I just picked up a Denon DVD-3800 player for a whopping $20. Didn't get the remote, which will end up costing me more than the player. It appears this was the second from TOTL Denon DVD player (which was the DVD-A1 MSRP $6,999!!!). In production from 2002 to '03, the DVD-3800 had an MSRP of $2,999.

Not sure what to do with this as it is way more UPMARKET than I am used to. I'll order the remote and manual from Denon and take it from there.

Lordy! Where's the pic—what does a $3K dvd player look like?

Congrats, that's a really really great score! That's one of the flagships of Denon.Awesome!!!
Enjoy.

Here is an info page on the DVD-3800:

http://www.michaeldvd.com.au/HardwareRevie.../Denon3800.html

This MONSTER weighs 22 pounds! I got the black version.

Let me show you what a great guy I really am and give you a hand with that...

Superb unit, Sam. I envy you.

Jorge

Damn! That's fine. Dontcha just hate those missing remotes. Let us know how she performs.

I played an audio CD and it sounds terrific. Smooth and cultured with plenty of detail. I finally found my S-Video cable and I'm still looking for my optical output cable so I can use the DVD-3800 as it was intended. I've been reading reviews and the DVD-3800 is regarded as having superior picture and sound but runs hot and is unreliable. I've run my 3800 all evening and it is barely above room temperature so I am encouraged.

I'm finally going to bump my cheapo Sony DVD player and try the DVD-3800 tonight. I'm going to play it through my Luxman R-117 and Yamaha NS-1000M's. Granted it is not HT as I am resisting buying a multi-channel amp. I'm not into HT or video but I'm hoping for some improvement. I'll post my thoughts later.

BTW, this player was state of the art just 5 years ago. With the impending switch to HDTV and 1080p, the DVD-3800 will become obsolete along with my CRT Sony Trinitron. One of these days, I'll get a LCD TV.

Sam, I've got a decent and quality Philips S-video cable I'll send you gratis if you'd like, if your current S-video cable isn't so hot.

Just say the word...

$20, wow! nice score!

Thanks Thed! You are a gentleman!! Hang on to your cable cause my DVD-3800 isn't up to par. Read on...

My euphoria is starting to wear off. It appears the first production batch dated Feb, 2002 had "issues" that weren't worked out until the Nov, 2002 production run. Mine is a Feb, 02. Aparently they have a problem with the laser pickup which causes artifacts or ghosting. Most were repaired but it appears mine was not. These is also something else mechanical going on in the tranport that cause a plastic on plastic noise that a $3k machine should never have let alone a $49 special. Anyways, it plays CDs and DVDs but it is definitely sick.

I'm debating whether to take the plunge and get it fixed but with the impending demise of 480 to 1080p, I'm wondering if it is worth the cost.