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Integra DTC-9.8 Preamplifier/Processor Review
Date: 8-16-07
By: Tee
Introduction
Integra, known for value-priced A/V components, has come into this year’s market to make some noise. The DTC-9.8 Pre/Pro is cutting edge, has enough bells and whistles to make this audio/videophile's mouth water, and packages it all in a price range previously unheard of. Since I first got word of this beast, I have been waiting on the next generation of AVR’s and Pre/Pro’s to hit the market. Who knew that Integra would be the company to catch my interest? It didn't take long for me to place my pre-order. My luck continued because I was able to get the DTC-9.8 in less than a week of order placement.
Description
When you first lay eyes on the DTC-9.8, you will see a massive black box, all metal, with plastic buttons for source selection. The silver volume knob and power button definitely jump right out at you. You may find the silver color unattractive (I did) but you get past it when you realize the color makes it easy to see them in a dark viewing room. If that was Integra's plan, mission accomplished! As an added bonus, the easy to use and see front panel means if you ever loose the remote, it's no biggie. You can still run everything from the faceplate. The display is a white dot matrix that you can dim two notches. There are also A/V inputs on the front for Aux 2 with an optical input, and a mic input for the Audyssey MutiEQ XT calibration. The back of the DTC-9.8 is impressive with plenty of inputs from composite to HDMI, including balanced inputs and outs for 2-channel audio. The HDMI, component video, digital and 2-channel inputs are assignable. What was most impressive on the video side was the HDMI and component video outputs for the second zones. If you have more than one HD capable display, this feature will be most welcome. Finally, you have XM/Sirius antenna inputs and a RS232 input for future firmware upgrades. The DTC-9.8 sports all the latest chips that the A/V community has been waiting on, from DolbyTrue and Dolby Digital Plus, to DTS-HD Master. Currently, no Blu-ray or HD-DVD player can stream the lossless sountracks to the new chips; but soon that will change with Denon’s new Blu-ray player on the way. Another audio chip is TI’s Burr-Brown DAC’s with the 10 decibel improvement in dynamic range, for all channels. This is all good news for 2-channel music. lastly the HQV’s Reon powerful video processing chip to clean up all those nasty artifacts and jaggies.
Set-up
Now the fun begins, or at least part of it. I really enjoy the flexibility of a component that can help you customize and tailor your home theater sound and vision to my specifications. The DTC-9.8 is loaded with features that gives you more than your money's worth--features that make controlling your home theater child's play.
Setting up the DTC-9.8 was a breeze. The GUI is not as slick looking as the Denon’s or Sony’s ES line of AVR’s but it has a very easy-to-read nice look to it. I found it to be very easy to navigate. To test this, I had the wife play with the menus--she got around pretty well. Setting the video options with the HQV processing is painless. The Reon is set to “Pass Through” should want to bypass it. If not, you can set it to “Auto, 480p, 720p, 1080i & 1080p” based on your flavor. The Reon will upcomvert all video to the highest resolution you set. I played with all the settings and chose “Auto.” For my needs; I found the Reon does a nice job with all video sources. Just for kicks I threw in HQV’s torture test disc for video processors, and I was not surprised that the Reon passed every last test. Moving on the audio set up--this is my first component that can do auto calibration, so I was excited to see what the Audyssey MultiEQ XT could do with my room. I grab my tripod and mounted the supplied mic to it and plugged it into the front panel, then followed the onscreen instructions. The Audyssey provides measurements up to eight different seating positions! I stopped at three. The Audyssey software starts to calculate the measurement info it gathered, and when it's done you can review the info or cancel out. I wish you could view the EQ settings, but…oh well. After reviewing the info I was surprised at how accurate the measurements were--the speaker distance was dead on! Should you decide you don’t like the Audyssey sound you can turn it off and calibrate yours via your own meter. If you are EQ savvy, the DTC-9.8 comes with a built-in 15-point EQ per speaker. That’s right, all seven speakers for the tweaker in you! One feature I like that I did not have before was being able to see the volume level on screen. This is great, since my DTC-9.8 is behind me in my home location.
2ch & Surround Sound Music
I love music, I mean…..who doesn’t? Even the most savage beast can appreciate soothing sounds that relax us or to just enjoy hearing something sweet. To fix my sweet tooth I went with a variety of artist whose voices and music stop my craving cold. My list included Seal, Sade, Kem, Donny Hathaway, India Arie, U2, Maxwell, Sam Cooke, Eric Clapton, Eagles, John Mayer, Robin Thicke, Amy Winehouse, O’Jays and Corrine Bailey Rae just to get started. I have been pretty happy with my 2-channel sound, and friends who have been to my home have also commented on the excellent sound. I could not wait to compare the sound difference via the DTC-9.8. I must say that the Integra did not disappoint me In fact it impressed me! The familiar recordings were so much more transparent, with a wide soundstage and nice separations with detail. Using my DA4ES I could close my eyes and vibe with the singer as though they were literally standing in the room. On one of my recordings, a duet, I discovered there was a reverb being used on the singer’s voices. Another recording made me think I had the surrounds enabled because sounds were coming from behind me. I could hear all the little nuances that first seemed faint, but now are definitely clear strumming and plucking of acoustical guitars. The sounds were surreal! The strength of the DTC-9.8 is how well it produces midrange; treble is tamed and not bright, the bass is tight and low. The sound has more air to it than ever; and my AR’s reminded me why I don’t want any new speakers right now. What really stood out on all the recordings was how well it improved the sound of the older recordings. Sure, the newer stuff is supposed to sound good. Your mileage will vary with the older material depending on the decade it was produced. I streamed mp3 music via PS3 as well, and the improvement in sound quality was there too.
Moving on to SACD’s I started with the PS3, then played them on my stand-alone SACD player. I was very pleased with the muti-channel sound from both units; but I will use the stand alone player because of the front panel display. I even tried some DTS Audio discs that sounded just stunning! Normally I would not write about the tuner, but since the DTC-9.8 is HD Radio ready, I decided to give it a listen. I was a little impressed the sound quality was better and seeing the call signs scrolling across the front panel was different from the norm. As you can see, music is a strength with the DTC-9.8, and I think critical owners will be happy in this area.
SD & HD Movies
The DTC-9.8 shined here just as it did with music. You get the same smooth dynamic sound but on a grander scale. I fed the PS3 all of the Hollywood action blockbuster favorites on SD DVD to really take her for a spin, and again the soundstage, separation and detail was top shelf at moderate to near reference volumes!
I saved the best for last. I moved on to Blu-ray, with both Pirates of the Caribbean. These two are some of the best picture quality Blu-ray movies I have seen. Finally I would get a chance to hear uncompressed audio on my system, and it was definitely a treat! The best way to describe lossless soundtracks is to ask yourself how you felt when you saw HD for the first time. You'll get the same feeling when you hear LPCM soundtracks--it's like HD for your ears. Now the sound matches the picture. 300, The Fifth Element, Hellboy and Casino Royal all sounded simply outstanding! This, my friends, is what movies are all about, especially feeling like you are more than a spectator. One test I like to do is turn off the projector and listen to the surround sound because it takes the eye candy away from the equation. Will I still get the jaw-dropping experience as before? The answer to the question is yes! The new HD formats has taken movie watching to that next level of high fidelity. The DTC-9.8 is in the drivers seat, making your experience very enjoyable.
The Cons
Integra has made some videophiles very unhappy by turning off the Reon’s control menu, which allowed you to make adjustments with SD and HDTV compression issues. I didn't find out about this until I received my unit; but this was not a deal breaker for me. There is also some confusion with the DTC-9.8 compatibility and Audyssey Pro, which is still up in the air. Again, for me this was a non-issue, because I think it will be resolved (based on a creditable source close to this story).
The remote control is nothing to write home about. It performs basic functions and runs simple programmed functions for other components. It is big and heavy for a remote. I also found that the joy stick didn't really provide much joy! If you already have a universal remote, stick with that to make all of the commands from the captain’s chair. I wish that I could turn the subs off and just run the mains for comparison without having to go into the menu and change the speakers to full range. My DA4ES would do this by hitting the 2-channel button.
I can’t gripe too much about with this box, because for me the pros outweigh the cons by a big margin.
Conclusion
Integra has a true winner on their hands with the Integra DTC -9.8. You get so much bang for your buck that it's hard not put Integra on your short list. Sure, there are other AVR’s on the way and some with the same capabilities are currently available. However I see no Pre/Pros just AVR’s with higher price tags than the Integra. For me it was a no brainier to give it a shot. I'm happy to report that I'm a lucky shot. I went in expecting high quality sound performance across the board and plenty of flexibility. I got more than I expected in spades, and the performance is what I anticipated from a product like this. If you are thinking of upgrading your current controller/AVR with a product that has crisp, detailed, dynamic sound and some of the latest cutting edge features on the market (not to mention the price), I think that I have found your next new toy!
) saprai che la disponibilità è ancora lacunosa ... ma soprattutto sono emerse 2 mancanze ...
E' una belinata che avevo scritto all'atto della mia iscrizione qui, quando non avevo ancora un impianto; possedevo soltanto il centrale ed un cavo Vdh "The Revolution" da terminare.
E, visto come va il mercato, ci vorrà un bel pò di tempo...
