Looking for new DVD player to replace my Malata

[Commander Dan]

I currently have a Malata DVP-520 DVD player that has served me well for a few years now. However, it is beginning to act a bit hinky (I presume due to many hours of use), so I am in the market for a replacement.

I would like for the new player to be able to accomplish everything the Malata is capable of, and perhaps then some. Obviously, I am looking for something with excellent picture quality.

The new player MUST:

- have zoom and scaling capabilities so as to minimize overscan.
- be a multi-region player capable of playing PAL DVDs.
- automatically pillarbox 4:3 material

It is PREFERRED that the new player:

- automatically zoom and properly frame non-anamorphic widescreen DVDs (my Malata does this, as long as the disc was authored and tagged properly).
- upconvert to 1080i over component (I have no HDMI or DVI connection).

Any suggestions are much appreciated. Many thanks.

[FulciLives]

Hello !!!

I know the Malata 520 (and before that the 996) were popular models in their day for their region free capability, PAL DVD to NTSC conversion capability and also the scalable zoom capability.

While it is much easier these days to get a region free PAL to NTSC DVD player I am not aware of any current models that have the scalable zoom capability of the old Malata units.

I do know that currently Oppo Digital makes the best DVD player when it comes to PAL to NTSC (at least for those that don't have copious amounts of money) with their OPDV971H model. However that model does PAL to NTSC so well due to the DCDi by Faroudja chipset yet the chipset is only activated when using the DVI out which of course requires a TV with DVI or HDMI input(s). Since you don't have a TV with that type of connection then I would have to say that the Oppo Digital will give you no better PAL to NTSC than other more cheaper models making it perhaps not the best choice (unless you think you will be getting a TV with such a connector sometime soon).

So basically that leaves DVD players using the MediaTek chipset (which does PAL to NTSC conversion). There are three models that come to mind. They are (in no particular order):

1.) The Oppo Digital DV-970HD (different cheaper model than the OPDV971H)
2.) Pioneer DV-490-s
3.) Philips DVP-5960

The Oppo is region free out-of-the box. Actually it may require a remote control "hack" but either way it's region free. The Philips is not region free out-of-the-box but it has a simple remote control "hack". The Pioneer can be bought pre-modified to be region free which is good as there is no simple way to do it yourself.

All three feature HDTV upconversion to either 720p or 1080i although I'm not sure how they handle 4:3 material when upconverting. In fact I've heard that the Philips does it incorrectly although this can be fixed if your TV doesn't "lock" into 16x9 WS mode with an upconverted signal (unforunately most seem to not have manual overide). I'm not sure about the Pioneer or the Oppo Digital DV-970HD although I have heard that the Oppo Digital OPDV971H handle it correctly so you would think the other model does as well.

However that may be all a moot point as I don't think (knock on wood) that any of these upconvert via component.

I would like to point out that any decent HDTV can upconvert from 480i/480p to 1080i (or whatever that TV supports) and that often times this is done as well if not better than what the DVD player can do so one can easily argue that the whole "DVD upconversion" thing is a bit of a scam. Perhaps the one time you would rather have the DVD player do it is if the HDTV does it very badly (doubt there are many that are like that) or you have a DVD player with a truly superior chipset (i.e,, the DCDi by Faroudja).

I know ... I know ... right now you are probably thinking WTF but I'm pretty much "up" on current DVD players out there and I'm giving you the best information as I know it.

Maybe someone else is aware of a DVD player that is region free and does PAL to NTSC and also does HDTV upconversion via component. It's possible such a DVD player exists.

But you can pretty much rule out the scalable zoom. I also think you can rule out a DVD player that does 4:3 Letterboxed to 16x9 WS resizing (although a good HDTV will have a ZOOM mode that does the same thing).

Sorry I don't have better news for you.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[Commander Dan]

Many thanks, John. Great info, though a bit disappointing.

I figure I will eventually upgrade to a TV with HDMI, but right now, my 65” Component-only Mitsubishi is serving me well.

I am surprised that more DVD players don’t automatically pillarbox 4:3 Material. One of the things I love about my Malata is I never have to change the ratio on my TV. Even with a single DVD that has a mix of 16:9 and 4:3 material, the Malata always displays the image in the correct ratio.

I would certainly be grateful if anyone else has any further suggestions.

[FulciLives]

Well the 4:3 pillarbox "error" only happens with some upconverting DVD players when they are upconverting. I'm not aware of the "error" happening in 480i/480p mode.

Even if the DVD player doesn't correctly pillarbox 4:3 DVD discs when upconverting there is a chance that your TV can easily rectify the situation by changing to 4:3 mode but for some reason many 16x9 WS televisions will get "stuck" in a 16x9 WS mode when the DVD player is doing upconversion so if the DVD player gets it wrong the TV can't fix it ... unless the TV has a manual override.

I don't know how prevalent all of this is but I did hear someone recently complaining that the Philips DVP-5960 gets it wrong and apparently the TV in question was one of those 16x9 WS televisions that get stuck in 16x9 WS mode when the DVD player is upconverting. Obviously that makes for a bad mix.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman