And some folk thought we were crazy for spending $10K+ on our beloved Qs!

Hey Zechman, did you pick one of these (http://www.engadget.com/2006/04/11/dells-10k-xps-600-renegade-sold-out/) up? :eek:

Umm, anyone heard from DiveDude or MiniDive lately?

Hope everything is ok...

Zech...I think you should pick up a new HD-DVD player...
I might actually consider purchasing one of these ………IF, the studio known as Universal deemed in its heart to release on HD DVD one of my most favorite movies in the NEAR future…………..

“Today I’m throwing hard Gus……….THERE’S your warning.”

“Would you like to go to a baseball game with ME ?”

For the Love of the Game

Kevin Costner as Billy Chapel*
Kelly Preston (wife of that Travolta dude) as Jane :D
Vin Scully as himself. :cool:

GREAT story. Poor to Average DVD transfer.

*The footage of Billy Chapel as a child in this movie is actually young Kevin Costner and his family’s home videos in his minor league baseball coached by his father. Costner actually reportedly aspired to be a profession baseball player at one time.

I might actually consider purchasing one of these ………IF, the studio known as Universal deemed in its heart to release on HD DVD one of my most favorite movies in the NEAR future…………..

“Today I’m throwing hard Gus……….THERE’S your warning.”

“Would you like to go to a baseball game with ME ?”

For the Love of the Game

Kevin Costner as Billy Chapel*
Kelly Preston (wife of that Travolta dude) as Jane :D
Vin Scully as himself. :cool:

GREAT story. Poor to Average DVD transfer.

*The footage of Billy Chapel as a child in this movie is actually young Kevin Costner and his family’s home videos in his minor league baseball coached by his father. Costner actually reportedly aspired to be a profession baseball player at one time.

I pre-ordered the Toshiba HD-A1 player but I don't plan on buying any
HD-DVD movies - only renting them from Netflix. Once I get my Sony BluRay
DVD player, I'll sell my HD-A1 for a few hundred bucks. I need something to hold
me over until BluRay...

I pre-ordered the Toshiba HD-A1 player but I don't plan on buying any
HD-DVD movies - only renting them from Netflix. Once I get my Sony BluRay
DVD player, I'll sell my HD-A1 for a few hundred bucks. I need something to hold
me over until BluRay...

I'm getting the HD-XA1 but I will not be selling it when I also get my BD player unless/until all titles are available on both formats...I find many, if not most, of the titles coming out on HD-DVD to be more compelling and suitable to mine and my family's taste(s). I wonder if I will be getting the BD player only for JA ? :D

BTW, I certainly won't be dropping $1.5K on a 1G BD player so it will be quite some time before I have both format players...price and content are the two deciding factors for me right now, i could care less about more storage capacity and MORE DRM!

OK, here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=666326) is a hands-on from a guy who works at Microsoft (on their VC-1 team it appears)...

I think people should just keep in mind that despite what Hi-def format you buy into, don’t expect to see the same difference between vintage DVD and Blu-ray or HD-DVD that you saw between VHS tape and DVD. It aint gonna happen…..at least any time soon.

Also expect to see some really nice Hi-def movie discs and some inferior ones, just like we saw with regular old DVD’s. Zee devils in the details. :eek:

But that is exactly what I was expecting... How depressed will I be? Have you seen something?

http://www.despair.com/elitism.html

But that is exactly what I was expecting... How depressed will I be? Have you seen something?

i'm not sure why pm made that statement but i have to respectfully disagree with it; the difference between sd dvd and these next gen hd formats will be a marked improvement if not night and day, just on image quality alone, never mind all the other bells and whistles, like interactivity, high rez audio, etc.

maybe zee queen has broken him and he is rationalizing? ;)

Won my Democratic Primary last night with 71% of the vote. I'm now the Democratic Party candidate for Texas Congressional District 10, which runs from Houston to Austin (adjacent to Tom Delay's old district, PM). Anyone with any interest can check out my website at www.tedankrum.com, or Google my name. Now I have the priviledge of running against a multi-millionaire first-term Republican whose father-in-law owns Clear Channel Communications.

Ted99 ....soooooooooooo what's your plan for the TX border problem?

Ted99 ....soooooooooooo what's your plan for the TX border problem?


Nothing like putting him right on the spot. :)

I pre-ordered the Toshiba HD-A1 player but I don't plan on buying any
HD-DVD movies - only renting them from Netflix. Once I get my Sony BluRay
DVD player, I'll sell my HD-A1 for a few hundred bucks. I need something to hold
me over until BluRay...
Tony,
It’s posts like that which cause me more money in video toys and compensatory trips with zee queen !

Are you still on track for your 70" SXRD set this fall ?

OK, here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=666326) is a hands-on from a guy who works at Microsoft (on their VC-1 team it appears)...
Well that’s the understatement of the day, see…………..
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/exec/amirm/default.mspx

He’s an excellent source for information on HD DVD.

But that is exactly what I was expecting... How depressed will I be?

You won't be :) ........see my post below to BenDover.

I will say though, perhaps my VHS tapes are a lot worse than yours which has implanted the dramatic difference between VHS and DVD in my mind forever. :eek:

Have you seen something?

Only demo stuff in Culver City and once in N.Y.C.
Which may be kinda like looking at the moon with a good pair of binoculars rather than one of dem super-duper teles.

i'm not sure why pm made that statement but i have to respectfully disagree with it; the difference between sd dvd and these next gen hd formats will be a marked improvement if not night and day, just on image quality alone, never mind all the other bells and whistles, like interactivity, high rez audio, etc.

Psychology 101 –
I just wanted people to go in expecting a significant but guarded improvement in Hi-Def discs …………..that way, when they have an unexpectedly profoundly positive experience with regards to P/Q, colors, and lack of artifacts – there will be no disappointment factor and they will be pleasantly surprised ! :)

maybe zee queen has broken him and he is rationalizing? ;)
LOL :D , You know me TOO well now. I confess when I made that post I was a little antsy as this has been a hectic week for me…………………………..

Dad was discharged from the local hospital on Sun. afternoon (AGAIN) for a semi-serious problem and between nursing him and running around on day trips with my wife and sister-in-law to all the touristee locations, I missed out on riding my bike on both Mon. and Tue. :(

Zech..........
Did I just do some record for consecutive posts ?????

If not...................

(adjacent to Tom Delay's old district, PM).
He can always fall back on thee old bug extermination bidness I guess. :p

Just a quick note to all that I just had the pleasure of having my 006 and my audio calibrated by UMR. The differences are very pronounced. His understanding and knowledge especially with the Q is awesome. I HIGHLY recommend him for those of you still needing some calibration done. Money well spent and on top of that, he's a great guy.

C-Dub006

Well that’s the understatement of the day, see…………..
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/exec/amirm/default.mspx

He’s an excellent source for information on HD DVD.


Wow, I had no idea...thanks for the info...

Great, Ted...glad you got what you want! :D

P.S. Did you have any issues getting the GE deal we did PM's about? One other person here tried and they did not know what we were talking about!

Won my Democratic Primary last night with 71% of the vote. I'm now the Democratic Party candidate for Texas Congressional District 10, which runs from Houston to Austin (adjacent to Tom Delay's old district, PM). Anyone with any interest can check out my website at www.tedankrum.com, or Google my name. Now I have the priviledge of running against a multi-millionaire first-term Republican whose father-in-law owns Clear Channel Communications.

Enforce employer sanctions immediately, not wait for three years of "transition" as in the House Bill. Raise the minimum Wage to a living Wage to see just how many immigrant workers we DO need. Path to Citizenship when applied for OUTSIDE the USA. Spend most of the 700 mile long wall money on better levees for our most important grain export port, New Orleans. Do build better walls in a few places along the CA/Mex border, like T town and Mexicalli. Walls don't keep people out (look at all the tunnels), they direct the traffic to where we can catch them. Stop catch and release. That enough? As you can see, I'm a Texas-style Dem.

No problems with the GE people in getting the warranty. Gave them model number, serial number, Fact warranty data, date of purchase and they gave me an immediate quote. Gave them a CC, and got the policy ten days later .

I assume it was the price I showed in my PM.

Dave...Migrant Electronics Worker! :D

Enforce employer sanctions immediately, not wait for three years of "transition" as in the House Bill. Raise the minimum Wage to a living Wage to see just how many immigrant workers we DO need. Path to Citizenship when applied for OUTSIDE the USA. Spend most of the 700 mile long wall money on better levees for our most important grain export port, New Orleans. Do build better walls in a few places along the CA/Mex border, like T town and Mexicalli. Walls don't keep people out (look at all the tunnels), they direct the traffic to where we can catch them. Stop catch and release. That enough? As you can see, I'm a Texas-style Dem.

No problems with the GE people in getting the warranty. Gave them model number, serial number, Fact warranty data, date of purchase and they gave me an immediate quote. Gave them a CC, and got the policy ten days later .

Wow, I had no idea...thanks for the info...
Ben…..something else you may not know -

Don’t bow down toooooooooooo low as some here believe the source does carry some baggage for spouting off incorrect/untrue rumors concerning the competing format (i.e. Blu) which has gotten the natives riled up a bit on occasions.

Overall, I think he's a good guy.

Ben?..something else you may not know -

Don?t bow down toooooooooooo low as some here believe the source does carry some baggage for spouting off incorrect/untrue rumors concerning the competing format (i.e. Blu) which has gotten the natives riled up a bit on occasions.

Overall, I think he's a good guy.

if it relates to sony's choice to use mpeg2 on their blu-ray disc, i would side with amir. otherwise i can't imagine what would cause what you say since vc-1 is a bd codec as well, even though sony may decide not to use it and opt for the legacy mpeg2.

i'm sure that he has his biases, but knowing that he has them at least makes it better than not knowing where most people are coming from whether they be plants, shills, trolls, etc.

i'm excited to get a new toy, regardless and my only slight disappointment will be if i don't have it for this coming weekend.

if it relates to sony's choice to use mpeg2 on their blu-ray disc, i would side with amir. otherwise i can't imagine what would cause what you say since vc-1 is a bd codec as well, even though sony may decide not to use it and opt for the legacy mpeg2.

No, it has to do with comments about BD-J.
Also, the future availability of BD-50 discs, etc.

I don’t want to further elaborate on this because I believe it is non-productive.
Re-read the last sentence of my last post for my overall opinion.

i'm excited to get a new toy, regardless and my only slight disappointment will be if i don't have it for this coming weekend.
Us, Qualians expect a thorough review so don’t enjoy it too much and start exercising your typing digits !

I remember someone posting about having a good line on a hd-dvd special if so could you PM me? Definitely pondering one and a deal could push me over the edge. The dual format world may be too far off to wait... :) Interesting how both PM and I have to do the bribing of the wife (or zee wife) how many of the rest of you had to shell out bigtime to compensate for your Q purchase?

I remember someone posting about having a good line on a hd-dvd special if so could you PM me?
That be BenDover and if he and Tony keep up with the enthusiasm over the HD DVD players, I may be kissing zee wife's feet earlier than expected. :eek:

I'm getting the HD-XA1 but I will not be selling it when I also get my BD player unless/until all titles are available on both formats...I find many, if not most, of the titles coming out on HD-DVD to be more compelling and suitable to mine and my family's taste(s). I wonder if I will be getting the BD player only for JA ? :D

BTW, I certainly won't be dropping $1.5K on a 1G BD player so it will be quite some time before I have both format players...price and content are the two deciding factors for me right now, i could care less about more storage capacity and MORE DRM!

Good point regarding not all movies in both formats - I suspect I wll hang onto
it for a few months longer until BluRay is almost done eating HD-DVDs lunch and
then dumping it for cheap :-)

Tony,
It’s posts like that which cause me more money in video toys and compensatory trips with zee queen !

Are you still on track for your 70" SXRD set this fall ?

Only if they put the Ruby2 SXRD chips in it - have you heard anything regarding
this?

Ortherwise I will just tough it out another year or start thinking FP....

That be BenDover and if he and Tony keep up with the enthusiasm over the HD DVD players, I may be kissing zee wife's feet earlier than expected. :eek:


No enthusiasm from me :-) Just practicality - I want my High Def and I want it now!

Well, Amir’s review of The Last Samurai on his Japanese (isn’t that poetic justice!) player is making me very “practical” at the moment because it sure sounded sweet for movie addicts!!!!

Only if they put the Ruby2 SXRD chips in it - have you heard anything regarding
this?

Ortherwise I will just tough it out another year or start thinking FP....
No, I haven’t really asked as everyone at the Big S seems preoccupied with Bravia, PS3, Blu-ray…..anyway, my situation is that I’m now in prolonged hibernation patiently waiting for a 100” plasma, LCD or rear projection TV in a light challenged room so I haven’t continued inquiring about updates on the 70” SXRD pieces.

My next purchase may actually turn out to be a 52” Bravia LCD for one of our bedrooms….a mini-project so to speak.

A Sony rep at the HE Expo I attended a few days ago told me the upcoming 70" SXRD would be using the current XBR SXRD chips.

That be BenDover and if he and Tony keep up with the enthusiasm over the HD DVD players, I may be kissing zee wife's feet earlier than expected. :eek:

You might as well start kissing those feet right now! Either way, how bad can it be :D

Enforce employer sanctions immediately, not wait for three years of "transition" as in the House Bill. Raise the minimum Wage to a living Wage to see just how many immigrant workers we DO need. Path to Citizenship when applied for OUTSIDE the USA. Spend most of the 700 mile long wall money on better levees for our most important grain export port, New Orleans. Do build better walls in a few places along the CA/Mex border, like T town and Mexicalli. Walls don't keep people out (look at all the tunnels), they direct the traffic to where we can catch them. Stop catch and release. That enough? As you can see, I'm a Texas-style Dem.

Well Sir, why not stop it dead in it's tracks by ordering the Guard to the border crossings thereby giving the Border Patrol all the mustle they need to stop the flow. Then a reasonable "Work Permit Plan" along with the "employer sanctions", and a timetable to file for it or be shipped back. It could be then stopped to a trickle, perhaps saving TX from the same mess as AZ, CA, & NM. Just takes guts.

Well Sir, why not stop it dead in it's tracks by ordering the Guard to the border crossings thereby giving the Border Patrol all the mustle they need to stop the flow. Then a reasonable "Work Permit Plan" along with the "employer sanctions", and a timetable to file for it or be shipped back. It could be then stopped to a trickle, perhaps saving TX from the same mess as AZ, CA, & NM. Just takes guts.Sorry for following the bait OT ;) -- but this is a current pet peeve. I would never even think of moving to France without learning French, yet we create an environment of entitlement where people who are here illegally believe they're entitled to certain rights and gov't services. I think we are being cowed by people who say that some jobs will never be taken by Anglos. If we deport a significant portion of illegals and raise the minimum wage it MIGHT hurt some businesses, but my guess is that the economy would be better off. Higher base wages + less provision of services to people who don't pay into the system...

Meanwhile -- back in Qualia land -- does anyone have a real sense of the facts of Q006 production? Has production been halted and they'll simply sell down the inventory, or are the sets still in production?

And a quick DV update -- Death Valley is an AMAZING place; everyone should try to get there at least once. Just don't attempt it between May 1st and October 1st. They've recorded ground temps of over 200 degrees there, so it's actually hot enough to fry an egg... :eek:

I agree, BRT3. I have been to Japan many times and just can not imagine telling them they better speak English! I am sure that if you did any of the things we are used to here they will tell you to get out.

Amazing...here if someone tells us what is wrong with the USA people agree, If you were in another country and tried it, they would tell you to get out! I think we are now too PC. We can not say no to anyone any more!

OK, back to our normal "Hey, how about that AI show" thread. I could not believe that I saw Kelly mention the snot rag!!

...snip...

...snip...

I think we are now too PC. We can not say no to anyone any more!




That's saying a mouth full.

....and its not politically expediant to create laws that cost votes.

Whoa, for those early adopters of HD DVD players, check out the price on this title ! ! ! !

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/sr=8-10/qid=1143646652/ref=sr_8_10/601-3253697-4410569?%5Fencoding=UTF8&asin=B000E5KJDO

And for those into codecs, it is VC-1 :) and the way Amir has crowed about it, I suspect that it has a high average bitrate and who knows…… could even be on a DL 30 disc ? :) :)

This flick may certainly be a consideration for purchase (given all of the above) to show off your Qualia 006 to your friends !

I for one would gladly pay much more if they could find a way to edit out Tommy Boy. :cool:

I for one would gladly pay much more if they could find a way to edit out Tommy Boy. :cool:

Look..................He KNOWS the history of Psychiatry so he may just prove helpful next time an Information Resources whatever visits us ! :D

WHAT!!! A Qualian in a Target store? OH, the Humanity!

Whoa, for those early adopters of HD DVD players, check out the price on this title ! ! ! !

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/sr=8-10/qid=1143646652/ref=sr_8_10/601-3253697-4410569?%5Fencoding=UTF8&asin=B000E5KJDO

And for those into codecs, it is VC-1 :) and the way Amir has crowed about it, I suspect that it has a high average bitrate and who knows…… could even be on a DL 30 disc ? :) :)

This flick may certainly be a consideration for purchase (given all of the above) to show off your Qualia 006 to your friends !

Whoa, for those early adopters of HD DVD players, check out the price on this title ! ! ! !

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/sr=8-10/qid=1143646652/ref=sr_8_10/601-3253697-4410569?%5Fencoding=UTF8&asin=B000E5KJDO

And for those into codecs, it is VC-1 :) and the way Amir has crowed about it, I suspect that it has a high average bitrate and who knows…… could even be on a DL 30 disc ? :) :)

This flick may certainly be a consideration for purchase (given all of the above) to show off your Qualia 006 to your friends !

If this is truly the codec for HD DVD or Blu-Ray it looks like Microsoft rules.

What is VC-1 (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/forpros/events/NAB2005/VC-1.aspx)

PM
Still in Long Beach. It was a great race though a bit boring after the intial turn 1 crash. Seats were right on ther start finish line. There was a great car show in the exposition center. The GT race after the Grand Prix was actually more exciting. I am going to ask again for the seats next year.

Blu Ray Picks VC-1 Codec

Blu Ray Codec (http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1558,1641558,00.asp)

HD-DVD includes VC-1 Codec

HD=DVD (http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20040614-3885.html)

WHAT!!! A Qualian in a Target store? OH, the Humanity!
Hey,
Where the hell do you think I purchase my emergency toilet paper when my roll of ten’s is all used up ! :D

Still in Long Beach. It was a great race though a bit boring after the intial turn 1 crash. .
For those unaware, that be turn 1 of the ……………FIRST lap ! :eek: after that, snooze time, well, unless I guess you were one of dem drivers!

I am going to ask again for the seats next year.
Well what I would REALLY like are pit passes with the Tecate girls next year……………….. :D
http://www.racebyrace.com/tecate.htm

OH, I thought that when I was in there getting my K-Cups, I heard them say "Attention PM Shoppers"!

Hey,
Where the hell do you think I purchase my emergency toilet paper when my roll of ten’s is all used up ! :D

Well what I would REALLY like are pit passes with the Tecate girls next year……………….. :D http://www.racebyrace.com/tecate.htmCount me in!!! Will trade you VIP passes with the Hooter Girls at the NASCAR/Sears Point/Infineon race for LBGP tix with the Tecate girls... ;) :D

For those unaware, that be turn 1 of the ……………FIRST lap ! :eek: after that, snooze time, well, unless I guess you were one of dem drivers!Man, I REALLY tried to watch the race upon our return from Death Valley. Between the lousy announcing team and the overall dullness of the race itself, I lasted about 15 laps before slumber set in.

WARNING: do NOT operate heavy machinery while watching CART... ;)

See……… http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7487227&&#post7487227

For one man’s opinion.
JB, and Joel, get your arses over to Tweeters!

Count me in!!! Will trade you VIP passes with the Hooter Girls at the NASCAR/Sears Point/Infineon race for LBGP tix with the Tecate girls... ;) :D
I need to see pics! to make a valid comparison.......I mean, after all, this IS a videophile forum! :D

Do NOT forget to wear your Easter bonnets on Sunday …….boys !

I need to see pics! to make a valid comparison.......I mean, after all, this IS a videophile forum! :DHere ya go... :eek: :D :eek:

I need to see pics! to make a valid comparison.......I mean, after all, this IS a videophile forum! :D
Darn it; posted the wrong pix! Here's the photo from my visit to the Hooters in Lancaster County, PA...

Here ya go... :eek: :D :eek:


Now that was just plain ole WRONG!!! :eek:

Some luck bum managed to swoop into a BB in CA and pick one up already...

Let the games begin... (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=667248)

Man,
WARNING: do NOT operate heavy machinery while watching CART... ;)

Cart is gone they are now called Champ Cars

What would you expect from all the cars running the same engine (Cosworth, which is owned by Champ Cars) and next year they all have to have a Panoz chassis.

Cart is gone they are now called Champ Cars

What would you expect from all the cars running the same engine (Cosworth, which is owned by Champ Cars) and next year they all have to have a Panoz chassis.

Well if Bernie keeps going F1 will be sooooooo regulated it may become a lot less interesting also. Although i'm liking the new qualifying format much better than last year, now if they would do away with the two race engine rule ..... :cool:

PS I have great seats for both INDY at The Glen, and F1 at Indianapolis, is anyone else from our forum going?

Well if Bernie keeps going F1 will be sooooooo regulated it may become a lot less interesting also. Although i'm liking the new qualifying format much better than last year, now if they would do away with the two race engine rule ..... :cool: PS I have great seats for both INDY at The Glen, and F1 at Indianapolis, is anyone else from our forum going?Although it might hurt F1 initially, I was hoping the manufacturers would break away and start their own series. F1 needs a simple set of rules that leave wide room for innovation...

I'll be at the USGP (along with the Mrs. AND Miss T, my 12 year-old racing fan/daughter; Elmo, sadly, will have to miss this one); we're staying at the Radisson City Centre (gotta love that British spelling). What are you doing for transportation; that's the only thing I don't have nailed down. I have a rental car, but am unsure about getting to and from the track (though I have a parking pass). Could you PM me if you have any ideas on this?

Cart is gone they are now called Champ Cars...Yeah, but it's much quicker and simpler to say CART! ;) Guess old habits die hard... :D

Whoa, for those early adopters of HD DVD players, check out the price on this title ! ! ! !

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/sr=8-10/qid=1143646652/ref=sr_8_10/601-3253697-4410569?%5Fencoding=UTF8&asin=B000E5KJDO

And for those into codecs, it is VC-1 :) and the way Amir has crowed about it, I suspect that it has a high average bitrate and who knows…… could even be on a DL 30 disc ? :) :)

This flick may certainly be a consideration for purchase (given all of the above) to show off your Qualia 006 to your friends !
Confirmed !

See.........................
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7490734&&#post7490734

Last Samurai:
VC-1: 1080P, 18 Mbps avg, 24 Mbps peak :eek:
Dolby Digital-Plus: English 5.1, 640 Kbps 16 bit/48 kHz

Person on HD-DVD forum just reported his died!!!


Confirmed !

See.........................
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7490734&&#post7490734

Last Samurai:
VC-1: 1080P, 18 Mbps avg, 24 Mbps peak :eek:
Dolby Digital-Plus: English 5.1, 640 Kbps 16 bit/48 kHz

My Pioneer Elite 61" just died. I've been reading this thread for a while just in case, looks like I'm read (more like being pushed) to dive in to Qualia land.

Do you guys use the tv for video switching or do you use an AV receiver?

Thanks in advance...with 369 pages of posts it's hard to find topics. Sorry if this has been covered before

I just picked up an HD-DVD player from BB. I couldn't talk them into selling me any movies until the 18th (my wedding anniversity, hmmmm . . . ) They had one left, so if anybody has trouble getting a player, or just can't wait any longer, send me a PM, and I'll take care of you.

Sophie....
It looks like you won the prize on this Qualian thread !

Which model did you buy?

My Pioneer Elite 61" just died. I've been reading this thread for a while just in case, looks like I'm read (more like being pushed) to dive in to Qualia land.

Do you guys use the tv for video switching or do you use an AV receiver?

Thanks in advance...with 369 pages of posts it's hard to find topics. Sorry if this has been covered before
I think most people here are just using the TV, please chime in if I'm incorrect.

Some luck bum managed to swoop into a BB in CA and pick one up already...

Let the games begin... (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=667248)
I got mine at Best Buy in MN today :). I had talked to them earlier and they said they only had the 799 version but lo and behold when I called up they admitted they had the A1 so I picked up the last one woot! I won't be opening it until I have a movie just in case another deal appears :).

Although it might hurt F1 initially, I was hoping the manufacturers would break away and start their own series. F1 needs a simple set of rules that leave wide room for innovation...

I'll be at the USGP (along with the Mrs. AND Miss T, my 12 year-old racing fan/daughter; Elmo, sadly, will have to miss this one); we're staying at the Radisson City Centre (gotta love that British spelling). What are you doing for transportation; that's the only thing I don't have nailed down. I have a rental car, but am unsure about getting to and from the track (though I have a parking pass). Could you PM me if you have any ideas on this?

Just PM'd ja!

I was also hoping for a Mfg. series, and keep it so that "best tech" at "spare no expense" was the norm. Which is what F1 should be all about. Send the poor boys to race Champ or INDY.

I hope you all checked Slickdeals-forum-hot deals and did a search for toshiba. They say BB has it for $375 with 3 movies and rebates!

I got mine at Best Buy in MN today :). I had talked to them earlier and they said they only had the 799 version but lo and behold when I called up they admitted they had the A1 so I picked up the last one woot! I won't be opening it until I have a movie just in case another deal appears :).

hehe, although I'm getting the XA1 from VE, I couldn't resist and talked my brother-in-law who is visiting to run down to BB with me and if the A1 was there (AFAIK, BB is only carrying the A1 so I'm not quite sure what BS they were feeding you) to pick one up...it was there and we picked up the two titles they had too! :D

I've been enjoying The Last Samurai and Phantom of the Opera (never saw it before and I doubt I would have bought this otherwise)...OMG do they look fabulous!!!

I wish they had Serenity like some other BB stores that people on AVS reported getting the title from.

Sophie....
It looks like you won the prize on this Qualian thread !

Which model did you buy?

hehe, OK, sorry, I picked mine up around noon today (EST) and have been playing around with it all day...if you see my prior post you will see i happen to be in one of those lucky BB stores where they just handed out the HD-DVD titles upon request..."sure, let me go in the back and get it for you" :)

Person on HD-DVD forum just reported his died!!!

LOL, mpsan, that "person (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7491131&&#post7491131)" was the guy who *set his player up on his bench like so (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7491026&&#post7491026)*

I was not sure who it was. Can you imagine getting this home and then tearing it apart? Maybe it was something he did? Do you think? :D

LOL, mpsan, that "person (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7491131&&#post7491131)" was the guy who *set his player up on his bench like so (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7491026&&#post7491026)*

I've been enjoying The Last Samurai and Phantom of the Opera (never saw it before and I doubt I would have bought this otherwise)...OMG do they look fabulous!!!

That’s it?
C’mon Ben, let’s hear some details?
Any edge enhancement or other artifacts?

Run down to a Blockbuster and rent a copy of TLS and play that in your vintage DVD player and see how it compares to the HD DVD version.

How does it compare to your HD broadcasts on cable?
ETC., Etc., etc..............

addendum:
Did you use the 5.1 analog outputs to the 5.1 analog input on your processor or receiver........and if so, I don't recall your sound system set-up.

Anyone, what's the diff between the A1 and the XA1?

I was not sure who it was. Can you imagine getting this home and then tearing it apart? Maybe it was something he did? Do you think? :D
One thing several people have been complaining about is a button on the remote (I believe the down arrow) not functioning well.

Lets hope they get this up on the Harmony 880 site quickly. I am a real slacker when it comes to figuring out that remote. Heck I still haven't gotten it to turn on and swap inputs (I just end up clicking the activity again after it turns on and stays on the wrong input). I don't want to have to figure out how to program all the commands.

This may be of interest to ole-time hippies, guys that survived Nam with their hearing intact, both ! :) -people that want to know what REAL music sounded like before things like hop-hip and such…………………….

Playing Sun. A.M. is The Last Waltz which is like a farewell concert by The Band at Winterland Arena? in San Fran. With some special guest performers………

If you want to skip stuff that’s boring use your FF button on your remote to blitz through the dialogue between the band members and the interviewer* and some of the less popular songs but, highlights should be …………….

The Band – Ole Time Religion and The Night They Drove Ole Dixie Down
Neil Young – Helpless :cool:
Muddy Waters - ? Mannish Boy
Eric Clapton – Further on Up the Road
Van Morrison – Caravan

And...........................................

Bob Dylan – (May you Stay) Forever Young :D

Happy Easter Everyone ! :)

*B.T.W. - That interviewer also directed the flick and was a young dude by the name of Martin Scorsese or somethin.

Btw thanks Bendover for the info - heh I couldn't pass up a bird in hand though :). I will have to see what I can do about getting some darn movies though and perhaps some of the specials from bb.

I hope you all checked Slickdeals-forum-hot deals and did a search for toshiba. They say BB has it for $375 with 3 movies and rebates!

fyi the bb link they give lists it at 499 so shrug I don't feel bad although apparently there will be a flyer out tomorrow with a package purchase deal on some movies. I will keep mine sealed until I get some movies and we will see...

That’s it?
C’mon Ben, let’s here some details?
Any edge enhancement or other artifacts?

Run down to a Blockbuster and rent a copy of TLS and play that in your vintage DVD player and see how it compares to the HD DVD version.

How does it compare to your HD broadcasts on cable?
ETC., Etc., etc..............


Sorry, I have a house full of guests and it is very hard to do a thorough review with kids jumping around, flying onto the LoveSac "Big One" bean bag, etc. :)

I started out to do just what you ask, I played TLS HD-DVD, took some pics; played TLS SD-DVD (upconverted by the HD-DVD player and of course the Q :)); then went to play the HD version I had recorded on my cable DVR and, d'oh, I had erased it some time ago :D

anyhow, the pics I took didn't turn out that good; I need to set it up on a tripod tomorrow.

i spent a lot of time troubleshooting a problem i was having getting the player to work with my zektor dvi switch; finally gave up and was relegated to manually switching plugs. just visited the zektor site and was reminded of a little tidbit of info that i knew at one time but had already forgotten (getting old really sucks!! and i'm not that old yet!)...the zektor will not do the hdcp handshake properly when you have two hdmi devices connected through it...works just fine if one of the devices is dvi...arrrrgh!

the other title i managed to get was the phantom of the opera but i do not own the sd-dvd and i have never seen this film before...but the pq was very impressive, as was the sound. I did not have a chance to make analog interconnects and hook the player's analog outs to my RX-Z9's analog inputs so I was connected via optical/coax and passing the digital bitstream via the player's settings. I checked the signal info on my receiver while tls was playing and observed format: dts, sampling: 48khz, Channel: 3/2/0.1, Bitrate: 1536kbps...but people are reporting that their equipment is incorrectly identifying the audio signal so i'm not sure what to make of it..again, it sounded great.

as for pq, it certainly was better than upconverted sd; what makes it a bit difficult is that this pieces seems to purposely have a "grainy" look to it. but, i did not see ANY artifacts, whether they be false contouring, banding, ringing, edge effects, etc. it looked very good even while paused. what i was shocked over was the player's ability to cooperate with the Q (let's not forget our Q does a very good job taking source material, whether it be 480i/p or 1080i and displaying it wonderfully) and produce a very close upconverted DVD picture...i'd say anywhere from 15-50% better picture with the hd-dvd over the upconverted sd dvd.

i would have to say that the biggest improvement lies in the absence of compression artifacts that are plentiful in mpeg2 material, whether it is on optical media, d-vhs, ota, satellite, etc. i could not detect ANY such artifacts which have annoyed the crap out of me to date!

this was only one title, tls...i am too unfamiliar with phantom.

once i get u-571 i'll be able to better judge the absence of artifacts as i've seen that piece a number of times on both sd-dvd and over my cable system in hd (it rests peacefully on my exernal drive connected to my cable dvr :D). the underwater scenes were rife with false contouring/banding on the hd broadcast as well as the dvd.

there are scenes in tls that don't look great, there are scenes that blew me away...the last battle scenes ran shivers up my spine!

[EDIT: Here are some *awful* pics to tide you over; if you notice, you can see the "sony" light is blurry...I need to mount on a tripod...also, i'm only an amateur photographer, so this dark light and fast moving action makes for a very hard picture...if i pause the movie, it looks great, but usually there are parts that don't look that great, like the parts that were in motion...so i don't know how to fairly portray a fast-moving picture that I am seeing in a still shot:

Warning, these are large, uncompressed files (shot using a Sony DSC-V1, no flash, auto everything else :)...see, i told you i was an amatuer):

http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd1.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd2.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd3.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd3a.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd4.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd5.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd6.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/hd-dvd7.jpg
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/DSC02464.JPG
http://www.techedgerealty.com/pages/5/DSC02465.JPG

/End EDIT]

Sorry, I have a house full of guests and it is very hard to do a thorough review with kids jumping around, flying onto the LoveSac "Big One" bean bag, etc. :)

Oh, sorry, I didn't know :) I was just getting tired of reading all the ridiculous repetitive posts by people on the A1 owners thread that don't even own 1080p sets much less our 006. Much of it seems useless to me so I stop reading around page 10.

Waiting for Qualians to report as these new formats will undoubtedly be extremely display dependent.

And speaking of guests, I've got two in-laws I've been ignoring .............so......................

Again, Happy Easter to all and to all a good night. :)

Oh, sorry, I didn't know :) I was just getting tired of reading all the ridiculous repetitive posts by people on the A1 owners thread that don't even own 1080p sets much less our 006. Much of it seems useless to me so I stop reading around page 10.

Waiting for Qualians to report as these new formats will undoubtedly be extremely display dependent.

And speaking of guests, I've got two in-laws I've been ignoring .............so......................

Again, Happy Easter to all and to all a good night. :)

I'm trying to read the other threads as well, that is what has been keeping me busy and I was trying to determine what has already been posted, asked/answered, etc. before posting my own observations so as not to make that thread any longer than it already is!

PM, see my prior post, I added some links to pics that hopefully i should be able to capture much better tomorrow....

any suggestions on camera settings from the "pros" in the thread?

...any suggestions on camera settings?Start at the highest possible ISO settings and work your way down from there. Also, take a lot of frames and try to wait for pauses in motion. I've gotten really good at that shooting my daughter's school drama events and recognizing points at which the action is less likely to be blurred. That's the great thing about digital; you just take LOTS of frames and usually end up with something good... :D

add me those to the list who thinks there is a dramtic difference in PQ over DVD.

i can't bear to watch regular dvds anymore. and the only HD i have is the HD-Lite that Directv gives me.

Well, that is one reason I am going to wait and see how they perform and the HD-DVS's available on Netflix.


One thing several people have been complaining about is a button on the remote (I believe the down arrow) not functioning well.

I've read the posts about the button...i guess i have been lucky, no problem.

any suggestions on camera settings from the "pros" in the thread?

What kind of camera are you using? ...and do you have access to a tripod.(not the kind in War of the Worlds, but the other kind :) )

What kind of camera are you using? ...and do you have access to a tripod.(not the kind in War of the Worlds, but the other kind :) )


Sony DSC-V1; yes I have a tripod.

I took some more pics this morning using the tripod (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7495149&&#post7495149) but still found the darkened conditions coupled with motion in scenese to be a pain in the arse! I monkeyed around with ISO that only seemed to make it worse...should I be adjusting shutter speed and f stop?

Sony DSC-V1; yes I have a tripod.

I took some more pics this morning using the tripod (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7495149&&#post7495149) but still found the darkened conditions coupled with motion in scenese to be a pain in the arse! I monkeyed around with ISO that only seemed to make it worse...should I be adjusting shutter speed and f stop?


Tripod mount the camera, set the exposure mode to manual, set ISO to 200, set the aperture to 5.6, find the proper shutter speed by test exposure(so that on a scene that's has an average scene brightness of middle gray, the distribution histogram peaks towards the center), set white balance to daylight, pause the picture on the TV, snap and go get a beer. :)

and go get a beer. :)
“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” :)

Ben Franklin

P.S.
I just finished collecting all the rotten Easter eggs hidden in the backyard that the visiting gerbils couldn’t find. :eek:

Well, I think I found them all, can't really remember where I hid them. :eek:

“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” :)
Ben FranklinAlways knew there had to be SOME kind of connection between Ben Franklin and Homer Simpson...

Tripod mount the camera, set the exposure mode to manual, set ISO to 200, set the aperture to 5.6, find the proper shutter speed by test exposure(so that on a scene that's has an average scene brightness of middle gray, the distribution histogram peaks towards the center), set white balance to daylight, pause the picture on the TV, snap and go get a beer. :)All very good advice -- especially the beer part -- and much more detailed than the crap I offered. In my defense, I was on the way out the door to see "The Notorious Bettie Page" -- and my mind was likely elsewhere... ;)

However, some of the things mentioned above might depend on the lens of your Sony. Specifically, though the lens will be sharper at 5.6 you may be better off shooting fully open to get a higher shutter speed. Also, you don't want to be at the widest part of the lens's zoom range, as that will introduce greater optical distortion. Stay in the middle part of the range, or slightly towards the telephoto end; in 35mm terms about 80-100mm would be ideal. Remember that the size of the CCD sensor determines the correction factor for the focal length; I know that Sony is using a pretty large sensor, so it may be closer to 1:1. Using my Nikon as an example, you have to use a multiplier of 1.5 to figure out the actual focal length. A 100mm lens on a Nikon digital body gives (roughly) the same results as a 150mm lens on a 35mm film camera. Hope this is helpful instead of confusing...

This assumes, of course, that you have room to move the camera far enough back to use that type of focal length. Either way, since you're having problems with blurring I might suggest you begin at the camera's highest ISO setting, set the aperture as open as it will go (smallest possible number), and experiment from there. Lower the ISO until you get blurring, and then raise it slightly from there to freeze the action.

If you really get into this stuff -- and find you have too much digital noise from the higher ISO setting -- try a program called Noise Ninja (from PictureCode). It will remove almost all of this noise with very little downside. People who had tried to take photos of my daughter's play were stunned at the results I got using my Nikon D200 at the highest ISO setting -- which still required very careful planning to minimize motion blur -- with NoiseNinja post-processing to remove the noise.

I used to be a die-hard film guy, but some of the things you can do with digital are amazing. Just got a 10mm lens, and the Nikon software automatically corrects for the geometric distortion this lens introduces. Very amazing stuff!!!

br3

In the way of an explaination, wide open aperature is usually not as sharp as stopped down a stop or 2. The lens on the particular camera used would indicate that aperature should be 5.6. (on the lens I use, I can shoot at 2.8 and still be pretty sharp) Also, digital pickup chips behave differently than film. Wider apertures tends to yield cleaner images over smaller aperatures. Apparantly, the photosites have to have a minimum brightness to be set off. Higher shutter speeds aren't necessary as I'm suggesting that you pause the image. You can also see if the image that you're photographing has any motion blur prior to photographing it. ISOs of 400 and above on this class of camera typically doesn't look as good as keeping it at 200 or 100. Depending on the camera, the ISO can vary. Focal length wise, you just don't want to be so close that you're inducing distortion or be at the part of the zoom range where the effective speed of the lens (as defined as light passing ability) slows down(dimmer). On a 70" screen, 10' should be enough.

By the way, I too love digital. It offers a lot of benefits over film. :)

TDK working on 200GB Blu-ray Disc

13 April 2006 2:10 by Dela

After only demoing a prototype 100GB Blu-ray disc in May last year, TDK has confirmed its plan to develop discs with 200GB storage capacity. The disc would have four times the capacity of the highest capacity Blu-ray discs currently available. The 100GB BD prototype disc is made up of four data storage layers. It supports a write speed up to 216MBPS, double that of 50GB BD-Rs. That disc is expected to come to the market next year.

Manufacturers are now ready to spread 25GB write-once and re-writable Blu-ray discs around the globe, and they certainly aren't cheap. The single-layer 25GB discs from TDK will cost $19.99 for write-once and $24.99 for rewritable for example. Later this year the company hopes to launch 50GB write-once and re-writable media, priced at $47.99 and $59.99 respectively.

Not many details have been given about 200GB discs, but any expected launch time frame would be uncertain at least. Presuming the disc would contain eight data storage layers, it would be a long time before devices that support the discs would appear, as well as the discs becoming any way affordable to the average consumer.

Source:
The Register

I hope you all checked Slickdeals-forum-hot deals and did a search for toshiba. They say BB has it for $375 with 3 movies and rebates!

The person has since posted a correction.

""The flyer said,
"Get 25$ GC Instantly When you buy Toshiba HDDVD player and These 3 DVDs."

To my early morning SDrs eye, it looked like "Get 25$ GC Instantly and These 3 DVDs When you buy Toshiba HDDVD player".

Later BB itself changed to promotion to buy 2 Movies alongwith HDDVD player to get 25$ GC. ""




I am not sure about the $375 but I was scanning pretty quickly.

There is one unit at my local BB however I am on the fence because of the audio. My Denon 4806 has HDMI 1.1 so no passing the hi res audio over one cable. I can get DD True HD if I run 8 cables (15 feet each) however the Toshiba only decodes the core 5.1 DTS and not DTS HD (or whatever the 7.1 channel name is).

I need to upgrade my Denon receiver to HDMI 1.3 (Q3?) and get a Blu-ray and/or HD-DVD player with HDMI 1.3. I don't think I can wait that long though!

Why can't the Toshiba be more like $2,000 then I could easily put off any purchase? :cool:

...snip...

... I can get DD True HD if I run 8 cables (15 feet each) however the Toshiba only decodes the core 5.1 DTS and not DTS HD (or whatever the 7.1 channel name is).



Me too and it's an objection to buying a player at this time.

Higher shutter speeds aren't necessary as I'm suggesting that you pause the image...Ah, gotcha; not sure why I didn't realize that -- I was listing techniques that work for me. In making my initial screen shots on the Qualila I kept the image in motion. There seems to be more grain in the image when freeze-framed -- which may simply be identical to what a camera would do by "freezing" an image with a higher shutter speed, since cameras lack that whacky "persistence of vision" thing. I have not done further research or comparison to see if one method yields any improvement in qualilty over the other regarding final image quality...

brt3 and JimP,

Thanks. I have not yet had a chance to try your suggestions but I will when I get some time; doubt it will happen during the week though :(

The thing with pausing the image is that the image quality seems to suffer most of the time and I thought leaving it in motion and do a high speed capture would be better, but maybe as brt3 points out, it would yield the same result.

Tax day today and I am really bummed...I owe $20K!!!!!

brt3 and JimP,

...snip...

Tax day today and I am really bummed...I owe $20K!!!!!

Did you try to write off your Qualia as a dependent?

I just logged in to my Netflix account and did a search for Serenity. When I selected it for more info it said available formats...

HD DVD
DVD

Things are looking up!

Did you try to write off your Qualia as a dependent?

Hmmm, I think I am dependent on it!!

I did not have a chance to make analog interconnects and hook the player's analog outs to my RX-Z9's analog inputs so I was connected via optical/coax and passing the digital bitstream via the player's settings.

When you get a chance to hook up your analog cables with your XA1 tell us how it sounds when you pass DD+ with the TLS title and Serenity…if you’ve got that disc.

I had the pleasure of speaking to Jeff today (umr in avs speak). He will be taming the Q beast on May 19th here in CT. He has 3 other calibrations in my neighborhood (no other Q's though). I have read all of the other comments from the other lucky ones who have worked with him so of course I am excited.

Hard to believe it can get any better. Watched Elf with the kids and the picture was fantastic. In the middle of watching Criminal and it looks really good and the story is quite enjoyable.

I'm passing on the Toshiba HD player so there might still be one left at BB in Meriden, Ct.

Back to Q watching. I think I will go blind within a couple of years. And yes - the calluses on my hand will be from the remote! :eek:

WE want more pics of that beautiful Q in that beautiful room !!!!!!

When you get a chance to hook up your analog cables with your XA1 tell us how it sounds when you pass DD+ with the TLS title and Serenity…if you’ve got that disc.
On the other hand………………………….

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/18/content_4444133.htm

If Tommy boy reconsiders and decides to cut the afterbirth into little pieces with a knife, could we all really ever enjoy him wielding sharp instruments like in The Last Samurai ? :eek: :eek:

If Tommy doesn’t pass on the placenta I may have to pass on viewing The Last Samurai on ANY format for the second time.

Apparently, the interview is in GQ magazine which arrives on newsstands this week.

...If Tommy doesn’t pass on the placenta...
:eek:
Eat what??
Sounds like he’s losin’ it.
He’d have to start by drinking a cocktail,
with his eyes wide shut.
But it’s definitely risky business
eating something that’s greener than the color of money.
A few good men might try that
but they’d be written up in the minority report.
This would be far and away
a mission impossible and most definitely
give his stomach some collateral damage.
It certainly will not smell like a magnolia.
:eek: :rolleyes:
that's it! no mas :p

:eek:
Eat what??
Sounds like he’s losin’ it.
He’d have to start by drinking a cocktail,
with his eyes wide shut.
But it’s definitely risky business
eating something that’s greener than the color of money.
A few good men might try that
but they’d be written up in the minority report.
This would be far and away
a mission impossible and most definitely
give his stomach some collateral damage.
It certainly will not smell like a magnolia.
:eek: :rolleyes:
that's it! no mas :p
You are my new hero. Sorry, Penton-Man... :D

That WAS good, LL3HD. :)

Hey PM -- based on your advice I watched the replay of the LBGP GT race -- wow, that pass by Ron Fellows was amazing! Way more fun that the ChampCar event...

This has GOT to be a joke or urban legend, right???!!!

On the other hand………………………….

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/18/content_4444133.htm

If Tommy boy reconsiders and decides to cut the afterbirth into little pieces with a knife, could we all really ever enjoy him wielding sharp instruments like in The Last Samurai ? :eek: :eek:

If Tommy doesn’t pass on the placenta I may have to pass on viewing The Last Samurai on ANY format for the second time.

Apparently, the interview is in GQ magazine which arrives on newsstands this week.

This has GOT to be a joke or urban legend, right???!!!
With Tommy Boy it's hard to tell. If you still think he might be sane, check out this: Operation Clambake. (http://www.xenu.net/) If you want to see something truly hysterical, follow the link to the South Park episode...

Hey PM -- based on your advice I watched the replay of the LBGP GT race -- wow, that pass by Ron Fellows was amazing! Way more fun that the ChampCar event...
Well you must thank thestewman for that recommendation as I missed that race.

MY recommendation was on how to get into the F1 pits at the next race you attend………..

Wear a neat white shirt, a carefully-pressed pair of grey slacks along with this accessory……….

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0009UD8YQ/sr=1-41/qid=1136838521/ref=sr_1_41/103-4419489-8187061?%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance

But I figured nobody would understand it, so I deleted it quickly after posting it.
Since, it’s shortly after Easter, I’ll resurrect it here now.

Where the hell is jb007?.......doing some tour of retro ballparks(Camden Yards :) ) or some such thing while all the rest of us are holding down the fort?

Well you must thank thestewman for that recommendation as I missed that race. MY recommendation was on how to get into the F1 pits at the next race you attend. Wear a neat white shirt, a carefully-pressed pair of grey slacks along with this accessory…
Thanks StewMan -- and sorry for misappropriating the credit. PM -- the Bernie outfit is a great idea -- and would've been a PERFECT scheme. Except, of course, for the fact that Bernie is nearly a foot-and-a-half shorter than moi... :D

This has GOT to be a joke or urban legend, right???!!!

That Tommy Boy, he’s a real hoot!

http://www.canada.com/topics/entertainment/story.html?id=345d4313-2e14-4d3b-a8de-317ea7616149&k=67596

WE want more pics of that beautiful Q in that beautiful room !!!!!!

You'll have to wait a bit until the window treatments and additional furniture are delivered. Then I might have to have the wife stand around the room doing her Vanna Presentation Pose. In the buff would be even more fun but I don't want to get on the Moderator's Naughty List! ;)

I know, I know - take one for the team!

In the buff would be even more fun but I don't want to get on the Moderator's Naughty List! ;)

I know, I know - take one for the team!
Definitely, take one for the team.

We WANT the Vanna Presentation in the buff :) - even if only temporarily until the mods find it but, me thinks they're VERY busy categorizing and subcategorizing all the Toshiba player posts so that it actually becomes readable.

You'll have to wait a bit until the window treatments and additional furniture are delivered. Then I might have to have the wife stand around the room doing her Vanna Presentation Pose. In the buff would be even more fun but I don't want to get on the Moderator's Naughty List! ;)

I know, I know - take one for the team!


Are you open to bribes? :D

"I don't recall?"...........isn't that the proper terminology these days?

Given the fact that the A1 player thread is only about 5 days old and now over 55 pages long, it may just be more time/cost efficient to the buy most expensive Blu-ray player that debuts, or even the most expensive 2nd gen. Blu-ray player.

That way, if you need any reference help, you won’t have to go thru a humongous number of pages looking for routine answers to routine questions. Since the number of buyers should be considerably smaller.

On the other hand, look what happened with our 006 thread ! :D

If I was paid a minimum wage for each hour I spent on this thread and "Sony Jumps..." my Q would have been "free."

"I don't recall?"...........isn't that the proper terminology these days?Or -- to paraphrase Bill Clinton (who I actually like, warts and all) -- "That all depends on how you define the word is...".

You'll have to wait a bit until the window treatments and
CT eh?
Try these guys..........
http://windowproductsct.com/index.htm

THERE'S your bribe, now can we have Vanna in the buff or at least wearing high heels and black thigh-highs for those that have the need for clothing. :D

CT eh?
Try these guys..........
http://windowproductsct.com/index.htm

THERE'S your bribe, now can we have Vanna in the buff or at least wearing high heels and black thigh-highs for those that have the need for clothing. :D

We actually have Hunter Douglas blinds in the rest of the house. The kids broke/damaged many of the pull strings... I'm afraid the wife is now not such a big fan of HD (that's Hunter Douglas).

Our architect recommended a nearby interior designer. She had a huge selection of stuff. They should look nice but I hadn't planned on spending on drapes and blinds for the room more than I spent on the Q. Big ouch!

For bribes, the wife only responds to Dunkin Donut ice coffee (light and sweet). Either that or a day off from changing diapers. One of the twins refuses to train.

I think the heels and thigh-highs might be the only thing to pull me away from the Q. Me and this piece of electronics are still very much in our honeymoon phase! I don't see it ending anytime soon.

The wife seems somewhat pleased that her photo got more views than the room/tv. :rolleyes:

Time to finish watching Criminal on the DVR

FYI for those who have bought the BB HD-DVD looks like they are offering a 25 dollar best buy gift certificate for purchasing the A1 and 2 movies. I called up and they said they would be able to give me the special if I brought in my receipt (from Saturday) and bought 2 movies. I will let you know if all goes well. Serenity and hmm phantom or last samurai tough choice I will ponder I liked last samurai but haven't seen the other one so really a ? of which I will watch/enjoy more.

brt3 and JimP,

Tax day today and I am really bummed...I owe $20K!!!!!

And I was feeling bad about my 5k bill ouch thats a very nice entertainment room you just sent them...

I will let you know if all goes well. Serenity and hmm phantom or last samurai tough choice I will ponder I liked last samurai but haven't seen the other one so really a ? of which I will watch/enjoy more.
We want reviews !

Forget about mentioning about artifacts, just tell us if an unaware observer (your wife, kids, etc.?) notices a dramatic increase in resolution (detail) compared to your unconverted regular ole DVD’s with the POA and Serenity titles, as TLS may have been a bit of overkill on the bitrate and I'm starting to get a Tommy boy food allery anyway. :eek:

Well, I have not had time to compare side to side, but I watched Serenity and thought that on the Q it was easily better than the DVD. Might not notice it as much on a lesser system, but I am happy with my purchase. Now I just need more time and titles. Go to http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/serenity.html to see a more in depth review on the HP 1080p set...

My impressions... Serenity certainly isn't a high quality transfer. The details are not the crispness I am used to from HD overall. The upscaling isn't bad but its a buggy kind of machine it seems. It wouldn't play old burned dvds and honestly not sure how well it will last. The Last Samurai looks better but the way it was filmed detracts from the crystal clarity I hope to see. I do think it will manage to justify its 40 lb existence. The remote god its awful and sure enough the down key is flakey as all be all. I hope they have it up on harmony soon because I can't imagine using the remote too much longer.

fyi I was able to get the 25 dollar gift certificate with purchase of 2 hd-dvd titles. They had to look up the bestbuy online page and eventually just gave me 25 off the dvd player (I just brought in the receipt and they did their magic) and charged me for the 25 dollar certificate. Serenity rang up at 29.99 even though it had a sticker saying 27.99 but heh I was just too anxious to get back home and watch to quibble.

I wasn't able to see a clear difference between the component and hdmi (I used a better quality one than the piece of crap they put in the box it looks like its worth 50 cents). I tried both for awhile with Last Samurai but it was simply too close but I would have gut instinct said component. I am going with hdmi because I can use the upscaler without a hassle (unfortunately that now means I have 3 hdmi with cable, computer, and hd-dvd). The sound quality is quite nice on it. Much better than the sony n75 and even a bit more realistic than the sound I was getting out of my zenith dvb318. I haven't tried upgrading firmware yet I will wait. Note... The remote slides open (and will probably break) thats where the setup button is!

come on- how do you REALLY feel about the remote?

Sir, step away from the hammer!

I know this has been discussed here, but I'm having trouble finding the definitive messages ...

Any insight into whether the Q will be able to support 1080p inputs? Am I correct that 720p/1080i inputs are currently upconverted to 1080p? Should we care about 1080p?

Thanks for your comments!

More thorough review (with perspective). The A1 is built like a tank. I didn't hear too much noise out of it which is a big relief. It really does weight like 40 lbs. The remote is also tankscale and weights more than any 2 of my other remotes. Despite the heaviness I don't think it will last too well and it of course doesn't work very well to boot. It takes 4 aaa batteries and is over a foot long I believe.

Movie Reviews: I haven't gotten to fully watch through both yet but after a bit more time with both here are my thoughts:

Samurai - the grainy film technique causes a large portion of the movie to not give off the crystal clearness that I am used to. Near the end you get much better PQ so overall I would say its a better movie in HD than SD definitely but it is hardly a 10 by HD standards.

Serenity - not an amazing film you get very few of the razor sharp moments us Q types live for. It is better than I first thought as far as PQ (judging by the first 40 mins). It is better than standard but not by as high a margin as I would hope. Overall not bad at all but probably lower PQ than Samurai and of course less of a classic.

The A1's sound was a pleasant surprise and I feel it is quite decent even over optical. I went with bitstream over both HDMI and optical. Oddly they don't have you specify which channel you want to send the audio out on so I guess they just detect the optical connection. The sound options were horribly sparse just pcm/bitstream and 2 or 5.1 channel. I hope they upgrade it sometime soon. It does enforce the upscaling limit by the way so no nice standard dvd's over component like my Zenith dvb318.

Off to work see you all later.

No thorough review from the wife yet. She is 6 weeks pregnant and mostly slept through my testing and gave the half eye open that looks nice response. Hopefully I can catch her on a better day and get info. Sadly neither of these will match up to "In Higher Def" so I don't expect her to be insanely wowed as she will have seen better.

...

compared to your unconverted regular ole DVD’s

...

but everything is converted on the Q !

I don't see how you can say forget about mentioning artifacts, since that is what we all complain about all the time :(

The difference between SD and HD-DVD is definitely noticeable, even by the untrained observer...and rightfully so since you are talking about 480i content vs. 1080p content.

Now the difference between broadcast HD and HD-DVD will be more subtle in still/slow moving shots, but the new codecs are heads and shoulders above mpeg2 when it comes to motion, and in the end, aren't we watching movies, i.e., moving pictures???

Anyhow, I have to set myself up a Netflix account now :)

I don't see how you can say forget about mentioning artifacts, since that is what we all complain about all the time :(

Whoa Ben, calm down……………. :confused:

I said to forget about mentioning artifacts because YOU had already covered that aspect for us as well as a bunch of other people on other threads in this forum but, I felt that there was a paucity of info on the aspect of increased resolution of this new format….despite the theoretical advantage expressed by some before this media came out to actually watch.

I simply desired more first hand (eyes) elaboration from somebody who had the new player and movies - because I haven't read much about it.

Whoa Ben, calm down……………. :confused:

I said to forget about mentioning artifacts because YOU had already covered that aspect for us as well as a bunch of other people on other threads in this forum but, I felt that there was a paucity of info on the aspect of increased resolution of this new format….despite the theoretical advantage expressed by some before this media came out to actually watch.

I simply desired more first hand (eyes) elaboration from somebody who had the new player and movies - because I haven't read much about it.

sorry pm, i was calm...didn't mean to come across any other way. and i guess i misinterpreted your comment to hear about something other than artifacts as well...my bad...

while i normally don't advocate this type of behavior, run down to BB, pick one up for a day or two, then return it and you will have a first hand account.

but everything is converted on the Q !


The difference between SD and HD-DVD is definitely noticeable, even by the untrained observer...and rightfully so since you are talking about 480i content vs. 1080p content.


Did you really mean 4801 content vs. 1080i content ?
Since the input to the Q via component or HDMI is 1080i.

pick one up for a day or two, then return it and you will have a first hand account.
wow, no comment, other than, sorry for asking.

stew, i was talking about the difference between sd-dvd @ 480i and hd-dvd @ 1080p (what is on the disc itself, the content).

when comparing any sources on the Q we have no choice but to be comparing upconverted sd-dvd and hd-dvd (which results in true 1080p after the signal is passed from the player interlaced @ 1080i to the set which faithfully deinterlaces the incoming signal and reproduces the original 1080p content). that is really the take away for us q006 owner's, even though we don't have 1080p inputs, nor any likely upgrade, we still are going to get 1080p on our sets from either BD or HD-DVD format!

wow, no comment, other than, sorry for asking.


??

this must be a result of the great electrical divide creating a disconnect. i'm not going to make this diconnect any larger and just let this rest. sorry for the disconnect and you didn't owe an apology for asking.
i'm in a pit of quicksand and the more i do the deeper i go :D

OK, a little review of the Toshiba A-1 and the 006. I have the player connected directly to the 006 via HDMI (over 30', with no problems) and the audio through digital coax to a Lexicon processer. I may try the 5.1 analog connection, but for now that is being utilized for SACD and DVD-A (yes, it still has a pulse, but it is weak.)

As stated herein, the upscaling of SD is very good, better than my Sony N75, but about the equal of my Lexicon universal player. HD-DVD playback also appears good, but I don't think the discs so far are really reference quality. TLS is a little soft, POA is better, Serenity has some good CGI moments, but overall is an average transfer.

What is interesting is that on SD DVDs all of my Lexicon music and movie modes are available, but with the HD-DVDs no audio option is available other than the locked-into dts bitstream. This is especially interesting insofar as none of the three discs even show dts as an option. From what I can tell so far, though, the soundtracks appear to be as pristine as any I have ever heard. I haven't begun to tweak. April 15/17 tax deadline put me back on my heels for playtime. The remote is OK, but really S-L-O-W functions. No problem with the "down" key for me.

Overall, I am happy with my purchase and will probably get a Blu-ray and Gefen switcher for all of my HD HDMI hardware. Maybe I'll wait for a PS3 and then when a true higher-end universal player arrives I'll dump the Toshiba (most likely move it elsewhere), and sell the PS3 (a much easier piece to move I think rather than a first gen Blu-ray player). In any event I'll be one of the spazzes (go Tiger!) that will pony up for as much HD as possible. When you have a Qualia, it's the price of admission.

Sorry for not being at the top of my game on a couple of points.

I see from the HD-DVD threads that dts is a player re-direct type of default mode.

Yes, the audio on TLS is faulty, glad to see it isn't my equipment.

PM, since you've been checking out some of the frenzied threads over on the hd-dvd forum, did you see this (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=668484)

Sorry for not being at the top of my game on a couple of points.

I see from the HD-DVD threads that dts is a player re-direct type of default mode.

Yes, the audio on TLS is faulty, glad to see it isn't my equipment.

the warner titles release thus far have an authoring problem with the level of the sound. in your case it souns as though you can't apply certain processing modes to a dts bitstream?

So far my Lexicon unit can process the dts bitstream at least to utilize the Logic7 proprietary mode. But I can't override the dts to get to any Dolby modes. At least so far. But I have not yet begun to tweak.

TLS soundtrack level is very, very low.

So far my Lexicon unit can process the dts bitstream at least to utilize the Logic7 proprietary mode. But I can't override the dts to get to any Dolby modes. At least so far. But I have not yet begun to tweak.

TLS soundtrack level is very, very low.


I'm not sure I understand what you mean by override the DTS to get to Dolby.

The way this player is designed to work, and the way the authoring forces it to work, is that since these films (and those in the business are saying they don't see any reason why all titles won't be authored this way) are authored in Advanced Content mode, the audio must be decoded by the player (so any format, DD, DD+ Dolby TrueHD, DTS or DTS-HD), then it needs to "mix in" whatever advanced content the authors decided to include (like sound effects, commentary on the fly, etc.) and then there are two options to get the audio out. one has to do with a backward-compatibility mode where in order to send out over s/pdif, since that transmission protocol has certain constraints, the mixed audio must be re-encoded in real time and output (these early Toshiba players are using a real time DTS encoder, I suppose to maximize bitrate; max DTS bitrate is 1536 vs. 640 for DD). so if you select "bitstream" on your digital out, you will get DTS audio (regardless of the fact that the disc was authored with DD, DD+ and/or TrueHD since it first decodes and then reencodes to output over s/pdif connections...i.e, optical or coaxial).

To get the full benefit of the high res audio you need to either use the analog outputs or HDMI if you have an HDMI 1.1 capable AVR/processor.

now my understanding over HDMI is that you are getting a PCM bitstream (so it isn't in any format since it has already been decoded by the player) and this is the way that both (?) HD-DVD and BD formats have defined their audio.

There are some dedicated audio threads over on the HD-DVD forum; look for posts by Dressler, spears, FilmMixer, Vaugh, amirmm, and maybe a few others I'm probably forgetting who seem to know what they are talking about.

hope that helps.

No thorough review from the wife yet. She is 6 weeks pregnant and mostly slept through my testing and gave the half eye open that looks nice response. Hopefully I can catch her on a better day and get info. Sadly neither of these will match up to "In Higher Def" so I don't expect her to be insanely wowed as she will have seen better.
Nice review HERE...................
http://www.digitalbits.com/#mytwocents

I finally got an opinion from one of our wives. :D
(Scan down the page if you're in a hurry)

Author of this has some nice pearls of wisdom I think for all of us.

PM,

When's the next wave of releases on HD-DVD format???

PM,

When's the next wave of releases on HD-DVD format???
I don’t know, I haven’t kept up on that aspect of the situation as I think I’m like you……..waiting to purchase the most full featured player of ANY flavor that supports the most NEW movies that are SIMULTANEOUSLY released on DVD format as well as some Hi-Def format.

The way things are going now, I may well just wait until the 2nd generation players become available or better yet a machine that will actually PLAY and RECORD so that I don’t have to make 2 purchases.

Best list of releases that I know of is in this thread: HD DVD/Blu-ray release calendar (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=665702) :)

The way things are going now, I may well just wait until the 2nd generation players become available or better yet a machine that will actually PLAY and RECORD so that I don’t have to make 2 purchases.
Yeah, what he said...

I'm still hoping I can convince one of my pals to sell me their old, obsolete Denon 5910, which would tide me over until the Gen II players come out (and the catalog grows)...

Hi,

My Dishnetwork MPEG2 receiver has failed. There is a new MPEG4 DVR available from Dishnetwork. Sorry if this has already be covered before but has anyone seen the difference on the Qualia between HD satellite MPEG2 versus MPEG4?

Do you think the Dishnetwork VIP622 is decent (25 hrs. HD record) or does anyone have another preference?

BenDover

What I had meant to say was simply that the HD-DVD player output dts through bitstream and while I could add proprietary processing (Logic7), no other options associated with DD were available.

I have only worked through half of the HD-DVD thead, which is a wonder in "posts gone wild!" by yesterday and no one had articulated your kind of concise technical reply.

Toshiba should add your comments to the manual.

Had the Dish 942 DVR. The new 622 has improved PQ on my Q006. (SD & HD)

BenDover

What I had meant to say was simply that the HD-DVD player output dts through bitstream and while I could add proprietary processing (Logic7), no other options associated with DD were available.

I have only worked through half of the HD-DVD thead, which is a wonder in "posts gone wild!" by yesterday and no one had articulated your kind of concise technical reply.

Toshiba should add your comments to the manual.

I'm just regurgitating what I've culled from the threads over there...and in case I got something wrong, you shouldn't take my word for it :)

Greetings fellow Qualians,

I've been on the road with the start of the new baseball season and just returned from a week in NYC. I did have the opportunity to run by the Sony Style store on Madison Avenue, and as may have been previously reported, the QUALIA Showroom has been dismantled. All the logo branding has been removed, but the Q006 and Q004 were on display and working in the previous small showroom in the back left corner downstairs (for those of you that are familiar with the NY store). No sign of the Q005, HD camcorder, mini-disc, headphones, etc.

R.I.P.

On a positive note, I was told there was a Blu-Ray demonstration at the store last Saturday, but one was not left for display purposes.

All this talk on the thread about HD DVD is making me anxious. The Best Buy stores here in S.D. are sold out. I may run by Fry's over lunch . . .

I did have the opportunity to run by the Sony Style store on Madison Avenue, and as may have been previously reported, the QUALIA Showroom has been dismantled. All the logo branding has been removed...Wish I had a chance to rummage around in the back room there; would be nice to have some Qualia memorabilia... :rolleyes:

Wish I had a chance to rummage around in the back room there; would be nice to have some Qualia memorabilia... :rolleyes:

I thought about pilfering the acrylic block with QUAILA 006 engraved there upon :D

I know there's been some confusion regarding the output of the Blu-Ray players, 1080p or 1080i. On Sony's website (http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start?sssdmh=dm11.84362&ProductSKU=BDPS1&Dept=tvvideo&CategoryName=hav_bluraydiscsub&dcmp=bluray_email&hqs=blurayplayer_preorder) this is what it says:

"The BDP-S1 features 1920 x 1080p output, the highest HD signal output currently available through a HDMI™ connection. If your HD-capable television does not have an HDMI connection, you can still get the Blu-ray experience - the 1080i analog output allows for HD-capable televisions without HDMI to enjoy Blu-ray Disc features."

Now, that may be poor drafting of language by the marketing people or maybe I'm just being too much of a lawyer :confused:, but one way of reading it suggests 1080p over HDMI -- which the Q006 will not accept, as far as we know --and 1080i over component only. :mad:

I think i'm in the Blu-Ray camp -- more (better) movie titles, better technology (more capacity) and SONY. But over lunch I stopped by Fry's and guess what -- they had just received 3 HD DVD players today! The sales rep didn't even know about it until he looked it up on the computer for me.

So, I made the impilse purchase and also picked up Last Samurai for $20.

Should be a fun weekend :)

No Blu-ray 1080i via HDMI? In the immortal words of John McEnroe:

You can't be serious!

And for what it's worth - and please hold the "not worth much" comments, thank you - I am a lawyer and that's what the plain reading of the Sony website language would appear to indicate. So much for my simplifying the cable madness behind my components with a Gefen switcher.

I'll root out my Sony sources for confirmation.

Ok guys need some advice.... According to some AVS tech troubleshooting the best audio off the HD-DVD players is via the HDMI.... um what kind of setup would I need to take advantage of that? Is it simply doing an optical out of the Qualia into my receiver? If so that seems a tad silly. Or do I need to pass both my video and audio via HDMI through a receiver then into the Q (which also seems a bit silly since I would have to buy a new receiver that handles HDMI). Sigh the joys of new toys you have to learn the new rules.

fyi the 2nd best is the 5.1 analog and the worst is the optical coax (but I can say even using the optical it sounds quite nice).

I've been peaking in here visiting the family of Q over the past year and I just must make some comments on how different things are here. You folks are actually civil and very interesting viewing your exchanges - a sort of comraderie I sure do not see in the SXRD threads.

What I find intriguing is during all this time I do not recall any common failures of the Q006's and replication of any failures over a period of time and I don't know that I've witnessed an owner slamming Q006 though it is a huge thread I have no recollection of such or dedicated threads started slamming the set.

What troubles me are the issues of the stepchild SXRD. I owned a 60" SXRD for over a week and while it was not a perfect display (especially with SD) I've yet to see any competitive set provide the match in WoW factor in displaying an HD Movie. My wife hated how it overwhelmed the room (form factor) and I sold it and then bought a 50" plasma and the Panasonic provided no such impact whatsoever - good color but damn if it make either of us go Wow watching the same HD Feed and besides the sun in my room made it useless during the day and reflection city :eek: . What reaffirmed the SXRD is the SOny HD DVR it feeds at CC - it easily makes it the best panel in the store no matter how many times I see it.

I moved down to a Sharp 45 and it does provide alot of WoW factor with quality feeds and 1:1 but cannot make up for the loss of 15" impact or the deep blacks and details of the SXRD. Never seen a set bring out minute details like the SXRD could with a good source. My Sharp is a fantastic panel for all around viewing but I cannot get the damn impact it left even though I hated SD on it as it gave me headaches and was blurry. I figured I may get a VP30/40 with the new ADT102 card to refine the SD and get the best of both worlds with the second gen SXRD.

We have two SXRD owners that have tried to spread their trash here, Auditor55 and then there's AlB that make it an occupation to trash anything to do with SXRD. Do you guys have a hit man for a Moderator? Damn if we cannot get rid of these two folks and viewing the SXRD threads you'd think it was the worst panel ever built. Don't know that you'd waste your time over at that end of the Forum but it's insane - poor Sony cannot get a fair shake - the one guy has posted some 300 times repeats of the same issue and I find it hard to believe the set is that bad outside this forum. Oh Well - Just hope you can keep them out of here as you have a Dynamic fullfillling thread going here and alot comedy thrown in also.

Enjoy your Q006's and I hope that second gen is a Q in new clothing that isn't green or black with purple tints (mine had none)!

Bravo to the Family of Q! :D

Westa,

Thank you for your thoughts. It seems true that we are a happy bunch. Everyone here spent a lot of money on this tv and we really are not trying to fool ourselves to justify the expense. We really like/love the tv. I/we realize that it is just a tv and that better ones are right around the corner but that's ok. Some people prefer other types of sets but that's fine also.

Here's to hoping that Blu-ray and HD DVD make everyone's display a greater viewing experience.

thesirjay,

I expect most folks will run an HDMI cable from player to receiver/processor and then an HDMI out to TV. Or with multiple HDMI sources, player into switcher, out of switcher to TV and to receiver/processor, all HDMI.

jb007,

The Samsung BD 1000 would appear to pass 1080i Blu-ray through HDMI, according to its website.

I've been peaking in here visiting the family of Q over the past year and I just must make some comments on how different things are here. You folks are actually civil and very interesting viewing your exchanges - a sort of comraderie I sure do not see in the SXRD threads.
Thanks, Westa, for your comments. This thread is kind of an "Internet Oasis", in that there's a lot of green and little scorched earth. For a couple of reasons, the internet seems to foster a certain callous type of hair-trigger agression. Because of this I may start viewing and participating in other threads that mirror my interest, but almost every one gets ruined by the type of insecure "flamers" that you describe.

I think the biggest rule for dealing with these types is to try not to engage them on their level -- that, and click on the "ignore" button that hides their posts on your PC. Life's too short, and there's far too much polarization out there to let it take away from the enjoyment of our hobby.

I agree with the statement regarding problems with the Qualia 006. The extra money I spent on mine was worth it, IMHO, given the flawless performance it's offered so far. Though we were accused of "drinking the Kool-Aid", I actually think the opposite is true -- people here are pretty discerning and would be quick to point out shortcomings if they existed.

And the Hitman -- that be Penton-Man!!! :D

Sonny: What the hell is this?
Tessio: It's a Sicilian message. It means Luca Brasi sleeps with the fishes.
----------------
Leave the gun... take the cannolis.

I agree with both jb and sophie regarding the poor drafting, but knowing a little bit more about the "other" issues swirling around HD formats for DVD content, that would make the BD player, at least Sony's, potentially unusable with the ICT flag...that must simply be poor drafting, I would hope.

Interested to know your reaction of the Q mated with the player jb...

While I hate to sound pessimistic, it wouldn't surprise me to see the Sony Blu-ray 1080i option only through component. And yes, it would surely down-rez, if the so-called analog hole is plugged. Curious name for the sponsored legislation regarding it, the "A-Hole Bill" ;)

Now I'm really glad I kept the component cabling in my wall when I ran the 35' HDMI cable last month.

While I hate to sound pessimistic, it wouldn't surprise me to see the Sony Blu-ray 1080i option only through component. And yes, it would surely down-rez, if the so-called analog hole is plugged. Curious name for the sponsored legislation regarding it, the "A-Hole Bill" ;)

Now I'm really glad I kept the component cabling in my wall when I ran the 35' HDMI cable last month.

I managed to run all types of cabling from my rack to my TV wallplates, EXCEPT, optical! Forgot about that one but I really don't/won't need it...

All studios except one I think have already said they will not institute the ICT flag, YET!

thesirjay,

I expect most folks will run an HDMI cable from player to receiver/processor and then an HDMI out to TV. Or with multiple HDMI sources, player into switcher, out of switcher to TV and to receiver/processor, all HDMI.


Thanks sophie, Anyone have some good suggestions on a receiver that can play that role? Although a part of me suspects that after paying the wife off already for the bluray player and HD-DVD player she is going to be a tad irate if I tell her I need a new receiver in order to get better sound but such is life :). The whole new kid thing is quite an adventure who knows it may even distract me from the next gen war!

Thanks sophie, Anyone have some good suggestions on a receiver that can play that role? Although a part of me suspects that after paying the wife off already for the bluray player and HD-DVD player she is going to be a tad irate if I tell her I need a new receiver in order to get better sound but such is life :). The whole new kid thing is quite an adventure who knows it may even distract me from the next gen war!


thesirjay, there is an audio thread in the HD-DVD forum that has a lengthy back and forth discussion between FilmMixer, Dressler, etc. talking about HDMI 1.3, etc. there are contributions from a DD insider as well.

what i take from all of that is that I am going to connect through analog, the players will do all the decoding, and i don't need to upgrade to an hdmi avr, hdmi 1.1/1.3/2.0 or otherwise, as my RX-Z9 has 7.1 analog inputs.

i just need to upgrade my zektor switch to the next gen...damn the zektors are expensive!

i just need to upgrade my zektor switch to the next gen...damn the zektors are expensive!
Are they shipping yet? I agree that Zektor's products are a bit high, but they have worked perfectly for me (and they look nice too). Guess I'm a sucker for a pretty face... :D

I know there's been some confusion regarding the output of the Blu-Ray players, 1080p or 1080i. On Sony's website (http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start?sssdmh=dm11.84362&ProductSKU=BDPS1&Dept=tvvideo&CategoryName=hav_bluraydiscsub&dcmp=bluray_email&hqs=blurayplayer_preorder) this is what it says:

"The BDP-S1 features 1920 x 1080p output, the highest HD signal output currently available through a HDMI™ connection. If your HD-capable television does not have an HDMI connection, you can still get the Blu-ray experience - the 1080i analog output allows for HD-capable televisions without HDMI to enjoy Blu-ray Disc features."

Now, that may be poor drafting of language by the marketing people or maybe I'm just being too much of a lawyer :confused:, but one way of reading it suggests 1080p over HDMI -- which the Q006 will not accept, as far as we know --and 1080i over component only. :mad:

I'm not sure it means much, but based on the Sony's wording, I wouldn't have drawn the same conclusion some of you guys have. To me, the passage above simply says that if you want 1080p, you can hook the Blu-Ray player up via HDMI. If you don't have HDMI, you can still hook up the player via analog component and get 1080i. It doesn't really imply anything about whether or not HDMI will allow 1080i.

Anyway, I don't mean to stir the pot...I'm just giving my interpretation.

As a side note, I'm with westa6969 -- this thread is probably the most civilized, intelligible, and friendly thread on the entire forum. As a current XBR SXRD owner, I can't even follow "our" threads any more since they've degenerated into nonsense and namecalling. I do feel a little guilty posting here though -- like a Corvette owner crashing the Ferrari guys' party. :)

Are they shipping yet? I agree that Zektor's products are a bit high, but they have worked perfectly for me (and they look nice too). Guess I'm a sucker for a pretty face... :D

digitalconnection.com has an eta of 4/28...wonder how much i can get on ebay for my old switch...

I'm not sure it means much, but based on the Sony's wording, I wouldn't have drawn the same conclusion some of you guys have. To me, the passage above simply says that if you want 1080p, you can hook the Blu-Ray player up via HDMI. If you don't have HDMI, you can still hook up the player via analog component and get 1080i. It doesn't really imply anything about whether or not HDMI will allow 1080i.

Anyway, I don't mean to stir the pot...I'm just giving my interpretation.

As a side note, I'm with westa6969 -- this thread is probably the most civilized, intelligible, and friendly thread on the entire forum. As a current XBR SXRD owner, I can't even follow "our" threads any more since they've degenerated into nonsense and namecalling. I do feel a little guilty posting here though -- like a Corvette owner crashing the Ferrari guys' party. :)

Schwa, if I had a Ferrari, I'd still hang out with Corvette owners ;)

I don't think you're stirring the pot at all; I'm pleased by your reading of the Sony language. I think *hope* you're correct :)

thesirjay

Look for a copy of the latest May/June The Perfect Vision mag. It has a huge buyer's guide for AVRs. Good timing on your part.

Just yesterday I came back from lunch and someone parked an immaculate red Ferrari F430 Spyder next to my parking lot. So he has a pretty nice car. I'll bet I have a nicer TV.

Schwa, if I had a Ferrari, I'd still hang out with Corvette owners ;)
AAMOF, you are hanging out with at least one Corvette owner. (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7037497&&#post7037497)

And speaking of DiveDude, where's he been? It seems like a bad omen that we haven't heard from him in a while (not since this post on 03/03 (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7242400#post7242400) ) AND that my 400th post is, well, next! :eek:

In other news, it looks like Fairfax, VA kicks off UMR's next Northeast Tour. Jeff is scheduled to visit Castle Zechman on May 13th. :) :) :)

--Dwayne

[QUOTE=Zechman)
In other news, it looks like Fairfax, VA kicks off UMR's next Northeast Tour. Jeff is scheduled to visit Castle Zechman on May 13th. :) :) :)

--Dwayne[/QUOTE]

Only a couple more pieces of AV material and I may finally be able to feel ready for a UMR who would have thought it would take them this long to get the darn players out? I am sure glad that UMR is still going strong and getting work hopefully by his next midwest tour I will be ready.

Bendover and Sophie thanks for the advice I will try to find that mag but at least the analog connection (even if only 5.1) will probably hold me over until I find a perfect receiver (and work out the bride price).

Had the Dish 942 DVR. The new 622 has improved PQ on my Q006. (SD & HD)

Thanks for the response. Unfortunately I have to wait a few weeks to get the VIP622.

...my 400th post is, well, next! :eek:
Hey Dwayne,

How's the weather there in Ole Virginny?
(blatant excuse for post #400)

AAMOF, you are hanging out with at least one Corvette owner. (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7037497&&#post7037497)



In other news, it looks like Fairfax, VA kicks off UMR's next Northeast Tour. Jeff is scheduled to visit Castle Zechman on May 13th. :) :) :)

--Dwayne

Dwayne - Don't wear out good ol' UMR. A few relatives and I have him on the 18th and 19th. He needs to be ultra sharp so my picture will look the same (actually it kinda already does but ya know)! ;)

I know there's been some confusion regarding the output of the Blu-Ray players, 1080p or 1080i. On Sony's website (http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start?sssdmh=dm11.84362&ProductSKU=BDPS1&Dept=tvvideo&CategoryName=hav_bluraydiscsub&dcmp=bluray_email&hqs=blurayplayer_preorder) this is what it says:

"The BDP-S1 features 1920 x 1080p output, the highest HD signal output currently available through a HDMI™ connection. If your HD-capable television does not have an HDMI connection, you can still get the Blu-ray experience - the 1080i analog output allows for HD-capable televisions without HDMI to enjoy Blu-ray Disc features."

Now, that may be poor drafting of language by the marketing people or maybe I'm just being too much of a lawyer :confused:, but one way of reading it suggests 1080p over HDMI -- which the Q006 will not accept, as far as we know --and 1080i over component only. :mad:
At this point, it looks like the final consumer versions slated for this summer will output
1080p/24 and 1080p/60 from their HDMI outputs.

1080i/30 will be available from the component output--at least on Blu-ray discs that elect not to implement the down-rez flag.

The above is what Sony is telling the CE press.
(It’s my belief that the earlier prototypes output 1080i over HDMI – perhaps we should go dumpster diving in Culver City :( )

I think we just have to wait and see.

Pull-ese, dear wife……………………..my Christmas gift for this coming December………….

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/prModelDetail?storeId=11301&catalogId=13251&itemId=97264&modelNo=Content04172006034156146&surfModel=Content04172006034156146

(scan to the bottom for the specs on the monster)

At this point, it looks like the final consumer versions slated for this summer will output
1080p/24 and 1080p/60 from their HDMI outputs.

1080i/30 will be available from the component output--at least on Blu-ray discs that elect not to implement the down-rez flag.

The above is what Sony is telling the CE press.
(It’s my belief that the earlier prototypes output 1080i over HDMI – perhaps we should go dumpster diving in Culver City :( )

I think we just have to wait and see.

This is terrible, terrible news :mad: :confused: :(

I want my 1080i and I want it over HDMI!

Well there are ALOT of other manufacturers to look at, and remember if it is correct, nothing is passed in stone and I suspect 2nd generation players from every manufacturer whether Blu-ray or HD DVD to be vastly different compared to the 1st gen.

Anybody know about 1080i over HDMI with Panny, Pio, etc. ?

I want my 1080i and I want it over HDMI!
As a follow-up to the above, Jim Sanduski?sp. from Samsung told reporters at the last CES that their Blu-ray player will only output 1080i so to get it to market quicker.

I don't *think* anything has changed with that spec since then but, I haven't kept a-breast with Samsung stuff.

Could be an alternative choice. :)

I'm a Sony guy. TV (Qualia), Receiver, (previous) DVD player. Plus, I really like the look of the Sony Blu-Ray player :)

Let me rephrase . . . I want my 1080i and I want it over HDMI on my SONY Blu-Ray player ;)

I suspect you are correct -- things will change, not only from what we suspect will be included on the first gen. player, but in future generations as well. What puzzles me (engineering folks, please chime in) is why there may not be a selection choice between outputting 1080p or 1080i or even 720p over HDMI on the Sony Blu-Ray player?! It seems to me that while the overall market for Blu-Ray players may initially be small, given that there are so few HDTV's in people's homes today, those with 1080p inputs represent the absolute smallest group.

We've all read here for the last year plus, about people berating the Q006 because it doesn't accept 1080p input. We've heard from some experts, like our friend Owen from down under, that the difference between 1080i upscaled to 1080p on the Q006, compared to 1080p input, may not even be noticeable. But now I find myself questioning the lack of 1080p input, IF the Sony Blu-Ray player only outputs 1080p over HDMI. :confused:

As a follow-up to the above, Jim Sanduski?sp. from Samsung told reporters at the last CES that their Blu-ray player will only output 1080i so to get it to market quicker.

I don't *think* anything has changed with that spec since then but, I haven't kept a-breast with Samsung stuff.

Could be an alternative choice. :)
Hold the phone !

Looks like Samsung “added’ 1080p output over HDMI in the interim since CES but, does that mean it will no longer do 1080i over HDMI ???????????????????????

http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/home-entertainment/samsung-delays-bdp1000-bluray-player-adds-1080p-playback-164944.php

P.S.
I wonder what she REALLY does with that thing she's holding in her left hand ? :eek:

If there are a number of HD televisions that require 1080i over 1080p then it would be unreasonable to assume that 1080i will be unavailable on any of these units. I think it is a simple algorithm to convert between the two. Any manufacturer wants you to buy their equipment, if not for the money, then for the advertising of their logo in your home.

The important question is - do we have the only HD television that will not accept 1080p??

Incidentally, I don't think there is much difference between HDMI and component for short good quality cables. HDMI should make a noticible difference over longer cables where signal amplitudes and phase are altered for component. HDMI signals are either present or absent.

Having said what I think should be, it would be nice to verify visually. I experimented just a little over a year ago, with the 006, and did not have any conclusions. I am curently using HDMI (becaused I paid so darn much for the cables).

Has anyone actually noticed a better picture over HDMI for good component cables less than 12 feet?

Has anyone actually noticed a better picture over HDMI for good component cables less than 12 feet?
Slightly, and I mean slightly better P/Q (and it may just be colors) with 6 ft.cable from my cable set top box to the 006 with 720p and 1080i programming.

This is terrible, terrible news :mad: :confused: :(

I want my 1080i and I want it over HDMI!
see-

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7537537#post7537537 :)

F.Y.I.-
http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=27731

Incidentally, I don't think there is much difference between HDMI and component for short good quality cables. HDMI should make a noticible difference over longer cables where signal amplitudes and phase are altered for component. HDMI signals are either present or absent.

Having said what I think should be, it would be nice to verify visually. I experimented just a little over a year ago, with the 006, and did not have any conclusions. I am curently using HDMI (becaused I paid so darn much for the cables).

Has anyone actually noticed a better picture over HDMI for good component cables less than 12 feet?

Besides quality, there is the issue of downrezzing. While the initial releases by the studios are said to output 1080i over analog component cables, it is clear the studios have reseved the right to downrez over component outputs at any time, should they so choose to do so.

F.Y.I.-
http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=27731
WOW -- if this comes to pass maybe I should sell my USGP tix and watch it at home on the Qualia!?! ;) Of course, just because they record the race in HD does NOT mean it will be available for HD viewing in the US of A. :mad: Something to do with a Mr. Ecclestone, I think, and the fact that Speed Channel does not have the capability to distribute HD content. :mad: :mad:

I know there's been some confusion regarding the output of the Blu-Ray players, 1080p or 1080i. On Sony's website (http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start?sssdmh=dm11.84362&ProductSKU=BDPS1&Dept=tvvideo&CategoryName=hav_bluraydiscsub&dcmp=bluray_email&hqs=blurayplayer_preorder) this is what it says:

"The BDP-S1 features 1920 x 1080p output, the highest HD signal output currently available through a HDMI™ connection. If your HD-capable television does not have an HDMI connection, you can still get the Blu-ray experience - the 1080i analog output allows for HD-capable televisions without HDMI to enjoy Blu-ray Disc features."

Now, that may be poor drafting of language by the marketing people or maybe I'm just being too much of a lawyer :confused:, but one way of reading it suggests 1080p over HDMI -- which the Q006 will not accept, as far as we know --and 1080i over component only. :mad:
If the player is designed to pass 1080p over HDMI, it should, and no doubt will, pass all the favored resolutions up to 1080p. 480p, 720p, 1080i and 1080p, and may include 480i as well. It would be a major faux-paux if it didn't pass at least the 3 HD resolutions.

What they're saying in the Sony quote is that if you do not have HDMI, which is capable of all the current resolutions up to and including 1080p, then you can still enjoy the HD experience with 1080i over component. Now, it's my understanding that 1080i component output, while technically feasible, is up to the content provider as to whether they will allow it or not. In other words, the player can do it, but only if the media will allow it. What's missing from that Sony quote is any reference to the ICT flag which will determine whether or not 1080i is passed over component.

The important question is - do we have the only HD television that will not accept 1080p??

There is almost zero advantage to having a set that can accept 1080P instead of 1080i, assuming the native display of the set is 1080P.

Broadcast material is 1080i, so you won't need a 1080P connector for that.

The new optical disc formats are stored progressively, and then can be transmitted 1080i. A 1080i signal is virtually identical to a 1080P signal if the source is progressive (like the new optical disc formats) rather than interlaced (like broadcast).

The thing that makes broadcast 1080i difficult is the fact that it was filmed interlaced. Therefore on moving objects, it's hard to get the alternating lines to line up exactly to form a complete picture. The movement from one frame to the next causes the even lines not to be exactly where the odd lines would predict. So a high powered processor is a benefit in that situation. But there is no 1080P broadcast alternative, so the point is moot for this discussion.

On the new optical formats, the images are first stored as one big progressive picture. To transmit in 1080i, the progressive picture is cut into alternating odd and even lines, sent to your display, and put back together perfectly. This is a simple weave, it does not require a great processor. In fact, it is really no different than if the signal is sent progressively. Progressive sends the image in sequential order to be reconstructed, where interlaced sends the odd lines first, then the even lines. But in the end it easily makes a complete picture. 1080i and 1080P are pretty much the same thing from the new optical disc formats.

So, broadcast doesn't use 1080P, and HD DVD and Blu-Ray don't benefit from 1080P. 1080i as a transmission format is at no disadvantage to 1080P.

And both of the new disc formats will send 1080i over HDMi. The new toshiba's in fact MUST send 1080i, but later 1080i or 1080P will be available for both formats.

Edit: I see I typed all that for nothing! LOL I misread what you were saying, sorry. Oh, but I believe the blu-ray specs require 1080i as an output source. I'll check into it.

WOW, check it out, a Sony Blu-Ray Player AND Recorder (http://cgi.*********/Sony-Blu-Ray-High-Definition-DVD-Recorder-Player-Blue_W0QQitemZ9713470590QQcategoryZ71581QQssPageNameZWDVWQQr dZ1QQcmdZViewItem) available on eBay! It's listed for 3.5 times the MSRP of the Sony BDP-S1, expected to arrive 8/15/06.

Here's the catch . . . it's a Japanese model, so while it is a recorder as well as a player, it appears to be a different Blu-Ray format, with different Blu-Ray discs, housed in a plastic cartridge. Plus, all contols, menus and manuals are in Japanese. :p

WOW, check it out, a Sony Blu-Ray Player AND Recorder (http://cgi.*********/Sony-Blu-Ray-High-Definition-DVD-Recorder-Player-Blue_W0QQitemZ9713470590QQcategoryZ71581QQssPageNameZWDVWQQr dZ1QQcmdZViewItem) available on eBay! It's listed for 3.5 times the MSRP of the Sony BDP-S1, expected to arrive 8/15/06.

Here's the catch . . . it's a Japanese model, so while it is a recorder as well as a player, it appears to be a different Blu-Ray format, with different Blu-Ray discs, housed in a plastic cartridge. Plus, all contols, menus and manuals are in Japanese. :p
It’s been available in Japan for a few years so that those folks could record off of satellite.

I really think that if these suckers had debuted about the same time as the Blu-ray player, there would be NO format war at all.

Unfortunately, I think they’re working out the copyright stuff for the U.S. and they won’t be available until around next April or May………..or knowing this stuff ….June.

.

Edit: I see I typed all that for nothing! LOL I misread what you were saying, sorry. Oh, but I believe the blu-ray specs require 1080i as an output source. I'll check into it.
No you didn't(type all that for nothing). It was a great read and I think reinforced a lot of stuff that people hear thought but weren’t sure of. Sort of reminds me of our old friend Owen from Down Under.

It would be great if the Blu-ray specs require 1080i over HDMI as I think it would simply help to further reassure everyone here after keenan's helpful input.

Thanks guys. :)

I have my Q for almost a year now and enjoyed it very much
I did my own pic calibration with the DVE disc and with the help from this forum
I have one little problem (may be not a problem at all) that when I was watching a movie in a dark scene (for example The Phantom of the Opera) the shadow on the wall look red instead of grey or black (or any dark shadow)
tried all kind of adjustment but had no improvement
just wondering if any one has noticed that and how should I deal with it

I realize that our sample size is EXTREMELY low but, any Qualians with the A1 player seeing any of the stuff described below ?

From Digital Bits…http://www.digitalbits.com/#mytwocents
“Morning, folks. Got yer coffee? Good. Have a nice weekend? Good.

Okay.

So guess what? We'd planned to get our reviews of Serenity, The Last Samurai and The Phantom of the Opera up on Friday... then Saturday... then today. But it hasn't happened yet. It's certainly not for lack of trying or serious effort, believe me. It's because we've encountered some significant issues during the process. First of all, we continue to have a problem with movie software freezing for a few moments during playback, after which it continues playing but without audio, or with out-of-sync audio. It's happened on every movie disc we've tried now, at least once per film (and sometimes more often).

The other thing we've discovered is that the quality and character of the 1080i video that the Toshiba player delivers from its digital HDMI and component analog outputs is very different. The analog output features significantly enhanced color saturation and contrast levels over the HDMI, which SHOULD be more accurate. The difference is not minor, and we're trying to figure out exactly what it means and why it's happening. It's important to understand what's going on here, and which video output is correct (or more correct), so that we can accurately describe the video quality in our reviews.

Anyway, we're going to see what Toshiba says on both of these issues and get back to you on it, then try to finish those reviews. Well... no one ever said the transition to high-def was going to be easy, did they?”

WOW, check it out, a Sony Blu-Ray Player AND Recorder (http://cgi.*********/Sony-Blu-Ray-High-Definition-DVD-Recorder-Player-Blue_W0QQitemZ9713470590QQcategoryZ71581QQssPageNameZWDVWQQr dZ1QQcmdZViewItem) available on eBay! It's listed for 3.5 times the MSRP of the Sony BDP-S1, expected to arrive 8/15/06.

Here's the catch . . . it's a Japanese model, so while it is a recorder as well as a player, it appears to be a different Blu-Ray format, with different Blu-Ray discs, housed in a plastic cartridge. Plus, all contols, menus and manuals are in Japanese. :p

Only does high-def off satellite... which is only available in Japan from their DBS birds. Totally incompatible with the upcoming BD-ROM software and -R / -RE discs. There's no pre-recorded blu-ray software in Japan for that machine at all. I took a hard look at getting one when in Asia last year but decided it'd be neigh worthless to me.

BenDover

What I had meant to say was simply that the HD-DVD player output dts through bitstream and while I could add proprietary processing (Logic7), no other options associated with DD were available.

I have only worked through half of the HD-DVD thead, which is a wonder in "posts gone wild!" by yesterday and no one had articulated your kind of concise technical reply.

Toshiba should add your comments to the manual.

Yes they should... the A1 manual is very light on the limitations of the player with respect to the surround options and digital output. The player transcodes EVERYTHING to DTS that goes out over TOSlink or Coax S/P-DIF outputs.

The only way to get Dolby Digital + is to use the 5.1 analog input into the Lex which means that you bypass Room EQ, bass management, etc etc. The A1 and XA1 don't do DTS-HD (lossless) and only do Dolby TrueHD in two channel mode. That's almost useless IMO!

Until Lexicon upgrades the MC-12B with HDMI or comes out with a new unit (I'm thinking we're at the end of the line for the '12, it's been around a VERY long time for a CE piece), we won't be able to use the advanced surround formats though. They won't work over coax/TOSlink optical as they require more bandwidth than the link is capable of.

Still, IMO the transcoded DTS will be superior in sound to anything we've seen from DVD. Most DVD titles used half-bitrate DTS and Dolby Digital maxes out at 640Kbps. I wonder about artifacting from the transcoding but thus far it's all sounded very very good.

...

Still, IMO the transcoded DTS will be superior in sound to anything we've seen from DVD. Most DVD titles used half-bitrate DTS and Dolby Digital maxes out at 640Kbps. I wonder about artifacting from the transcoding but thus far it's all sounded very very good.


Picture ain't too shabby either :)

I realize that our sample size is EXTREMELY low but, any Qualians with the A1 player seeing any of the stuff described below ?



I used the A1 for a few days while my brother-in-law was over and we had no problems with the TLS, POTO or Serenity.

I now have the XA1 and have not had any of those issues with this machine either.

Now I just find myself twiddling my thumbs waiting for the weekly releases; this week, Apollo 13 and Doom. I think Batman Begins and others are due out next week.

jb, we've yet to hear your subjective perceptions of the HD-DVD output on your Q? I'm actually finding watching SD DVD very disturbing now as it all seems out of focus and I keep rubbing my eyes ... LOL

...

The only way to get Dolby Digital + is to use the 5.1 analog input into the Lex which means that you bypass Room EQ, bass management, etc etc. The A1 and XA1 don't do DTS-HD (lossless) and only do Dolby TrueHD in two channel mode. That's almost useless IMO!

...




kane, i think you imply this but i'm not sure, you can also get the full benefit of DD+ through HDMI.

PentonMan

Feel like we're the only two people who aren't going to be buying a Toshiba?? :)

Unless I am mistaken, Penton-Man is feverishly kissing his wife's feet, trying to make travel plans and looking at various types of crystalline minerals. If any of that works, you and I may be the only ones without a Toshiba. :D

kane, i think you imply this but i'm not sure, you can also get the full benefit of DD+ through HDMI.

Sorry, thought I mentioned that... I only wish the Lexicon supported it! I'm curious if someone's going to release a piece to decode HDMI audio and provide 5.1 analogue out for people that want to hang on to their procs and not upgrade. I know when DD and DTS rolled out quite a few pieces such as that came out.

schaffer970

PentonMan and I share the view that we'll buy whichever player once they start selling HD-DVD or BluRay releases at the same time movies hit the walk in theaters.

We may be in for a long wait, though.

Feel like we're the only two people who aren't going to be buying a Toshiba?? :)
I will be both HD-DVD and BluRay free until sometime in 2007... :rolleyes:

BenDover, Penton-Man, and any other interested parties,

I picked-up the Toshiba HD DVD A1 player last Friday afternoon at Fry's, but didn't have time to hook it up until yesterday afternoon. Installation was a breeze. Just swapped out the HDMI and optical cables from my Sony DVD player and plugged it in. Set-up was also easy, I just needed to set the output to HDMI to receive the picture. As stated in other reviews, it does take awhile to get "booted up."

My initial impression is warm. Not hot, not cold. The picture is good, but not great, at least on The Last Samurai and Serenity. I haven't watched both films entirely, but there is not a huge WOW factor, like the first time you see HD or when you plugged in your Q006 :)

I'm feeding 1080i over HDMI directly to the Q006. There are some scenes (particularly, the outdoor ones) that look great. However, in a comparison with Independence Day on D-VHS, I felt Indenpendence Day looked better. There are no artifacts, which is a plus, as compared to what sometimes happens on DirecTV. However, the two HD DVD's I currently own only look slightly better than upconverted Superbit DVDs, IMHO. You know how some movies look better than others on HBO HD? Well, TLS and Serenity look like average quality HD movies, especially TLS.

What is really surprising is the sound. I notice more of a difference in audio, than video! The sound is the best I've ever heard on my system. To me, there is a bigger jump in audio quality, than video quality, something I did not expect.

I'm still looking forward to more titles, and eventually (8/15) Blu-Ray.

schaffer970

PentonMan and I share the view that we'll buy whichever player once they start selling HD-DVD or BluRay releases at the same time movies hit the walk in theaters.

We may be in for a long wait, though.
LOL, I’m not THAT picky !

I think I’ll pull the trigger when they start selling HD-DVD or Blu-Ray releases at the same time movies are released on DVD.

It’s just a personal thing though as I am not really inclined to see the same movies over again with a little better P/Q and audio than I saw with DVD because honestly I replayed all my favorites when I purchased the Q so they are REALLY still fresh in my mind !

In regards to the players themselves, I not a real big Toshiba fan simply because I don’t think they have a good track record in the past and I believe the problems that the Digital Bits guy reported are true and happening with at least some of the players out there.

In regards to the A1 and XA1 it seems to me that the players are all but identical, though the HD-XA1 has a couple of cosmetic enhancements (a motorized door!), a backlit remote, and an RS-232C port, which makes it more adaptable to custom installation setups. Personally I don’t think those improvements are worth $300, but maybe the earliest early adopters are willing to pay extra to be first on the block.

On the Blu-ray side we just have specs and those would indicate that the players are all kinda audio barebones to me…….. I really want a Blu-ray player that will internally decode Dolby and DTS lossless audio and output it over 5.1 or 7.1 rca's.

So, at this point I’m happy to live vicariously with the Qualian Hi-Def player early adopters and bide my time hoping that a more full-featured player is available at the same time movies debut simultaneously or at least nearly simultaneously in standard DVD and Hi-Def format.

Please note all the above rationalization is null and void if I read too much drooling over this new stuff.

Unless I am mistaken, Penton-Man is feverishly kissing his wife's feet :D
Lol, I AM doing that but it aint for no Hi-Def player, see…………………

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=670813

BenDover, Penton-Man, and any other interested parties,

My initial impression is warm. Not hot, not cold. The picture is good, but not great, at least on The Last Samurai and Serenity. I haven't watched both films entirely, but there is not a huge WOW factor, like the first time you see HD or when you plugged in your Q006 :)

I'm feeding 1080i over HDMI directly to the Q006. There are some scenes (particularly, the outdoor ones) that look great. However, in a comparison with Independence Day on D-VHS, I felt Indenpendence Day looked better. There are no artifacts, which is a plus, as compared to what sometimes happens on DirecTV. However, the two HD DVD's I currently own only look slightly better than upconverted Superbit DVDs, IMHO. You know how some movies look better than others on HBO HD? Well, TLS and Serenity look like average quality HD movies, especially TLS.

What is really surprising is the sound. I notice more of a difference in audio, than video! The sound is the best I've ever heard on my system. To me, there is a bigger jump in audio quality, than video quality, something I did not expect.

I'm still looking forward to more titles, and eventually (8/15) Blu-Ray.

jb, thanks for the honest, unbiased reporting. :)

BenDover, Penton-Man, and any other interested parties,
However, the two HD DVD's I currently own only look slightly better than upconverted Superbit DVDs, IMHO. You know how some movies look better than others on HBO HD? Well, TLS and Serenity look like average quality HD movies, especially TLS.

This is what I am actually most concerned about and I think I mentioned this a few pages back that people wouldn’t get that same feeling that they did when they first saw DVD’s compared to VHS tape.

To me, that means that the typical consumer won’t go running in for a Hi-Def player as only the true videophiles like us will appreciate the significant but not dramatic improvement in the movie experience.

So this whole thing may take a long time to evolve and refine itself with prices on the players and discs dropping slowly. I just hope that it doesn’t become another laser disc show.

Good points P-M, but the difference between a DVD and HD *typically* is significant, even to non-videophiles. There are some movies I own on DVD that I will watch when they're broadcast in HD, because the experience is so much better.

I guess the bottom line is, neither of the two titles I have do a very good job of "showing off" HD. I suspect when HDNET starts releasing Bikini Destinations on HD DVD, then the player will definitely be worth it :D

I suspect when HDNET starts releasing Bikini Destinations on HD DVD, then the player will definitely be worth it :D
Man, I've got to watch that show, it seems like EVERYONE is talking about it and I'm missing out on something.

I forgot to ask, what receiver are you currently using?

I've been peaking in here visiting the family of Q over the past year and I just must make some comments on how different things are here. You folks are actually civil and very interesting viewing your exchanges - a sort of comraderie I sure do not see in the SXRD threads.

What I find intriguing is during all this time I do not recall any common failures of the Q006's and replication of any failures over a period of time and I don't know that I've witnessed an owner slamming Q006 though it is a huge thread I have no recollection of such or dedicated threads started slamming the set.

What troubles me are the issues of the stepchild SXRD. I owned a 60" SXRD for over a week and while it was not a perfect display (especially with SD) I've yet to see any competitive set provide the match in WoW factor in displaying an HD Movie. My wife hated how it overwhelmed the room (form factor) and I sold it and then bought a 50" plasma and the Panasonic provided no such impact whatsoever - good color but damn if it make either of us go Wow watching the same HD Feed and besides the sun in my room made it useless during the day and reflection city :eek: . What reaffirmed the SXRD is the SOny HD DVR it feeds at CC - it easily makes it the best panel in the store no matter how many times I see it.

I moved down to a Sharp 45 and it does provide alot of WoW factor with quality feeds and 1:1 but cannot make up for the loss of 15" impact or the deep blacks and details of the SXRD. Never seen a set bring out minute details like the SXRD could with a good source. My Sharp is a fantastic panel for all around viewing but I cannot get the damn impact it left even though I hated SD on it as it gave me headaches and was blurry. I figured I may get a VP30/40 with the new ADT102 card to refine the SD and get the best of both worlds with the second gen SXRD.

We have two SXRD owners that have tried to spread their trash here, Auditor55 and then there's AlB that make it an occupation to trash anything to do with SXRD. Do you guys have a hit man for a Moderator? Damn if we cannot get rid of these two folks and viewing the SXRD threads you'd think it was the worst panel ever built. Don't know that you'd waste your time over at that end of the Forum but it's insane - poor Sony cannot get a fair shake - the one guy has posted some 300 times repeats of the same issue and I find it hard to believe the set is that bad outside this forum. Oh Well - Just hope you can keep them out of here as you have a Dynamic fullfillling thread going here and alot comedy thrown in also.

Enjoy your Q006's and I hope that second gen is a Q in new clothing that isn't green or black with purple tints (mine had none)!

Bravo to the Family of Q! :D
Oops, somehow, I missed this eloquent post. :o
Thanks for the kind comments Westa ! :)

I think the biggest rule for dealing with these types is to try not to engage them on their level -- that, and click on the "ignore" button that hides their posts on your PC. Life's too short, and there's far too much polarization out there to let it take away from the enjoyment of our hobby.
And the Hitman -- that be Penton-Man!!! :D

Well I do TRY to restrain myself but sometimes I just feel like these two guys lying on the ground (skip the commercial)

http://www.whoomp.com/articles/342/1/Bad-Timing#

For (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FFJST4/qid=1145929060/sr=1-22/ref=sr_1_22/103-6140551-7097444?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s=dvd&v=glance&n=130) Penton-Man. :D

For (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FFJST4/qid=1145929060/sr=1-22/ref=sr_1_22/103-6140551-7097444?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s=dvd&v=glance&n=130) Penton-Man. :D
God be praised! :D

I used the A1 for a few days while my brother-in-law was over and we had no problems with the TLS, POTO or Serenity.

I now have the XA1 and have not had any of those issues with this machine either.

Now I just find myself twiddling my thumbs waiting for the weekly releases; this week, Apollo 13 and Doom. I think Batman Begins and others are due out next week.

I take it no differences noted between XA1 and A1? Here is the best link I have found for movies

http://www.hddvd.org/hddvd/

Hope that helps - sure are a lot of "sometime in 2006" titles.

For (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FFJST4/qid=1145929060/sr=1-22/ref=sr_1_22/103-6140551-7097444?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s=dvd&v=glance&n=130) Penton-Man. :D
Well she don’t look like any college girl to me ! :D

jb,
when you get the chance, you have to give me a synopsis of 24,

because I lost my cable at the 20min. mark when the President’s wife was bitching to a Secret Service dude that her Secret Service friend didn’t meet her around the corral and what the hell was going on around the ole ranch…..then another S.S. dude walks in and says something like “Come with me, as this is a sensitive situation” or some such thing as I got all pixilation at that point and then nada picture. :(

Penton-Man,

Here is a synopsis of last night's show.

http://www.fox.com/24/episodes/

Well she don’t look like any college girl to me ! :D

jb,
when you get the chance, you have to give me a synopsis of 24,

because I lost my cable at the 20min. mark when the President’s wife was bitching to a Secret Service dude that her Secret Service friend didn’t meet her around the corral and what the hell was going on around the ole ranch…..then another S.S. dude walks in and says something like “Come with me, as this is a sensitive situation” or some such thing as I got all pixilation at that point and then nada picture. :(

PM, that's about the same point where FOX53 finally switched to the HD feed. This gets annoying...

Good points P-M, but the difference between a DVD and HD *typically* is significant, even to non-videophiles. There are some movies I own on DVD that I will watch when they're broadcast in HD, because the experience is so much better.

I guess the bottom line is, neither of the two titles I have do a very good job of "showing off" HD. I suspect when HDNET starts releasing Bikini Destinations on HD DVD, then the player will definitely be worth it :D


Here is a thought on why the new HD-DVD discs are not giving the early adopters the "WOW" factor.

I am suspicious of the companies supplying the new HD-dvd software. Since numerous reports are saying there does not appear to be a big difference between SD and HD and there shoud be since we are going from 480 to 1080.
I think there is a strong possibility the companies are doing the same thing they did with SACD and just reformatting the original SD bit stream into a
HD-DVD data stream.


Stew

Here is a thought on why the new HD-DVD discs are not giving the early adopters the "WOW" factor.

I am suspicious of the companies supplying the new HD-dvd software. Since numerous reports are saying there does not appear to be a big difference between SD and HD and there shoud be since we are going from 480 to 1080.
I think there is a strong possibility the companies are doing the same thing they did with SACD and just reformatting the original SD bit stream into a
HD-DVD data stream.


Stew

Interesting. I don't know much about reformatting bit streams, etc., but I can tell you it's not a case of my settings being improper. At the beginning of the HD DVD, there is the Universal globe logo that morphs into an HD DVD logo -- it is crystal clear and the colors are vivid. That is the HD I'm looking for :)

I take it no differences noted between XA1 and A1? Here is the best link I have found for movies

http://www.hddvd.org/hddvd/

Hope that helps - sure are a lot of "sometime in 2006" titles.

Just a purtier case and a backlit remote. All yours for the low low price of $300 more! For that much, I'll buy two A1s and put one in the bedroom.

...when you get the chance, you have to give me a synopsis of 24, because I lost my cable at the 20min. mark
Try THIS... (http://www.televisionwithoutpity.com/story.cgi?show=73&story=9172)
These guys run a great site; though I can't speak to their summaries of "24", whoever writes the ones for "The Sopranos" is pretty d*mn funny...

Just a purtier case and a backlit remote. All yours for the low low price of $300 more! For that much, I'll buy two A1s and put one in the bedroom.

Most buyers probably don't even use the included remote, preferring to go with a universal :)

Here is a thought on why the new HD-DVD discs are not giving the early adopters the "WOW" factor.

I am suspicious of the companies supplying the new HD-dvd software. Since numerous reports are saying there does not appear to be a big difference between SD and HD and there shoud be since we are going from 480 to 1080.
I think there is a strong possibility the companies are doing the same thing they did with SACD and just reformatting the original SD bit stream into a
HD-DVD data stream.


Stew

IMO this is apples to oranges. The SACD issue is much easier to hide, there's an audible difference between PCM and DSD but it's not something anyone but an audiophile would hear without a top-notch system. Even so, they wouldn't know what they were listening to unless told.

HD-DVD is a HUGE launch... I can't see them being that capricious with a product that has so much riding on it. The first DVD movies weren't all that fabulous either (anyone remember the two-sided single layer Stargate that was so awful?). IMO what I've seen thus far looks lightyears better than DVD. Rewatching more critically, TLS and Serenity both have their moments where they look soft... however the color purity and shadow detailing is lightyears better than DVD.

I fear (hope?) that the differences between the A1 and the XA1 have yet to be fully determined :) It can't simply be the cosmetic differences noted already... then again...

The HD-DVD titles being released are definitely NOT reformatted SD DVD bitstreams so not to worry there. I do fear that what Sony will be offering out of the gate might be exactly what we get from broadcast HD (reformatted?) given their proclivity towards MPEG2 and the bitrate that I've seen tossed around...seems identical to what is used in broadcast. Time will tell.

The WOW factor lacking may be due to a host of reasons, the biggest being that people are comparing it to good upconverted SD-DVD...everyone has to admit, since we've all been watching it for over a year on our Qualias, that a SD-DVD upconverted on our Qualias can look pretty darn good.

The demos at BB stores that are running the latest demo disc using an A1 and the Westinghouse 1080p LCD panel are absolutely jaw-dropping...everyone should go take a look and see what Kong will look like in HD (from either format b/c in the end we have to assume that PQ will be the same if something is released in both formats encoded by the same encoder, say VC-1 for example). Now the split screen comparison I have to assume is somewhat exaggerated, making SD look bad, but they say "simulated" and I wonder if that means they are trying to show you what 480p looks like without upconverting on the 1080p Westinghouse?

...The HD-DVD titles being released are definitely NOT reformatted SD DVD bitstreams so not to worry there. I do fear that what Sony will be offering out of the gate might be exactly what we get from broadcast HD (reformatted?) given their proclivity towards MPEG2 and the bitrate that I've seen tossed around...seems identical to what is used in broadcast. Time will tell....

Having had D-Theater and after seeing it in numerous peoples homes I don't think you need to fear that Blu-Ray will equal your typical or even the best broadcast content. I have seen a few artifacts on a Qualia with D-Theater, but it is very limited. I expect Blu-Ray will be of excellent quality even using MPEG2. It is also my understanding that progressive sources compress better with MPEG2 than interlaced. This should be another plus for Blu-Ray over broadcast for most source material.

Max. Data Rates:

ATSC video is 18.5 Mbps

D-Theater video is 23 Mbps

Blu-Ray video is 40 Mbps

Having had D-Theater and after seeing it in numerous peoples homes I don't think you need to fear that Blu-Ray will equal your typical or even the best broadcast content. I have seen a few artifacts on a Qualia with D-Theater, but it is very limited. I expect Blu-Ray will be of excellent quality even using MPEG2. It is also my understanding that progressive sources compress better with MPEG2 than interlaced. This should be another plus for Blu-Ray over broadcast for most source material.

Max. Data Rates:

ATSC video is 18.5 Mbps

D-Theater video is 23 Mbps

Blu-Ray video is 40 Mbps

I read somewhere that the bitrate for the initial releases will be around 18-19Mbps...for that reason i am fearful that to get the releases out quickly, they will be tempted to merely give us what we get over broadcast ... and aside from higher data rates, there are still certain aspects of mpeg2 encoding that will lead to artifacts no matter how high the transfer rates...i would rather not get mpeg2...use either avc or vc-1, that is what i hope they do.

there are still certain aspects of mpeg2 encoding that will lead to artifacts no matter how high the transfer rates
Well that’s news to me - at least any artifact that us consumers will readily visualize !

Care to quote any reliable, non-biased (meaning non-MicroSoft employee) scientific sources such as an SMPTE paper authored by an independent source ?

I would also even be amenable (to a change in opinion) if any testing done by the DVD forum specifically found this to be true.

I think that codecs shouldn’t make much difference as long as the MPEG-2 proponents are willing to go to higher bitrates for transparency to achieve equity with the more efficient VC-1 codec……which I believe Sony (the strongest and most vested MPEG-2 proponent) has already announced that it is willing to do in time as well as moving to MPEG-4.

Here is a thought on why the new HD-DVD discs are not giving the early adopters the "WOW" factor.
Stew
I think we may see the REAL potential of these Hi-Def formats when the discs from the movies Flyboys :) and Superman Returns are made available for rent or purchase as these films used the relatively new Panavision Genesis HD camera(4k) which has roughly double the resolution for oversampling/internal downconversion that creates true 1920X1080 rather than the diluted 1920x1080 resolution we will be getting from the D5 masters which I assume will be used for just about all 1080 Blu-ray or HD DVD movies that become available in the foreseeable future.

I think that Flyboys :) could well become a reference Blu-ray disc and Superman Returns a reference Blu-ray/HD DVD disc if the authoring dudes in the studios or the post houses that they may use don’t get lazy and screw up the DVD authoring before it reaches the consumer.

The former film should be of special interest to you. ;)

Penton-Man,

Here is a synopsis of last night's show.

http://www.fox.com/24/episodes/
Thanks to you and brt, now it's time for Penton-Man to catch up to speed with one of his favor-ite shows. :)