If the servo does not move, then it is either not getting sufficient power, the MTK board is not getting efficient power, or the MTK chipset itself is completely defective.

Likely in all of these cases it is easier to just replace the unit with a "new to you" unit.

meaning, for the average user, they are fine? i shouldn't expect any noticeable difference with monster or other cables?

Mine works fine.

FWIW, I have bought several HDMI-to-HDMI and HDMI-to-DVI cables from Monoprice.

They are functionally identical to the $90 cables at BB and CC.

Love their stuff (considering a shipped order is 1/5 the price).

EDIT: Oh, I misread. Sorry, offtopic.

I found the Oppo cables to be fine, as well.

I've never thought Monster cables were worth the extra money. Marketing hype.

thx for the heads up

FWIW, I have bought several HDMI-to-HDMI and HDMI-to-DVI cables from Monoprice.

They are functionally identical to the $90 cables at BB and CC.

Love their stuff (considering a shipped order is 1/5 the price).

EDIT: Oh, I misread. Sorry, offtopic.

I found the Oppo cables to be fine, as well.

meaning, for the average user, they are fine? i shouldn't expect any noticeable difference with monster or other cables? Correct. Neuromancer once carved his cables open and compared their construction to other high-quality cables. The OPPO cables are excellent in function and construction. There is no need to buy cables unless you need a long run.

Gary

thanks, is there a general rule of thumb for quality cables? gold plated terminals, thicker wire, tight fit, etc??

thanks

Correct. Neuromancer once carved his cables open and compared their construction to other high-quality cables. The OPPO cables are excellent in function and construction. There is no need to buy cables unless you need a long run.

Gary

Tight fit is good. Insulation is important, so a thick wire can be an indicator of that, but it's no guarantee. Highly pure metal is good.

Keep in mind cable quality issues are more important for analogue connections. With digital (DVI, HDMI) as long as each 1 or 0 registers correctly, you're set.

There's no such thing as a "better quality" 1 or 0 as far as the receiving device is concerned. This tends to make digital connections much more forgiving. The electrical signal either reaches the necessary voltage threshold to be interpreted as a 1, or it doesn't (a 0). By how much doesn't matter. Unless you have a lot of RF interference or REALLY bad cable material sufficient to alter the voltage enough to start flipping 1s to 0s or vice versa, it's all the same.

Warning: Rant ahead!

<RANT>

This is one thing that really chaps my hide about Monster and the other high-end cable vendors. They try to carry over all the same cable quality issues from the analogue over to the digital product marketing where they apply even less. With an analogue signal they can at least make a logical argument that spending bundles more on their stuff would make a difference (though you'd likely need an oscilloscope to notice), but with digital it's ridiculous.

"Get the sharpest, cleanest, most bestestest square wave pulse ever, without a hint of distortion, using SuperCable Inc. UltraPure Plus!(tm) Technology! Only $49.99/foot!"

Guess what? It's still just a "1". :rolleyes:

</RANT>

Keep in mind cable quality issues are more important for analogue connections. With digital (DVI, HDMI) as long as each 1 or 0 registers correctly, you're set.

There's no such thing as a "better quality" 1 or 0 as far as the receiving device is concerned. This tends to make digital connections much more forgiving. The electrical signal either reaches the necessary voltage threshold to be interpreted as a 1, or it doesn't (a 0). By how much doesn't matter. Unless you have a lot of RF interference or REALLY bad cable material sufficient to alter the voltage enough to start flipping 1s to 0s or vice versa, it's all the same.

Warning: Rant ahead!

<RANT>

This is one thing that really chaps my hide about Monster and the other high-end cable vendors. They try to carry over all the same cable quality issues from the analogue over to the digital product marketing where they apply even less. With an analogue signal they can at least make a logical argument that spending bundles more on their stuff would make a difference (though you'd likely need an oscilloscope to notice), but with digital it's ridiculous.

"Get the sharpest, cleanest, most bestestest square wave pulse ever, without a hint of distortion, using SuperCable Inc. UltraPure Plus!(tm) Technology! Only $49.99/foot!"

Guess what? It's still just a "1". :rolleyes:

</RANT> Well said.

To add to this, for the benefit of others, when a digital video signal degrades significantly enough (over a long cable run, for example) the result will be dropped bits. This can cause anything from sparkles to image corruption, depending on the severity of the degradation. So, if the cable is bad, you will notice it immediately.

The better cables match lengths, terminations and impedances more carefully, and provide better shielding from electromagnetic interference. What this buys you, is longer runs without signal degradation.

Gary

Well GSB, on the surface I'd agree with you, but in digital audio reproduction there's a factor of jitter which can affect the timing of those zeros and ones, creating different and occasionally harsher sound. I do agree that with a digital cable, differences are small, but I was once fortunate enough to be given a choice of a dozen basic to high end digital audio cables for my DVD out and did as careful a comparison as I could over a long period of time, including blind tests. Again and again I came up with the same cables as a preference, Harmonic Technology and Acoustic Zen. Now, I'm REALLY not trying to begin yet another great cable debate here, so I'll just say I heard differences between digital cables and leave it at that. Not sure if the same applies to cables for DVI/HDMI, but I wonder, has anyone here had a chance to see different brands/designs of DVI/HDMI in the same system and seen any differences? I wouldn't be surprised if they did.

Well GSB, on the surface I'd agree with you, but in digital audio reproduction there's a factor of jitter which can affect the timing of those zeros and ones, creating different and occasionally harsher sound. I do agree that with a digital cable, differences are small, but I was once fortunate enough to be given a choice of a dozen basic to high end digital audio cables for my DVD out and did as careful a comparison as I could over a long period of time, including blind tests. Again and again I came up with the same cables as a preference, Harmonic Technology and Acoustic Zen. Now, I'm REALLY not trying to begin yet another great cable debate here, so I'll just say I heard differences between digital cables and leave it at that. Not sure if the same applies to cables for DVI/HDMI, but I wonder, has anyone here had a chance to see different brands/designs of DVI/HDMI in the same system and seen any differences? I wouldn't be surprised if they did.Hi Martin, I'm aware of these claims for digital audio, that's why I specifically mentioned "digital video" in my post. Video signals are buffered into memory before being flashed up on the screen for each successive frame, so aside from dropped bits of data, there are no other signal integrity issues like jitter.

Gary

Not doubting you GSB :) Still, that's why I'm curious if anyone's seen a comparison of say... a well made relatively inexpensive brand like Blue Jeans Cable and a costlier higher end model by companies like Audioquest, Cardas, or Harmonic Technology. I've noticed that in general, people can perceive visual differences much easier than audio differences, so I'm just curious.

FYI, I use Blue Jeans DVI at 6 meters with no artifacts. I was far less inclined to buy a high end cable for DVI. I happened to have a few high end Harmonic Technology and Acoustic Zen power cords, so I use one on my projector. I have seen clearer blacks (less hash and fuller colors) when using them on some of my projection televisions, but I couldn't perceive any difference between the high end cord and the stock cord with my pj, so I guess it varies with each device. Stil, I'm glad I have them left over from my high end audio days, it gives me more options.

>>
CURRENT DEFECTS:
The image does not fill the entire frame. There is a 3-4 pixel border around the image in all DVI resolutions. Many displays hide this problem with overscan. BUT... it appears that the MTK chip is responsible, and this could explain the banding that can be seen in the DVE resolution patterns, because the 480x720 image on the DVD would be slightly downscaled, resulting in a small loss of resolution. Fixing this problem may result in an even cleaner image from the DV971H!
>>

Is this above problem fixed in the Oppo 971 0r 970HD or endemic to the hardware?

No, there has been no fix. The MTK naturally underscans, and OPPO has not fixed this on the OPDV971H or DV-970HD products.

No, there has been no fix. The MTK naturally underscans, and OPPO has not fixed this on the OPDV971H or DV-970HD products.

Thanks for the feedback.

I wonder if they'll address this in the upcoming 981?

Likely not. If the underscanning of the OPDV971H is a problem, then it will still be a problem with the DV-981HD.

Hello, i got a problem with my oppo i think, i just receive my Sharp LC37D90U and i hooked my oppo to it with the DVI cable that came with it. But the image i really ugly. I can see a lots of blur most of the time(almost every minute in FF:AC) And i see a lot of vertical line also. I dont think the tv is the probleme, because my PS2 and GC look great with component. I also calibrated it with AVIA disc, same result. Also tried the DVI->HDMI cable, same thing! With my old tv, who was just doing 480i and hooked with component the picture was beter! Anyone got an idea on what the problem could be? True life if set at off... tried it with on, same result. Am i doing something wrong or missing something? And yes i tried switching between 480p 720p and 1080i.

Hello, i got a problem with my oppo i think, i just receive my Sharp LC37D90U and i hooked my oppo to it with the DVI cable that came with it. But the image i really ugly. I can see a lots of blur most of the time(almost every minute in FF:AC) And i see a lot of vertical line also. I dont think the tv is the probleme, because my PS2 and GC look great with component. I also calibrated it with AVIA disc, same result. Also tried the DVI->HDMI cable, same thing! With my old tv, who was just doing 480i and hooked with component the picture was beter! Anyone got an idea on what the problem could be? True life if set at off... tried it with on, same result. Am i doing something wrong or missing something? And yes i tried switching between 480p 720p and 1080i.

Turn off noise reduction, or DNR on the Oppo. I think it's in the options section with the tru-life settings.

Noise reduction was already set to Off, same thing for CCS, True life and Sharpness. And all other option are set to 0. The tv display is set to Wide and the Video mode to Video1.

Edit : I just notice that there seem to be some sparkle in the picture.. are my cables defective or could it be something in the oppo?

Sparkles are usually related to bad cables. Sometimes it is due to a bad DVI output.

Try using 480p. If the sparkles disappear, then it is the cable. If they remain, then it is likely the DVI output.

Sparkles are usually related to bad cables. Sometimes it is due to a bad DVI output.

Try using 480p. If the sparkles disappear, then it is the cable. If they remain, then it is likely the DVI output.
I tried 480p and the sparkles and lines are still there. So i got a problem with my DVI output.. what can i do about that?

e-mail OPPO and request that the unit go back for inspection and repair. If it is indeed something wrong with the DVI board, then it will need to be replaced by them.

You can, as a precaution, try another cable just to make sure it is not a completely bad cable. Otherwise, have it sent back in for repair.

Does Oppo support H.264 codec? After all, it is MPEG4

No, it does not.

Any new firmware in the works as of today? Any chance of one hitting right before christmas? I not having any problems at all with the Oppo (great player since 10-0720 )but the last firmware update I did (10-0720) I got a nice jump in picture quality comming from the one right before that, so was hopping to maybe get a nother nice jump in PQ right before christmas. (Im sure to be getting a lot of new dvd then :D )

There are no new firmware releases that I know about for the OPDV971H product for this year.

Speaking of my current Oppo 971HD.... the current firmware on that unit is from June of 2005(0628). I have downloaded and burnt an ISO disk of the latest firmware, but is there any reason for me to load it, being that I am using the player to output upconverted SD-DVDs at 1080i via DVI to DVI-VGA converter and then displayed natively on a CRT based HDTV?

Do any of the changes/fixes/improvements concern my use of this player?

Thanks for your help!

Hello, i got a problem with my oppo i think, i just receive my Sharp LC37D90U and i hooked my oppo to it with the DVI cable that came with it. But the image i really ugly. I can see a lots of blur most of the time(almost every minute in FF:AC) And i see a lot of vertical line also. I dont think the tv is the probleme, because my PS2 and GC look great with component. I also calibrated it with AVIA disc, same result. Also tried the DVI->HDMI cable, same thing! With my old tv, who was just doing 480i and hooked with component the picture was beter! Anyone got an idea on what the problem could be? True life if set at off... tried it with on, same result. Am i doing something wrong or missing something? And yes i tried switching between 480p 720p and 1080i.
Cryptopysy: I had a very similar problem with my LC37D90U and emailed Oppo. Received a quick reply requesting my display model and I gave them the particulars. Oppo replied again quickly with the solution. On my LC37D90U menu, Oppo suggested I switch my "colorspace" to "RGB" instead of where I had it (I cannot remember where I had it). Anyway, this solved all my problems immediately and the Oppo 971 has worked flawlessly since then (about mid-Sept of this year). Good luck!

Cryptopysy: I had a very similar problem with my LC37D90U and emailed Oppo. Received a quick reply requesting my display model and I gave them the particulars. Oppo replied again quickly with the solution. On my LC37D90U menu, Oppo suggested I switch my "colorspace" to "RGB" instead of where I had it (I cannot remember where I had it). Anyway, this solved all my problems immediately and the Oppo 971 has worked flawlessly since then (about mid-Sept of this year). Good luck!For the colorspace thing, i think it's in the tv menu? If so, it was already there, the other option where something like YCbCr 4:4:4 and YCbCr 4:2:2 right? Well if yes, then no change at all. Same crappy picture or problem. :(

I just got this player in the mail on Saturday and have been playing with it all weekend. I have the panny 42px60u and the picture when I use the dvi-hdmi cable the picture looks granny and not that impressive even when I switch from 720p to 1080i. The player looks good over component but it looked about the same as my old philips dvp-642. Any suggestions on what to do otherwise I am tempted just to send it back or sell it. Thanks

I just got this player in the mail on Saturday and have been playing with it all weekend. I have the panny 42px60u and the picture when I use the dvi-hdmi cable the picture looks granny and not that impressive even when I switch from 720p to 1080i. The player looks good over component but it looked about the same as my old philips dvp-642. Any suggestions on what to do otherwise I am tempted just to send it back or sell it. ThanksFirstly, you have a natively progressive display. You should be using the 720p output for best results, not 1080i. See this post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7407251&&#post7407251)... (even though your TV is not 1080p, the reasoning still applies).

Secondly, you MUST properly calibrate your display. And to make a fair comparison between any two players, the display should be calibrated for both players.

Thirdly, if the DVD is a poor-quality transfer, with excessive grain, edge enhancement, or compression artifacts, the player cannot be blamed for the unimpressive image. Use a reference-quality transfer to evaluate the player and see if grain still exists. A good player like this, shows a lot of detail, so you may see more of the imperfections on a disk too.

Gary

Secondly, you MUST properly calibrate your display. And to make a fair comparison between any two players, the display should be calibrated for both players.

Especially the "sharpness" control. Most displays have the factory sharpness preset way too high, which would tend to exaggerate any graininess that may be present in the original.

Most people are afraid to go into the "minus" when setting sharpness, but the sharpness should be adjusted so that the closely-spaced thin black and white bars in the test pattern appear to the eye as an even gray tone from one end to the other. On my Fujitsu plasma's sharpness scale of "-16 to +16", e.g., the proper sharpness setting for 480p is "-12".

/steve

Firstly, you have a natively progressive display. You should be using the 720p output for best results, not 1080i. See this post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7407251&&#post7407251)... (even though your TV is not 1080p, the reasoning still applies).

Secondly, you MUST properly calibrate your display. And to make a fair comparison between any two players, the display should be calibrated for both players.

Thirdly, if the DVD is a poor-quality transfer, with excessive grain, edge enhancement, or compression artifacts, the player cannot be blamed for the unimpressive image. Use a reference-quality transfer to evaluate the player and see if grain still exists. A good player like this, shows a lot of detail, so you may see more of the imperfections on a disk too.

Gary

Do you have any links to thread that discuss native resolutions. I don't understand why 1080p resolution tv's were ever created when I've heard very few actually reproduce a 1080p.

Two questions: Can you watch and HD DVD on a this dvd player? If so, how does it look picture wise?

Two questions: Can you watch and HD DVD on a this dvd player? If so, how does it look picture wise?
The OPPO players are not HD-DVD players. They are DVD players that scale the video up to HD resolutions. To view HD-DVD's, you need one of Toshiba's HD-DVD players or the HD-DVD add-on player for the Xbox360.

Oh Boy! Time for a new thread. Anybody have one of these yet? :)

OPPO DV-981HD 1080p High Definition Up-Converting Universal DVD Player with HDMI (http://oppodigital.com/dv981hd/index.html)

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n304/jauvry/dv981hd_home.gif

Is it time for a new OPPO thread....Oh Boy! Here we go again

DV-981HDDV-981HD1080p Up-Converting Universal DVD Player (HDMI) Built Upon Highly Regarded OPDV971H


DV-981HDDV-981HD1080p Up-Converting Universal DVD Player (HDMI) Built Upon Highly Regarded OPDV971H
HD Up-Conversion to 720p/1080i/1080p
SACD, DVD-Audio/Video & Much More
DCDi by Faroudja
HDMI Cable Included
DivX Certified
Price: $229.00

Universal DVD Player Features:

DVD-Audio, Super Audio CD (SACD) and DVD-Video universal playback
Compatible with Audio CD, HDCD, WMA, Kodak Picture CD, and other digital audio/video/picture media and formats
Official DivX® Certified product, certified to the Home Theater Profile
Plays all versions of DivX® video (including DivX® 6) with standard playback of DivX® media files
Plays XviD and .SRT, .SMI, .IDX and .SUB format


Video Up-Conversion Features:

High definition up-conversion with film-like picture quality to up-convert 720x480 interlaced video encoded on DVD discs to 480p/720p/1080i and 1080p
DCDi by Faroudja video processing technology with progressive scan, film mode detection, TrueLife™ enhancement and motion adaptive noise reduction.
Video is analyzed on a single pixel granularity to detect presence or absence of angled lines and edges, which are then processed to produce a smooth natural looking image without visible artifacts (jaggies)
High-quality pure digital video and audio through a single HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) cable
Multiple high definition video formats through HDMI output: NTSC: 480p/720p/1080i/1080p; PAL: 576p/720p/1080i/1080p
Compatible with HDTV, HD-Ready TV, HDTV monitors and projectors with an HDMI or DVI input
Direct PAL/NTSC disc and TV compatibility and system conversion
For more information about DVD video up-conversion, please read our white paper article Getting the Most out of DVD on an HDTV Display
Supports screen aspect ratio 4:3 (standard) and 16:9 (wide-screen)
User adjustable video controls: Sharpness, Contrast, Brightness, and Saturation
Composite video and S-Video outputs (standard-definition output only)


Optimized Audio Features:

High-resolution multi-channel digital audio output through HDMI supporting CD, DVD-Audio, SACD, Dolby Digital and DTS sound tracks.
Individual analog 5.1-channel surround and down-mixed stereo outputs
24-bit, 192kHz high resolution audio D/A converters
Optical and coaxial digital audio outputs with DTS, Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro-Logic II and Linear PCM support
3D Surround (Virtual Surround): Concert, Live, Dance, Techno, Classic, Soft
Built-in equalizer, channel trim and channel delay functions


Compatibility Features:

PAL/NTSC disc and TV compatible with automatic or manual system conversion
Compatible with CD-R/RW, DVD±R/RW and DVD+R DL* (* Playability of self-recorded discs may vary depending on media and formatting software types)
Dual-laser optical pickup head with excellent error correction
Enhanced dual-layer disc support with fast layer change
Wide range universal power supply (~100V-240V, 50/60Hz AC)


Convenience Features:

Special disc tray - thin, flexible and strong. Can tolerate some bending without breaking.
Smooth and easy navigation of photo albums, music collections and video files on DVD and CD
Selectable subtitle and audio tracks
Discrete ON/OFF remote control IR code for programmable universal remote controls


Connectors:

HDMI - High Definition Multimedia Interface: 1
Analog Stereo Audio (Mixed 2-Channel Left/Right): 1 group (2 connectors)
Analog 5.1 Channel Audio: 1 group (6 connectors)
S/PDIF (IEC-958) Coaxial Digital Audio: 1
S/PDIF (IEC-958) Optical Digital Audio: 1
Composite Video: 1
S-Video: 1
No Component Video (YPbPr/YCbCr) on the DV-981HD model. This model is designed for use with a display device with HDMI or DVI digital video input.


Accessories Included:

High-quality certified HDMI cable with gold-plated HDMI connectors
Remote control with "glow in the dark" keypad (batteries included)
Stereo audio cable
Composite video cable
User manual and warranty information

Oh Boy! Time for a new thread. Anybody have one of these yet? :)

OPPO DV-981HD 1080p High Definition Up-Converting Universal DVD Player with HDMI (http://oppodigital.com/dv981hd/index.html)

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n304/jauvry/dv981hd_home.gif

Is it time for a new OPPO thread....Oh Boy! Here we go again
:) - It is time for a new OPPO thread, but you may need to do some catching up: Oppo Digital DV-981HD FAQ/Brain Dump (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=760726) is already up to page 11. More folks are receiving them every day - I've even got a write-up (http://www.prillaman.net/oppo981_review.html) about it...

....and here I thought I was REALLy doing something. Oh well:>)

Samsung and LG were in violation of their license agreements. OPPO did not sign HDCP and DVD CCA agreements until after the product was designed and shipped. All future products will be HDCP compliant.

Neuromancer, what upscaling drawbacks if any, will the 981 (being HDCP compliant) have when I want to play a non-encrypted home movie or backup DVD rip?

I'm guessing that the same feature set that drew people to the Zenith DVB318 (old firmware) would cause them to purchase the 971 instead of the 981 unless they MUST have SACD.

The 981 manual specifically says:
Output Digital Video: HDMI with HDCP (NTSC 480p-1080p, PAL 576p-1080p)

What are your thoughts?

Thanks !

p.s. I should have posted to the 981 thread. Sorry.

As long as the display is HDCP compliant it does not matter if the DVD is compliant or not. HDCP on the DV-981HD will always have HDCP enabled through the HDMI output.

If you can remove the HDCP compliance from the content device (DVD player) then you can enable enhancements like using a non-compliant HDCP device (like a LCD monitor) or upscaling through component (not applicable to the DV-981HD). Most people who bought the DVB318 were after component based upconversion of protected and non-protected discs.

Thanks Neuromancer.

Sorry but if you'll indulge me one more moment. I didn't quite definitively understand your last post.

If I have an HDCP compliant HDTV and the 981, will I be able to upconvert to 1080i or 720p ANY non-encrypted DVD (backup rip or home movie)?

and likewise,

If I have an non-HDCP compliant HDTV and the 981, will I be able to upconvert to 1080i or 720p ANY non-encrypted DVD (backup rip or home movie)?

Thank you.

The 981's HDMI output will provide upscaled video for any DVD. The only time that HDCP limits output resolution is when the output in question is analog (component video), and the 981 lacks a component video input so it's not an issue.

If you have an HDTV that has a DVI input but is not HDCP compliant, the 981 will not output any video over its HDMI output because it won't be able to establish a handshake with the display. For an HDTV like that, you want the 971H which offers DVI output without HDCP. The only way to have digital video input without HDCP is going to be DVI, and most DVI-equipped HDTV's do include HDCP - if you have DVI on your display, you'll need to check the manual to see if it supports HDCP.

So I just rented Ice Age the Meltdown and no matter what I do it won't play.... I cleaned off the disc. It looks fine. I put it in my Xbox360 and it works! I put it back in and it doesn't.... What gives? Any Ideas?

So I just rented Ice Age the Meltdown and no matter what I do it won't play.... I cleaned off the disc. It looks fine. I put it in my Xbox360 and it works! I put it back in and it doesn't.... What gives? Any Ideas? Weird... Meltdown worked fine in mine. Try resetting the player by pulling the plug for at least 15 mins. Could also be dust getting inside your machine.

Gary

Would that be the same as Updating it to the latest firmware? Cause I just did and it still won't work!
bummer!

BTW, it does play other DVDs just not this one. And I just tried pulling the plug..... still not working.

Ok so I put in Xmen 2, let it load, then took it out, and put in ICe Age..... I WORKED! GOT me what's going on? If anyone ever has a problem with a DVD... put another one in and it'll work. This happens for me with other formats. Like if I have a problem loading a burned DVD... I have this one burned DVD that always works... I put it in, let it load, and then put in the one that I'm trying to get to play, and then it'll load! Hope this helps someone down the road.

Ok so I put in Xmen 2, let it load, then took it out, and put in ICe Age..... I WORKED! GOT me what's going on? If anyone ever has a problem with a DVD... put another one in and it'll work. This happens for me with other formats. Like if I have a problem loading a burned DVD... I have this one burned DVD that always works... I put it in, let it load, and then put in the one that I'm trying to get to play, and then it'll load! Hope this helps someone down the road. Good find. This reminded me that many moons ago, someone else discovered that trick too. Thankfully this problem doesn't happen very often.

Gary

This might be a while ago but, since the MVer: 05.00.01.07 Batch: 11-0830 firmware, MPEG-1/MPEG-2 file playback for me has been a bit iffy. Audio/Video sync issues, and laggy playback that wasn't present before the upgrade, especially with larger resolution videos containing high motion. :(

This is likely the audio synchronization scheme in the 11-030 firmware causing a playback error. You may have to revert to a previous release.

I just got a 32" lcd HDTV, and have been researching on whether I should upgrade from progressive scan to an upconverting dvd player. I watch a lot of Divx files on my Philips DiVx player so I need something that can play Divx files. I haven't read all 100 pages but I had a question regarding Divx playback on this unit. Would an avi file at say 628 x 254 res and video bitrate of 923 kbps be high enough for the processor to upconvert to a fairly clear picture? When I play the file on a standard tv, it looks great, sharp and hardly any pixeltation if any. Its just that everything looks a little soft and blurry when using 480p to my Westinghouse on my Philips. Is the Faroudja processor worth it for Divx? Is it really even worth it to upgrade to an upconverting player if most of what you are watching is Divx? One of the problems I am having with divx and regular dvds in general is slight ghosting during fast motion scenes. I don't get this on 720p cable material so I am hoping the Oppo player would take care of that. Anyone have any experience with Divx playback on this unit?

I also use the unit mostly for Divx. I doubt you will get much benefit as far as quality is concerned, maybe slightly, unless your divx is a very very good quality. I also used to use Phillips before. What you get on top of Phillips are:
1) Slightly better picture quality if you calibrated your display and the divx quality is very good, although it might not make much difference for you as your display is 32".
2) If it is properly setup, Oppo will know to change to 16:9 mode by itself without you have to use Zoom on the display.
3) Oppo is a lot more forgiving as far as codecs and disc brand (supposed to be, I did not try that) and scratches on disk are concerned. Actually in 6 months there was only one file I could not read and I have a lot of files. As my DVDRW are getting older I started having problems in Phillips.
4) Subtitles are a lot better (you can set the font/size) and as the unit changes to 16:9 without you zooming they do not fall off the bottom of the screen (When you zoom, they do). Also when they are named the same as the file name, Oppo will automatically load them (Actually you have to rename them to have the same name).
5) Oppo has excellent customer support
6) Size of the file names are a little bit longer, plus the name slowly scrolls forward if it is too long

The restriction on the resolution is the same as Phillips (i.e. it will not play HR HDTV files). You have to make your own decision. I decided it was worth it for me.

Some people have asked how the Oppo 971 stacks up against an HTPC: The refurbished 971 arrived a few days ago and I hooked it up through DVI to a 60" Sony GWII LCD RPTV. Until now I was using an HTPC for DVD playing duties, the promise of something easier to use ("look Ma, no mouse!") and the rave reviews on image quality persuaded me to get one. Being a cheap Dutchman, the low price for a refurbished unit helped too!

The unit arrived in pristine condition. Despite being a refurb, I can't tell someone else has held it. It looks brand new. After trying a few DVDs at various resolutions I settled on 720p. Native resolution of the display is 768p. Out of the box the Oppo looks very good on my TV. I would say picture quality is close enough to that from the HTPC that I can't really tell the difference. I still have to recalibrate the TV for the new player, so quite possibly there's more to be had yet.

A real disappointment are the zoom modes of the Oppo player. While the regular (1x) image uses the Faroudja scaling hardware, the zoom modes seem to simply take the 1x picture and copy pixels without any interpolation. For example, a widesceen movie like Harry Potter occupies about 2/3 of the vertical extent of the screen. With the HTPC and Zoomplayer as the DVD playing software I was in the habit of zooming it so it would occupy the entire screen (and cut off the sides of the movie image). The HTPC could do this with very little loss in image quality. Not so on the Oppo, the 1.5x zoom that it takes to almost fill the screen results in visible pixels and a very soft image. To the point of being unwatchable. Pitty really, especially if the hardware is on board to do proper scaling of the zoomed image.

While it is still in its return time, I think I'll keep the Oppo. For its price it does a remarkable job, as long as one doesn't use the zoom modes, and my wife likes the simplicity of use. It's not a full replacement of my HTPC for DVD playing though. I think I'll keep using it as well, for its zoom capabilities.

-Rob-

I've compared the video quality of the 971 at 720p and the 981 at 1080p here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9128910&&#post9128910

I found the images to be very similar; so much so that an upgrade is not warranted unless the 981 has other features you want.

My display is a 37" 1080p LCD. A bigger screen or different technology might show a greater difference.

-Bill

Some people have asked how the Oppo 971 stacks up against an HTPC: The refurbished 971 arrived a few days ago and I hooked it up through DVI to a 60" Sony GWII LCD RPTV. Until now I was using an HTPC for DVD playing duties, the promise of something easier to use ("look Ma, no mouse!") and the rave reviews on image quality persuaded me to get one. Being a cheap Dutchman, the low price for a refurbished unit helped too!

The unit arrived in pristine condition. Despite being a refurb, I can't tell someone else has held it. It looks brand new. After trying a few DVDs at various resolutions I settled on 720p. Native resolution of the display is 768p. Out of the box the Oppo looks very good on my TV. I would say picture quality is close enough to that from the HTPC that I can't really tell the difference. I still have to recalibrate the TV for the new player, so quite possibly there's more to be had yet.

A real disappointment are the zoom modes of the Oppo player. While the regular (1x) image uses the Faroudja scaling hardware, the zoom modes seem to simply take the 1x picture and copy pixels without any interpolation. For example, a widesceen movie like Harry Potter occupies about 2/3 of the vertical extent of the screen. With the HTPC and Zoomplayer as the DVD playing software I was in the habit of zooming it so it would occupy the entire screen (and cut off the sides of the movie image). The HTPC could do this with very little loss in image quality. Not so on the Oppo, the 1.5x zoom that it takes to almost fill the screen results in visible pixels and a very soft image. To the point of being unwatchable. Pitty really, especially if the hardware is on board to do proper scaling of the zoomed image.

While it is still in its return time, I think I'll keep the Oppo. For its price it does a remarkable job, as long as one doesn't use the zoom modes, and my wife likes the simplicity of use. It's not a full replacement of my HTPC for DVD playing though. I think I'll keep using it as well, for its zoom capabilities.

-Rob-
So you would recommend picking up a refurb 971 for $174 over a new 970 for $150 for Divx playback?

So you would recommend picking up a refurb 971 for $174 over a new 970 for $150 for Divx playback?

Wow you only save $25 over buying a new 971 direct from oppo.

After doing calibration with Avia I did a side buy side comparison to my trusty old Denon 2200 at 480p while watching 2 copys of SW3. I barrowed a copy from a friend. The Oppo at 480p or 1080i has a slight advantage. I read all these complaints about zoom problems. I have on 2004 model Mits Diamond 55 inch Crt based RPTV. (Remember those) with DVI or Monolink connection. I see the zoom of the Oppo being far superior to the Denon. I did my side buy side comparison in 1/2 screen PIP mode. I think the Denon looked good but the Oppo looked slightly better. Don't get me wrong does it really look truly HD. I would have to say No. But for a $200 player I think I'll keep it. I just can't bring myself to buy HD-DVD or BLU-RAY yet. In my opinion if you plan on waiting for the dust to settle and prices to come down on this new technology that seems to take forever to get released Oppo is a very good choice

So you would recommend picking up a refurb 971 for $174 over a new 970 for $150 for Divx playback?

Can't really tell you Stin. I've never tried playing DivX's on any DVD player. The few I have play fine on my HTPC, so I've not bothered to burn them to disk...

-Rob-

Some people have asked how the Oppo 971 stacks up against an HTPC: The refurbished 971 arrived a few days ago and I hooked it up through DVI to a 60" Sony GWII LCD RPTV. Until now I was using an HTPC for DVD playing duties, the promise of something easier to use ("look Ma, no mouse!") and the rave reviews on image quality persuaded me to get one. Being a cheap Dutchman, the low price for a refurbished unit helped too!

The unit arrived in pristine condition. Despite being a refurb, I can't tell someone else has held it. It looks brand new. After trying a few DVDs at various resolutions I settled on 720p. Native resolution of the display is 768p. Out of the box the Oppo looks very good on my TV. I would say picture quality is close enough to that from the HTPC that I can't really tell the difference. I still have to recalibrate the TV for the new player, so quite possibly there's more to be had yet.

A real disappointment are the zoom modes of the Oppo player. While the regular (1x) image uses the Faroudja scaling hardware, the zoom modes seem to simply take the 1x picture and copy pixels without any interpolation. For example, a widesceen movie like Harry Potter occupies about 2/3 of the vertical extent of the screen. With the HTPC and Zoomplayer as the DVD playing software I was in the habit of zooming it so it would occupy the entire screen (and cut off the sides of the movie image). The HTPC could do this with very little loss in image quality. Not so on the Oppo, the 1.5x zoom that it takes to almost fill the screen results in visible pixels and a very soft image. To the point of being unwatchable. Pitty really, especially if the hardware is on board to do proper scaling of the zoomed image.

While it is still in its return time, I think I'll keep the Oppo. For its price it does a remarkable job, as long as one doesn't use the zoom modes, and my wife likes the simplicity of use. It's not a full replacement of my HTPC for DVD playing though. I think I'll keep using it as well, for its zoom capabilities.

-Rob-

I use the 971H at 480p to my Fujitsu 40 series plasma. I find the Fujitsu AVM II internal scaler does as good a job as the Oppo's, and by simply using the Faroudja processor to de-interlace, I'm saving one step up of upconversion to my panel's native 768 resolution.

Based on Rob's post, I think saving that one upconversion step may be significant, because I see very little (to no) degradation of picture quality when at 1.5x zoom. I sit about 10'=12' away from a 50" display.

/steve

Hey guys I just did the most recent firmware update and forgot that it defaults all options to default. Can someone give me the quick run-down on the best settings to use? For video, i have everything set to default. Does it matter between Video 1 or Video 2? I am using "wide" assuming that is correct for a 16:9 display. Also, usually i turn off all video features but is Truelife worth using?

For audio, should it be set to Raw or PCM? I believe I downmix to 5.1. Also, I assume setting the delay for the speakers only matter if you are using the analog outs.

Hey guys I just did the most recent firmware update and forgot that it defaults all options to default. Can someone give me the quick run-down on the best settings to use? For video, i have everything set to default. Does it matter between Video 1 or Video 2? I am using "wide" assuming that is correct for a 16:9 display. Also, usually i turn off all video features but is Truelife worth using?

All "off" or "0" is the usual recommendation. At one time Noise Reduction was not actually set to 0 unless TrueLife was On; I don't know if that is still the case.

I use Video 2, but it only matters for PAL disks. Otherwise Video 1 and 2 are the same.

"Wide" fill stretch 4:3 material. Use Wide/Sqz to pillarbox those titles. It has no effect on 16:9 titles, so I leave it as the default.

EDIT: you also have to reset the region code if you've done that previously. I always forget.

-Bill

I thought the settings suggested by AVS'ers were at default with Truelife on, am I mistaken?

Truelife should be on if you want to take advantage of the Faroudja video processing.

Hello all,

thanks to the advice received on the AVS Forum, I have bought an Oppo 971 player to use with my Optoma HD70 and my Yamaha 2500 receiver.

As I do not have my long DVI-HDMI cable yet, I used the composite cable to test and setup the unit (the audio part)

Video works (obviously bad quality - due to the cable I used), audio works as well.

However I am not exactly sure how to set up the audio to get optimal results.

On my (6 year old) Sony DVD player I just connected the optical out of the Sony with the optical in on the Yamaha and all was good.

On the Opto I did the same connection, but there all kinds of options in the Setup menu I am not sure of.

I would like the Yamaha to do the dolby / dts decoding. So what do I set on the audio setup?

First, am I correct to assume, that the speaker setup does not apply, as I use an optical cable? Still: I have used 5.1CH downmix in the Speaker setup menu. Is this an issue? I have a 7.1 setup.

Second, I have used the following on the Audio setup:
- SPDIF : RAW
- LPCM out: 192K

- Dolby pro logic II - Auto
- Dolby pro logic Mode: Auto

- Dolby Digital: I left all at the default.

If I try now a dolby digital movie, I get 5.1 sound.

However, if I play a 5.1 music DVD, that plays only in two channels. The same DVD played (without setting or changing anything) on my old Sony DVD in 5.1 channels.

So, the questions are:
- Did I chose the right options for DVD's and music CD's?
- How can I play my 5.1 music DVD on the unit to get 5.1 channels?

And a totally different question at the end (not very important): I have tried to use the "PSM" mode by pressing the PSM (Power Spectrum Meter) button on the remote. Nothing happened. Is this normal? Is there a trick to doing this?

Thanks for any advice.

Miklos

PS: I have read carefully the users guide, but was unable to find the right answer. I have also done a search on this forum, but with little result. If there is a post somewhere already answering my question: I am sorry for not searching hard enough... Could you please then tell me where the answer is?

PS2: And finally: an earlier post suggest for the video to use the following:
TV Display = Wide/SQZ (Will "pillarbox" 4:3 material with a slight penalty in 4:3 resolution)
Brightness = 0 (optimized for DVI "studio" luminance range)
Sharpness = OFF (will eliminate edge enhancement and the previously reported "shimmering")
CCS = OFF (may reduce some flicker between bright colors)
TrueLife = OFF (setting to ON will enable the Noise Reduction feature to be used)

Does this still hold? theaviator suggested TrueLife ON...

Truelife does not default Noise Reduction to on. Maybe on past firmwares but on the newest firmware the default is Truelife on Noise Reduction off. Also when you connect using the optical connection, the receiver will detect the flag and decode the proper surround. Most of the audio setting are while using analog audio outputs.

MiKlos are you using component or composite video cables?

Since you are using an optical connection, the one setting that matters the most is having SPDIF set to "RAW" so it passes the original bitstream without any adjustments. The LPCM setting identifies the highest bitrate that will be allowed to pass without "stepping down" and should be set to match your receiver. To start with, you can probably leave it at 48K to insure compatibility, but you may be able to set it up to 96K without any problems.

A number of the other audio settings relate mainly to the analog outputs. Pro Logic II settings and Dolby Digital settings control the DD and Pro Logic II decoders, which only relate to the multichannel analog output. Likewise, the entire Speaker Setup menu only affects the analog audio outputs, which you are not using. You can leave those alone as long as you are just using the optical output.

With the 971H set to "RAW" output, it is simply passing whatever the disc is playing straight to your receiver and should not be able to downmix anything (plus it shouldn't be able to tell a difference between a movie DVD and a music DVD). I'd check the 5.1 music DVD to see if it offers both 5.1 and two-channel tracks, to make sure the active track selected on the disc is 5.1. I've got some that default to stereo, and I have to change the disc itself to 5.1. It's also possible that the disc was playing in stereo all along but the receiver was automatically applying something like Pro Logic II to the signal, which for some reason might not be happening at the moment. If the old player is still hooked up, you might toss it in there and see what mode the receiver uses.

The manual doesn't always say, but some features (such as the sound field and EQ adjust) only work with the analog output or with certain signal types. I haven't ever used the PSM, so I'm just taking a stab at this one, but you might try using it when playing a CD - my suspicion is that the meter may only with PCM sources and not Dolby Digital or DTS (which are passing un-decoded through the player).

MiKlos are you using component or composite video cables?

RIght now I use composite - waiting for my DVI-HDMI cable to arrive...

Ok for composite the Faroudja video processing doesn't affect composite only the DVI. Until you get the DVI cable you can try different setting using the Noise Reduction to see what yields the best results. You may find some dvd's look better with or without the additional picture options engaged. When you do get the DVI cable you can still try different settings but usually the best settings will include Truelife On Noise Reduction off, again personal opinion comes into play.

Since you are using an optical connection, the one setting that matters the most is having SPDIF set to "RAW" so it passes the original bitstream without any adjustments. The LPCM setting identifies the highest bitrate that will be allowed to pass without "stepping down" and should be set to match your receiver. To start with, you can probably leave it at 48K to insure compatibility, but you may be able to set it up to 96K without any problems.

A number of the other audio settings relate mainly to the analog outputs. Pro Logic II settings and Dolby Digital settings control the DD and Pro Logic II decoders, which only relate to the multichannel analog output. Likewise, the entire Speaker Setup menu only affects the analog audio outputs, which you are not using. You can leave those alone as long as you are just using the optical output.

With the 971H set to "RAW" output, it is simply passing whatever the disc is playing straight to your receiver and should not be able to downmix anything (plus it shouldn't be able to tell a difference between a movie DVD and a music DVD). I'd check the 5.1 music DVD to see if it offers both 5.1 and two-channel tracks, to make sure the active track selected on the disc is 5.1. I've got some that default to stereo, and I have to change the disc itself to 5.1. It's also possible that the disc was playing in stereo all along but the receiver was automatically applying something like Pro Logic II to the signal, which for some reason might not be happening at the moment. If the old player is still hooked up, you might toss it in there and see what mode the receiver uses.

The manual doesn't always say, but some features (such as the sound field and EQ adjust) only work with the analog output or with certain signal types. I haven't ever used the PSM, so I'm just taking a stab at this one, but you might try using it when playing a CD - my suspicion is that the meter may only with PCM sources and not Dolby Digital or DTS (which are passing un-decoded through the player).

Thank you gonk.

What you write was exactly how I understood it. I will not worry about the audio settings, as I use the RAW 192 kbs data.

As far as the 5.1 music disc (Buena Vista Social Club) is concerned: the 5.1 DVD has both stereo and 5.1 tracks: I have selected the 5.1 tracks in the oppo. ( My receiver indicates if the source it is getting is stereo or 5.1). My old player plays in 5.1 (indicated with 5.1 speakers on my receiver) - without selecting any mode: it defaults to the 5.1 songs. The oppo plays the 5.1 tracks in stereo (as indicated on my receiver). So I am still a bit puzzled about this...

Ok for composite the Faroudja video processing doesn't affect composite only the DVI. Until you get the DVI cable you can try different setting using the Noise Reduction to see what yields the best results. You may find some dvd's look better with or without the additional picture options engaged. When you do get the DVI cable you can still try different settings but usually the best settings will include Truelife On Noise Reduction off, again personal opinion comes into play.

Thank you. So which setting would switch Faroudja on (on DVI)? I would like to use it (that is why I bought the player in the first place)...

Thanks again.

PS: I do not really use the unit with composite: I just want to set it up, so that it is ready to go when the DVI cable comes. I use my Xbox 360 to play DVD's ( via component) in the meantime.

Trulife switches it on but it does not work with composite only DVI so having it on or off will do nothing until you get the DVI-HDMI cable you talked about. Right now they player using the composite cable will be an interladed signal.

As far as the 5.1 music disc (Buena Vista Social Club) is concerned: the 5.1 DVD has both stereo and 5.1 tracks: I have selected the 5.1 tracks in the oppo. ( My receiver indicates if the source it is getting is stereo or 5.1). My old player plays in 5.1 (indicated with 5.1 speakers on my receiver) - without selecting any mode: it defaults to the 5.1 songs. The oppo plays the 5.1 tracks in stereo (as indicated on my receiver). So I am still a bit puzzled about this...
That does seem odd. While I can't explain exactly what might be happening, I can offer one thing to try: use the AUDIO button on the oppo's remote while the DVD is playing to change audio tracks and see what you get.

I recently changed my audio out to the 6 ch output to my receiver. ( so I could use the audio delay function on the OPPO) I also am using the Left / right output to my tv. The only way I can get my surrond speakers to work is to set the downmix mode on the oppo to 5.1 . With the oppo set like this the tv speakers only output music and no voices ( with the receiver off) When the downmix mode is set to stereo the tv works but I get no surrond.

thanks

I recently changed my audio out to the 6 ch output to my receiver. ( so I could use the audio delay function on the OPPO) I also am using the Left / right output to my tv. The only way I can get my surrond speakers to work is to set the downmix mode on the oppo to 5.1 . With the oppo set like this the tv speakers only output music and no voices ( with the receiver off) When the downmix mode is set to stereo the tv works but I get no surrond. That's exactly how it is supposed to work...

To hear the center and surround channels on your 2-channel TV, you connect the TV audio to the "MIXED" L/R outputs and set "DOWN-MIX MODE" to "Stereo".

To get 5.1-channel surround sound from the analog connections, connect the receiver audio to the rest of the analog outputs and set the "DOWNMIX MODE" to "5.1".

You can't have 5.1-channel surround and mixed 2-channel running simultaneously.

Gary

Truelife should be on if you want to take advantage of the Faroudja video processing. This is no longer true. That defect was fixed long ago. Truelife is a detail enhancement circuit only, it does not affect the legendary Faroudja de-interlacing and scaling. However, another defect still exists: When Truelife is "OFF", NR defaults to "LOW", even though it says "OFF". OPPO is working on it.

Gary

Truelife bypassing the Faroudja chip was per Oppo a couple of weeks ago. Just going by there statement. If it's not true then I hope Oppo changes what they tell people. They said it bypasses it on anything but DVI.

I don't know where to post this question but since this is such a great thread I'll start here. My setup is 971HD -> 42HPX95 via DVI/HDMI. Besides some occasional macroblocking, the picture quality has been great -- not quite HD but very very close. Thus far I have been using the eyeballing method to calibrate my tv but last week decided to give AVIA a try. I have to say the picture got improved quite a bit. It has more of a "POP" factor to it now. My question is with the Zone Plate 30 fps, hi/lo Bit Rate tests. You know the ones where a pattern that looks similar to the "Sharpness" pattern but moves around on the screen. Man, I tell you, I got dizzy watching this pattern. The lines in the pattern were like doubled or tripled as it moved around. What can I do to get a smooth image during these tests?

Thanks in advance.

Truelife bypassing the Faroudja chip was per Oppo a couple of weeks ago. Just going by there statement. If it's not true then I hope Oppo changes what they tell people. They said it bypasses it on anything but DVI.

This is true. The Faroudja chipset is bypassed when using any output other than DVI. What the lack of clarification is that TrueLife does not alter the way in which the Faroudja chipset is utilized as non/passive. TrueLife merely controls the color enhancer and the default DNR state, and not the Faroudja chipset itself.

My guess is more of a miscommunication between you and OPPO, rather than OPPO giving you false information.

My question is with the Zone Plate 30 fps, hi/lo Bit Rate tests. You know the ones where a pattern that looks similar to the "Sharpness" pattern but moves around on the screen. Man, I tell you, I got dizzy watching this pattern. The lines in the pattern were like doubled or tripled as it moved around. What can I do to get a smooth image during these tests?

The zone plates will likely only lock properly right before they stop on the OPDV971H product, as it takes the Faroudja chipset about a second, second and a half to lock into it.

I purchased the 971 to enable a 480p DVI to DVI connection with my NEC 42vp4 EDTV. However, just for kicks I tried 720p and I believe it to be a slightly better picture. Anyone have a logical explanation why 720p could display better than the lower native resolution of the NEC? Seems to me that it should be the opposite, since the NEC has to drop some incoming 1's and 0's to fit the screen.

I purchased the 971 to enable a 480p DVI to DVI connection with my NEC 42vp4 EDTV. However, just for kicks I tried 720p and I believe it to be a slightly better picture. Anyone have a logical explanation why 720p could display better than the lower native resolution of the NEC? Seems to me that it should be the opposite, since the NEC has to drop some incoming 1's and 0's to fit the screen.I have the same experience with my Oppo 971 driving my InFocus 4805 (720p looks better than 480p). I concluded it has to do with the horizontal resolution...

The native resolution of the 4805 is 854x480. A 480p frame, even when widescreen, is only 640x480, while a 720p frame is 1360x720. So, with a 480p signal, you're maxing out the vertical resolution, but only getting 2/3 the available horizontal resolution. With a 720p frame, you're maxing out both vert. and horiz. resolutions.

Is the native resolution of the NEC 42vp4 widescreen? If so, then you might be seeing what I'm seeing.

That's exactly how it is supposed to work...

To hear the center and surround channels on your 2-channel TV, you connect the TV audio to the "MIXED" L/R outputs and set "DOWN-MIX MODE" to "Stereo".

To get 5.1-channel surround sound from the analog connections, connect the receiver audio to the rest of the analog outputs and set the "DOWNMIX MODE" to "5.1".

You can't have 5.1-channel surround and mixed 2-channel running simultaneously.

Gary

That is how I have it connected. Is there not a way to use the mixed output for the tv speakers when I want to watch a movie without using my receiver or changing the downmix mode everytime?

Thanks

I have the same experience with my Oppo 971 driving my InFocus 4805 (720p looks better than 480p). I concluded it has to do with the horizontal resolution...

The native resolution of the 4805 is 854x480. A 480p frame, even when widescreen, is only 640x480, while a 720p frame is 1360x720. So, with a 480p signal, you're maxing out the vertical resolution, but only getting 2/3 the available horizontal resolution. With a 720p frame, you're maxing out both vert. and horiz. resolutions.

Is the native resolution of the NEC 42vp4 widescreen? If so, then you might be seeing what I'm seeing.

The native resolution of the NEC is 853x480. I think I see what you're saying. In down-converting from 720p to 480p the NEC is throwing out data and when upscaling from 640 to 853 it is extrapolating data that wasn't there to begin with. Apparently the set does a better job of tossing data than it does making it up.

Apparently the set does a better job of tossing data than it does making it up.

I think you hit the nail on the head.

For the sake of clarity, however, I believe vttom must have been referring to 4:3 aspect ratio DVD's as 640x480. I believe widescreen DVD's are 720x480... still less than your ED's native resolution, however, so the principle still applies.

/steve

The zone plates will likely only lock properly right before they stop on the OPDV971H product, as it takes the Faroudja chipset about a second, second and a half to lock into it.

1 - 1.5 seconds. That's not very fast, is it?
I ran the same tests on a Sony WEGA KV-40XBR800 with an old JVC progressive DVD player and the whole image stayed completely intact as it moved around. I guess the CRT and component video connection performs better on these tests.

1 - 1.5 seconds. That's not very fast, is it?
I ran the same tests on a Sony WEGA KV-40XBR800 with an old JVC progressive DVD player and the whole image stayed completely intact as it moved around. I guess the CRT and component video connection performs better on these tests. That's why all Faroudja players get a "borderline" rating for the "Recovery time" test on SECRETS. Nevertheless, the Faroudja chip is still way ahead of most of the competition in every other test (as long as it has been implemented properly, as it has in the OPPO).

Gary

Is there not a way to use the mixed output for the tv speakers when I want to watch a movie without using my receiver or changing the downmix mode everytime? No. As I said, you can't have 5.1-channel surround and mixed 2-channel running simultaneously. You have to choose one or the other.

Gary

Hi, all,
I have a 720p front projector (Optoma HD 7100) which I am presently driving with a Zenith DVB 318 upconverting player. The pj has a DVI input and I have tried the Zenith connected both ways, DVI and component (using the specific firmware for each). Best perceived picture (actually quite good) is with component connection at 1080i , better than DVI at 1080i or 720p. Go figure.
I understand that a specific DVD player may be a better match to some projectors than to others. This is probably also true with the Oppo. However, question is: Based on your specific experience, could I expect the Oppo to give me a "clearly" improved PQ at 720p DVI compared to that of the Zenith? At 1080i?
Thank you.

There must be in this forum some previous users of the Zenith. I would like to hear your impressions as to how these 2 players compare. Please.

Hi, all,
I have a 720p front projector (Optoma HD 7100) which I am presently driving with a Zenith DVB 318 upconverting player. The pj has a DVI input and I have tried the Zenith connected both ways, DVI and component (using the specific firmware for each). Best perceived picture (actually quite good) is with component connection at 1080i , better than DVI at 1080i or 720p. Go figure.
I understand that a specific DVD player may be a better match to some projectors than to others. This is probably also true with the Oppo. However, question is: Based on your specific experience, could I expect the Oppo to give me a "clearly" improved PQ at 720p DVI compared to that of the Zenith? At 1080i?
Thank you.

Only one way to find out. ;)

Hey guys whats your opinion on whats the better compatibility of either of these units for the panny 100. I had heard some things that the DVI to hdmi can be a problem.(with 246 pages curently I don't have the time to scroll through the posts!)I would appreciate anybody's opinion on this as I am eager to purchase one of these units very soon.

I have a HDMI to DVI setup and NOT ONE PROBLEM..its a 20' cable

I had heard some things that the DVI to hdmi can be a problem. Not true.

Gary

Hi, I do not know if this has been raised before, but is there any way (either now or in future) for this DVD player to output hi definition DIVX footage (e.g. 1080i)? I have a hi-def consumer video camera and would love to be able to see recorded (and home edited :) footage in all its glory, rather then downconverted to DVD.

No, the hardware cannot support HD Divx. Sorry.

I wonder if anyone can help me on this Oppo fest!

I just bought a Pioneer 5070hd, which I really like, and an Oppo 971h. I have the confess that the Oppo is essentially "unwatchable" on DVI-HDMI, 720p because of macroblocking. (The component hook-up, 480i, actually looks pretty good.) I suspect that I must be missing something. The macroblocking on the dvi output is really marked and I don't know what else to do. I've considered exchanging this unit for the 970 given that I've only had the player for two weeks.

I'll add that I used D-nice's setting for both the Pioneer and the Oppo but the problem persists. I called Oppo and spoke with a rep who recommended trying to calibrate the display with The AVIA Guide to Home Theater. Do you really think this would make a major difference?

I hate it when my wife says, "Uh, Tom, this looks really lousy. How much did you spend on all this stuff again?" :eek:

Thanks.

I think the degree of macroblocking may be display dependant. On my Samsung HL-R6168W DLP tv the macroblocking of the 971h was horrible to the point of distraction. Putting the 971h on my Sharp LC37-45D40U Aquos LCD tv the macroblocking is almost non-existant (barely noticiable).

I'll add that I used D-nice's setting for both the Pioneer and the Oppo but the problem persists. I called Oppo and spoke with a rep who recommended trying to calibrate the display with The AVIA Guide to Home Theater. Do you really think this would make a major difference?

There is no way to know without trying it. Until you calibrate your display to a specific input device you can't make any other judgments. If nothing else, try the THX Optimizer which is included on THX Certified disks.

-Bill

Hey guys, I've had a 971 since early September. My display device is a Panasonic TH-42PX500U. The two are connected with the DVI-to-HDMI cable that came with the 971.

I've seen some various artifacts using the 971. How do I know if it's macroblocking or just that I don't have my display calibrated correctly? I'm not sure that I understand what macroblocking is. I used the Digial Video Essentials disc to calibrate my display when I first got it, but that was using a different DVD player and I didn't have the color strips since I got it from Netflix.

Is there a good website that has pictures of macroblocking that I can take a look at?

Also, I think I read somewhere in here that Oppo will exchange a 971 for a 970 if you're having macroblocking issues. Is that true, and how long do I have to contact them?

Thanks for any help!

I have my 971 hooked to my panny 42" plasma. I'm still getting used to the player so right now I leave the upconvert setting at 1080 for all dvds. Is this not a good idea?

I have my 971 hooked to my panny 42" plasma. I'm still getting used to the player so right now I leave the upconvert setting at 1080 for all dvds. Is this not a good idea?


Whatever looks best to you is a good idea.

That's a fine idea - I'd probably try both 1080i and 720p with your plasma to see which looks best, but once you find the resolution that works best for you then you should have no need to change it.

jhw59, in general, for standard DVD's you're comparing processors, the one in your TV and the one in the DVD player. At 480p DVI, the TV will upconvert, at 1080i you are seeing the upconversion your DVD player's doing. Whichever processor is better, wins, and leave it there.

Hey guys, I've had a 971 since early September. My display device is a Panasonic TH-42PX500U. The two are connected with the DVI-to-HDMI cable that came with the 971.

I've seen some various artifacts using the 971. How do I know if it's macroblocking or just that I don't have my display calibrated correctly? I'm not sure that I understand what macroblocking is. I used the Digial Video Essentials disc to calibrate my display when I first got it, but that was using a different DVD player and I didn't have the color strips since I got it from Netflix.

Is there a good website that has pictures of macroblocking that I can take a look at?

Also, I think I read somewhere in here that Oppo will exchange a 971 for a 970 if you're having macroblocking issues. Is that true, and how long do I have to contact them?

Thanks for any help!See this post: Suppressing the Faroudja Macroblock-Enhance Bug (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7270763&&#post7270763), and be sure to follow the link to "Macroblocking... Description and Examples".

Gary

I wonder if anyone can help me on this Oppo fest!

I just bought a Pioneer 5070hd, which I really like, and an Oppo 971h. I have the confess that the Oppo is essentially "unwatchable" on DVI-HDMI, 720p because of macroblocking. (The component hook-up, 480i, actually looks pretty good.) I suspect that I must be missing something. The macroblocking on the dvi output is really marked and I don't know what else to do. I've considered exchanging this unit for the 970 given that I've only had the player for two weeks.

I'll add that I used D-nice's setting for both the Pioneer and the Oppo but the problem persists. I called Oppo and spoke with a rep who recommended trying to calibrate the display with The AVIA Guide to Home Theater. Do you really think this would make a major difference?

I hate it when my wife says, "Uh, Tom, this looks really lousy. How much did you spend on all this stuff again?" :eek:

Thanks.See above post.

Gary

jhw59, in general, for standard DVD's you're comparing processors, the one in your TV and the one in the DVD player. At 480p DVI, the TV will upconvert, at 1080i you are seeing the upconversion your DVD player's doing. Whichever processor is better, wins, and leave it there.


um ... no. My TV supports various resolutions ... if I send it a 480P or 720P signal, its going to display it at that res. It doesn't automatically upconvert to its highest resolution.

GSB

Thanks for the post and the link. I'm going to try out those recommendations in the morning and I'll post my results.

Tom

thanks I need to spend some more time with the oppo and decide what looks best. BTW, to start my HT I bought a Velodyne VA- 1250X for $375 delivered. The seller said he'd never turned it past 3/10. Good start?

I just updated to the Sept firmware release and I'm now experiencing "choppy" video. What is the most recent firmware release I can revert to to eliminate this problem? Is it:

MVer: 05.00.01.07 Batch: F-0302
Release Date: March 15, 2006

I like the enhanced display capabilities of the most recent release. Is there a way to get this functionality w/o the choppy video?

Thanks!

You will need to use the 10-0720. Anything more than this has the audio/video synchronization scheme, which will effect playback on some encodes.

These are two completely different types of files, I am suprised no one caught this and corrected it.

The zip file unzips to a .bin file, NOT a .ISO file.

I just used nero to create a .ISO image and dropped the bin file on it, burned it, and the player said "unknown disc".

While I may need to go back redo the burning steps differently, I am familiar with a .ISO file, they are very easy to burn.

Moderator or thread starter you should fix that to either have a link to a real .ISO file or explain right next to the firmware link its a .zip file with a .bin file inside it to help folks figure out what to do a bit more painlessly.

No, it is an ISO file. The ISO instructs the burner to do two things: ISO 9660 Only (no Joliet) and Disc at Once.

If you just extract the ISO and burn the BIN file, it will not be correct since most burners default to ISO 9660 Joliet, which is not recognized by the DVD player for firmware upgrades.

No, it is an ISO file. The ISO instructs the burner to do two things: ISO 9660 Only (no Joliet) and Disc at Once.

If you just extract the ISO and burn the BIN file, it will not be correct since most burners default to ISO 9660 Joliet, which is not recognized by the DVD player for firmware upgrades.


It does not extract to an ISO, it extracts to a .BIN file. If you like I can email it to you to show you. I have Winrar installed as my windows unzip utility.

It does not extract to an ISO, it extracts to a .BIN file. If you like I can email it to you to show you. I have Winrar installed as my windows unzip utility.

The file absolutely, positively is an ISO image file, usable with most any CD-burning software package that supports ISO images. I just verified this by opening the ISO with CD Recording Wizard (a freeware utility for the creation and burning of ISO images) and created a CD from it. Once done, the CD was a perfectly usable ISO9660 format disk containing a file named 935.BIN. It's important to note that the downloaded file is a native ISO image file, and does not need to be extracted or decompressed . . . simply open it with your CD burning software.

WinRAR has the capability to open ISO images to extract the files therein, which is how I suspect that you came to the conclusion that it was a mislabeled .zip or .rar archive file.

It does not extract to an ISO, it extracts to a .BIN file. If you like I can email it to you to show you. I have Winrar installed as my windows unzip utility.

All an ISO file is is a self contained image which has all the files and architecture in one file. All the filesystem meta data (boot code, structures, and attributes) is also included.

In the case of the OPPO firmware, the ISO is used to give the burning software proper mastering settings. You could extract the ISO and burn the BIN on its own, but this file will not work without the proper burning instructions.

For a display CRT HDTV with native resolution 1080i specifically the TV Samsung 32" model TX-R3079WH Slimfit (support 480p, 720p and obvious 1080i)

what dvd oppo is the best choice?

if I connect it the 971 or 981, it will present the effect of macroblocking? or, is better the model 970 for this display?

a friend has a CRT HDTV Sony model KD-34XBR970 and the model 971H, has commented to me that the image is perfect and that it has not noticed anything of macroblocking.

Will be possible that in my screen it notices macroblocking?

All an ISO file is is a self contained image which has all the files and architecture in one file. All the filesystem meta data (boot code, structures, and attributes) is also included.

In the case of the OPPO firmware, the ISO is used to give the burning software proper mastering settings. You could extract the ISO and burn the BIN on its own, but this file will not work without the proper burning instructions.


Again, I already know all this. The zip does not contain an .ISO, it contains a bin file.

Tell you what, why don't you download the link and if you see a .ISO then I will download it again.

Again, I already know all this. The zip does not contain an .ISO, it contains a bin file.

Tell you what, why don't you download the link and if you see a .ISO then I will download it again.

Are you talking about the latest firmware on the 971 support page?

Download:

wmcclain@atipa:/tmp/oppo> wget http://www.oppodigital.com/Download/Firmware_971h-11-0830.iso


It's an ISO file:

wmcclain@atipa:/tmp/oppo> file Firmware_971h-11-0830.iso
Firmware_971h-11-0830.iso: ISO 9660 CD-ROM filesystem data '971H_11_0830 '


Mount the ISO and look inside it:

wmcclain@atipa:/tmp/oppo> mkdir cdrom
wmcclain@atipa:/tmp/oppo> mount Firmware_971h-11-0830.iso -r -t iso9660 -o loop cdrom
wmcclain@atipa:/tmp/oppo> ll cdrom
total 1236
-r-xr-xr-x 1 root root 1265444 2006-09-14 11:19 935.bin


-Bill

Again, I already know all this. The zip does not contain an .ISO, it contains a bin file.

Tell you what, why don't you download the link and if you see a .ISO then I will download it again.

WHAT YOU DOWNLOADED IS NOT A ZIP FILE. Just because you can open it with WinRAR doesn't make it a zip file. WinRAR includes the capability to extract files from ISO images. The downloaded file is itself an ISO image. It's not zipped, rar'ed, gzipped, or compressed in any way. If your system is somehow identifying it as a compressed archive and not an ISO image, your system is wrong.

You can mount it as a CD with Daemon tools, you can open it with Nero, Roxio, ISO Recorder, and the Unix/Linux image mount facility WITHOUT EXTRACTING ANYTHING FROM IT.

I downloaded the link myself when I posted my response above. It's an ISO image file. Please stop ignoring all of the evidence that's been presented to the contrary. The folks here are pretty knowledgeable. I burn CDs and DVDs all the time from ISO images, and I can assure you that I know the difference between a compressed ZIP archive and an ISO image.

I was playing around with the video settings on my 971 and H79 a couple days ago, and I turned off the TrueLife processing in the Oppo. After forgetting to turn it back on, I was watching LOTR:The Fellowship of the Ring with jonnyozero3, and we were both commenting on how blurred the picture looked. It lacked the crisp, clear lines and accurate, small detail that I normally expect from this player and pj. After turning on the TrueLife, it seemed to look better, but I still wasn't impressed with the PQ.

I currently use a UH380/Carada 136" 2.35:1 for 'Scope movies, so I'm thinking that this setup is either stretching the limits of 480i, the transfer isn't that great, or that something else I haven't thought of is going on here. Anyone have any inputs as to the effect on PQ of turning TrueLife on/off on the Oppo? Thanks,

HP

For a display CRT HDTV with native resolution 1080i specifically the TV Samsung 32" model TX-R3079WH Slimfit (support 480p, 720p and obvious 1080i)

if I connect it the 971 or 981, it will present the effect of macroblocking? or, is better the model 970 for this display?

CRTs are less susceptible to macroblocking errors. For this reason, it is less of a concern than for DLP and plasma users. I personally prefer the DV-970HD for use on CRT displays, simply because the 1080i output is sharper and more detailed than the OPDV971H or the DV-981HD.

I just bought (yesterday) a 971h for my new 70" JVC. So far I am unhappy, what I need to know is if its a defective unit or normal for my situation.

I know that the source is a simple dvd (not hirez) so it won't look like HD, but it is plugged into the JVC using the provided DV cable yet I am getting wierd stuff.

When at the main menu of the dvd (i.e. play/scene select, etc.) the picture occasionally "jumps" as if it was out of sync or had just been plugged in or something. Once every 10 seconds or so. I thought it might be just a "menu" thing because it hasn't done it during the movie, but once last night it "jumped" again (only once in a 2 hour movie)

Also, during dvd playback the left 1/3 of the picture seems dimmer and fuzzier than the rest, not all the time but its noticable and for awhile I saw a blue/green halo around things.

it might be the movie (I am watching White Christmas which does not say it has been remastered) so today I will try some other movies and see if it is a systemic problem or just with that one dvd.

Does this sounds "normal"?

Ordered the DV971 for my parent’s Sammy HLS5087 and its due in today when I get home. I myself have a 65” Mits WD65713 with the Denon 2900. I can’t wait to get home and compare this player to the 2900. Has anybody done a compare on these two players yet. I love the PQ of the 2900, but just a bit curious how the 971 will stack up to it.

For a display CRT HDTV with native resolution 1080i specifically the TV Samsung 32" model TX-R3079WH Slimfit (support 480p, 720p and obvious 1080i)

what dvd oppo is the best choice?

if I connect it the 971 or 981, it will present the effect of macroblocking? or, is better the model 970 for this display?

a friend has a CRT HDTV Sony model KD-34XBR970 and the model 971H, has commented to me that the image is perfect and that it has not noticed anything of macroblocking.

Will be possible that in my screen it notices macroblocking?

I have a 971 hooked up to my crt as well. As your friend said, it is gorgeous. Especially movies that are digitally re-mastered of digital, i.e. Indiana Jones, Star Wars, 5th Element.

MHO...

I just bought (yesterday) a 971h for my new 70" JVC. So far I am unhappy, what I need to know is if its a defective unit or normal for my situation.

I know that the source is a simple dvd (not hirez) so it won't look like HD, but it is plugged into the JVC using the provided DV cable yet I am getting wierd stuff.

When at the main menu of the dvd (i.e. play/scene select, etc.) the picture occasionally "jumps" as if it was out of sync or had just been plugged in or something. Once every 10 seconds or so. I thought it might be just a "menu" thing because it hasn't done it during the movie, but once last night it "jumped" again (only once in a 2 hour movie)

Also, during dvd playback the left 1/3 of the picture seems dimmer and fuzzier than the rest, not all the time but its noticable and for awhile I saw a blue/green halo around things.

it might be the movie (I am watching White Christmas which does not say it has been remastered) so today I will try some other movies and see if it is a systemic problem or just with that one dvd.

Does this sounds "normal"?No, this isn't "normal", but you need to start a systematic process of elimination... To start with, a 70" screen is going to magnify any errors tremendously. Make sure you are using a known decent DVD transfer. Make sure you have calibrated the TV. Plug in a PC (with DVI output) to see if the TV is responsible for the jumping, dimness and fuzziness (RPTV's often have focusing issues). Make sure that the DVI plugs are inserted correctly, with NO stress on the cables or connectors.

Gary

No, this isn't "normal", but you need to start a systematic process of elimination... To start with, a 70" screen is going to magnify any errors tremendously. Make sure you are using a known decent DVD transfer. Make sure you have calibrated the TV. Plug in a PC (with DVI output) to see if the TV is responsible for the jumping, dimness and fuzziness (RPTV's often have focusing issues). Make sure that the DVI plugs are inserted correctly, with NO stress on the cables or connectors.

Gary

Is there a thread on how to do something like this? I can plug in a computer but have no clue on how to "calibrate" a TV - there isn't anything in the manual on it.

Is there a thread on how to do something like this? I can plug in a computer but have no clue on how to "calibrate" a TV - there isn't anything in the manual on it.

The easiest way to start is with the THX Optimzer, which can be found in the setup section of THX Certified disks (there's a logo on the disk case, or see the entire list here: http://thx.com/mod/products/dvd/dvdFind.html). When adjusting color it is handy to have the blue filter glasses available for $1 + shipping from http://www.co-store.com/thx.

There are more advanced calibration disks. I use GetGray from http://www.calibrate.tv/. Avia and Digital Video Esstentials are popular.

-Bill

I'm also unhappy with the 971h I just got after reading such high praise for it. Because I have 2 copies of certain DVD's I was able to do fairly direct comparisions with my existing player, a Denon 2200.

For this initial testing, I used 2 copies of LOTR-Return of the King, both widescreen format.

I hooked up the 971h to my Hitachi 57S500 via DVI, with the Denon hooked up via component cables. I set all parameters (Sharpness, Contrast etc.) to identical levels for each of the inputs. I set the Denon to output in 480p, and let the Hitachi scale up to 1080i. The Oppo I varied amongst the various DVI output choices - 480p, 540p, 720p and 1081i.

Without exception, the Denon had the "sharper" picture, with much more detail and clarity. The only exception were items in extreme closeup, such as faces, where the Oppo had more perceived detail. Items in the mid-ground or background were significantly less sharp/detailed, almost blurry on the Oppo.

I tested by playing scenes over repeatedly on each player, and also pausing frequently during the scenes and examining the (matching, synchronized) frames on each player carefully.

I tried various settings of the Truelife and CSS settings of the Oppo. I made sure the players were outputting flat or default sharpness, contrast etc.

Anyone surprised by this? Do I possibly have a bad unit?

Silly question, but does it require some "break in" time for the upscaler to work better - I have the Njoe Tjoeb Upsampling CD player, and this actually requires 200 hours before the components "break in" and the sound truly opens up.

Thanks in advance for any input/suggestions.

The easiest way to start is with the THX Optimzer, which can be found in the setup section of THX Certified disks (there's a logo on the disk case, or see the entire list here: http://thx.com/mod/products/dvd/dvdFind.html). When adjusting color it is handy to have the blue filter glasses available for $1 + shipping from http://www.co-store.com/thx.

There are more advanced calibration disks. I use GetGray from http://www.calibrate.tv/. Avia and Digital Video Esstentials are popular.

-Bill

OK - things are much better. It turns out the player defaults to 480p, and you have to read on page 18 of the manual under "Advanced Operations" on how to change the output resolution. When I changed it to 720p the "jumping" and ghosting seems to have gone away.

Quick question-

Will the digital coax audio output on the oppo put out the same quality as the optical output?

I just ran out of optical inputs on my receiver, but I have one digital coax input available.

Also, if I use the digital coax output, can I use any single rca type cable, or is there something special or different about it being digital? :confused:

Quick question-

Will the digital coax audio output on the oppo put out the same quality as the optical output?

I just ran out of optical inputs on my receiver, but I have one digital coax input available.

Also, if I use the digital coax output, can I use any single rca type cable, or is there something special or different about it being digital? :confused:


It'll sound the same.

Quick question-

Will the digital coax audio output on the oppo put out the same quality as the optical output?

I just ran out of optical inputs on my receiver, but I have one digital coax input available.

Also, if I use the digital coax output, can I use any single rca type cable, or is there something special or different about it being digital? :confused:

Just make sure it is 75 ohm. Don't use the Red or White cables but a Yellow composite cable should work fine as well as a component video cable.

No thoughts/opinions on this? :(

I'm also unhappy with the 971h I just got after reading such high praise for it. Because I have 2 copies of certain DVD's I was able to do fairly direct comparisions with my existing player, a Denon 2200.

For this initial testing, I used 2 copies of LOTR-Return of the King, both widescreen format.

I hooked up the 971h to my Hitachi 57S500 via DVI, with the Denon hooked up via component cables. I set all parameters (Sharpness, Contrast etc.) to identical levels for each of the inputs. I set the Denon to output in 480p, and let the Hitachi scale up to 1080i. The Oppo I varied amongst the various DVI output choices - 480p, 540p, 720p and 1081i.

Without exception, the Denon had the "sharper" picture, with much more detail and clarity. The only exception were items in extreme closeup, such as faces, where the Oppo had more perceived detail. Items in the mid-ground or background were significantly less sharp/detailed, almost blurry on the Oppo.

I tested by playing scenes over repeatedly on each player, and also pausing frequently during the scenes and examining the (matching, synchronized) frames on each player carefully.

I tried various settings of the Truelife and CSS settings of the Oppo. I made sure the players were outputting flat or default sharpness, contrast etc.

Anyone surprised by this? Do I possibly have a bad unit?

Silly question, but does it require some "break in" time for the upscaler to work better - I have the Njoe Tjoeb Upsampling CD player, and this actually requires 200 hours before the components "break in" and the sound truly opens up.

Thanks in advance for any input/suggestions.

Improvement after "break in" is something many people notice, but some would argue it's all in your mind. My experience has been that some products do improve after a break in period and most seem to show none or little difference. My Denon 3910 was ever so slightly sharper than my OPPO 971, but colors seem more natural from the OPPO, if memory serves. Something's fishy, the OPPO should be better than any Denon, excepting their very high end models. I think the OPPO has clearer dialogue reproduction than my 3910 had as well.

I'm also unhappy with the 971h I just got after reading such high praise for it. Because I have 2 copies of certain DVD's I was able to do fairly direct comparisions with my existing player, a Denon 2200.

For this initial testing, I used 2 copies of LOTR-Return of the King, both widescreen format.

I hooked up the 971h to my Hitachi 57S500 via DVI, with the Denon hooked up via component cables. I set all parameters (Sharpness, Contrast etc.) to identical levels for each of the inputs. I set the Denon to output in 480p, and let the Hitachi scale up to 1080i. The Oppo I varied amongst the various DVI output choices - 480p, 540p, 720p and 1081i.

Without exception, the Denon had the "sharper" picture, with much more detail and clarity. The only exception were items in extreme closeup, such as faces, where the Oppo had more perceived detail. Items in the mid-ground or background were significantly less sharp/detailed, almost blurry on the Oppo.

I tested by playing scenes over repeatedly on each player, and also pausing frequently during the scenes and examining the (matching, synchronized) frames on each player carefully.

I tried various settings of the Truelife and CSS settings of the Oppo. I made sure the players were outputting flat or default sharpness, contrast etc.

Anyone surprised by this? Do I possibly have a bad unit? This doesn't sound right at all. The Denon 2200 was a very good component player, but with a proper TV calibration, the OPPO's 720p output via HDMI should quite easily outdo it.

Gary

Based on this CNET (http://reviews.cnet.com/Hitachi_57S500/4505-6484_7-30521418.html) review of your Hitachi, it appears your display electronics may prefer interlaced input. Perhaps its incompatibility with progressive input is less an issue over component than over DVI? Below is an excerpt from the review. /steve

"The S500's video processing does have 3:2 pull-down detection to combat motion artifacts in film-based video material (such as DVD movies), but the feature won't work unless you've engaged Auto Movie mode. We also tried feeding the set 480p signals from the Philips DVD963SA and Hitachi DVP735U progressive-scan DVD players. Unfortunately, the TV's upconversion to 540p and 1080i produced an unstable picture with some flicker, especially during still scenes. We recommend that you choose interlaced mode or switch to a standard DVD deck."

EDIT: I forgot to mention that when comparing two DVD players, rather than set everything "flat", you should calibrate each player/input combination individually beforehand, using DVE or AVIA. The way you compared the players, you made the assumption that these two players from two different manufacturerers were calibrated to the exact same standards of color temp, brightness, contrast, sharpness, etc. That being said, unless the factory sharpness is wildly different, the differences in resolution of detail you're seeing between the two players probably won't be much different post calibration. It sounds like it could be more of an issue with your display's ability to process digitally delivered progressive input.

Just wanted to chime in with a preliminary report about my Oppo 970 that I got for Christmas. Set it up last night and followed the recommended settings. Watched Blade Runner SE and thought it looked fantastic. Even better was that I've had a problem disc that four previous DVD players couldn't play, but the Oppo would: Toy Story 1&2, two-disc set, the Toy Story 2 disc has a choice of widescreen/full screen, but my other players would freeze up or show an unwatchable "stuttery" picture when trying to play the widescreen; the Oppo stuttered on the Disney castle scene at the start, then played the actual movie without a hitch!

Eben - my stuttery problems went away when I switched to high-res mode. The default output is 480i which seems to cause stuttering (at least on my unit). Make sure your output is not 480i, check page 18 of your manual if you have not already set it.

Mark

I also have the 971 and a 2200. I thought they were very close. Watching the 2200 at 480p through component and the oppo 1080i through DVI on a 55 mits diamond crt rptv. I did my in a side by side pip comparison. I would have to give the edge to the oppo but if I did a test not knowing which was which I don't think I could tell the difference. I thought the oppo had a much better zoom feature than the 2200 but as far as picture they are very close to each other.

Oppo Digital DV-971H Settings Guide, V1.0, dated 01/01/2006 is the only settings guide I could find. Is there a later version for firmware 11-0830? If so, does anyone have a link to it? thanks, dean123

Eben - my stuttery problems went away when I switched to high-res mode. The default output is 480i which seems to cause stuttering (at least on my unit). Make sure your output is not 480i, check page 18 of your manual if you have not already set it.

Mark
Thanks for the tip. I have it at hi-res (one of the first things I set). I haven't had stuttering on any other disc, just Toy Story 2 (which wouldn't even play on any of my prior DVD players). The stuttering stops after the Disney castle intro, which doesn't bother me as long as the movie plays, and it does (looks great)!

I wanted to check on the component out aspect of the OPPO. As the owner of a couple of high-definition tvs that either prefer component or can only accept component I wanted a nice upscaler that wasn't hdmi only. I notice their documention now lists component 480p only on their website. Is Oppo just another component upscaling (and limited to 480p) dvd player now? They were originally a great alternative for those with first gen hd tvs who don't have hdmi.

The 971H's component output is not connected to the Faroudja chip at all, it is purely a 480i output. Upscaling DVD players have generally been restricted to doing higher than 480p only over DVI or HDMI - there used to be a few exceptions, but those have dried up. Oppo's 970HD will upscale non-copy protected DVD's to HD resolutions at the component output (and there's a firmware hack that allows that for copy protected DVD's as well), but the 971H and 981HD are solely digital output players (the 981HD actually eliminated the component output).

I suspect this has come up from time to time: should I set the output from the Oppo via DVI to progressive or interlaced? I've got a Ruby and posed this to Oppo's customer support. Here's their reply:

Steve,

You will not want to use 1080i for the main reason that you are
introducing two de-inerlacing and one re-interlacing procedures, which
can dramatically decrease picture quality. It is better to use 720p and
have the display do the scaling to 1080p, then to do 1080i and require
that the display de-interlace the receiving signal.

Best Regards,

Customer Service
OPPO Digital, Inc.
453 Ravendale Dr, Suite D
Mountain View, CA 94043
Service@oppodigital.com

Another bit of feedback from Oppo customer support. On the subject of these two product's, and the resulting image, using a progressive feed to a 1080p native Ruby versus feeding a 1080p signal:

Steve,
>
> Depending on the internal scaler of your Sony Ruby, there can be a
> significant difference in performance. However, we have not had
> experience with the Sony Ruby, so we can't comment on how much of a
> difference in performance you will see. However, in our experience with
> projector displays, their scaling properties are generally as good as
> the Faroudja offerings. Therefore, you will likely see a difference at
> a true 1080p signal, but it should not be significant.
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Customer Service
> OPPO Digital, Inc.
> 453 Ravendale Dr, Suite D
> Mountain View, CA 94043

If anyone else has had an opportunity to compare the 971H against the 981HD to a Ruby, that would be nice to have, given that no testing has been published yet.

Thanks all for the replies and feedback.

I have not yet had time to do a calibration of the DVI input on my Hitachi with DVE as yet due to Holiday activities, and the color balance is noticeably off, but that is not an issue for me. It is the noticeably softer and less detailed picture with the Oppo that bothers me. I know I can correct color issues much more easily than detail issues.

I did read the article that tested the Hitachi and mentioned the Progressive input issue. I do not see that. I am feeding the component inputs with 480p from the Denon, and the picture is OUTSTANDING - no flicker or other anomalies that my aging eyes can see.

Something strange going on here apparently...

Last night I had some time to kill so I decided to take the anti glare screen off of my mits diamond rptv....Thus I needed to recalibrate. I did this with DVE. After finishing I decided to pop in a DVD ...Doom. Everything looked great until just before you see the Rock sitting in at the desk with the words SEMPERFI on his back. In that dark hallway I could see the walls of the hallway get redish bloches.
I mean really bad. I tried all the different resolutions...No difference. I popped the same disk in my Denon 2200 it looked fine no red bloches. I popped it back into the Oppo and the only way to get rid of it was to turn the TRUELIFE off. What does turning TRUELIFE off do. Does this bypass the F processor. Is it still upscaled

I think TRUELIFE detects the movie you are watching and makes it look horrible, so you'll get mad and go outside and do something productive. Thus the problem was DOOM, not the OPPO.

</sarcasm>

Hi, having spent many hours reading up on the Oppo 71H I may now be more confused than confident in a decision to make a purchase. If someone can help me understand a few items that would be awesome!

1) I was wondering if someone can explain the value in having an upconverting DVD player if the TV upconverts anyway?

2) I have a Toshiba 51H83 RPTV. Anyone hazard a guess as to how the Oppo will perform on this unit using a DVI connection?

3) I've read that macroblocking isn't bad on CRT displays, anyone know how it will be on a RPTV?

4) Bottom line, will this unit give me a better picture than the basic old school progressive scan DVD player? And can this be achieved without an expensive visit by a tech for calibration?!

My thanks to anyone who can shed some light on this!

I popped the same disk in my Denon 2200 it looked fine no red bloches. I popped it back into the Oppo and the only way to get rid of it was to turn the TRUELIFE off. What does turning TRUELIFE off do. Does this bypass the F processor. Is it still upscaled Truelife OFF does not bypass the Faroudja processing, just the Truelife "enhancement". Many of us prefer to leave it off for the very same reason you turned it off... occasional macroblock-enhance.

Gary

Hi, having spent many hours reading up on the Oppo 71H I may now be more confused than confident in a decision to make a purchase. If someone can help me understand a few items that would be awesome!

1) I was wondering if someone can explain the value in having an upconverting DVD player if the TV upconverts anyway?

2) I have a Toshiba 51H83 RPTV. Anyone hazard a guess as to how the Oppo will perform on this unit using a DVI connection?

3) I've read that macroblocking isn't bad on CRT displays, anyone know how it will be on a RPTV?

4) Bottom line, will this unit give me a better picture than the basic old school progressive scan DVD player? And can this be achieved without an expensive visit by a tech for calibration?!

My thanks to anyone who can shed some light on this! 1) A player as good as the OPPO, does the upconversion much better than the TV.

3) Depends on the technology. DLP could be bad, unless you calibrate properly.

4) Absolutely! But see 3 above.

Gary

Oppo Digital DV-971H Settings Guide, V1.0, dated 01/01/2006 is the only settings guide I could find. Is there a later version for firmware 11-0830? If so, does anyone have a link to it? thanks, dean123

The DVD player has not changed much since the 1111B firmware in November. Somethings have been tightened, but the contrast, brightness, and other settings are industry standard. The guide should still be useful for the 11-0830 Firmware.

Well I picked one of these up about a week ago. I have it hooked up via dvi to a Zenith/lg crt tube TV that upconverts to 1080i..

Well it is a nice looking unit and very solid. Menus are easy to navigate. DVD tray kind of stinks, it is almost like it does not come out far enough, but it is no big deal. It has a great picture on bright scenes, better than my Oynko or 360… But the tiling caused by the Faroudja on fog and some dark scenes is horrible almost to the point that I am thinking of getting rid of the unit already. It’s just way too distracting. It is too bad because I like everything else about this unit.

Anyway to help alleviate this problem?

Dave

Well I picked one of these up about a week ago. I have it hooked up via dvi to a Zenith/lg crt tube TV that upconverts to 1080i..

Well it is a nice looking unit and very solid. Menus are easy to navigate. DVD tray kind of stinks, it is almost like it does not come out far enough, but it is no big deal. It has a great picture on bright scenes, better than my Oynko or 360… But the tiling caused by the Faroudja on fog and some dark scenes is horrible almost to the point that I am thinking of getting rid of the unit already. It’s just way too distracting. It is too bad because I like everything else about this unit.

Anyway to help alleviate this problem?

Dave

I had the same issue on a DLP TV. I moved it to a LCD and the issues are much less.

Well I picked one of these up about a week ago. I have it hooked up via dvi to a Zenith/lg crt tube TV that upconverts to 1080i..

Well it is a nice looking unit and very solid. Menus are easy to navigate. DVD tray kind of stinks, it is almost like it does not come out far enough, but it is no big deal. It has a great picture on bright scenes, better than my Oynko or 360… But the tiling caused by the Faroudja on fog and some dark scenes is horrible almost to the point that I am thinking of getting rid of the unit already. It’s just way too distracting. It is too bad because I like everything else about this unit.

Anyway to help alleviate this problem?

Dave
I used a 971H with my Zenith C32V37 (an LG-produced CRT direct-view set) and never encountered macroblocking. The first step is to make sure that you've calibrated the set using DVE or AVIA - CRT's don't generally have trouble with macroblocking, and I'd suspect that calibration should dial things in nicely.

Am I missing something about the discrete on/off remote control problem?

Couldn't the current power code be used to power on the unit but disable the power off fuctionality in the firmware? then write another code that would power off the unit. They said that the hardware will not allow them to change the power on code so leave it the same. While the system is on, it should be able to interpret a power off code, right? Further, those with universals would have discrete buttons and would use the power off code, not the power toggle, to power down the unit. It seems to make sense to me. Someone please correct this if I'm wrong.

z

From OPPO:

Q: Is there a firmware update that will add discrete on/off remote codes to the OPDV971H so that I can use my universal remote control to turn on/off all my AV equipments at once?

A: Due to existing hardware limitation, it is impossible to add discrete on/off to the current OPDV971H via a firmware update. The reason is that the 971H hardware was designed to have a "true standby" mode. When the power is turned off using either the remote or the power button on the player, the entire DVD player shuts down. The main processor which is in charge of interpreting the remote code is turned off completely. The only circuits with power are the standby power supply and the IR sensor board. The IR sensor board can only interpret one remote code, which is the current ON/OFF code. When it receives this code, it turns on the main power supply thus bringing the player out from standby mode. Because the main processor is turned off in the standby mode, it is impossible to interpret a discrete on/off remote code with it.

My understanding is that the way the power button functions is the problem. What you describe might work (a power on/off toggle and a discrete power off command), but that isn't going to do folks much good for macro writing - the "off" command could be a sure thing, but the "on" command would not be a true discrete. That would be of only marginal use for macro writing.

are oppo dvd players sold in any stores other then online ones?

No, Oppo's players are sold online only - direct from OPPO or from a few other online outlets such as Surf Audio Video and Amazon.com.

yeah I see the issue with the macro but I thought an 'off' code would solve part of the problem and based on Neuromancers response, OPPO hasn't explained that wouldn't work. Since it won't work with the system off, it should work with the system on...right?

Ok, I have been looking at the HT sections of this forum for awhile. Then moved on to the Projector section. I have often heard of many references to the OPPO dvd players.

What is it about these players that are so popular here?

What should I know about these players before I invest in one?

Ok, I have been looking at the HT sections of this forum for awhile. Then moved on to the Projector section. I have often heard of many references to the OPPO dvd players.

What is it about these players that are so popular here?

What should I know about these players before I invest in one?

Good value for the money.

High scores here: http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi

Excellent customer support; staff who know what they're doing.

Frequent firmware updates.

Can be made region-free, plays PAL and does PAL->NTSC conversion.

What you should know:

Some people complain about the tray; it doesn't have cutouts for your fingers so you have to jam your finger in the disk center hole. The tray seems flimsy, although it is actually tough.

Read the FAQs on the Oppo site, and be aware of the differences between the models: http://www.oppodigital.com/dv981hd/dv981hd_comp.html

-Bill

...The guide should still be useful for the 11-0830 Firmware.
Thanks for the input Neuromancer. I have really been pleased with this unit.
dean123

Good value for the money.

High scores here: http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi

Excellent customer support; staff who know what they're doing.

Frequent firmware updates.

Can be made region-free, plays PAL and does PAL->NTSC conversion.

What you should know:

Some people complain about the tray; it doesn't have cutouts for your fingers so you have to jam your finger in the disk center hole. The tray seems flimsy, although it is actually tough.

Read the FAQs on the Oppo site, and be aware of the differences between the models: http://www.oppodigital.com/dv981hd/dv981hd_comp.html

-Bill

Sounds like you hit the nail right on the head Bill. I almost can't believe it's held its' top ranking in Secrets for this long. It's been out-done by the Denon 5910[a $3500 machine] once or twice, only to bounce back to the top spot with the next FWUG. As good as the player is though, it's their outstanding customer service that keeps me loyal.

I am a very happy user of 971, is there any chance OPPO will fix the underscanning?

Still on their "To Do" list.

That's the one point that's never stopped buggin' me.

That's the one point that's never stopped buggin' me.
if it were any other manufacturer, i don't think it would make their list at all. I'm gladd Oppo works on it's problems.

Is this under/over scanning only affecting those that use HTPC or using their Projector as their PC monitor?

I received the 971 for Christmas from my mother in-law and was finally able to hook it up last night when the wife and I got home from New Jersey. I made it region free, set it to video 2, and to output 1080i, and then placed in the region 3 Director's Cut of Army of Darkness (I have been waiting to purchase this player for its region free ability). All that I can say is wow. The OPPO 971 is one heck of a player. It easily eclipses the S77 that it replaced and outperforms my XA1. I love how it will output 4:3 material in 1080i in 4:3 just like my XA1. I then finished the night by watching the Ultimate Edition of You Only Live Twice. I am extremely pleased with the 971. The only complaint is that the disc tray does not come out fully; it seems that most share this complaint.

1) A player as good as the OPPO, does the upconversion much better than the TV.

3) Depends on the technology. DLP could be bad, unless you calibrate properly.

4) Absolutely! But see 3 above.

Gary
Thanks for the feedback Gary!

Is anyone using an Oppo with a Rear Projection HDTV like the one I have? I was just wondering if I'm going to encounter some of the more severe macroblocking that others have noted. I'm also not looking to spend more on calibrating the TV than on the Oppo istself! And, I really don't want ot get the "you payed how much for this?" and the "doesn't look any better to me" response from my wife!!

Hi, having spent many hours reading up on the Oppo 71H I may now be more confused than confident in a decision to make a purchase. If someone can help me understand a few items that would be awesome!

1) I was wondering if someone can explain the value in having an upconverting DVD player if the TV upconverts anyway?

2) I have a Toshiba 51H83 RPTV. Anyone hazard a guess as to how the Oppo will perform on this unit using a DVI connection?

3) I've read that macroblocking isn't bad on CRT displays, anyone know how it will be on a RPTV?

4) Bottom line, will this unit give me a better picture than the basic old school progressive scan DVD player? And can this be achieved without an expensive visit by a tech for calibration?!

My thanks to anyone who can shed some light on this!

I have a Toshiba 65HX93, very similar model to yours I think. I've had my OPPO for couple of years now and feel like it was a good purchase. I use the DVI output ito my Tosh and generally set the OPPO to wide-sqz mode.

I haven't noticed problems with macro-blocking. I did have to modify the OPPO settings slighly diferent from the defaults in order to get whiter than white and blacker than black to show on my Toshiba, but perhaps that's just me.

You should do a calibration using DVE or AVIA using the OPPO though.


Rick

Ok, I have been looking at the HT sections of this forum for awhile. Then moved on to the Projector section. I have often heard of many references to the OPPO dvd players.

What is it about these players that are so popular here?

What should I know about these players before I invest in one?

I'm quite pleased with my OPPO, but one thing that might cause you problems is with playing DVD's recorded on standalone DVD recorders. In some cases you may encounter some stuttering.

This used to be a serious problem on my older Emerson (Funai) DVD recorder, but not on my Pioneer recorder. After FW upgrades, the have reduced the problem on the Emerson recorder, but now it also stutters occasionally on the Pioneer recordings.

A pause and and play usually gets rid of it, until you fast forward past a commercial. It a hit and miss problem now, irritating at time but the PQ improvement makes it worhtwhile. Also, I haven't had this happen on any commercial DVD's or DVD's recorded on my PC, just on standalone recroders.

It seems this does not affect everyone, since I hear very little noise about it on this board. but I've had a few PM's about it after I've posted comments. I've also been in touch with OPPO and they have been good about trying to fix via Firmware upgrades. (they've even requested - and been sent- sample DVD's to use for their internal testing).



Rick

I received the 971 for Christmas from my mother in-law and was finally able to hook it up last night when the wife and I got home from New Jersey. I made it region free, set it to video 2, and to output 1080i, and then placed in the region 3 Director's Cut of Army of Darkness (I have been waiting to purchase this player for its region free ability). All that I can say is wow. The OPPO 971 is one heck of a player. It easily eclipses the S77 that it replaced and outperforms my XA1. I love how it will output 4:3 material in 1080i in 4:3 just like my XA1. I then finished the night by watching the Ultimate Edition of You Only Live Twice. I am extremely pleased with the 971. The only complaint is that the disc tray does not come out fully; it seems that most share this complaint. If you are using a natively progressive display, you will get even better results with the 720p output.

Gary

I have a Toshiba 65HX93, very similar model to yours I think. I've had my OPPO for couple of years now and feel like it was a good purchase. I use the DVI output ito my Tosh and generally set the OPPO to wide-sqz mode.

I haven't noticed problems with macro-blocking. I did have to modify the OPPO settings slighly diferent from the defaults in order to get whiter than white and blacker than black to show on my Toshiba, but perhaps that's just me.

You should do a calibration using DVE or AVIA using the OPPO though.


Rick
Thanks for the feedback Rick!

Quick question, what is the DVE or AVIA you mentioned? Where would I get them and what do they cost?

Thanks, Chuck

Love my Oppo.. but wondering if anyone has played with the Pioneer Elite DV46AV DV-46AV, or maybe a compro posted somewhere?
thanks as always

Quick question, what is the DVE or AVIA you mentioned? Where would I get them and what do they cost? Thanks, Chuck

DVE means Digital Video Essentials, which is a disc that has numerous patterns for you to calibrate your DVD player and TV or pj to industry standards. AVIA is similar. If done properly you can be sure you're getting the most from your components.

If you are using a natively progressive display, you will get even better results with the 720p output.

Gary

Gary,

I have a 34" Sony XBR960; native 1080i.

Jeremy

I have heard that the Oppo is at its best when set to 720p regardless of display.

I have heard that the Oppo is at its best when set to 720p regardless of display. That is true. The 720p processing from the Faroudja chip is better than 1080i. But when it comes to a 1080i display, that may also depend on the quality of the display's processing. Best thing to do with a 1080i display, is try both 720p and 1080i resolutions from the OPPO, and see which you prefer, especially with moving images.

Gary

I am trying to see if I have a defective Oppo. I am currently watching the Lady in the Water DVD and it is ridiculously noisy. Other DVDs I have watched have been ok, but I was never really impressed with the quality.

Has anyone watched Lady in the Water on the Oppo and had similar noise problems? Thanks in advance.

Thanks for the feedback Rick!

Quick question, what is the DVE or AVIA you mentioned? Where would I get them and what do they cost?

Thanks, Chuck

Those are both Calibartion DVD's DVE is Digital Video Essentials I think, and AVIA is just AVIA. If you get AVIA you'll want something with BTB and whiter than white patterns. The home AVIA doesnt have those, although after I make sure those are ok, I usually fine tune with AVIA.

There is a thread in the AVS forum Main Forum --> Display Devices --> calibration on display calibration that talks about calibrating your display. I use AVIA along with GetGray and couple of other DVD's. I think you can find calibration DVD's for around 20-30 bucks. You can also look at the THX settings tests on some DVD's.

These all let you set various basic setting on your display: color, tint, black level and white level, and maybe sharpness. Basic settings, but you'll definietly want to do them. If I recall, the Toshiba TV Movie Mode was not too bad setting on my set, but the Sports mode put the TV in torch mode.

Rick

I am trying to see if I have a defective Oppo. I am currently watching the Lady in the Water DVD and it is ridiculously noisy. Other DVDs I have watched have been ok, but I was never really impressed with the quality.

Has anyone watched Lady in the Water on the Oppo and had similar noise problems? Thanks in advance. Did you calibrate the TV to the new player? It can make a WORLD of difference.

I have not seen "Lady in the Water" yet, and I don't know what you mean by "noisy", but some movies are created with grain or are badly encoded. Try a clean digital animation, like "Ice Age" or Pixar movies like "The Incredibles" to test for real noise issues.

Gary

I have a Samsung 32" LCD (3251D), and I emailed Oppo asking which dvd player they would recommend for my display between the 970 and 971. They responded:

Scott,

Either DVD player will work on your display. The main difference
between the OPDV971H and the DV-970HD are their de-interlacing characteristics.
The OPDV971H has the superior de-interlacing and scaling chipset which
can reduce jagged edges and combing errors. However, the amount of
processing done will slightly decrease sharpness. If sharpness is your
main worry, then you will want to go with the DV-970HD, as it supports
better sharpness.

Best Regards,

Customer Service

Now to the average viewer, which player would present a "better" picture on my display? Also, what is combing? Thanks for any help.

Those are both Calibartion DVD's DVE is Digital Video Essentials I think, and AVIA is just AVIA. If you get AVIA you'll want something with BTB and whiter than white patterns. The home AVIA doesnt have those, although after I make sure those are ok, I usually fine tune with AVIA.

There is a thread in the AVS forum Main Forum --> Display Devices --> calibration on display calibration that talks about calibrating your display. I use AVIA along with GetGray and couple of other DVD's. I think you can find calibration DVD's for around 20-30 bucks. You can also look at the THX settings tests on some DVD's.

These all let you set various basic setting on your display: color, tint, black level and white level, and maybe sharpness. Basic settings, but you'll definietly want to do them. If I recall, the Toshiba TV Movie Mode was not too bad setting on my set, but the Sports mode put the TV in torch mode.

Rick
Thanks again for the feedback Rick!

I'm pondering the DV971H for use with my business oriented projector (Boxlight cp-300t), and was wondering if anyone had requested that Oppo provide for custom DVI settings? This projector only supports a few computer resolutions on its DVI inputs. It doesn't support the normal HD modes, like 720p or 1080i. I'm using a Bravo D1 right now, which is ok, but I'm pretty sick of its incredibly slow performance and buggy nature. I'd love to get this Oppo if I can make it work with my projector.

James

Im pairing my Oppo w/an Optoma H31, is there any way I can get 1:1 pixel mapping with my PJ. I know it's an option with the Bravo D1 player. Can my Oppo do a custom rez of 854x480? Im wondering if this is such a big deal? Should I dump my Oppo on eBay for the Bravo D1 player which is currently selling for 'peanuts' on Newegg.com?

Does anyone have any screen shot exapmle of the OPPO with the upconvert to 720p and 1080i turned as compared to 420p?

Has 971 been officially discontinued.? OnlyBestrated webpage states so, although I don't see anything in Oppo site

does anyone know when playing a divx/xvid file that is 2.35:1 ratio , does this player stretch the picture or take up the whole screen when it should leave the black bars there.... I want to know if it will keep the proper aspect ratio of 2.35:1 in a divx file... thanx

Has 971 been officially discontinued.? OnlyBestrated webpage states so, although I don't see anything in Oppo site
The 971H has not been discontinued, although it is apparently out of stock at the moment. It still appears on OPPO's front page: here's a direct link to the 971H page (http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h.html).

EDIT: Well, I didn't think it had been discontinued, but Neuromancer's a better source than I on these matters.

If you call OPPO they are stating that it is being discontinued as a manufactured product (ie. No new units are going to be produced) but the product will still be warrantied and expanded upon well into the future.

does anyone know when playing a divx/xvid file that is 2.35:1 ratio , does this player stretch the picture or take up the whole screen when it should leave the black bars there.... I want to know if it will keep the proper aspect ratio of 2.35:1 in a divx file... thanx
The player will respect the aspect ratio and will display it correctly, if it is set as WIDE/SZ mode. However it relies on a flag set on the file to decide. Since July I had only one file which displayed wrong aspect ratio and that was a home made one.

My installer only ran component wires to my projector so I cant use the DVI on my 971...but...if I connect the 971 via DVI to my Denon AVR2807 and then output component from the AVR2807 to my projector will I get the upscaling?

TIA

The 971H's component output is not connected to the Faroudja chip at all, it is purely a 480i output. Upscaling DVD players have generally been restricted to doing higher than 480p only over DVI or HDMI - there used to be a few exceptions, but those have dried up. Oppo's 970HD will upscale non-copy protected DVD's to HD resolutions at the component output (and there's a firmware hack that allows that for copy protected DVD's as well), but the 971H and 981HD are solely digital output players (the 981HD actually eliminated the component output).

Thanks for letting me know the bad news - one of my old zeniths is at death's door and it appears sadly there isn't anything to replace it with unless I find an old 970HD and the firmware hack or another older zenith.

The 971H has not been discontinued, although it is apparently out of stock at the moment. It still appears on OPPO's front page: here's a direct link to the 971H page (http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h.html).

EDIT: Well, I didn't think it had been discontinued, but Neuromancer's a better source than I on these matters.

One of the main reasons why it is on the main page still so prominently shown is that
a) it is their legacy product which has all the great reviews. If you go to the website to find information on the OPDV971H, you will undoubtedly be interested in the other pictured products.

b) their website is pretty bad, so the easiest way to navigate it is to just click on the picture of the product.

Thanks for letting me know the bad news - one of my old zeniths is at death's door and it appears sadly there isn't anything to replace it with unless I find an old 970HD and the firmware hack or another older zenith.

Purchase the DV-970HD from OPPO direct over the phone for $119.00. Then download the 1A-0613 Firmware and hope to God that someone updates that archaic firmware with something more modern.

b) their website is pretty bad, so the easiest way to navigate it is to just click on the picture of the product.Man, I love the OPPO website. Its clean, simple, uncluttered and very functional.

I hear a lot of this overscan setting from 97 to 100%.

What is overscan?

Is this only for those using HTPC?

Sorry ahead of time, if this has been hashed over and over in the past.

I hear a lot of this overscan setting from 97 to 100%.

What is overscan?

Is this only for those using HTPC?

Sorry ahead of time, if this has been hashed over and over in the past.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overscan

The 971 does not have overscan.

HTPC? Do you use standalone dvd players with HTPC?

-Bill

what would you guy's suggest for me... I am interested in getting an upscaling dvd player that plays divx... my primary use for the dvd player is for the divx... should I get the oppo 970 or 971? or any other? thnx

For Divx the DV-970HD will be a better solution, as the Faroudja chipset in the OPDV971H may enhance macroblocking errors in your DivX encodes, which will make them less then watchable.

Man, I love the OPPO website. Its clean, simple, uncluttered and very functional.

Its functional only if you have navigated it several times. It is not that intuitive for the un-initiated.

For Divx the DV-970HD will be a better solution, as the Faroudja chipset in the OPDV971H may enhance macroblocking errors in your DivX encodes, which will make them less then watchable.
It maybe so, however I am using 971 without any problems (I have an LCD RPTV)

For Divx the DV-970HD will be a better solution, as the Faroudja chipset in the OPDV971H may enhance macroblocking errors in your DivX encodes, which will make them less then watchable.
With everything I read I see as many reasons to buy an 971H as not to.

Can anyone give their input as to which player would better match an HDTV broadcast, the 971H or the 970HD?

Also, with the macroblocking issue of the Faroujda chip, what are the benefits of this chip? Are the giveaways worth the gains?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

For a well mastered DVD, the OPDV971H and the DV-981HD will produce the superior picture quality. For poorly mastered content, which includes highly compressed DivX, you will see macroblocking errors on a more regular basis. For this reason, the DV-970HD is my preferred player for poorly compressed media and personal backups.

Thanks for the advice!

My OPPO recognizes the DL disc fine and plays the first layer fine, but as soon as it hits the second layer it feezes and skips. I'm using Verbatim DVD +R DL media. The discs play fine in my other DVD players (Sony / Zenith) but not in the OPPO. I have the latest firmware installed. Anyone have the same issue and a resolution?

hi guys, I have the 971H, will it make sense to upgrade to the 970HD to get 1080p on my native 1080p HP DLP screen, or to go for some kind of HD-DVD / Blu-ray player (possibly PS3)?

The 970HD doesn't offer 1080p - the 981HD does. The 981HD is based directly on the 971H (same chassis, same Faroudja chipset) with a few changes - basically, the DVI got replaced by an HDMI v1.1 output, SACD support was added, the faceplate went from silver to black, and the maximum output resolution rose to 1080p. I talk a bit about how the two compare here (http://www.prillaman.net/oppo981_review.html), but unfortunately I can't test the difference made by 1080p. You might check out this 981HD thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=760726) for some details on the potential benefits of the 1080p output.

Has someone got any pictures to show the difference in picture quality? Any users that are using the Oppo with a Hitachi RPTV set?

Ray

[PS: The Oppo will marry my 57" Hitachi RPHDTV which supports DVI]

sorry I meant 981HD :P

Thanks gonk for link to thread but it's 44 pages long and it's not obvious whether anybody talked about the "superiority" of 1080p image output in that thread.

I am surprised to find no direct comparison of 1080i on 971H and 1080p on 981HD yet.

Also another question I have about 981HD is, does it read/play Divx files with HD resolution? On my old Oppo 971H, it doesn't play files with resolution exceeding SD, like 640x480.

I think that whether there are better results at 1080p or not will depend at least somewhat on the display, but I think there was at least one person posting in the 981HD thread that he'd found the 981HD to be a step up from the 971H.

The 981HD's support for Divx is the same as the 971H's - it cannot support Divx files at HD resolutions.

The 981HD's support for Divx is the same as the 971H's - it cannot support Divx files at HD resolutions.

Oh, that's sad. HD-Divx files woulda look great output at 1080p.

But why is this the case? A limitation of firmware or chipset?

My OPPO recognizes the DL disc fine and plays the first layer fine, but as soon as it hits the second layer it feezes and skips. I'm using Verbatim DVD +R DL media. The discs play fine in my other DVD players (Sony / Zenith) but not in the OPPO. I have the latest firmware installed. Anyone have the same issue and a resolution?

Use the link to go to the first post and serach for the following: TOONCES T. CAT'S DUAL LAYER BURN

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=491306&page=1&pp=30

If you still have problems send me a PM and I'll help you sort it out.

-Toonces...:D

But why is this the case? A limitation of firmware or chipset?

Chipset is designed for 720x480 decoding. MTK does not have a HD solution, and OPPO does not like Sigma.

Has someone got any pictures to show the difference in picture quality? Any users that are using the Oppo with a Hitachi RPTV set?

Ray

[PS: The Oppo will marry my 57" Hitachi RPHDTV which supports DVI]

I have the Oppo 971 connected to my Hitachi 57SWX20B via DVI, and the picture quality is stunning. It's very hard to tell the difference between it's output with a well-encoded SD DVD and my HD cable box (SA8300 connected via component).

The difference between the Oppo and the Pioneer DV563SA it replaced is truly remarkable. I don't have any pictures, though. If there's a particular title and time code you'd like for reference, I'll take a picture and post it here . . . assuming I have the title, anyway :)

I have my Oppo's power plugged into my DD receiver's switched outlet. That means that when I turn my receiver on, the Oppo goes into standby, and when I turn my receiver off, there's no power to the Oppo. Should I be worried about that damaging the Oppo in any way?

Eben,

I would just ensure that you turn Off the DVD player before the receiver to ensure that there are no power problems related to the Power just being lost.

Eben,

I would just ensure that you turn Off the DVD player before the receiver to ensure that there are no power problems related to the Power just being lost.
I do do that, I was just being paranoid about cutting the power while the Oppo's in standby. Thanks for calming my fears.

Has someone got any pictures to show the difference in picture quality? Any users that are using the Oppo with a Hitachi RPTV set?

Ray

[PS: The Oppo will marry my 57" Hitachi RPHDTV which supports DVI]

You didn't say which Hitachi you have. I have the 57F59 hooked up to the Oppo 971 via DVI to HDMI and (with the exception of a few HDMI glitches) have been extremely pleased with the PQ.

The color is more vibrant, jaggies have all but disappeared and with a CRT based TV no problems with macroblocking. And IMO rivals the OTA HD broadcasts I receive.

Don't forget, if you don't like it you've got 30 days to send it back. Sorry, no pictures.

I used to own the Oppo 971. I bought a Cambridge Audio Azur DVD player to use primarily as a CD player.

The thing is, the CA Azur has the exact same GUI as the Oppo. True, the Oppo had a cuople more features, but how come the AV menus are exactly the same? Do companies buy generic control modules to incorporate into their products?

One of the chief reasons I bought both these players was because they have remote controllable volume. Does anybody know how this is implemented & does it degrade sound quality? It appears it would always be in the circuit, even if it is set to full volume.

Anyone care to opine?

Thanks!

I used to own the Oppo 971. I bought a Cambridge Audio Azur DVD player to use primarily as a CD player.

The thing is, the CA Azur has the exact same GUI as the Oppo. True, the Oppo had a cuople more features, but how come the AV menus are exactly the same? Do companies buy generic control modules to incorporate into their products?

One of the chief reasons I bought both these players was because they have remote controllable volume. Does anybody know how this is implemented & does it degrade sound quality? It appears it would always be in the circuit, even if it is set to full volume.

Anyone care to opine?

Thanks!
OPPO is a subsidiary of BBK Electronics, which is apparently a pretty huge manufacturer of players in China. I've read elsewhere that at least some of Cambridge's players are manufactured by BBK based on designs that Cambridge helps develop, so it's not unreasonable to expect the GUI incorporated by BBK for the Cambridge players looks a lot like the GUI that BBK and OPPO use for the OPPO players.

Just got the 971HD and hooked it up to a Vizio VX32L. I played Pirates 2 and Lord of the Rings hoping I can see the diff b/t 480p/720p/1080i. I can't seem to see a noticeable difference (improvement) when I switch the output of the 971HD from 480p to 720p or 1080i. Is this b/c the Vizio is doing the upconversion when the 971HD is outputting 480p? Or am I not looking hard enough? I tried to find the fine details such as facial hair, clothing texture, greenery details (grass, trees, etc). Any advice as to what to really look for or a better movie to test it out with? Thanks!

I have the Oppo 971 connected to my Hitachi 57SWX20B via DVI, and the picture quality is stunning. It's very hard to tell the difference between it's output with a well-encoded SD DVD and my HD cable box (SA8300 connected via component).

jddrum, I was just curious why you were using component with the SA8300 instead of HDMI? I'm switching to the sa8300 box next week and was just wondering.

aggiealum... The primary benefit of an upconverting player is to work around a low-quality scaler or deinterlacer in the display device. If your display (VX32L) has a good scaler and deinterlacer, then you shouldn't notice much difference between it and the 971H.

Just got the 971HD and hooked it up to a Vizio VX32L. I played Pirates 2 and Lord of the Rings hoping I can see the diff b/t 480p/720p/1080i. I can't seem to see a noticeable difference (improvement) when I switch the output of the 971HD from 480p to 720p or 1080i. Is this b/c the Vizio is doing the upconversion when the 971HD is outputting 480p? Or am I not looking hard enough? I tried to find the fine details such as facial hair, clothing texture, greenery details (grass, trees, etc). Any advice as to what to really look for or a better movie to test it out with? Thanks! The Vizio is doing the scaling when the 971HD is outputting 480p. The 971 still does the much more difficult motion-adaptive de-interlacing. Generally, the OPPO's 720p scaler is better than most TV's, as can be seen in test patterns, but if 480p looks better to you for some reason, then go ahead and use it.

Gary

I am using my 971H over HDMI image quality is not good. Image is not smooth around the edges (stair stepping on diagonal edges) of image. I tried the image sharpness off. It's almost like JPEG artifacts around the edge. I am using with PAnny AE900U with 720P. I don't know what firmware version using but for sure that's not the latest.

I am using my 971H over HDMI image quality is not good. Image is not smooth around the edges (stair stepping on diagonal edges) of image. I tried the image sharpness off. It's almost like JPEG artifacts around the edge. I am using with PAnny AE900U with 720P. I don't know what firmware version using but for sure that's not the latest.

open the disc tray, then hit the OSD button. it should tell you what firmware you have. i just replaced a cheap toshiba upscaler with the oppo and it is much, much better. the toshiba picture had a alot of noise on it. i have it hooked up to a samsung dlp which i have calibrated pretty well. i don't notice much macroblocking with the player. the only thing i tend to see is a bit of a green push but i can live with it.

I am using my 971H over HDMI image quality is not good. Image is not smooth around the edges (stair stepping on diagonal edges) of image. I tried the image sharpness off. It's almost like JPEG artifacts around the edge. I am using with PAnny AE900U with 720P. I don't know what firmware version using but for sure that's not the latest. Something is drastically wrong then. What is your source DVD? Try the latest firmware, and use a high-quality encoding, or a calibration DVD like DVE/Avia.

Did you select 720p output on the OPPO? Does your player still have default settings on the Video page? The projector should have at least a basic calibration to the new player, including brightness, contrast and color saturation. Have you turned off the projector's sharpness and all its "enhancement" circuits?

Gary

I upgraded the firmware to the latest.
I tried with "ICE AGE Meltdown" from blockbuster.
I set the Player to 720/60 mode.

I set true life on. CCS on. NR on.

My panny proj sharpness set to OFF. Adjusted brightness and contrast settings to visibly OK settings to me. Still I am having stair stepping as I am seeing in zoom mode. I checked my player and proj and make sure no zooming is on. I am using direct connectiong from DVD player to prj using HDMI.

Hey all! Long time reader, first time poster (in the Oppo thread, that is).

Just received my 971 recently and thought I'd share a little side by side comparison I did.

Although I don't believe the LG holds a candle to the Oppo, I thought it'd be fun to do a little picture comparison of my old LG LDA-511 player which I just replaced with an Oppo OPDV971H.

Pictures have been cropped and compressed. Both were taken with both players set to 720p and displayed on my Sony KDF-E50A10. In retrospect, I should have chosen a few other scenes for comparison but regretfully I only took one. It's from Star Wars - RotJ.

Disclaimer: I am not a photographer


LG
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v215/bump909/dvd-lg-cropped.jpg

Oppo
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v215/bump909/dvd-oppo-cropped.jpg


Note that there were no horizontal lines during playback, just when I paused it on the Oppo in order to take the photo.

The biggest difference to me is the amount of detail the Oppo shows or what the LG doesn't show. A good example is the detail in the yak's (or whatever the heck it is) horns on the far right of the screen.

The LG seems to really mute the details, like it's "smearing" them.

Well, anyways, I'm very happy with my Oppo purchase. I think it will keep me quite content until the HD-DVD/Bluray format war is close to being over.

Hey all! Long time reader, first time poster (in the Oppo thread, that is).

Just received my 971 recently and thought I'd share a little side by side comparison I did.

Although I don't believe the LG holds a candle to the Oppo, I thought it'd be fun to do a little picture comparison of my old LG LDA-511 player which I just replaced with an Oppo OPDV971H.

Pictures have been cropped and compressed. Both were taken with both players set to 720p and displayed on my Sony KDF-E50A10. In retrospect, I should have chosen a few other scenes for comparison but regretfully I only took one. It's from Star Wars - RotJ.

Disclaimer: I am not a photographer



The LG seems to really mute the details, like it's "smearing" them.

Well, anyways, I'm very happy with my Oppo purchase. I think it will keep me quite content until the HD-DVD/Bluray format war is close to being over.

I am not sure, but I believe that the remasterd original SW movies looked better on the Oppo than the newer ones. We watched all 6 over Christmas and my wife and Sister-in-law were amazed at the detail. And pleased as well.

I upgraded the firmware to the latest.
I tried with "ICE AGE Meltdown" from blockbuster.
I set the Player to 720/60 mode.

I set true life on. CCS on. NR on.

My panny proj sharpness set to OFF. Adjusted brightness and contrast settings to visibly OK settings to me. Still I am having stair stepping as I am seeing in zoom mode. I checked my player and proj and make sure no zooming is on. I am using direct connectiong from DVD player to prj using HDMI.

The 971 zoom mode will likely never look good. Are other resolutions OK (480p/1080i)? Do other sources at 720p look OK (cable/sat box)? Very early in the 971's life there was a problem with "stairstepping looking" artifact at 1080i on my Panasonic direct view LCD display. Some displays treat 540p and 1080i as if they were the same -- my Panasonic did not thus the problem. My Hitachi had no problem with the 1080i at all so it was all a bit puzzling at first. Others reported the 1080i problem at the time as well. That problem was fixed.

Paul

Well, I love my DV971H. I think the picture is fantastic on my Sony KDS rptv. Interesting, though, even though the folks at Oppo recommended setting the output to 720p for the best picture, I actually find that 1080i looks better on my Sony. Anyone else agree?

Well, I love my DV971H. I think the picture is fantastic on my Sony KDS rptv. Interesting, though, even though the folks at Oppo recommended setting the output to 720p for the best picture, I actually find that 1080i looks better on my Sony. Anyone else agree?


I find that to be true on my 1080i Phillips crt.

On occasion, I also find that true on my Sony RPTV

I want to buy a DVD player that will hopefully make DVDs look better on my Vizio GV42L. I currently have a Sony DVD/VCR combo and I assume a new DVD player will improve the PQ, but I have read a lot threads and I'm lost.

I will be only playing commercial DVDs, nothing with subtitles and would like to have the movie take up the whole screen as it does with my current DVD player.

So is this the right DVD player for me? If not can you suggest another? Should I just stick with what I have based on how I use it?

Hey all

I've recently started having problems with my 971. It has started stuttering/freezing on burned DVD's. Retails and burned .avi's seem fine. At first I thought it was the burner in my MacBook Pro, but now its happening with discs burned on my G5, which used to work fine.

Tonight it happened so I stuck the disc in my old DVP642, and the disc worked great. No skipping at all. I'm kind of miffed that my $69 player is working better than the $199 one I bought to "upgrade." And its been fine til recently - I'm on the latest firmware. I've had the unit almost a year. Any thoughts?

And just to pre-empt -- I've used the same media etc etc. Always burned with Toast on my Macs with no problems. So I kinda think its the Oppo.

Peace.

I've recently started having problems with my 971. It has started stuttering/freezing on burned DVD's. Retails and burned .avi's seem fine. At first I thought it was the burner in my MacBook Pro, but now its happening with discs burned on my G5, which used to work fine.

Tonight it happened so I stuck the disc in my old DVP642, and the disc worked great. No skipping at all. I'm kind of miffed that my $69 player is working better than the $199 one I bought to "upgrade." And its been fine til recently - I'm on the latest firmware. I've had the unit almost a year. Any thoughts? Maybe there's some dust in the optics. You could try a laser-cleaning CD. I have one from "Discwasher"... it has a tiny brush mounted on the recorded surface. Otherwise, you could try a blast of air from a duster can.

Gary

Well, I love my DV971H. I think the picture is fantastic on my Sony KDS rptv. Interesting, though, even though the folks at Oppo recommended setting the output to 720p for the best picture, I actually find that 1080i looks better on my Sony. Anyone else agree? Use the resolution that looks best to you, but you might want to read this post too: Best Output Resolution for a 1080p TV (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7407251&&#post7407251).

Gary

I've just bought it (oppo 971h) and I checked the firmware version, it's:

MVer: 05.00.01.07 Batch: -5-0919

I cannot understand if it's an older or a newer version.

What does the numbers in batch means?

Should I upgrade to version MVer: 05.00.01.07 Batch: 11-0830 ?

Thanks,
Filippo

Maybe there's some dust in the optics. You could try a laser-cleaning CD. I have one from "Discwasher"... it has a tiny brush mounted on the recorded surface. Otherwise, you could try a blast of air from a duster can.

Gary

I think it may have been a heat related issue, as the player was on top of my receiver, which has top vents -- even though the player has always been there. I watched the rest of the movie on the DVP642, and after put the Oppo on a different shelf, and it had cooled down. Put the DVD in and went to the point of problems and it worked fine. Oh yea, I also dl'ed the latest firmware (again) and flashed it again, so maybe it was that too.

FWIW, I haven't watched the DVP642 on the plasma in some time, and man, I'm glad I got my Oppo :D

Sounds obvious, but try one of those cleaners where you wet a CD and press play, even if it's working now, it's good for maintenance. It solved a few problems here already. Good luck.

Use the resolution that looks best to you, but you might want to read this post too: Best Output Resolution for a 1080p TV (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7407251&&#post7407251).

Gary

thanks Gary...I had read that post previously and that's why I'm confused why 1080i looks better than the other resolutions...seems like that shouldn't be the case...hmmm

Does it do my any good to buy the Oppo 981 if the tv can't accept 1080p anyways. I was thinking of buying the 970 and running the firmware hack to allow it to accept component upcoverting to 1080i. Plus my reciever doesn't have HDMI (ARCAM AVR-300)

Any thoughts?

Has anyone ever used the firmware from here?

http://www.opdv971h.com/

I really want to get rid of the uops, since I have a bunch of kids dvds, and when you have a screaming kid you don't want to wait for 3 minutes to get to the main content.

Anyway, I tried burning the file to a CD as a data file (which is my impression of what you should do) and it didn't seem to be recognized by the player.


Solved my problem, it was something with my burning program.