Playing SACD and DVD-A with a Denon 1920. I'm confused and clueless.

[pathighgate]

This morning I picked up a Denon 1920 DVD player as an upgrade to an older Panasonic. One of the things I looked for when purchasing was the ability to play SACDs and DVD-A.

I picked up a few titles (Peter Gabrial’s ‘Us’ and Beck’s ‘Sea Chain’), and once I got the DVD setup, I tried to play them. The player would recognize them as SACD discs and start playing, but there’s no audio. At all.

I have the Denon hooked up to a Marantz 7500 via an optical digital cable. While playing DVDs, you can hear the sound (and it’s quite good). But nothing with SACDs.

The instruction manual (from what I’ve read) isn’t really clear, but it almost seems to say that SACDs can’t be played in any digital mode.

My question is, is there a way (perhaps some configuration I’ve missed) to play SACDs via the digital optical cable? If not, if I plugged the included RCA type cables from the DVD to the receiver, would I then get sound? And if so, how would I be able to listen to multi-channel SACD recordings? Or should I head back to Magnolia asking for an exchange?

Thanks for the help. I hope it’s just a mis-configured menu setting I’ve somehow overlooked. I’ve reset the unit (initialized) and even with all default settings, it won’t play the audio.

[jvgillow]

On that DVD player you need to use the analog 5.1 output to hear SACDs. That connection will also allow you to hear the high-quality 5.1 mixes on DVD-A discs.

[pathighgate]

Thanks. It had to be something like that. At least now I can listen to the SACDs. I'm anxious to see exactly how much better the audio is.

Out of curiosity, why on Earth do you suppose they did it that way? I'm not sure as to why the digital connection can't handle SACDs and DVD-A discs, since it seems to handle the multi-channel audio from video DVDs.

[DidHeFocus]

[QUOTE=pathighgate]Thanks. It had to be something like that. At least now I can listen to the SACDs. I'm anxious to see exactly how much better the audio is.

Out of curiosity, why on Earth do you suppose they did it that way? I'm not sure as to why the digital connection can't handle SACDs and DVD-A discs, since it seems to handle the multi-channel audio from video DVDs.[/QUOTE]Digital copy protection. The digital connection can handle it, but the SACD specification forbids it. You may be able to play DVD-A discs thru the digital connection but not in 5.1. My Samsung 941 can, but not my Pioneer 563a.

[TerryJ]

[QUOTE=pathighgate]Thanks. It had to be something like that. At least now I can listen to the SACDs. I'm anxious to see exactly how much better the audio is.

Out of curiosity, why on Earth do you suppose they did it that way? I'm not sure as to why the digital connection can't handle SACDs and DVD-A discs, since it seems to handle the multi-channel audio from video DVDs.[/QUOTE]
The digital (optical and coax) connections (as designed specifically for home audio applications) don't have enough bandwidth to convey the full hi-res SACD/DVD-A information. (Dolby Digital & DTS, on the other hand, are highly compressed, and thus, can "fit through the pipe", so to speak.) One of the reasons this was all designed this way, apparently, is for copy protection. (I guess they didn't want the high res data to be able to be copied... but, obviously, lower res/compressed audio isn't as much of a concern.)

So... decoding is done in the player and the signal is then conveyed via 6 analog cables to your receiver.

Anyway... SACD and DVD-As... sound quite a bit better to me than CDs. More for the increased resolution, I suspect (although the multi-channel aspect adds a lot too.)

-Terry

[mooneydriver]

[QUOTE=pathighgate]I picked up a few titles (Peter Gabrial’s ‘Us’ and Beck’s ‘Sea Chain’), and once I got the DVD setup, I tried to play them. The player would recognize them as SACD discs and start playing, but there’s no audio. At all.[/QUOTE]
As others suggested, you should be able to enjoy SACDs once you get six additional cables for the 5.1 analog setup. However, note that the SACD track on Peter Gabriel's Us is in high-resolution stereo (2 channel). It does not have multichannel audio, so SACD reproduction will be limited to 2.0 channels (or 2.1, if you can figure out how to configure bass management on the 1920).

PG's "Up," on the other hand, is multi-channel.

[pathighgate]

Thanks to everyone for the information.

After I got home today, I hooked up the DVD player through the analog outputs in the back to the analog inputs in the receiver. Voilla! The SACDs played.

The result? Pretty dang good, but just a tad under my expectations. This may or may not have something to do with the cables (I packed up the good ones last Summer when I went compleatly digital, and rather then spend all evening rummaging through boxes in the garage, I found three pair of old, crummy 'it comes with the player' cords.

I'm not a cable expert, and I really can't say yet that they make any difference, but I doubt it would hurt to put better lines on it. If better cables don't fill the gap, I won't be too disapointed. It still sounds pretty dang good.

Thankfully, I won't (or shouldn't) have to play with bass management. My beloved Klipsch handled everything very well, and had enough clean bass to rattle the windows at higher levels. During one recording I had to get up and close to the center and the rears to see if they were playing. They weren't. I've spent so much time watching movies lately I'd forgotten how nice two channel audio is, especially with the clarity and imaging of the Klipsch.


Now I'm chomping at the bit to get some more SACD recordings. Any 'wow' recordings out there that anyone can reccomend?

[Neville]

I thought I read somewhere that the higher end models of Denon and Pioneer Elite allow iLink to send SACD to the receiver thus avoiding the 6 rca cables. Apparently it improves the sound, possibly because it now uses the "better" onboard DACS of the receiver??

[Hammerli]

The 1920 is mid line, and thus does not have Denon Link. You have to go to the 3910, two models up, to get Denon Link in the current line-up. The rumored 2930 should have it, and maybe even the 1930, but I don't expect that.

[QUOTE=Neville]I thought I read somewhere that the higher end models of Denon and Pioneer Elite allow iLink to send SACD to the receiver thus avoiding the 6 rca cables. Apparently it improves the sound, possibly because it now uses the "better" onboard DACS of the receiver??[/QUOTE]

[mooneydriver]

[QUOTE=pathighgate]Now I'm chomping at the bit to get some more SACD recordings. Any 'wow' recordings out there that anyone can reccomend?[/QUOTE]
Here are a few classics which were remastered exceptionally well for multichannel hi-res audio:
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon (SACD)
Eagles - Hotel California (DVD-A)
Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (DVD-A)
Dire Straits - Brothers in Arms (both formats, but some people claim the DVD-A is better)

[locomo]

[QUOTE=DidHeFocus]Digital copy protection. The digital connection can handle it, but the SACD specification forbids it. You may be able to play DVD-A discs thru the digital connection but not in 5.1. My Samsung 941 can, but not my Pioneer 563a.[/QUOTE]

My player does put out Stereo 176.4 PCM SACD over coax digital.
So not all payers can do that?

[rynberg]

[QUOTE=locomo]My player does put out Stereo 176.4 PCM SACD over coax digital.
So not all payers can do that?[/QUOTE]

No it doesn't. It may output 176 PCM, but not SACD.

[locomo]

So does the player "upconvert" or what?
Thanks

[Cap'n Jazz]

[QUOTE=mooneydriver]Here are a few classics which were remastered exceptionally well for multichannel hi-res audio:
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon (SACD)
Eagles - Hotel California (DVD-A)
Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (DVD-A)
Dire Straits - Brothers in Arms (both formats, but some people claim the DVD-A is better)[/QUOTE]
I would add The Who's "Tommy" to that list. Also check out the DVD-A of The Flaming Lips' "Yoshimi Vs. The Pink Robots" and the 30th Ann. Edition of Queen's "A Night At The Opera," which is in DTS 24/96, and will run through your optical connection, but sounds really good and has some cool surround effects.