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.