DVD Player Advice: Decoder + SVCD ? (1 Viewer)

[Mike Pollmann]

Hi-
My trusty old Sony DVP-S500D seems to be dying, it's making a clicking noise and having obvious reading problems while playing some (not all) movies.
I'd like to replace this unit with a new DVD player that has a built in DD/DTS decoder and CDR & VCD/SVCD capability. My receiver does not have digital inputs but is "dolby digital ready" and has 5.1 inputs, so the decoder in the DVD player is important. (my current player is so old is that it doesn't support DTS at all! I'd like to see what this new-fangled DTS thing is all about
The best unit I've found so far is the Sony DVP-NS500V that Best Buy carries for $229. Unfortunately, I'm having trouble finding out about this unit - the Sony website doesn't even list its specs! I've gathered that it can read CDR/CDRW, and play Video CDs, but SVCD always seems to be the mystery. I've checked a few SVCD compatibility lists online and haven't found this listed at all, but some of the other NSx00V models do in fact support SVCD.
I'm not fixed on Sony- that's just where I've looked because it's what I have now. If anyone has any other suggestions, that would be great. I would like to keep the player under $300 if possible. As a more expensive option, I did look at the Denon DVD-1600 too. Can anyone comment on that?
Thanks for your help,
Mike

 

[Brad_V]

For SVCD, you're askin' a lot. Pretty much the only ones that will play SVCD are the China models such as Daewoo and Apex. The Apex 5131 is $130 or less at Circuit City or Sam's Club. 3-disc changer, too. People tend to be afraid of the "cheap" brands, but the 5131 is pretty good stuff, and the Daewoos are ugly but very good. I'd wager 95+% of viewers couldn't tell the picture quality from a more expensive brand.

Anyway, if you want SVCD, your choices are very limited, obviously.

 

[Matt DeVillier]

JVC and Pioneer players both play SVCD well, and are slightly better built than apex/sampo/daewoo