HD-(X)A1 Firmware Update now available on Toshiba website. Now version 2.4!!! (1 Viewer)

[TonyD]

got my disc yesteday(1.4) or 1400 is on the label.

what difference should i ecxpect?

you know, when i put this in the player i expected a menu on the tv to tell me when it starts but didnt see anything.
just "ver up" display.
the enclosed directiosn say, "the onscreen display will indicate proceed with update. with an option of yes or no."

i never got that and just hit the enter button on the remote, which caused the dvd player display to start a countup with the % behind the numbers.

took about 5-7 minutes.

 

[Paul Anthony]

I got my Firmware disc yesterday too (they sent me 2, actually), and it took about 10 minutes to download the information. I keep reading from the AVS forum that people have to wait hours to download from the Toshiba web site, when it would be so much simpler to order the disc from Toshiba that just takes minutes to update the player...just pop in the disc and GO!

After the update, a much notible improvement in my HD player. I can now play CDs on Pro-Logic IIxx through my HDMI connection (was only able to play 2-channel PCM before the update), and no longer get that horrible whistling noise. As an audiophile, I also noticed a distinct stereo seperation that I didn't hear before! Picture still looks great, and the video hic-cups seem to be gone!

Thank you, Toshiba!

 

[Larry Sutliff]

I got the Toshiba 1.4 disc the other day. I uploaded it to my player, and the colors were a bit richer, but at the expense of more background video noise. I'm using DVI, and experts have said that the colorspace for DVI on this new firmware is highly incorrect(at PC levels). I reloaded version 1.2, and everything looks fine again, even if the colors are slightly understated compared to 1.4.

From what I've read, if you're using HDMI or component, then the new firmware is worth loading. If DVI is your connection, don't bother, wait for a later firmware.

 

[Hayes Preston]

Received 1.4 CD in the mail on Tuesday(two days ago) and performed the update. After two nights of viewing some sample scenes, I can't see any difference (not that that's a bad thing) I can't really see any functional differences, it doesn't seem to load any faster (I haven't timed it.)

Does anyone have a list from Tosh as to what exactly 1.4 corrects/improves?

 

[EdClay]

RCA Version which is the same as Toshiba:
HDV5000 SOFTWARE UPDATE PROCEDURE Version 1.4
Thomson is now making available software version 1.4 for your HDV5000. This latest version offers the following improvements:
Improves HDMI and DVI connectivity with some televisions,
monitors and projectors.
Reduces HD DVD playback block noise.
Eliminates high frequency feedback with some televisions,
monitors and projectors via the HDMI connection.

 

[Hayes Preston]

Thanks Ed,

So basically, since I am connected via HDMI and had no "hi freq feedback" issues or HD block noise, this update did nothing for my setup.

Oh well, at least I am keeping up to date.

 

[RAF]

When I got my HD-XA1 player earlier in the week it had version 1.3 installed on it and I fiddled around with it a bit before doing any firmware update. There were a couple of issues with HDMI handshaking because I have a fairly complex HDMI setup compared with others who are simply connecting the player directly to the display (at least for the video portion of the HDMI signal). Specifically, I have all my video outputs going through my DVD0 VP-30 scaler for processing and then out to two different HD displays (my 1080p HP MD5880n DLP RPM and my 720p Runco CL-710 DLP Front Projector). This is accomplished by using an HDMI Gefen 2x2 switcher (completely HDCP compliant) since the VP30 has only one HDMI output. Add to this the fact that I have a special 70 foot long HDMI cable (amplified signal) in order to reach the projector without any wires showing and you have what must be considered an HDMI developer's final exam practical.



Let's just say that while still not perfect, the HDMI performance of the Toshiba HD-XA1 is much better with Version 1.4 rather than with 1.3 where I would sometimes have to shut the player down (or it would stop on its own if I changed inputs on the DVD0 scaler.) Understand that those who are new to HDMI have to realize that it's a two-way street between interconnected components and unless all manufacturers follow the HDMI rules to the letter (yeah, right!) there are going to be some unpredictable results. It even matters the order that components are turned on for the "handshaking" to be effective on occasion. In other words, it's not your father's video connections any more with HDMI. And it's probably going to be a remote macro programmer's nightmare until everything shakes out. Are we having fun yet?

Yes, HDMI (or something that follows it) is the wave of the future, but it is not quite ready for prime time at the moment. That's why I've chosen to keep my audio signals out of the HDMI loop for the moment - especially since my pre/pro (Lexicon MC-8) and most anything else I'm interested in doesn't have HDMI fully implemented. But how could they? The versions keep changing. We live in interesting times.

Incidently, I did my firmware upgrade via Ethernet connection/broadband and it took about an hour or so (longer than advertised) but it went very smoothly. Some of the horror stories I've heard on "other" sites have to be attributed to not following the Toshiba directions for properly setting up the Ethernet connection (like turning on DHCP and DNS as clearly instructed). Yes, I could wait for Toshiba to send me the CD (I just sent the card back the other day when the player arrived) but I decided to take advantage of the internet connection. I just did it while I was doing something else (Oblivion on the 360, if you're curious). Besides making the complex HDMI implementation much more stable (now 90% reliable instead of 50%) I've also noticed a shortening of the startup and loading times.

HD-DVD is very nice and usually provides a very good picture (except where GIGO ("Garbage In, Garbage Out") prevails with a couple of titles. Did it blow me away? No, but that's because I already had several sources of HD content that were of comparable quality. My uncompressed 1920x1080 dish network HD channels (about 13 out of the 30+ HD channels on Dish) look just as sweet and, of course, my WVMHD 1080p discs still shine just as well (as they should, since they are essentially VC-1 codec based like HD-DVD.) And the menu system is very convenient (when implemented properly). I was a little surprised to find that a couple of esoteric titles (like the Muriel Anderson guitar concert) use very rudimentary menus rather than the richer PLAY/PAUSE, SETTINGS, SCENE SELECTION, SPECIAL FEATURES format that is on most of these discs. But the potential is there (as is Ethernet or wireless interactivity with titles in the player.)

My 2 HD cents.

 

[Hank]

Toshiba is currently out of stock on v1.4 discs, their making more and mine should be coming soon.

 

[Carl]

All,

I just got the player yesterday and found that it has 1.4 firmware in it. Since I'm using DVI as the connection, I'm seeing color shifting. Can someone send me an image of the 1.2 firmware so I can do the downgrade to v1.2 and see if this problem goes away??

 

[Roger Mathus]

As of today, Toshiba is still out of stockper a phone inquiry. They said wait 7-10 more days. Request card was sent in first week of July. On July 31, I called and they said one would be sent immediately. STILL WAITING.

 

[dpippel]

Does anyone know why, here in the 21st century, Toshiba isn't making firmware updates for their flagship next generation DVD video product DOWNLOADABLE FROM THEIR WEBSITE??? The only way for customers to get an update is via an Ethernet connection or a CD in the mail? I find either method extremely incovenient when I could instead download an 50MB ISO CD image to my PC in a few minutes, burn it to CD-R in a few minutes, load it up onto the HD-A1 and be done with it. What's up with forcing customers to jump through hoops?

 

[Kevin. W]

You may know what your doing but alot off people out there probably don't. Unless the power goes out, its pretty idiot proof hooking up to the internet.

 

[dpippel]

Electronics companies have been distributing firmware updates via download for YEARS. Even if user "confusion" were a factor, how hard is it to post an image file on a server for those customers who DON'T have a problem burning a CD? Not hard at all, and it would save me the expense and added hassle of making a trip to buy a long (25') Ethernet cable.

IMO there's no good reason that Toshiba isn't doing this for the HD-A1.

 

[Roger Mathus]

Still waiting for CD ROM from Toshiba. I would certainly welcome the ability to download from their web site and burn a CD. Meanwhile, the Toshiba player looks bad when I have guests to view HD DVD and the film freezes and has drop outs......things the updated firmware is said to fix. Six weeks (and still waiting) is too long to wait for an already published update.

Just called Toshiba customer service......they indicated that they have 120 CDs on backorder but have no idea when they would be sent.

 

[Travis Hedger]

The latest 2.0 software which will be released in the next few days (from what I read) will enable full 5.1 Dolby True HD. Our players just got a free upgrade from 2 channel True HD to 5.1. How awesome is that!

Current reports from a leaked 2.0 non official firmware confirm that it works and sounds great.

 

[TonyD]

so this will be another disc shipped to us to upgrade our tosh?

 

[Ken_F]

Can we edit the first post in this topic?

The final version of firmware 2.0 is now available from Toshiba via the box's firmware update feature.

The new firmware adds support for full 5.1 TrueHD output, significantly improves quality when the 720p mode is selected, improves interactive menu responsiveness, pause is now full-frame, among other improvements.

You can find more information about the firmware update (with instructions) at Toshiba's HD-DVD website. Click on "Support" and then "Firmware Update V2.0."

The differences between Dolby Digital Plus and TrueHD 5.1 vary by the film. On some films, the improvement in quality is significant and very obvious; on other films, the improvement with TrueHD 5.1 is more subtle. For those who want to compare Dolby Digital Plus and TrueHD, I would suggest Constantine and Training Day. I would suggest turning "Dialog Enhancement" OFF on the HD-DVD player when using TrueHD.

To experience TrueHD 5.1 lossless audio, you need a receiver/processor with HDMI 1.1 or a receiver/processor with 5.1 analog inputs. You do not need a receiver with HDMI 1.3. You cannot experience TrueHD lossless audio over traditional spdif/optical connections, because they are limited in implementation to 1.5Mbps, whereas TrueHD delivers audio at [up to] 14Mbps.

There is really no reason to wait for a CD from Toshiba when you can start experiencing TrueHD 5.1 sound today. Firmware 2.0 disks are not being mailed out by Toshiba for another 2-3 weeks. Toshiba recommends that customers update via the built-in firmware update feature; a network connection will also be required to download additional interactive content on some upcoming HD-DVD titles. When updating using the built-in firmware update feature, be sure to remove all disks from the drive before doing so.

If for some reason you can't spend a few bucks on an ethernet cable to run from your internet router (or cable modem) to the HD-DVD player, you can download the firmware as a Nero CD image right here. Burn it to a CD with Nero using the "burn image to disk" (not data disk) option, or if you don't have Nero, you can download the trial version of ISOMagic.

Current titles with TrueHD 5.1
Constantine (recommended by me)
The Perfect Storm
The Phantom of the Opera
Training Day

Upcoming titles with TrueHD 5.1
12 Monkeys
2 Fast 2 Furious
Batman Begins
End of Days
Fast and the Furious
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Harry Potter 4: The Goblet of Fire
The Matrix
Out of Sight
Superman Returns
The Thing
Troy
V for Vendetta

 

[Tim Glover]

Thanks Ken....

 

[Paul Hillenbrand]

FYI:

Warning to those when using the 2.0 software with a video processor and certain displays/projectors: There are reported issues with this v2.0 software!

HDCP and DVI issues are being reported with the Toshiba A1 v2.0, when used in conjunction with a video processor like the Lumagen and displays/front projectors like the Sony Ruby.

Currently, the changes will be permanent: (i.e. You cannot install a past version to go back/correct it.

For those that may have a concern: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...&&#post8287140

 

[Travis Hedger]

Superman Returns -- This has been confirmed as an HD DVD release?

Holy crap. I just checked thelookandsoundofperfect.com and see that they have done a LARGE update on upcoming stuff.