Denon DCD-1700NE Review
Denon updates its audiophile universal player. The CD/SACD player DCD-1600NE becomes the 1700NE. Perhaps not everything is new, but some things are even better.
by Tom Frantzen
The Japanese high-end manufacturer Denon presents the new generation of its audiophile success model. The fact that Denon is extremely serious with the ambitious DCD-1700NE is evident not only from the price but also from its weight. A hefty nine kilograms, about ten percent more than its predecessor, inspire respect and confidence in the technology. The front panel and essential control elements are made of aluminum; everything seems designed for vault-like precision and durability.
Denon also utilizes solid mechanics and mass to enhance the stability of the device in a way that improves sound quality.
The SACD technology, which is extraordinarily popular in Japan, is of course included here, which is not yet the case with the “more affordable” Denon players. So those who, like me, own significant numbers of what was once the hopeful successor to the CD should pay close attention here. It’s quite a predicament; in the end, SACD won the completely unnecessary format war against DVD-Audio, whose format at least continues in Blu-ray (which in turn beat HD-DVD), but most people couldn’t care less.
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After all the confusion, the CD is good enough for them, or they’re already turning towards streaming instead of physical media. We audiophiles are somewhat left in the cold in terms of offerings; the industry has botched the chance for a technically superior successor to the CD across the board.
Be that as it may, the “crown prince” in Denon’s portfolio plays CDs and SACDs. It goes without saying that we will duly “celebrate” this player with a few rare SACDs, although many can only be found on the used market—and at high prices.
Already the appearance, whether in antique silver or black, is impressive, and the same applies to the workmanship. Simple elegance is the order of the day. Anyway, the price point of around $ is already a statement. Of course, there are also people who spend even more on a disc player, possibly for the last time, and as mentioned, Denon occupies even higher ranks with its top model, but do you know many who spend $ on a CD player? Exactly, we should remind ourselves of that from time to time.
Test Devices
CD players: Lua Appassionato Mk IV Class A, Musical Fidelity M3SCD
Integrated amplifiers: Audionet WATT, Cyrus 3i, Musical Fidelity M3SI
Speakers: DALI Epicon 6, Spendor S3/5, Visaton Vox 252
Cables: Audioquest, Siltech, Supra
Exemplary Architecture
Centrally located in the mechanically optimized chassis is the sophisticated CD/SACD drawer-type drive with a low center of mass; the output is analog via, of course, gold-plated, stable RCA sockets, as befits an audiophile provider and professional broadcast supplier with more than 100 years of experience, especially in this product category. It is worth mentioning that the drive is an in-house development, a proprietary drive equipped with a particularly high-quality “Suppress Vibration Hybrid” technology (S.V.H.), and thus optimized for reduced resonance and vibrations. We have already encountered it several times.
The reading process takes minimal time for a CD drive, but for an SACD transport, it is extremely fast; in fact, we have already had slower CD specialists on the table.
The layers of an SACD can be directly selected.
And the Denon runs quite quietly too. So there seems to be progress here compared to the early universal drives. The error correction could be reduced in this drive, so there are fewer servo activities, which prevents vibrations as well as higher power consumption. The degree of kinship between the two successive players seems to be even closer than between the integrated amplifiers of the 1600/1700 generation. A “Pure Direct Mode”, available both on the device itself and on the remote control, switches off the display and digital outputs for the purist, to prevent even the smallest conceivable interference during playback. Speaking of which, one coaxial and one optical digital output are offered for connection to the digital outside world.
In doing so, the Denon actually has everything it needs on board in excellent quality. The converter section is exquisitely equipped with the 32-bit PCM1795 chip from Texas Instruments; here too, the Japanese sound specialist relies on an in-house technology called “Advanced AL32 Processing Plus”, which has been developed and proven over decades. This involves meticulous signal processing using special algorithms and customized digital filters that interpolate and further refine the signal. Lost information is thus supposed to be restored and the digital signal approximated to the original analog signal.
With the “Plus” generation, another level of perfection was implemented years ago. One notices that this is a complex process that goes far beyond “upsampling” when listening to MP3 files processed in this way. Of course, the compression cannot be completely reversed, but listening to MP3 becomes enjoyable! Such a sentence doesn’t come easily from me.
CD, SACD, and DVD without image
And of course, AL32 Processing Plus also takes care of CD/SACD and Hi-Res files. A careful master clock design sets the pace in Denon’s micro-universe and ensures low-jitter precision and first-class timing, which is known to be of crucial importance in the “digital domain”.
At Denon, an experienced “Sound Master” takes care of tuning the devices, which goes beyond obvious things like optimized short signal paths. This is done through meticulous listening tests down to the component level, meaning that different capacitors in the same circuit are actually listened to and compared…
An outstanding feature of the Denon DCD-1700NE is the fact that, in addition to CD and, of course, SACD—which is rare enough—it even reads DVD formats. Although you cannot output movies or multi-channel sound, you can play high-resolution audio formats like DSD, WAV, or FLAC. For this, a DVD-R/RW with your own material offers outstanding capacities and playback times, especially with MP3. Such a DVD can run for several hours even at decent data rates—ideal for a party… Especially the DVD playback capability, in conjunction with hi-res music up to 24-bit/192 kHz (PCM) and DSD, is a playground like no other and definitely a purchase argument.
As a CD player, the Denon sounds detailed, sophisticated, and almost spectacularly clear, spacious and spirited, delivering lively impact and playing down to the lower registers with body, pressure, and colorfulness. It presents itself as elegantly and smoothly as it looks. Sonically, it can keep up nicely with the champions of this class. But with SACD and DVD, it still holds a trump card that can hardly be argued away. We insert “Rumours” by Fleetwood Mac and listen literally enraptured. This is followed by Dire Straits, Clapton, Pink Floyd, some from Living Stereo. Compared to CD, SACD lifts another slight veil; it’s hard to comprehend that this format is so underestimated and almost consigned to oblivion. This ultimately makes this Denon interesting even for people like me and their ample collections of corresponding silver discs.
Denon DCD-1700 NE Specs
Price: around $ (Black or Silver)
Dimensions: 44x14x39 cm (WxHxD)
Warranty: 2 years
www.soundunited.com
- Signal to Noise Ratio (Digital Zero): 91.4 dB
- Output Impedance (Cinch): 126 Ohm
- Output Voltage (Cinch at 0 dBFS): 2.38 V
- Total Harmonic Distortion at -9dBFS: 0.061%
- Jitter: 2.7 ns
- Deviation from Nominal Sampling Frequency (fs): 7.5 ppm
- Data Stream Amplitude: 523 mV
- Insertion Time: 10.2 s
- Surface Disturbances: 2 mm
- Track Disturbances: 3 mm
- Power Consumption Standby/Idle: 0.5 W / 15 W
High-quality processed and musically performing CD/SACD universal player, which is also capable of playing DSD and high-res formats from DVDs (!). Compared to the 1600 NE, only discreetly revised.
Measurements
Lab Comment
- Overview: Very low distortion and excellent signal-to-noise and jitter values. The 126 Ohm output impedance is suitable for long cables, ensuring high reading reliability. Notably good insertion time for an SACD drive, quiet operation.
Verdict
Features
- Remote Control: Included
- Drive: CD/SACD, also reads DVD-R/RW with audio data from MP3 over DSD to FLAC/WAV
- Outputs: Analog Cinch and digital Coaxial/Toslink
- Special Functions: Switches to Pure Direct mode, turning off the display and digital outputs for enhanced audio purity.
Test
- Sound Quality CD: 66% (converted to 10-point scale: 6.6/10)
- Price/Performance: Excellent (converted to 10-point scale: 10/10)
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The newest CD & SACD player from DENON DCD-1700NE //HI-FI NEWS CHANNEL // REVIEW
The Japanese company DENON has introduced a new CD and Super audio CD player, labeled DCD-1700NE, featuring its ...
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