The Denon DBP-4010 UD is a Blu-ray player released in late 2009. Currently selling from about 1,800 GBP in the UK, the device carries an MSRP of 1,999 USD in the US, but sells online from about 1,600 USD.

Reviewed by Florian Friedrich on March 25, 2010

Outstanding Blu-ray picture quality.
Excellent DVD picture with 576p signals.
First-class features and build quality.
Sensational sound, especially with Denon receivers.

Colour deviations in up-scaled DVD pictures.
Long loading times; slow navigation.

To get the most out of this player, you should hook it up to one of Denon’s AV receivers. But, even if you don’t, the picture and sound are nearly perfect. Our biggest criticism goes to the disc drive, which is far too slow.

Features

Versatile: The Denon also offers 7.1-channel analogue audio outputs for older AV receivers.

Competition is good for business, Denon’s developers must have thought as they hauled this player to the market just a few months after releasing their flagship DVD-A1 UD. Because one thing is clear: The DBP-4010 UD will really put the heat on its predecessor by offering almost the same features and quality for less than half the price. But there are a few things it lacks when compared to the pricier Denon — for example, the second HDMI connection or the symmetric XLR stereo outputs. Still, it makes up for this by allowing remote control via a network — more on that later.

Like its big brother, the DBP-4010’s name ends in “UD”, signifying that it, too, is a so-called universal player. Besides Blu-rays and DVDs, therefore, it also plays back SA-CDs, CDs, and DVD-Audio discs. An analogue 7.1-channel audio output is also on board, as is the latest version of the Denon Link connection (see box below), which allows you to link the player up to Denon receivers. The array of gold-plated sockets on the back of the player underlines one fact: This is a classy piece of kit, not just any £300 player. Behind these connections, the circuitry for audio and video functions is largely kept on separate boards.

There’s an Ethernet connection for BD-Live and software updates, and a second network interface allows Denon Link connections between the player and Denon receivers. So, as you can see: This player isn’t just a heavily cut down version of its big brother — it’s a new device altogether. The drive mechanism, for example, has been completely redesigned.

The SD-card reader slot is elegantly accommodated in the bottom right of the display panel. The slot not only allows you to store downloaded BD-Live content on SD cards, but also to play back MP3, WMA, DivX, and JPEG files. Camcorder videos in AVCHD format, on the other hand, will only play back from a disc. Photo playback is also versatile on the Denon: You can vary the time, between three and 100 seconds, for which each picture displays in the slideshow mode. High-definition photos can take a while to load, so you’re often faced with several seconds of black screen between two pictures. The picture quality, on the other hand, is flawless.

The numerous picture controls also work for photo playback. You can sharpen up photos that look too soft, for example, giving much crisper results. Once you’ve corrected any such problems in the picture, you can store your settings in one of five user presets. It’s a shame, however, that the Denon can only process photo files of up to nine megabytes and SDHC cards of up to four gigabytes.

Operation

The remote control’s white buttons glow in the dark.

The Denon demands patience: Loading discs takes a very (!) long time. Blu-rays with BD-Java, such as “Men in Black”, need up to 90 seconds to display their first moving pictures. And bear in mind that you can’t watch BD-Live content until you supply an SD memory card.

On the other hand, we liked the clear and user-friendly on-screen menu. Especially the text explanations turn out to be very helpful. Also practical: You can switch the HDMI output resolution directly from the remote control.

Versatile is the operative word once again when it comes to the Denon’s audio section: This can, for example, output fully decoded multichannel PCM audio to older HDMI receivers or devices with an analogue multichannel input. A complete speaker-setup menu allows you to adjust the levels and delays for each speaker, as well as to generate test signals.

The DBP-4010 UD uses new components instead of just stripped-down kit from the DVD-A1 UD.

DVD Picture Quality

The Denon has a “Reverse Telecine” function for NTSC-DVDs. This removes the 3:2 pulldown from films at 60 hertz, returning the video to its original 24-hertz frame rate. And it works excellently, as we saw in the US DVD “DTS Sampler No. 5”: The fight scene from “Gladiator”, for example, looks superb. The trees show pulldown judder in 60-hertz playback, but now the camera pan across the forest shows regular motion depiction. The DVD de-interlacing therefore meets all of our wishes; and, although the tested model cannot interpret progressive flags, it doesn’t trip up once, even in tricky scenes. It takes a few fractions of a second, however, for the film mode to kick in. If this bothers you too much, you can select the “Video2” mode, which is optimised for film-based signals. For concert DVDs or TV productions, on the other hand, you should set the player to “Auto”.

The “DPIC” and “Sharpness High” controls have their strongest effect in fine details, and therefore produce no nasty edge ringing. The ageing and slightly too soft Disney film “A Bug’s Life”, for example, profits from stronger enhancement, resolving patterns in the circus decorations more clearly. In “Monsters, Inc.”, on the other hand, just a slight enhancement is enough to make Mike Wazowski’s eye look glossier. In the DVD “Cars”, no sharpness enhancement is necessary. Overall, the Denon performs excellently with all three animated films.

But up-scaling results in colour errors: Standard signals output with incorrect colour encoding. Greens appear too dark on most screens, reds glow too intensely, and yellows tend too strongly towards orange. We’re assuming, however, that Denon’s developers will bring this under control in a firmware update, since other Denon players have shown no problems in this respect.

Blu-ray Picture Quality

The HDMI frequency response is absolutely linear.

To put it simply: The Denon performs flawlessly both in our lab measurements and in the viewing test. All black-and-white signals output with correct levels, and even blacker-than-black and whiter-than-white content poses not even the slightest problem. Colours match the ideal values precisely. Even the tiniest details appear in full sharpness, allowing well-mastered discs to play back in total accuracy. You’ll only need the picture controls for poorly mastered discs or to compensate for weaknesses in the display device.

De-interlacing of HDTV documentaries at 50 or 60 hertz (stored on Blu-ray in 1080i format) works excellently. In the progressive “Auto” mode, the Denon presents all of the tricky test sequences with flicker-free, smooth edges. With 1080p output, the player even manages to display complex test scenes in 1080/30p format perfectly — something that few players have achieved so far.

Sound Quality with Music

Since the reviewed device is considered a “universal player”, we examined its music playback quality very closely. In the first listening test, we hooked it up to Denon’s AVR-4810, an AV receiver, in order to analyse all connection types, including the Denon Link. In fact, it’s the receiver that’s primarily responsible for the sound quality, since it carries out the decoding, D/A conversion, and amplification. But timing deviations can occur because of jitter, which generally results from excessively long or poor-quality cables.

The listening test began with the Holly Cole Trio’s 1993 track “I Can See Clearly Now”, which we initially played back via HDMI. The results were impressive: clear depth differentiation, superb dynamics, rich bass, and powerful voices. Nevertheless, we got the impression that you hear more overtones in the piano accompaniment via HDMI, but that the singer’s voice sounds slightly coarse. When we switched to analogue stereo sound, we were initially confused by the song’s lack of power and dynamics. But we then realised why this was happening: The sound via the receiver’s external analogue multichannel input is one-decibel quieter. Once we’d adjusted the levels appropriately, the analogue connection sounded just as powerful as the digital, but also a touch warmer and more relaxed. But, be careful: If you leave the HDMI connected, you’ll hear slight clicking on the analogue output. We therefore recommend actually removing the HDMI plug — only then does the analogue connection sound better than the digital.

And now to the Denon Link: In order to activate this, you have to activate “HDMI Control” and allocate the input to the Denon Link as a digital source. This is worth doing, since this transmission method is superior to all others: CDs gain dynamics and definition, without sounding aggressive. The same is true of SA-CDs, which gain bite and sound more airy in the high-frequency region. There are even bigger differences in the Dolby Demo Blu-ray “The Sound of High Definition”: The 7.1-channel Dolby Digital Plus track transports the show directly to the living room and delivers a convincing wall of live sound, even though the song “Lie in Our Graves” is performed by only two artists — Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds. The guitar develops astonishing dynamics, and the vocals sound rounded but never harsh. Even the audience seems like they’re right there in the room with you; the atmosphere is rich and exciting. In comparison, the analogue multichannel sound is just as pleasant, but significantly weaker. When we checked the levels this time, they were precisely equal. In this case, therefore, it’s the higher signal quality and dynamics that make the big difference.

Sound Quality with Films

The Japanese player transmits Blu-ray sound not via Denon Link, but as a PCM signal via HDMI. As described in the box above, however, the Denon Link manages the signal’s timing. If the blue LED for “Clock Control” is lit, the Denon Link is working as a clock generator. The soundtrack to “Kingdom of Heaven”, for example, feels more spacious, as well as showing more dynamics and better definition. The film “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” confirms this impression: Here, again, the Denon player resolves the individual elements of the sound excellently. When Harry flies over Hogwarts School on his broom, the smashing noise of the roof tiles is highly convincing, and you can feel the dragon’s hiss in the back of your neck. If you switch off Denon Link, however, it’s no disaster: The sound loses some of its fascination but remains totally listenable.