Pioneer DVL-919 DVD Player

The Pioneer DVL-919 is a fine, best quality laserdisc player. I have owned and traded several of them over the years. Laserdiscs, CD's and DVD's ... it plays them all. It is a little slow in addressing DVD chapters and menus ... and I have only seen them play factory made DVD's ... I don't think they will play DVD+/-R computer generated DVD discs. These machines were made in 1999 ... and DVD's have come a long way since then. I find that I still need a modern DVD player to get the best from my DVD collection. I have not owned one of the newer model DVL-919's and I do not know if the NEW models can play a DVD-R. (The new models turn up on eBay once in a while. Expect to pay about $1000 for one. I understand that only this year did Pioneer quit making laserdisc players. I have a note saying that on 1/16/09 Pioneer announced that they would discontinue manufacturing laserdisc players ... models DVL-919, CLD-R5, DVK-900, and DVL-K88 are the last.) I think these machines are first rate. The DVL-919 does not have the nice cabinetry of a Pioneer ELITE Series player ... but the specs are most impressive. The DVL-919 is quiet and reliable. The Owners Manual and the service manuals are available online. I think that owning one of the final-generation, top of the line laserdisc players is a "must" for every laserdisc collector.

Note that a Laserdisc outputs an Analog video signal and so can only use the S-Video or the standard yellow "Video-Out" jack. The Red/Blue/Green component video jacks only works with DVD output which is a Digital signal.

The DVL-919 plays the AC-3 encoded laserdiscs discs and even the hard to find DTS encoded laserdiscs. It has PCM audio out and optical audio out capabilities that you can connect directly to your home theater amplifier/receiver to get the standard laserdisc surround sound. But ... To get the AC-3 discreet 5.1 audio offered on some THX laserdiscs when using the DVL-919 (or other top-end laserdisc players), you need to add an audio decoder to your home theater system. I own a Yamaha DDP-1 Natural Sound Digital Processor that takes the DVL-919's analog encoded AC-3 RF Out signal and converts it into a discreet 5.1 output using 6 RCA Jacks ... 5.1 audio, a cable for each: Right, Left, Center, Right Surround, Left Surround, and Sub Base Woofer. Your receiver needs to have a 5.1 input setting that allows you to make the 6-cable connection. (I am using a Pioneer VSX-D514 Receiver which has all of those input jacks!) ... (The history of AC-3 starts in 1982 (?) when the first laserdisc players only output analog stereo sound [like a CD]. Eventually Digital Stereo and Digital Stereo Surround Sound became available and were carried on laserdiscs in addition to the old-style analog tracks. Finally, 5.1 AC-3 sound was included on laserdiscs. It was encoded and placed on laserdiscs to take the place of the old analog Right Channel stereo track. The disc's original Stereo Analog tracks were converted to Mono with all of the film's soundtrack now being in mono on the Analog Left channel only. In this way, new laserdiscs could still be played on old, first-generation laserdisc players. When you want to play the 5.1 AC-3 sound, select ANALOG RIGHT CHANNEL and play it through your AC-3 sound decoder/processor unit.)

The DVL-919 machines keep their value. I am surprised when I see one sell for less than $400. As time goes by, the Pioneer DVL-919 will be "The" machine to own and there will be no new ones available.