Hi all,

The 950 is my first foray into home theater sound. Until now I've been a two channel guy. My question concerns my dvd player, the 950 and using DTS.

My dvd player is a Toshiba 3107 which is circa 1997 or so and the only decoding it has is DD, no DTS. I had thought that since the 950 has a DTS decoder and I hook the Toshiba up using a coax input that I could get DTS output with the 950 doing the decoding. This doesn't seem to be the case. The Toshiba setup allows you to select PCM or AC3. Using Gladiator as software, if I select the DTS soundtrack the 950 will lock on DD 2.0. Selecting the DD soundtrack I get DD 3/2.1.

My question is, am I doing something wrong here or do I need a dvd player that supports DTS? I had assumed that a coax connection would pass the bitstream to the 950 which would decode it as DTS or DD but DTS is never an option that appears on the 950 when playing dvds.

Maybe it's time for a dvd player upgrade.

thanks,
-bill

[This message has been edited by mojoman (edited September 26, 2002).]

Early DVD players did not support DTS, and would not pass the DTS data to the digital output. My Panasonic A310 (circa '98) was one of the first players to support a DTS digital output. The 3107 is one of those players that does not appear to support DTS (based on what little I can find online).

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

thanks gonk,

Looks like I now have an excuse to upgrade my dvd player. I can move the toshiba to the bedroom.

If DTS is not showing up as an option then I'm about 95% sure that the 3107 does not support it. The digital coax should have no trouble sending a DTS signal if the player can do it.

I have the Toshiba SD2200 from 2 years ago. It's DTS compatible, so it sends out the undecoded signal where my receiver will decode it.

I had another idea, do you have a five speakers and a sub hooked up? I have a Marantz SR6200 that will not play certain formats (like DTS) if the proper number of speakers are not setup up. I don't have a center channel hooked up to my system right now, so I can not play DTS or Dolby Digital by pushing those buttons. I use Auto a lot, but I'm not sure what signal is being used. I don't know if the 950 has this either.

I hate to deprive you of an upgrade, but it might be time for that anyway.

I have the Toshiba 3107 and it can not send DTS data. This is my excuse to upgrade my DVD player too.

As I recall, the Toshiba 2108 and 3108 players support DTS. The Toshiba 2107 and 3107 players don't. The 2108 and 3108 still would need an external DTS decoder.

Yes I've found out the 3107 doesn't support DTS. I dug out the manual and no mention of DTS there. So now I have an excuse to upgrade too. Anybody got any recommendations on what dvd players to look at. Budget will be up to $600.

Also a good excuse to toe dip into DVD-A or SACD, if you're curious about them. A lot of players have hi-rez audio playback capability built in, which your 950 can handle. What are YOU looking for from a DVD player? Can your TV handle a progressive scan signal? Do you want a changer? Will you be using it as your CD player too? Cosmetics? Let us know and it will help narrow the list. I wouldn't spend more than $200 to $300 on a player, unless you're looking for something specific. Most of the features I mentioned above can be had in that price range.

Best,
Sanjay

I experiemented with > 44.1K into my 950, but my 950 could handle it in stereo only, as I remember. It didn't allow for processing of > 44.1K in DTS NEO or DPL 2.

The source was a Panasonic RP-91 DVD player.

The Toshiba SD4700 and SD5700 look pretty good to me. Both are $250 or less depending on where you get it and support lots of disc types. I think it's hard to find a bad player nowadays if you stick with well known brands. Just find something with the features you want and you'll be good to go.

sdurani,

To answer some of your questions:

I'm pretty happy with my Toshiba player but it is obviously dated in that I can't listen to DTS soundtracks. I'm looking for a single disc player that will support progressive scan (although I don't have a tv that supports this yet but should within 6 months), at least one of the high rez audio formats (SACD seems to have more of the types of music I like but this is not much of an issue) and mp3 decoding. What the player looks like is not to important but thinner is better due to limited rack space. I have a dedicated cd player so quality redbook playback isn't important to me.

The biggest criteria are quality soundtrack playback and picture quality.

thanks for everyones help!

Will, Quick clarification. The "hi-rez audio" I was talking about was SACD and DVD-A, which I had just mentioned in the previous sentence, and which the "950 can handle" via its 5.1 analog inputs.

Best,
Sanjay

Bill, There are four players I can think of that satisfy the criteria above. Sony's model DVP-NS755V is a single disc, progressive scan DVD/SACD player for under $300; it will also play MP3 files you may have burned onto CD-R/RW. The other three MP-3 capable, progressive scan, single disc players were: JVC XV-SA70 (street price less than $200), Panasonic DVD-RP91 (under $500), and Toshiba SD-4700 (between $200 - $300). All three do DVD-A. The JVC has the worst warranty and DACs of the three, so you may want to skip it.

Of the three, the Panasonic has been the best reviewed, especially re video and audio quality (upsamples standard CDs). It is a solidly built machine and is a little more flexible than the competition as far as disc types go (even plays DVD-RAM).

Slightly outside your price range are DVD recorders from Pioneer and Panasonic, in case you're interested. Also, I think CEDIA is being held this weekend and there should be some announcements from consumer electronics manufacturers; you may want to wait a week to for news to trickle in so you can see what's coming down the pike before investing in a new player.

Meanwhile, check out the players I mentioned; especially the Sony and Panasonic models.

Good Luck,
Sanjay

That's a good list. Panasonic also has the RP-82 progressive-scan / DVD-Audio player available that may be worth looking at. It's not as expensive as the RP-91, with an MSRP around $230.

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

Thanks guys, this info will help me get started. I do think I'll take sdurani's advice and wait to see what new comes out of CEDIA. I'm in no big hurry so waiting a few weeks isn't a big deal.

Panasonic has the rp-62 and the sometimes hard to get rp-82. The Toshiba has updated the 4700 to the 4800, but still no update yet for the 5700.
DmC

I’ll second the recommendation to wait (if you have patience for your DTS issue). I would have done so till late fall, but got in a hurry due to another purchase.
I had picked up a Sony DVP-NS715P for under 200, (impulse moment), which was extremely capable on the video side. (12 bit / 108MHz). The pic was excellent, and I would have kept it for that alone, - unfortunately my unit proved a buggy lemon, so it went back. I followed reviews a short while when I returned it, and although the postings were few, (it was just released to market), my experience did appear to be an anomaly. I’d recommend it (after careful checking on current reviews) for the video alone if your not trying to add SACD or DVD/A. But as Sanjay pointed out the price is dropping on units with one or both extended audio formats and there are a lot of goodies out there. However, I found they still don’t make one with the DAC’s I want with the other features I would like in any all-exclusive unit at any price, a few months ago while searching.
Once I had viewed the difference Prog. makes on a 60” (faults in your source are glaring at that size) I went ahead with a buy. I kept a Panasonic RP-91, as it addressed some concerns about aspect ratios for me, was satisfactory on video, and included DVD-A. I am very content with the 91 (Killer fast forward (who cares) but hilarious to watch, being so seamless as to appear filmed at that speed). Since its technology is aging (Genesis chip), and the price has dropped, it appears a good deal relationed to its original price for a well regarded, battle tested unit. I was trying to take a closer look at the RP-82, it was still unavailable at the time, I can’t remember if it supports MP3, I would assume it would?
That said, although I do recomend the 91, if I had already owned a Progressive player, I would have passed, (letting the price drop more, if I had decided for it) until I at least saw what the fall had to offer.