requesting DVD player recommendation

[ojopaj]

Hi folks,

My Sampo DVE-620 is finally dying. I'm looking to upgrade to an HDTV tv soon, and figured it's about time I get a decent dvd player. What I really liked about the Sampo was how wonderfully hack-able it was (you could even make your own custom screens etc), and it played PAL dvds. It only played a few brands of DVD-R, and would never play any +Rs, +RWs, or -RWs.

My ideal dvd player has these features:
- progressive scan
- upconversion to 720p/1080i (or whatever - still researching what all that means, but what i've read makes it sound really nice) =)
- MUST play dvd-r's flawlessly - i've got a ton of 'em!
- MUST play MP3s
- macrovision must be defeatable (turned off, hacked, whatever)

Secondary features which I would really like but are not necessarily required:
- play VCDs
- play PAL and NTSC
- region hackable
- play RWs (- or + )

Any suggestions? This exact wish list is not searchable on the dvd page here, so i thought i'd see if anybody had any ideas.

With many and great sincere thanks,
ojo

[HatchetMan]

http://www.extremephono.com/
oppo or momitsu

[ojopaj]

Wow ... That Momitsu certainly fits every criteria on my list. But the price!! Egad. That's really high.

Anybody know of any other players that fit the bill?

[clayts]

Why not just swap the loader out on the 620 - you'll at least get DVD+/- compatibility then : remember those players were made in 2000/01 so they are very long in the tooth

[ojopaj]

Well, after researching the Momitsu for awhile I've now been told that it's probably overkill for my needs. I'm getting a Philips 34PW8402 HDTV which is a direct view tube tv; I'm told that I won't notice much if any difference between a standard 480p and any up-conversion to 1080i etc. So, I guess that puts me back to square one in terms of the recommendations.

Any good players out there that have all of the above features, except DON'T do up-conversion, and DO do progressive scan?

If I replaced the loader on my much-beloved 620, that wouldn't give me progressive scan would it?

Thanks for helping a newb.

Apologies as I probably should have consolidated the two threads.
ojo

[gshelley61]

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all

[jbenj01]

ojopaj,

You are correct in that there'll be less PQ improvement in upconverting when you're display is a direct tube. But I have a Sony 34XBR910 and let me tell you, there is definitely a noticeable improvement in PQ with the Momitsu player connected via DVI.. But that's probably due to Sony TV's Super Fine Pitch pixel technology than the Momitsu player itself (???)..

If you're going to buy a 34" 16x9 tube TV, I'd highly recommend that you hold off and save a bit more for either a Sony 34XBR910 or the latest 34XBR960, which can be had for ~$1800. I know there are those that'll disagree but.... either way, just read up both the Philips and Sony and weigh out price vs. quality.. Good luck.

Edit: Oh, I forgot.. the Momitsu is a VERY finicky player (needs recycling often--atleast mine does, which is ~1yr+ old--maybe more recent versions perform better??).. It usually does well with commerical DVD's, but if you're watching your burned DVD's, make sure you buy high-quality blank media.

[ojopaj]

ojopaj,

You are correct in that there'll be less PQ improvement in upconverting when you're display is a direct tube. But I have a Sony 34XBR910 and let me tell you, there is definitely a noticeable improvement in PQ with the Momitsu player connected via DVI.. But that's probably due to Sony TV's Super Fine Pitch pixel technology than the Momitsu player itself (???)..

If you're going to buy a 34" 16x9 tube TV, I'd highly recommend that you hold off and save a bit more for either a Sony 34XBR910 or the latest 34XBR960, which can be had for ~$1800. I know there are those that'll disagree but.... either way, just read up both the Philips and Sony and weigh out price vs. quality.. Good luck.

Edit: Oh, I forgot.. the Momitsu is a VERY finicky player (needs recycling often--atleast mine does, which is ~1yr+ old--maybe more recent versions perform better??).. It usually does well with commerical DVD's, but if you're watching your burned DVD's, make sure you buy high-quality blank media.

Hi jbenj01,

I appreciate the recommendation on the Sony. If I could have ever afforded one I would have. But I got a refurbished 34PW8402 for $825, and the difference in picture quality between that and the Sony was not, imho, worth the $1000 extra I'd have to shell out (and wait a year to save up). So, for better or worse, I'm sticking with my Philips.

Disturbing news about the Momitsu needing recycling (as in replacing, right?). I do play mainly burned dvd's. I've already dealt with one player that's finicky about burned dvd's, I really don't want another one. I had orginally been told that the Momitus will play "anything you throw at it" but maybe that's not the case.

Oh well. Any other recommendations?

[jbenj01]

Wow.. $825 IS a very good deal.. Hope you got a good/original warranty, as well..

As to recycling, sorry, I meant power recycling.. If that was the case, I'd have been thru about 50+ Momitsu's by now.. . It needs to be unplugged for ~30secs, then replugged..then all's fine again. And yes, it will play anything you throw at it. The only time it has failed is when I went cheap on blank DVD media.. It will play all A-grade discs, some B-grade but definitely not any C- (atleast none that i've tried).

As for other DVD player recommendations, it all depends on your budget. But go here www.avsforum.com and go to the DVD players forum. Seems to me there's a relatively new/cheap upconverting DVD player released for ~$200. (sorry, can't remember brand).

edit: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=423609

[gshelley61]

ojopaj,

You are correct in that there'll be less PQ improvement in upconverting when you're display is a direct tube. But I have a Sony 34XBR910 and let me tell you, there is definitely a noticeable improvement in PQ with the Momitsu player connected via DVI.. But that's probably due to Sony TV's Super Fine Pitch pixel technology than the Momitsu player itself (???)..

If you're going to buy a 34" 16x9 tube TV, I'd highly recommend that you hold off and save a bit more for either a Sony 34XBR910 or the latest 34XBR960, which can be had for ~$1800. I know there are those that'll disagree but.... either way, just read up both the Philips and Sony and weigh out price vs. quality.. Good luck.

Edit: Oh, I forgot.. the Momitsu is a VERY finicky player (needs recycling often--atleast mine does, which is ~1yr+ old--maybe more recent versions perform better??).. It usually does well with commerical DVD's, but if you're watching your burned DVD's, make sure you buy high-quality blank media.

Yes... the Sony displays you mentioned have a special high resolution tube and the difference should be noticeable with upscaled digital video input. The lower priced widescreen tubes are not like that.

[ojopaj]

Wow.. $825 IS a very good deal.. Hope you got a good/original warranty, as well..

Yup, got it factory refurbished from Philips themselves, and for an extra $100 I got a manufacturer's warranty even longer than that available for a brand new model. =)

If I could find a refurbished 34XBR910 for a similar price ratio (i.e. refurbished/new = 1/2) I would wait and save up for another few months. But the only refurb'ed sony's I can find are only like 10-15% off list. Pah.

I'm sure the Philips will be sufficient for my needs, especially considering what a newb I am to all of this. Maybe if I actually do go back to school, to do something lucrative this time, like law or medicine, then I'll be able to afford a super-duper set up.

Thanks again, everybody, for all of the help, and for being kind to a newbie.

[ojopaj]

any other suggestions anyone??

[ojopaj]

I'm guessing by the astounding silence that there are no players like this. So, I suppose the best suggestion is to go ahead and get the Momitsu, even though the up-scaling may be kind of wasted on my tv. Am I understanding that right?

thanks,
ojo

[Krispy Kritter]

Spending extra for upscaling seems a waste...as the current standard is 480p anyway. Just find a good Progressive scan player with the options you are wanting.

[lordsmurf]

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all

The webmaster should be horsewhipped for that page. Takes 1-2 minutes to load on broadband !!!!!!!!!! That sites is totally worthless. I cannot navigate it. Too much shit crammed into a single page. What a moron.

[Soopafresh]

http://www.divx.com/hardware/detail.php?p=34


That one looks pretty cool.

[gshelley61]

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all

The webmaster should be horsewhipped for that page. Takes 1-2 minutes to load on broadband !!!!!!!!!! That sites is totally worthless. I cannot navigate it. Too much shit crammed into a single page. What a moron.

That's the "all DVD players tested" listing. They have some others broken down by most recent test group, etc. Home theater tweaks are only really interested in the top part of the list where the best performers are. That is an exhaustive listing, though.

[MoovyGuy]

My ideal dvd player has these features:
- progressive scan
- upconversion to 720p/1080i (or whatever - still researching what all that means, but what i've read makes it sound really nice) =)
- MUST play dvd-r's flawlessly - i've got a ton of 'em!
- MUST play MP3s
- macrovision must be defeatable (turned off, hacked, whatever)

Secondary features which I would really like but are not necessarily required:
- play VCDs
- play PAL and NTSC
- region hackable
- play RWs (- or + )

Hey ojo,

Try the IO-Data Avel Linkplayer 2. It's a fair bit cheaper than the Momitsu & does everything that your looking for.

They will be coming out with a version shortly that has a 802.11g wireless nic, but keep in mind that this won't be enough bandwidth to stream high def mpeg 2 transport streams.

It even plays HD divx/xvid & RM.

Very cool player. I got one about two weeks ago.

www.iodata.com

Cheers