Panasonic DMR-ES10EB Firmware

[Maris 55]

Hello,
I have this ES10EB. This is a UK version and has a Region code 2. I would like to get it Region free (ALL Region) because I have DVDs with different codes. I have spent some days and nights to search and read about Panasonic DVDs, but no luck to find the firmware. In fact I found just one, but it failed to install- the display showed Unsupported. Either this was an older or unsupported firmware. I burned it on a CD-RW disc and guess that this media is allowed to be used for FW updates?
So maybe someone here can tell me if I can get the ES10EB region free. I am also afraid if is it possible to install a wrong FW? Let us say I have the ES10EB and I am by fault trying to install the FW from ES10EP or K, or S. Can a wrong FW been installed and the machine becomes unusable or looses something of funcionality? And where can I find the last original ES10EB firmware to be safe? I could not find one.

Maris.

[orsetto]

Panasonic recommends only CD-R be used to create firmware discs, not CD-RW. I suppose it might work with CD-RW, but why take unnecessary chances?

The last firmware update package for the DMR-ES10 was numbered "U1-326" + "U1-327". These addressed issues with dirty laser lens and burning of RW media: generic issues that have nothing to do with region codes. Panasonic's installation instructions are a bit vague, but seem to say the recorder will not load any firmware it wasn't designed to accept. If the front panel shows "UNSUPPORTED" that means your ES10 did not load the firmware you tried, so there shouldn't be any damage. If the unit does accept new firmware, the display will go thru a countdown, then after a few minutes show "BYE", then the unit will reboot.

AFAIK, Panasonic recorders are not usually amenable to having their region changed: Panasonic sold specific models for different regions plus alternative multi-region versions. I don't think they can be hacked via simple firmware updates: Panasonic recorder regions can only be changed using a special service remote that was only available to Panasonic service centers. Some models can be changed using the special remote, others cannot. Buying the remote, or paying a Panasonic tech to do this change for you, would probably cost much more than you paid for the ES10 itself.

Since you bought the ES10 to use as a passthru video signal processor for your PAL vhs, pretend it doesn't have a dvd drive and just use it as a signal conditioner. Buy a separate, modern, inexpensive multi-region (or region 1) dvd player for your region 1 discs. Newer players will generally handle dvd playback better than a twelve year old recorder anyway.

[Maris 55]

Hello, Orsetto,

Thanks for the explanation. In fact I already have a good DVD player long before I bought ES10 for VHS Passthru. But I do have all the common electronic stuff for Audio/Video work- DVD player, DVD recorder, VHS player, Audio Cassette player, desktop PC. And all of this stuff is cross interconected with each other, the AV Control Receiver, LCD TV and PC's Multimedia monitor. A lot of different cables and a rather messy situation even when I try to keep it tidy. So I got the idea to remove at least one of the DVDs which double each other. And of coarse I must leave the Panasonic ES10 because it is used for Video Passthru. But then I can't play discs other than Region2...
Well I will keep both DVDs, one connected to LCD TV and the other (ES10) to my Multimedia monitor.

Many thanks,
Maris