If Toonces is running a similar system then trust him on it. But you could also see my post on the other thread.

Dave,

You would be right to trust me on this one. I just finished up the 9 film Val Lewton collection of 40's horror films and they were spectacular at 480P in the wide mode. I tested a couple of them and they really lost a lot with the wide/sqz mode turned on.

I also looked at the new King Kong disc last night. It is a spectacular restoration! Even the film grain is fully visible and crisp and clear at 480P in the wide mode on the Sony. Set to wide/sqz at 720 it just gets fuzzy. The change is very obvious to me.

-Toonces

thx for your kind and thoughtful reply.

may i ask if you think there's a huge amount of loss of resolution when using the oppo's wide/sqz mode?

IF we choose to NOT use 480p (due to convenience issues, let's just assume that we like to just leave the oppo at 720p), what is the difference, if there were any differences, if we leave the oppo at Wide, versus leaving the oppo at Wide/sqz? leaving it at Wide means that for each 4:3 dvd, we have to manually go and change it to Wide/sqz, right? leaving it at Wide/sqz, we assume that for 16:9 material, the oppo "knows" to automatically turn itself back to the "Wide" mode? or is there a slight/not so slight difference?

have you found any differences between 720p versus 1080i outputting into your sony? by the way, we have similar but not the same tv's. i believe yours is the sony 50xbr800? which 50" LCD rear projection model do you have? do you have the A10? mine is actually the LCoS/SXRD model, the 60xbr1. so besides the difference between 50" vs 60" (which doesn't change our discussion/results at all), there's the differences between LCoS versus LCD rear projection. my previous tv was a 60xbr800 and the pictures are completely different between the 60xbr800 vs the 60xbr1.

i look forward to hearing what your thoughts are vis-a-vis 720p vs 1080i; as well as the Wide vs Wide/Sqz modes. i'm not sure that changing to 480p and then changing the sony's wide-normal mode is for me. then, i'd forget to change the oppo back to 720p or 1080i after i'm done with that particular dvd and i'll end up viewing the others all in 480p :(

oops...now that i just read your last post here...i'm thinking that i might just have to revise my thinking/procedure...can't afford to be that "lazy" in switching modes, etc.

it would be GREAT if you don't mind characterizing the loss of resolution by leaving the Oppo at 720p and using the Wide/Sqz mode with 4:3 material!

i'm not sure people have fully investigated the differences between 720p vs 1080i yet. i have not found anyone who's truly tried/tested it out carefully. would love to hear should anyone know more about that.

thanks in advance!

Dave,

You would be right to trust me on this one. I just finished up the 9 film Val Lewton collection of 40's horror films and they were spectacular at 480P in the wide mode. I tested a couple of them and they really lost a lot with the wide/sqz mode turned on.

I also looked at the new King Kong disc last night. It is a spectacular restoration! Even the film grain is fully visible and crisp and clear at 480P in the wide mode on the Sony. Set to wide/sqz at 720 it just gets fuzzy. The change is very obvious to me.

-Toonces

Toonces,

Just goes to show how system sensitive these things are. I tested on the restored Gone with the Wind (R2) the Tarten verion of Bergman's Persona (an astonishgly sharp DVD and the NTSC Now, Voyager, if I remember rightly. I summarized my results on the other thread (summary of summary: little to no difference)

I don't know why the difference should be so noticeable for you.

Maybe it's another thing oppo needs to look at--though the PAL firmware and the zoom...oh and the lipsynch, are priorities here.

Dave

PS: my "test" / experience so far is quite limited (just got the Oppo Tuesday). I had a chance to try out 5 mins of Lord of the Rings (one short scene) on my old Sony 700 (first inexpensive progressive player around $300 3 yrs ago - component outputs) and on the Oppo (dvi to hdmi to my sony 60xbr1). the MOST noticeable thing were the horizontal lines on the 1080i setting on the Oppo!!?! i couldn't image why there would be all these horizontal lines like old tv's? of course, by chance, i was sitting ridiculously close to the tv since i had just put the dvd in and just happened to be right there when the scene i selected started. i have yet to watch the scene at normal viewing distance, which is all that counts.

then last night, i had a chance to watch Concert for George on the Oppo at 720p (i decided since at 720p with the Lord of the Rings scene, the horizontal lines weren't there or barely there, maybe i'm better off with 720p setting, just guessing). it was fine but, of course, that dvd wasn't much of a test dvd. i tried McCartney's Concert in Red Square, which happened to be in 4:3, THAT'S when i discovered the issue with Wide versus Wide/Sqz.

i couldn't use the Sony's mode thing to change the fat people to regular, so i had to use the Oppo in the Wide/Sqz mode. of course, i could have tried out/opted for changing the Oppo to 480p, then used the Sony to do the Wide/Normal (or whatever it's called), but i was lazy.

i sort of feel like there should be some level of "auto recognition" that a dvd is either 16:9 or 4:3, unless it's a super special situation and you want to manually force it to show people fat. other that those unique circumstances, isn't it simply logical to just design dvd players where the default is to display 16:9 in the proper mode, and 4:3 in 4:3 with black bars on either side? that was the intended way the dvd/film was made, and certainly, no filmmaker would make a film and ASK viewers to view his/her film/dvd in an odd mode so all the actors are made to look wider! i'm baffled at this most fundamental, basic setting that is not automated or doesn't have a reasonable default. the other way to look at it is, according to Mr. TooncesTCat, the automated/default method of setting the Oppo to Wide/sqz is just not good and has too much loss, which Mr. Toonces called "unacceptable". why would anyone design a player like that? baffling to me. who would want to view 4:3 where all the actors are made wider/fatter looking? it's just not the intended way the filmmaker made the film to begin with.

thx for your kind and thoughtful reply.

may i ask if you think there's a huge amount of loss of resolution when using the oppo's wide/sqz mode?!

On my system the loss is substantial!

IF we choose to NOT use 480p (due to convenience issues, let's just assume that we like to just leave the oppo at 720p), what is the difference, if there were any differences, if we leave the oppo at Wide, versus leaving the oppo at Wide/sqz? leaving it at Wide means that for each 4:3 dvd, we have to manually go and change it to Wide/sqz, right? leaving it at Wide/sqz, we assume that for 16:9 material, the oppo "knows" to automatically turn itself back to the "Wide" mode? or is there a slight/not so slight difference?

The bottom-line is that it's all about "convenience" vs. picture quality and the correct aspect ratio. I am a stickler for both and will happily change the OPPO from 720P to 480P and back again to avoid either a less than perfect image or an incorrect OAR.

have you found any differences between 720p versus 1080i outputting into your sony? by the way, we have similar but not the same tv's. i believe yours is the sony 50xbr800? which 50" LCD rear projection model do you have? do you have the A10? mine is actually the LCoS/SXRD model, the 60xbr1. so besides the difference between 50" vs 60" (which doesn't change our discussion/results at all), there's the differences between LCoS versus LCD rear projection. my previous tv was a 60xbr800 and the pictures are completely different between the 60xbr800 vs the 60xbr1.

Yes I have found a difference (recognizing that our systems are different) and for me the 720P produces the superior image with anamorphic material.

oops...now that i just read your last post here...i'm thinking that i might just have to revise my thinking/procedure...can't afford to be that "lazy" in switching modes, etc.

Yes, it can be very irritating to switch modes, but I find the return well worth the effort. To me, the wide/sqz mode is a compromise put in place to quell the "lazy" hordes that do not like to switch modes...no offense intended... :D

On a side note, my Momitsu V880 automatically detected the correct OAR and would display it with no apparent loss of resolution...It is the only point on which it was the better player.

-Toonces

Thanks guys for the great anwsers, makes me understand this player a little bit more. This place is REALLy a great source of info. Thanks again.

Let's try to summarize:

1. The Oppo does have a 16:9 / 4:3 auto detection mode called Wide / SQZ. Use of that mode results in a loss of resolution for 4:3 material. One's perception of the loss and how it affects the final result may vary, but I think all will agree the loss is present.

2. Depending upon the display's scaler and capabilities, better 4:3 results may be obtained by setting the Oppo to output 480p and Wide and setting the display to output 4:3.

Note: the the Oppo is not alone with the loss of resolution in Wide/SQZ. The Panasonic S97 which utilizes the Faroudja chip exhibits the same loss of resolution as well.

Paul

Let's try to summarize:

1. The Oppo does have a 16:9 / 4:3 auto detection mode called Wide / SQZ. Use of that mode results in a loss of resolution for 4:3 material. One's perception of the loss and how it affects the final result may vary, but I think all will agree the loss is present.

Paul

And just to be crystal clear, the "loss or resolution" only affects 4:3 material using Wide/SQZ. 16:9 material will look identical in either the Wide or Wide/SQZ modes. So if convenience is important and/or if you don't watch a lot of 4:3 material, leave it in wide/sqz and forget about it.

I seem to remember that part of the top and bottom of the picture was missing when watching 4:3 material in Wide mode/420p - even with my Sony RP LCD set at normal. Does anyone else concur with this? That is why I began using Wide/SQZ - because I felt I was missing part of the picture with the Oppo set at Wide.

Can anyone help me to identify the correct cable to connect an OPDV971H DVD Player to a Panasonic TY-FB7HM Terminal Board (for a 50” Panasonic HDTV). I’m having a hell of a time figuring out exactly what cable I need.

I think I need a “DVI-I Dual Link Male 24 pins + 2 side-pin to HDMI Male cable”, but if that’s correct one, I can’t figure out where to buy it online.

TIA

I seem to remember that part of the top and bottom of the picture was missing when watching 4:3 material in Wide mode/420p - even with my Sony RP LCD set at normal. Does anyone else concur with this? That is why I began using Wide/SQZ - because I felt I was missing part of the picture with the Oppo set at Wide.

I have no loss of image area at all on my setup at 480P Wide with 4:3 images. Of course, I also have the over-scanning set properly so as not to cut anything off... ;)

-Toonces

Walester,

A DVI-I is an analogue/digital cable. For your DVD player you only need digital out.

To connect the OPPO through DVI to your Pana HDMI board you just need a simple DVI-D male (digital only, single channel) to HDMI male cable, just like one that Oppo ships with the player.

I have no loss of image area at all on my setup at 480P Wide with 4:3 images. Of course, I also have the over-scanning set properly so as not to cut anything off... ;)

-Toonces

That would explain it. I haven't adjusted overscan in the Sony GWIII's service menu yet.

I seem to remember that part of the top and bottom of the picture was missing when watching 4:3 material in Wide mode/420p - even with my Sony RP LCD set at normal. Does anyone else concur with this? That is why I began using Wide/SQZ - because I felt I was missing part of the picture with the Oppo set at Wide.

Yes, I forgot to mention that. With my set up when playing 4:3 in wide/480p/576p AR fixed by display device there was a serious cropping problem--at least 5% off the left hand side. That was what finally ruled it out for me as an option for watching 4:3 material.

Though, again this is as likely to be a problem with my ae700 pj and might be a PAL issue too (another one...). I need to use my Avia NTSC disc to check cropping at 480p.

BTW I downloaded the latest minor fw upgrade and it pushed the oppo picture considerably to the right and cropped a big chunk of the right hand side of the image! Reflashed it an it did it again. I've gone back to the last major fw.

Dave

Yes, I forgot to mention that. With my set up when playing 4:3 in wide/480p/576p AR fixed by display device there was a serious cropping problem--at least 5% off the left hand side. That was what finally ruled it out for me as an option for watching 4:3 material.

Though, again this is as likely to be a problem with my ae700 pj and might be a PAL issue too (another one...). I need to use my Avia NTSC disc to check cropping at 480p.

BTW I downloaded the latest minor fw upgrade and it pushed the oppo picture considerably to the right and cropped a big chunk of the right hand side of the image! Reflashed it an it did it again. I've gone back to the last major fw.

Dave

Damn, after the minor updated, my picture has shifted to the left about 5%, which is enough to show about a 1in. black bar on the right side. What changed? I thought they just updated the brightness? Is there any word on this from Oppo, as I have seem mentions from others with the same issue. Also, do I have to request the old firmware or is there a link to get the previous update? Thanks.

For the 4:3 films, or non-anamorphic prints like Criterion's Spartacus, I use 480P in the wide mode.

The Criterion edition of Spartacus is anamorphic. Do you mean the Universal release?

eieio, would you mind not double-posting your questions in both Oppo threads? We're trying to cut down on redundant posts. You are welcome to participate in both threads, but it would be better if you didn't ask the same questions in both. You'll find that you will get an answer no matter which one you ask in. Thanks.

The Criterion edition of Spartacus is anamorphic. Do you mean the Universal release?

Yikes! Boy that was a brain-fart if I've ever had one...Yes, I meant the Universal release. The criterion is anamorphic.

In fact, I actually know what was in my head when I wrote that. I was thinking about the Criterion Armageddon which is not anamorphic...I have the Aussie release which is enhanced for 16:9. Please write the error off to an information overload... :eek:

-Toonces

Damn, after the minor updated, my picture has shifted to the left about 5%, which is enough to show about a 1in. black bar on the right side. What changed? I thought they just updated the brightness? Is there any word on this from Oppo, as I have seem mentions from others with the same issue. Also, do I have to request the old firmware or is there a link to get the previous update? Thanks.

I thought I noticed a small shift to the left with 1080i after the update and inquired to Oppo about it. The response was that there was no change. I feel like going back to 1022 and having a look.

Paul

Paul et al.:

i had the shift to the left with my Oppo straight out of the box Tuesday!

i then had to find and burn 1022 firmware and then it seems to be working fine now. this Oppo certainly isn't a simple "plug and play" unit if one wanted it to perform as finely as people say it does...there's some work to tweak it and make it "sing", so i seem to feel so far.

i really don't know yet since i just got it on Tuesday and just started barely using it.

eieio,

We discuss so many aspects of this player from minutae to "major" problems....

I doubt many players have been under the microscope as much as this one. It has a lot of capability and performance. Combine that with Oppo Digital's willingness to work with us (just try to get a manufacturer to do that!) and you have a recipie for detailed discussion and debate.

No small wonder there are two huge threads on this player!

Paul

Paul et al.:

i had the shift to the left with my Oppo straight out of the box Tuesday!

i then had to find and burn 1022 firmware and then it seems to be working fine now. this Oppo certainly isn't a simple "plug and play" unit if one wanted it to perform as finely as people say it does...there's some work to tweak it and make it "sing", so i seem to feel so far.

i really don't know yet since i just got it on Tuesday and just started barely using it.


I also had the shift problem out of the box also...its only there when I'm in 720p or 1080i mode, 480 and 570 is normal...and no firmware updates has fixed it yet.

I also had the shift problem out of the box also...its only there when I'm in 720p or 1080i mode, 480 and 570 is normal...and no firmware updates has fixed it yet.

It appears, then, that the latest minor firware upgrade is causing a right shift to occur for many users in 720p or 1080i. It is likely that many recently distributed oppos will have this firmware as it appeared first in factory models.

If you can, go back and find the 1022 firmware and try that. When I returned to it the shift was gone and the oppo filled the screen again.

Paul, if you told oppo about this shift and they said there's nothing wrong then they are in mistaken or in denial (which wouldn't be like them. My pj has no left/right overscan at all and there is a clear right shift with the latest fw, 1111b, which results in image loss on the righthand side (it cuts into the circles on the DVE 1:1.78 anamorphic geometry test).

Dave

Yikes! Boy that was a brain-fart if I've ever had one...Yes, I meant the Universal release. The criterion is anamorphic.

In fact, I actually know what was in my head when I wrote that. I was thinking about the Criterion Armageddon which is not anamorphic...I have the Aussie release which is enhanced for 16:9. Please write the error off to an information overload... :eek:

-Toonces

Off topic, I know, but I couldn't believe Criterion had distributed Armageddon! I had to look it up. You were right, of course, but I nearly fell off my chair. I thought the closest Criterion (the best DVD company in the world bar none, probably) got to sc-fi was Tarkovsky's Solaris (now there's a beautiful anamorphic disc). Then I noticed that it was only spine #40 and they'd probably not hit their arthouse groove yet.

Dave

Dave:

the latest firmware is causing a LEFT shift to happen, not right shift. my image is too far to the left, therefore causing the right hand side to have a black bar.

on the other hand, could the latest firmware manifest itself differently with different tv's/projectors? mine is a LCoS (60xbr1), fyi.

thanks.

Dave:

the latest firmware is causing a LEFT shift to happen, not right shift. my image is too far to the left, therefore causing the right hand side to have a black bar.

on the other hand, could the latest firmware manifest itself differently with different tv's/projectors? mine is a LCoS (60xbr1), fyi.

thanks.

My TV has the same issue. It is a RPLCD Panasonic 43LC14.

I also had the shift problem out of the box also...its only there when I'm in 720p or 1080i mode, 480 and 570 is normal...and no firmware updates has fixed it yet.

I agree, it seems to be most noticeable with 720 and 1080.

I went all the way back to Firmware0430 and the 1080i picture has remained in the same position since then. Can't explain it. Yet.

Paul

Dave:

the latest firmware is causing a LEFT shift to happen, not right shift. my image is too far to the left, therefore causing the right hand side to have a black bar.

on the other hand, could the latest firmware manifest itself differently with different tv's/projectors? mine is a LCoS (60xbr1), fyi.

thanks.


It's probably the same problem but manifested differently in my ae700. With the projector set up as it always is, with the 1111b firmware a black line, about 2" on my 6' diagonal projector screen, appears down the left hand side of the screen and the same amount is cut off the right hand side of the picture. Clearly visible, as I said, on the DVE geometry/overscan tests. When I went back to the previous fw the player corrected itself.

Though, thinking about it, if I moved the pj so that the left hand side of the image was flush with the left edge of the pjscreen frame the black line would be on the righthand side. Maybe your display device is self 'correcting' and thus showing that?

Dave

Off topic, I know, but I couldn't believe Criterion had distributed Armageddon! I had to look it up. You were right, of course, but I nearly fell off my chair. I thought the closest Criterion (the best DVD company in the world bar none, probably) got to sc-fi was Tarkovsky's Solaris (now there's a beautiful anamorphic disc). Then I noticed that it was only spine #40 and they'd probably not hit their arthouse groove yet.

Criterion's "arthouse groove" was long established with their releases on the laserdisc format dating back to 1984. Every once in a while they add a blockbuster movie to the collection, sales of which allow them to continue releasing lower-volume titles. The company's mission statement encompasses releasing movies from all types and genres.

Criterion's CAV lettterbox LDs of "2001" and the restored "Lawrence of Arabila", really help put Criterion "on the map". Releasing the Beatles movies didn't hurt, either.

Paul

So, quick recap for best settings.

Please tell if these are right or wrong:

For NTSC disks
Manually set to NTSC, Video 1, TrueLife On (??), Sharpness off, CCS off, NR medium

For PAL disks
Manually set to PAL(not Auto), Video 2, TrueLife off, CCS on, NR medium

I'm confused. I thought Video 2 turned off the component settings. I am using DVI - didn't think video 1 would buy me anything with NTSC. Does it really? why?

And I have no idea of why just leaving Auto for PAL/NTSC is not a good idea.

What am I missing?

Paul, if you told oppo about this shift and they said there's nothing wrong then they are in mistaken or in denial (which wouldn't be like them. My pj has no left/right overscan at all and there is a clear right shift with the latest fw, 1111b, which results in image loss on the righthand side (it cuts into the circles on the DVE 1:1.78 anamorphic geometry test).

Dave


They said there was no change, not that there was no shift problem. Two completely different things.

There is something different about the 1111B firmware, one of which is a not talked about syncronization change for PAL users. I say not talked about because this feature is only working properly for a small amount of users. Additionally, as we have seen, it is causing a left shift on certain display types (I have only seen it on LCoS systems).

So, as a feature set, only the Brightness has been changed as a fix. On a whole, there are several minute changes which may or may not effect some users.

If you experience a shift, roll back to the 1022 firmware until OPPO releases a firmware which is devoid of this problem.

Damn, after the minor updated, my picture has shifted to the left about 5%, which is enough to show about a 1in. black bar on the right side. What changed? I thought they just updated the brightness? Is there any word on this from Oppo, as I have seem mentions from others with the same issue. Also, do I have to request the old firmware or is there a link to get the previous update? Thanks.

You can grab the older firmware here: http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h_firmware_1022_download.html

I have flashed the 971H so many times today.... It's like going though the history of the 971H player in few hours.

Way back In January there was firmware (Disc 1 & 2) -- I think Oppo Digital's first 971H firmware update. This is when the 971's 1080i was actually 540p and was causing some compatibility issues with 1080i.

At that point 480p & (540p/1080i) were both fairly well centered and consistent in size on my display.

I then upgraded to early April firmware and the difference between 480p and (540p/1080i) became apparent as 540p/1080i became a smaller-looking picture and bit off-center. 480p remains the same.

Next, I upgraded to late April firmware whre 540p and 1080i became separate DVI settings (fixing some 1080i compatibility issues) and the same smaller / shifted picture continues for both 540p and 1080i resolutions.

This is the same picture position/size for 540p and 1080i that continues until today as seen on my display.

I suspect that the settings for screen position/width/height for 480p adapted/applied at 540p/720p/1080i would work well although a DVI analyzer could determine what is truly needed for accuracy.

Anyone desiring previous 971H firmware updates can find links in the first post of the thread.

Paul

Off topic, I know, but I couldn't believe Criterion had distributed Armageddon! I had to look it up. You were right, of course, but I nearly fell off my chair. I thought the closest Criterion (the best DVD company in the world bar none, probably) got to sc-fi was Tarkovsky's Solaris (now there's a beautiful anamorphic disc). Then I noticed that it was only spine #40 and they'd probably not hit their arthouse groove yet.

Dave

Criterion also has a wonderful anamorphic print of the "The Rock" with Sean Connery

Installed 1111b firmware earlier and absolutely no "shifting" issues as reported elsewhere here. Sounds like this might be a display related problem- my Oppo is connected to Samsung HLP-5063W. No problems.
This firmware returns default Brightness setting to "studio level"...what exactly does that mean?- by lowering Brightness setting in menu screen will that not have the same result?
I had problem on my Samsung with a 'greenish tinge'....I was unsure if it was the display or Oppo causing this. I set Gamma setting from '2' to '0' in service menu as recommended on Sammy thread- although after I was still not convinced this fixed the issue.
The problem showed up especially while watching wider aspect ratios- 2:35:1 for example. I could see a small greenish black strip running across black bars- top and bottom- about 1 inch wide on my 50" screen. After installing 1111b firmware this problem seems to have disappeared.

Can someone please tell me how do I check what is the latest firmware version installed on my Oppo? I know there is a way to access info as I did it before but have forgotten. Have searched this thread but can't find it.
Installed 1111b firmware earlier and absolutely no "shifting" issues as reported elsewhere here. Sounds like this might be a display related problem- my Oppo is connected to Samsung HLP-5063W. No problems.

Eject the DVD tray and press OSD on the remote

Dave

Eject the DVD tray and press OSD on the remote

Dave

Thanks Dave- just found info on the Oppo website.

Yes, I forgot to mention that. With my set up when playing 4:3 in wide/480p/576p AR fixed by display device there was a serious cropping problem--at least 5% off the left hand side. That was what finally ruled it out for me as an option for watching 4:3 material.

Though, again this is as likely to be a problem with my ae700 pj and might be a PAL issue too (another one...). I need to use my Avia NTSC disc to check cropping at 480p.


I checked the avia test disc overscan pattern and watching 4:3 in 480p wide mode with the ae700 setting the aspect ratio causes cropping on all four sides! About 3% on the left and 2% on the other three.

Anybody else see this?

Toonces, after looking at resolution tests in wide/squeeze and wide for a while my conclusion is that your TV is so much better than my pj that you can see a resolution difference that doesn't show up enough on the ae700 to warrant changing out of wide/squeeze mode. You've got a great TV!

Dave

Hsinnott,

In the quest for making the DV971H the best it can be, it is being attempted to have the center ("0") position of the adjustable controls be accurate and conform to DVI specificatons for DVI input -- the "reference" position.

There are two brighness ranges commonly used by displays:

Studio: 16-235 (used by DVDs)
PC: 0-255

A nice writeup is here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=5378991&&#post5378991

Paul

Hsinnott,

In the quest for making the DV971H the best it can be, it is being attempted to have the center ("0") position of the adjustable controls be accurate and conform to DVI specificatons for DVI input -- the "reference" position.

There are two brighness ranges commonly used by displays:

Studio: 16-235 (used by DVDs)
PC: 0-255

A nice writeup is here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=5378991&&#post5378991

Paul

Thanks for info--- now I'm wondering are all controls in Oppo menu to be left at "0"..? After 1022 firmware update a lot of people were saying Brightness -3, Contrast 0 or -1...????....Or should all adjustments be made thru display only and not on the Oppo?

With the 1111b firmware, you should leave the Oppo at 0 brightness and 0 contrast. Calibrate your display with the video test patterns provided on Avia, DVE, or THX calibration dvd's.

I'm confused. I thought Video 2 turned off the component settings. I am using DVI - didn't think video 1 would buy me anything with NTSC. Does it really? why?

And I have no idea of why just leaving Auto for PAL/NTSC is not a good idea.

What am I missing?
I had these same questions. Anyone?

After flash with 1111b, you may need check your Regional Code setting. Mine has resetted
to "1". Need using "Setup", "9-2-1-0" to set back to "0".

I'm confused. I thought Video 2 turned off the component settings. I am using DVI - didn't think video 1 would buy me anything with NTSC. Does it really? why?

And I have no idea of why just leaving Auto for PAL/NTSC is not a good idea.

What am I missing?

Video 2 will give you no benefit (yet) unless you play back PAL DVDs, as Video 2 will allow for proper 2:2 Cadence of PAL DVDs.

The only reason why you would not want to use AUTO for PAL/NTSC is if your display device does not support one or the other. Otherwise, I have seen no reason why AUTO is not a good option to use.

Another question for the AVS Oppo Brain-Trust :)

Tired of balancing 3 of 5 remotes on my lap, and having found "Harmony" thanks to these forums....
I have ordered a Harmony "676".
Now that it's en-route, can you folks shed light on just how much control of my Black-Remote Oppo it will allow??

Thanks...

Another question for the AVS Oppo Brain-Trust :)

Tired of balancing 3 of 5 remotes on my lap, and having found "Harmony" thanks to these forums....
I have ordered a Harmony "676".
Now that it's en-route, can you folks shed light on just how much control of my Black-Remote Oppo it will allow??

Thanks...

I don't think there's anything special about the black Oppo codes. I have a black remote for my Oppo and I can do anything I want with my Harmony 659. The Harmony is a great remote. I used to have a Philips Pronto (still do - any takers) but the Harmony is MUCH better for me. Love the hard buttons.

Another question for the AVS Oppo Brain-Trust :)

Tired of balancing 3 of 5 remotes on my lap, and having found "Harmony" thanks to these forums....
I have ordered a Harmony "676".
Now that it's en-route, can you folks shed light on just how much control of my Black-Remote Oppo it will allow??

Thanks...
I'm using a Harmony 676 with my Oppo, the black remote is in a drawer. You can pretty much duplicate any functions on the Harmony.

With the Harmony, whatever's not already in the database can be learned and labeled so you'll have full control of the Oppo.

I use the URC-200 and learned the codes from the Oppo black/silver remote. No problems at all, works well.

Paul

Thanks.. a ton... folks! :)

Sounds like this will be a evening's toil well spent. :D

ummmm... Speakin' of "Remotes"....

I had gotten a overnite replacement of my Oppo, last week, as it was intermittently doin' a funky little display anomoly.
The new unit's remote had a sticky "Nav" button.
I E-Mailed Oppo, askin' if there was a cure, and they mailed me a "New" new remote, which was waitin' in my P.O. Box tonight.

Larger than the previous, and more ergonomic, it has a much improved & luminous button layout. :)

What's the size limit for attached Jpegs(?) I'll try to post a piccie. ;)

Think I got it :D

I was corresponding with Oppo earlier this week about the remote. They asked if I wanted to come in and test drive the new remote (I work just a few miles away). I am VERY impressed with the new one. It's not a groundbreaking device, but it's a heck of a step up from the (black) remote I had.

ALL of the buttons now glow in the dark. There's a "Slow" button that didn't even exist on my black remote. The layout is pretty straightforward. What I like best is that it's tapered, smaller at the bottom, and tapers ever so slightly towards a wider top. At least now I won't be picking it up upside down and hitting the wrong buttons.

It's real nice. They haven't decided on whether or not to charge existing customers. Cost may be $5 if they do to cover S&H.

Cheers! ;)

Well worth twice that :D

Well worth twice that :D
I totally agree. What can you say about these folks. They make a great product. Answer emails in 10 minutes. I offered to pay them the $5 and told them that if they decided not to charge for it they could get a couple of beers with my money. They wouldn't take the money since they hadn't decided yet what to charge.

I will be an Oppo customer for some time to come.

I totally agree. What can you say about these folks. They make a great product. Answer emails in 10 minutes. I offered to pay them the $5 and told them that if they decided not to charge for it they could get a couple of beers with my money. They wouldn't take the money since they hadn't decided yet what to charge. I will be an Oppo customer for some time to come.

I have been in contact with OPPO regarding the new remote. They began shipping the new remote with players starting 11/29/05.

My OPPO arrived 11/28/05 with the black remote, so I was asking for a swap.

I had not heard anything for several days, so today I requested an RMA number.

I got an email with a few minutes saying they were shipping me one of the new remotes.

;-)

My intention was to just buy a new player with the new remote, returning my current player under the 30 day warranty. I figured it was going to cost me $20 between the shipping on the new player and the cost to return my current player.

Not everyone is on the bubble like me or within the 30 day period to be able to go the way of a new player & remote.

Thanks OPPO and please consider offering other owners easy access to the new remote.

Bytehoven,

A simple "I won't breath until you give me a new remote!" bluff would have worked just as easily.

According to OPPO, they will have an upgrade program, but they have not yet decided on how they will impliment it. Most likely, if you are within the 30 day gaurantee, they will send you one. As justsc said, they are looking at charging a nominal 5 dollar fee to cover the cost of shipping and cost of manufacturing.

Bytehoven,

A simple "I won't breath until you give me a new remote!" bluff would have worked just as easily.

Let me just reiterate... I am not complaining. I am glad OPPO offered me a new remote.

If I had waited just a few more minutes, rather then sending the RMA request, I may very well have gotten the new remote offer anyway.

;-)

Lies! You were totaly turning blue in the face! I feel dissy (faints from lack of oxygen).

The new remote borrows some ideas from both remotes and combines the strengths of each.

Keep in mind that SF and EQ are "Page" buttons for DVD-Audio.

Oppo Digital is a great company (but we knew that anyway).

Paul

I just got my Oppo yesterday (yay!) - pretty neat so far, on the DVI link to my Sony KV-34XBR910 at 1080i. I think I've seen other people post that it's better to use 720p though? Other CRT owners, please chime in ...

Anyway, I got the old black remote - not the new black & green glowworm model. Should I e-mail Oppo and offer to send in $5? :D (What's their e-mail address?)

Oppo is a great company; they sent me a black remote for free several months ago, liked it much better than the first, but did not like the non glow feature. I would gladly pay shipping for the new glow one BUT WOULD GLADLY PAY $20 + THE $5 SHIPPING if they would give me a Back lighted remote, some of us older folks need the lighted remote. Alright no laughing at the old gray guy!!!!!!LOL :)

I just ordered mine Monday and got it Yesterday (Wednesday). I am EXTREMELY happy with the player. It's so much better than the new Sony $149 HDMI player and doesn't have any of the pesky image shift problems it had. The picture quality was good on the Sony but suprisingly the Oppo is quite an improvement.

Thanks for the image Tekworm, the new remote looks fantastic. Unfortunately, I got the regular black remote with my player. I think I will e-mail them to see about an upgrade. =D

GO OPPO!!

New remote....great... :)

Now.....where's the discrete on/off codes for the Oppo?

Now.....where's the discrete on/off codes for the Oppo?

In their future products :D

Oh yeah, here is the response OPPO sent me when I inquired about the new remote control and its availability:

We are currently looking into creating a remote upgrade program, but have not fully fleshed ou the logistics of this operation. We hope to have this program initiated sometime early next week.

"Early next" has already arrived. OPPO is offering the new remote for users still within the 30 day purchase period. All other users will be charged a nominal 5 USD fee to cover the cost of manufacturing and shipping fees. Currently, they can only capture credit card funds through FAX (if you did not buy from them) or through PayPal.

Give them a little time on the replacement program. They just got a large shipment of players in and were hustling to apply the firmware update to them before sending them out to customers and dealers.

Due to time constraints, this remote is a slight modification of one that their supplier had available. Still, it's a big improvement over the black one. Future products will have a completely new remote designed from scratch.

I just got my Oppo yesterday (yay!) - pretty neat so far, on the DVI link to my Sony KV-34XBR910 at 1080i. I think I've seen other people post that it's better to use 720p though? Other CRT owners, please chime in ...

Anyway, I got the old black remote - not the new black & green glowworm model. Should I e-mail Oppo and offer to send in $5? :D (What's their e-mail address?)
I have the 34" Sony crt and I did find the 720p signal to be much smoother and much more stable. 1080i appears to "pulse" slightly from left to right. I have watched Robots in both settings and I find the 720p picture quality to be as sharp and crisp as the 1080i signal.

But, I've read here from others with crt sets and 1080i is just fine for them.

I just got my Oppo yesterday (yay!) - pretty neat so far, on the DVI link to my Sony KV-34XBR910 at 1080i. I think I've seen other people post that it's better to use 720p though? Other CRT owners, please chime in ...

Most, if not but a select few, CRTs cannot display 720p natively. They can only do 480i/p and 1080i. I have a 30" wide Sammy CRT and toggling between the various rez settings on the Oppo I can only get 480/540p and 1080i. On the 720p I get the BSOD. I wish I had the cake to have picked up your XBR...........Must be nice, but jeez that thing must outweigh my set by +75lbs.

I have the 34" Sony crt and I did find the 720p signal to be much smoother and much more stable. 1080i appears to "pulse" slightly from left to right. I have watched Robots in both settings and I find the 720p picture quality to be as sharp and crisp as the 1080i signal.

I've read that the XBR you have accepts 720p, but it upconverts it to 1080i. So i'm confused as to why selecting 720p over 1080i would make it look better or not have the same artifacts that you notice on the 1080i setting. Try the 540p setting on the Oppo and see how that looks?

I've read that the XBR you have accepts 720p, but it upconverts it to 1080i. So i'm confused as to why selecting 720p over 1080i would make it look better or not have the same artifacts that you notice on the 1080i setting. Try the 540p setting on the Oppo and see how that looks?
My set accepts 720p and scales it to 1080i. I have read that the Oppo is a bit challenged processing and sending interlaced signals. Regardless, 1080i on my set is unacceptable. However, the the deinterlacer in the Oppo is world class, and it sends a wonderful 720p signal to my set, which then gets scaled to 1080i. If the incoming signal is poor, then my tv simply does the best it can, with a good incoming signal, the tv has a chance of doing its best job. Garbage in - garbage out.

I cannot see the 540p signal, I get a black screen.

Anyone know if the new new remote uses IR codes from the white or black controller or is it a new complete set of codes?

Does anyone know if the channel trims affect only the 5.1 analog outputs or do they also change the coax/digital outputs? I have connected the coax out to my HK635 and have balanced my speakers using their built in EQ. I connected my buttkicker amp to the sub output on the Oppo (the only analog output that I use). Since I only use the buttkickers when playing dvds, I am able to trim the sub output to change the level that I send to the buttkicker amp. I don't think changing the trim is affecting my digital output, but I just wanted to verify that with someone that might know more about this.

Anyone know if the new new remote uses IR codes from the white or black controller or is it a new complete set of codes?

It uses the black remote codes.

Does anyone know if the channel trims affect only the 5.1 analog outputs or do they also change the coax/digital outputs? I have connected the coax out to my HK635 and have balanced my speakers using their built in EQ. I connected my buttkicker amp to the sub output on the Oppo (the only analog output that I use). Since I only use the buttkickers when playing dvds, I am able to trim the sub output to change the level that I send to the buttkicker amp. I don't think changing the trim is affecting my digital output, but I just wanted to verify that with someone that might know more about this.

I am only guessing, but I would say NO.

The trim functions are usually after the digital signal has been decoded.

The coax/optical outputs go out unprocessed, except for the various downmix, frequency setting, etc.

"Early next" has already arrived. OPPO is offering the new remote for users still within the 30 day purchase period. All other users will be charged a nominal 5 USD fee to cover the cost of manufacturing and shipping fees. Currently, they can only capture credit card funds through FAX (if you did not buy from them) or through PayPal.

Where did you get this info? I didn't see it anywhere on their site. or is it just speculation?

Where did you get this info? I didn't see it anywhere on their site. or is it just speculation?

Email. After my first inquiry last night (which they replied stating new remotes would goout sometime next week) they contacted me again stating that they would send out a new remote to users if they were within the 30 day purchase period, or offered the new remotes at 5 USD each (at this time you will have to fill out a PDF that asks for your credit card information).

...beat me to it (and I did the good thing of not posting in the other thread before checking this one - how novel!)

I had to call mine in as I'm in Canada and wanted to confirm shipping info up here. It'll likely take weeks, but (James) was -extremely- helpful and pleasant on the phone. It really is like these people want really badly to make a good go at it. An absolute pleasure to give them more of my money, not something I thought I'd ever say to an electronic company... Amazing, and, quite frankly, entirely the reason I bought this player in the first place, and why I'm willing more than any other unit to forgive its "quirks"...

We try to keep this thread up-to-date! Did some revisions on the first post yesterday.

Oppo is really trying to make a go of it and I think we have some good, enegetic people helping them to make their products the best / best value on the market.

I think for years videophiles have wondered: "What if the companies would just hear us?"

I think we have our chance right now.

Paul

Just ran the HQV Benchmark on my Oppo after installing the November firmware. Did very well -- I didn't see anything I thought it should have handled better. I'm using the 720p upscaled DVI output to a Samsung HLN467WX.

Anybody know if the Black Remote uses the same codes as anything else (for setting universal remotes)?

Does anyone have the "new" remote? The PDF states it's the Baclk (Rev. 3) remote. My remote is black, but I have no idea what revision it is.

Thanks, Neuro. I sent them an e-mail and got a similar response about them still working it out. I think I will just wait until next week when they are open and give them a call about sending me the updated remote since I just purchased mine this past week.

Does anyone have the "new" remote? The PDF states it's the Baclk (Rev. 3) remote. My remote is black, but I have no idea what revision it is.

Back up to page 69, about halfway down, I posted a pic of the new remote :)

Just ran the HQV Benchmark on my Oppo after installing the November firmware. Did very well -- I didn't see anything I thought it should have handled better. I'm using the 720p upscaled DVI output to a Samsung HLN467WX. Good show! And welcome to the OPPO club!
Anybody know if the Black Remote uses the same codes as anything else (for setting universal remotes)? No idea.

For those who do not know him, k2ue (Clyde Washburn) became somewhat of a hero in the early Samsung DLP calibration threads... for sharing his very clever ideas that made a HUGE improvement to our calibration results.

Gary

My set accepts 720p and scales it to 1080i. I have read that the Oppo is a bit challenged processing and sending interlaced signals. Regardless, 1080i on my set is unacceptable. However, the the deinterlacer in the Oppo is world class, and it sends a wonderful 720p signal to my set, which then gets scaled to 1080i. If the incoming signal is poor, then my tv simply does the best it can, with a good incoming signal, the tv has a chance of doing its best job. Garbage in - garbage out.Weird - I have mine set to the 1080i setting, hooked up to the Sony KV-34XBR910 via DVI (of course), and so far so good for me - I don't notice anything going from left to right, and the PQ seems to rival my Denon DVD-2800 Mk. II (with SiI 503 deinterlacer chipset) ... I guess I'll try the 720p setting just to see if there's a difference, but so far so good on 1080i ...

Anybody know if the Black Remote uses the same codes as anything else (for setting universal remotes)?

Here is the response I received from Oppo regarding the new remote.

We are working on a new remote, but the remote will use the same IR
frequencies, just in a different arrangement.

This is with respect to the black remote. Hope this helps.

Mark

I am considering the Oppo, as the refub'd unit is on eBay and there is an eBay/PayPal coupon that will pay the shipping cost. I bought the Samsung HD850, but I'm not happy with the 720p or 1080i upconversion on my PDP.

I haven't pulled the trigger yet, but I'm d@mn close! One selling point for me, though I don't watch many DVD discs, is that the Oppo has DVI. So does my cable STB - so if I want to switch, all I need to do is reach in the back of the player and switch the vido and audio cables, instead of buying an HDMI switcher and trying to find a digital coax audio or optical audio switcher as well.

But is there anything I should know about the Oppo before I pull the trigger? :confused: Anything bad, I mean. I'll be using it with a 50" Maxent (Panasonic inside) PDP that does 1080i quite nicely.

I am considering the Oppo, as the refub'd unit is on eBay and there is an eBay/PayPal coupon that will pay the shipping cost. I bought the Samsung HD850, but I'm not happy with the 720p or 1080i upconversion on my PDP.

I haven't pulled the trigger yet, but I'm d@mn close! One selling point for me, though I don't watch many DVD discs, is that the Oppo has DVI. So does my cable STB - so if I want to switch, all I need to do is reach in the back of the player and switch the vido and audio cables, instead of buying an HDMI switcher and trying to find a digital coax audio or optical audio switcher as well.

But is there anything I should know about the Oppo before I pull the trigger? :confused: Anything bad, I mean. I'll be using it with a 50" Maxent (Panasonic inside) PDP that does 1080i quite nicely.

You'll watch more DVDs one you've pulled that trigger. But if you are concerned to check out the downsides, then look at the posts on lip-sync issues, 1080i, and macroblocking. But always weigh that up against the fact that this is IMO the best DVD player under $1000 for PQ.

Dave

Good show! And welcome to the OPPO club!
No idea.

For those who do not know him, k2ue (Clyde Washburn) became somewhat of a hero in the early Samsung DLP calibration threads... for sharing his very clever ideas that made a HUGE improvement to our calibration results.

Gary

Samsung buffs who haven't read my recent posting on replacement of the Color Wheel -- mine became noisy -- might want to do that, as it includes a discussion of how the Color Wheel Phase critically affects calibration.

I tend to watch more downloaded movies on my modded Xbox, but my GF has a large DVD collection she likes to watch. I did see the lip-syncing issue and MB issue; but from what I've read, Oppo is actively releasing FW and hopefully are working on the issue. I could always do 720p instead, of course. ;)

Getting it from eBay (Oppo refurbed sold by Oppo) for under $160 shipped, I think is the best deal. It's only $60 more than the Samsung HD850 I have now, which I'm going to return to Amazon for a refund. I think I'll be happier with the Oppo anyway.

Attached is a close up of the main buttons on the new remote. Not shown is the DVI button which is at the bottom left side of the remote.

Hi all,
Forgive the intrusion, but I'm trying to drum up entries into the new sticky thread I created the other day: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=611824

It's a thread intented for people looking for a new player (or help with an existing one) to quickly find other people using a DVD player with the same TV/display/PJ they are using. The format is quite simple and only takes a couple of minutes to enter your info. "templates" are there to copy/quote. Thanks for taking the time.

larry

Has anyone reporting lip sync issues, tried to compare the coax and optical output performance?

I experienced some lip sync with a kids flick Madagascar. No amount of delay corrected the problem. However, I switched from coax to optical, and the lip sync issue went away, and I have not seen any lip sync error on over a dozen movies.

I have not spent time checking into this more deeply, as I have been upgrading to a Da-Lite HP, and repositioning my HS-51 for the new screen.

I should note, I had a similar experience with the Denon 2910 with the coax and optical connections. The coax connection routinely had lip sync errors.

Hmmmmm.....

Has anyone reporting lip sync issues, tried to compare the coax and optical output performance?

I experienced some lip sync with a kids flick Madagascar. No amount of delay corrected the problem. However, I switched from coax to optical, and the lip sync issue went away, and I have not seen any lip sync error on over a dozen movies.

I have not spent time checking into this more deeply, as I have been upgrading to a Da-Lite HP, and repositioning my HS-51 for the new screen.

I should note, I had a similar experience with the Denon 2910 with the coax and optical connections. The coax connection routinely had lip sync errors.

Hmmmmm.....

I know that technically it makes no sense, but don't laugh this off. I used to have my Samsung HD-931 hooked up with coax and it had terrible lipsync issues. I have the OPPO connected with glass and I have yet to experience a lipsync issue with this player.

-Toonces

Interesting. I use the optical connection for my Xbox, but I can always just switch the cable in a second for the Oppo.

Ordered it from eBay, should be here in a few days. Can't wait! :D

I would say give all the audio outputs a try, if lip sync is an issue. There are three:

coaxial, optical, analog

Paul

I probably will. I'm gonna start with optical, I think, as I use that for my Xbox, and only one or the other will be on at a time. It shouldn't be too difficult to swap cables when needed. My GF bought me the extended edition box set of the "Lord Of The Rings" trilogy, with all the extra footage (something like 45+ min per movie!) so I really want to kick back and watch that in 1080i w/ 5.1 digital surround sound. :D

i recently purchased the Oppo and am generally ok with the unit.

i have to say, though, that the unit does not have the "memory" of your last disc's "position", i.e. where you last left it. this is almost unacceptable to me.

i'm sure each person has his/her own tolerances of this, but when i put in a disc, it is almost universally accepted that when you put that disc back in, it will "remember" the last spot you were at. i was told that most Sony units have like a 100 disc memory.

the fact that Oppu does not have it and doesn't really make it explicit is hard to believe.

...i have to say, though, that the unit does not have the "memory" of your last disc's "position", i.e. where you last left it. this is almost unacceptable to me.

...the fact that Oppu does not have it and doesn't really make it explicit is hard to believe.Eh, personally, I don't care about that. I can always FF or RW to where I want to watch. What I care about it the PQ, and hopefully the upconversion to 1080i PQ is going to be better than the two Samsung (841 & 850) that I tried. :cool:

the two "features", that of convenience and picture quality, should not be mutually exclusive.

this is especially in light of the virtually no extra cost of having the unit "remember" where you last turned off the previous dvd.

Each to thewir own, but I just don't see it as either a selling point (I would/would not buy the unit if it did/did not have it) or a feature that I'd even use. :cool: If it's not there, I won't miss it. If it is there, I'll never (or at the very least, extremely rarely) use it.

i recently purchased the Oppo and am generally ok with the unit.

i have to say, though, that the unit does not have the "memory" of your last disc's "position", i.e. where you last left it. this is almost unacceptable to me.

i'm sure each person has his/her own tolerances of this, but when i put in a disc, it is almost universally accepted that when you put that disc back in, it will "remember" the last spot you were at. i was told that most Sony units have like a 100 disc memory.

the fact that Oppu does not have it and doesn't really make it explicit is hard to believe.

The only way (at this time) is to use the Eject trick. In the middle of playback, press Eject. Then press Power (on the remote). The tray will recall and the unit will turn itself off. Turn the unit back on, then press Select when prompted.

This feature is rather dumb, because it only remembers this breakpoint for that session (like a cut and paste job).

However, even in its current state, it is a welcome features, as previously NO disc remembering was available. Previously OPPO thought it was impossible (loss of resident memory when the unit was shut down) but they found an exploit. Hopefully this exploit will become much easier, and more robust, in the future.

That being said, time will make fools of us all.

Second Neuromancer's reply. While not as robust as Sony's 40 disc memory, it serves what I believe to be the primary function: in the middle of movie and have to stop it for some reason and want to get back to the same movie later. Simple, but it works.

Paul

The new remote is very welcome upgrade.

It uses the codes from the 2nd version of the remote and uses AAA batteries.

No separate on/off.

It is nicely shaped and fits the hand well with good balance. The styling looks rather sleek and the glow-in-the-dark buttons have returned. There is the variety of button shapes and placement and the layout is much more funtional and logical.

A worthy remote for this player.

Paul

We had a problem with the screen positioning mechanism. Took the device apart (10 small screws) and then took the screen positioning mechanism apart and found that the screws that hold the spring device had come undone.

Repositioned the spring device and screwed it back together and it was repaired.

Put the player back together and got HO3 code. The symptoms were that the machine would come on and displaya the error code butht he disc sould not spin.

Read the manual and none of the fixes applied to or fixed the problem.

Took machine apart again and discovered a small white flat cord (may not be the right technical term for the connector cord) that plugs into the end of the drive unit had come unplugged. Plugged in the cord and the machine worked again.

However (Ain't it always so), the disc was scrapping on some component directly under the spinning disc.

Opened the machine again and discovered that there are three screws on the bottom of the disc drive unit and two of them were loose. This caused the disc to be tilted out of level.

Tightened screws, reassembled same and player now works as new. :D

And how does all this relate to the Oppo DV971H DVD player?

IMHO, one memory location is enough. I usually watch a movie all the way to the end (unless it a very bad movie). If for some reason I would have to stop in the middle, the one Oppo memory works without much difficulty. I can't say that I have ever used this feature, except to try it out. Perhaps viewing habits are different for other's, but I find that once I fire up the projector I might as well burn the wick a few hours. I would much rather see things like bitrates or thumbnails of scenes if the Oppo is going to add features that my old Sony had.

I also find the disc memory useful for comparing the various resolutions (480p/1080i) with a particular DVE pattern without having to navigate through the menus each time.

Paul

The new remote is very welcome upgrade ... A worthy remote for this player.

Paul

I concur.

My replacement remote arrived today via Priority Mail. It's an excellent remote with excellent ergonomics.

I'd like to get a hold of one. When will they be available to buy on their website? I've had mine since April, so I wouldn't expect to get it for free.

Call them on Monday and you can arrange to buy one for $5. It may not be on the website for awhile, if at all.

Thanks Mike. 'preciate it!

Anyone know if th refurb'ed units they're selling on eBay come with the old or the new remote?

Anyone know if th refurb'ed units they're selling on eBay come with the old or the new remote?

I would guess new remote for the simple reason that it will save OPPO in the long run (ie. the shipping cost of sending out a remote if requested by the user). Plus, OPPO always tries to do their customers right, and it would be odd that they would shaft their Ebay customers.

From what I've read, they do appear very customer-oriented. But I can't imagine they're going to throw away all the old remotes they have. What exactly was the issue with them, anyway? :confused: (In other words, why would I want a v2/black instead of the v1/white or whatever color it was?)

What exactly was the issue with them, anyway?

You have to have seen and used both the silver and black remotes, to appreciate the new remote.

The silver remote had a pretty decent layout for the main buttons we are used to using. I don't know what happen with the black remote, except maybe they ran out of the silver ones and could only get the black one as a temporary replacement.

The new remote is excellent. I'm interested in see what they do with their next generation player, as someone said they may update the remote again.

OPPO may be inclined update remotes for anyone interested. Inside of 30 days of purchase is free, outside will require a very modest fee.

Excellent player. Excellent software updates. Excellent company support policies.

Can it get any better?

Maybe an OPPO Blue-Ray?

;-)

The new remote is very nice. Rounded edges and good feel to the buttons. It's superior in every way from contruction, layout and materials.

BluRay or HDDVD.

I've been wondering about that.

Paul

Or maybe an Oppo HD-DVD?

Just finished watching Mr. & Mrs. Smith. The Oppo and Infocus SP4805 are the two best products I have ever bought. After eight months I am still amazed at how beautiful the PQ is. Thanks everybody for showing us how to tweak these two incredible products and get the best out of them. I am in no hurry for HD-DVD.

Watched "Melinda and Melinda" the other night... a fairly entertaining drama from Woody Alan. It has a MONO soundtrack, which is very unusual, but it's dialog ALL the way, so I suppose it's not too surprising.

The picture was incredibly beautiful, though, and the OPPO made it really live. There were no signs of distracting artifacts. The film's lighting and exposure was simply amazing. My mother-in-law, who is a painter, commented on that too (shortly before she walked out because she didn't care much for the content... a very common occurrence with her)!

It made me wonder if the studio had used a seriously high bit-rate for the video (because of the PQ, the mono soundtrack, and the lack of special features). But alas, they decided to scrimp and put it all on a 4.7GB disk, so the bit-rate was very good, but not excellent, as it could have been. In any case, the picture was gorgeous to watch.

Gary

Watched "Melissa and Melissa" the other night... a fairly entertaining drama from Woody Alan with a MONO soundtrack - very unusual, but it's dialog ALL the way, so I suppose it's not too surprising.

The picture was incredibly beautiful, though, and the OPPO made it really live. There were no signs of distracting artifacts. The film's lighting and exposure was simply amazing. My mother-in-law, who is a painter, commented on that too (shortly before she walked out because she didn't care much for the content... a very common occurrence with her).

It made me wonder if the studio had used a seriously high bit-rate for the video (because of the PQ, the mono soundtrack, and the lack of special features). But alas, they decided to scrimp and put it all on a 4.7GB disk, so the bit-rate was fairly average as far as other reasonably good-quality video recordings go. In any case, the picture was gorgeous to watch.

Gary

I guess it was Melinda and Melinda that you saw, GSB. I watched the PAL region 2 and thought it was indifferent. Then I realized I'd watched the whle thing out of focus! Done that a couple of times now. All Woody's movies are mono, I think. I guess he doesn't do any dubbing, just records the set.

Anyway, as you imply, I don't think bitrates have as much to do with DVD quality as is often supposed. I've seen some very sharp DVDs coming in at 2hrs plus on a DVD 5 and I've seen some junk on a DVD 9. It's far more to do with care in the authoring process. Mainly keeping it sharp and not 'enahancing' anything. Even DVD9 are rarely full unless all the extras are crammed on. Well authored 2hr30 movies can sometimes only be 5GB or so. I often wonder why the full capacity of a dual-layer is so rarely used.

Even so, a well authored DVD through the oppo is an absolute unbridled pleasure.

Dave

I guess it was Melinda and Melinda that you saw, GSB. Oops, yes... fixed my post!

I often wonder why the full capacity of a dual-layer is so rarely used. Me too! It makes me mad when they waste the space. I can see the HiDef stuff going the same way, though. The studios all seem to be clamouring to use the higher capacity for extra features, rather than achieving the pinnacle of video quality.

Even so, a well authored DVD through the oppo is an absolute unbridled pleasure.

Dave

Do you have some suggestions for your fave or most impressive DVD's? You can PM me if you like. The reference list thread has gotten rather long, and at this point, I've seen a lot of titles on that list some of which haven't particularly impressed me.

With the Oppo and the Sanyo Z4, I've found The Incredibles and Sky Captain to be the "amazing" titles thus far.

Do you have some suggestions for your fave or most impressive DVD's?"Cellular" is one of my favorite movies and the picture and sound rocks on the OPPO. You also can't go wrong with the LOTR series, "I-Robot" and animated movies like "A Bugs Life: 2-disc Collector's Edition", "Toy Story: 10th Anniversary Edition", "Ice Age", and "The Incredibles".

Gary

I just received my new remote, and it is SO much better than the last two! Thank you OPPO!

Gary

I like the Fifth Element becaue damnit... it is just awesome >.<

I also love playing Ghost in the Shell (Special Edition), Akira (DTS Edition), The Incredibles, Toy Story: 10th Anniversary Edition, FLCL, and Cowboy Bebop: Knocking on Heaven's Door.

I like the Fifth Element because damnit... it is just awesome >.< Yes it is. But then I'd watch it again and again... just to see the babe!

Yes it is. But then I'd watch it again and again... just to see the babe!

I knew there was a hidden agenda behind you buying a projector. Agenda, they name is topless Mila Jovovich!

This is why questions about favourite films--instead of best DVD authoring--should never be raised on a forum. You can quickly lose respect for those whose judgment had seemed so sound only a few posts before.

On another note, a great example of bit-rate not equalling quality has just come up. The PAL version of Hithchock's Vertigo is a grainy unfocussed mess and it comes in at 5.6GB for just over 2 hours. The NTSC version in the Hitchcock masterpiece collection, which came this morning, is a sharp, far less grainy, flimlike image. It comes in at about 5GB. Both figures exclude audio data.

Another wonder is that PAL images, which should have about 100 lines more information are rarely, if ever, sharper or more detailed that NTSC images. Does anybody know why that is?

Dave

Another wonder is that PAL images, which should have about 100 lines more information are rarely, if ever, sharper or more detailed that NTSC images. Does anybody know why that is?

Dave

Perhaps both the Pal and NTSC are using the same starting point for resolution, a 720x468 video master. The Pal is simply V stretched a little more for the PAL output.

On another note, a great example of bit-rate not equalling quality has just come up. The PAL version of Hithchock's Vertigo is a grainy unfocussed mess and it comes in at 5.6GB for just over 2 hours. The NTSC version in the Hitchcock masterpiece collection, which came this morning, is a sharp, far less grainy, flimlike image. It comes in at about 5GB. Both figures exclude audio data.



Is the Masterpiece Collection version anamorphic? The original release was not.

Possible Bug
I would like to confirm this before reporting it to Oppo customer service. There seems to be a bug with the angle display. When watching a title setup with multiple angles it will display the angle you are viewing in the upper right hand corner. Once you disable the angle display from the SETUP menu it will go away but once you stop the disc and/or remove it and put it back in the angle display shows up again even with the feature set to OFF. You have to navigate back to the SETUP menu and set the feature to ON and then back to OFF again to get it to go away.

Has anyone else noticed this?

Yes, this has been noticed that the angle display shows up on SOME dvd's. It shows up on my Brian Setzer - Live in Japan dvd. It's a known bug although I wasn't aware of the work-around that you discovered.

FYI, I received the following email today from Oppo about an inquiry to buy a new remote:

We will be opening a store front either later today or tomorrow for the purchase of new remotes.

Possible Bug
I would like to confirm this before reporting it to Oppo customer service. There seems to be a bug with the angle display. When watching a title setup with multiple angles it will display the angle you are viewing in the upper right hand corner. Once you disable the angle display from the SETUP menu it will go away but once you stop the disc and/or remove it and put it back in the angle display shows up again even with the feature set to OFF. You have to navigate back to the SETUP menu and set the feature to ON and then back to OFF again to get it to go away.

Has anyone else noticed this?

Yes, this is a known bug on several DVDs (particularly Funimation branded and Tomorrow Never Dies). This has been mentioned a couple of times here as well as in the UK forums.

My refurb'd Oppo from eBay shipped today. Coming from CA, it should *hopefully* be here in time for the weekend. My GF and I don't have the kids and we'd like to make a marathon watching of LOTR extended edition DVDs. :D

A little OT, but after doing research (and finally settling on the Oppo), I think the Samsung DVD-HD941 (with the Faroudja chipset) is a decent low-cost solution. My GF's DVD player is an el-cheapo, and I think I'm going to pick one of those up for her. That way, I can compare them too. ;)

A little OT, but after doing research (and finally settling on the Oppo), I think the Samsung DVD-HD941 (with the Faroudja chipset) is a decent low-cost solution. My GF's DVD player is an el-cheapo, and I think I'm going to pick one of those up for her. That way, I can compare them too. ;)Save yourself the anguish! The Samsung DVD-HD941 has a few serious flaws. I have compared the Samsung to the OPPO and there is simply no contest. Quite a few others have done the same, and their reports all agree. It did not score very well in the SECRETS test... it failed in quite a few vital areas. While the OPPO is not perfect, it certainly is a top contender, and the best in the price range. Its getting better too. Samsung's customer service and firmware support is a joke in comparison.

Gary

Save yourself the anguish! The Samsung DVD-HD941 has a few serious flaws. I have compared the Samsung to the OPPO and there is simply no contest. Quite a few others have done the same, and their reports all agree. It did not score very well in the SECRETS test... it failed in quite a few vital areas. While the OPPO is not perfect, it certainly is a top contender, and the best in the price range. Its getting better too. Samsung's customer service and firmware support is a joke in comparison.

GaryWell, it's gotta be better than the $30 POS she has now. The OPPO is for me, the 941 is for her (if I decide to get it) and just for comparison. ;)

i recently purchased the Oppo and am generally ok with the unit.

i have to say, though, that the unit does not have the "memory" of your last disc's "position", i.e. where you last left it. this is almost unacceptable to me.

i'm sure each person has his/her own tolerances of this, but when i put in a disc, it is almost universally accepted that when you put that disc back in, it will "remember" the last spot you were at. i was told that most Sony units have like a 100 disc memory.

the fact that Oppu does not have it and doesn't really make it explicit is hard to believe.
"Universally accepted"? I don't think anyone expects this feature. I've been through a bunch of players and none, except an old RCA (I forgot the name it's sold under) did something like this. Panasonic, Toshiba, Onkyo,... did not. Some included a "bookmark" key, which is basically similar to pressing Eject on the Onkyo.

Has it been brought up to merge the two main Oppo threads. I know they were meant to have specific information when started, but now pretty much contain random information about the player (nothing structured). It be nice to maybe merge into one, likely keeping the Oppo/Brain Dump name. Anyone else have a take on this?

They should close one, and sticky both of them like they did to the 4805 thread in <3500 forum.

Samsung's customer service and firmware support is a joke in comparison.

Gary,

What service and support?...The one and a half years I used my HD-931 I could never find any service or support... :D

-Toonces

They should close one, and sticky both of them like they did to the 4805 thread in <3500 forum.

Sounds good to me.

Has it been brought up to merge the two main Oppo threads. I know they were meant to have specific information when started, but now pretty much contain random information about the player (nothing structured). It be nice to maybe merge into one, likely keeping the Oppo/Brain Dump name. Anyone else have a take on this?

Paul has talked about this in the past. Many moons ago, when the fruit was still ripe, Paul wanted to merge the two threads. However, the originator of the main thread is no longer with us, so the merging can't be processed correctly. Personaly, I like having two threads. Gives me more reading material when I have nothing better to do at night.

EDIT:
OPPO has released the remote for purchase. Check out: http://www.oppodigital.com/products.asp

They are charging 5 USD for the remote.

thanks Neuromancer,I just ordered mine.

It be nice to maybe merge into one, likely keeping the Oppo/Brain Dump name. Anyone else have a take on this?Yes, Paul did try, but moderators said "no go".

Gary

Is anybody planning to do a lsting of what the Setup Menu Items on the new firmware actually do, and what settings are best unless you have special circumstances? The list at the top of the tread doesn't correspond closely with the current options, and the function of many of the options could use expaining! Although I read about Oppo's responsiveness, documentation in comprehensible English is not their long suit. . .

I know some nice things have been said about Oppo Digital customer service and the company itself, but I just want to add something to these comments.

Last sunday, I wrote an email to Oppo asking about the new remote. I didn't expect any reply until monday but I <did> receive one shortly after sending my request. So I wrote them back with a comment about them working late on a sunday afternoon. Here is the reply I received:

"And as long as their is customer service e-mails, someone will be around to answer them (well, until bed time rolls around, that is)."

This company is something else don't you think?

Oppo Digital, if you're reading this thread, how about posting a snapshot of the team so we can give you a big round of applause. :)

Is anybody planning to do a lsting of what the Setup Menu Items on the new firmware actually do, and what settings are best unless you have special circumstances? The list at the top of the tread doesn't correspond closely with the current options, and the function of many of the options could use expaining! Although I read about Oppo's responsiveness, documentation in comprehensible English is not their long suit. . .

k2ue,

I'll work on doucmenting the new features vs. the printed display and add a new section to the first post.

Paul

I want to get the new remote..but i don't even need it....lol... I may need to get one if the new firmware updates are only for the black remote(s).

I want to get the new remote..but i don't even need it....lol... I may need to get one if the new firmware updates are only for the black remote(s).

Everyone else is getting it. Don't you want to be part of the in crowd?

Still don't know what is keeping the engineers from releasing a dual IR code firmware release.

Is the Masterpiece Collection version anamorphic? The original release was not.

All the masterpiece widescreen films are anamorphic 1:1.85 (except Rear Window which is 1:1.66). On the whole they're pretty good. Vertigo is by far the pick of the crop--an absolute stunner--but Psycho, Marnie, The Trouble with Harry and Topaz also get excellent outings. Rear Window is quite grainy but I found noise reduction and truelife on (for once!) seemed to help bring out the picture. The poorest in the collection is The Man Who Knew Too Much. That looks like it's been burned off a VHS and even the oppo can do nothing with it.

If you don't have these or feel the need to upgrade it's well worth a dip.

Dave

Hi

I would like to add something to the wishlist: a different font for the subtitles.
Yesterday, I watched "Big Fish" (btw: great movie!) and due to the major southern accent, I had to use subtitles.
They were really hard to read, since the were very bold, and use a (imho) hard to read font - very blocky, big, pixelated letters.
When I compared the subtitles of that movie in my old Panasonic 656, I liked them much better there: a very nice, smooth, good to read font, not bold, not blocky, nice, unpixelated curves, better resolution - just readable at a glance. The Oppo instead forced me to really concentrate more to the subtitles to be able to read them and that way distracted me more from the movie.

Is there a chance, that this is likely to be happening?

Joerg

Still don't know what is keeping the engineers from releasing a dual IR code firmware release.

They may be up against firmware space limits -- that's the usual reason for going to separate firmware releases.

Two questions for Oppo experts:

1. I've seen region 2 dvd for televison series that has not been released on dvd in US yet. We're a year behind. With a non-black remote older firmware Oppo is there any advantage/disadvantage to a Region 2 vs region 1 dvd via DVI?

2. I use the Harmony 880. Can I download all the new codes/settings so that it will work like the black remote?

Two questions for Oppo experts:

1. I've seen region 2 dvd for televison series that has not been released on dvd in US yet. We're a year behind. With a non-black remote older firmware Oppo is there any advantage/disadvantage to a Region 2 vs region 1 dvd via DVI?

2. I use the Harmony 880. Can I download all the new codes/settings so that it will work like the black remote?

1. As long as you have the 1022 firmware, you can use the Video 2 option, which properly decodes 2:2 cadence in PAL discs (reduces tearing and jagged edges). If at all possible, use PAL to PAL (change your TV Type from NTSC to AUTO, so it will switch between NTSC and PAL output depending on the disc being played)

2. I will leave this question to someone who uses the Harmony 880.

1. As long as you have the 1022 firmware, you can use the Video 2 option, which properly decodes 2:2 cadence in PAL discs (reduces tearing and jagged edges). If at all possible, use PAL to PAL (change your TV Type from NTSC to AUTO, so it will switch between NTSC and PAL output depending on the disc being played)


Pardon my ignorance-does this fix the general gripe people have about converting PAL->NTSC, namely the 4%(?) difference in speed? Personally, it has never bothered me, but others have complained about it.
Also, some region 2 discs, like ones out of Japan, are NTSC. There is no real advantage/disadvantage with a region 2 discs. I get them when I cannot wait for the region 1 version to come out. Just make sure your player is set for region 0.

Pardon my ignorance-does this fix the general gripe people have about converting PAL->NTSC, namely the 4%(?) difference in speed? Personally, it has never bothered me, but others have complained about it.
Also, some region 2 discs, like ones out of Japan, are NTSC. There is no real advantage/disadvantage with a region 2 discs. I get them when I cannot wait for the region 1 version to come out. Just make sure your player is set for region 0.


No, it won't. It will play with PAL speed up (though I doubt this effects TV shows in the same way as it's the coversion of 24fms a second to 25 played twice each at 50hz which causes the speed up as I understand it). The oppo should just output 50hz.

Dave

Thanks Dave. It really isn't a big deal. The only time I noticed it, is on the Battlestar Galactica Season 1 DVDs. I bought the R2 version a good 6 months or so before it was available in the US. The pitch is slightly higher on the opening music (female non-vocals) than it should be. That's the only time I've noticed it.

The new Secrets of Home Theater Benchmark review is out now. The Oppo got a 98% on the Video 2 deinterlacing mode :D

heres the link

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all&type=DVD+Player&manufacturer=0&maxprice=0&deInt=0&mpeg=0#Oppo%20DigitalOPDV971H%20(DVI)

You you post the line to the Secrets Oppo new review.

I use the Harmony 880. Can I download all the new codes/settings so that it will work like the black remote?

Yes, you can.

Does anyone know if there is a fix for the compatability issue for the Oppo with Sony XBR (LCOS) sets besides staying with the older firmware?
Just curious.
J

The new Secrets of Home Theater Benchmark Review is out now the Oppo got a 98 on the Video 2 deinterlacing mode :D

Wicked! Link. (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=122)

What's recovery time?

...Although I read about Oppo's responsiveness, documentation in comprehensible English is not their long suit. . .Hmmmm...and that's one of the things I'm actually good at. And I'm a consultant...I smell an opportunity. :p

The new Secrets of Home Theater Benchmark Review is out now the Oppo got a 98 on the Video 2 deinterlacing mode :DI take it that's good; but as I'm just now learning about HT and the like (heck 2 weeks ago I didn't know what a Faroudja chip was for!), what can I compare that against? I'm going to go read the article now, hopefully that question is answered.

Wicked! Link. (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=122)

What's recovery time?

The amount of time it takes the player to go from video to film mode in its de-interlacing. The Faroudja chip has always been a bit sluggish in this regard.


For everyone,

I realize that the commentary in that review has not changed. Oppo did not want me to take down the review while I update it so I didn't. The commentary will be updated early this week. Sorry about that.

I realize that the commentary in that review has not changed. Oppo did not want me to take down the review while I update it so I didn't. The commentary will be updated early this week. Sorry about that.Thanks Kris! We look forward to the new review.

Gary

Does anyone know if there is a fix for the compatability issue for the Oppo with Sony XBR (LCOS) sets besides staying with the older firmware?
Just curious.
J
Which compatibility issue? The only ones I'm aware of from my own experience are:

1) Significant left shift in 720p and 1080i modes; fix is to revert back to f/w 1022 and drop your brightness down three notches. Since the only change in 1111B was supposed to be adjusting the brightness scale, you really don't lose anything by staying with 1022.

2) The SXRD doesn't sync up with the Oppo if you turn on the player while the TV's already on the HDMI input, or if you turn the Oppo off and on again. (Except that it does work for the first couple of minutes after the TV is turned on.) I thought this was a problem with my particular set, but Oppo service just confirmed to me that they've had other reports of it. Fix is to cycle through the inputs on the TV and come back to the HDMI input (or turn on the player before going to the HDMI input); Oppo says they'll try to tackle it in a future firmware, but they don't have any SXRD sets to test with at the moment.

These are (for me) minor annoyances, and the only problems I've had with the Oppo.

Great "Secrets..." score!

Favorite DVD programming for viewing:

Lawrence of Arabia (superbit)
Singin' In the Rain
Ben-Hur
Looney Tunes Golden Collection
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Paul

I have a Z3 with native resolution of 720p. Do you other guys with native rezzes of 720p watch DVD's on the Oppo at 480p, 720p, or 1080i?

Thanks. (I realize that if the Oppo didn't do the upscaling, the Z3 would have to.)

I have a Z3 with native resolution of 720p. Do you other guys with native rezzes of 720p watch DVD's on the Oppo at 480p, 720p, or 1080i? The OPPO's 720p output is absolutely the best one to use for native 720p displays.

Gary

So watching DVDs, would you recommend that I choose 720p, instead of 1080i? My display will handle 1080i.

For many, 720p will yield the best results. For some, 1080i is the only option and may also yield excellent results.

Examine the final picture after calibration and see what looks best.

Paul

Am I missing something? I went to the link, and I didn't see Oppo 971H reviewed or even listed, anywhere. What's the secret?

I assume you mean calibrate using some utility the Oppo comes with, or do you mean Avia? When I used Avia, it seemed skewed to SD TVs, so not too much help on a plasma HDTV. :cool:

Which compatibility issue? The only ones I'm aware of from my own experience are:

1) Significant left shift in 720p and 1080i modes; fix is to revert back to f/w 1022 and drop your brightness down three notches. Since the only change in 1111B was supposed to be adjusting the brightness scale, you really don't lose anything by staying with 1022.

2) The SXRD doesn't sync up with the Oppo if you turn on the player while the TV's already on the HDMI input, or if you turn the Oppo off and on again. (Except that it does work for the first couple of minutes after the TV is turned on.) I thought this was a problem with my particular set, but Oppo service just confirmed to me that they've had other reports of it. Fix is to cycle through the inputs on the TV and come back to the HDMI input (or turn on the player before going to the HDMI input); Oppo says they'll try to tackle it in a future firmware, but they don't have any SXRD sets to test with at the moment.

These are (for me) minor annoyances, and the only problems I've had with the Oppo.
--for Item 2--
I use the Harmony 880 (but you can do the following with any remote that accepts macros) . I prepare the Harmony in the normal way for DVD play then I add two commands:
1. set the TV to any analog input (unused for a dark screen)--I use Video 5
2. set the TV to the digital input for the DVD--I use Video 7

These are automatically sent each time the DVD Activity is commanded and has always worked for me.

I need to find out if the Oppo will work with my Fujitsu plasma 5001, which is almost 4 years old. Will I get a picture through DVI? Is there a thread I can find that talks about this?

Ok, let me start by saying hello to everyone. Hello. This is a great thread! I just bought the DV971H for my Sony KDF-50WE655. Is there anything I might need to know ahead of time? Any particular settings I might be aware of? I can't wait!

Ramiro

Btw, how fast is Oppo's standard shipping? Anyone know from experience?

UPS ground from Kalifornia.

My unit took the amount of time I anticipated.

The OPPO's 720p output is absolutely the best one to use.

Gary
I think it's display dependant. I use mine at 1080i on a CRT RPTV and I get absolutely no jitter or flicker in the picture. Again I have to say I have trouble paying attention to any movies because of this damn thing. Two months and counting and I'm still floored by the superb picture quality. I feel a little like I'm taking advantage of the good people at Oppo Digital. Seems like we should have paid much more for our units. In my somewhat naive foray into the world of video/audiophiles I think this unit would rank as the best buy in electronics I've ever come across. :D

First post updated to reflect 3rd-style remote and some slight rearranging and editing.

Paul

Is there some kind of a secret code/hack that would enable you to skip through to the main menu while the initial previews are playing and the remote is blocked?

I searched, but haven't been able to find it. Thanks.

Hello Pete,

Press Stop, then Menu.

Paul

Well, but the 'stop' button is blocked, just like the rest of the buttons.

Press "STOP" as soon as the player will allow. The feature may not be 100% but it does work pretty well.

paul

No luck with 'stop'. The only thing I was able to manage is press the 'play/pause' button to pause it and then I could skip forward a few chapters to the main menu.

Most DVDs you can either press Menu, press Skip, Pause then Skip, or use the Stop then Menu trick. Some DVDs, however, will completely lock all skipping in some situations. In these cases, I usually make one last potty/drinking/eating break and then come back.

Most DVDs you can either press Menu, press Skip, Pause then Skip, or use the Stop then Menu trick. Some DVDs, however, will completely lock all skipping in some situations. In these cases, I usually make one last potty/drinking/eating break and then come back.

This works quite often: As soon as 'DVD-Video' appears in the top left of your display--before the DVD starts and just after 'Loading'--press menu. You have to be quick on the draw. This should take you right to the menu page, skipping the warnings, previews, etc. It's not 100% but it is the best shortcut I've found. However, sometimes this does make the DVD start in the wrong language!

Dave

The link to the new Secrets review that was posted above didn't work for me either. Here's a good link here...

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=all

I haven't been keeping up lately so my apologies in advance if this was covered; i skimmed back a few pages and didn't see it mentioned.

I recently downloaded and applied the latest firmware upgrade. I am generally very pleased with the improvements, particularly to the aspect ratio which had been bugging me for some time now. One quirky side effect of the aspect ration fix, however, is that the picture sometimes is shifted to the left by about 1-5%...anyone else seeing this? there is now way to correct the centering of the image that i can see.

It's been discussed. Oppo has been contacted about it. Some users went back to the 1022 firmware.

Paul

Hi

I would like to add something to the wishlist: a different font for the subtitles.
Yesterday, I watched "Big Fish" (btw: great movie!) and due to the major southern accent, I had to use subtitles.
They were really hard to read, since the were very bold, and use a (imho) hard to read font - very blocky, big, pixelated letters.
When I compared the subtitles of that movie in my old Panasonic 656, I liked them much better there: a very nice, smooth, good to read font, not bold, not blocky, nice, unpixelated curves, better resolution - just readable at a glance. The Oppo instead forced me to really concentrate more to the subtitles to be able to read them and that way distracted me more from the movie.

Is there a chance, that this is likely to be happening?

Joerg

Hello Joerg,

Very interesting. I've haven't seen a player that changed font selection on my discs -- the font style and color remained consistent from player to player. Certain Panasonics will allow for the position to be changed but I haven't seen an actual font change.

Early versions of the DV971H firmware had problems with subtitles when in the 4:3 mode of Wide/SQZ resulting in garbled text but I haven't seen that problem in quite awhile.

I don't have "Big Fish". Do you have any other examples of subtitles in other movies that look good on the 656 but bad on the DV971H?

The "Big Fish" DVD is a standard, commercial DVD correct?

Paul

I haven't been keeping up lately so my apologies in advance if this was covered; i skimmed back a few pages and didn't see it mentioned.

I recently downloaded and applied the latest firmware upgrade. I am generally very pleased with the improvements, particularly to the aspect ratio which had been bugging me for some time now. One quirky side effect of the aspect ration fix, however, is that the picture sometimes is shifted to the left by about 1-5%...anyone else seeing this? there is now way to correct the centering of the image that i can see.

I brought this up yesterday. It seems to be an issue with the new Sony XBR sets, I don't know if its a problem with other TVs. You have to go back to the older firmware.

--for Item 2--
I use the Harmony 880 (but you can do the following with any remote that accepts macros) . I prepare the Harmony in the normal way for DVD play then I add two commands:
1. set the TV to any analog input (unused for a dark screen)--I use Video 5
2. set the TV to the digital input for the DVD--I use Video 7

These are automatically sent each time the DVD Activity is commanded and has always worked for me.
Thanks. There's probably a Harmony remote somewhere in my future, and it's nice to know that there's an easy fix.

I brought this up yesterday. It seems to be an issue with the new Sony XBR sets, I don't know if its a problem with other TVs. You have to go back to the older firmware.
According to Oppo, "The 1111B left shifting effects all SXRD displays, the BenQ line of projectors, and some LCDs. It will be addressed in a future firmare release."

So it's not just us. :)

Hello Joerg,

Very interesting. I've haven't seen a player that changed font selection on my discs -- the font style and color remained consistent from player to player. Certain Panasonics will allow for the position to be changed but I haven't seen an actual font change.

Early versions of the DV971H firmware had problems with subtitles when in the 4:3 mode of Wide/SQZ resulting in garbled text but I haven't seen that problem in quite awhile.

I don't have "Big Fish". Do you have any other examples of subtitles in other movies that look good on the 656 but bad on the DV971H?

The "Big Fish" DVD is a standard, commercial DVD correct?

Paul

DVDs use actual pictures for subtitles. Playing the same dvd on different dvd players should result in the same font. However, if you are playing a divx (or any movie) file with an external subtitle file like an srt file, the dvd player supplies its own font (if it supports it).

According to Oppo, "The 1111B left shifting effects all SXRD displays, the BenQ line of projectors, and some LCDs. It will be addressed in a future firmare release."

So it's not just us. :)

Thanks for that info. I haven't installed the new firmware yet and wondered if I should. I have a Sammy DLP, so it appears that the new firmware won't affect me. I have a backup of the older update, which is my current firmware, just in case.

According to Oppo, "The 1111B left shifting effects all SXRD displays, the BenQ line of projectors, and some LCDs. It will be addressed in a future firmare release."

So it's not just us. :)
Glad to hear it.

According to Oppo, "The 1111B left shifting effects all SXRD displays, the BenQ line of projectors, and some LCDs. It will be addressed in a future firmare release."

So it's not just us. :)

What about the xs955 series

Thanks for that info. I haven't installed the new firmware yet and wondered if I should. I have a Sammy DLP, so it appears that the new firmware won't affect me. I have a backup of the older update, which is my current firmware, just in case.No, it doesn't seem to affect the Samsung DLP.

Gary

Hey folks-

Just got my Oppo the other day - love it so far (after downgrading to the 1022 firmware to get rid of the big black bar on my screen that is). I have a Universal Remote Control MX-350 remote. I know this remote can't upload new code sets, but I was wondering if by any chance one of the built-in codes will work w/the Oppo. Oppo doesn't show up as one of the supported brands, but wasn't sure if a different brand's code set was the same.

Thanks,
Sean

I have the Universal Remote URC-200. None of the pre-programmed codes worked -- I searched through them all.

The URC-200, however, learned the codes with no problem.

Paul

I have the Universal Remote URC-200. None of the pre-programmed codes worked -- I searched through them all.

The URC-200, however, learned the codes with no problem.

Paul

Cool, thanks Paul.

Thanks for that info. I haven't installed the new firmware yet and wondered if I should. I have a Sammy DLP, so it appears that the new firmware won't affect me. I have a backup of the older update, which is my current firmware, just in case.

I installed latest firmware- no shifting on my Samsung HLP-5063W

I have owned the panny s97. I loved the player other than that damned macroblocking. Is it a given that if I order this player I'm gonna get macroblocking with it also? I mean region free, no layer change, plays almost everything, would be a great player. Just don't know though. I hate macroblocking. Everytime I see it. I start complaining. Man look at that _ _ _ _! I hate it :eek: Any help would be appreciated though.

Cant say 100% but if your display shows macroblock enhance, assume that macroblock enhance will be seen with any player equipped with the FLI23xx chip. Oppo Digital does have a great return policy, however, so it may be worth a try.

Paul

I have owned the panny s97. I loved the player other than that damned macroblocking. Is it a given that if I order this player I'm gonna get macroblocking with it also? I mean region free, no layer change, plays almost everything, would be a great player. Just don't know though. I hate macroblocking. Everytime I see it. I start complaining. Man look at that _ _ _ _! I hate it :eek: Any help would be appreciated though.

You also have to remember that proper calibration can greatly minimize macroblocking. And proper calibration when it comes to macroblocking does not necessarily mean calibrating to the specs of a DVD calibration disc. You may have to adjust brightness and contrast against spec.

On my system, I have to leave brightness at the 0 setting (which is actually -3 for the 1022 firmware I'm still using) and turn up contrast to +2 (though spec would say it should be set at 0 with the 1022 firmware). I've also turned up contrast a little higher on my display itself than I had it set for other DVD players. Others have had better luck by turning down contrast.

Some users have been reporting a need to set brightness as low as -8 in the Oppo to eliminate macroblocking. Small changes to either brightness or contrast will greatly effect macroblocking. By playing around a little bit I almost never notice it now, whereas before I saw it regularly on certain discs. Turning on noise reduction in the Oppo to the lowest setting has also been helpful along with keeping TruLife and CSS Off with the 1022 firmware.

Even by going against spec, the picture still looks stunning with rich blacks.

And as the previous post says, if all else fails to get rid of macroblocking, just return the unit to Oppo, or use it as a backup DVD player for only those discs that don't ever show macroblocking no matter how things are set up.

Is it a given that if I order this player I'm gonna get macroblocking with it also? CJayB has it right. Have you had your display properly calibrated to your player?

My Samsung DLP suffered with horrible macroblock-enhance until I calibrated it, using it's FULL range of available contrast.

A few experimental tweaks to the OPPO helped tremendously too.

Gary

According to Oppo, "The 1111B left shifting effects all SXRD displays, the BenQ line of projectors, and some LCDs. It will be addressed in a future firmare release."

So it's not just us. :)


So it seems that it affects XBR1 based SXRD sets as well as the Qualia 006...strange thing is I don't see it on every thing I play on it and the amount can vary as well from a very small black bar to a larger, but still bearable, black bar (I'd rather have the aspect correct so I haven't dialed back to the older firmware).

CJayB has it right. Have you had your display properly calibrated to your player?

My Samsung DLP suffered with horrible macroblock-enhance until I calibrated it, using it's FULL range of available contrast.

A few experimental tweaks to the OPPO helped tremendously too.

Gary

For those of us who also have Samsung DLP (mine's the HLR-5067W), could you please illuminate us on the settings you may have that have optimized the Sammy for the Oppo ? I know I've been playing with it for a few months and still haven't found that "ideal" combination. I know that each display is different, but I've noticed a few people on this board have the Sammy DLP and I think it would be interesting to find out what setting's people have had the best luck with. Personally, I keep mine at the 'Movie' setting at native 720P with DVI to HDMI, have the Contract up @ 90, Brightness @ 50 and Sharpness @ 40. After loading the latest firmware, I've currently got the Oppo settings at 0 across the board with Truelife, CCS, etc all off. I'm still convinced that based on the raves on this board that my picture should be substantially better than what I'm seeing. Any advice would be greatly appreciated !

For those of us who also have Samsung DLP (mine's the HLR-5067W), could you please illuminate us on the settings you may have that have optimized the Sammy for the Oppo ? I know I've been playing with it for a few months and still haven't found that "ideal" combination. I know that each display is different, but I've noticed a few people on this board have the Sammy DLP and I think it would be interesting to find out what setting's people have had the best luck with. Personally, I keep mine at the 'Movie' setting at native 720P with DVI to HDMI, have the Contract up @ 90, Brightness @ 50 and Sharpness @ 40. After loading the latest firmware, I've currently got the Oppo settings at 0 across the board with Truelife, CCS, etc all off. I'm still convinced that based on the raves on this board that my picture should be substantially better than what I'm seeing. Any advice would be greatly appreciated !

For a real improvement in picture quality, spend a few bucks and have it ISF calibrated through the service menu.

My HLN 617 had significant blue push with extra green thrown in. Also the color temp was set way too high at over 10,000K. It is now around 6,500K. The Opoo was also calibrated to display properly on the set after the factory settings of the set had been changed.

I have been told by several ISF certified people that the HLR model that you have is the most desirable to calibrate because they can adjust so many things.

For those of us who also have Samsung DLP (mine's the HLR-5067W), could you please illuminate us on the settings you may have that have optimized the Sammy for the Oppo ? Your OPPO settings sound right if you have the 1111B firmware.

My TV settings will not work for you, though. I have the HLP4674W, a completely different set, with different menus, and I use the DVI port, not the HDMI port. Additionally, I have fully calibrated my set in the service menu, which causes the user menu to default to "Standard" mode, Contrast 100, Brightness 50. Those settings should be left alone, but Sharpness should be set to 0, Color to 50, DNIe to OFF, DNR to OFF, and Picture size to "Expand" for 1:1 pixel mapping.

An ISF calibration, or at the very least, a do-it-yourself calibration using DVE/Avia, is the only way to get it to look right. In the mean time, you could try the following quick and dirty tricks:

Set the TV to Movie/Cinema mode, Warm1, Film Mode ON, DNIe OFF and NR/DNR OFF. Set Sharpness to 0, Contrast to 100, and Picture size for 1:1 pixel mapping. Adjust Color to give the most natural skin tones without a "sunburned" look.

Insert a recent 1.85:1 widescreen movie (black bars on top and bottom) in the OPPO. Turn the room lights off, and sit right in front of the screen. Adjust the TV's brightness until the dithering (moving speckles) just disappears from the black bars.

Gary

According to Oppo, "The 1111B left shifting effects all SXRD displays, the BenQ line of projectors, and some LCDs. It will be addressed in a future firmare release."

So it's not just us. :)

The left shifting effects with right black bar also exists with Westinghouse 37" LCD Monitor.

Your OPPO settings sound right if you have the 1111B firmware.

My TV settings will not work for you, though. I have the HLP4674W, a completely different set, with different menus, and I use the DVI port, not the HDMI port. Additionally, I have fully calibrated my set in the service menu, which causes the user menu to default to "Standard" mode, Contrast 100, Brightness 50. Those settings should be left alone, but Sharpness should be set to 0, Color to 50, DNIe to OFF, DNR to OFF, and Picture size to "Expand" for 1:1 pixel mapping.

An ISF calibration, or at the very least, a do-it-yourself calibration using DVE/Avia, is the only way to get it to look right. In the mean time, you could try the following quick and dirty tricks:

Set the TV to Movie/Cinema mode, Warm1, Film Mode ON, DNIe OFF and NR/DNR OFF. Set Sharpness to 0, Contrast to 100, and Picture size for 1:1 pixel mapping. Adjust Color to give the most natural skin tones without a "sunburned" look.

Insert a recent 1.85:1 widescreen movie (black bars on top and bottom) in the OPPO. Turn the room lights off, and sit right in front of the screen. Adjust the TV's brightness until the dithering (moving speckles) just disappears from the black bars.

Gary

Gary.

Thanks for the quick tips - will definitely give this a try later tonight. My only problem is that these Sammy models always have DNIe ON. Other than that, I'll follow your recommendations. I think the main problem I have is the dithering you mentioned above (never knew the 'technical' term). If cranking down the brightness is the answer to that, I'll give it a shot. Thanks again for the help !

I think the main problem I have is the dithering you mentioned above (never knew the 'technical' term). If cranking down the brightness is the answer to that, I'll give it a shot. Thanks again for the help !DLP uses dithering to represent the darkest shades just above black. No getting around that... but DVD black (digital 16) should not show any dithering. Tweaking the TV brightness until the dithering just disappears, indicates that your DLP has reached the darkest black that it is capable of.

Gary

Gary.

Thanks for the quick tips - will definitely give this a try later tonight. My only problem is that these Sammy models always have DNIe ON. Other than that, I'll follow your recommendations. I think the main problem I have is the dithering you mentioned above (never knew the 'technical' term). If cranking down the brightness is the answer to that, I'll give it a shot. Thanks again for the help !
DNIe can be turned off in the Service Menu. Whether it's safe to do so I'm not sure.

Sure, it's safe to turn off DNIe. I think I had to go into "custom" mode. I turned it off on my HLN and turned the sharpness all the way down.

I recently bought this dvd player and am very happy with it. What I'm curious to know though is if the shift that people are saying is being introduced by the newest firmware occurs on the players that came with the black remote, or just on prior versions. I have a Panny 900, and I just updated the firmware to the 1022 version. I do have the black remote, but I'm guessing there's no reason to mess with the 1111 ver FW, right?

I recently bought this dvd player and am very happy with it. What I'm curious to know though is if the shift that people are saying is being introduced by the newest firmware occurs on the players that came with the black remote, or just on prior versions. I have a Panny 900, and I just updated the firmware to the 1022 version. I do have the black remote, but I'm guessing there's no reason to mess with the 1111 ver FW, right?The shift occurs on all the OPPO players with 1111B firmware, no matter which remote you have. BUT... it depends on your display. There is no shift on my Samsung DLP.

Gary

Sure, it's safe to turn off DNIe. I think I had to go into "custom" mode. I turned it off on my HLN and turned the sharpness all the way down.The HLR models do not allow you to turn off DNIe in the User Menu. So the question is whether it is safe to turn it off in the Service Menu. It may cause other undesirable behaviour. Nevertheless, I'm sure it could just be turned on again.

Gary

The HLR models do not allow you to turn off DNIe in the User Menu. So the question is whether it is safe to turn it off in the Service Menu. It may cause other undesirable behaviour. Nevertheless, I'm sure it could just be turned on again.

Gary

My friends HLR-4667W shipped with DNIe being able to be turned on or off. Suffice to say, we turned if off. Everyonce and a while someone will be at his house, and ask why his picture is better. He says he turned off DNIe, which confused the hell out of them, because their DNIe option is greyed out.

The shift occurs on all the OPPO players with 1111B firmware, no matter which remote you have. BUT... it depends on your display. There is no shift on my Samsung DLP.

Gary
Ok, thanks for the info. I think I'll just stick with ver 1022 until they get that fixed.

Ok, thanks for the info. I think I'll just stick with ver 1022 until they get that fixed.

I've heard some ramblings that the Panasonic AE-700/900 are experiencing left shift with the new firmware. So I would just stick with the 1022, unless you want to help confirm the murmurs.

I received my Oppo today and I installed it and everything is working great, except when I hit the DVI button to see the difference between settings I get the circle with the slash through it in the upper left corner on the TV. I have a Sony KV36-HS510 TV. I know that this DVD player works best with LCD, Plasma, etc. which I plan on getting sometime in the future. I have read in this forum about how other people's direct view TV's see some improvement. I have compared a movie on my old Panasonic player and to the Oppo and it doesn't seem to be different. I do have the Oppo in the DVI input of the TV. Is there something else I need to do to get this to work? I have read the instructions twice and there is nothing else that I see that I need to do. Thanks for your help.

I received my Oppo today and I installed it and everything is working great, except when I hit the DVI button to see the difference between settings I get the circle with the slash through it in the upper left corner on the TV.

Hi Plumberman-

Press the stop button first. You can't use the DVI button (to change output settings from 480i/p -> 720p ->1080i etc.) while a disc is playing.

-Sean

Received mine a few days ago (factory direct refurb for $160) ... plays wonderfully through my Infocus 4805 PJ when using DVI.

I am using Video 2 mode on the OPPO.

This player replaces the Zenith DVB318 ... which was not bad but the improvement is noticeable.

Also, I have programmed my URC remote to operate the OPPO ... let me know if any JP1-user here wants to program their JP1 capable remote ... I can upload the file.

Thank you.

Max

I have compared a movie on my old Panasonic player and to the Oppo and it doesn't seem to be different. You haven't given us enough info. Which Panasonic? Which connection was it using? The differences may not be glaringly obvious... until you know what to look for. Also, your 4:3 CRT TV may not be doing it justice.

Gary

Just want to confirm something before I spend any real time calibrating this weekend - with the 1022 firmware, I should set brightness to negative 3 before starting any tweaking to get the same settings as are available in the 1111B firmware, correct? Any other offsets I should be aware of?

Also, do most people use the brightness/contrast settings on the player when calibrating, or on their display, or both? Seems like it'd be simpler to just pick one or the other, and then even simpler to set the Oppo to be neutral and use the display for all calibrations (unless of course your display doesn't give you enough room to adjust).

Thanks,
Sean

I'm using digital out to my Denon AVR-2106 for audio. In that case, where the AVR is doing the DD and DTS decoding, bass management, etc., do the speaker settings (large vs. small, delay, distance, etc.) on the Oppo have any effect? I would think those would only be relevant for the 5.1 analog out connections.

Basically I want my Denon to do all sound processing, bass management, dynamic compression, time delay, Pro Logic II stuff, etc. I want the Oppo to feed as "pure" a signal to the Denon as possible. I assume I'd want "RAW" for SPDIF output. However for LPCM out, do I stick with 48k default or change to 96k? Anything else I should check?

Thanks,
Sean

Just want to confirm something before I spend any real time calibrating this weekend - with the 1022 firmware, I should set brightness to negative 3 before starting any tweaking to get the same settings as are available in the 1111B firmware, correct? Any other offsets I should be aware of?

Also, do most people use the brightness/contrast settings on the player when calibrating, or on their display, or both? Seems like it'd be simpler to just pick one or the other, and then even simpler to set the Oppo to be neutral and use the display for all calibrations (unless of course your display doesn't give you enough room to adjust).

Thanks,
Sean

-3 for the brightness with the 1022 firmware is the importnat adjustment to make. I would say at least to start before calibrating hour display to make sure that the other settings are set to 0 or Off (I can't remember if TruLife defaults to Off). And then play with turning TruLife On, NR to Low and Sharpness to Low to test what looks best to your eye. I personally also have color set to -1 and contrast to +2, but these are not the default or neutral settings (-3 for brightness is also not the default, but it should be). I leave TruLife always Off, and NR and Sharpness are set either to Off or Low depending on the film I'm watching. Note that noise reduction can only be adjusted with TruLife On, but once NR is adjusted, TruLife can then be turned Off if desired (the same is true with CSS, which I also always leave Off).

Hello all !

I would like to nstall the last firmware of Oppo.

The software is made for the black remote and I received the new remote control today.

My problem it is that I use a Harmony 628 remote and that I do not dare to make the upgrade because on the Harmony web site, it does not seem to have 2 different number of models for the gray remote control and the black remote.

I would like to know how to modify my Harmony remote so that it uses the infra-red command of the black remote control of the Oppo???

Thx

Is the 628 capable of learning? Perhaps the 628 can learn the new instruction set via the learning port.

Paul

Thanks mtnsean for the info. Either I missed that in the instructions or it is not in there. GSB the Panasonic is a DMR-E55 through component video cables. After adjusting the DVI to 720p there was a difference in video quality. The oppo is sent out at 480p. I know that there won't be a night and day difference with my TV, but the Panasonic just didn't look that sharp. The Oppo is definitely better. I have been seeing different views if Trulife, CCS, Sharpness, and NR should be on or off. What would be best for a direct view CRT TV. Thanks

The updated "Secrets..." DV971H text is now online:

Secrets Of Home Theater Oppo Digital DV971H review (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=124#Oppo%20DigitalOPDV971H%20(DVI))

Paul

I have updeated my Harmony remote and it works with the new firmware. I have the new remote. If you have any problem I would just call Harmony.

I have updeated my Harmony remote and it works with the new firmware. I have the new remote. If you have any problem I would just call Harmony.

How you updated your Harmony ? With the learning port ?

The updated "Secrets..." DV971H text is now online:

Secrets Of Home Theater Oppo Digital DV971H review (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=124#Oppo%20DigitalOPDV971H%20(DVI))

Paul

Thank-U for the update info.

HH

OPDV971H Firmware Upgrade Q&As:

Q : How do I find out the firmware version of the OPDV971H DVD player?

A : Do the following to find out the firmware version:
• Eject the tray
• Press the "OSD" button on the remote control
• A menu will pop up to show the firmware version of the OPPO player. If you don't see the firmware version, this means that you have an older firmware version installed.

I did this and don't see a firmware version....Why should I load the latest one?

HH

The display will be onscreen and will be the "Batch" item on the screen.

This feature was added with the 1022 firmware and is in the list updates for that firmware. I'll change the notaion on the first post of this thead to indicate firmware 1022 and later. Thanks!

Paul

I have done a search for Truecolor, reaed all the posts and still do not know if I should keep it at the default On. The other enhancements are default Off.

What I gather is that it can be helpful with poor dvd transfers but would be unnecessary for the majority of dvds or evenmake them appear with visible edge enhancements.

Can you address the issue of Truecolor, please?

Thanks.

Shelly

Husker ,i think you mean TRUELIFE ! leave it on.

KRIS DEERING! Would the OPPO using 480i thru component be a good choice with the new DVDO VP30 scaler?

The Oppo is definitely better. I have been seeing different views if Trulife, CCS, Sharpness, and NR should be on or off. What would be best for a direct view CRT TV. ThanksMost of the OPPO fans have decided that Truelife, CCS, Sharpness, and NR should all be OFF for the most natural picture. However, those features can sometimes be useful to tweak for bad DVD transfers. For example, set NR to LOW and Truelife OFF for best performance with noisy images or macroblocking recorded on the disk. Experiment and have fun.

Gary

I agree.

I have even pushed the NR to MEDIUM with some DVDs, and the noise suppression is more significant with just a very slight hint of trails.

The HQV test disc just barely shows trails on the MEDIUM setting, when watching the roller coaster cars move across the screen. The lettering on the boat stern, remains readable.

A test/demonstration of the NR's side-effects is the HQV fast moving race car 3:2 detection test -- especially when it's going around the embankment.

Paul

Fairly major reorganization of the first post. Hopefully, it's easier to use.

Paul

Hi,

I'm in the market for an upscaling (720/1080) DVD player and so far, I'm pretty impressed by the features of the OPPO. I've never heard of the brand before reading this thread though, but I hope I can trust you fellows on this board.

At this point, the only thing holding me back is the fact that if I do get this DVD player, I'd end up with an additional remote control! I already have 3 at home (HDTV receiver, TV, amp). I doubt that my Sony/Philips/Yamaha remotes have pre-defined codes for the OPPO.

How are you guys coping with an extra remote control?

Thanks,
Kevin

One possibility is a learning remote. I use a URC-200 learning remote to consolidate the remote controls. Some use a Harmony remote which seems to have a great downloadable library of codes.

Paul

The Oppo works great with the Harmony. I am using the new 520 with a MSP price of $100 and it works great.

The Oppo works great with the Harmony. I am using the new 520 with a MSP price of $100 and it works great.

I have the 659, another great Harmony remote. Wouldn't be without my Harmony. Have had other universal remotes - Sony, Philips Pronto, more mundane ones - wouldn't trade my Harmony.