Denon DTR-2000 (c. 1991–1992)

The Denon DTR-2000 was a home Digital Audio Tape deck. Audio-Collection (p.139) calls it the first domestic DAT recorder-player to be extensively marketed. Documentation on the model is thin, but the period record is consistent. HiFi/Stereo ran a full test report by Craig Stark in January 1991 (p.66), and a follow-up write-up in March 1992 (p.59), when the deck listed at $1,000.

The machine was seriously specified for its day. It used 20-bit, eight-times-oversampling Lambda D/A converters and offered three record/playback sampling rates - 32, 44.1, and 48 kHz. It had both optical and coaxial digital inputs and outputs. The transport searched at 250 or 400 times normal speed, which made ID-mark location quick. A pair of Fine Cue buttons inched the tape at half speed for placing an ID marker precisely, and a Renumber function handled subcode editing. HiFi/Stereo (January 1991, p.68) described the front-panel metering as a 22-segment-per-channel fluorescent peak-reading display, calibrated from −60 to 0 dB with a single OVER indicator.

Audio-Collection (p.140) lists the published figures: frequency response of 2 Hz to 22 kHz ±0.5 dB, a signal-to-noise ratio of 90 dB, total harmonic distortion of 0.008 percent, and unmeasurably low wow and flutter. The heads are amorphous construction. Measurements backed up the noise figure. HiFi/Stereo (January 1991, p.68) reported signal-to-noise in excess of 100 dB unweighted against a quiet input track.

Type: home DAT recorder/player
D/A conversion: 20-bit, eight-times-oversampling Lambda
Sampling rates: 32 / 44.1 / 48 kHz
Digital I/O: optical and coaxial
Search/wind: 250 or 400× normal speed
Response (published): 2 Hz – 22 kHz ±0.5 dB
S/N (published): 90 dB; measured >100 dB unweighted
Price when reviewed: $1,000 (HiFi/Stereo, March 1992, p.59)

Little else is documented about the DTR-2000 beyond these period reviews. No service manual or production figures appear to have survived in general circulation.