Afternoon all. I'm a bit new at this hifi chat, so please excuse any school-boy blunders. I have sort of inheritied an Arcam Delta 90 amp and Delta 70.2 CD player from my Dad. I have always liked the sound but havent really heard anything else to compare. I am aware that the system is rather old these days, and as im buying a new DVD anyway, im wondering whether i should be looking at high quality DVD and Audio players, with replacing the 70.2 in mind. Am i likely to get a better CD sound quality from, say, a DV79 than i will from the 70.2?

Imput appreciated!!

Hi Ozzy, it partially depends on the quality of DVD player you plan to buy, what kind of budget are you looking to allow?

Hi, I would prefer to keep it at around £700. In that price range i have seen the Arcam DV78, which i believe is a good standard CD and DVD player, and the Denon 2910. The Denon has had some fairly poor reviews though, whereas feedback on the Arcam has generally been positive. (I am aware of the need to go for a test and make my own judgements however!) My preference has been for the Arcam, especially as i will probably add an AVR250 Receiveer at some future date. My thoughts are, however, that if the Delta 70.2 Cd player compares well to modern DVD players of this standard, than i could look for a more specialised DVD player which would produce a better picture for the same money. If, however, the 70.2 is outperformed by mjodern DVD players, then i would probably go for an Arcam DV79, which supposedly has superior CD performacne to the DV78. As you can see, i cannot see the wood for the trees!! Help!

By all accounts the Delta offers amazing CD playback as I'm sure you know. The DV79, however, is a brilliant DVD player and a brilliant CD player. I don't know for sure if it is 'better' at CD playback than the Delta, but like you say it's important to get a demo. One of the key advantages is that the Arcam is DVD-A and (I think) SACD compatible so this should be of major importance to you if these formats are likely to be something you'll want to make use of.

I have just replaced an old Toshiba DVD player and a Cambridge Audio cd player with a Denon 3910 DVD/CD/SACD/DVD-A player (cost £790 - but you can get them more cheaply) and have been completely blown away by it on older CDs as well as newer SACD material. I have posted about this elsewhere.

A similar priced CD player will no doubt be better than even this Denon unit but you have to be getting very serious then.

The only thing that will really let you decide is a demo with your own material. Is this practical for you?

Stuart

All comments appreciated guys! Yeah i think i will definately go and get a demo of anything before i buy it. I have been in contact with Arcam, and was told that the DV78 and especially the DV79 will greatly outperorm the Delta 70.2 in terms of CD playback quality. I just need to decide whether i want a DV78 or 79, but it seems sensible to go for the latter, as it has a degree of 'future-proofing' with the HDMI that may come in handy when HD becomes commonplace. This is assuming it provides the standard of CD qulaity that im looking for in the demo of course. Incidentally, my brother told me newer Arcam stuff often sounds a bit bright in comparison to thier older stuff. Comments?

No DVD player is going be that future proof given that the replacement for DVD is already selling well in Japan and recorders have already been introduced. It will only be a few years before blue-ray/HD-DVD come here.

My Denon does HDMI, DVI and has firewire interconnection but I know it has a shelf life of only a few years. Sky HD broadcasts start in 2006. Of course the Denon, and your Arcam, will not stop doing what they do. Whilst the initial high definition equipment will be expensive, it is likely that it follow the price drop profile of DVD and DVD-Recordable but quicker (like DVD has been compared to past technologies).

Stuart

Well in that case, would it sensible to perhaps look for a second hand set-up for the short term, with a view to updating to this newer technology in the next couple of years? I would rather that than spend a fortune on a new set-up only to find it massively outdated in a couple of years!!

Always the risk you take with these things the next 'big thing' is always just around the corner. Maybe at the moment though it could be best to go second hand or just wait for a while, I suggest you do a bit of research and see yourself and then decide whether you want to spend alot of money on new equipment at this particular moment.