Denon DVD A1 - Prog Scan and DL problems

[ColinII]

In the last two weeks I have purchased a Denon DVD A1 and an A1SR amplifier. I have a couple of problems

1/ The A1 has been supplied with the Second Edition of the Denon Link. The A1SR is not recognising the DL signal. As the A1SR DL socket does not have an SE on it I presume it is using the first edition of the DL. Hence the A1 can't talk to the A1SR via the DL. Given the DL is a main part of the reason I bought this combination this is bit of a nightmare. Does anyone know what the situation is with getting the A1SR upgraded to the Second edition of the DL? I really hope it doesn't involve a hardware change.....

2/ My reputable dealer gave me an A1 firmware upgrade for MR and PAL progressive. When I tried this I put the disk in the machine and expected it to load and write the upgrade. However, instead it treated the disk as a CD-R and took me to a directory screen. On the left panel was ROOT and in the right ROOT-0. Pressing enter on either of these had no impact whatsoever on the player. I am a bit loathe to try anything else as my dealer told me if the firmware upgrade went wrong it could lock the DVD player.

Has anyone found themselves in this situation?

Any words of advice much appreciated..... it's a bit miserable having spent a fortune on this gear and finding I am still miles away on picture and (probably) audio quality.

[Jules]

Hi Colin.

I have an upgraded A1SE (1st edition link) and a 2nd edition D-Link on my DVDA-1, and I have the same problem you have with the Link.
Its very frustrating isnt it?

Denon are supposidely carrying out a 'free' upgrade 'soon', but I've been waiting for it for months and Denon don't seem to care how long it takes them to sort out the logistics.
Anyway its only a software update, no new hardware is required.
Unfortunately, this still has to be done by Denon for some legal reason.
The last I heared was that they would start the upgrades in May. But now its June, so who knows?
I wonder what trading standards would have to say about it.

With regards to your DVD-A1 firmware, I'm guessing here, but I'd say the files have been burnt to disc incorrectly (i.e not at root).

I'd try reburning them yourself correctly.
If that doesn't work, I'd be happy to email you the firmware my dealer gave me (my machine has a 10/2002 build date).
It worked great for me, but just remember some DVDA1's are different and need different firmware.
If its not the right one, then your machine will die!
So if you choose the 2nd option, do so at your own risk.

On a lighter note, congratulations on otherwise brillant peices of kit. I'm sure you'll be pleased with your purchase in the end.

let us know how you get on.

Good luck
Jules

[BabylonP]

Colin

1) Jules is correct Denon have been saying soon for the DL SE upgrade for ages and I know they have had it since Mid April as a senior engineer at Haden Labs told me. So why still the wait ??

2) It sounds as if you have a firmware that is designed for the DL first edition on the A1 as they changed the file names, hence the files are treated as a data disk. You need a correct SE firmware disk.

To be honest If you have just purchased them I would go back to you dealer and ask for a replacement A1SR that is DL SE capable(I am told they are available) and they sould carry out the upgrade for the A1 as you purchased it I would guess as a MR player. Give them the problem don't forget you are the customer.

I do get the feeling that the dealer is not quite sure what they are doing. I would be interested to know who it is.

Phil

[ColinII]

Phil,

The dealer is getting hold of a SE A1SR for me to swap with my existing machine (which I have had for <20 days). It should arrive tomorrow so I'll tell you how I get on.

Interesting that the firmware upgrade might be the wrong one as well. Again, I'll pursue this with them and keep you in the picture.

The dealer has in fact been doing OK. The purchase all got a little tricky though when the chap I was primarily dealing with (and seemed particularly on the ball) disappeared for quite a while due to sickness.

[BabylonP]

Colin

Pleased to hear your getting it sorted. When you do its a great double act. I have been consistently surprised at just how well the two perform.

Happy viewing

Phil

[ColinII]

My dealer kept to their agreed schedule and duely replaced my A1SR with a new unit with the second edition digital link. They also ran the firmware upgrade on my A1. And as Phil and Jules rightly say above, it needs to be the specific A1 Second edition DL firmware upgrade (glad I learnt that here - I had to tell my dealer!).

Anyway, it's all in place and.....

Really great! The issues I had with the sound quality before have all been sorted out. Interestingly the CD quality has now shot up, being not far off the quality from MF 308 (£2000) run through the A1SR so this might be an option for some people. So it was worth the wait and once I have fine tuned some more I'll post a better review of the system.

Thanks all.

[BabylonP]

Glad to hear that Colin.

Now all I need is for Denon to get off thier butts and get the SE upgrade sorted out for my A1SR

Phil