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Denon Electronics has announced that it will begin shipping its S-5BD BD/Receiver in Canada in April at an MSPR of $2,049. Announced at CES in January, the S-5BD received an International CES Innovations 2010 Design and Engineering Award. It combines a Blu-ray player and 5.1-channel A/V receiver rated at 5x75 watts in a one stylish component. The player has full BD-Live capability, so that it can download and play supplementary content for Blu-ray movies with BD-Live links.
The three HDMI inputs (including one on the front panel) and HDMI output all adhere to the new HDMI 1.4 spec, with support for the audio return channel. This allows a TV to send audio back to the A/V receiver, eliminating the need for extra digital or analog audio cables. Standard-definition programming such as DVD movies can be upconverted to high-definition, up to 1080p. The S-5BD also has an SD/SDHC memory-card slot, and a USB port with full support for iPod connectivity.
The S-5BD supports high-resolution surround-sound formats, including Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. It also has Dolby Pro Logic IIz processing (for producing height information with the addition of an extra amplifier and elevated front speakers) and Dolby Virtual Speaker (for producing surround effects with only two front speakers). And it employs Audyssey's MultiEQ room-correction system, which automatically measures and adjusts key audio parameters such as speaker type and equalization. Another Audyssey feature, Dynamic Volume, smoothes out disruptive changes in volume levels, for example when a TV program goes to commercial. Audyssey Dynamic EQ corrects frequency response, so that the sound remains rich even at low volume levels.
The component has multi-room/multi-zone capability. Users can have 3.1-channel audio in one room and two-channel audio in another; or employ external amplifiers and 5.1- or 7.1-channel audio in the main room and stereo audio in a remote room.
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2 comments »
fatcow March 16, 2010, 18:17 pm
Paul E, this unit is geared towards a completely separate target demographic. For my bedroom, for example, there is no way I want to put a BD player and a receiver (or the need of 120Wx7 for that matter). Also it looks elegant and uncluttered.
Paul E. March 11, 2010, 16:05 pm
I don't see how anybody would want to be tied down to this Denon combo product, what if the player goes? Also the measly output of 75 W. A blue ray player can be had for less than $150 and a decent AVR with at least 120 W per X 7 channels for around $1000. Why would anyone shell out 2 grand for an under overpriced achiever?
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