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Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

post #1 of 10
2/29/08 at 8:28am
Thread Starter 
I need to replace my regular old DVD player. I have an older 50" Mitsubishi TV that is connected via component. I'm not running HDMI and don't plan to upgrade for a very long time as it would require tearing out walls to run new cables.

With the talk of upconverting DVD players, I found the Helios online that would do it over component. I got one and while it works, it's crappy in every other way so I want to replace it.

With the fire sale on HD DVD, there seem to be some real bargains out there. If I don't care about Hi Def, and I understand that depending on the DVD, I may or may not be able to upconvert over component, do you think they make good players?

I certainly don't want degraded performance at the 480p that I have now. I was looking at the Toshiba HD-A3.

Thanks for you thoughts.
Steve
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post #2 of 10
2/29/08 at 8:51am

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

Yes - although I have not actually tried hooking mine up via component cables.
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post #3 of 10
2/29/08 at 8:59am

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

You certainly won't have degraded 480i or -p on SD DVD.

I've tested all sorts of images on my HD-A1, and to me even 480i and -p were more beautiful than from the standard DVD player, probably because of a better horizontal signal resolution output by the HD player that most classic TV sets can handle fine. Also the colour might be just a bit more. More vivid.

This is even stronger when you display HD DVD on 480p, because there's even more real horizontal resolution available in the source material (as well as better colors).

The problem is: because HD DVD is going to be ended, you may not be able to buy HD discs in the future, so you would have to collect a few now to enjoy it later. That decision is up to you!


Cees
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post #4 of 10
2/29/08 at 9:26am

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

I don't believe any of the HD DVD players will upscale SD DVD via component. I know my A3 will not.
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post #5 of 10
2/29/08 at 9:48am
Thread Starter 

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

Thanks guys. I went ahead and picked one up. In the manual, it say it will upconvert over component as long as the copy protection of the DVD allows it.

It seems like a nice player. I'll hook it up this weekend and test it out.

Thanks again.
Steve
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post #6 of 10
2/29/08 at 9:57am

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

I believe very, very, very few DVDs will allow upscaling over component, likely none from the major studios.
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post #7 of 10
2/29/08 at 9:57am

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

With Toshiba, SD DVD upscaling is very good (at least with the flagship-models - if you can use that word anymore..), but these players can be a bit sluggish. Basically you press the power on and then you can take some coffee or go to the toilet before it´s *actually* on... (while I´m not really kidding)

I know that people like to think that they´ll watch SD DVD for their Toshiba-players for the "years to come", but the truth probably is that they´ll be "replaced" (or moved to the other room) eventually when 1.1/2.0 Blu-ray-models arrive and all that. At the moment, I use both Toshiba and PS3 for SD DVD. Both have quality upscaling..
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post #8 of 10
2/29/08 at 11:12am
Thread Starter 

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

Thanks again for the all the comments. For me, it will be a long time before I upgrade to 1080p. I custom built my HT several years ago and only ran component video to the TV. HDMI was just appearing on the market and the spec wasn't even complete yet.

To run a new cable to my TV would be expensive and difficult and I just don't see the value in it. Yes, there's a difference in image quality but it's not enough for me to go thru the trouble.

As long as the HD-A3 does REALLY good at 480p, I'll be happy. Anything more will just be icing on th cake.
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post #9 of 10
2/29/08 at 11:31am

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

I'm currently running an HD-A30 over component at 480i with no complaints. And yes, you can see the difference on the HD DVD titles even at this resolution.
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post #10 of 10
2/29/08 at 4:10pm

Re: Do HD DVD players make good standard def players?

If there's MacroVision on the DVD (most), it will count as copy-protection. So the player will not upgrade the image over component to 720p or 1080i or -p.

Later, if you buy a new TV, you will have HDMI and the problem is gone.

Note that none of the HD DVD discs on the market have their ICT bit up (or are region coded). And that won't change, of course, now there will only be a few new releases to come.


Cees
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