Denon DVD-5910CI Measurements & Analysis
Unfortunately, I have not fully set up all of my Audio Precision test suites to run the full compliment of analog audio tests but this is a work in progress. In the meantime, I did some spot checking via the analog outputs to verify the DVD-5910CI is up to redbook standards.
Running some test signals, I was able to confirm via my analog oscilloscope that the DVD-5910CI had no problems handling 0dBFS+ signal levels as some players often have, especially when they engage their upconverting processing.
See: Issues with 0dBFS+ levels on Digital Playback Systems
I also measured signal jitter via digital coax and toslink and found both interfaces to be extremely low with the latter being slightly lower than the former which measured at an impressive 130psec. In comparison, I connected the worst DVD player I own to my Audio Precision test gear - the Xbox gaming system. I measured a whopping 1.87nsec of jitter which was about 14 times worse than I measured on the DVD-5910CI.
I also threw up a digital Eye pattern to see just how well the digital signals of the DVD players were transmitting. The Red line shows the AES3 limits as per standard. A CD/DVD player must be able to produce an eye pattern via its SPDIF outputs outside the vertical limits of the red box in order to properly transmit the signal. The Eye pattern (green - represents the DVD-5910CI, Blue - represents the XBOX) should follow a similar shape to the red AES pattern. In the real world you will never have a perfect rectangular shaped eye pattern as per AES3 but the more box like it is, the less bandwidth roll off and jitter the interface will suffer from. As you can see, both players meet the AES3 standard just fine, but the DVD-5910CI's eye pattern is superior to that of the XBOX (no surprise there). For skeptics thinking all digital outputs are created equally, think again! It's clear as to why the DVD-5910CI exhibited such a low noise floor. Aside from its excellent component usage and layout, the player was carefully designed for the lowest amount of jitter possible making it a robust design that will work flawlessly with any processor/receiver. Bravo!
Editorial Note About Jitter:
Jitter is effectively the difference in time between when an event should happen and when it actually occurs. Jitter can affect clock signals, data signals or both and if allowed to pass unchecked through an audio system, it can lead to very poor audio performance, introduction of errors, high distortion and audio dropouts.Jitter can introduce problems in two areas of an audio system - at the digital interface or at the audio converter. If jitter occurs at the digital interface, it can cause a loss of lock and data corruption. If it is caused at the audio converter, it can cause sampling inducted errors, distortion and out of band noise.
