Description
MCINTOSH MVP 851 DVD AUDIO VIDEO PLATER in Mint Condition An excellent DVD player: that lives up to its name and reputation! The MVP851 DVD-Audio/Video player represents McIntoshs foray into the world of full-featured DVD-A players. Whether MVP stands for most valuable performer or merely McIntosh video player remains to be seen. Lets take a bite of the latest fruit from McIntoshs orchard.The Core The MVP851 can handle DVD-Audio, DVD-Video, DVD-R, Video CD, CD-R/RW, MP3, and standard Red Book CDs. Only SACDs wont pass through its circuits. Burr-Brown 24-bit/192kHz D/A converters and built-in Dolby Digital and DTS decoders provide the MVP851 with optimal analog audio.For CDs, the MVP851 includes a special digital remastering circuit that upsamples 44.1kHz CDs to 88.2kHz. It also redithers them to achieve a longer digital word length to simulate the sound quality of DVD-Audio. With its three different remastering settings, the listener can choose the exact amount of upper-frequency extension preferred.The MVP851s video circuits include a 12-bit, 54MHz video D/A converter and front-panel-switchable 480i/480p component output. Regardless of what kind of disc you play, the digital servomotor, the fast and quiet platter mechanism, and the dual-focus lens make for quick disc reads. Options for field- or frame-selected still images, five-speed scan, and variable slow-motion speed ensure that freeze-frames and slo-mo pictures will be clear and jitter-free. For playing back less-than-perfect sources, McIntosh includes several noise-reduction circuits. Basic NR can be accessed from the front panel, while the onscreen display menu lets you access more sophisticated filters with different levels of 3D digital noise reduction.The MVP851s rear panel leaves plenty of room for connecting cables. Unlike many DVD players, the MVP851 has only one set of S-video, composite, and component outputs. If you need to feed multiple systems of the same type from an MVP851, youll have to do so through an external video distribution amp, an option most professional installers will encourage—such devices can drive long runs of video cable far better than any DVD player.The remaining output options include one set of 5.1-channel analog audio, one pair of single-ended audio, one pair of XLR balanced audio, optical TosLink digital audio, and coaxial digital audio. Again, some installations may be cramped by so few outputs, but I suspect that reviewers and other devotees of A/B comparisons are the ones who will be most bothered by the lack of redundant outputs. Of course, if the MVP851 is coupled to a McIntosh A/V processor, such as the MX134 pre-pro or MHT200 receiver, its output connections should prove quite sufficient—the MVP851 was designed with just such a mate in mind.Like the many McIntosh components before it, the MVP851s front panel is a shiny black glass face with green backlit labels—the classic design looks just as elegantly au courant now as it did when first introduced in the late 50s. Symmetrically arranged buttons line the panels lower edge, and although the front panel lacks a jog/shuttle control, all other critical controls are present. Even the Power switch, usually found on a high-end components rear panel, sits on the MVP851s front, right next to Standby/On. Besides standard Play, Pause, Stop, FF/Next, Back/Rev, and Open/Close buttons, the MVP851 has Re-Master, MPG DNR, and Progressive/Interlace. Putting the P/I switch on the front, along with a small red LED to indicate which scan mode is engaged, makes life much easier. Being able to tell at a glance whether the player is outputting an interlaced or progressive signal saves a lot of aggravation during setup. McIntosh understands: ergonomics count.Although its based on a Panasonic RP91 chassis (except for the platter mechanism and video board), everything on the MVP851 has been replaced with proprietary McIntosh circuits. Instead of Panasonics stock digital switching power supply, the MVP851 uses a massive R-core power transformer—the same kind of transformer used for power amps. This level of technical overkill reappears throughout the MVP851s interior. With its top-quality parts and elegant circuit designs, the MVP851 represents McIntoshs thinking on what it takes to make the ultimate DVD player.Many a fine DVD player is tripped up by a bad remote control, but the MVP851s is among the best Ive used. Not only does it light up at the push of a button, its topography is logical and easy to use. A centrally located jog/shuttle control divides the remotes real estate in half, the more frequently used buttons above, the chapter and mode buttons below. The remote had excellent range—rarely did I have to push a button more than once to achieve the desired effect.Scrapple from the Apple Using the MVP851s basic setup menus, you can adjust all the standard settings: aspect ratio, black level, audio output level, channel balance, speaker size, rear-channel delay, and still mode. The bass-management crossover is fixed at the THX standard of 80Hz, and listening tests indicated that it functions on the DVD-Audio outputs. Other critical picture adjustments are found in a separate Display menu: sharpness, contrast, brightness, color intensity, tint, gamma, progressive transfer mode, video processing mode, high sharpness, edge sharpness, vertical sharpness, and three types of noise reduction (3D, block, and mosquito).All of this is similar to the feature set found on current-production Panasonic players. Having reviewed a few Panasonic-based players, SGHT Editor Tom Norton assures me that this arrangement can become second nature. Still, first-time users of the MVP851 will spend some time scratching their heads and turning pages in the owners manual as they negotiate its ins and outs. I wish all controls were in a single menu.Speaking of the manual, its far better than many Ive seen, but its not perfect. It doesnt fully detail all of the MVP851s features, including the players ability to remember an individual discs settings—a significant attribute. The MVP851 can remember the complete setup parameters for 200 movies. For especially well-mastered movies, such as Sonys Super Bit Map version of The Fifth Element, the MVP851 can retain your preferences for Fine picture detail and no noise reduction. When you watch mediocre video transfers such as Xena: Warrior Princess, it can invoke maximum noise reduction and a bit of edge enhancement, and it will remember your settings years later. How cool is that?
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