The front panel features the following; starting from the left we have separate standby-on and power on-off buttons. The disc drawer in the center is positioned above a readout panel. The right side of the front panel has the usual navigational buttons and some very useful controls that enable selection of the video output, format and mode; SACD modes and the ability to switch off video and display circuits.

Listening Evaluation

As always, listening evaluations were done by multiple repetitions (10 to 20 times) of a short segment (30 seconds or less) on one player and then immediately repeating on the other player. This process is repeated several times for each segment used, till I can confidently establish a conclusion. These comparisons are done with both players being level matched, using a pink noise tone and SPL meter.

One important point of note. The mods on the review sample were done on the FL and FR jacks of the 5.1 outputs. This means that if I were to play a 5.1 track, the 2.0 jacks would play a down-mixed version and using the FR/FL jacks would only relay two of six channels of information. This of course is a major issue of you are using this player in a two-channel setup. Chris Johnson confirmed that the mods can be done to the 2.0 jacks (at no additional cost), but have to be specifically requested. Modifying the FR/FL jacks should be the choice for those intending to use the player in a 5.1 setup. Since I used this player in my two-channel setup I will limits my tests to those suitable for such a setup.

The first sets of comparisons were done with the Lexicon RT-10 universal player ($3,500). The following three tracks were used to evaluate SACD playback.

'Cheek to cheek' (Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong; Ella and Louis; Verve;314 589 598-2)
Differences between the players were not easy to discern, it took several iterations of the process described above to reliably identify audible differences. The differences I did find were so small, that I would have to categorize them as 'impressions'. As much as I dislike using such vague terms, I would have to classify the modded Denon as sounding relatively more 'open'and the Lexicon sounding a bit 'darker'. It probably comes down to personal preference on this trait, and I preferred the Denon.

A definitely identifiable sonic trait was that the Denon seemed to highlight the sibilance inherent on this track a little more than did the Lexicon. I would not conclude that this indicates the Denon is a lesser player, but possibly that it renders the HF warts a little more bare.

'They can't take that away from me' (Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong; Ella and Louis; Verve; 314 589 598-2)
I exhausted myself trying to find reliable differences between the two players, but to no avail. Of the variances I did hear, I am not confident that it was indeed perceived by my ears and not by some bias that may have crept into my mind.

As a reviewer, it is nerve-racking to not be able to hear reliable distinctions in sound quality. That is our raison d'être, and if we have nothing to report are we of any use to our readers? Absolutely, says this guy. We can report that there are no reliable differences found; there is value in that too. I would rather report finding no differences, and be accused of having 'tin ears'; than creating fictitious differences and hail myself as 'golden eared'. I will now get off my soapbox before I start foaming at the mouth.

'Big leg woman' (Muddy Waters; Folk Singer; MCA Chess; 088 11 940-2)
I sighed relief on this track when I could hear distinctions again, albeit very slight. The upper-bass and lower-midrange were a bit more detailed on the Denon, while the bass seemed a bit more extended on the Lexicon.

Finally, I compared the CD sections of these two players using the following tracks;

'Yesterdays' (Dave Bruebeck; Nightshift; Telarc; CD83351)
Differences between the two players were very small again. I could not pick out specifics other than the soundstage seemed a bit more expanded on the Denon. Though I dislike using such vague terms, the Denon seemed relatively 'open and airy' compared to a 'darker' presentation by the Lexicon.

'Bass resolution test' (Chesky Records; Chesky Jazz and Audiophile tests Vol2; Chesky; JD68)
The unspecific 'warmer' versus 'open and airy' finding above applies again on this track. The Lexicon definitely had a stronger bass response, which did not seem natural/flat/balanced but certainly was euphonic.

'General Image and resolution test' (Chesky Records; Chesky Jazz and Audiophile tests Vol2; Chesky; JD68)
Perhaps I had fatigued myself during this session, but I was unable to find any reliably identifiable and significant differences.

Next, I compared the CD playback of the Denon to the outstanding E.Sound CD-E3 ($700, previously reviewed).

'Bass resolution test' (Chesky Records; Chesky Jazz and Audiophile tests Vol2; Chesky; JD68)
There were some slight differences on this track. The Denon made the tape hiss standout relatively more and the E.Sound had more punch in the lower bass notes.

'Coming of the Mandinka' (V.M. Bhatt, Taj Mahal, N Ravikiran; Mumtaz Mahal; Waterlily Acoustics; WLA CS46-SACD)
I could not find any significant and reliably identifiable differences on this track.

Having established that the audio quality this player is as good or better than some esteemed competition, I only had one question left to answer. Do the mods improve the sound at all? At first I took the easy way out, and ran comparisons between the modded jacks and the mostly unmodded 2.0 jacks on the same player at moderate volume levels. Several tracks later, I was unable to find any reliable differences. Of course this was not quite a fair comparison, since even the 'unmodded' 2.0 jacks on this player benefit from the upgraded power supply. I needed a stock unit to find the truth.

Walter Liederman of Underwood HiFi obliged, and had a factory-sealed unit expedited. If nothing else this demonstrates his confidence that the modded unit would shine past the stock one. Here are my findings.

'Knives' (Dave Bruebeck; Nightshift; Telarc; CD83351)
I did hear some differences, but they were too inconsistent and small for me to confident in reporting them.

'Liebestraume' (Franz Liszt, Sound & Vision test CD, Sound & Vision)
Again, I heard very small differences, and it seemed like the modded unit had tamed some of the glare in the high frequencies. But again, I would have to say that the differences seemed too small and inconsistent to rely upon.

'The four seasons - Autumn, allegro' (Antonio Vivaldi, I Solisti Italiani, Sonic Boom, Denon, COZ17156)
Switching to a high-resolution made quite a difference. This excellent DVD-Audio recording made a couple of differences quite evident. The most obvious was the increase in the dynamic range, transient peaks seemed higher and rise times seemed faster (a common benefit of output stages operating in class-a). Also, the individual instruments seemed to have cleaned up as it was easier to sonically isolate and identify them.

'Coming of the Mandinka' (V.M. Bhatt, Taj Mahal, N Ravikiran; Mumtaz Mahal; Waterlily Acoustics; WLA CS46-SACD)
The modded unit sounded slightly more detailed, as an example it was easier to hear the start of the tape on the track. A philosophical question for a potential buyer is, do you care if ambient noises are better reproduced or would you rather not hear them? Some dyed-in-the-wool audiophiles would say, "YES! If there is any iota of information in the source I want it, even if it is not pleasant to hear". Others would say "I only want euphonic sounds, noise should be masked as much as possible even if it means lower fidelity". You pick which school you belong to, I am of the former.

'Bass resolution test' (Chesky Records; Chesky Jazz and Audiophile tests Vol2; Chesky; JD68)
So far I had only been able to hear differences on high-rez formats and not on standard redbook. As a final test I pulled out a track on CD I have relied upon many times, and consider it to be of very high resolution. The modded player made the double bass sound a bit fuller and deeper, again transients seemed to rise faster and peak higher. There also was a bit more low-level detail, mostly manifested in ambient noises.

MOD SHOP
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