Hi! I have an outlaw 950 / rotel rmb 1075 / definitive bp2004TL + center and surrounds + Hsu VTF 2 sub + infocus X1.
I'm trying to figure out what dvd player to buy. The infocus only takes component so dvi compatibility is nice but not necessary.

I'm not looking for dvd-a/sacd support. Again nice but not necessary.

Since the dvd player is sending a digital signal to the 950 for sound, my thought was most players should sound similar. Testing an old samsung, older sony and newer marantz appear to show that it is not the case. The marantz dv6400 I tried sounded better than the other two..not jaw dropping better..but better.

So my question is: what dvd player are you using that gives you excellent performance at movies when used as a transport into the 950. I can stretch upto $1000 but lower is better if it gets the job done.

Thanks for your input..
Dax

Dax,
When I auditioned DVD players a few years ago I had a similar experience in that some players sounded better and produced better video. I settled on a Marantz VC5200. I also liked the Denon models. Your experience may be a result of comparing older technology with a newer model. IMHO the newer DVD players produce superior audio and video. I also have an Oppo but the main advantage is its' capability to upconvert to 720p through the DVI output. You should listen to and view some of the new players to compare them and decide which you like the best. I wouldn't buy an expensive player now because improved performance formats are scheduled to be introduced by the end of this year and the begining of next year.

I forgot to mention that while I have been pleased with the Marantz, I have also noticed that it is less tolerant of marginal media. Small scratches or marks will sometimes cause the player to fail to read or play a DVD or CD and produce an error message. I don't know if this has been corrected on newer models.

People in some of the other Outlaw forums are raving about the Oppo player:

http://www.oppodigital.com/

I'm using a Samsung DVD-HD841 and am quite happy with it. I'm told the just released Samsung DVD-HD950 is also quite good.

If you're into reference quality transports, and snob appeal (heh), there's always the tried and true Denon DVD-5910 (at about 15 times the price of any of the other players mentioned above).

Cheers,

The Oppo is a really impressive player, especially for the price, but it is not ideal for everyone. Since you don't have a DVI or HDMI input, I would not put the Oppo high on your shopping list - the excellent upscaling performance is only available at the DVI output, and the component output is strictly limited to interlaced video (480i).

By and large, Denon's mid-level and high-end players most consistently seem to offer really good video performance. Their entry-level players don't necessarily fare so well, so for your sub-$1000 budget I'd consider the DVD-2910 (list price $740) or maybe even a used DVD-2900. For the less lofty budget, I think some of the newer Toshibas have made pretty respectable showings, and the Panasonic DVD-S97 (DVD-Audio but not SACD) and S77 (neither audio format) are finally somewhat reminscent of Panasonic's better days.

Thanks John W, Ritz and Gonk. Your input is much appreciated.

I've also been suffering dvi envy and wondering if I replaced the Infocus X1 by the 4805 with DVI input, I could possibly go for the oppo. So 2 questions to follow on:
1. Are you happy with the surround sound produced by the digital out of the oppo player.?
2. What is the level of improvement with a DLP projector with a dvi input vs. a component input.

thanks again
Dax

1. I'm quite satisfied with the Oppo's digital audio output. It is certainly on par with the Yamaha DVD-S1500 that also resides in my equipment rack.

2. Since my HDTV is a direct-view tube, I can't speak to the differences between DVI and component with a DLP projector. Unless the projector's native resolution vertical happens to be 720, you are going to need some help from the projector's internal scalers no matter which you use. I did find that the Oppo's 1080i output with my Zenith HDTV was a clear improvement over the 480p from my Yamaha, but that's a significant number of separate variables being changed (different video players from different manufacturers, DVI instead of component, and different resolutions).

Dax,

The quality of the surround sound coming out of the digital out is mostly a function of the DAC that's doing the decoding. Any old cheesy transport can reliably feed you the bits from the disc (ignoring jitter for the moment).

I've never owned a projector. I wanted to include one in my current system, but I've got 2 small children and the screen/projector is just too much of an attractive nuissance for small kids. My next project is to convert the little studio apt over my garage into "daddy's theater room" so I'm hoping to upgrade to a nice projector at that time. So perhaps I'll have an answer for that question soon. 8-)

Cheers,

Gonk

Do you know if the Oppo plays multi region and WMV disk? If it doesn't, is it possible to modify it with firmware upgrading? I have many adult video collections from Japan and Internet in those formats that need to be played on my HT big screen.

I am considering to buy two, this is cheap man!!

Thanks!!

I think the Oppo player is region free by default.

Actually, I think the currently shipping Oppos are region 1 by default, but there are instructions online (I've seen them recently, but don't recall where at the moment) for going into the software and changing it to region free. The Oppo also plays Divx files on CD-R's quite well, although it doesn't seem to support WMV files.

Hey,

I just found out the region can easily be changed by going into the Oppo's configuration menu.

Gonk, does yours have that function? I found it here-

http://www.hkflix.com/hardware/xq/asp/pid.90/qx/details.htm

But, it doesn't seem to play WMV. If it does, it would be perfect!!

Thanks again, Ritz and Gonk.

I have been into that menu on my player to verify the current firmware version, but I didn't change the region code (since all the discs in my library are region 1). As I recall, mine shipped with the region code set to "1".

Ritz,

You may want to look at the Sanyo PLV Z2. It is an LCD front projector but it produces an excellent picture. I got mine at the begining of 2004 and I have been very impressed. It is native 16 x 9 and the upconversion from the Oppo to 720p produces a great picture.

As an added bonus the Sanyo is now selling online from Projector People for just over one thousand dollars. When I purchased mine it cost two thousand dollars and that was discounted from twenty five hundred dollars.

I have heard that the new Sanyo Z3 is even better and it is selling for two thousand dollars.

DLP projectors are good but you should audition one of the newer LCD projectors to see if you like them before deciding on another DLP.

In any case I think that you will find that the Z2 produces a much better picture than the X1.Technology is improving at such a fast rate that some of the best projectors from a few years ago are now surpassed by much cheaper recent models.

Sorry Ritz, I got your equipment mixed up with Dax's as you do not have a projector.

Take a look at Projector Peoples equipment. They carry most brands and are very helpful if you give them a call or email them. I was very pleased with their prices and customer service.

Gonk,

There is a function in Oppo which can adjust Brightness, Contrast, Saturation...etc I tried to adjust them, but I didn't see any effect. How about yours? Is that normal?

I don't recall, as I don't think I used the player's controls much if at all. It may be that those settings only affect the analog video outputs, of course (much like many of the audio controls only affect the analog audio outputs), but there's no indication of such in the manual. I may poke around at mine some, but it will probably be the weekend before I get a chance - it's been really hectic around here the last couple days, and it doesn't seem to want to slow down any.

I just received my OPPO OPDV971H DVD player today. I made quick connection into my new Sony 60XS955 LCD projection TV, via DVI to HDMI cable. The Sony has two HDMI inputs so I don't have to use the switch in the 990. I first impression is, this is the best video I have ever seen out of a DVD player. The 720p upscale in the player is fantastic.
I cannot believe that this player sells for only $199.00. OK the down side, the owners manual is very brief and could be more detailed, but who watches the manual!

I just ordered the OPPO dvd player myself thanks to gonk. I should receive it by the middle of next week and can't wait to check out the video quality. It seems paratrooper is quite please with the video on his Sony. Since I also have a Sony LCD projection TV (55wf655), I was wondering if paratrooper compared the 720p upscale to the 1080i upscale and found any difference.

Ronrags

I have not made any long time comparsions, but to my eyes they are equal. In my previous post I should have said that 720p and 1080i are fantastic. I have read that 720p is better for sports as it frame rate is twice as fast as 1080i

Thanks for the input. Looking forward to see it for myself.

My experience with Toshiba DVD players has been good in terms of the quality output but I have found them too sensitive to minor defects on the DVD (smudges, etc.). The result has been freeze ups, etc. The same disks that caused problems for my Toshibas (I have two) play with no problem.

Interestingly, the dealer where I bought my projector suggested the Marantz DV4500. He claims it plays just about everything with little in the way of freeze ups, rejects, etc.

John

One thing I like about this Oppo is the super error correction laser. Some of my MPG files were joined from spliced clips, which don’t play very smoothly during jointed points. Oppo fast-forward those bad segments to smooth them out instead of freezing up. Very nice!! It also has files explorer, which can browse all the files on the CD-R. But only folder and compatible files would appear. I found it doesn’t recognize some of my WAVE files ripped from PS2 disks. Strange… Anyway it did play all my DIVX porn very well with very good quality.

Another very useful function of Oppo is the channel gain boost. It lets you boost all the channels up to 10db. Great for pumping up the weak signals from some DVDs and for those people who don’t use surround processor.