New Philips DVP5992 DVD player with USB 2.0 feature!!

[shadow_cruiser]

@gll99

Thanks for the excellent input!. I'm set on buying this player just for the USB 2.0 feature. Now time to hunt it down online.

One question, I never play DVD's on my player. Before purchasing this, do you guys recommend a player that only plays media from a USB with no dvd function?. I was looking at the popcorn hour but couldn't find info on whether it was USB 1.1 or 2.0. Then again, popcorn hour is double the price. Just wondering if there's anything cheaper.

[tj1182]

Is there any reviews on how it plays WMV's? Does it support 640x480, and 720x480 resolutions?

[Squash]

tj1182,

I tried a couple of WMVs when I first got my 5990 and they played fine. According to the manual, it plays "main profile" WMVs but not "advanced profile" or DRMed WMVs.

TBoneit reported in this post:
https://forum.videohelp.com/topic351069.html#1848384
that it played most of the WMVs he tried on it, but not all.

I just tried a 720x480 WMV in it and it played fine; 4300 kbps bitrate. WMV fast-forward seems slower than on AVIs, but still a lot faster than the older USB 1.1 Philips players.

[DarrellS]

I put a couple of divx avi a rewritable disc and the second file played out of sync close to the end of the file. Both of these files play fine on my computer.

General
Complete name : D:\
Format : AVI
Format/Info : Audio Video Interleave
File size : 990 MiB
Duration : 44mn 41s
Overall bit rate : 3 097 Kbps
Writing library : VirtualDub build 29958/release

Video
Format : MPEG-4 Visual
Format settings, BVOP : Yes
Format settings, QPel : No
Format settings, GMC : No warppoints
Format settings, Matrix : Default
Muxing mode : Packet Bitstream
Codec ID : DX50
Codec ID/Hint : DivX 5
Duration : 44mn 41s
Bit rate : 2 958 Kbps
Width : 720 pixels
Height : 408 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16/9
Frame rate : 30.000 fps
Resolution : 24 bits
Colorimetry : 4:2:0
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.336
Stream size : 945 MiB (95%)
Writing library : DivX 2676

Audio
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 3
Codec ID : 55
Codec ID/Hint : MP3
Duration : 44mn 41s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 128 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 44.1 KHz
Resolution : 16 bits
Video delay : 6ms
Stream size : 40.9 MiB (4%)
Alignment : Split accross interleaves
Interleave, duration : 33 ms (1.00 video frame)
Interleave, preload duration : 500 ms

[jagabo]

30 fps is a bit odd. Maybe it should be 29.97. Or maybe it is 30 fps but the 5992 is playing at 29.97.

[DarrellS]

They are screen captures and Snagit doesn't do 29.97 so I had to choose 30fps.

What is strange is that the player (5990, sorry I picked the wrong thread) played the first file perfect and almost the whole 2nd file up to about the last two or three minutes. I'm wondering if I change the extension from divx to avi if it will make a difference since they are just divx.avi.

I can't save the file from snagit but have to copy the file from the temporary folder (_snag.avi). I then have to run it through mpeg4modifier to rebuild the index cause it doesn't have keyframes if I open it in VDub. I then have to stretch the audio to match the video with Goldwave. The resulting files play perfect in all my software players.

I wish I could just download the files but I can't find the address where they're stored and the screen captures look a lot better than the TV captures (the screen captures are 1000x600 HD.divx) would look since they don't have watermarks or commercials.

I recompressed the two captures and a new one I did tonight and will try them tomorrow.

[bmwracer]

Then what's the difference with 5992? if it has the same features and probably less money.

I think the only difference is color: one's silver, the other, black.

Costco is selling 'em for about $50, I believe.

[bmwracer]

Bad new... then., which kind of hardware can play a 1280X720 movie, in somewhat format: DVD player (seems not), Xbox, PS3 or any other? Otherwise, to have a HD output it's better to set up a Home Theater PC ?

Yup, using a PC is your only alternative, I think.

[jagabo]

All the HD players are pretty expensive. US$250+

[DarrellS]

I recompressed the two captures and a new one I did tonight and will try them tomorrow.

The 2nd file was still out of sync so I used the interlace options in VDub to delay the audio by 200ms and it fixed the problem.

Glad to know it wasn't the player. Not sure why the 1st and 3rd files were fine but the 2nd one wasn't.

[gll99]

I recompressed the two captures and a new one I did tonight and will try them tomorrow.

Hope you know that you only need to remux the files so you can use "Directstream copy" when changing the sync. It's pretty quick. I fixed some 30fps files captured in error by splitting the video in 2 and only applying the lag to part 2. In my case the visible drift was happening in the last 3rd of the movie.

[DarrellS]

I recompressed the two captures and a new one I did tonight and will try them tomorrow.

Hope you know that you only need to remux the files so you can use "Directstream copy" when changing the sync. It's pretty quick. I fixed some 30fps files captured in error by splitting the video in 2 and only applying the lag to part 2. In my case the visible drift was happening in the last 3rd of the movie.

My original captures were 1000x600 so I had to crop and change the resolution to 720x406 which calls for full processing mode. It only took about 20 minutes with the Q6600 processor. I did direct stream copy the file when I fixed the audio lag.

[jagabo]

I wouldn't use a height of 406 -- a lot of players will have trouble with a mod 2 frame size. Use 400 (mod 16). Or at least 408 (mod 8) or, least desirable, 404 (mod 4).

[TVSire]

Can you please enable the choice of PAL playback in the player (right now it is fixed to only NTSC) in "Video Setup Page->TV Type"? This was a selectable feature in the players up to the 5960 version after which Philips changed the option so you cannot change to PAL.

And PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE also do this for the 5982 too. I asked three weeks ago on this thread https://forum.videohelp.com/topic348913.html but no reply yet. I want to take my 5982 with me to Europe soon.

Shame on Philips for disabling that good option

[DarrellS]

I wouldn't use a height of 406 -- a lot of players will have trouble with a mod 2 frame size. Use 400 (mod 16). Or at least 408 (mod 8) or, least desirable, 404 (mod 4).

I used the resolution that Virtualdub's resize filter gave me. It was actually 720x405.xxx but was closer to 406 than 404. These are divx files that I'll be playing on my Philips divx players. I guess I could crop them to 720x400.

I kept the original captures (tonight's was 1024x576) incase I ever can afford to buy a media player that plays high definition files.

[jagabo]

I wouldn't use a height of 406 -- a lot of players will have trouble with a mod 2 frame size. Use 400 (mod 16). Or at least 408 (mod 8) or, least desirable, 404 (mod 4).

I used the resolution that Virtualdub's resize filter gave me.

Disable the Aspect Ratio setting in the Resize filter and you can specify whatever width and height you want. Or use the Codec Friendly Sizing option. The former will give you a slight AR error (you won't notice a 1 percent error), the latter will crop.

[victoriabears]

the 5992 is a costco version or a silver version of the 5990, which I have and is amuch better more mainstream remote.

The 5990 can also create mp3's from your cd's onto the usb drive-weird but useful?

[xeroid]

Questions !!!

Will this player upscale from a movie on a usb stick. If I make my own movies, small vidio clips ... what is the best file type to make that will upscale the best ... at the same time have the smallest file size?

[jagabo]

Will this player upscale from a movie on a usb stick.

Yes.

If I make my own movies, small vidio clips ... what is the best file type to make that will upscale the best ... at the same time have the smallest file size?

Xvid+MP3 AVI.

[xeroid]

Thanks for that answer ..... Xvid / AVI ... 480p ?

[xeroid]

Trying to make small movie files in Pro Show Producer and have the Phillips 5990 upscale them so they look crytal clear on screen. Not having any luck ..... need some advice as to what to do?

[jagabo]

What resolution you want to use depends on how small a file you want. If you want really small files you'll have to reduce the resolution. Of course, that means the picture will be fuzzier when displayed full screen on your TV.

If resolution is your major concern encode at the same frame size as the DVD source (720x480 NTSC, 720x576 PAL) and use the Xvid DAR flag to set the final displayed aspect ratio (4:3 or 16:9). You usually won't get great results if you squeeze a 2 hour movie into 700 MB at that frame size though.

I usually use single pass Target Quantizer mode (constant quality) with the quantizer set to 3. Movies usually come out somewhere between 600 MB and 2000 MB.

My usual process is to RIP with DVD Decryptor in IFO mode (must main movie), use DgIndex to produce an index file, read the file into VirtualDub via an AviSynth script, the compress with Xvid in Fast Recompress mode (no colorspace conversion).

You're never going to get a crystal clear image when upscaling SD (or lower) to HD.

[xeroid]

I am creating from scratch my own movies. They are advertisments, 20 to 30 seconds long and most will be done in Pro Show Producer software. There are all kinds of options as to how you want to save the movie you just made. Without knowing the program .... you won't know what options are availble in the save process ... but there are lots of them. The goal is to save the file in as small as size as possible to be upscaled through the usb port in the Phillips 5990. Does the upscaling really make any difference? You can't insert a HD file in the 5990 .. it doesn't play .. can't handle them. So what type of file do I need that is best suited for the 5990 to take full advantage of it's upscaling ability? Does the Phillips 5990 take standard definition and bring it up to 1080P ? I'm obviously a rookie on movie file types and what I need to do to have the best picture quality with the smallest file size?

ProShow Producer Output Formats

New! Blu-ray
DVD (with PC playback)
VCD (with PC playback)
Autorun CD
Self-contained EXE
Share shows via email
Streaming web show
Free online show sharing
Streaming Flash video
Compressed AVI
Uncompressed AVI
QuickTime video
High definition video (HD)
Windows Media Video (WMV)
Device Output
Direct YouTube Uploading
MPEG 1 and 2
Screensaver

Another question .... when you insert your usb stick into the 5990 it opens up the file structure on screen. Is there any way to customize this screen to have your own background appear. Even this screen of the file sturcture is not clear!

Any help or suggestions appreciated !

[jagabo]

The goal is to save the file in as small as size as possible

Small file size and high quality video are conflicting goals. It will always be a compromise. Different people will have different preferences. From your list of supported outputs Xvid AVI or WMV is probably your best bet.

to be upscaled through the usb port in the Phillips 5990. Does the upscaling really make any difference?

Compared to what? Whenever an HDTV is showing an SD source upscaling is going on. Either the DVD player or the TV is upscaling the image. Which looks better depends on many factors including how well each device can upscale, the type of cabling used between them, the resolution of the display and whether it supports 1:1 pixel mapping, etc.

Does the Phillips 5990 take standard definition and bring it up to 1080P ?

It can, assuming your TV accepts 1080p input. But upscaling doesn't turn a standard definition image into a high definition image. It's simply digitally enlarging the frame and attempting not to generate artifacts in the process. In general, the sharper you make the image the more artifacts you get.

Another question .... when you insert your usb stick into the 5990 it opens up the file structure on screen. Is there any way to customize this screen to have your own background appear. Even this screen of the file sturcture is not clear!

There are mods of the firmware available that change the background and fonts but I don't think there is any difference in the sharpness of the menu text.

How is your DVD player connected to the HDTV? HDMI? Is your HDTV capable of receiving 1080p input? (Note, just because it has a 1080p display means it accepts 1080p input -- it may only receive 1080i and convert it to 1080p.)

[xeroid]

The Player is connected with a HDMI cable and the TV is a True 1080P.

Xeroid asks: Does the Phillips 5990 take standard definition and bring it up to 1080P ?

It can, assuming your TV accepts 1080p input. But upscaling doesn't turn a standard definition image into a high definition image. It's simply digitally enlarging the frame and attempting not to generate artifacts in the process. In general, the sharper you make the image the more artifacts you get.

???? So it really sucks right .... you really can't see any big difference? Upscaling is just a marketing gimic?

[jagabo]

???? So it really sucks right .... you really can't see any big difference? Upscaling is just a marketing gimic?

It depends. If you were using a composite or s-video cable to connect a DVD player to the HDTV the image from the DVD gets degraded by the interlaced transmission. So stepping up to an upscaling player with HDMI will look better. Some older HDTVs do not scale well, even if fed 480i via HDMI. In that case an upscaling player would probably look better.

People seem to rave about Toshiba's new upscaling player. Maybe you should look into it instead. It costs a lot more though:

http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-XD-E500-Upconverting-Extended-Detail/dp/B001D9IWIY

I haven't seen it myself but I consider at least two of the "improvments" as gimmicks: enhanced contrast and saturation. The sharpening might be ok if it doesn't crate too many artifacts. It sounds like it uses super resolution techniques to deliver a sharper picture.

[Inspex]

Has anyone tried hooking a card reader up through the USB port to see if it will read DivX files from an SD card through the card reader? That's the only thing these players are missing. SD support. I'd love to know if you can play DivX files like this through a card reader. Someone please try.

[jagabo]

Has anyone tried hooking a card reader up through the USB port to see if it will read DivX files from an SD card through the card reader?

I've done that with my older Philips DVP-5960.

[Squash]

@Inspex,

It also works with my DVP5990/37. No problems with AVI or mp3, both played fine.

Card reader used: Stratitec USB 10-in-1 Card Reader (has 4 media slots, one of which is for SD).
Media: Sandisk 256 MB SD card, FAT formatted.
Files tested: AVI (xvid/mp3) and an mp3 file.

[Inspex]

Nice. I have a 16gb SDHC card I hope to use through a portable usb stick sd card reader. I hope it works.