Hi all,

I'm one of those guys still holding off on buying a Blue-Ray or HD-DVD player. Prices for the movies are 3 to 4 times the price of a regular DVD, that is, if you can wait a few months before buying it. I also don't like there are 2 formats. This post is not intended to start another discussion on whichever format is best. There are posts enough covering this issue.

But, I'm looking into buying an upscaling DVD player. So my question is, do you really notice a difference, is it worth it to buy a new player. My DVD recorder (a Pioneer DVR-530H is less than 2 years old.) provides excellent images, though it's limited to 576p. I'm viewing my movies on a Sony KDL-42V2000 LCD TV.

If I would purchase an upscaling player, I would go for the Pioneer DV-400V, upscaling to 1080p. It's available for 140€ / 190$. Does anyone have any experience with this player?

All comments are welcome and will be highly appreciated.

Best regards,
Chris

Thanks, this looks indeed an interesting player, but sadly no European distribution, so including shipping and import taxes, this would come to twice the price of the pioneer.

Also forgot to mention, I need a region free player because I do own quite a bit R1 releases.

At least in the US, you can pickup a Toshiba HD-A2 HD DVD player for not much more than the Oppo, and most reviews indicate that it's among one of the best upconvert player.  You get HD DVD playback as a bonus.  However, Oppo can be made multi-region, NTSC/PAL playback machine, whereas no such hack exists for any HD DVD player (yet).

This is a reoccurring topic, check:
Upconverting DVD players,May 4. 2007

Thanks,

After checking other localized google engines, I found a distributor in Holland at www.oppo.nl. No info on how to purchase though and it still costs nearly twice as much as the Pioneer though. Both players can be made region free, so that I'm still undecided. The Oppo 981 gets great reviews, but the few reviews I could find for the pioneer DV-400V are mostly very positive also. The advantage for Pioneer, it's widely everywhere, the Oppo would take 160 mile drive. Any hard arguments not to buy the Pioneer?

Quoting FLighT:

Quote:

I ordered mine directly from OPPO's website, no problem. It shows that they ship internationally as well. After a few weeks using it I'm really impressed, especially for the money. This is the one unit I'd recommend to my family and friends. I just bought a Toshiba HD-A20 and Sony BDP-S300 last weekend and will start comparing some of the same titles on all 3 formats in the upcoming weekends (using the OPPO for the standard def), it's gonna' be fun. By the way, set up on both the Toshiba and Sony were easy, you've just got to be patient as they take longer to do everything (more information to load) than old fashion analog systems that start up very quickly...  All functions that I have used so far on both units worked with no problems, but then, I'm one of those idiots that actually reads the manuals from cover to cover before I start pushing bottons.

Thanks for the info, but I finally ordered the Pioneer DV-400V, a collegue of mine really likes this model, and I used the rest of the money to buy a XtremeMac: ExtremeHD 4-port HDMI switcher. My TV only has 1 HDMI interface. This box has 4 HDMI inputs and 1 HDMI output, and it's remote controlled. The HDMI switcher + cables actually cost more than the DVD player  , but with HD television and an upscale player, I still have 2 ports left for future devices. Enjoy comparing your new devices 

Pioneers are usually very easily unlockable. Just put in a CD with the unlock code, and there it goes.

The unlock code CD for your model is available in several sites at the internet, or, in some countries, directly from your national Pioneer office.

Here's another one that has gotten little notice but is a superb piece of gear for a great price:

I was looking real hard at Oppo's 971, because it was a perfect fit for the feature set of my Sharp LCD Widescreen.  But, I couldn't find any place that had new ones, and only a few that had some factory refurbished for sale.  I checked with Oppo US, finally, and was told the 971 has been discontinued.

So, I started my search again.  I looked at nearly a dozen and a half different makes and models ranging in price from about $70 to well over $300.  I finally narrowed it down to two, a Sony 5-hole carousel model and a one-holer from Toshiba.  I finally settled on the Sony because of the carousel.  It's a Model DVP-NC85H/B and sells most places for $129.99.  Bought it on-line through Best Buy for an in-store pickup.

It does NOT come with an HDMI cable (the Oppo did, but I'm sure that raised the price as well) so don't forget to get one.  [NOTE:  Don't let the sales rep talk you into spending $75 on an HDMI cable either.  Sony makes a very nice 5' unit - DLCHN15 - for $25.00]  The player is supplied with a standard RCA type red/white/yellow audio/video cable, a very detailed manual, and batteries for the remote.  The remote is well laid out and very easy and intuitive to operate with one hand in a darkened room.

I threw everything I could think of that had intense action and detailed graphics (both live and CGI) at this little jewel and it passed everything with flying colors.  King Kong, Aeonflux, Master and Commander, Pearl Harbor, and several others all played superbly, with no artifacting at all, and it was as if I was seeing them fresh the first time.  Bright, vivid colors, and deep, solid blacks, exquisite tiny details, etc.  I was also able to utilize the optical audio connection on my AV receiver because the Sony has an SPDIF optical output.  Now, I get automatic 5.1 DTS recognition, and the sound is better than ever.  Now that I am using HDMI on the TV, I get automatic format adjustment with anamorphic DVDs, and that too is dead-on accurate.

So, if you want a great player with lots of features at a very good price, check out this Sony.  I am very pleased with its performance, and watching DVDs is now "gee whiz" fun again like it was in the beginning!

Final Note:  Don't know if this is Region 1 only.  I couldn't find any logos on the manual, the box, or the unit itself.