Being the reference player is one thing. It'll be where they do the majority of tests, fine tune it, etc.
But I'm quite sure they'll test the finished product in a few players more (their personal players at home even) before starting the duplication.
Sounds only logical to me, at least.

Quoting Ascended_Saiyan:

Quote:

For video output, a more focused laser can yeild a better picture.  The audio, via HDMI, on the other hand, is still bit for bit identical.  Therefore, only level matching is needed between bitstreaming and decoding the audio internally.

To answer your question, you aren't missing much of anything. 

I can't really make up my mind... is this funny or sad?

Quoting Ascended_Saiyan:

Quote:
Quoting lmoelleb:

Quote:
Quoting Ascended_Saiyan:

Quote:

For video output, a more focused laser can yeild a better picture.  The audio, via HDMI, on the other hand, is still bit for bit identical.  Therefore, only level matching is needed between bitstreaming and decoding the audio internally.

To answer your question, you aren't missing much of anything. 

I can't really make up my mind... is this funny or sad?

Huh?  Clarify.

It's a digital media. Short of a read-error the drives will read 100% the same from the disc. The video and audio is in the same bitstream (as seen from the drive hardware) so how should it read one correctly and the other one wrong? For slightly damaged/scratched discs one of them might be marginally better at reading the disc than the other without producing the error.

Perhaps it's useful to remind the "it's digital" people that the DVD standard is just as digital as Blu-Ray. Now surely no one would claim the video output - even per HDMI - of an obscure $30 DVD player can rival quality-wise with a reference-level DVD player. Or would you?

Quoting dee1959jay:

Quote:
Perhaps it's useful to remind the "it's digital" people that the DVD standard is just as digital as Blu-Ray. Now surely no one would claim the video output - even per HDMI - of an obscure $30 DVD player can rival quality-wise with a reference-level DVD player. Or would you?

There can be an image difference due to different processing of the image (filters applied after decoding). However there will not be a difference in the quality due to the laser focus, cable quality etc - unless the quality is so bad you get read/transmission errors.

So yes, we know there is a difference in quality but it is also nice to know where the difference is, so we don't waste money - for example on expensive "high quality" cables that in the end will deliver the excact same data as the cheap cables do.

Quoting Battling Butler:

Quote:
Quoting Mark Harrison:

Quote:
I too would like to see some hard data on how the Denons are better.  I'm not denying it of course.  But I need something more than a price tag here to convince me.

The Denon's load so much slower .... they must be better! 

I've still seen no evidence that shows how the Denon out performs the PS3.  Except for a German article perhaps (I can't read German).  It looks solid, although a bit on the large side.  But that's all I got from that review.

The only indication I've seen that it's a superior player is the fact that it costs a lot more.  I'm afraid that's not quite good enough.

Quoting Mark Harrison:

Quote:

I've still seen no evidence that shows how the Denon out performs the PS3.  Except for a German article perhaps (I can't read German).  It looks solid, although a bit on the large side.  But that's all I got from that review.

Got a link...? One of us Germans on this board can tell you (besides me being curious myself...).

Quoting dee1959jay:

Quote:
I think Mark is referring to the above article, Achim.

I agree, that makes sense...

Well, the text there is merely the introduction to the actual test report, which is 4 pages long and must be paid for.

What they do mention is, that it's rather expensive (1,000 Euro), doesn't even have the required connections (only HDMI, no stero, no optical, no analog video) and is meant to show Blu Ray in the best possible quality (the manufacturer...).