Maybe you are using the same DVD player as me (Panasonic DVD-RP82 silver slim one) ?
I find that the DVD-RP82 DVD player's decoders and DAC's(24-bit/192k) sound better than my old Yamaha RX-V2095 receiver's decoders and DAC's (20-bit/48k). I dont know if it is because of the DAC's or the decoder chips onboard the equipment or the cable connections.
I have connected the 5.1 channel analog outputs on the DVD player to the 'External Decoder In' inputs on the receiver and also I have a $6 TOSlink cable running from the DVD player to the receiver. And I am using very short cables (2-feet or so) to connect the 5.1 outputs to the receiver.
Everytime I play a source (CD, DVD-V or DVD-Audio), I always switch between and listen to both the Digital PCM (optical connection) and the External Decoder In (analog connections) signal.
99.9% of the time, I prefer the External Decoder In. Of course if I want the DSP modes (rarely) I have to switch to the Digital connection.
I find the sound when using the DVD player's decoding to be more detailed and rich. I have the settings in the multi-channel audio setup of the DVD player set at default '0'.
A couple of good features on this machine for audio use are the 'Audio Only' and 'Re-Master'. I haven't thoroughly experimented so cant be 100% sure but the 'Audio Only' psychologically seems to sound better.
