Anyone have the SMC player from dvdcity.com? (1 Viewer)

[Dave Campbell]

I want to build a kungfu collection starting with some PAL DVDs from Hongkong Legends. I have Drunken Master already but no player

The SMC DVD player seem to be an economical way to go for $299. Can anyone comment on the quality of its conversion from PAL to NTSC?

 

[Matt_Stevens]

Same as the Sampo and the Apex.
Not enough scan lines are removed, resulting in a picture that is too tall (people will be tall & skinny). If you have a 16x9 set, then anamorphic mode results in too many scan lines being removed, giving you short, fat people.
Either way, it's a flawed presentation.
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www.deceptions.net/superman

 

[Ted Todorov]

So if you can live with that get a Sampo 620 for $150 and save some money.
I still use my Sampo now that I have a PAL/NTSC multi-standard TV, and it works just fine when passing through the PAL or NTSC signal.
Ted

 

[Chauncey2]

I believe DVDs from Hong Kong are NTSC. And most of them are region 0. All the Hong Kong DVDs I have are NTSC.
Good Luck,
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Chauncey
Home Theater Equipment List

 

[Brian E]

I believe DVDs from Hong Kong are NTSC. And most of them are region 0. All the Hong Kong DVDs I have are NTSC.

You're right. However Hong Kong Legends releases discs in the UK. Those are R2, PAL.
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-Brian
Nothing decent has been done by committee since Stonehenge and the Pyramids. - JMS

My DVD List

 

[Dave Campbell]

Thanks for the info, I suspected the image would not be too good.
I have an ATI All-In-Wonder Radeon card but the manual states I could only change the region 5 times. I guess the powers that be have their hooks deep in the computer industry too.
Any ideas on a setup that would have decent quality?
I looked at TenLab's converters but they cost a bundle.

 

[Hendrik]

...the Hong Kong Legends label is released by a UK company - their discs are indeed (25fps)PAL:
Link Removed
. . .

 

[Chad Parks]

Well, you could hack your DVD drive on your computer to play all regions, but you should be advised that this is a VERY touchy proposition. If you don't know what you're doing, you can easily fry your drive. I still haven't summoned the courage to do it (largely because most of those programs seem to want real mode DOS and I have Win ME).
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Chad Parks
Visit Region Free for import DVD and VCD reviews and retail information

 

[Christian Behrens]

Dave,
It might be that your DVD-Rom drive is regionfree and only your player program limits you to a fixed number of region switches.
Get DVD-Genie, a free, small program that is extremely useful for all software players to get rid of this problem. You can get it at http://www.inmatrix.com .
-Christian

 

[Matt_Stevens]

I have the top of the line Tenlab converter and I love it. Love it!! It was expensive, but as I am buying all the HKL PAL releases, it's worth it to me.

 

[Chauncey2]

Matt,
Which Tenlabs converter do you own? I own the TR-11SVHS, and while it works pretty good, it could be a lot better. I get all sorts of digital artifacts. Colors aren't smooth, etc.
Thanks,
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Chauncey
Home Theater Equipment List

 

[Ted Todorov]

I have an ATI All-In-Wonder Radeon card but the manual states I could only change the region 5 times. I guess the powers that be have their hooks deep in the computer industry too.
Any ideas on a setup that would have decent quality?
I looked at TenLab's converters but they cost a bundle.

Dave,
If you are happy with the way you computer plays PAL use it for only for PAL (presumably R2), and just get a cheap but good set top DVD player (like the Pioneer 333 for less then $200) for your R1 NTSC disks. It will cost WAY less than buying a converter and you will get better quality.
Ted

 

[Dave Campbell]

Thanks! The easiest and obvious solution escaped me
I'll use the computer for PAL discs only. DVD-Genie is intresting also, seems like a good utility to keep.
Any links to fast codefree(no or easy mods) computer DVD drives?

 

[Matt_Stevens]

Chauncey2, I went all the way for the TR-21. It does reduce the resolution down from DVD territory to LD territory and there is some minor artifacting, but it has nearly twice the resolution as yours and I am happy with it.
It cost me a pretty penny, of course. But I'd rather lose some resolution and have correct widescreen geometry than have an Apex that gives screwed up geometry no matter what you do.

 

[Brajesh Upadhyay]

You can also buy the Apex AD703 & patch it w/a special firmware to make it region-free.