DivX, NTSC, PAL, region free (and with a S-video outlet)

[David K]

Looking for a DVD player that does all of the above.
The new Philips DivX models apparently do not have S-video.
The Toshiba Sd-3990 looks promising but it appears that the region-free hack has problems.
Any other contenders?

[redwudz]

Another option is to look to a companies like these: http://www.world-import.com/dvd.htm or
http://www.220-electronics.com/

You can find others that supply region free DVD players and recorders by doing a Google search for 'region free DVD players'. It may be safer than flashing the player yourself as they warranty the unit.

[FulciLives]

The two new Philips model DVD players (the DVP 5140 and DVP 5960) both seem very promising and do all that you want except they do not have S-Video outputs.

To do all that you want there is the top-of-the-line OPPO OPDV971H which can be purchased for $199.00 + shipping at the official OPPO DIGITAL website.

For the price the OPPO is considered one of the best DVD players on the market.

The other (very good) option is the new Pioneer DV-393-S which can be bought for $139.00 + shipping at 220-electronics or you can get if for $139.95 + shipping from HK FLIX and yes both of these websites are trustworthy.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[David K]

The Pioneer DV-393 certainly looks great for all region/PAL playback on NTSC. But what's Pioneer's reputation for Xvid/DivX playback? Is this one DivX home theater certified ? (Also a very minor point, any support for so-called mini-DVD, that is, DVD content on CD?)

[FulciLives]

The Pioneer DV-393 certainly looks great for all region/PAL playback on NTSC. But what's Pioneer's reputation for Xvid/DivX playback? Is this one DivX home theater certified ? (Also a very minor point, any support for so-called mini-DVD, that is, DVD content on CD?)

I suggested the Pioneer DV-393-S because it is the new USA model.

The previous model that was "hot" was the DV-383 and that was a European model but was sold on the market as region free ... did excellent PAL to NTSC ... and was DivX Home Theatre Profile certified. It did well with both DivX and XviD although I heard that with XviD it didn't liked "packed bitstreams" although that really is not such a big deal as MPEG4Modifier can be used to "unpack" it.

So based on all the good things said about the DV-383 and other past Pioneer models (the old USA model 588A also was DivX Home Theatre Profile Certified) it sounds to me that the DV-393-S is the way to go if you want something "cheap".

Looking at the Pioneer website the DV-393-S seems to have all the same features as the 383 but at least it is a USA model whereas the 383 was not.

Just remember that Pioneer models never could be easily converted to region free so you have to buy it that way already (i.e., already made to be region free).

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

P.S.
The Pioneer DVD models that do DivX/XviD use the MediaTek chipset. For creating your own XviD or DivX I suggest using autoGK which has a MediaTek chipset "option" which means it creates the DivX (and more important the XviD) in such a way that it should play back A-OK

[David K]

Thanks for the info on the Pioneer players and 220-electronics.com
I might end up paying more and going with the Pioneer DV-490 which 220 is featuring.
I don't have high-def yet but it would be good to have a DVD player that was ready for the move.

[FulciLives]

Thanks for the info on the Pioneer players and 220-electronics.com
I might end up paying more and going with the Pioneer DV-490 which 220 is featuring.
I don't have high-def yet but it would be good to have a DVD player that was ready for the move.

I totally forgot about the DV-490V-S as it is also very new ... I wasn't aware that anyone was selling a region free version of it yet.

Seems as though the DV-490V-S has all the same features as the OPPO but consider this ... the OPPO has the DCDi Faroudja chipset ... the Pioneer DV-490-S does not ... so for $20.00 more ... I would get the OPPO ... unless you want to save a bit of money and go with the Pioneer DV-393-S

Don't get me wrong here ... I am a big fan of Pioneer DVD players ... I've had 2 in the past and now have a Pioneer stand alone/set top DVD recorder.

But man that DCDi Faroudja chipset is hard to beat ... so if you can afford $180 you might as well go $200 and get the OPPO.

Having said that ... since the Pioneer DV-490V-S is so new ... it might have a "better" chipset for DivX/XviD playblack ... but I haven't heard anyone complain about this feature on the OPPO.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[doorqyu]

The dv-393 seems to be a lower grade player compared with dvd-383/380.
Checking with the Hongkong Pioneer website, the suggest retail prices of dv-393, dv-383 and dv-490 tell everything.(us$1.0= hk$7.8 ).
dv-393s
dv-383s
dv-490s
So, dv-393 sells at us$88.5(hk$690), dv-383 at us$97.4(hk$760) and dv-490 at us$152.57(hk$1190).

Actually, you will find lower price for these models at retail shops because the suggest retail price is always higher. And, all dvd players selling in HK are already region-free.

But, s-video out is not available in dv-393

[FulciLives]

The dv-393 seems to be a lower grade player compared with dvd-383/380.
Checking with the Hongkong Pioneer website, the suggest retail prices of dv-393, dv-383 and dv-490 tell everything.(us$1.0= hk$7.8 ).
dv-393s
dv-383s
dv-490s
So, dv-393 sells at us$88.5(hk$690), dv-383 at us$97.4(hk$760) and dv-490 at us$152.57(hk$1190).

Actually, you will find lower price for these models at retail shops because the suggest retail price is always higher. And, all dvd players selling in HK are already region-free.

But, s-video out is not available in dv-393

I think the DV-393-S is cheaper than the DV-383-S only because the 393 is the new model and DVD players seem to get cheaper and cheaper ... I would not say that the 383 is better than the 393. Also the USA version of the DV-393-S has the S-Video output. The region free version also has a S-Video output and I've already listed some websites as to where to purchase it.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[smithpiper]

I also am in the market for a PAL->NTSC player for my region 2 PAL dvds I just got from England. There is not a single store in my city that sells multiregion players. I am wondering if that is normal, and if somebody needs one they must go to the internet. Ive been looking at regioncodefreedvd.com. Anybody have anything to say about them? they have the DV-490S for $180 plus they toss in $80 worth of cables. What exactly do these 2nd source vendors do to the players? Do they add chipsets that allow PAL->NTSC conversion? If that is the case, then players such as mine wouldnt work even if it were hacked. Thats the thing I dont get about this hacking business, it wont let you play muntiregion, it only lets you get passed the zone code.

[FulciLives]

I also am in the market for a PAL->NTSC player for my region 2 PAL dvds I just got from England. There is not a single store in my city that sells multiregion players. I am wondering if that is normal, and if somebody needs one they must go to the internet. Ive been looking at regioncodefreedvd.com. Anybody have anything to say about them? they have the DV-490S for $180 plus they toss in $80 worth of cables. What exactly do these 2nd source vendors do to the players? Do they add chipsets that allow PAL->NTSC conversion? If that is the case, then players such as mine wouldnt work even if it were hacked. Thats the thing I dont get about this hacking business, it wont let you play muntiregion, it only lets you get passed the zone code.

A normal USA bought region 1 Pioneer DV-490 has the ability to do PAL to NTSC if you use a REGION FREE PAL DVD disc.

So in the case of Pioneer (and most of the other brands) the 2nd source vendor as you call them simply modify the unit to ignore region coding.

Remember that you are not supposed to be able to buy a regioin free DVD player so this is very "gray market" stuff ... hence you will not find it in a retail store.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[Seeker47]

A normal USA bought region 1 Pioneer DV-490 has the ability to do PAL to NTSC if you use a REGION FREE PAL DVD disc.

So in the case of Pioneer (and most of the other brands) the 2nd source vendor as you call them simply modify the unit to ignore region coding.

Or, often much more than that. I bought my Malata player from DVDCITY.Com a few years ago. They had quite a few models that would convert any PAL dvd in the player, no multi-system tv required. Some models had built-in MV defeat. I'm not up to date on what they carry now, but the modified Pioneer or Toshiba models they sold in the past carried a hefty premium price. I think they also handled the recorders.

Remember that you are not supposed to be able to buy a regioin free DVD player so this is very "gray market" stuff ... hence you will not find it in a retail store.

Right. These were all "re-chipped." The name manufacturers surely frowned on this, and may have tried to stamp it out. At the very least, you can forget about any mfr. warranty; your actual warranty will be from the modding vendor, so choose one with care.

[smithpiper]

Fulcilives, you are absolutely correct about the DV-490. I didnt realize that some north american players played PAL. They dont exactly brag about it as a major selling feature, so I guess I just missed it. My dvds from England are region 0, so it should work in the DV-490, or any PAL player for that matter, right? I did a search of this particular player for price, location, and opinions. There are no opinions anywhere, and it can not be found in any brick and mortar store. Do you know if this is a recent release? I would rather not purchase via internet, just in case it does have problems with my dvds. If I cant locate one, do you have a recommendation of a good mainstream player, HD ready, that can play PAL, that would probably be at the usual stores like bestbuy or circuitcity. Much appreciated.

[FulciLives]

Fulcilives, you are absolutely correct about the DV-490. I didnt realize that some north american players played PAL. They dont exactly brag about it as a major selling feature, so I guess I just missed it. My dvds from England are region 0, so it should work in the DV-490, or any PAL player for that matter, right? I did a search of this particular player for price, location, and opinions. There are no opinions anywhere, and it can not be found in any brick and mortar store. Do you know if this is a recent release? I would rather not purchase via internet, just in case it does have problems with my dvds. If I cant locate one, do you have a recommendation of a good mainstream player, HD ready, that can play PAL, that would probably be at the usual stores like bestbuy or circuitcity. Much appreciated.

The Pioneer DV-490 is very new. Pioneer also just released the DV-393 which has all the same features of the DV-490 but the DV-393 lacks the HD up-conversion ability that the DV-490 has ... both are new ... but my guess is the DV-393 will be easier to find in a brick and morter store than the DV-490 model.

Anyways a REGION FREE or REGION 0 PAL DVD should play back in NTSC ... if you have a PAL DVD that is not REGION FREE or REGION 0 then you can always make a back-up on your computer ... using ripping software and your computer's DVD burner ... as any back-up you make will still be PAL but will be REGION FREE/REGION 0. These days Verbatim DVD+R DL discs are "cheap" enough (at least on sale) that this is a "good" work-a-round vs. paying a premium to buy the Pioneer's modified to be REGION FREE although I would still pay the premuim but then again I have a large enough collection of region coded imports (from NTSC to PAL) that making a back-up of each ... just to play in a REGION 1 player ... would cost more than buying a REGION FREE player.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[yumagah]

I just picked up a player for $30 at a Shopko (regional chain in midwest) that has S-video jack and component out jacks, plays Divx and Xvid and just about everything else. It's a Chinese import, the brand name is JSI. The website they list is www.jsiproducts.com. So far it's great.

[jagabo]

I just picked up a player for $30... It's a Chinese import, the brand name is JSI. The website they list is www.jsiproducts.com.

https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?p=1397043#1397043

[ntngod]

I don't think I've been in a Shopko in a long, long time.

I'd guess it's one of these two models:
JSI page for the 5110
JSI page for the 5111

[smithpiper]

Fulcilives, I tried to find locations in the US where the DV-490 is sold. I have never heard of any of the online vendors, and on top of that, not a single one claimed that it will play PAL. This seems like a big selling feature to me, so I cant figure out why it is not being touted, unless American pioneer players have that option eliminated. I went to the Pioneerhongkong website and they do say that it plays PAL. Also, most of the google searches of this particular player end up going to sites in the UK. And the Pioneer web site is down right now. Something fishy going on here.

[FulciLives]

Fulcilives, I tried to find locations in the US where the DV-490 is sold. I have never heard of any of the online vendors, and on top of that, not a single one claimed that it will play PAL. This seems like a big selling feature to me, so I cant figure out why it is not being touted, unless American pioneer players have that option eliminated. I went to the Pioneerhongkong website and they do say that it plays PAL. Also, most of the google searches of this particular player end up going to sites in the UK. And the Pioneer web site is down right now. Something fishy going on here.

Nothing fishy about it.

The USA model has the ability to play PAL as NTSC but it is not advertised. That is just how it is in the USA ... for the most part ... from a "big" brand name.

I suppose it is possible (though unlikely) that the PAL to NTSC feature is locked on the USA model so that it will output PAL instead of NTSC ... but I highly doubt it.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[apprenti]

Is the DV-393-S selling on Amazon a region-free one? It doesn't say.

[FulciLives]

Is the DV-393-S selling on Amazon a region-free one? It doesn't say.

I honestly think people ... I guess I should stress some people ... don't listen to me.

This thing has a MSRP of $100.00 and has to be bought pre-modified to be region free. The AMAZON link provided is for approximately $75 ...

Do you really think that this is for a pre-modifed region free unit? Especially when I said it was going for around $140 that way?

I mean really now let's not be a stupid dumb ass OK?

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[JimBarbasol]

There's no need to talk like that.