Home > Consumer Reviews > Denon DCM-27 5-Disc CD Changer
Denon DCM-27 5-Disc CD Changer
See it at Amazon.com for $239.00Average Customer Rating
(2.5 out of 5)
Amazon Customer Reviews
Most Helpful First | Newest First | + Share11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
Poor user experience
(2 out of 5) by S. Ehlers on Jan 5, 2007 (Austin, TX)This player provides a poor user experience for anything other than simple, sequential play.
In random play mode it doesn't pick the next track till the current one finishes, and then it takes 15-20 seconds to choose the next track with the player making clunking and squealing noises the whole time. It's faster with just a single disk loaded, but it's a CHANGER. The manual hints at a sequential-disk random mode, but I'm not clever enough to make it work.
Setting random mode doesn't just set the mode; it stops playing the current track and starts a new one.
There is no MP3/CD-text track-info display.
Fast-forward searching seems to be limited to about 2x real time.
The buttons on the remote are hard to use -- it's hard to tell when you've pushed a button far enough for it to register and hard to hit the button you want without hitting others. I have to use my thumbnail to push the buttons.
You have to use the +10 button to select tracks higher than 9. That's a hassle on 200-track MP3 disks; why can't it allow direct track number entry on the remote?
Pros:
You can hot-swap disks while the current one continues to play.
A -> B repeat mode.
The sound quality is good.
In random play mode it doesn't pick the next track till the current one finishes, and then it takes 15-20 seconds to choose the next track with the player making clunking and squealing noises the whole time. It's faster with just a single disk loaded, but it's a CHANGER. The manual hints at a sequential-disk random mode, but I'm not clever enough to make it work.
Setting random mode doesn't just set the mode; it stops playing the current track and starts a new one.
There is no MP3/CD-text track-info display.
Fast-forward searching seems to be limited to about 2x real time.
The buttons on the remote are hard to use -- it's hard to tell when you've pushed a button far enough for it to register and hard to hit the button you want without hitting others. I have to use my thumbnail to push the buttons.
You have to use the +10 button to select tracks higher than 9. That's a hassle on 200-track MP3 disks; why can't it allow direct track number entry on the remote?
Pros:
You can hot-swap disks while the current one continues to play.
A -> B repeat mode.
The sound quality is good.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
OK But Better Made in Japan
(4 out of 5) by Peter B. Tatiner on Dec 30, 2007 (Eastern U.S.)I purchased this as an upgrade to a similar unit bought 17 years ago. This DCM-27 has features the earlier model did not have: MP3 and WMA capability, most notably. The unit, now made in China, has the look, feel and heft one has come to expect from electronics made there. That is to say, fewer controls, lighter weight, chintzy feel. The five CD carousel works well enough but it feels cheap and I expect it will not last. In fact, I don't expect this unit to live but a couple of years, if earlier experiences with Chinese products is any indicator of durability.
The unit arrived promptly and in perfect shape with all elements included.
The unit arrived promptly and in perfect shape with all elements included.
Is it Denon, or some kind of Chinese clone?
(1 out of 5) by Guillermo on May 28, 2009The sound is really good but, as a previous reviewer said, it works fine only for simple, sequential disk playing.
The random mode takes endless time to start the next track or disk. In addition, not always recognizes the disks. I tried with several original ones in pristine conditions (no fingerprints or scratches) and some do not appear in the playing list.
The remote is crazy. Sometimes works, sometimes does not. It is a matter of luck. If you try to push the buttons in the player, it is worst. It is easier to get an answer through the remote control.
After a few months, it is harder that the player recognizes the disks. I load 5, and can play only 1 or 2.
As I live in South America, it is too expensive to send it back to the US asking to the seller or to Amazon to replace it. I prefer to call a local technician, that I use for repairing fine audio and video systems, to check and to repair it.
This is the first time that I have this type of quality problems with Denon.
I bought it believing in Denon and because matched perfectly with my Denon 7.1 AV receiver. I made a mistake, it looks nice but does not work properly.
Do not buy this expensive and useless CD changer. For the same, or even lower, price you can get better changers from other top manufacturers.
The random mode takes endless time to start the next track or disk. In addition, not always recognizes the disks. I tried with several original ones in pristine conditions (no fingerprints or scratches) and some do not appear in the playing list.
The remote is crazy. Sometimes works, sometimes does not. It is a matter of luck. If you try to push the buttons in the player, it is worst. It is easier to get an answer through the remote control.
After a few months, it is harder that the player recognizes the disks. I load 5, and can play only 1 or 2.
As I live in South America, it is too expensive to send it back to the US asking to the seller or to Amazon to replace it. I prefer to call a local technician, that I use for repairing fine audio and video systems, to check and to repair it.
This is the first time that I have this type of quality problems with Denon.
I bought it believing in Denon and because matched perfectly with my Denon 7.1 AV receiver. I made a mistake, it looks nice but does not work properly.
Do not buy this expensive and useless CD changer. For the same, or even lower, price you can get better changers from other top manufacturers.