The auction is for the modification only and does not include the Denon DVD-3930 DVD player which must be purchased separately.

This is a service for modifying Denon DVD players (please ask for other manufacturers & models)

Denon’s universal DVD player success kicked off with the DVD-2900 which gave first rate DVD performance at the time and gave audio users the chance to buy into the higher resolution formats SACD & DVD-A at a lower price than offerings from Sony & Marantz (SACD) and Meridian (DVD-A). The DVD-2900 was not all about bells and whistles without any clout; CD replay was comparable to £400.00 CD only players of the time. The auction is for the modification only and does not include the Denon DVD-3930 DVD player which must be purchased separately. 

Two generations later the DVD-3930 sees DVD performance come of age, and with Blu-Ray and HD DVD on the horizon the £839.00 investment is probably going to being as good as it gets for DVD without spending a very hefty sum.

Buyers of the 3930 are unlikely to ignore its CD & SACD and Denon have gone to some effort to improve the 2-channel audio circuitry over its predecessor, the 3910. Take the power supply for example, gone is the shared Switch Mode Power Supply (SMPS) with the video circuits in favour of a dedicated linear power supply solely for 2-channel audio. This idea has stemmed from one of Denon’s older and more costly stable mates the Denon DVD-A1XVA and while not of the same standard is a step in the right direction. Similarly, the audio board uses the latest high-accuracy 24-bit/192-kHz D/A converter for the audio DAC in dual differential configuration.

What does all this equate to in terms of sound? The playback from CD is open, fresh and expressive with a good level of detail retrieval. Bass has good weight, punch and respectable timing and the stereo image is impressively focused. The CD quality begs to be compared with a CD only player of similar price. Take the British mid-price manufacturer Arcam and listen to the CD192 and you here where the Denon is limited with Redbook CD, the Arcam manages deeper, tauter bass lines, a more realistic sense of acoustic space allied with finer detail, tonal nuances. Neither player sounds forcefully aggressive or edgy but the DVD-3930 is more tonally etched and artificial. The auction is for the modification only and does not include the Denon DVD-3930 DVD player which must be purchased separately. 

All that Glitters...

The 3930 has the makings for a serious Red Book CD player, but in its OEM guise they are some serious weaknesses which prevent it from getting there. Working backwards from the 2-channel audio board, it gets off to an excellent start with Burr Brown D/A converters which quickly spirals downwards with "jellybean" op-amps for I/V converter, filtering and buffer stages. Likewise the master clock oscillator is embedded in an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a pierce oscillator which consists of a "gate", the output of this gate provides the square wave (clock signal). The pierce oscillator is highly unstable and very noisy which = jitter.

The digital and analogue blocks of circuitry in the 3930 are all powered from their own regulated power supplies using the industry standard 7805, 7812 & 7912 voltage regulators. The 78 series regulators are renowned for being noisy, with average PSSR of approx. 80db at low frequencies which worsen considerably as frequency increases. These conventional regulators do not react fast enough to (bandwidth) load variations resulting in slow transient response.

The 3930 Unlimited

Both Red Book CD, Super Audio CD, DVD Video & Sound are brought to life by several stages of modifications to the 3930. The modifications stages are divided in to levels of upgrade starting with Level-1 through to Level-3. For practicality reasons we won’t cover all 3 levels but focus on Level-2 which is described in details here.

Level-2 addresses specific bottle necks such as power supply noise & clock jitter accelerate the 3930’s 2-channel audio performance allowing it to stand tall amongst its digital rivals. Starting with power supply regulation for the analogue stage we replace the 7812 & 7912 regulators with the Invisus series 2 discrete regulated power supply boards. These regulators feature (1) very wide bandwidth (2) ultra-low noise (3) high PSRR. The new regulators design means noise is rejected at the input so the circuit being powered is "isolated" from input noise (noise contribution from the Switch Mode Power Supply /SMPS). Compared to the best standard regulator which at best offers 80db rejection, the Invisus regulator will provide a PSRR of 130db across a wide bandwidth. With the new discrete regulated power supplies installed the sense of openness and detailing is incredible; the leading edges of instruments are precisely defined and focused without any blurring. Bass depth and speed is captivating with low and upper bass never becoming muddled through sudden dynamic changes.

These new regulators drive the next stage we upgrade, the filter and buffer stages where the OEM fitted JRC2114 op-amps are replaced with the crème de la crème choice from Analog Device. The new wide bandwidth, very low noise op-amps feature a FET input and excel sonically against the mass of new op-amps being pitched at the audio market. The AD op-amps are de-coupled with Black Gate FK series capacitors for optimum noise filter and sound quality. The audio board modification is completed with a pair of Black Gate N (non-polar) capacitors for output signal coupling. The Black Gate are an unconventional electrolytic whose performance in the signal path exceeds that of many film capacitors. With the N series capacitors in place the music has a level of veiling removed having greater transparency, tonal accuracy, finer detailing, less noise and grain.

The final lap of upgrades replaces the OEM master clock with the Superclock 4-S & Superclock 4 power supply unit. The OEM clock is the on-chip oscillator of the ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Phase noise and power supply injected noise here is high affecting all audio & video formats with "jitter". The most fundamental upgrades of this mod are made by installing an ultra-low jitter external clock with dedicated clock power supply. For this we use the highly acclaimed Superclock 4-S which has an extremely low phase noise oscillator (less than 2 ps jitter RMS) and dramatically improves all areas of CD & SACD playback for the 3930. With the Superclock 4 system installed CD quality betters stand alone CD players at more than twice the price having excellent depth, superb bass control; effortless dynamics. The sound is free of the compression, tonal sharpness that afflict certain recordings with the OEM 3930. DVD Video is also notably improved, colours are more natural, tonal shading better defined, images are cleaner; 2-channel & 5,1 channel sound has improved dynamics, detailing, low frequency depth & control, the sound is more open, cleaner, less compressed.

The auction is for the modification only and does not include the Denon DVD-3930 DVD player which must be purchased separately.

 
How to Order the Modification

The Level-2 modification for the Denon DVD-3930 is available at £625.00 inclusive of labour & VAT (excludes carriage) This Level-2 modification also supersedes any other modification for the Denon DVD-3910 & DVD-2900.

Once you have purchased the Level-2 modification please contact us to schedule and book your Denon 3930, 3910 or 2900 for the installation. We can offer reasonable rates for insured courier collection & return to mainland UK from your home or workplace (excludes weekends).

The modification work is completed with 4-5 working days from receipt of the CD player. The Level-2 modification is covered by a 2 year parts & labour guarantee, this guarantee excludes any OEM parts such as laser & LCD display.

DVD-3930 Transport  Modification

A transport modification can be supplied and installed for Denon DVD players when using an external DAC. This modification includes the Superclock 4 master clock, Superclock 4 power supply, Denon switching power supply upgrade (SMPS for digital), improved noise filtering for DSP & resonance control, This modification is available for all Denon models including the Denon DVD-3930 , DVD-3910 , DVD-2900 , DVD-A11 , DVD-A1  & DVD-2930. The price is £475.00 inclusive of labour & VAT.