One other thing I noticed is that I see absolutely no difference when True Life and CCS are turned on than when they are turned off. Can anyone else?

Subtle. It seems the better program material benefits the least from enhancements.

speaking of cables, can anyone recommend a inexpensive 5.1 switch box that won't degrade SACD or DVD-Audio? The Oppo doesn't do SACD, and I only have one multichannel input.

Subtle. It seems the better program material benefits the least from enhancements.

Yeah that makes sense. Maybe I'll try sticking in one of my horribly compressed, transcoded dvd-r's my father-in-law gave me and see if that makes a difference. :p

ok, i searched this thread but couldn't find an answer. I haven't used my player in about a week went to turn it on tonight to watch a movie. The buttons turned blue like normal but the lcd screen was blank but usually says loading and then no disc. Also it wouldn't eject. Tried a couple more times turning off and on and same thing. I unplugged it and leave it like that for a few hours to see if that helps.

Anyone has any expierences like this ?

thanks

the beta firmware for a/v sync has no effect for me. i'm calibrating with DVE and that guy talking about cars has horrible delay.

Like so many others at AVS - I've lurked, absorbed, obsessed, and printed volumes for several months before making my decisions. Within the past two weeks I received my first HDTV, a Pio PDP5060, and decided to update my trusty old Toshiba SD3109 DVD player for an Oppo.

Have not used the Oppo much yet, but have to join the crowd in commending their customer service: I e-mailed them to find out if a refurbished 971 is brought back to factory specs, warranty coverage, etc. They replied in less than an hour, and yes they guaranteed same spec and provided identical warranty as new. I then called to find out if they had any in stock; yes, 1. For the price, it is a relative bargain. Mine arrived within 4 business days (from CA to eastern KS) via their standard shipping. Looked like new - no noticeable marks or dents. Partially played a couple of music DVDs - including one I had burned as a back up that wouldn't play on my old Toshiba. And I stuck in a picture CD - it worked well too. Yeah, baby....

My initial impression is that for well under $200, I can't be unhappy with this little gem. (Oh, and I'm falling in love with HD programming on the Pio.)

Thanks to all the contributors at AVS for helping me learn enough to become dangerous about HDTV and DVD players, and enabling me to maximize my cost~value curve and pleasure. ;)

(FWIW - the WAF so far is pretty reasonable after getting things up and running, in part because I've been a HIFI aficionado for the 30 years she's known me, and because I refrained from buying for several months until I had the resources in hand to make this acquisition without incurring new debt. Though she will lightly grumble that I spent our next cruise on this equipment.)

-Doug

So far I am very pleased with their customer support. My player broke the day after I got it, and I emailed them, probably within 20 minutes they emailed me back with some suggestions, when that failed I emailed them back saying I would like a replacement, and probably an hour later I got a response saying that it was on its way. That's all, no phone call, no pushing 1 for this and 2 for that, no getting put on hold, no arguing with people, no writing down complicated return instructions. Just, "it's on its way". Can't beat that. Just hope the new player lasts more than 28 hours...

So far I am very pleased with their customer support. My player broke the day after I got it, and I emailed them, probably within 20 minutes they emailed me back with some suggestions, when that failed I emailed them back saying I would like a replacement, and probably an hour later I got a response saying that it was on its way. That's all, no phone call, no pushing 1 for this and 2 for that, no getting put on hold, no arguing with people, no writing down complicated return instructions. Just, "it's on its way". Can't beat that. Just hope the new player lasts more than 28 hours... Its almost impossible to have a bad experience when dealing with OPPO Digital. I'm glad it went well for you, and I hope the new player will be worth the wait. Reliability statistics show that a small percentage of ALL electronic devices fail in the first few hours of operation, and those failures drop off exponentially. You got one of those.

Gary

The cables I am using are just 6' cables. So in that case do you suggest that I return the blue jeans cables. Yes. The OPPO cables work perfectly.

Gary

Like so many others at AVS - I've lurked, absorbed, obsessed, and printed volumes for several months before making my decisions. Within the past two weeks I received my first HDTV, a Pio PDP5060, and decided to update my trusty old Toshiba SD3109 DVD player for an Oppo.

Have not used the Oppo much yet, but have to join the crowd in commending their customer service... Good choice, Doug! Welcome to the club, and we hope you enjoy the player as much as we have.

Gary

the beta firmware for a/v sync has no effect for me. i'm calibrating with DVE and that guy talking about cars has horrible delay. The new firmware eliminates the variability of the delay, but there is still a constant delay that can become noticable with certain displays. You have two choices:
Use the analog outputs and the OPPO's audio delay option.
Wait for future firmware that might reduce the delay even further and/or allow audio delay through the RAW digital output. Gary

ok, i searched this thread but couldn't find an answer. I haven't used my player in about a week went to turn it on tonight to watch a movie. The buttons turned blue like normal but the lcd screen was blank but usually says loading and then no disc. Also it wouldn't eject. Tried a couple more times turning off and on and same thing. I unplugged it and leave it like that for a few hours to see if that helps.

Anyone has any expierences like this ? No, that is not a common problem. Did anything change after you unplugged it? (By the way, 15 mins is enough).

Gary

Then you have a defective DVI board. If the sparkles are random, then it is likely cable related. If they are isloated into a single region, then the board itself needs to be replaced.

The replacement player is on its way. Let's hope this solves the problem.

ok, i searched this thread but couldn't find an answer. I haven't used my player in about a week went to turn it on tonight to watch a movie. The buttons turned blue like normal but the lcd screen was blank but usually says loading and then no disc. Also it wouldn't eject. Tried a couple more times turning off and on and same thing. I unplugged it and leave it like that for a few hours to see if that helps.

Anyone has any expierences like this ?

thanks

It may also be a sync issue with your display. I have this issue every time I switch inputs on my TV because of the way the TV looks at the HDMI input. I have to change the DVI input to get it to show up again.

The replacement player is on its way. Let's hope this solves the problem.I had the same problem with my player. They send out a replacement and the sparkles are still there. I suspect my TV's DVI board is bad.

I had the same problem with my player. They send out a replacement and the sparkles are still there. I suspect my TV's DVI board is bad.

Most sparkles are related to DVI connections..... either it's the cable or the board. Also, digital signal is sensitive to RF interference and having a net-jacketed DVI or HDMI/DVI cables will help.

Ive seen two kinds of "sparklies"

1. Random sparkles

2. Sparkles that seem to dance around the "edges" of objects.

(#1) happened to me when I tried to use my Momitsu with a Samsung 213T computer monitor via DVI (Digital). Swapping the cable did not help. The Momitsu had no problems with other DVI equipped monitors.

(#2) Sharp LCD direct view display requiring an update by Sharp. Every face, object edge on the screen was *crawling* with sparkles.

Paul


Paul

It sound like some type of electrical interference. You might want to try a cable with a ferrite core like the ones Monoprice sells or you could add a ferrite core. You might also want to try an electrical filter or try a different outlet.

I just got the Sony NS75H and although its a good player I'm not sure I might be happier with something else. Can I assume the Oppo would be the best player to try for under $200? and there's no significant issue with it? Is ordering direct from oppodigital the best way to go (Amazon has free shiping, but I'm not sure what their return policy is)? Thanks for any input. I'll be upscaling 1080i to a Sony 30in HDTV crt 30HS420.

I just got the Sony NS75H and although its a good player I'm not sure I might be happier with something else. Can I assume the Oppo would be the best player to try for under $200? and there's no significant issue with it? Is ordering direct from oppodigital the best way to go (Amazon has free shiping, but I'm not sure what their return policy is)? Thanks for any input. I'll be upscaling 1080i to a Sony 30in HDTV crt 30HS420. You're asking us? Well, of course the OPPO is the best darn player to try for under $200 (or $2000 for that matter!) The only "significant" issues you might experience, are lip-sync or macroblocking (after all, this is a Faroudja player) but these issues depend to a very large degree on your setup (and your state of calibration). OPPO Digital is working on firmware to further improve the lip-sync. The player is really easy to upgrade.

Gary

It sound like some type of electrical interference. You might want to try a cable with a ferrite core like the ones Monoprice sells or you could add a ferrite core. You might also want to try an electrical filter or try a different outlet. By the way, the OPPO cables already come with ferrite cores. I'm not sure if the cables are shielded though. Out with the knife somebody! Who me? NOOOOO... my knife is too blunt!

Gary

By the way, the OPPO cables already come with ferrite cores. I'm not sure if the cables are shielded though. Out with the knife somebody! Who me? NOOOOO... my knife is too blunt!

Gary

Some of the factory models (ie. Amazon.com stock and some of the older stock) will have DVI-HDMI cables that do not have the ferrite cores. Most of the new stock do.

Some of the factory models (ie. Amazon.com stock and some of the older stock) will have DVI-HDMI cables that do not have the ferrite cores. Most of the new stock do. Good to know. What about shielding? Any idea?

Don't know. Maybe I will cut one open this afternoon.

So I have three cables: Monoprice, OPPO 1 (w/o Ferrite), OPPO 2 (Ferrite)

Monoprice: thin plastic casing, weaved sleave, double shielding (outer blue, inner blue). Plastic filler to increase strength of cable.
OPPO 1: thicker plastic casing, weaved sleave, double shielding (outer blue, inner blue).
OPPO 1: thickest plastic casing, weaved sleave, double shielding (outer blue, inner gold).

tonight i noticed my 1 week old oppo is locking up on dvds. if i hit fwd or rwd seek or slow and pause, sometimes the unit will lock up and require restarting. is this normal and the player is really finicky?

tonight i noticed my 1 week old oppo is locking up on dvds. if i hit fwd or rwd seek or slow and pause, sometimes the unit will lock up and require restarting. is this normal and the player is really finicky?

The unit should not be finicky at all. Try:
Disconnect the OPDV971H from the power source for no less than 15 minutes.
Plug it back in then try a firmware update.
Clean the bottom of your discs and the tray.
Use a little compressed air in the unit to see if there any physical obstructions on the lens.

If problems continue, then you may want to get the unit replaced.

Also, are your discs commercial or PC mastered DVDs?

Sorry if this has been asked before, but I couldn't find it searching this thread. Does anybody know what code I can enter into the remote for my SA8300HD cable box to control my Oppo DVD player? Thanks.

Also, don't know if this matter, but I have the most recent remote from Oppo.

There are no working universal remote codes that work with the OPDV971H. If you have a learning universal remote, you will have to teach it each command one by one.

EDIT: Wow, I am psychic today! I am posting answers to questions yet posed ;)

A small observation.
I have a Dell 17'' monitor/HDTV which I use with Oppo and my SA8300 HD DVR.
I have never ever experienced any macroblocking with Oppo, however I do have some with the DVR. Not that it bothers me but it is there and sometimes really noticable.
Now, from what I read, my Dell also has Farouja chip. More that likely I will be laughed at but here is my crazy idea, anyway: would that be possible that having Farouja on both, the player AND the TV set somehow eliminates macroblocking problem?

No, but what can be happening is that the Faroudja chipset is only utilized on the component connection. For this reason, the processing on a bad SD feed (DVR) is causing macroblocking on your display. The DVI input, however, does not do any extra processing.

The quality of the video is dependent on the original feed, and unless you are watching only HD conent, you will see major macroblocking.

Updated Russian firmware: www.opdv971h.com (version oppo971-F-0220.vB)

Basically, it added a working (really, really working and non-buggy!) skip fw and bw for MP3 and removed UOPs from Oppo's original 0220 firmware. He also replaced the ARM with an updated one to add Nero Digital support and such. Unfortumately, this version of ARM also returns the bugs with angle and forced subtitle streams that were once fixed in the Oppo.

I am still hoping to convince him to make just the 0302 with no UOPs and added MP3 skip :)

AHA! The AVS Forum clock has gone bonkers... how strange!

Well, yes... my post regarding the updated Russian firmware was lost in the bush :) Anyway, the file is here: oppo971-F-0220.vB (http://www.opdv971h.com/firmware/oppo971-F-0220.vB.zip)

It's a .bin file. To burn the firmware, see these instructions (http://www.opdv971h.com/2006/03/28/how-to-burn/)

double post.

The unit should not be finicky at all. Try:
Disconnect the OPDV971H from the power source for no less than 15 minutes.
Plug it back in then try a firmware update.
Clean the bottom of your discs and the tray.
Use a little compressed air in the unit to see if there any physical obstructions on the lens.

If problems continue, then you may want to get the unit replaced.

Also, are your discs commercial or PC mastered DVDs?

I'll give what you suggested a try when I get home afterwork. It occured on both commercial DVDs and PC mastered DVDs. I just recently changed to the A/V sync beta firmware. Could that be the issue?

Well, yes... my post regarding the updated Russian firmware was lost in the bush :) Anyway, the file is here: oppo971-F-0220.vB (http://www.opdv971h.com/firmware/oppo971-F-0220.vB.zip)

It's a .bin file. To burn the firmware, see these instructions (http://www.opdv971h.com/2006/03/28/how-to-burn/)


A 302 with just NO UPO's would be nice I would be interested in that!

It sound like some type of electrical interference. You might want to try a cable with a ferrite core like the ones Monoprice sells or you could add a ferrite core. You might also want to try an electrical filter or try a different outlet.I have tried 3 different DVI cables, 2 from Oppo and 1 from monoprice with the same result.

I hooked up the Oppo to my LCD tv in the loft and there are no sparkles. So, I'm pretty sure the DVI board is bad on my Hitachi 50V500a.

Watched Russian "NightWatch" last night, region 0. Flawless. Movie wasn't the best transfer but thought the movie was great B quality. They did more with less better than 90% of the US movies I've seen past year.

I am still hoping to convince him to make just the 0302 with no UOPs and added MP3 skip :)

Hi aoleg,

Is there a reason why the Russian developer put all this effort into modding version 0220? I am still using his old OP971-D-1022-v.C because I like the SPDIF "enhancements" and I don't have a problem with A/V lipsync. I would rather have him spend time on adding all the enhancments to 0302 instead of the 0220 which has a degraded PQ in some situations. Does he like the 0220 better than 0302?

Thanks

I'll give what you suggested a try when I get home afterwork. It occured on both commercial DVDs and PC mastered DVDs. I just recently changed to the A/V sync beta firmware. Could that be the issue?

The F-0220 can cause interlacing errors and occassional stutter, but I have not heard of any issues relating to slow motion/freezing and other such errors. You may want to ask OPPO for the beta (if audio-sync is a huge problem) or stick with the F-0302 firmware.

Hi aoleg,

Is there a reason why the Russian developer put all this effort into modding version 0220? I am still using his old OP971-D-1022-v.C because I like the SPDIF "enhancements" and I don't have a problem with A/V lipsync. I would rather have him spend time on adding all the enhancments to 0302 instead of the 0220 which has a degraded PQ in some situations. Does he like the 0220 better than 0302?

Thanks

For all intents and purposes, the hacked Russian 0220 is the F-0302 firmware, as they both lack the A/V Sync error which was causing the bad video in the first place. For this reason, they could be seen as interchangeable.

Does the unofficial firmware remove macrovision also?

Does the unofficial firmware remove macrovision also?

Don't know. Didn't bother to check the old 1234 hack.

I have tried 3 different DVI cables, 2 from Oppo and 1 from monoprice with the same result.

I hooked up the Oppo to my LCD tv in the loft and there are no sparkles. So, I'm pretty sure the DVI board is bad on my Hitachi 50V500a.


Have you tried another HDMI device with the Hitachi TV to verify this yet? I am having the same problems, and I hope it isn't my display.

AHA! The AVS Forum clock has gone bonkers... how strange! Shucks... I'm not sure what happened last night, but the AVS Forum clock went berzerk, and this morning I discovered that 4 of my posts have been blown away! Those posts were all time-stamped for later this afternoon, so AVS thinks I haven't written them yet!

Gary

Shucks... I'm not sure what happened last night, but the AVS Forum clock went berzerk, and this morning I discovered that 4 of my posts have been blown away! Those posts were all time-stamped for later this afternoon, so AVS thinks I haven't written them yet!

Gary

And I look like I have some precognition abilities with my three replies!

And I look like I have some precognition abilities with my three replies!I noticed that... THREE replies posted before the questions were even asked!

I thought you must have become a psychic or a magician (smoke and mirrors)!

Gary

So I have three cables: Monoprice, OPPO 1 (w/o Ferrite), OPPO 2 (Ferrite)

Monoprice: thin plastic casing, weaved sleave, double shielding (outer blue, inner blue). Plastic filler to increase strength of cable.
OPPO 1: thicker plastic casing, weaved sleave, double shielding (outer blue, inner blue).
OPPO 2: thickest plastic casing, weaved sleave, double shielding (outer blue, inner gold).Well, I'll reply to this AGAIN (and hopefully it will stick this time).

Thanks for doing this for us, Neuromancer. You're the man! I'm sorry we tempted you to ruin your cables!

But this proves that the OPPO cables are as good as they get... Excellent construction, ferrrites, AND double shielding!

Gary

any way to get it to play MP3s off a DVD on random?

Don't know. Didn't bother to check the old 1234 hack.

What is this hack??

I emailed oppo to see if I can get the beta AV firmware. I'd say my audio delay is up to .3 seconds.

Well, I'll reply to this AGAIN (and hopefully it will stick this time).

Thanks for doing this for us, Neuromancer. You're the man! I'm sorry we tempted you to ruin your cables!

But this proves that the OPPO cables are as good as they get... Excellent construction, ferrrites, AND double shielding!

Gary

Actually, I called up OPPO to see if they would donate some cables (which is why I was able to get a hold of their latest HDMI cable) and they agreed. I destroyed them right intheir office. I think the cables are still hanging somewhere in the dark pits of their shipping department, splayed out in their gory disection.

What is this hack??

You used to beable to turn off Macrovision with the Setup->1234 hack. This was removed starting with the official 1022 firmware.

any way to get it to play MP3s off a DVD on random?

I think Shuffle works, but it actually plays in a constant order. Try flattening the folders (Angle button) then pressing the Repeat button until "Shuffle" appears and noting the playback order. IIRC it plays the tracks in a constant order.

Unfortumately, this version of ARM also returns the bugs with angle and forced subtitle streams that were once fixed in the Oppo.

I am still hoping to convince him to make just the 0302 with no UOPs and added MP3 skip

I really want to remove UPOs, but subtitle problems are a deal breaker for me. I hope you convince him.

Hi aoleg,
Is there a reason why the Russian developer put all this effort into modding version 0220?
Thanks

Well, he said that 0220 is a 'better' firmware in terms of a/v sync. His modified version includes a newer version of ARM from soem other BBK model, which lacks the a/v sync issue, but still struggles with forced subtitles and angle icons.

He is waiting for Oppo to release an updated version that does everything right.

Does the unofficial firmware remove macrovision also?

No. And the 'secret' menu was also removed from the firmware starting v.1022, according to the Russian developer. However, he informed that all future versions of his firmware will come with Macrovision disabled.

Watched Russian "NightWatch" last night, region 0. Flawless. Movie wasn't the best transfer but thought the movie was great B quality. They did more with less better than 90% of the US movies I've seen past year.Check out "DayWatch". It's certainly cooler and reminds Godzilla movies.

Check out "DayWatch". It's certainly cooler and reminds Godzilla movies.

I'd love to watch it, but the only version in release has no English subtitles and my Russian sucks... ;)

I bought the R4 version of Nochnoi Dozor and thought it was terrific. I'm very, very anxious to see the 2nd film in the series!

-Toonces

Since the Oppos 971H is the same player as the Russian BBK DV985S (they can even share firmware), does anyone think the next Oppo will be a US version of the DV727S (slot loading, upconverting, with HDMI)?

I'm holding off on purchasing an Oppo because I want a player with an HDMI output to address the gradient issue inherent to an 8-Bit DVI signal. Since Oppo appears to just take a BBK (Oppo's parent company) designed player and rebrands it for release in the US, could the DV727S be the next player? However, the DV727S doesn't use the Farajouda DCDi and it isn't as well reviewed (at least in Russia) as the DV985S.

This concerns me because it may mean that Oppo's next player is inferior to the current version. Also, there was nothing on BBK's main Russian site that would indicate that new players will be released in the near future. So Oppo won't have a HDMI solution that uses the DCDi anytime in the forseeable future, because BBK isn't releasing such a beast.

Am I reading between the lines correctly?

This is a little off-topic... :rolleyes: ...but color me wrong.

I just checked again at my favorite site for Russian DVDs and found this:

http://www.alldvd.ca/productDisplay.do?itemId=5038

It's NTSC and it has English subtitles.

Mine is on the way!

-Toonces

This concerns me because it may mean that Oppo's next player is inferior to the current version. Also, there was nothing on BBK's main Russian site that would indicate that new players will be released in the near future. So Oppo won't have a HDMI solution that uses the DCDi anytime in the forseeable future, because BBK isn't releasing such a beast.

Am I reading between the lines correctly?

The next oppo doesn't have the faroudja chip--it is going to be 'inferior' in that regard. But the one after than, which will replace the opdv971h, well, if everything hasn't gone HD by then, that might be the one.

Dave

I just got off the phone with OFAUSA's (One For All) support department. I requested a capture for the new remote for the 971 back in September of 2005. They finally have it ready if any you are using the UFC9960 and want to upgrade the unit. I use it everyday and I think Josh Z still has his.

Here are the capture numbers for the 9960:

The original white remote = 1224

The new black remotes (both) = 1525

Just have your 9960 ready and then call (303) 405-8620. Give them the remote model number and then tell them which of the above codes you want and they will download to your 9960 over the phone...You MUST use a land line and not a cellular or wireless handset.

The only keys that have to be programmed in manually are "Open" and "Zoom." Everything else is included in the capture as far as I can tell.

Enjoy!...:D

-Toonces

This is a little off-topic... :rolleyes: ...but color me wrong.

I just checked again at my favorite site for Russian DVDs and found this:

http://www.alldvd.ca/productDisplay.do?itemId=5038

It's NTSC and it has English subtitles.

Mine is on the way!

-Toonces
Uhhh... Way Cool... Loved NightWatch...thx for the good OT...

Since the Oppos 971H is the same player as the Russian BBK DV985S (they can even share firmware), does anyone think the next Oppo will be a US version of the DV727S (slot loading, upconverting, with HDMI)?

Oppo's next player will be the OPDV970H. There's discussion of it in this thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=619439

It is not slot-loading.

I just got off the phone with OFAUSA's (One For All) support department. I requested a capture for the new remote for the 971 back in September of 2005. They finally have it ready if any you are using the UFC9960 and want to upgrade the unit. I use it everyday and I think Josh Z still has his.

Thanks, Toonces! That's great news.

You MUST use a land line and not a cellular or wireless handset.

FYI, I've successfully done the upgrade over a cordless phone. I think they tell you not to use one just to cover themselves.

I just got this player and hooked it up last night. I used the supplied HDMI-DVI cable have it set to output at 720p to my Sony A10. The PQ this puppy delivers is unbelievable! The image is very sharp, highly detailed, and looks VERY film-like. The color is also incredible, and black level and shadow detail are top-notch.

I tested several DVDs in it and they all played perfect. Audio sounded better over my older Sony DVD player. This player looks great on my stand and appears to be made of high quality.

The remote is a bit of a joke, but I use my Harmony 676 with it.

As for settings, I turned off all the enhancements except "True Life." This setting really makes everything look more detailed and 3D. The effect is subtle but noticeable.

I had my doubts about upconverting DVD players. But the Oppo DV971H has convinced me that it's worth the upgrade if you still have an older non-upconverting player. I think for $199 this is an excellent buy. I considered the Panny and Denon, but realized I was getting the same thing for less with the Oppo. The support and firmware upgrades are also a big plus.

So Oppo won't have a HDMI solution that uses the DCDi anytime in the forseeable future, because BBK isn't releasing such a beast.

The replacement is scheduled for this summer (pushed back from early April due to technical problems). It will be the OPDV971H with SACD and HDMI support (apparently).

neuromancer will it still (hopefully) have the DCDI chip in it (the one for summer replacing the 971 of now)??

I ordered the oppo from Amazon and am awaiting arrival. However, being new to this upconverting world, I have a concern that the oppo won't fill up my 16X9 screen. For example, when playing a wide screen dvd (that Johnny Cash movie - i think walk the line) with my old 480i dvd player, it shows black bars on top and on sides in the SXRD "normal" mode. It then stretches the picture in the "full" and "wide zoom" modes. And last but not least, it provides non-stretched picture with bad PQ in the "zoom" mode.

Can I expect the oppo to be different, sort of like the HD movies on HDnet fill up my screen? Or am I stuck with these stretched and zoomed pictures.

Q56, not all widescreen movies are of the aspect ratio 1.77:1 or even 1.85:1 (the latter which can normally be stretched without losing much to fill the whole screen). Walk the Line falls under the heading of "one of these other movies". It, and MANY like it, are filmed in the more "cinematic" 2.35:1 ratio. Because of this, yes, you WILL still see black bars on the top and bottom of a widescreen TV when watching them. You can zoom in on it if you want in order to fill out the whole screen, but understand that you will be losing some side information when you do this. Just a fact of life when it comes to widescreen material.

All HD(TV) material is formatted to properly fit your TV though, with no bars. This only becomes a factor when you are talking about theater content.

neuromancer will it still (hopefully) have the DCDI chip in it (the one for summer replacing the 971 of now)??

Yes, as it is a replacement to the OPDV971H, and not a successor (successor would mean that it is a completely new, and better, model). As such, it will be a Faroudja FLI2310 based upconverting DVD player.

Would the replacement improve the component output at all?

Q56, not all widescreen movies are of the aspect ratio 1.77:1 or even 1.85:1 (the latter which can normally be stretched without losing much to fill the whole screen). Walk the Line falls under the heading of "one of these other movies". It, and MANY like it, are filmed in the more "cinematic" 2.35:1 ratio. Because of this, yes, you WILL still see black bars on the top and bottom of a widescreen TV when watching them. You can zoom in on it if you want in order to fill out the whole screen, but understand that you will be losing some side information when you do this. Just a fact of life when it comes to widescreen material.

All HD(TV) material is formatted to properly fit your TV though, with no bars. This only becomes a factor when you are talking about theater content.


Thanks tmeader, I guess then i'll have to deal with it, albeit with a much better picture than I have now. I guess on 4:3 dvd's they wou d need to be stretched on the oppo too in order to fill up the screen, right?

Would the replacement improve the component output at all?

It will do component based upconversion through the Faroudja chipset, so it should at least be better than the current component connection.

Thanks tmeader, I guess then i'll have to deal with it, albeit with a much better picture than I have now. I guess on 4:3 dvd's they wou d need to be stretched on the oppo too in order to fill up the screen, right?

You will have to stretch it if you do not want it pillarboxed (bars on the sides to retain the aspect ratio). If it is a letterboxed 4:3 film, then you will want to use 480p then use the Aspect Ratio (Zoom) controls on your TV to properly map the video.

Oppo's next player will be the OPDV970H. There's discussion of it in this thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=619439

It is not slot-loading.

I've followed that thread, but there isn't anything in it indicating that it couldn't be slot loading. It appears that Oppo just takes a BBK design and re-brands it for the US. The only stand alone HDMI DVD player BBK offers is a slot loader. So unless Oppo is designing a whole new unit (which I find unlikely), then the new 970H will likely be a slot loaded player.

It sounds like what Oppo has been saying too:

No DCDi
Use the MTK
Lower quality De-interlacing

Reviews of the DV727S confirm that the picture quality is not as good as the DV985S (which is the Oppo 971H). I guess they could change the transport to tray loading, but why bother? They would have to change the housing style too then.

Everyone thinks that this is going to look like the Cambridge DVD player, but its not. Cambridge is its own company and they contract BBK to manufacture DVD players for them. Cambridge designed the housing, so it is exclusive to them (BBK can't use it for any of their other designs).

However, I believe Oppo is owned by BBK so it stands to reason they will use a design already manufactured and owned by BBK (which means slot loading since that is their only HDMI offering currently).

BBK also has a DV999 (just learned of it today) which has HDMI. It also plays SACD and DVD-Audio, which is a feature I've heard associated with the Oppo 970H. Again, the DV999 is slot loading.

BBK is a Chinese company and they manufacture all their goods in China. The stuff they sell in Russia, China, Europe, and the US all looks the same. They reuse the same housing designs and the same electronic designs. If they come up with something new just for the US, then it will be the first time they've done something like that.

I just got this player and hooked it up last night. I used the supplied HDMI-DVI cable have it set to output at 720p to my Sony A10. The PQ this puppy delivers is unbelievable! The image is very sharp, highly detailed, and looks VERY film-like. The color is also incredible, and black level and shadow detail are top-notch.

I tested several DVDs in it and they all played perfect. Audio sounded better over my older Sony DVD player. This player looks great on my stand and appears to be made of high quality.

The remote is a bit of a joke, but I use my Harmony 676 with it.

As for settings, I turned off all the enhancements except "True Life." This setting really makes everything look more detailed and 3D. The effect is subtle but noticeable.

I had my doubts about upconverting DVD players. But the Oppo DV971H has convinced me that it's worth the upgrade if you still have an older non-upconverting player. I think for $199 this is an excellent buy. I considered the Panny and Denon, but realized I was getting the same thing for less with the Oppo. The support and firmware upgrades are also a big plus.Do you experience any MB with the Oppo and your Sony A10?

Do you experience any MB with the Oppo and your Sony A10?

i dont

I've followed that thread, but there isn't anything in it indicating that it couldn't be slot loading. It appears that Oppo just takes a BBK design and re-brands it for the US. The only stand alone HDMI DVD player BBK offers is a slot loader. So unless Oppo is designing a whole new unit (which I find unlikely), then the new 970H will likely be a slot loaded player.

I can say, with a straight face, that it will NOT have a slot loader. See the BBK998 Thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=659943).

And if you live near OPPO or are a hardware beta tester, then you have seen the new unit. It is not slot loading.

Then you have a defective DVI board. If the sparkles are random, then it is likely cable related. If they are isloated into a single region, then the board itself needs to be replaced.
Neuromancer, maybe you can help me out. I have the sparkles and the Sears tech came today.

Here is what we observed.

When we first turn on the 971 and we don't see any sparkles immediately. After a couple of minutes into the movie, then the sparkles began the appear. This is the same with the blue oppo menu.

Most of the sparkles appear at the same scene during the movie, we check by rewind and playback. Sometimes the sparkles are blue & white lines instead of dots. Sparkles are only apparent on the lower middle of the blue screen.

So, the tech said this might be the disc fault? I have played many discs with the same symptons, I don't think it's the player. This happened on 2 oppo 971 & 3 different DVI cables. Could it be compatibility issue?

Thanks for your help.

James

James,

Try using a different cable if you have one available, or do the following:

Play a film for 15 minutes, or until you can see well defined sparkling. Note the time.
Disconnect the DVI-HDMI cable and leave the unit running for an additional amount of time that is equal to or greater than the time it took to sparkle.
Plug the cable back into the OPPO and note the initial and long term results.

If the sparkles are gone, your cables are not good. If the sparkles are still there, then the DVI board on the OPDV971H is likely not working, or there is something else disrupting your signal.

Neuromancer, maybe you can help me out. I have the sparkles and the Sears tech came today.

Here is what we observed.

When we first turn on the 971 and we don't see any sparkles immediately. After a couple of minutes into the movie, then the sparkles began the appear. This is the same with the blue oppo menu.

Most of the sparkles appear at the same scene during the movie, we check by rewind and playback. Sometimes the sparkles are blue & white lines instead of dots. Sparkles are only apparent on the lower middle of the blue screen.

So, the tech said this might be the disc fault? I have played many discs with the same symptons, I don't think it's the player. This happened on 2 oppo 971 & 3 different DVI cables. Could it be compatibility issue?

Thanks for your help.

James

Just curious, what power supply version you have. It's on a sticker where the power spec is noted.

I've seen v2.9 and v2.6

Do you experience any MB with the Oppo and your Sony A10?

None that I could see. DVDs look 10x better over my Sony 480p player.

The only thing that was required to get the picture looking awesome was using the red push fix on the HDMI input (Video 6) and using a CUSTOM picture mode (see my settings in my signature) for the Oppo. I ran DVE to set the brightness and color level on the A10.

DVDs look 10x better over my Sony 480p player. Are you saying that DVDs look 10x better when played in the OPPO? Using the word "over" makes your statement sound wee bit ambiguous.

When we first turn on the 971 and we don't see any sparkles immediately. After a couple of minutes into the movie, then the sparkles began the appear. This is the same with the blue oppo menu.

Most of the sparkles appear at the same scene during the movie, we check by rewind and playback. Sometimes the sparkles are blue & white lines instead of dots. Sparkles are only apparent on the lower middle of the blue screen.

This happened on 2 oppo 971 & 3 different DVI cables. Could it be compatibility issue? James

You have tried 2 OPPO's, 3 cables, and 2 TV's. The problem only occurs on your Hitachi 50V500a. Nobody else has this issue (except where players or cables were faulty) That tells me that the Hitachi has a problem, OR there is a compatibility issue between the two, OR there is some interference nearby.

Try a different DVI/HDMI input on the TV. Try Neuromancer's idea to disconnect the cable after the sparkles appear. Try a different DVI source if possible. Eliminate interference issues (by trying the following things):
Reroute the cables away from possible sources of interference (equipment and cables, including in-wall)
Move the player away from its regular location
Pull the TV away from the wall, or away from other cabling/equipment
Report your findings here and we'll try to help further.

Gary

Another thing to try is a television cold boot. Do the samething I told you to do for the DVI-HDMI cable, but instead of disconnecting the cable, turn off the TV. Turn the TV back on after sufficient time has passed (such as a minute after sparkling normally appears) and note the results.

If the initial results are no sparkles, then your television needs some inspecting. If the initial results is sparkling, then the DVD player, the cable, or interference is causing the error.

i've searched through this thread and couldn't find an answer so i'm sorry if this has been asked before.

dvd menus display a bunch of "digital garbage" either at the bottom or where the current selection is. but watching the actual video works fine. the image quality is awesome.

my setup is OPDV971H via dvi to hdmi cable to optoma hd72 projector both set to 720p. i tried dvi to dvi and component at 480i and its the same thing. i've updated the firmware to 0302 without any change. i'd hate to have to send it back already, is there something else to try?

thanks

i've searched through this thread and couldn't find an answer so i'm sorry if this has been asked before.

dvd menus display a bunch of "digital garbage" either at the bottom or where the current selection is. but watching the actual video works fine. the image quality is awesome.

my setup is OPDV971H via dvi to hdmi cable to optoma hd72 projector both set to 720p. i tried dvi to dvi and component at 480i and its the same thing. i've updated the firmware to 0302 without any change. i'd hate to have to send it back already, is there something else to try?

thanks

Could this digital noise be "dithering" that is apparent on DLPs in general?

Well, he said that 0220 is a 'better' firmware in terms of a/v sync. His modified version includes a newer version of ARM from soem other BBK model, which lacks the a/v sync issue, but still struggles with forced subtitles and angle icons.

He is waiting for Oppo to release an updated version that does everything right.

OK, thanks for the reply. I burned the oppo971-F-0220.vB1 (http://www.opdv971h.com/firmware/oppo971-F-0220.vB1.zip) firmware version and everything is looking and sounding good so far.

Having seen many BBK players when I was in Hong Kong I would bet that the the new Oppo will be somewhat like the BBK988 that I brought back. I know they will not have both DVI and HDMI and I am sure that there will be special firmware for the US market. I wonder if it will have a card reader like the 988 or will they take it out to save money? We should know soon. There should be a market for this player for the people who want 480i through HDMI and for those who have had macroblocking problems. I also think that the Mediatek chip will be a hackers delight and will help to make the unit popular.

Neuromancer & GSB,

Thanks for the suggestions. I found another DVI cable in the replacement unit carton, and with that cable the unit played perfectly fine. Could all the other dvi cables be defective? They seem to work porperly when hooking up to another TV. Weird~ :rolleyes:

I did reroute a few cables to avoid interference, but the sparkles were still present when using those dvi cables. Well, I hope I can enjoy my movies now and thanks again for all your help.

-James

Can somebody provide pictures of right cables provided with OPPO? I do not see ferities on mine, although bought recently.

Are you saying that DVDs look 10x better when played in the OPPO? Using the word "over" makes your statement sound wee bit ambiguous.

Yes. And I probably should have added a few more zeros. :D

Yes. And I probably should have added a few more zeros. :D Glad to hear it!

Can somebody provide pictures of right cables provided with OPPO? I do not see ferities on mine, although bought recently.

There is no "right cable", as each major shipment is different. The previous shipment had smooth cables without ferrite cores. Before that, OPPO was manually including HDMI cables from MonoPrice which had ferrite cores. Now, their new shipment contains new DVI-HDMI cables with ferrite cores. As such, it is completely determinent on what shipment your unit arrived. And no cable is inferior (at leas in my testings) to he other.

Neuromancer & GSB,

Thanks for the suggestions. I found another DVI cable in the replacement unit carton, and with that cable the unit played perfectly fine. Could all the other dvi cables be defective? They seem to work porperly when hooking up to another TV. Weird~ :rolleyes:

I did reroute a few cables to avoid interference, but the sparkles were still present when using those dvi cables. Well, I hope I can enjoy my movies now and thanks again for all your help.

-James


Hi James,

I too had this problem with sparkles last year. I had tried two different cables with no luck. I sent the unit back in for replacement/repairs. A week later the problem was gone when I received the unit back. You might want to check with Oppo even though it means being without your unit for a week or so.

Tom

I have had no problems at all with the cables the come with the OPPO.......and all my customers are happy with this player!
And so am I!!!

Well, I got my new player. Now the day after I got it, the thing wont open. I push the open button and it says open on the screen and the front of the player, but it won't open. If I push it again, it says load, then no disc. Any suggestions?

Well, I got my new player. Now the day after I got it, the thing wont open. I push the open button and it says open on the screen and the front of the player, but it won't open. If I push it again, it says load, then no disc. Any suggestions?

Have you tried unplugging the unit for 10 or 15 minutes?

Beyond that, it may be time to just return the unit, which Oppo makes it easy to do.

I may be completely off here, but here it goes.

To the person experiencing "sparklies";

Have you tried warming up the Oppo? If not turn on the Oppo at least five minutes before turning on the TV.

This was an issue with some of the older Oppos and I think it has been taken care of.

Just a shot in the dark to save you some trouble.

Best wishes!

I tried unplugging it, no help there. The thing is, this one was the replacement for my old one that broke the day after I bought it. Now this one broke the day after I bought it. This is getting ridiculous. If I can only use it once a week when I get a replacement, I might as well get my money back.

I tried unplugging it, no help there. The thing is, this one was the replacement for my old one that broke the day after I bought it. Now this one broke the day after I bought it. This is getting ridiculous. If I can only use it once a week when I get a replacement, I might as well get my money back.

Sorry to hear how rotten your luck has been with the Oppo.

But I'm a firm believer that over time luck equals out. Time for you to go buy a lottery ticket.

I buy a lottery ticket every time, and never win a cent. Last time I went to the gas station to check my ticket the lady said that she is firm believer that over time luck equals out. Time for me to go buy an oppo dvd player. Maybe one day. We can all dream, can't we?

Edit: I tapped the top of the player a couple times and it opened right up. Yay!!1 Now by Tuesday, I should be a millionaire.

Monk,
Thanks for the info on MKlogo and C2bin, and the links you provided. I was able to customize my startup screen this morning with a 66k file without any issues.

I modified the Russian firmware build F0220.vb1 with the new image. This version offers a neat easter egg using the PSM button. You can now get the bitrate information and some other neat functions (although I don't know what the units are for this scale.) On my old Sony the bitrate information was in Mb/s if I remember correctly.

I was able to modify the background picture on my Oppo.

Here is the result (http://www.behoppy.com/oppo/2006-01-01_background.jpg).

It took several tries to get it right. First, I used the MTK MPEG (http://personal.inet.fi/cool/mediatek/programs/mtkmpegtool.html) Tool to convert the .BMP to a single frame of MPEG. This worked and was very easy to use, but by default it uses maximum compression. This resulted in a nasty looking, blocky background. There is a batch file in there that could probably be edited to bump up quality...

For the second try, I went back to 2001 when I'd hacked the background of an Apex 660, using this method (http://www.nerd-out.com/darrenk/Backgrounds/Background.htm). A little ungainly, but you can control the level of compression (I used "1" for none). MKLOGO and c2bin worked great:

Results with MTK MPEG defaults (http://www.behoppy.com/oppo/high_compression.jpg)
Results with MKLOGO, set at 1 (http://www.behoppy.com/oppo/no_compression.jpg)

Oppo's original background MPEG frame is about 41k in size. The compressed MTK one was half that size, and the uncompressed one was double that (82k). Both worked fine. It's noteworthy that a much larger background image did work! The EPROM apparently has extra space, and Oppo's firmware authors must have set some aside for background logos or future features or..? We'll have to see if this changes as new firmwares are released.

Finally, I used the MTK ReMaker (http://personal.inet.fi/cool/mediatek/programs/mtkremaker.html) to add it into the 1111B firmware.

I take no responsibility if your player croaks, your copy of Serenity plays backwards or your surround channels fly off the wall and freak out the cat.
Having said that, here is the ISO (www.behoppy.com/oppo/1111B_Nicole.rar).

I modified the Russian firmware build F0220.vb1 with the new image. This version offers a neat easter egg using the PSM button. You can now get the bitrate information and some other neat functions (although I don't know what the units are for this scale.)

The developer told me that there are as many as 20 (!) unreferenced functions in the Oppo firmware. He is going to see what they actually do, and then, if there is anything interesting enough, he will map them to some less used buttons on the remote.

One function, for example, is a Q-Play button that was found on the BBK model, but is missing on the Oppo. It works the same way as the "Stop - Play" sequence, but only one button needs to be pushed at any time of playback.

I don't know exactly how many 'easter eggs' are going to be interesting enough to be mapped, nor do I have an idea what they could be, but it might end up with a player with even more interesting features.

The developer told me that there are as many as 20 (!) unreferenced functions in the Oppo firmware. He is going to see what they actually do, and then, if there is anything interesting enough, he will map them to some less used buttons on the remote.

One function, for example, is a Q-Play button that was found on the BBK model, but is missing on the Oppo. It works the same way as the "Stop - Play" sequence, but only one button needs to be pushed at any time of playback.

I don't know exactly how many 'easter eggs' are going to be interesting enough to be mapped, nor do I have an idea what they could be, but it might end up with a player with even more interesting features.


Any luck convincing him to mod 302 with JUST no UPO's?

or let us know where in the firmware to change it?

I can do it myself and mod each oppo firmware for everyone else, if I know which hex value to change :)

I will keep digging for more items, but It looks real promising to mod the firmware, I just need to learn how to recover from bad flashes on my own so I can test them first ;)

I'd like to give you some feedback of my tearing problem in 720p mode with the Hitashi TX200...

- the problem occurs with PAL DVD in 720p mode
- if I convert the PAL signal into NTSC (or with ntsc movies), the problem still occurs but is less prononced.
- this occurs as soon as there's a fast movement on the scene (travellings, fast changing shots sequence,...) or with fast changing light sequence (burning fire, storm, night/day sequence,...)
- I tried allmost all existing firmware without success

Here's the translation in image of what I see on the screen :
http://careddu.franck.free.fr/tearing.jpeg

If someone thinks he can help me...

I recently purchased the Oppo 971 to use with my new JVC HD70FH96. While, overall, I'm extremely pleased with the Oppo's performance, I am having trouble with some flickering colored pixels....

What I'm seeing is some flickering pixels contained to only a specific area of the screen. That area is approx. 2" in width and is a vertical column just a little bit to the left of center of the screen. The pixels are mostly red but I'm also seen the occasional green ones. They sort of buzz around within that 2" wide band or column. I don't see ANY of these flickering pixels outside of the "boundries" of that approx. 2" wide column.

I would blame the JVC but I don't get any of this flickering pixel behavior when I'm watching high def or standard def via cable. I also don't get any of the flickering pixels when I use my second DVD player (a Panasonic DVD-R unit) via component. The only "source" from which I see these flickering red or green pixels is Oppo via DVI to HDMI (routed directly into the JVC).

I haven't tried the Oppo via component yet to see if the problem goes away. Also, the flickering color pixels are MUCH more noticeable if I don't keep the JVC in Theater Pro mode and don't turn off all of the automatic settings. But, no matter the JVC settings, I can still see them (just not as bad).

Is this an upconversion thing? (The Oppo is my first upconverting DVD player.) Or is it possibly a HDCP thing?

Any and all advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Mark

I recently purchased the Oppo 971 to use with my new JVC HD70FH96. While, overall, I'm extremely pleased with the Oppo's performance, I am having trouble with some flickering colored pixels....

What I'm seeing is some flickering pixels contained to only a specific area of the screen. That area is approx. 2" in width and is a vertical column just a little bit to the left of center of the screen. The pixels are mostly red but I'm also seen the occasional green ones. They sort of buzz around within that 2" wide band or column. I don't see ANY of these flickering pixels outside of the "boundries" of that approx. 2" wide column.

I would blame the JVC but I don't get any of this flickering pixel behavior when I'm watching high def or standard def via cable. I also don't get any of the flickering pixels when I use my second DVD player (a Panasonic DVD-R unit) via component. The only "source" from which I see these flickering red or green pixels is Oppo via DVI to HDMI (routed directly into the JVC).

I haven't tried the Oppo via component yet to see if the problem goes away. Also, the flickering color pixels are MUCH more noticeable if I don't keep the JVC in Theater Pro mode and don't turn off all of the automatic settings. But, no matter the JVC settings, I can still see them (just not as bad).

Is this an upconversion thing? (The Oppo is my first upconverting DVD player.) Or is it possibly a HDCP thing?

Any and all advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Mark


Sounds like a problem with your oppo--there've been a number of dodgy DVI boards recently. Let oppo know about the problem (service@oppodigital.com).


Dave

Apparently there is a new firmware out (dated April 10) for Oppo's brother player BBK. It comes in two versions.
The OPDV971H-0315_rc2 version is for the latest Oppo remote.

Link: http://www.livingcinema.nl/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=53 Pls. choose the version according to the remote you use.

Has anyone tried it yet or knows anything about issues and features?

I know Oppo has been beta testing 313 firmware. It might be that the release version will be 315 RC2 which was just posted in the above link. I bet Oppo in the US will post their new version soon. I would love to know what changes were made.

Apparently there is a new firmware out (dated April 10) for Oppo's brother player BBK. It comes in two versions.
The OPDV971H-0315_rc2 version is for the latest Oppo remote.

Link: http://www.pipro.de/oppo_opdv971h.htm You'll have to scroll down the page to find it.

Has anyone tried it yet or knows anything about issues and features?
If it's like the latest US beta (0316), which I suspect it is, then it's the same as the 0220 but with the de-interlacing problems, etc, that were caused by the a/v sync fixed and the valuable a/v sync fix implemented.

I've been running that for a few days now (thanks oppo!) and it's been flawless pq wise, and certainly better a/v sync wise.

Now if they added an audio delay on raw, that will be something!

Dave

that firmware above defaults to PAL after flashing, it must be the PAL equal to the Usa release.

BBK doesn't have any NTSC units, hence the PAL default.

The developer told me that there are as many as 20 (!) unreferenced functions in the Oppo firmware. He is going to see what they actually do, and then, if there is anything interesting enough, he will map them to some less used buttons on the remote.

One function, for example, is a Q-Play button that was found on the BBK model, but is missing on the Oppo. It works the same way as the "Stop - Play" sequence, but only one button needs to be pushed at any time of playback.

I don't know exactly how many 'easter eggs' are going to be interesting enough to be mapped, nor do I have an idea what they could be, but it might end up with a player with even more interesting features.


That would be great if there are useful functions in the 20. What was the Q-Play for? Is that for skipping the warnings and going straight to the main menu of the move? I am not having any problems with the 0220 firmware, but I will try new versions once he puts them up for download.

I know Oppo has been beta testing 313 firmware. It might be that the release version will be 315 RC2 which was just posted in the above link. I bet Oppo in the US will post their new version soon. I would love to know what changes were made.

I hear the F-315 is just the F-0302 firmware but for the BBK/OPPO Europe branded units. So no official release of the new A/V Sync fix.

Sounds like a problem with your oppo--there've been a number of dodgy DVI boards recently. Let oppo know about the problem (service@oppodigital.com).

Thanks!! I called Oppo this morning and spoke with Mason about the problem. Interestingly, he said that the dodgy DVI board problem usually manifests itself with a vertical column of flickering white pixels just RIGHT of center. He said that I am the first to report flickering red pixels to the LEFT of center. But since the two problems are so similar, he was more than happy to send out a new unit. I should have it by Weds.

I have to tell you, I am extremely impressed with the customer service from Oppo. It was a delight to speak to a support person that treated me like I might actually knew something about my gear and how it all connects together. It was a delight to NOT get the "are you sure it is plugged in and turned on" type of support stuff you get from MOST companies these days. It was a delight to actually speak to someone that knew what he was talking and spoke frankly about a bad batch of DVI boards. Best of all, it was a delight to not have to wait on hold for a single second before I got to talk to someone that could offer a solution to my problem.

I'll post my results when I get the new unit.

Mark

I've edited my post above (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7460034&&#post7460034) regarding the link to the new firmware.
I've tried the one from the previous link and it used the wrong remote. I've updated the link to another site with the correct firmware/remote versions. Pls use this one if you want to try it: http://www.livingcinema.nl/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=53
You'll have to choose the correct firmware version for your remote.
I've installed v. 0315_4 and it and it works with the latest remote. You'll have to change setup>TV Type from Pal (default) to Auto or NTSC.
I've noticed a little bug so far (very little time to try): 720p works on my Pana plasma but doesn't show up on the left corner when I change resolution. The other resolutions show up without problems. No big deal :)
I'll try the beginning of SWIII to see if anything changed.

With the 315 firmware does the region setting default to 0 or 1. I wonder if it is based on the 313 beta version or the earlier F0302 version?

With the 315 firmware does the region setting default to 0 or 1. I wonder if it is based on the 313 beta version or the earlier F0302 version?On mine it defaulted to zero (aka region free).

I hear the F-315 is just the F-0302 firmware but for the BBK/OPPO Europe branded units. So no official release of the new A/V Sync fix.

If Neuromancer said he heard it then I guess it's the truth.

If Neuromancer said he heard it then I guess it's the truth.


Well, it is the same in the essence of what it accomplishes. You will want to the use the F-0315 if you have a BBK/OPPO Europe DVD player, as it allows for Scart controlabibility and the Q-Play button.

Any luck convincing him to mod 302 with JUST no UPO's?

Here you go: oppo971-f-0302-v1 (http://www.opdv971h.com/2006/04/10/oppo971-f-0302-v1/)

+removed UPOs

This is a very simple mod, nothing more is done. I decided to stay with the previous release, which is much more interesting to me.

So how does this player work with hitachi plasma's??
Specifically the 55hdm71?

Well, Oppo replaced my unit, and the sparklies went away. However, the picture is still really grainy and noisey (especially in bright areas of the screen). Has anyone else had this problem?

Well, Oppo replaced my unit, and the sparklies went away. However, the picture is still really grainy and noisey (especially in bright areas of the screen). Has anyone else had this problem?

What display are you using? Have you calibrated with a calibration dvd? Do you get this grain/noise on ALL dvds?

Here you go: oppo971-f-0302-v1 (http://www.opdv971h.com/2006/04/10/oppo971-f-0302-v1/)

+removed UPOs

This is a very simple mod, nothing more is done. I decided to stay with the previous release, which is much more interesting to me.


Thanx. I bet alot of people will appreciate this as well.

Well, Oppo replaced my unit, and the sparklies went away. However, the picture is still really grainy and noisey (especially in bright areas of the screen). Has anyone else had this problem?

sorry, haven't followed your situation very closely. . .

Is your display calibrated with Avia, DVE, Get Gray, THX, etc.? What you're describing sounds like brightness way too high, my OPPO looks very even when calibrated with my 4805 projector.

What display are you using?

This forum is great- the goal is to try to get your display looking as good as it possibly can with the OPPO. . . I'm sure others will chime in as well.

Well, Oppo replaced my unit, and the sparklies went away. However, the picture is still really grainy and noisey (especially in bright areas of the screen). Has anyone else had this problem?

I had to calibrate my HDMI input on my TV with DVE since I had never had anything hooked up to it. After calibration everything is great. The Oppo does seem to show more film grain on some DVDs compared to my Sony 480p player. I just assume this is because of the better processing it does which brings out the finest details in the image. I like seeing film grain, but I know some people don't.

There is a NR feature on the Oppo. I found that it causes smearing on my TV. Have you tried using it?

What should I use to calibrate my setup to get the most outta my oppo? I have a panny 26" lcd tv using hdmi/dvi cable. Get gray, Avia, DVE? Let me know folks. Thanks.

What should I use to calibrate my setup to get the most outta my oppo? I have a panny 26" lcd tv using hdmi/dvi cable. Get gray, Avia, DVE? Let me know folks. Thanks.
The most commonly used calibration DVDs are AVIA and DVE. They both have their merits so whichever you can get the cheapest. For now, try turning your brightness down a bit and your contrast up a bit on your TV.

As a stop gap to proper calibration you could use the THX optimizer that you will find on the menu of most THX certified discs, e.g., pixar, star wars, etc. Again, lower brightness as appropriate and raise contrast.

Dave

Thanx. I bet alot of people will appreciate this as well.

I know I do. Thanks.

I had to calibrate my HDMI input on my TV with DVE since I had never had anything hooked up to it. After calibration everything is great. The Oppo does seem to show more film grain on some DVDs compared to my Sony 480p player. I just assume this is because of the better processing it does which brings out the finest details in the image. I like seeing film grain, but I know some people don't.

There is a NR feature on the Oppo. I found that it causes smearing on my TV. Have you tried using it?

Yeah, the NR causes smearing for my display also. Well, I have DVE, but a buddy of my borrowed it and didn't return it. I will have to hunt it down and give it a try.

Thanks

Yeah, the NR causes smearing for my display also. Well, I have DVE, but a buddy of my borrowed it and didn't return it. I will have to hunt it down and give it a try.

Thanks

In a pinch you can use the THX calibrator on Star Wars or the Incredibles or something, it will at least get you close, so you can see if some of your issues go away with calibration, or are still there.

Please, what are UPO's?

I think I'll use the FW mod if I know what UPO's are.

Thanks!

Please, what are UPO's?

I think I'll use the FW mod if I know what UPO's are.

Thanks!
User Prohibited Operations--you know, those annoying messages that tell you you can't skip the copyright pages, or that you have to sit through some interminable animated menu.

Dave

aoleg, thanks for providing the link to the unofficial FW!

dgkp, thanks for the explanation!

Dave

Question to you folks. I normally run my oppo at 720p and for the most part it looks excellent when watching my dvd's. But I also noticed that some movies don't do as well when bumping it down to 480p. Anyone else notice this?

Question to you folks. I normally run my oppo at 720p and for the most part it looks excellent when watching my dvd's. But I also noticed that some movies don't do as well when bumping it down to 480p. Anyone else notice this? At 480p, the de-interlacing performance should be just fine, but there is some banding evident in fine-pitch resolution patterns, which means that some detail could be lost when viewing certain DVD's at 480p.

I suspect that this problem is due to the small inactive border around the image. Note that this appears to be an MTK problem. The image is not being cropped, yet it does not fill the entire frame. This means that the 480x720 DVD image is being down-scaled to a slightly lower resolution by the MTK chipset, causing an unavoidable loss of resolution/detail. This would be an issue at other output resolutions too, but to varying degrees.

If Mediatek could get rid of that border, I'm sure that all output resolutions would have a much cleaner-looking image.

Gary

GSB (Gary,), or any other stud on here that knows more than I:

I just got my long anticipated oppo yesterday. I have a S77 panne and an RP91 (that I am considering paying over $200 installation of the SDI card I thought I could solder myself until I saw how small the chip traces are) to compare it with.

What I see playing Sound and Vision Test disc is that all players have different amounts of resolution on the TVL chart. The panasonic S77 (720p) has the cleanest chart but it crops the image a bit. The oppo (720hp) has the second cleanest resolution chart with less (maybe none) cropped, and the rp91 has the weakest resolution performance (480p or 480i) and crops off the most of the three.

My question is doest that mean that the S77 should have a better image than the oppo? Does resolution charts really spell out the best picture or are there other factors that are more important?

I realize that both panny's crop the image a little, that aside what makes the oppo a better (cleaner) player if it has a noisier resolution chart performance? I hear people talk about how the panasonic S77 and SA97 are "noisy" but how does it show up on test patterns or will it?

Second off topic question. Is it worth it to get my rp91 SDI mod done to use with my iscan HD+? I have a 61" JVC PRO DILA 1080p set to use all this with....

Thanks,

Hi all, I love my Oppo player, and it's the best DVD player in the world right now @ 720p via HDMI on my HP md5880n.

My question today is, does it have a last memory function. Why is it that after I turned off power, the disc won't start at the last playback point? Even my 10-year Sony DVD player has this function, do I need to set something on the Oppo to get this "feature"?

Does resolution charts really spell out the best picture or are there other factors that are more important? There are many factors to consider when evaluating the picture quality from an upconverting DVD player. While resolution is an important consideration, de-interlacing performance is probably the most important. DVD's are not all created equal. There are many ways to encode the video signal. Additionally, many DVD's are notorious for bad edits and incorrect flags that can cause nasty artifacts in many players. The player's ability to deal with these situations is of paramount importance when you are using a large, high-resolution display.

Other factors should include: Chroma upsampling performance, Y/C delay, image cropping, passing blacker-than-black information, correct video levels, layer-break performance, responsiveness, etc.

See this excellent article (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_7_4/dvd-benchmark-part-5-progressive-10-2000.html) on the SECRETS of Home Theater & HiFi website, which discusses some of these factors.

Thanks to Kris Deering and others, the SECRETS site conducts a series of torture tests to evaluate DVD player performance in the above categories (and a few others). See the results of their DVD Player Benchmark (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all&type=DVD+Player&manufacturer=0&maxprice=0&deInt=0&mpeg=0). The OPPO is currently at the top of the pile as far as these specific torture tests are concerned. As you can see, the OPPO is a killer deal!

But remember that this is not an exhaustive list of factors to consider. Some others could be: Image detail, noise & other artifacts, sharpness (oversharpening causes nasty edge enhancement), audio quality, build quality, reliability, firmware support, upgradeability, etc. The OPPO does very well in all of these. And to top it all, OPPO Digital's customer support is nothing short of phenomenal!

Gary

My question today is, does it have a last memory function. Why is it that after I turned off power, the disc won't start at the last playback point? Even my 10-year Sony DVD player has this function, do I need to set something on the Oppo to get this "feature"?

You will have to press the Eject button in the middle of playback, then press the Power button on the remote control. The next time you turn on the DVD player, press the Select button when prompted to resume disc playback.

You will have to press the Eject button in the middle of playback, then press the Power button on the remote control. The next time you turn on the DVD player, press the Select button when prompted to resume disc playback.

I wonder if they can update the firmware to change this way of resuming playback. It should be set up to where you just hit the stop button and can then turn the player off and resume watching the DVD where you stopped it at a later time. The current way of doing it just seems very odd.

Well, Oppo replaced my unit, and the sparklies went away. However, the picture is still really grainy and noisey (especially in bright areas of the screen). Has anyone else had this problem?I have the problem. I do not know if it's a behavior by design or my unit is deffective. You can try noise redaction feature of the player. It reduce noise a little bit, but it still visible on dark areas for me. Did you have problem with OPPO like greenish dark areas?

I wonder if they can update the firmware to change this way of resuming playback. It should be set up to where you just hit the stop button and can then turn the player off and resume watching the DVD where you stopped it at a later time. The current way of doing it just seems very odd.

The OPDV971H was never designed to remember any breakpoint/memory information. The unit completely shuts down when it is powered off, so all information not related to the firmware is lost. OPPO changed a part of the firmware to cache "non-essential" tasks, which include the single Breakpoint, for when the unit shuts down. Future hardware will likely have a Memory button of sorts.

...
Thanks to Kris Deering and others, the SECRETS site conducts a series of torture tests to evaluate DVD player performance in the above categories (and a few others). See the results of their DVD Player Benchmark (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all&type=DVD+Player&manufacturer=0&maxprice=0&deInt=0&mpeg=0). The OPPO is currently at the top of the pile as far as these specific torture tests are concerned. As you can see, the OPPO is a killer deal!
Potentially stupid question... just curious in the SECRETS Shootout, I couldn't seem to find what what the output mode was for the test.... 720p over DVI? And if so why?

I read some of the benchmark stuff but get lost sometime (no kidding)... or am I fundamentally missing something... my preliminary personal decidedly unscientific test yeilded 480p DVI for me although others seem to imply that 720p "is the best", I do understand it can be display dependent.

Just curious...

BTW.. I am very happy this player... and it has WAF because the CD starts playing by just putting it in ;)

The OPDV971H was never designed to remember any breakpoint/memory information. The unit completely shuts down when it is powered off, so all information not related to the firmware is lost. OPPO changed a part of the firmware to cache "non-essential" tasks, which include the single Breakpoint, for when the unit shuts down. Future hardware will likely have a Memory button of sorts. This makes perfect sense, but I still agree with Dark Rain...

Now that OPPO has found a clever way to save the breakpoint, why can't they save it when the stop button is pressed? Why a special button?

Then, when powering up, the player should resume playback at the breakpoint by default. To start the movie at the beginning, just press "Stop" twice.

Currently, it is the easiest thing to miss the short window of opportunity (or the right button) to resume playback. And in that case, you lose the breakpoint and your temper!

Gary

Potentially stupid question... just curious in the SECRETS Shootout, I couldn't seem to find what what the output mode was for the test.... 720p over DVI? And if so why?

I read some of the benchmark stuff but get lost sometime (no kidding)... or am I fundamentally missing something... my preliminary personal decidedly unscientific test yeilded 480p DVI for me although others seem to imply that 720p "is the best", I do understand it can be display dependent. In the SECRETS Shootout, the OPPO test was only conducted on the DVI output, and it makes no difference which resolution, because all of those tests would yield the same results (except maybe the Y/C delay). They did not consider resolution in the test.

If your display looks better with 480p, have no fear!

By the way, it also took me a while to wade through and understand all that heavy stuff on the SECRETS site, but its a wonderful resource if you are interested.

Gary

This makes perfect sense, but I still agree with Dark Rain...

Now that OPPO has found a clever way to save the breakpoint, why can't they save it when the stop button is pressed? Why a special button?

Then, when powering up, the player should resume playback at the breakpoint by default. To start the movie at the beginning, just press "Stop" twice.

Currently, it is the easiest thing to miss the short window of opportunity (or the right button) to resume playback. And in that case, you lose the breakpoint and your temper!

Gary

The Eject button is likely the trigger for putting the breakpoint into memory. The only other way to trigger a breakpoint for memory addressing (remember, if you just hit Stop then Play during the same session, your playback is resumed. Once the unit is shut off, you start from the beginning no matter what) would be to remap a key. If you enable a button to become a breakpoint button, then you are removing a button from another task. As a technician, this is something you do not want to do, as it confuses the hell out of people. For a copywriter, they will have to rework all the literature to reflect the change. For an engineer, it is as simple as changing a HEX command.

The window itself is rather long (like 7 seconds). The problem with enabling the Breakpoint at default is that the OPDV971H is stupid. That is, if you create a breakpoint, and never clear it (ie. you never just power down normally) then all DVDs you place into the system will start at the time you enabled the Breakpoint for. It is not designed disc specific, it is just cutting and pasting a time stamp. This could be rather annoying if you keep adding in new discs and they keep resuming at this same point.

Neuromancer-

If they can have the oppo save a breakpoint (which i could care less about doing) cant they assign another function to enable a power up (aka discrete on)? I saw where on their site they say that the unit powers off, but then how could the unit power up with the toggle power if the entire IR section has no power in standby?

Is there any way you or some other genius on here can write a firmware that would allow play or some other button to turn the unit on if its off? I really want this player to work but in order to make it truly integration friendly i need discrete power on or off (at least one). That makes me think. cant they give it a discrete off so that when its on if you send the code it goes off and if its off it ignores it because that section is powered off?


Thanks,

Jon

The OPDV971H was never designed to remember any breakpoint/memory information. The unit completely shuts down when it is powered off, so all information not related to the firmware is lost. OPPO changed a part of the firmware to cache "non-essential" tasks, which include the single Breakpoint, for when the unit shuts down. Future hardware will likely have a Memory button of sorts.

I have been testing two 'easter-egg' Russian modified firmwares, and it so happens that there is a function that stores a breakpoint; it is very easy for the Russian developer to map this function to any key on the remote control. So there is a possibility that the next modified firmware will store this information when the "Power" button is pressed rather than "Eject".

I don't quite understand the discreet power on off thingy, but thanks for the Eject button suggestions, it works for me.

Does anybody if there's a way to program Harmony 880 to do "eject+power off" with a single key press? This would make life perfect.

Of course in future, I hope to see an "intelligent" player that will store or resume multiple discs, or store repeat A-B, playlist info for each DVD/CD up to X number of discs. I think a lot of older Pioneer/Sony Laserdisc/DVD players have these functions actually, don't know whatever happened to them?

Neuromancer-

If they can have the oppo save a breakpoint (which i could care less about doing) cant they assign another function to enable a power up (aka discrete on)? I saw where on their site they say that the unit powers off, but then how could the unit power up with the toggle power if the entire IR section has no power in standby?

The main CPU is turned off. Without this CPU to keep the cycles running, the RAM goes flash. However, the PSU, the front panel, the IR board, and the main sero retain anough power to interpret a single incoming signal: power.

Is there any way you or some other genius on here can write a firmware that would allow play or some other button to turn the unit on if its off?

Because it is hard wired to only interpret "power," no other button can turn on the DVD player, unless you want that button to always be the "power" button.

Now that I think about it, this entire operation is very analogous to a PC (flashing of system memory, single turn on switch, and so forth).

I really want this player to work but in order to make it truly integration friendly i need discrete power on or off (at least one). That makes me think. cant they give it a discrete off so that when its on if you send the code it goes off and if its off it ignores it because that section is powered off?

You could code the Power button to always be "Off", and the Discrete On/Off commands from the remote control can then cause the unit to turn On and Off properly. However, this would mean that the normal power button on the remote control is no longer useable. For this reason, OPPO would have to either design firmware specifically for Discrete On/Off use, or make it a menu option. In both cases, it is a rather low priority I would assume at this point.

As promised by Oppo, I received my replacement player today. It is Version 3.2 (my original player is Version 3.1). I'm pleased to report that the column of red and green pixels is completely gone! So it definitely looks like my 3.1 player had a DVI board problem.

My thanks again to everyone for the great information on this site!!

Mark

I have been testing two 'easter-egg' Russian modified firmwares, and it so happens that there is a function that stores a breakpoint; it is very easy for the Russian developer to map this function to any key on the remote control. So there is a possibility that the next modified firmware will store this information when the "Power" button is pressed rather than "Eject".

Memory functionality is a common feature of MTK chipsets. However, the engineers who designed the OPDV971H designed it as an eco-friendly unit (little power consumption), causing the memory function to be lapsed over. Because you Russian hacker is muxing the OPPO and ARM processings from other MTK chipsets, it is not surprising that there is a working memory break feature. What is important is how it is utilized and stored in the memory archecture before the unit is shut down.

The problem with enabling the Breakpoint at default is that the OPDV971H is stupid. That is, if you create a breakpoint, and never clear it (ie. you never just power down normally) then all DVDs you place into the system will start at the time you enabled the Breakpoint for. It is not designed disc specific, it is just cutting and pasting a time stamp. This could be rather annoying if you keep adding in new discs and they keep resuming at this same point. OK, now I understand that little dilema (new disks all resuming at the same breakpoint). So assuming the breakpoint is saved the way it currently is, what prevents the player from resuming at the breakpoint automatically at the first power-up, rather than having to press a button? That would save at least one annoying step.

Gary

[/QUOTE] You could code the Power button to always be "Off", and the Discrete On/Off commands from the remote control can then cause the unit to turn On and Off properly. However, this would mean that the normal power button on the remote control is no longer useable. For this reason, OPPO would have to either design firmware specifically for Discrete On/Off use, or make it a menu option. In both cases, it is a rather low priority I would assume at this point.[/QUOTE]

If so how can you turn it back on? I dont understand how can the IR portion only be able to respond to one IR hex code. Why couldnt it respond to one or two others? IR is not a switch its a circuit no?

Jon

You could code the Power button to always be "Off", and the Discrete On/Off commands from the remote control can then cause the unit to turn On and Off properly. However, this would mean that the normal power button on the remote control is no longer useable. For this reason, OPPO would have to either design firmware specifically for Discrete On/Off use, or make it a menu option. In both cases, it is a rather low priority I would assume at this point.

If so how can you turn it back on? I dont understand how can the IR portion only be able to respond to one IR hex code. Why couldnt it respond to one or two others? IR is not a switch its a circuit no?

Jon

Jon,

The point is, when the unit is switched on, then the firmware is running, and it's "smart", and can understand lots of IR codes. When it's switched off, nothing's running, and the IR receiver is being controlled by a very simple, hardwired circuit that only knows one IR code -- the code for the Power button. When it gets that code, it turns on the power to the unit. Anything else, it ignores.

The way things are right now, the "Power" code is a toggle, but it's implemented in such a way that the two different IR controllers each interpret it as a different discrete code. When the power is off and you press the Power button, the "Power" code is received by that hardwired circuit and the unit switches on. When the power is on and you press the button, the "Power" code is received by the firmware and the unit powers off.

This means that to implement discrete codes, you would have to make the current "Power" code into the discrete power-on code, because that's the only code that the hardwired circuit understands. However, for it to work as a discrete, the firmware would have to ignore the "Power" code when it's already on. So you would need to add a new code that the firmware would recognize as a discrete "Off" code, but of course, that code isn't in the included remote control, meaning that if the unit was set up for the discrete codes, then you wouldn't be able to turn it off with the included remote. That potentially means a lot of customer-support headaches for Oppo, from people who enabled the option without understanding what it meant, and then couldn't turn their players off with the remote.

sounds good. Can they do it for those of us with expensive remotes? I will NEVER use the original remote. I will pay for a firmware with a discrete off and the main power switched to power on only. Can anyone do it?


Jon

As promised by Oppo, I received my replacement player today. It is Version 3.2 (my original player is Version 3.1). I'm pleased to report that the column of red and green pixels is completely gone! So it definitely looks like my 3.1 player had a DVI board problem.

My thanks again to everyone for the great information on this site!!

Mark


Good to hear that your DVI woes have been rectified.

Will this whole memory thing be fixed in the new Faroudja Oppo? Will it have discrete on/off also? Basically will they fix many of the little annoyances of the current oppo like the loader not closing when power off from the actual player power button.

sounds good. Can they do it for those of us with expensive remotes? I will NEVER use the original remote. I will pay for a firmware with a discrete off and the main power switched to power on only. Can anyone do it?


Jon

OPPO could do it, but it would require a specialty firmware designed for Discrete On/Off users or a menu toggle. Right now, they are putting much of their resources into the launch of two new products, so it will likely not be for a couple of months before they could even begin looking at doing this kind of code change.

An experienced hacker could also do it, but they would have to beable to edit the actual source code, and not just borrow features from other MTK units.

Ive noticed one thing (almost) everyone seems to agree on in this thread is that the oppo picture looks the best on 720p. My Toshiba automatically converts everything to either 540p or 1080i. Do you guys think I would be better off setting my oppo to 1080i instead of 720p since my tv will show it at 1080i anyways? Ive tried both but I cant decide which looks better.

thanks neuro. that makes sense. Should I email oppo and request this or do they already know?

Most users will find that 1080i looks sharper than 720p, but you will get more aliasing and interlacing artifacts in this mode. I would recommend using 1080i for a full film or two and then switch to 720p and see which one is more pleasing.

Ironically, I got around to messing with my Panasonic TH-42PX50U with a Sencore calibrator, and found that 720p was horrible. It was beyond fuzzy. Switching to a 1080i test pattern was bloody gorgous looking in terms of proper sharpness. So, I don't know if television is a dud, or the plasma is just not doing a good 720p signal. But this is a discussion for another thread ...

thanks neuro. that makes sense. Should I email oppo and request this or do they already know?

They already know, but you can always prod the beast to see if it reacts.

Ironically, I got around to messing with my Panasonic TH-42PX50U with a Sencore calibrator, and found that 720p was horrible. It was beyond fuzzy. Switching to a 1080i test pattern was bloody gorgous looking in terms of proper sharpness. So, I don't know if television is a dud, or the plasma is just not doing a good 720p signal. But this is a discussion for another thread ...

Neuromancer,
As a fellow Panny plasma owner (37PX50U), I will second your analysis of 720p vs 1080i performance on the Panny. It is unlikely that your display is a dud, as I remember reading a number of seemingly credible posts in another forum on this site (one of the Panny threads, I believe) stating that the Panny plasmas are "optimized" for 1080i performance, though the 50U series are stated to have a native resolution of 720p.
I also achieve a "gorgeous" picture thru DVI with the Oppo set at 1080i resolution.
(Apologies for my inability to "scientifically quantify" exactly how this optimization is implemented)
Now if only Oppo could isolate the downward shift issue with anamorphic PAL discs on the Panny...

Pete

EDIT: for instance here is one thread:http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6349246&highlight=optimize+1080#post6349246

Pete,

You mean you get PAL on your Panasonic natively? I don't get any PAL signal anymore. Luckily I only have a few PAL discs and mainly use my Optoma H78. I mainly use the Panasonic for television viewing (SD content does not look better blown up to 98").

I was very disappointed when I found out how poor the 720p performance was. It is still good, but no wear near the quality of 1080i.

*note: I should really start running spellchecks on my posts.

EDIT: Pete, thanks for the link.

Pete,

You mean you get PAL on your Panasonic natively?

Yes and no,

I've resorted to setting the Oppo to output NTSC, thereby "forcing" the conversion, of which it does an excellent job (the shift notwithstanding).
When I'd previously attempted to output PAL natively, it would, in fact, display an image, but the image was subject to "tearing", an anomaly encountered by others on this thread. This tearing was most evident in horizontal pans and vigorous movement.
Pete

Ive noticed one thing (almost) everyone seems to agree on in this thread is that the oppo picture looks the best on 720p. My Toshiba automatically converts everything to either 540p or 1080i. Do you guys think I would be better off setting my oppo to 1080i instead of 720p since my tv will show it at 1080i anyways? Ive tried both but I cant decide which looks better.

If you can't see the difference, then the scalar on your set is doing a good job. I personally would use the 1080 out of the Oppo because, on my Sony A10 at least, I don't need to mess with the zoom buttons on the TV whenever I run a movie. Saves a bit of button pushing.

A bit OT, but I'm generally impressed with the scaling on my Sony display. Don't know if others share that sentiment.

I've just paired up the Oppo with a Sony 50" SXRD and I was wondering if its inability to synch with the set is an issue with the player or the TV? I've tried different macros to cycle back and forth between inputs, but nothing is working reliably. It eventually comes down to me manually swapping between inputs and it's starting to really tick me off.

cartload-

Are you going thru any switchers or other processors?

Have you tried all the oppo's different output resolutions?

What else do you have that is dvi or hdmi, and do they work reliably?


Jon

cartload-

Are you going thru any switchers or other processors?

Have you tried all the oppo's different output resolutions?

What else do you have that is dvi or hdmi, and do they work reliably?


Jon

Thanks for the quick reply Jon, but it appears I solved my problem by adding a longer delay time in my macro. Thanks.

Does anybody if there's a way to program Harmony 880 to do "eject+power off" with a single key press? This would make life perfect.


You can change your "Watch a DVD" activity to issue an eject before leaving the activity, which will end up being done just before the power off.

Steve.

I have been testing two 'easter-egg' Russian modified firmwares, and it so happens that there is a function that stores a breakpoint; it is very easy for the Russian developer to map this function to any key on the remote control. So there is a possibility that the next modified firmware will store this information when the "Power" button is pressed rather than "Eject".Why this function can't store also a disk name. In this case it could check if a disk has the same name, then continue, otherwise start from begining.

Why this function can't store also a disk name. In this case it could check if a disk has the same name, then continue, otherwise start from begining.
BTW. It is implemented exactly as you describe :) In case of the same disk fw ask do you want to continue or play from the begining. In case of different disk it start from begining w/o question.

If you can't see the difference, then the scalar on your set is doing a good job. I personally would use the 1080 out of the Oppo because, on my Sony A10 at least, I don't need to mess with the zoom buttons on the TV whenever I run a movie. Saves a bit of button pushing.

A bit OT, but I'm generally impressed with the scaling on my Sony display. Don't know if others share that sentiment.

On my A10 I find that the Oppo looks best at 720p. 1080i doesn't look quite as smooth and film-like as 720p does. The PQ is absolutely stunning for a $199 player.

Well, it seems that you should always use the player at the native resolution of the display though anyway, right?

Isn't the A10 720P native?

If you set the Oppo to 1080i output, you'd be forcing another (unnecessary) downconversion back to 720P from 1080i on the A10's end.

It is recommended that you use the native resolution, however, as noted in my comment about the Panny plasma, the native resolution is not always the best resolution to use.

Therefore, it comes down to what is the best looking DVI mode to your eyes.

I have a Sony kd 34xbr960 CRT TV with a native format of 1080i, however the picture actually looks better with my Oppos output set to 720P, and that is what I keep it at

Well, it seems that you should always use the player at the native resolution of the display though anyway, right?

Isn't the A10 720P native?

If you set the Oppo to 1080i output, you'd be forcing another (unnecessary) downconversion back to 720P from 1080i on the A10's end.

The A10 is 720p. In the case of my DVR, I have it set to output at 1080i. The A10 does a better job at scaling and de-interlacing than the Motorola 6412.

I've just paired up the Oppo with a Sony 50" SXRD and I was wondering if its inability to synch with the set is an issue with the player or the TV? I've tried different macros to cycle back and forth between inputs, but nothing is working reliably. It eventually comes down to me manually swapping between inputs and it's starting to really tick me off.
I have had no problem using a macro that switches the Sony to a component input and then back to the HDMI input--I uses HDMI 7.

Well, it seems that you should always use the player at the native resolution of the display though anyway, right?

Isn't the A10 720P native?

If you set the Oppo to 1080i output, you'd be forcing another (unnecessary) downconversion back to 720P from 1080i on the A10's end.The A10 is 720p. In the case of my DVR, I have it set to output at 1080i. The A10 does a better job at scaling and de-interlacing than the Motorola 6412.
It makes sense to set your DVR to 1080i... because the picture information is coming through as 1080i. (Letting the A10 do the one step of downconvert/deinterlace to 720p.) However, setting an upconverting DVD player to 1080i doesn't make sense, since the original picture information is only 480i. It would be better to let the player do the one step of upconvert/deinterlace to 720p, the native resolution of the A10. Setting the DVD player to do the one step of upconverting to 1080i means the tv adds an extra step of downconverting/deinterlacing back to 720p.

With the DVD player (not the DVR) you are adding an extra unecessary conversion step.

I've also checked out 1080i with the Oppo on my 55XS955, and there is a slight "jitter" to the picture, which you can clearly see on the AVIA dvd's resolution ramps screen. 720p is much more stable. I have heard somewhere that the Faroudja chip isn't optimized for sending interlaced signals (hence the not so stable 1080i signal.)

-Terry

Ive noticed one thing (almost) everyone seems to agree on in this thread is that the oppo picture looks the best on 720p. My Toshiba automatically converts everything to either 540p or 1080i. Do you guys think I would be better off setting my oppo to 1080i instead of 720p since my tv will show it at 1080i anyways? Ive tried both but I cant decide which looks better.


I'm also using the OPPO with a Toshiba, (65HX93 540P-1080I). I go back and forth on which output to use. I've had the OPPO now since last summer, and still waffle. I've pretty much settled on 720 right now, but mainly because the with the latest FW (3-2 maybe). the 1080 pic is actually shifted. I messed with it some, but then decided to go back to 720p. I've thought about falling back to the 1022 FW, but I think I'll just wait it out and see what happens on next FW. To be honest, it was really hard to tell which of the two looked better in any case.

Rick

Awaiting my Oppo. Has anyone paired their Oppo with the AVM 20 or 30? It only has component inputs until the HMDI switching upgrades are released. Is there a way that I can take the DVI from the Oppo straight to my PDP and run digital out through the AVM or am I restricted to running both video and audio through the AVM for now? Thanks.


Tomcat211

Is there a way that I can take the DVI from the Oppo straight to my PDP and run digital out through the AVM or am I restricted to running both video and audio through the AVM for now? Thanks.
Tomcat211

You can connect Oppo DVI to your display's DVI and for audio just run the digital out form you Oppo to coaxial or optical in on your processor.

I have had no problem using a macro that switches the Sony to a component input and then back to the HDMI input--I uses HDMI 7.
Likewise here -- with a Harmony or other programmable, it's easy to set up. The problem seems to be a mutual incompatibility between the player and the SXRD, although I'm more inclined to blame the TV. The problem actually doesn't occur for the first couple of minutes after the TV switches on, which suggests that it's something in the SXRD that starts out good and then goes out of spec as it warms up.

When I've discussed this with Oppo support, they mentioned that they might try some tweaks in future firmware to ameliorate the problem.

When I set the TV system to PAL and played a PAL zone 2 disc, for whatever reason my monitor is indicating that the input is 525P/50Hz, is there any reason why it is not outputting at 576P/50Hz?

Thanks Alex. Much appreciated.

I'm running my Oppo through a Geffen HDMI switch and then into my KV30HS420 into the HDMI input.

Now I'm playing a DVD with 2.35:1 aspect ratio and I'm getting black bars on all four sides.

The problem is, with a 720p, or 1080i signal, the TV is forced into Full mode, because both of those signals are already widescreen (according to them).

Should I dial down the upconverting on my Oppo to get rid of the black bars? The DVD is French Kiss.

I'm running my Oppo through a Geffen HDMI switch and then into my KV30HS420 into the HDMI input.

Now I'm playing a DVD with 2.35:1 aspect ratio and I'm getting black bars on all four sides.

The problem is, with a 720p, or 1080i signal, the TV is forced into Full mode, because both of those signals are already widescreen (according to them).

Should I dial down the upconverting on my Oppo to get rid of the black bars? The DVD is French Kiss.


If you have a wide screen (16x9) TV, make sure you have the oppo set to "WIDE" in the setup menu. It might be set to something else, giving you the bars on the side. A 2.35:1 should only give you bars on the top & bottom with a non-stretched pic.

I'm running my Oppo through a Geffen HDMI switch and then into my KV30HS420 into the HDMI input.

Now I'm playing a DVD with 2.35:1 aspect ratio and I'm getting black bars on all four sides.

The problem is, with a 720p, or 1080i signal, the TV is forced into Full mode, because both of those signals are already widescreen (according to them).

Should I dial down the upconverting on my Oppo to get rid of the black bars? The DVD is French Kiss.

According to DVD Profiler, "French Kiss" is non-anamorphic. What this means is that you need to use the ZOOM function on either the TV or Oppo to make it look normal.

Some info for your reference:

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/articles/anamorphic/index.html

According to DVD Profiler, "French Kiss" is non-anamorphic. What this means is that you need to use the ZOOM function on either the TV or Oppo to make it look normal.

Some info for your reference:

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/articles/anamorphic/index.html

Here's the rub, I tried the Zoom function on my Oppo remote, and that just stretched it horizontally.

On the TV, because of the signal def from the Oppo, I can't zoom the signal, because as I described, it's already " a widescreen signal and therefor cannot be zoomed on the KV30HS420" more or less from the manual.

So it seems it may be an issue with how I'm zooming on the Oppo. Any help in that area?

Here's the rub, I tried the Zoom function on my Oppo remote, and that just stretched it horizontally.

On the TV, because of the signal def from the Oppo, I can't zoom the signal, because as I described, it's already " a widescreen signal and therefor cannot be zoomed on the KV30HS420" more or less from the manual.

So it seems it may be an issue with how I'm zooming on the Oppo. Any help in that area?

You might need to change the way your TV defaults to Wide Mode. On my Sony A10, I have the Wide Mode set to FULL. Also make sure the 4:3 default mode is set to OFF. I used to have a Sony KV-30HS420 and I used those settings. I was able to ZOOM non-anamorphic DVDs without a problem.

For the Oppo, I have the TV Display set to Wide/SQZ mode. Try this or another Display setting if you're having a problem.

I am just wondering about the whole Anamorphic thing.

I have an Oppo connected via DVI/HDMI to my Panny 8UK.

I know on DVDs which have a higher aspect ratio to my TV, there are black bars on the top and bottom, I thought Anamorphoic allowed it to be scaled properly so it will fill the screen.

Am I correct, or missing something?

Thanks!

You might need to change the way your TV defaults to Wide Mode. On my Sony A10, I have the Wide Mode set to FULL. Also make sure the 4:3 default mode is set to OFF. I used to have a Sony KV-30HS420 and I used those settings. I was able to ZOOM non-anamorphic DVDs without a problem.

For the Oppo, I have the TV Display set to Wide/SQZ mode. Try this or another Display setting if you're having a problem.

Those are the exact same settings I have, but while watching French Kiss, if I press Screen on my Sony Remote, Full appears on screen but it doesn't change display modes.

I wrote an email to Oppo and I'll continue trying different settings.

Again, I go from DVI into the HDMI input of my KV30HS420

I love my oppo, and in my opinion, it looks almost as good as hdtv broadcasts. With the exception of non anamorphic dvds. I just watched my first one since getting my hdtv and oppo, and well first, it had the black bars on the top and bottom, but the sides were stretched out, so the picture was really thin and wide. So I mucked about and got it zoomed in as correctly as I could and the quality was rubbish. I could never tell the difference between anamorphic, and non on my old regular tv, but now, I see what the big deal is. Why don't they just make them all anamorphic, and not bother with not doing it.

Those are the exact same settings I have, but while watching French Kiss, if I press Screen on my Sony Remote, Full appears on screen but it doesn't change display modes.

I wrote an email to Oppo and I'll continue trying different settings.

Again, I go from DVI into the HDMI input of my KV30HS420

This may sound stupid, but are you pushing the SCREEN button more than once? You should have these screen modes on each push of the button:

- Normal
- Wide Zoom
- Zoom
- Full

If not, I wonder if it has something to do with using the HDMI input? Does the manual state this anywhere?

The only time I had a problem with changing the screen mode on the 30HS420 was with HD content. It would only allow FULL screen mode.

I love my oppo, and in my opinion, it looks almost as good as hdtv broadcasts. With the exception of non anamorphic dvds. I just watched my first one since getting my hdtv and oppo, and well first, it had the black bars on the top and bottom, but the sides were stretched out, so the picture was really thin and wide. So I mucked about and got it zoomed in as correctly as I could and the quality was rubbish. I could never tell the difference between anamorphic, and non on my old regular tv, but now, I see what the big deal is. Why don't they just make them all anamorphic, and not bother with not doing it.

You do lose some screen resolution when you zoom in. I find that the TV does a better job at zooming non-anamorphic DVDs than the player. My A10 does a very good job at zooming.

Almost all DVD releases today are anamorphic. It's usually older releases from MGM, Artisan, and 20th Century Fox that aren't. Anymore I always check to see if it's anamorphic. If it's in the bargain bin or I'm buying it used I may get it regardless.

I am just wondering about the whole Anamorphic thing.

I have an Oppo connected via DVI/HDMI to my Panny 8UK.

I know on DVDs which have a higher aspect ratio to my TV, there are black bars on the top and bottom, I thought Anamorphoic allowed it to be scaled properly so it will fill the screen.

Am I correct, or missing something?

Thanks!

Only on DVDs that are close to aspect ratio of the TV. DVDs that have a larger AR than 1.78:1 are transferred with the black bars. They are part of the image. Most DVDs with an AR of 1.85:1 don't normally show the black bars because most TVs have enough overscan to hide them.

When I set the TV system to PAL and played a PAL zone 2 disc, for whatever reason my monitor is indicating that the input is 525P/50Hz, is there any reason why it is not outputting at 576P/50Hz?
Are you sure it's not 625/50hz? It's quite common for the displays to also register extra lines which aren't used in the image itself--e.g., my panny ae700 shows 720 as 750 and 1080 as 1125 and 576 as 625 (if I remember rightly).

Dave

Those are the exact same settings I have, but while watching French Kiss, if I press Screen on my Sony Remote, Full appears on screen but it doesn't change display modes.

I wrote an email to Oppo and I'll continue trying different settings.

Again, I go from DVI into the HDMI input of my KV30HS420 I had roughly the same problem recently, and the problem was that in 1080i mode, my TV would not give me all the modes. In 480p it would (and it doesn't do 720p through HDMI).

When changing modes on the Oppo, remember that the DVI button only works when the player is stopped.

But non-anamorphic still sucks even when you get it "right." Avoid buying them.

I have a Sony kd 34xbr960 CRT TV with a native format of 1080i, however the picture actually looks better with my Oppos output set to 720P, and that is what I keep it at
Mike,

I have the same set-up and I have settled on outputting 720p from the Oppo to my 34" Sony set. With my set-up I've noticed the picture to be "jittery" at 1080i out from the Oppo. I've read a number of threads from the more experienced folks here that explain things - but the bottom line for me is that it looks better at 720p.

Cheers! ;)

I hate adding to a 166 Page post with negativity, but I've had my Oppo for almost three weeks and I'm about to return it. I'm outputting at 720p which looks incredible.... However audio sync is off and has to be adjusted for EVERY DVD I put in it. Its really starting to piss me off. Also, I get subtitles randomly on certain DVDs even though they are turned off. This is the last DVD player I buy from a name other than Toshiba/Pioneer/Sony/Etc.

Chris Green

I hate adding to a 166 Page post with negativity, but I've had my Oppo for almost three weeks and I'm about to return it. I'm outputting at 720p which looks incredible.... However audio sync is off and has to be adjusted for EVERY DVD I put in it. Its really starting to piss me off. Also, I get subtitles randomly on certain DVDs even though they are turned off. This is the last DVD player I buy from a name other than Toshiba/Pioneer/Sony/Etc.

Chris Green

Your model likely has the v 0302 firmware. This firmware removed some A\V synch fixes from a previous release (v 0220) for dvd's but in return affected the A\V synch on divx playback. If you don't have any desire to watch divx, then try to install the 0220 firmware and see if that helps with your problem. If you have tried this, then you may want to return the player.

http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h_firmware_0220_download.html

i've been playing with using either 720p or 1080i output. am i crazy to think that 1080i output looks sharper than 720p?? i have the A/V sync beta firmware with a samsung DLP.

I was running 0302 however after writing them I was just sent a Beta of 0313 which turns off all the delay stuff for RAW output. This seems to have everything perfectly in-sync on all but a few DVDs. However it does not address the weird sub-title issues with disney/etc DVDs. I may just put the Disney movies in the XBox for a bit instead. (Rolling Eyes)

Chris

i've been playing with using either 720p or 1080i output. am i crazy to think that 1080i output looks sharper than 720p?? i have the A/V sync beta firmware with a samsung DLP.

I haven't experimented much on my 5667, but it just depends on the TV. I've been running at 720p since I got it. I'll give 1080 a shot in a bit to see how it compares.

Chris

I had roughly the same problem recently, and the problem was that in 1080i mode, my TV would not give me all the modes. In 480p it would (and it doesn't do 720p through HDMI).

When changing modes on the Oppo, remember that the DVI button only works when the player is stopped.

But non-anamorphic still sucks even when you get it "right." Avoid buying them.

I guess if you just switch the Oppo to 480p you should be able to use the ZOOM mode for non-anamorphic DVDs. Thankfully my A10 lets me use ZOOM on any screen resolution.

I just want to be sure.....so sorry if this has been covered elsewhere in this rather long thread. I did find reference to the fact that if you are connecting to an av system via coax or optical digital changing the audio settings on the Oppo should have NO effect. But then, in the manual, I saw: "PRO Logic II is effective only when the DOWNMIX mode is set to 5.1 CH and SPDIF is set to RAW".

My understanding is that you wouldn't use RAW unless you were connected via digital. If that's true (and that may be where I'm confused), it seems inconsistent with the audio settings being unused if connected via digital. Can anyone put my mind at rest on this one.

thx

I just got this player Thursday and so far I like it a lot. It seems to have a lot of detail and neutral colors. I also am auditioning the Panny S97 and Sony H75. I'd have to say I'm leaning towards Oppo. The S97 is pretty good too, just doesn't have as much detail and colors are more glamorized. Thought I've noticed a touch of bleeding on red or hot pink (on the Oppo), but very infrequently. I'm surprised how good divx movies look. I've got it going through the dvi to hdmi at 1080i on a Sony 30HS420. I adjusted the brightness, contrast, and saturation a little. Sharpness is at med (I mihgt give off another try). I really don't think the picture is soft like some claim. Right now I have a couple of questions and also any suggestions would be appreciated.

1) Sound is going into my TV speakers so right now all I see is "modes" I'm using rock right now. Is there a more popular setting?

2) A couple of my divx movies are playing then freezing up. Is there a reason and fix for this?

TIA

However it does not address the weird sub-title issues with disney/etc DVDs. I may just put the Disney movies in the XBox for a bit instead. (Rolling Eyes)

Just turn off the subtitles through the DVD menu system. You will need to do this for all Disney, Buena Vista, Miramax movies.

I just want to be sure.....so sorry if this has been covered elsewhere in this rather long thread. I did find reference to the fact that if you are connecting to an av system via coax or optical digital changing the audio settings on the Oppo should have NO effect. But then, in the manual, I saw: "PRO Logic II is effective only when the DOWNMIX mode is set to 5.1 CH and SPDIF is set to RAW".

This is due to a bug in the firmware, causing the ProLogic II setting to not appear when it should (S/PDIF set to PCM). ProLogic II will only be applied to a PCM (digital) or analog outputs.

Are you sure it's not 625/50hz? It's quite common for the displays to also register extra lines which aren't used in the image itself--e.g., my panny ae700 shows 720 as 750 and 1080 as 1125 and 576 as 625 (if I remember rightly).

Dave

Finally figured it out, actually it is 576/50Hz, my plasma is the problem, the output go through iScan HD which is set to 1024 by 512/60Hz (which I have to program the plasma to accept this configuration). However, my plasma is not programmed to accept 1024 by 512/50Hz

I hate adding to a 166 Page post with negativity, but I've had my Oppo for almost three weeks and I'm about to return it. I'm outputting at 720p which looks incredible.... However audio sync is off and has to be adjusted for EVERY DVD I put in it. Its really starting to piss me off. Also, I get subtitles randomly on certain DVDs even though they are turned off. This is the last DVD player I buy from a name other than Toshiba/Pioneer/Sony/Etc.

Chris GreenI'm on the same boat. I'm very unsatisfied with the player considering its price. Awkward UI. Very noisy picture. Sync problem I'm only lazy to ship it back to a seller, so I'll probably stack in my garage and buy something else.

Edit: Actually OPPO replaced Toshiba in my case, because Toshiba just frequently locked up, so I had to disconnect it from power. I always had problems with Sony, after 5 years of banning this company I bought some device from them, but it was DOA, so I won't buy Sony 5 more years. Any other reliable brand you can have in mind?

I only get audio sync problems if I go back to the menu a lot or leave the movie/program in pause for a long time. The fix is just to eject the DVD, load it back in, and then hit play once the breakpoint message appears. I've yet to encounter a problem with any DVD that I watched all the way through. I'll admit the audio sync issue is annoying and should have been fixed by now. The upcoming firmware should hopefully resolve it.

I don't notice the picture being noisy except on DVDs with grainy film prints. Blame the movie studios for this. In the case of damaged or really old films, not much can be done. Calibration helps. Try lowering the sharpness level on your TV or use the NR option. Turning off True Life also helps.

Very noisy picture. I've seen you post this before, but "noisy" is not an accurate description. The OPPO's DVI picture is very detailed, so it will easily show film grain and other digital artifacts recorded on the DVD. That's not the player's fault. With a reference-quality DVD (like "Ice Age" for example), the picture is rock-solid, with not even a hint of "noise".

Have you properly calibrated your display? A badly-calibrated display is by far the biggest culprit when it comes to poor picture quality.

If you are seeing moving blocks in background, dark, or misty scenes, it could be macroblock-enhance. In that case again, calibration can suppress it or even eliminate it completely. But bear in mind too, that many DVD's are badly compressed and encoded with macroblocking and other digital "noise". These cannot be fixed, except by using the OPPO's Noise Reduction circuit, which works well, but has a drawback; ghosting in fast-moving scenes.

Gary

I only get audio sync problems if I go back to the menu a lot or leave the movie/program in pause for a long time. The fix is just to eject the DVD, load it back in, and then hit play once the breakpoint message appears. Dark Rain, it is not necessary to eject the DVD to fix sync problems. Unless you are using FW 0220, just press "Stop" and "Play". My measurements showed that this method will do a better job than reloading the disk.

Gary

Dark Rain, it is not necessary to eject the DVD to fix sync problems. Unless you are using FW 0220, just press "Stop" and "Play". My measurements showed that this method will do a better job than reloading the disk.

Gary
Thanks for the tip. So far, this is about the only drawback to this player. It's not that bothersome since I haven't seen it happen but on a few DVDs. And on those DVDs I went back and forth to the menu a lot.

This may sound stupid, but are you pushing the SCREEN button more than once? You should have these screen modes on each push of the button:

- Normal
- Wide Zoom
- Zoom
- Full

If not, I wonder if it has something to do with using the HDMI input? Does the manual state this anywhere?

The only time I had a problem with changing the screen mode on the 30HS420 was with HD content. It would only allow FULL screen mode.

Hey Dark. Yeah, I hit the button multiple times. The Sony Wega manual states that with a signal of 720p or higher (IE high def), the screen automatically goes into Full Mode. You are then not able to change the screen mode. Maybe there is a way to hack around this using the service menu, I don't know; And I'd need someone MUCH more experienced than I (I only have minimal experience with the 30HS420's service menu).

I am using the HDMI input btw. Now, I HAVE been able to "dial down" the Oppo to 480p, with the DVI button and yes while the player was stopped, BUT I still am not able to change the screen mode on my 30HS420.

The only difference I have been able to make is if I use the Zoom button on the remote and zoom into "x4" which looks awful, obviously. Not the players fault.

So, any ideas? Contact Sony? Hack the TV? :)

Hey Dark. Yeah, I hit the button multiple times. The Sony Wega manual states that with a signal of 720p or higher (IE high def), the screen automatically goes into Full Mode. You are then not able to change the screen mode. Maybe there is a way to hack around this using the service menu, I don't know; And I'd need someone MUCH more experienced than I (I only have minimal experience with the 30HS420's service menu).

I am using the HDMI input btw. Now, I HAVE been able to "dial down" the Oppo to 480p, with the DVI button and yes while the player was stopped, BUT I still am not able to change the screen mode on my 30HS420.

The only difference I have been able to make is if I use the Zoom button on the remote and zoom into "x4" which looks awful, obviously. Not the players fault.

So, any ideas? Contact Sony? Hack the TV? :)

You could hook up either the component or S-video video connection and only use it for non-anamorphic DVDs. The 30HS420 should allow ZOOM mode for those inputs. PQ shouldn't be too bad.

Hey Dark. Yeah, I hit the button multiple times. The Sony Wega manual states that with a signal of 720p or higher (IE high def), the screen automatically goes into Full Mode. You are then not able to change the screen mode. Maybe there is a way to hack around this using the service menu, I don't know; And I'd need someone MUCH more experienced than I (I only have minimal experience with the 30HS420's service menu).

So, any ideas? Contact Sony? Hack the TV? :)

I've got a KV36HS420, and I just hooked up the component cables as well for viewing non-anamorphic titles, or 4:3 material. So I've got Video 5 set up for the component cables, and Video 8 set up for the HDMI. I leave the Oppo on 720P, and don't have to worry about that setting at all switching back and forth.

The only thing I have to do is go into the settings menu and swtich from "4:3 Letterbox" to "WS: Squeeze" when I go back and forth.. Otherwise, the aspect ratios get messed up.

So far I've not noticed any audio-sync problems, but I tend to just start and play my movies all the way through.

Anyone know how to fix a divx movie that starts plays a few mins into it and then locks up? It's under the resolution limit.

So far I've not noticed any audio-sync problems, but I tend to just start and play my movies all the way through.

Anyone know how to fix a divx movie that starts plays a few mins into it and then locks up? It's under the resolution limit.

Sounds like bad encoding. See if you can re-encode the file?

All I have is a divx file itself. Can you reencode a divx file? Also is there a size limit to a divx movie for this player?

Yes, you can re-encode a divx file. I think there's a 1gb size limit (maybe less) for file sizes. It seems to ignore the rest if it goes over from what I recall. I try to split files around 700mb.

Hi everyone,

I'm very late in the game here and this thread is huge. So I will go ahead and ask anyways.

My situation
I'm contemplating buying this player for the main reason is HDCP free. I have a projector that claims to be HDCP compliant but it only works with the toshiba DVD players. I tried many players like the new Sony 75H, the Samsung HD860, LG511 and so on. All of then fail with my projector (HP vp6320). I can only play 480i because of HDCP hankshake (maybe). I did find the toshiba sdk850 and sd4990 work but didnt like the freezing problems they had at random.

The question:
Is this player still HDCP free? No sure if the have upgraded the player's firmware to enable the HDCP. If that is the case I can not buy this player. Also is it worth waiting for the next player OPPO is planning to release? provided is also HDCP free.

BTW the whole HDCP things really stinks. They are creating a lot of incompatibilities problems.

Hey Dark. Yeah, I hit the button multiple times. The Sony Wega manual states that with a signal of 720p or higher (IE high def), the screen automatically goes into Full Mode. You are then not able to change the screen mode. Maybe there is a way to hack around this using the service menu, I don't know; And I'd need someone MUCH more experienced than I (I only have minimal experience with the 30HS420's service menu).

I am using the HDMI input btw. Now, I HAVE been able to "dial down" the Oppo to 480p, with the DVI button and yes while the player was stopped, BUT I still am not able to change the screen mode on my 30HS420.

The only difference I have been able to make is if I use the Zoom button on the remote and zoom into "x4" which looks awful, obviously. Not the players fault.

So, any ideas? Contact Sony? Hack the TV? :)
The HS420 series sets will not allow screen size/aspect adjustments on anything but incoming 480i. This is true for both component and digital connections. With 480p, 720p and 1080i the tv defaults to "Full" mode and stays there. As far as I know there's no SM fix for this. The XS/XBR series sets do allow for adjustments when these higher res input signals are used.

Is this player still HDCP free? No sure if the have upgraded the player's firmware to enable the HDCP.

It is still HDCP free.

Is this player still HDCP free? No sure if the have upgraded the player's firmware to enable the HDCP. If that is the case I can not buy this player. Also is it worth waiting for the next player OPPO is planning to release? provided is also HDCP free. yolatino, the player can be made HDCP free with a simple hack. See the first post in this thread

By the way, this is the right thread to ask the question. We are no longer supporting the other thread because it creates double-posting confusion. It is easy to delete your duplicate post... click the "Q-Edit" button, select the "Delete Message" option button, and click the "Delete this Message" button.

Gary

The HS420 series sets will not allow screen size/aspect adjustments on anything but incoming 480i. This is true for both component and digital connections. With 480p, 720p and 1080i the tv defaults to "Full" mode and stays there. As far as I know there's no SM fix for this. The XS/XBR series sets do allow for adjustments when these higher res input signals are used.

EDIT: Nevermind, Gary was right. The component outputs 480i which does infact allow me to change the screen mode on the Wega.

I connected the Oppo with Component now, and Shagrath was absolutely right.

I have the Oppo set to 720p, connected with HDMI and component now, and I leave the Oppo on Wide/Sqz.

When it's non-anamorphic, I just go to Video 5, and change my screen mode to Zoom. Thanks for the help!

Finalheaven -

You gotta love Sony's 16:9 Enhancement "feature" for the digital interfece.

Nope. It's not true for component. It is true for digital (HDMI) connections.

I connected the Oppo with Component now, and Shagrath was absolutely right. Wait a minute... justsc was correct. He said, "The HS420 series sets will not allow screen size/aspect adjustments on anything but incoming 480i". Component out of the OPPO is 480i (the 971H doesn't upconvert via component) that's why you are able to do aspect ratio adjustments.

Gary

Gary,

Are you certain about that? I'm not so much worried about it upconverting via component, but rather deinterlacing the 480i to 480p which would cause me *&%$(*& Sony HS510 to go into letterboxed mode, regardless of the aspect ratio of the dvd in question. If I can force the Oppo unit to put out 480i instead of 480p that would be MUCH cooler.

In regards to this, how does the Oppo look via component? I don't recall reading much about the PQ for this output, as it's not really what you tend to buy an upconverting player for. :)

Regs,
Jeff

Why are Sony crt people worrying so much about black bars? It doesn't bother me any.

They are concerned about letterboxed (non-Anamorphic) DVDs. If played back through the DVI input, you will get a very small picture.

F-0316 Beta (http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h_firmware_0316_download.html) is now accessable on the OPPO website.

Woohoo! Thanks Neuromancer!

Gary,

Are you certain about that? I'm not so much worried about it upconverting via component, but rather deinterlacing the 480i to 480p which would cause me *&%$(*& Sony HS510 to go into letterboxed mode, regardless of the aspect ratio of the dvd in question. If I can force the Oppo unit to put out 480i instead of 480p that would be MUCH cooler.

In regards to this, how does the Oppo look via component? I don't recall reading much about the PQ for this output, as it's not really what you tend to buy an upconverting player for. :) Hello Jeff

The OPDV971H only does 480i over component. Nothing else (and it doesn't do it terribly well either). But the OPDV970H (due to be released soon) will do 480i, 480p, 720p and 1080i over HDMI and component, however, it will not be a Faroudja player.

Gary

I see the russian hacked firmware has made it remeber the location on a dvd with power off and stop now

any chance oppo will look at this and see if its possible?

or is it because of the newer arm code being used?

I went and ordered (and it already shipped) the Oppo player. However, it was not until after I ordered it, that I read about 4:3 material having a loss of resolution in Wide/SQZ mode. I have a Sony Bravia 32" XBR LCD display and I have a ton of 4:3 material.

I have read my only other alternative is to fall back to 480p mode. However, I would like an upconverting player to upconvert the 4:3 material. Do upconverting players from other manufacturers have this problem? I was looking at the new sony player before deciding on the Oppo. If not, please let me know. I'll just ship back the Oppo without opening the box and get something else.

Thanks in advance.

I went and ordered (and it already shipped) the Oppo player. However, it was not until after I ordered it, that I read about 4:3 material having a loss of resolution in Wide/SQZ mode. I have a Sony Bravia 32" XBR LCD display and I have a ton of 4:3 material.

I have read my only other alternative is to fall back to 480p mode. However, I would like an upconverting player to upconvert the 4:3 material. Do upconverting players from other manufacturers have this problem? I was looking at the new sony player before deciding on the Oppo. If not, please let me know. I'll just ship back the Oppo without opening the box and get something else. The loss of resolution with 4:3 material is not easily noticed in normal viewing. The Panasonic and a few other players also suffer with this problem... for exactly the same reason that the OPPO does.

The "Wide/SQZ" mode was added for TV's that do not have a 4:3 mode. The better option is to set the OPPO to "Wide" mode and make the TV pillar-box it. That way, you will not lose any resolution.

Gary

nobody wondering if there was.

but i see ur post above.

Long day, i should pay more attention before I ask stupid questions. heh

Yes, you can re-encode a divx file. I think there's a 1gb size limit (maybe less) for file sizes. It seems to ignore the rest if it goes over from what I recall. I try to split files around 700mb.

I used to split mine at 700mb when I burned them to cd, but now that I burn my XviD files to DVD, I have burned and played many 1.2 to 1.4 GB files on my Oppo with excellent results. Just yesterday I was experimenting with "GordianKnot" and I converted an almost 3 GB mpeg2/ac3 "Band of Brothers" DVD (I own the BoxSet) episode to a 100% quality (which is approx. 25% overkill) XviD at 2246kb/s with 384kb/s ac3 audio - this resulted in a 1.14 GB file. This file played with no problem on the Oppo. I back up many of my DVD's to XviD. At XviD settings of 75- 80% quality (which is excellent) and AC3 audio, I can save approx. 4 hours onto one regular DVD.

I used to split mine at 700mb when I burned them to cd, but now that I burn my XviD files to DVD, I have burned and played many 1.2 to 1.4 GB files on my Oppo with excellent results. Just yesterday I was experimenting with "GordianKnot" and I converted an almost 3 GB mpeg2/ac3 "Band of Brothers" DVD (I own the BoxSet) episode to a 100% quality (which is approx. 25% overkill) XviD at 2246kb/s with 384kb/s ac3 audio - this resulted in a 1.14 GB file. This file played with no problem on the Oppo. I back up many of my DVD's to XviD. At XviD settings of 75- 80% quality (which is excellent) and AC3 audio, I can save approx. 4 hours onto one regular DVD.

Good to know. I had issues playing 1gb mpeg2 files. I guess the 1gb limitation was either fixed in one of the newer firmwares or its only an mpeg2 issue.

F-0316 Beta (http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h_firmware_0316_download.html) is now accessable on the OPPO website.
Note to all: I've been testing this as a beta for a couple of weeks (thanks oppo!). It's a good addition and I haven't noticed any bugs yet--though I'm a straightforward player of DVDs and CDs: no DivX, DVD-A or anything to complicate things.

Lip-sync is definitely improved because I haven't noticed any variable lag issues even in really long films--but, I do still need the 70ms delay on my receiver to get it just right. It will be a grand day when oppo get their audio-delay to work over RAW (but that's mostly because my receiver won't delay DTS!).

Dave

Lip-sync is definitely improved because I haven't noticed any incremental lag issues even in really long films--but, I do still need the 70ms delay on my receiver to get it just right. It will be a grand day when oppo get their audio-delay to work over RAW (but that's mostly because my receiver won't delay DTS!).

Dave

Variability of sync is the issue - not delay - this can be compensated for in a variety of ways; equipment permitting.

This is good news - I'm off to the Cinema (and my Oppo) now!

Variability of sync is the issue - not delay - this can be compensated for in a variety of ways; equipment permitting.

This is good news - I'm off to the Cinema (and my Oppo) now!

Yes, that's what I meant, and I've adjusted my post to reflect this.

Dave

The loss of resolution with 4:3 material is not easily noticed in normal viewing. The Panasonic and a few other players also suffer with this problem... for exactly the same reason that the OPPO does.

The "Wide/SQZ" mode was added for TV's that do not have a 4:3 mode. The better option is to set the OPPO to "Wide" mode and make the TV pillar-box it. That way, you will not lose any resolution.

Gary

When we say loss in resolution, are we saying the picture is not as clear as if it was upconverted cleanly or are parts of the picture being clipped? Thanks.

F-0316 Beta (http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h_firmware_0316_download.html) is now accessable on the OPPO website.

Do you have a list of the proposed fixes?

Thanks,

When we say loss in resolution, are we saying the picture is not as clear as if it was upconverted cleanly or are parts of the picture being clipped? Thanks.

You should search the site, this has been talked about many, many times. IMHO the loss of resolution is only really spotable on test patterns, and even then I'm not so sure. But others (especially Toonces) have reported a problem with resolution (i.e., detail) loss. Personally I always use wide/squeeze at 720p and watch about 50/50 4:3/16:9 material with no problems. 4:3 through the oppo looks just great on my ae700.

Also, if I use 480p I get siginficant cropping, about 5% from all sides of the image.

Dave