrow night on his way home!

I have to say with service like that I don't regret one second the extra money (4 months of headaches and nothing to play with for xmas adds up a lot in my book ).

[gandley]

got mine from avland and the service was fantastic. also had 0 problems with the deck.

be prepared to be blown away. this is an awesome piece of kit


theres another thread running on the A11 be sure to post your comments on the player there when u get

[KraGorn]

Just how future-proof is the Denon? Given that HDCP seems to be a can of worms, judging by the BenQ problems with the 868, and that AIUI HDMI is the 'future' (is the A11 HDMI-compliant?) ... £1700 seems an awful lot to spend on a hope.

[gandley]

DVI-D and HDMI are the same thing bar the audio, so it is compliant as far as video goes so dont see your point

[KraGorn]

Because I was under the impression HDMI isn't cast in stone and could still be changed, thereby invalidating existing devices. AIUI the encryption system used by HDCP is one thing that's still being worked on .. since HDMI = DVI-D + HDCP, change HDCP change HDMI.

Also, since it appears the 868 can't talk to a BenQ then clearly the spec can be implemented wrong somewhere along the chain.

[gandley]

the upgrade to hdmi will be that it will allow multichannel audio to pass. at present hdmi is 2 channel only. HDMI2 will allow up to 8 channels. so basicly what youll be getting is dvi-d + firewire/ilink
in one neat package.

they may change HDCP to also include then DTCP which is the multichannel audio protection.

incompatability issues will no doubt increse as all things move to the digital age. but it does look like some things just require firmware upgrades as manufactures may not have tested there equipment with every product out there

and yes HDMI isnt cast in stone why do you think denon didnt use it and the likes of arcam are waiting and seeing.

Bought mine at Sound and Vision (Bolton) for £1450.

Steve

[KraGorn]

My pessimism about HDCP/DVI/etc seems borne out by this table of incompatibilities .. this is a French web-board but the info is clear, all the players listed are incompatible with at least one popular projector .. the A11 doesn't work with a Z2, AE500 or MT8.

Yeah depressing isn't it.

But it does seem to work with the BenQ I hope to get next month, unlike the 868. And I can at least buy a dvi->dvi cable to plug it in without a problem, unlike trying to source HDMI cables at the moment.

Just leaves a big black hole about finding an iLink compatible Amp later next year. Apparently the Denon doesn't work with the Pio 10Ai I had in mind but does with the Yam AZ9 I'm also looking at.

But hey HD-DVD will be out soon and I'll have to replace it all again.

[Grubert]

Re DVI incompatibility:

Denon has reacted to this problem very quickly and they are releasing a fix. It will require a physical modification and a firmware upgrade.

The German site www.cine4home.de has tested the upgraded A11 with the Z2 and the AE500 at 576p, 720p, and 1080i flawlessly.

So as soon as the upgrade is made available I can change the

into

No word from Pioneer though

[KraGorn]

Originally posted by ailean
But hey HD-DVD will be out soon and I'll have to replace it all again.

That's the thing which is stopping me even considering any player over about £200 ... paying £1400+ for a player incapable of handling HD-DVD, except for M$-controlled HDCD , is something I just can't comprehend ... especially if that player has problems with even current equipment.

Originally posted by Grubert
Denon has reacted to this problem very quickly and they are releasing a fix. It will require a physical modification and a firmware upgrade.

Not a very good ad. for a £1400 player though is it, need to send it back to be 'fixed' to conform to standards .. since it's Denon doing the 'fix' I assume it's the Denon that's broken.

[Arsenal]

Originally posted by KraGorn
That's the thing which is stopping me even considering any player over about £200 ... paying £1400+ for a player incapable of handling HD-DVD, except for M$-controlled HDCD , is something I just can't comprehend ... especially if that player has problems with even current equipment.

My view on this is that even if HD-DVD comes out next week i'm still going to have all my normal dvd's, and when i want to watch them, my Denon A11 is still going to do it better than just about any HD-DVD player would do.. All HD-DVD means is that i need to buy another player, much as i would do with any new format.

RE: Denon fixes, would you prefer if Denon didn't admit to and rectify any incompatibilities? As this would most certainly be the case with any <£200 players you might be looking at. I just hope Denon will also come up with a fix for the ilink compatibility issues.

[gandley]

what about all the over £2000 amps that have to go back for upgrade, or the £1900 arcam decks to have upgrade at . this is the whole point of spending the extra, because it will be updated or have a firmware fix.

i kinda see what your sayin, but the best cant be had for pennys so you enjoy your crappy £200 dvd player. coz im well happy with mine.

but then there will be after a period of time cheap and nasty HD-DVD players and yet some will cost the earth.
somtimes you do just pay for the name, but a good demo soon sorts that out
but take a look at a £200 dvd player next to the A11 and see if u still feel the same. have you actualy seen one output 720p via dvi
or heard its sonic strenghs.
were 1-2 yrs at seeing hd-dvd players in shops, then theres the software. will hd-dvd be cheap, no way back to £20 a disc for sure

i know it comes down to a matter of opinion and choice not to mention taste. hell what hifi say the 868i is a strong sonic performer(yet they rate the denon 2900 higher) but to me it sounds nasty but thats my accoustic taste.or lack of it, again opinion