Xbox 360 as HD DVD Player: One and Only thread Here

[Andrew P]

Actually you turn the Xbox 360 on and hit open on the HD DVD player. That is it. Then the movie plays. Should be pretty simple unless you leave games in the 360.

[rsmith4321]

Does anyone know a good way to calibrate with the hd-dvd player. None of the movies I've tried have any type of calibration. The THX calibration patterns were great on old Dvd's, does anyone know of anything similar for the hd-dvd. Thanks.

[FrancescoP]

Great review on PC Perspective:
http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=325

[cewolcott]

Has any one used an IR Repeater with their XBOX 360 and wireless controllers? I was planning on putting the XBOX 360 in the equipment closet with the rest of the AV Equipment.

I was hoping to hear of success stories. I will be buy the XBOX 360 next week.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Somebody has reported the same TrueHD audio sync issue Xbox.com. (http://forums.xbox.com/8181232/ShowPost.aspx)
(I also started a thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=751752) on it in the AVS Xbox forum.)

--

I confirmed it is indeed the audio lagging later, in the scene where he knocks on the door. The sound comes after the knock, not at the same time.

--

Yes, we're aware of that, but nonetheless we can still select the track. Now why would we do that? Because it seems the mix, or at least the audio levels, is different. Is it better? I dunno, but it's different, and somebody might prefer the TrueHD transcoding.

However, it looks now like for many of us, TrueHD on the Xbox 360 is unusable. We'll stick to Dolby Digital Plus. Note that while there is not a significant sync issue from what I've seen with DD+, I still wonder if there may be a very slight sync issue there. It may not be big enough for most of us to hear consistently, but I wondered about that even before I tried the TrueHD track.

Any comments Amir?
The lag IS definitely there with Dolby Digital Plus tracks too. It's very mild, and I suspect most people wouldn't notice it, but it's real. I see/hear it on Batman Begins DD+, King Kong DD+, and Pitch Black DD+ tracks. I have to pay very close attention to see it, but I'm now 100% convinced that it's there.

It might just be 50 ms or something (just guessing) but I always see it now. I wonder if one reason many people may not see it is because they're not using older CRTs which have minimal video delays.

Ie. "Modern" LCD with 50 ms video delay with Xbox 360 HD DVD audio delay = no visible lag.

However, "Old school" CRT with minimal video delay but Xbox 360 HD DVD audio delay = audible audio lag.

Just throwing out an idea...

[FrankJ.Cone]

I'm watching a 57" CRT RPT through component and it looks great. But I'm wondering if the upconverting of SD DVD is worth the $39.99 price tag for the VGA cable. Will I get that much of an improvement?

It depends on your display. I have a Sanyo Z3 and its scaler is terrible. I bought the VGA due to this and it looks much better than letting the Z3 scale DVD's.

[AuroraProject]

What other discs with TrueHD do you have? Batman Begins is the only one I have with TrueHD, and that TrueHD track is where I really notice the lip sync issue.

Is it because the Xbox 360 can't keep up with the decode/encode for audio? Maybe I'm out to lunch, buy it seems to me that the audio is lagging, not the video.

If that's the case, as I understand it that would be the opposite of lip sync issues on other machines. I was under the impression that lip sync problems were usually related to internal image processing in TVs being too slow, so that the video lagged behind the audio. To correct this all you'd need is a delay circuit for the audio.

If indeed the audio is already lagging behind the video with the Xbox 360, then there's nothing you can really do about, unless Microsoft were to add a patch to delay the video (or reduce the audio lag).

Mind you I'm not 100% percent sure yet that it is the audio that is lagging. All I can say for sure in the brief testing I've done, is that the audio sync is somehow off with TrueHD.

Why do I care? It seems the mix with TrueHD when reencoded to DD sounds different than the DD+ reencoded to DD. Not sure if it's better, but it's definitely different and I'd like to compare the two. However, with the audio lag with TrueHD, it's too distracting to watch.


I have The Phantom of the Opera, which is also in True HD. No sync issues at all, I have no idea why it's happening on Batman Begins only.

[Behrens77]

I just got my HD DVD drive on Monday afternoon from Robert at VE and I would have to say I'm very satisfied. The quality is very crisp and the colors are almost vibrant. My only problem so far is that the 360 fan itself is so darn loud. Sometimes I don't have movies at loud volume if my son is in bed and you can hear the low spinning sound of the fan. It doesn't bother me too much but it's a little annoying. If there was something to fix that I would be very happy. I have closed the door to my video cabinet which makes it quieter but when you get close you can hear the fan working harder due to lack of air flow. Any suggestions?

HD DVDs I've purchased: King Kong, Batman Begins, Charlie & the Chocolate Factory, Constantine, and Polar Express.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

I have The Phantom of the Opera, which is also in True HD. No sync issues at all, I have no idea why it's happening on Batman Begins only.
I wonder what the audio and video bitrates are.

[water1]

Has any one used an IR Repeater with their XBOX 360 and wireless controllers? I was planning on putting the XBOX 360 in the equipment closet with the rest of the AV Equipment.

I was hoping to hear of success stories. I will be buy the XBOX 360 next week.
My IR repeater works fine with the remote. Mine is behind me but not in a cabinet but I wouldn'g anticipate a problem with the controller. I tried the controller from the next room and it worked fine.

[Scott KL]

Not sure if this has been asked before but when connecting the HD-DVD add on to a Pioneer plasma 1366 x 768p is there any benefit in connecting via the VGA cable, i.e. can it display native resolution? I am currently using component out via a VP30 video processor set to 720p for games and will probably use 1080i for movies so display will deinterlace and scale to 768p (I'm pretty sure it cannot accept 1080p). Is there an option for VGA 1366 x 768 output from the HD-DVD add on and can this be connected through the VP30 or will it have to be connected to the pioneer VGA PC input directly?

Thanks in advance for yor help.

Scott

P.S. I do not have the add-on yet but will receive in next 2 weeks when Japanese add-ons are released and will be connecting to my Asia Xbox 360. Just don't want to waste 60 bucks on the VGA cable if no benefit.

[kohi]

Does anyone know a good way to calibrate with the hd-dvd player. None of the movies I've tried have any type of calibration. The THX calibration patterns were great on old Dvd's, does anyone know of anything similar for the hd-dvd. Thanks.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000IHYY3Y/002-2578336-6011238

:cool:

[AuroraProject]

Not sure if this has been asked before but when connecting the HD-DVD add on to a Pioneer plasma 1366 x 768p is there any benefit in connecting via the VGA cable, i.e. can it display native resolution? I am currently using component out via a VP30 video processor set to 720p for games and will probably use 1080i for movies so display will deinterlace and scale to 768p (I'm pretty sure it cannot accept 1080p). Is there an option for VGA 1366 x 768 output from the HD-DVD add on and can this be connected through the VP30 or will it have to be connected to the pioneer VGA PC input directly?

Thanks in advance for yor help.

Scott

P.S. I do not have the add-on yet but will receive in next 2 weeks when Japanese add-ons are released and will be connecting to my Asia Xbox 360. Just don't want to waste 60 bucks on the VGA cable if no benefit.



Ymmv, but I plunked down the cash for the VGA cable and I'm not impressed at all. On my display (Sony KDF-E50A10) the VGA gave me washed out colors and soft edges. Mine is headed for eBay shortly!

[maverick0716]

Ymmv, but I plunked down the cash for the VGA cable and I'm not impressed at all. On my display (Sony KDF-E50A10) the VGA gave me washed out colors and soft edges. Mine is headed for eBay shortly!

The VGA input on the Sony A10 TV's really sucks, because they have VERY limited picture tweaking options. It was definitly designed soley for a PC input.

[DVDoctor]

It would be interesting to see how quickly Amir can get the Xbox developers to add better controls for the vga output. Cannot believe they will just leave it with this problem

John

[Arya Stark]

just had my first issue with freezing. it was with the movie Accepted. in the middle of the film it would just freeze and I had to try and fast forward a little and then it played for a few seconds before another freeze. restarted the console and then it was fixed. has anyone else had this movie freeze on them. I have watched batman begins, the searchers, and corpse bride with no problems.

[t_tringle]

Batman Begins + TrueHD track = noticeable loss of audio sync.

Damn. :(

Try clearing your XBOX HD Cache ( look through this thread for the command) , I have BB and I have absolutely no dropped audiio or video stuttering in that movie at all, and the TrueHD Soundtrack even dornrezzed to 640KB sounds awesome.

TimT

[t_tringle]

May I ask, withouth HDMI or analog out, how are you getting TrueHD from the 360-HD ? That does not compute from my understand.

May this be the reason for your lip-sync issue ?

You guys have to start reading before posting. There have been many posts asked and answered about TrueHD and Dolby Digital +. While the XBOX 360 doesn't output the full uncompressed stream, it does downrez it to 640KB Dolby Digital.

I for one have had 0 problems with lipsynching with Batman Begins at TrueHD, but I'll double check tonight to confirm this.

You guys may have to clear your Hard Drive Cache on the XBOX360, check this thread for the exact button combo and procedure.

TimT

[t_tringle]

But coverting via Dolby Digital is not True HD audio. The bitrate is reduced to allow for what the connection being used. Hence in my eyes some of the synch issues encountered.

The Toslink connection is not sufficient to carry such data. So it is not trueHD.

Because it's a lower bitrate, thats why you believe your getting lipsynch problems?

Please explain your reasoning. As for it not being TrueHD, it may not be TrueHD at the same bitrate as over HDMI, but it is still playing that soundtrack and I can confirm that it is superior over the Dolby Digital + track on Batman Begins.

I can also confirm that Dolby Digital +, while not as punchy with Bass, is clearer and has a superior soundfield overall when compared to the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack on the original Batman Begins SD-DVD.

As far as I understand, anybody who is not using HDMI or analog to transport their audio to their receiver is getting the same type of downrezzing of the audio. In some cases it's downrezzed to a DTS Stream, in others a Dolby Digital.

So yes your right, for $200.00 you got amazing picture and sound, but just not as good as that $500+ player, or that $1000.00+ player. You should take it back immediately and DEMAND your money back.

TimT

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Try clearing your XBOX HD Cache ( look through this thread for the command) , I have BB and I have absolutely no dropped audiio or video stuttering in that movie at all, and the TrueHD Soundtrack even dornrezzed to 640KB sounds awesome.

TimT
I cleared my HD cache before I even installed the drive. Also, I've had no audio or video stuttering in movies at all. Menus of certain titles seem a little slow, but actual movie playback is very smooth. However, while audio does not stutter, it lags. DD+ is an almost unnoticeable lag (but while it's slight, it's there). TrueHD on Batman Begins is most definitely laggy though, and I think anyone would be able to notice it.

Nonetheless I will try the HD cache purge thing again tonite. Thanks for the reminder - it can't hurt to try.

P.S. What TV do you have? Some TVs introduce video lag of their own. If a TV has a slight lag, then any audio lag would be much harder to notice.


Because it's a lower bitrate, thats why you believe your getting lipsynch problems?
Nah. The theory that was put forward was that there was lag converting DD+ to DD, and even more lag converting TrueHD to DD. It's just a theory though, and one that may not make sense, considering that decoding of 16 Mbps 1080p24 VC-1 is probably a lot harder than transcoding 3 Mbps TrueHD I'm guessing.


just had my first issue with freezing. it was with the movie Accepted. in the middle of the film it would just freeze and I had to try and fast forward a little and then it played for a few seconds before another freeze. restarted the console and then it was fixed. has anyone else had this movie freeze on them. I have watched batman begins, the searchers, and corpse bride with no problems.
Clean the disc, and if that doesn't work, get the disc replaced.

[eps3]

audio sync problems with xbox 360 hd-dvd add-on

I noticed significant lip sync problems with "grand Prix" hd-dvd. To my eyes and ears the voices are delayed compared to video. It was so noticeable to me that i thought i was watching a dubbed foreign film. I can understand, however, how many would overlook it if they were not paying close attention. According to review of this hd-dvd at high-def digest website this movie has "dolby digital plus" soundtrack only. Their review makes no mention of audiosync problems, which makes me suspect that the 360 add-on is the culprit. Unfortunately, I do not possess a stand alone hd-dvd player to do a/b comparison. FWIW i am using official xbox 360 hd/av cable with optical into a yamaha receiver. sony 32" xbr1 lcd.

[likev]

audio sync problems with xbox 360 hd-dvd add-on

I noticed significant lip sync problems with "grand Prix" hd-dvd. To my eyes and ears the voices are delayed compared to video. It was so noticeable to me that i thought i was watching a dubbed foreign film. I can understand, however, how many would overlook it if they were not paying close attention. According to review of this hd-dvd at high-def digest website this movie has "dolby digital plus" soundtrack only. Their review makes no mention of audiosync problems, which makes me suspect that the 360 add-on is the culprit. Unfortunately, I do not possess a stand alone hd-dvd player to do a/b comparison. FWIW i am using official xbox 360 hd/av cable with optical into a yamaha receiver. sony 32" xbr1 lcd.

Someone posted this a few days ago and I think it helped w/ the problem you are describing,

8.1 How do I clear the Xbox 360's cache? - NEW
If you find games loading slower, it may be caused by cache fragementation. Some games (such as Oblivion) provide the ability to clear the cache when starting up the game. For those that don't you can use the method below, brought to AV Forums by mjpartyboy. Note that this method removes all software updates and cache files for all games, not just a specific title.

Go to the "System" section of the Xbox Dashboard
Select "Memory", and then press the A
Choose a the HDD or a memory unit but do not press A - press Y to view "Device Options" which shows two options, "Rename" and "Format".
Press X, X, LB, RB, X, X.
Once you do this a blade will pop up saying: "This will perform maintenance on your Xbox 360 storage devices. Do you want to continue?"
Choose yes to clear the cache and update files, or choose no to cancel

[Nox]

People with lip sync problems, try playing the movies with just stereo (red and white RCA) to see if the lip sync problem still exists.

And as BuGsArEtAsTy mentions, post what TV type you're running. If the newer sets have a video processing delay, the 360 may be geared towards matching it. The older CRT sets may be the only one with the lipsync problem.

Hopefully we can center on where the problem lies and who's going to be effected.

[pcaulfie]

I did notice a slight delay. I adjusted the delay setting on my receiver, now it's synchronized perfectly.

[Deezul]

I had to make a full confession :)

She wasn't upset. She actually thought it was a smart thing to do because had I waited until Christmas day to test it out, it would have been well past the return period at Circuit City and I would have had to ship it to Microsoft and wait 2-3 weeks to get a new one back.

Check your receipt. Starting in November, most stores have "extended return periods" where they will take stuff back up to December 31 or January 1, because of Christmas. I noticed it on a Best Buy receipt and Gamestop receipt.

But don't let you wife know that now! :D

Deezul

[HDKing]

Did anyone have trouble getting Best Buy to match the $40 coupon from CC? The lady at checkout said that she couldn't do it.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

I did notice a slight delay. I adjusted the delay setting on my receiver, now it's synchronized perfectly.
What was your previous delay setting, and what was your new delay setting?

Most of us seem to be having audio lag, which means that if you add a delay to the audio with your receiver, the problem would get worse.

Which TV do you have?

[Billbofet]

Here's a noobie question regarding the audio on the HD-DVD drive.
I have noticed that I really have to crank the audio up on my receiver to get it to where my normal listening volume is for standard dvd's. Also, when I turn it up, it is LOUD if I go back to playing a 360 game.

Is there any way to adjust the volume or output for the HD drive?
Normal listening for DVD's on my receiver is 12-15
Normal listenign for Xbox360 games is 10-12
On the HD DVD drive, I'm putting it up to 18-20.

At this volume, the sound quality, at least for me, is excellent, but it's just a little annoying to be adjusting the volume before going back in to the dashboard.

Thanks in advance.
Bill

[NV5655]

For this price, I may have to buy it, but a question..

The HDDVD and Blue Ray t est from Cyberlink shows my AMD Athalon 64 3500+ May be a bit too slow to read it. Has anyone tried this drive with that chip?

Also, I have a creative Xi-Fi card with a 5.1 THX certified system hooked up to it. Will I be g etting full sound quality out of all 5 speakers with this drive hooked up with just the USB cable?

Thanks :)

[t_tringle]

I cleared my HD cache before I even installed the drive. Also, I've had no audio or video stuttering in movies at all. Menus of certain titles seem a little slow, but actual movie playback is very smooth. However, while audio does not stutter, it lags. DD+ is an almost unnoticeable lag (but while it's slight, it's there). TrueHD on Batman Begins is most definitely laggy though, and I think anyone would be able to notice it.

Nonetheless I will try the HD cache purge thing again tonite. Thanks for the reminder - it can't hurt to try.

P.S. What TV do you have? Some TVs introduce video lag of their own. If a TV has a slight lag, then any audio lag would be much harder to notice.



Bugs,

I have a Toshiba 50' Rear Projection CRT. I can't remember the model right off the top of my head, but I researched it quite a bit before comitting. It's the best I could afford and purchased it during last years Black Friday sale online via Best Buy. Usually I wouldn't buy a TV through them, but it was a great deal and had free delivery online, plus I wasn't going to be getting my hands on my 360 for at least 6 months due to shortages.

I am usually very, very good at detecting any lip synch issues. I generally get very distracted by them no matter how minute they are. I'm just that way about audio and video quality. Probably the reason I have the HD-DVD Addon.

So far I haven't noticed any audio lag at all, and I would hate to notice it now no matter how minute it is because it would be maddening to not be able to fix it.

I'll check it tonight and confirm if there is an issue with lip synch. BTW I use component video cables with the XBOX360, along with TosLink of course for the audio into a fairly recent Sony Receiver. I'll get the exact models later if it helps people determine if this is a real problem. I'd hate for it to be true, I really hope the HD-DVD Addon is well received and works well for most people.

I really would hate for Blue Ray be the one thing Sony wins a format war over.

TimT

[eps3]

People with lip sync problems, try playing the movies with just stereo (red and white RCA) to see if the lip sync problem still exists.

And as BuGsArEtAsTy mentions, post what TV type you're running. If the newer sets have a video processing delay, the 360 may be geared towards matching it. The older CRT sets may be the only one with the lipsync problem.

Hopefully we can center on where the problem lies and who's going to be effected.
the problem persists with composite rca cable directly to television. sony xbr1 32" LCD

eps3

[lotrhpsw]

I'm having audio lag issues as well (about 1/4 sec. behind visual), but it seems to be regardless of whether I select TrueHD or Dobly 5.1. It also occurs regardless of whether I'm using the digital optical connection or the normal red/white composite audio cables, or whether I use composite video or component. I called 1-800-4MY-XBOX, but they hadn't heard of the issue.

I found the most painfully obvious way to detect the lag is to watch one of these scenes from Batman Begins: 1) the third to last chapter where Bruce is hammering the nail (you'll hear the delayed bang as he's lifting the hammer), or 2) the very begining of the credits where the words "BATMAN BEGINS" pop up. (The music is supposed to start at the exact moment the words appear, not right after.)

These became all the more apparent when I compared the Batman Begins non-lagging DVD to the HD-DVD. Grrr....

Oh, and I'm using a Sony KV-34HS420 (CRT) with a Samsung HT-P50 (HTiB).

[lotrhpsw]

Though it seems the lag issue does not persist if I just run the audio through the television as opposed to my home theater system.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

I cleared my HD cache before I even installed the drive. Also, I've had no audio or video stuttering in movies at all. Menus of certain titles seem a little slow, but actual movie playback is very smooth. However, while audio does not stutter, it lags. DD+ is an almost unnoticeable lag (but while it's slight, it's there). TrueHD on Batman Begins is most definitely laggy though, and I think anyone would be able to notice it.

Nonetheless I will try the HD cache purge thing again tonite. Thanks for the reminder - it can't hurt to try.
I tried purging the hard drive cache (http://forums.xbox.com/2925440/ShowPost.aspx) again. It did absolutely nothing to fix the audio lag.

If this is not corrected by January, I'll probably return the HD DVD drive. This lag is now officially driving me crazy. The more I watch, the more I notice it. And I think a lot of people might just do the same. After the initial OMG-THE-VIDEO-IS-SO-AWESOME, like me some people will start to notice the audio issues. And January is the time when a lot of the Xmas returns come in. I'd hate to see 25% of these drives being returned because of this.

P.S. I wonder if it would be "easier" to minimize the lag if the audio were transcoded to DTS, as Amir had suggested as a possibility (not for the the lag reason, but just for the sake of having the DTS option).

[Robert D]

I tried purging the hard drive cache (http://forums.xbox.com/2925440/ShowPost.aspx) again. It did absolutely nothing to fix the audio lag.

If this is not corrected by January, I'll probably return the HD DVD drive. This lag is now officially driving me crazy. The more I watch, the more I notice it. And I think a lot of people might just do the same. After the initial OMG-THE-VIDEO-IS-SO-AWESOME, like me some people will start to notice the audio issues. And January is the time when a lot of the Xmas returns come in. I'd hate to see 25% of these drives being returned because of this.

P.S. I wonder if it would be "easier" to minimize the lag if the audio were transcoded to DTS, as Amir had suggested as a possibility (not for the the lag reason, but just for the sake of having the DTS option).

Most of the newer A/V receivers have a built in delay that is adjustable to allow for audio sync issues so maybe check that out.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Most of the newer A/V receivers have a built in delay that is adjustable to allow for audio sync issues so maybe check that out.
As I've mentioned before, that would actually make things worse.

The receivers add delay to audio to match the lag in video introduced by some TVs. For instance some DLP TVs have terrible video lag, so that when you watch a DVD or whatever, the sound comes a second before the video.

The opposite seems to be happening with the Xbox 360. Here the audio comes after the video (at least as far as I can tell), and using one of those receivers you are talking about would simply magnify the problem.

Trust me, If I thought an audio circuit delay box would fix the issue, I would have already have ordered one by now. There is nothing available to delay the video... unless you bought one of those laggy TVs. However, those suck at gaming for obvious reasons.

[twak]

Anyone else having trouble with their wireless adapter and hd-dvd drive. If I dock it and plug it in to the drive, sometimes it will not turn the wireless adapter on. Now I know this is not an isolated issue because this is my second hd-dvd drive ( I had to exchange my first one because of a problem with the eject button) and the same happened on it.

Obviously an easy work around is to dock the adapter back on the console and plug the drive into a front usb port but I still find this bothersome.

[AuroraProject]

Anyone else having trouble with their wireless adapter and hd-dvd drive. If I dock it and plug it in to the drive, sometimes it will not turn the wireless adapter on. Now I know this is not an isolated issue because this is my second hd-dvd drive ( I had to exchange my first one because of a problem with the eject button) and the same happened on it.

Obviously an easy work around is to dock the adapter back on the console and plug the drive into a front usb port but I still find this bothersome.


I had this problem once, I switched the wifi adapter to the other usb port (on the HD-DVD drive) and it hasn't happened since.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Anyone else having trouble with their wireless adapter and hd-dvd drive. If I dock it and plug it in to the drive, sometimes it will not turn the wireless adapter on. Now I know this is not an isolated issue because this is my second hd-dvd drive ( I had to exchange my first one because of a problem with the eject button) and the same happened on it.

Obviously an easy work around is to dock the adapter back on the console and plug the drive into a front usb port but I still find this bothersome.
My wireless adapter seems to work fine in this setup, although admittedly I haven't used it that much recently.

[bkilian]

Though it seems the lag issue does not persist if I just run the audio through the television as opposed to my home theater system.
This is an interesting data point... Has anyone else with audio lag issues tried this? (not as a solution, but as data to help us work out what's causing it)

[Hyper_Eye]

Here's a noobie question regarding the audio on the HD-DVD drive.
I have noticed that I really have to crank the audio up on my receiver to get it to where my normal listening volume is for standard dvd's. Also, when I turn it up, it is LOUD if I go back to playing a 360 game.

Is there any way to adjust the volume or output for the HD drive?
Normal listening for DVD's on my receiver is 12-15
Normal listenign for Xbox360 games is 10-12
On the HD DVD drive, I'm putting it up to 18-20.

At this volume, the sound quality, at least for me, is excellent, but it's just a little annoying to be adjusting the volume before going back in to the dashboard.

Thanks in advance.
Bill

I noticed this problem on "The Last Samurai" but not on "King Kong". I have not found any way to adjust it before the receiver.

[BioSehnsucht]

I didn't really notice any lag with either Tokyo Drift or Kong.. there might be a hint of lag, but very slight. If this were something playing back via XBMC I don't think it's audio +- delay function would have a fine enough granularity to 'correct' it. I have a Pioneer VSX-D812K, and am currently using a 19" Viewsonic CRT monitor (no video delay). What is everyone else using?

[FilmMixer]

I noticed this problem on "The Last Samurai" but not on "King Kong". I have not found any way to adjust it before the receiver.

The initial Warner Brothers titles (TLS, MDB, POTO, etc) were authored around 10-12 db lower than subsequent titles.. this has been well documented... it isn't a player issues.

[knownzero]

Well, I went out and got a 360 and HD-DVD drive today and I've had a chance to play with it a bit. Have it hooked up to a 52" LG DLP via the VGA cable and this thing looks fantastic. I haven't had a lot of time to use it because OSU is playing UM right now :D but the little I've played with it, it's awesome. More later after OSU wins... :D

[Linux23]

Got mine yesterday from Amazon and it looks really good. Great job Microsoft. I must say that King Kong is reference material on my Pearl.:D

[doctor carta]

Been reading alot of problems that people are having with their hd-dvd drive trying to play movies at 1080p.I too am having problems...i can play "gears of war" at 1080p via Xbox 360™ Component HD AV Cables but cant play 1080p on the Xbox 360™ HD DVD Player?This site says you can view 1080p via Xbox 360™ VGA HD AV Cables on the hd-dvd player but microsoft says the vga cable supports up to 1080i.What exactly is going on?

Thanks

[JudgeSmails]

Anyone else having trouble with their wireless adapter and hd-dvd drive. If I dock it and plug it in to the drive, sometimes it will not turn the wireless adapter on. Now I know this is not an isolated issue because this is my second hd-dvd drive ( I had to exchange my first one because of a problem with the eject button) and the same happened on it.

Obviously an easy work around is to dock the adapter back on the console and plug the drive into a front usb port but I still find this bothersome.

Mine worked OK. I have the HD-DVD running via back USB on the system and I have the wireless adapter running off back of HD-DVD.

JS

[twak]

Been reading alot of problems that people are having with their hd-dvd drive trying to play movies at 1080p.I too am having problems...i can play "gears of war" at 1080p via Xbox 360™ Component HD AV Cables but cant play 1080p on the Xbox 360™ HD DVD Player?This site says you can view 1080p via Xbox 360™ VGA HD AV Cables on the hd-dvd player but microsoft says the vga cable supports up to 1080i.What exactly is going on?

Thanks

You will only get 1080i with component cables and hd-dvd movies. You will only get 480p with regular dvd's and component cables. You will get 1080p with VGA. Games you will get 1080p over component because there is no copy protection in games as there is in movies.

Here is a link which confirms what I speak:

http://www.engadgethd.com/2006/09/21/xbox-360-hd-dvd-playback-maximum-1080i-via-component-1080p-vga/

Hope you understand as well as all the others who are having trouble grasping this.

[JasZ]

Hey guys. I'm kind of a newb here. I just got the HD-DVD add-on and I'm running it on my HP LC3700N (Sharp) LCD TV over a Monster VGA w/DVI adapter with my output set to the 1366x768 native rez of the TV.

Since I use VGA, I've had to adjust my colors to avoid the wash out for games, but when I played the KK movie I kept getting weird "artifacting?" in the scenes in the beginning where the ship is in the mist just before getting to the island. Happened when there was a light source in the dark mist. Sorry I'm not savy enough yet to describe this any better. Anyway, I had to adjust all my color settings again (turning down the blue, cyan, and magenta colors and saturation) to get rid of this effect. Its weird because I've never seen it on upscaled DVDs or WMV-HD files, but I just may not have had the right scene. Has anyone else seen anything like this? I have to see how Gears of War looks with these new settings or maybe I'll switch to component.

BTW. I've just had my audio set to DD+ and I didn't have any issue with audio sync on KK.

[isayx3]

Picked up my HD-DVD drive thursday. I used it with my SP7200 projector @ 720p. Watched MI:3 last night, great picture and noticed no sound lag.

Picked up Van Helsing today and will compare it with the DVD on my Pany S77 upconversion (hooked up via HDMI).

Right now im using component, but should have 360 VGA cables soon to compare.

[doctor carta]

You will only get 1080i with component cables and hd-dvd movies. You will only get 480p with regular dvd's and component cables. You will get 1080p with VGA. Games you will get 1080p over component because there is no copy protection in games as there is in movies.

Here is a link which confirms what I speak:



Hope you understand as well as all the others who are having trouble grasping this.

but Microsoft says their cables are only capable up to 1080i?i dont quite understand...


Thanks for your help twak

[twak]

but Microsoft says their cables are only capable up to 1080i?i dont quite understand...


Thanks for your help twak

Show me a link please, cables will display anything they are told to display by the adjoining device.

[whitenoise]

Essentially both VGA/RGB and component use 3 video inputs. VGA uses RGB and component uses YPbPr. So, if your TV takes RGB over component you can take the VGA output from 360 - use a cheap vga to component adopter cable ... Thanks for the advice! I am going to pull the very heavy entertainment center back and check for these inputs tonight.

[Jdog35]

Hey all. I too have my new happy HD-DVD drive for my 360. I don' t have any questions that haven't already been asked. I don't have any observations that haven't already been stated. All I want to say is I really love my new toy, and thanks to everyone here, I didn't have any problems with settings, cables, etc. Plug it in, play the movies, enjoy my visual o-gsm:) Thanks for everyone on the previous 94 pages for your comments, y'all don't get enough credit for how much you help everyone here.

[gotspeed6]

what tv allow 1080p through component cables?

[nataraj]

Thanks for the advice! I am going to pull the very heavy entertainment center back and check for these inputs tonight.

I'm not so sure anymore. VGA normally converts to RGBHV - so, not sure how just RGB would work. May be something to check in the HDTV forum.

[PDonthate]

Show me a link please, cables will display anything they are told to display by the adjoining device.

This link says 1080i or 720p for MS HD Components

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360componenthdcable/

This one for VGA says 1080p gaming

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360vgahdcable/

[twak]

what tv allow 1080p through component cables?

Mine will thank you.

[Frohlich]

This link says 1080i or 720p for MS HD Components

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360componenthdcable/

This one for VGA says 1080p gaming

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360vgahdcable/

They only say 1080I because that is what XBOX 360 did until the recent update via Live. When the component cables came out a year ago that is what the XBOX could display (720P or 1080I) so that is what they advertised. Component cables themselves have no idea what signal is being fed to them, they will display whatever they are told to display. They have no limitation specific to the wire itself (though they may have some theoritical limit).

[twak]

This link says 1080i or 720p for MS HD Components

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360componenthdcable/

This one for VGA says 1080p gaming

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360vgahdcable/

Vga says 1080p games and movies which is correct.

Component says 1080i, which is what you will get in hd-dvd movies because of hdcp, but you will get 1080p in games if your tv is compatible.

[gotspeed6]

Mine will thank you.
and what tv is that? I have not seen any

[twak]

and what tv is that? I have not seen any

Sharp lc37d90u and I might suggest you do some research because there is quite a few on the market.

http://kohi.org/pics/IMG_0654.jpg

[Category 5]

Not sure if this has been asked before but when connecting the HD-DVD add on to a Pioneer plasma 1366 x 768p is there any benefit in connecting via the VGA cable, i.e. can it display native resolution? I am currently using component out via a VP30 video processor set to 720p for games and will probably use 1080i for movies so display will deinterlace and scale to 768p (I'm pretty sure it cannot accept 1080p). Is there an option for VGA 1366 x 768 output from the HD-DVD add on and can this be connected through the VP30 or will it have to be connected to the pioneer VGA PC input directly?

Thanks in advance for yor help.

Scott

P.S. I do not have the add-on yet but will receive in next 2 weeks when Japanese add-ons are released and will be connecting to my Asia Xbox 360. Just don't want to waste 60 bucks on the VGA cable if no benefit.

Xbox has 1360x760 VGA resolution (direct pixel map will just leave 3 pixles on each side black so you get true 1/1 reproduction). On my Aquos, once I finally lowered the brigthness and raised the contrast I get an amazong picture. In fact, HD-DVD on the 360 over VGA beats the 360 over component at 1080i or 720p, and get this - for PQ it beats the Roshiba HD-A1 over HDMI at 1080i or 720p. The scaler in the 360 is WAY better than the one in my Aquos...although it takes getting used to VGA and switching back before it becomes evident.

If you have brightness and contrast controls you should be able to dial it in. Going back to component for me yields a oversaturated, blooming, overscanned mess comparitively. Long live VGA.

Now if only Amirm would let us know if they are working on the color issue, MS could tout VGA as a significant advantage over PS3. To my knowledge, HDMI is a very fidgety standard so far, and color tables/handshaking etc are handled differently from set to set giving mixed results (i.e. the black crush issues).

[gotspeed6]

Sharp lc37d90u and I might suggest you do some research because there is quite a few on the market.

http://kohi.org/pics/IMG_0654.jpg

thanks, but dayum it was just a question some people like to go... wait nevermind

[twak]

thanks, but dayum it was just a question some people like to go... wait nevermind

Sorry, I got frustrated at the notion that there was none out there just because you have not seen any.

[doctor carta]

Vga says 1080p games and movies which is correct.

Component says 1080i, which is what you will get in hd-dvd movies because of hdcp, but you will get 1080p in games if your tv is compatible.

so whats the big deal with the legal rights of not letting 1080p be viewed via component cables?

thanks again guys!

[talbain]

what tv allow 1080p through component cables?


mine does. westinghouse 37w3

[spiderjericho]

I ordered one through EB a few weeks ago. I still haven't tinkered with it (military and TAD), but I bought Batman Begins, Superman Returns, Unleashed, Full Metal Jacket, Good Fellas, Superman The Movie, Superman II, Traffic and Training Day.

I have a 26"XBR1 (I'd buy a bigger tv, but it's such a hassle to get it overseas).

I have a few questions...

Is there a website where it shows what titles are on the horizon, as Amazon and Best Buy don't really provide much information.

And what software will allow you to play the movies on a PC? I have a Dell Inspiron E1705 with MCE. I saw in the article posted a few pages back that there was a Power DVD HD-DVD, but went to the Cyberlink website and couldn't find it. The same for Win DVD.

Thanks in advance.

[Robert D]

I ordered one through EB a few weeks ago. I still haven't tinkered with it (military and TAD), but I bought Batman Begins, Superman Returns, Unleashed, Full Metal Jacket, Good Fellas, Superman The Movie, Superman II, Traffic and Training Day.

I have a 26"XBR1 (I'd buy a bigger tv, but it's such a hassle to get it overseas).

I have a few questions...

Is there a website where it shows what titles are on the horizon, as Amazon and Best Buy don't really provide much information.

And what software will allow you to play the movies on a PC? I have a Dell Inspiron E1705 with MCE. I saw in the article posted a few pages back that there was a Power DVD HD-DVD, but went to the Cyberlink website and couldn't find it. The same for Win DVD.

Thanks in advance.

Here you go http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/releasedates.html and I believe the software is out in Japan but not here yet.

[Schlotkins]

This is going to sound stupid, but I'm thinking about getting one of these and a xbox just to play HD-DVDs - absolutely no games. The reason is to get 1:1 pixel mapping on my panny plasma. The question is: Which Xbox would I need? Do I just need the core? I have the VGA cable I'd need and the HD-DVD comes with a remote. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Chris

[joe221]

This is going to sound stupid, but I'm thinking about getting one of these and a xbox just to play HD-DVDs - absolutely no games. The reason is to get 1:1 pixel mapping on my panny plasma. The question is: Which Xbox would I need? Do I just need the core? I have the VGA cable I'd need and the HD-DVD comes with a remote. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Chris

Do you actually have the XBOX VGA cable? My guess is you don't. The Premium comes with a hard disk so on the Core you'll need a hard storage card if that works, I think it does. The HD-DVD needs a storage device to work correctly (bookmarks etc.) Given the 11/22 availability of HD content online I'd say get the Premium, and curse the size of the HDD with the rest of us.

[twak]

One dumb question from me now, How do you set and store bookmarks? Thanks for the help.

[talbain]

Do you actually have the XBOX VGA cable? My guess is you don't. The Premium comes with a hard disk so on the Core you'll need a hard storage card if that works, I think it does. The HD-DVD needs a storage device to work correctly (bookmarks etc.) Given the 11/22 availability of HD content online I'd say get the Premium, and curse the size of the HDD with the rest of us.


WRONG. the core system works with the hd dvd drive just fine by itself. no storage device needed at all (either hard drive or memory card). the hd dvd drive add on comes with 192 megs of storage built in for such things as bookmarks...

[scotty144]

WRONG. the core system works with the hd dvd drive just fine by itself. no storage device needed at all (either hard drive or memory card). the hd dvd drive add on comes with 192 megs of storage built in for such things as bookmarks...


Well then, how do you bookmark?

[isayx3]

Well then, how do you bookmark?

I believe he answered that:

"the hd dvd drive add on comes with 192 megs of storage built in for such things as bookmarks... "

[scotty144]

That answers how you store bookmarks...but how do you set them?

[AuroraProject]

That answers how you store bookmarks...but how do you set them?

Press the B button the remote or controller while the movie is playing. Apparently this only works on discs that support bookmarking though.

[talbain]

you can also call up the menu and insert a bookmark that way. i saw the option on one of my discs, batman begins i think...

btw, here's the post from microsoft's Major Nelson explaining on his blog the hd dvd's memory. apparently people were asking how they can save things on there like game saves. there's also an interesting comment on how hd dvds are not being properly tagged to label this memory:



Xbox 360 HD-DVD Player Memory
If you have picked up the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player you have probably noticed that in addition to the unbelievable picture and sound quality, you now have ‘HD DVD’ as a new storage device section under Memory on your System Blade of your Xbox 360’s Dashboard. I have gotten a few emails asking me what this is and more specifically if it can be used to store game content, arcade titles etc. The answer is you can’t. You can only delete items from this memory area, not add them. In fact, games won’t even ‘see’ this area…so for the most part you’ll never come across it, but I wanted to explain exactly WHAT this area is. This memory area is part of the HD DVD spec and it only accessible by the Xbox 360 HD DVD player when using the advanced features of the HD DVD format. For example, if you lay down any bookmarks from the HD DVD’s that you rent from from Netflix, then you’ll use the Memory section of the System blade to delete that content, since it would stand to reason that you don't need the information again since you rented the disc. Unfortunately, none of the current HD DVD's properly tag their data..so for the short term all you'll see is 'Unknown Title.' Remember: Not every HD DVD has the same advanced features, so check the back of the HD DVD packaging (Example) to see what each title supports.

Hope that clears it up.

[Mikey Palmice]

I'm not sure if there are any 1080p movies currently available for download from XBLive, but the 360 can playback 1080p movies from USB devices, and can also stream them from a Media Center PC.

Sorry for the noober question, but how do you get 1080p content on your PC? I'm not asking how to get it from the PC to the 360, but how do actually get 1080p content on your PC?

I have windows media center and I do stream audio and video content to my 360 already

thanks

[Mikey Palmice]

"I dont want to spend $40 on the VGA cable to find out its still not upconverted, and I'd hate to have to use 2 dvd players"


Dude read a faq or even this thread, using VGA gives you 1080P for games HD-DVD's and standard DVD's.

VGA= 1080P on everything


Sorry for the dumb question, but can I use this setup with a sony A10 50 inch? How does one hook up a vga cable to the xbox 360?

Oops, I just figured out how it works. didn't realize MS made a special cable for it. My new question is, are there any negatives to using this cable instead of the components?

and lastly, does it matter to have 1080p if you have a TV that does 720p? Is it a waste with this type of TV?

[joe221]

WRONG. the core system works with the hd dvd drive just fine by itself. no storage device needed at all (either hard drive or memory card). the hd dvd drive add on comes with 192 megs of storage built in for such things as bookmarks...

My bad. I read the exact same quote from MN above and took it to mean the internal XBOX memory (HDD etc.) :o

[joe221]

Sorry for the dumb question, but can I use this setup with a sony A10 50 inch? How does one hook up a vga cable to the xbox 360?

Oops, I just figured out how it works. didn't realize MS made a special cable for it. My new question is, are there any negatives to using this cable instead of the components?

and lastly, does it matter to have 1080p if you have a TV that does 720p? Is it a waste with this type of TV?

I believe your set is a 720p set. Just use component. The ones that come with the Premium. I have an earlier version (XS955) and component works great!

[AuroraProject]

My new question is, are there any negatives to using this cable instead of the components?



For me there was, the VGA cable gave me washed out colors and soft edges. I have the same tv as you, my advice is to avoid the VGA/360 setup on that tv.

[maverick0716]

Sorry for the dumb question, but can I use this setup with a sony A10 50 inch? How does one hook up a vga cable to the xbox 360?

Oops, I just figured out how it works. didn't realize MS made a special cable for it. My new question is, are there any negatives to using this cable instead of the components?

and lastly, does it matter to have 1080p if you have a TV that does 720p? Is it a waste with this type of TV?

I have the 42" version of your TV and own the HD DVD add on player.......the difference is huge! You'll want to use Component cables and set your 360 to 720p. The VGA input on these TV's is designed for PC use and has extremely limited tweaking abilities.....with Component, you will have tons of teaking abilities.

[NextWaveG]

I'm really thinking about getting the HD-DVD drive mainly as an upconverter for my standard DVDs. I have over 150 DVDs and don't plan on replacing all of them with HD-DVDs. I have a Infocus SP5000 which is rated at 720p and also reviewed as having a poor built in converter. DVDs on it simply through my 360 are bad, but HD content downloaded on Marketplace is definetely better. Has anyone tried watching a standard DVD on a 720p projector via VGA cables yet? Did you notice an improvement? I'm running Monster Component cables to my projector right now, but I can switch to VGA to get the upconversion.

[ShinHed]

Is there a beta or RTM version of Powerdvd HD Edition someone can let me "test"?

[bry223]

Sorry for the noober question, but how do you get 1080p content on your PC? I'm not asking how to get it from the PC to the 360, but how do actually get 1080p content on your PC?

I have windows media center and I do stream audio and video content to my 360 already

thanks


I use Dave's trailer page to download 1080p trailers and play them back on my 360;

http://www.drfoster.f2s.com/trailers_hd-dvd.shtml

The Microsoft WMV showcase of 1080p content really isnt 1080p so I dont even bother.

[kohi]

The Microsoft WMV showcase of 1080p content really isnt 1080p so I dont even bother.

Could you please elaborate on why the WMV showcase content is not really 1080p?

thanx... :)

[Sean_O]

Hello everybody,

I still don't know everything about DD+ and True HD, so I am wondering, what is stopping MS from allowing the actual DD+ stream or True HD stream to be passed through the optical output?

Is it a hardware or bandwidth issue, or is it something that could potentially be patched in a firmware update?

Thanks, and sorry if it has already been answered here... I did do a search of this thread, but must have missed it.

[the3rdpower]

As VGA input on all LCD/Plasma's seem to be completely untweakable the capabilities of this player really seem to be null and void. I'm ready to pick up a Samsung 52 LCD w/ a VGA input, however, I just found out I cannot calibrate the VGA input... this just really sucks. I'm wondering if anyone has tried a VGA to Component converter to by-pass the 1080p over component issues. Since the converter cable doesn't do much to the signal I'm figuring it should be a good way to fool the 360 into thinking it's outputting to VGA. This whole VGA fiasco is very irritating.

[indy911]

Hello everybody,

I still don't know everything about DD+ and True HD, so I am wondering, what is stopping MS from allowing the actual DD+ stream or True HD stream to be passed through the optical output?

Is it a hardware or bandwidth issue, or is it something that could potentially be patched in a firmware update?

Thanks, and sorry if it has already been answered here... I did do a search of this thread, but must have missed it.

The SPDIF standard (using either an optical or coax cable) doesnt provide enough bandwidth for a TrueHD signal. In addition, it is not allowed to output a digital HD audio-stream without encryption.

[Sean_O]

The SPDIF standard (using either an optical or coax cable) doesnt provide enough bandwidth for a TrueHD signal. In addition, they will not allow digital output without encryption.

That exactly the info I was looking for. Thank you indy911! :)

I figured it might be a bandwidth issue, but encrypting an audio signal like that sems just... silly to me.

Oh well. Some one got rich selling the studios an encryption scheme that won't really help them stop piracy at all, and will help to slow adoption of a new format which would drive the perpetuity of their movie sales. Sigh...

[Peter Loan]

I don't know if this was discussed earlier in the thread, but is there any way to individually setup the resolution for HD-DVD playback and 360 gameplay?

I'm getting an audio sync issue when playing HD-DVDs at 720p...and the picture looks a bit softer when compared to 1080i. As for gameplay, I find that the 360's frame rate and picture quality is improved with the 720p setting.

[Mikey Palmice]

great, thanks for all the help everybody. This product is very exciting

[jthomaslambert]

Picked up my HD-DVD drive thursday. I used it with my SP7200 projector @ 720p. Watched MI:3 last night, great picture and noticed no sound lag.


MI:3 is DD+ so you likely won't have sound lag with that title. Lag seems to be limited to TrueHD. However, with DD+ titles (including MI:3) many users are reporting a lack of punch (initially thought to be a lack of bass but later reported to be missing mids as well). I know I've compared my HD-DVD MI:3 to my DVD MI:3 and there's a significant difference in the audio (much worse on HD-DVD).

[oleus]

MI:3 is DD+ so you likely won't have sound lag with that title. Lag seems to be limited to TrueHD. However, with DD+ titles (including MI:3) many users are reporting a lack of punch (initially thought to be a lack of bass but later reported to be missing mids as well). I know I've compared my HD-DVD MI:3 to my DVD MI:3 and there's a significant difference in the audio (much worse on HD-DVD).

this title has by far been the worst sounding one for me so far. in the heavy action sequences it actually starts to sound QUIETER on my 7.1 setup than the rest of the scenes! like someone is turning down the volume during big explosions.....

[aaronwt]

I'm really thinking about getting the HD-DVD drive mainly as an upconverter for my standard DVDs. I have over 150 DVDs and don't plan on replacing all of them with HD-DVDs. I have a Infocus SP5000 which is rated at 720p and also reviewed as having a poor built in converter. DVDs on it simply through my 360 are bad, but HD content downloaded on Marketplace is definetely better. Has anyone tried watching a standard DVD on a 720p projector via VGA cables yet? Did you notice an improvement? I'm running Monster Component cables to my projector right now, but I can switch to VGA to get the upconversion.
You don't need the HD DVD drive to upconvert SD DVDs. The 360 already doees it with the DVD drive in the console. It will also work with the HD DVD add on but with eithe rone you need to use the VGA cable to get the upconverting capabilities. It does look really good at 1920x1080P. I have it set up on a 21" Gateway and a 61" Samsung, both accept 1080P and both pictures are excellent.

[new04quest]

I'm glad that I purchased the Xbox 360. After all the troubles and the dangling with the MCE machine and the Xbox HD-DVD player, it is time to enjoy the HD on the Xbox. The HD PQ/AQ HD-DVD player on the Xbox 360 is amazing. It is a lot better than the HD PQ/AQ on the CableCard. It is trouble free so far. It is really designed for plug and play. There is no other software and hard requires for the Xbox HD-DVD player on the Xbox 360.

Since I never associate w/ any gamer system, I'll need to learn how to connect the Xbox 360 to the MCE. Do you have any suggestion? Do I need another wireless adapter for the Xbox 360? The MCE next to it is using 240Mbps wireless adapter. I don't have any CAT6 connection at the theater room.

Oh wait another question: Is it possible I can get 7.1 surround sound from Xbox 360? It would be great on the 7.1 HT system.

[Deezul]

Since I never associate w/ any gamer system, I'll need to learn how to connect the Xbox 360 to the MCE. Do you have any suggestion? Do I need another wireless adapter for the Xbox 360? The MCE next to it is using 240Mbps wireless adapter. I don't have any CAT6 connection at the theater room.

Oh wait another question: Is it possible I can get 7.1 surround sound from Xbox 360? It would be great on the 7.1 HT system.

1. You'll need the 360 wireless adapter to connect to your network.

2. No, just 5.1 Dolby Digital

Deezul :)

[timick1]

I believe your set is a 720p set. Just use component. The ones that come with the Premium. I have an earlier version (XS955) and component works great!


Same here. The MS component cables work great. Set the XBOX 360 to 1080i though for watching movies.

[FilmMixer]

Hello everybody,

I still don't know everything about DD+ and True HD, so I am wondering, what is stopping MS from allowing the actual DD+ stream or True HD stream to be passed through the optical output?

Is it a hardware or bandwidth issue, or is it something that could potentially be patched in a firmware update?


Bandwidth is an issure, yes.... HDMI has the bandwidth, however...

There are 2 ways in which to author a disc: basic and advnaced. All studio films to date have been autrhored in advanced. Advanced discs will never pass the native bitstream.. Why? The new advanced codecs rely on a mixer inside the player which takes the main track, commentaries, player sounds, etc. and mix them together and output them as a new bitstream. This is different than SD DVD in that on SD each audio track was a seperate track for each thing, so the main track was a complete track, the commentary was a complete track, etc... takes up a lot more space. Also, with the new codecs, you can dedicate a higer bitrate to the main audio track, less bandwidth to the commentray track (or even have it streaming in real time over the internet through the Ethernet port) and have some efficient metadata tell the player how to mix the two tracks together (ie lower the main track when someone is giving commentary).. a very elegant solution.. On an HDMI setup, all of this is output as LPCM.

Some ask why all of the bitstream data can't just be sent out to the receiver, and then let the receiver do the mixing... it is very simple. The receiver has no way to know if the user has selected to turn the commentary on or off (i.e. U-Control on Universal titles) in the player....

As a side comment, there is no benefit in doing the decoding inside the receiver/proc rather than the player... the conversion from bitstream to PCM is not as critical as the conversion of PCM to analog...

As another note, I came over to this thread after having a discussion with Dansk on another forum about the lack of quality sound from the add-on... I have heard KK and MI3 on the Toshiba's, and they sound fantastic... If there is any issue wiht the 360, it must be in their re-encode to DD from the DD+ or DTS tracks on the HD DVD's...

[FilmMixer]

The Premium comes with a hard disk so on the Core you'll need a hard storage card if that works, I think it does. The HD-DVD needs a storage device to work correctly (bookmarks etc.)

Joe.. it is actually part of the HD DVD spec that players must have on board persistent memory. This is not only for bookmarks, but resume points, new commentary that can be downloaded from the web, etc.... they can even download new trailers from the web so that when you put in a favorite title, you don't have to look at the same trailer every time you boot it up...

If a player has an HD DVD logo on it, it is madatory to have persistent memory on board...

[Hookster]

To folks who have tried hooking up the HD DVD drive through the X-Box: Which looks better, componant or VGA?
Thanx

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Joe.. it is actually part of the HD DVD spec that players must have on board persistent memory. This is not only for bookmarks, but resume points,
Now if they'd only give us that resume feature...

new commentary that can be downloaded from the web, etc.... they can even download new trailers from the web so that when you put in a favorite title, you don't have to look at the same trailer every time you boot it up...
Cool, but it'd be nice if we could just skip that trailer completely.

[JudgeSmails]

Same here. The MS component cables work great. Set the XBOX 360 to 1080i though for watching movies.

I agree 100% with that. I'm using 720p for games and 1080i for movies. Stinks having to switch it manually each time.

JS

[jnoel]

To folks who have tried hooking up the HD DVD drive through the X-Box: Which looks better, componant or VGA?
Thanx


Why dont you just take the time to read the last few pages of this thread.

[FilmMixer]

Now if they'd only give us that resume feature...


I can't for the life of me figure out why the studios aren't setting the resume feature on.. I guess WB thinks bookmardks are the answer, and the others ??????

[beba]

Thanks, but no. I've already done this with DVD-R. Your CD-Rs and my DVD-R burned this way are just plain data discs compatible with any computer.

I'm talking about a DVD-R formatted as an actual HD DVD (UDF 2.5?) complete with menus and everything. I'm guessing that it should work fine in both the external HD DVD drive (of course) and in the built-in DVD drive, but I'm not 100% sure about this.

P.S. If this did work, it could be an interesting way to market the benefits of HD DVD video playback with the Xbox 360, pushing HD DVD add-on drive sales.

Hello I did burn the HD DVD on DVD-r and it did play only the menu but it stop there. I used Ulead DVD Moviefactory 5. Anybody burn HD dvd on DVD and playd in Xbox 360 HD DVD player?
I have Sony HC3 camcorder and would like to burn the HD video

Tom

[rr6966]

Hookster,

I have a Samsung 56" 1080p dlp. On my tv I prefer the vga, both look very nice but the vga just seems a little more detailed, but you are splitting hairs on this difference. On vga you get 1080p, and the component only outputs 1080i, but I believe my picture preference is more due to digital (vga) versus analog ( component ) hook up.

[thrustbucket]

Hookster,

I have a Samsung 56" 1080p dlp. On my tv I prefer the vga, both look very nice but the vga just seems a little more detailed, but you are splitting hairs on this difference. On vga you get 1080p, and the component only outputs 1080i, but I believe my picture preference is more due to digital (vga) versus analog ( component ) hook up.

Except for the small fact that through the 360's VGA connection it's sending an analog signal. Your getting analog either way. There is no "Digital" out of the 360..... for now.

[Fingolfin269]

Same here. The MS component cables work great. Set the XBOX 360 to 1080i though for watching movies.

I'm looking into getting one of these drives and this statement confuses me a bit. The games look great at 720P so why would I want to use 1080i for the movies? I have a previous gen 42" Hitachi Ultravision LCD (the last of the grey sets) and I'm 99% sure it is a 720P set. Would I still want to use 1080i in this case?

I've gotta say, I usually come here and look for information before making any AV decision and expected to enter this thread and find nothing but disappointment. I was going to buy a standalone but hell this looks like the best bang for the buck, especially for someone like me without a 1080p television.

Thanks for any info everyone.

[pospower]

What About WMV disks does this play them?

[Deezul]

I'm looking into getting one of these drives and this statement confuses me a bit. The games look great at 720P so why would I want to use 1080i for the movies? I have a previous gen 42" Hitachi Ultravision LCD (the last of the grey sets) and I'm 99% sure it is a 720P set. Would I still want to use 1080i in this case?

I'm not an expert, but I suspect because it's easier to convert 1080p, which the HD DVD is recorded at, to 1080i, since that only involves a refresh. The resolution is the same. But 720p is a different resolution.

Deezul

[oleus]

just tried out the VGA cord for the first time on my Infocus 7200 projector...this is the first time I have used that input, and while at first it looked wahsed out and dull, adjusting the brightness and contrast really helped make the picture come alive and reveal a more detailed picture than i was getting with component and much better contrast. just seems to be more shadow details and purer whites. very happy with the VGA! if they could just do a patch for the weak 5.1 that would be great.

[SJHT]

I agree 100% with that. I'm using 720p for games and 1080i for movies. Stinks having to switch it manually each time.

JS

It would be slick if they allowed you to set two different settings. One for the game drive and one for the HD DVD drive. Are you listening MS? :) SJ

[nataraj]

It would be slick if they allowed you to set two different settings. One for the game drive and one for the HD DVD drive. Are you listening MS? :) SJ

If there are enough people asking for this, I guess it shouldn't be hard to do.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

If there are enough people asking for this, I guess it shouldn't be hard to do.
Unlike the situation with the PS3, am I correct to think that only the Xbox 360 and not the individual games would need to be updated to support this?

However, it's not crucial for the Xbox 360 (even though it would be beneficial for some), which is why they haven't implemented it yet I'm guessing.

[oleus]

I'm looking into getting one of these drives and this statement confuses me a bit. The games look great at 720P so why would I want to use 1080i for the movies? I have a previous gen 42" Hitachi Ultravision LCD (the last of the grey sets) and I'm 99% sure it is a 720P set. Would I still want to use 1080i in this case?

I've gotta say, I usually come here and look for information before making any AV decision and expected to enter this thread and find nothing but disappointment. I was going to buy a standalone but hell this looks like the best bang for the buck, especially for someone like me without a 1080p television.

Thanks for any info everyone.

the games are all native 720p so it's best to keep it in that resolution if your tv accepts native 720p.....and it seems for hddvd (which are 1080i/p native) that 720p native displays are doing a better job of downscaling than the 360, so for both 720p and 1080i/p displays it seems that playing hd-dvd's with 1080i output it the best for almost all displays under 1080p

[Sean_O]

Bandwidth is an issure, yes.... HDMI has the bandwidth, however...

There are 2 ways in which to author a disc: basic and advnaced. All studio films to date have been autrhored in advanced. Advanced discs will never pass the native bitstream.. Why? The new advanced codecs rely on a mixer inside the player which takes the main track, commentaries, player sounds, etc. and mix them together and output them as a new bitstream. This is different than SD DVD in that on SD each audio track was a seperate track for each thing, so the main track was a complete track, the commentary was a complete track, etc... takes up a lot more space. Also, with the new codecs, you can dedicate a higer bitrate to the main audio track, less bandwidth to the commentray track (or even have it streaming in real time over the internet through the Ethernet port) and have some efficient metadata tell the player how to mix the two tracks together (ie lower the main track when someone is giving commentary).. a very elegant solution.. On an HDMI setup, all of this is output as LPCM.

Some ask why all of the bitstream data can't just be sent out to the receiver, and then let the receiver do the mixing... it is very simple. The receiver has no way to know if the user has selected to turn the commentary on or off (i.e. U-Control on Universal titles) in the player....

As a side comment, there is no benefit in doing the decoding inside the receiver/proc rather than the player... the conversion from bitstream to PCM is not as critical as the conversion of PCM to analog...


Interesting. Thank you for the info.

As far as letting the receiver know what you have selected, why not just send a flag signal down the same pipe to let the chipset in the receiver know what to do? No one thought of that?

[FilmMixer]

Interesting. Thank you for the info.

As far as letting the receiver know what you have selected, why not just send a flag signal down the same pipe to let the chipset in the receiver know what to do? No one thought of that?

Maybe, maybe not.. but I cannot think of one benefit in doing the decoding inside the receiver instead of the player...

[Dahlsim]

I can't for the life of me figure out why the studios aren't setting the resume feature on.. I guess WB thinks bookmardks are the answer, and the others ??????

The answer to this question was posted in the "insiders" thread.

As I recall in a nutshell it's a technical hurdle because the need to restore everything properly in support of the advanced interactive functions of the hd-dvd format. A search of that thread would yield more details of course.

[nataraj]

I've opened a 360 HD DVD add-on wish list thread. Pls post your wish list (and bugs) in that thread. The list will go directly to the xbox add-on team.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=754324

[nataraj]

Unlike the situation with the PS3, am I correct to think that only the Xbox 360 and not the individual games would need to be updated to support this?

That would be my guess as well.

However, it's not crucial for the Xbox 360 (even though it would be beneficial for some), which is why they haven't implemented it yet I'm guessing.

A lot of things go into making the feature list - competition, market research and certainly customer asks.

One thing for sure. The feature asks in that wishlist thread will all be looked into.

[FrancescoP]

Did anyone was prompted for the update and downloaded HD DVD patch today and can tell us if there are improvements?

http://www.majornelson.com/archive/2006/11/21/hd-dvd-auto-update.aspx

[wcaughey]

Can someone verify something for me as I don't have the hd dvd add on for the 360...

I am under the assumption that the same options and menu appears at the bottom of the screen as when you'd watch a SD dvd via the internal drive.

Can someone see if the ASPECT RATIO button in the advanced options allows for HD DVD movies to be vertically stretched via the LETTERBOX option to eliminate the black bars in anamorphic 2.35:1 aspect ratio hd dvds (king kong is in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio)?

I've found this works for standard dvds and effectively vertically stretches anamorphic movies to full resolution (which is perfect for 2.35:1 CH projection), but this would be amazing news if this also worked for hd dvds.

[tcrews]

Did anyone was prompted for the update and downloaded HD DVD patch today and can tell us if there are improvements?

http://www.majornelson.com/archive/2006/11/21/hd-dvd-auto-update.aspx
I was prompted tonight when I started MI:III. No changes that I can see but I've only had the drive for a few days.

Watched some of MI:III yesterday but today got the "update is available".

Tom Crews

[ChrisARN]

Did anyone was prompted for the update and downloaded HD DVD patch today and can tell us if there are improvements?

http://www.majornelson.com/archive/2006/11/21/hd-dvd-auto-update.aspx


None, as far as I can tell.

[wcaughey]

Can someone verify something for me as I don't have the hd dvd add on for the 360...

I am under the assumption that the same options and menu appears at the bottom of the screen as when you'd watch a SD dvd via the internal drive.

Can someone see if the ASPECT RATIO button in the advanced options allows for HD DVD movies to be vertically stretched via the LETTERBOX option to eliminate the black bars in anamorphic 2.35:1 aspect ratio hd dvds (king kong is in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio)?

I've found this works for standard dvds and effectively vertically stretches anamorphic movies to full resolution (which is perfect for 2.35:1 CH projection), but this would be amazing news if this also worked for hd dvds.


Please, somebody - this would be very easy to test. A couple people over at the 2.35:1 CH forum are very curious...

[t_tringle]

Except for the small fact that through the 360's VGA connection it's sending an analog signal. Your getting analog either way. There is no "Digital" out of the 360..... for now.

Please make sure you clarify that by this you mean, there are no "true digital" connection types available for the XBOX360 .... for now. Just because some trolls will latch on to that and then regurgitate it to mean that the XBOX360 is "incapable" of outputting a digital signal, which to my knowledge no one has proved yet.

However if Microsoft does not announce an HDMI cable soon it doesn't look good for digital connections.

TimT

[Mikey Palmice]

I'm really thinking about getting the HD-DVD drive mainly as an upconverter for my standard DVDs. I have over 150 DVDs and don't plan on replacing all of them with HD-DVDs. I have a Infocus SP5000 which is rated at 720p and also reviewed as having a poor built in converter. DVDs on it simply through my 360 are bad, but HD content downloaded on Marketplace is definetely better. Has anyone tried watching a standard DVD on a 720p projector via VGA cables yet? Did you notice an improvement? I'm running Monster Component cables to my projector right now, but I can switch to VGA to get the upconversion.

does the standard dvd upconversion only work over vga? So, you can't use component if you want to upconvert?

[Mikey Palmice]

Same here. The MS component cables work great. Set the XBOX 360 to 1080i though for watching movies.

1080i for movies? but isn't it better to stay at 720p since that is the native resolution of the set?

[thrustbucket]

Didn't see this posted, but the next time you play an HD-DVD there is an auto-update: http://www.majornelson.com/archive/2006/11/21/hd-dvd-auto-update.aspx
If you have an Xbox 360 HD DVD player, you’ll be prompted for an auto update the next time you watch an HD DVD movie. This update has no new features in it, but contains title specific movie playback improvements and few fixes to some localized text (and I’d imagine a few more lines of code )

If you don’t have access to Xbox Live, you can download the free update from Xbox.com.

[Hookster]

I hooked up my HD DVD last night. Does anyone know if you can "zoom" the picture via component input? VGA won't let you. If you play a regular DVD in the Xbox it lets you adjust the picture size.

[VTGOLFER]

Quick question that has probably been mentioned in this thread but I do not have the time to read every post and I am sorry about that. I hooked up the HD DVD add on last night and I was wondering how to set the X-Box to 720p. My projector is 720p native but everything is coming through 1080i. Also, is the remote wireless?

Thanks

[thrustbucket]

Quick question that has probably been mentioned in this thread but I do not have the time to read every post and I am sorry about that. I hooked up the HD DVD add on last night and I was wondering how to set the X-Box to 720p. My projector is 720p native but everything is coming through 1080i. Also, is the remote wireless?

Thanks


How many remotes have wires attached to them? Aren't all remotes wireless?

You need to go to the system blade, first option, something like Initial Setup at the top. Then select display. Change it there.

[jheart]

Just picked mine up from Circuit City in White Plains, NY. They have 3 left all KK edition. I also picked up Batman Begins which I hear looks great on HD and it was only $20 to my surprise.......Can't wait to hook it up when I get home !!!

[bkilian]

Can someone verify something for me as I don't have the hd dvd add on for the 360...

I am under the assumption that the same options and menu appears at the bottom of the screen as when you'd watch a SD dvd via the internal drive.

Can someone see if the ASPECT RATIO button in the advanced options allows for HD DVD movies to be vertically stretched via the LETTERBOX option to eliminate the black bars in anamorphic 2.35:1 aspect ratio hd dvds (king kong is in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio)?

I've found this works for standard dvds and effectively vertically stretches anamorphic movies to full resolution (which is perfect for 2.35:1 CH projection), but this would be amazing news if this also worked for hd dvds.
No, there is no "Aspect" button in the HD DVD player interface. It's not the same set of buttons as the SD DVD player. The reason for this being that HD resolutions are all known to be 16:9 ;)

[Schlotkins]

Anyone using the xbox player with a Panasonic plasma? I want to hook it up to a 50" one using the VGA. Is the color space correct? I can use the 1360x768 setting for 1:1 pixel mapping correct?

A bit off topic, but can you browse the internet with the xbox? Probably not since there isn't a keyboard... :)

Thanks for answering my stupid questions.

Chris

[talbain]

How many remotes have wires attached to them? Aren't all remotes wireless?

You need to go to the system blade, first option, something like Initial Setup at the top. Then select display. Change it there.


lol. hey i remember cleaning out my aunt's garage a couple of years ago and they had an old vcr type device that had a wired remote. i have no idea what it was but we laughed for hours at that one...

[Deezul]

How many remotes have wires attached to them? Aren't all remotes wireless?

Nope. I remember 20+ years ago looking a friend's VCR that was wired to the box.

Deezul

[DSET]

Didn't see this posted, but the next time you play an HD-DVD there is an auto-update: http://www.majornelson.com/archive/2006/11/21/hd-dvd-auto-update.aspx

Has this update fixed the 1080p VGA XBR2 and all the LCD’s it didn’t work on?
I’m sure it doesn’t because if it did it would be all over the forums by now

[joffer]

Did anyone was prompted for the update and downloaded HD DVD patch today and can tell us if there are improvements?

http://www.majornelson.com/archive/2006/11/21/hd-dvd-auto-update.aspx
hmmm....i didn't get prompted for it. any way to check for the update manually?

[xbracerx]

You need to start playing an HD-DVD to trigger the update.

Has anyone noticed anything different since the update? I think that starting a scene once you've selected it from the menu is much faster, used to be like a few second delay.

[joffer]

[QUOTE=xbracerx]You need to start playing an HD-DVD to trigger the update.
QUOTE]
i did, no update :(

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

i did, no update :(
You also have to be signed into Xbox Live.

[thrustbucket]

Has this update fixed the 1080p VGA XBR2 and all the LCD’s it didn’t work on?
I’m sure it doesn’t because if it did it would be all over the forums by now

For those of you that didn't read it the first time I quoted it:

This update has no new features in it, but contains title specific movie playback improvements and few fixes to some localized text

[VTGOLFER]

How many remotes have wires attached to them? Aren't all remotes wireless?

You need to go to the system blade, first option, something like Initial Setup at the top. Then select display. Change it there.

Ok, the joke is on me. I meant to ask is if the remote is rf. Thanks for the answer on how to program 720p into X-Box.

[mattbugz]

For those of you that didn't read it the first time I quoted it:

I wish they would give us specifics as to what "title specific" updates were! :)

[dtro]

I'm kind of in the same boat as a bunch of people here with a 720p native set using component and 720p for gaming.

Thinking about buying the addon, but wondering about my current SD DVD's and if the addon will help the picture quality of those, and will the addon even play them, or do I need to use the main drive?

Another question, can I expect the quality of HD-DVD to be as good or better than the HD movies I watch over cable, say on HDNET or INHD or even Discovery?

[t_tringle]

I'm kind of in the same boat as a bunch of people here with a 720p native set using component and 720p for gaming.

Thinking about buying the addon, but wondering about my current SD DVD's and if the addon will help the picture quality of those, and will the addon even play them, or do I need to use the main drive?

Another question, can I expect the quality of HD-DVD to be as good or better than the HD movies I watch over cable, say on HDNET or INHD or even Discovery?

This has been discussed quite extensively here, but I'll answer quickly so hopefully others won't ask the same question again. No offense to you, but if others read the previous posts they would get most of the answers they are looking for.

If you are using Component Out, SD-DVD that is Standard Definition DVD's will only be capable of 480p, this is not a limitation by microsoft but in that they are following the letter of the law and not upscaling DVD's over a non digital connection. So to answer your question, the add on will not make your SD-DVD's look any better. Yes you can play them through the Add on drive, but the only difference is that the HD-DVD add on's drive is quieter (much quieter) than the built in drive on some of the 360 models.

With regards to Hi Def the Xbox 360 is capable of 1080i over component for HD-DVD's and it is capable of 1080p for games over component on TV's that accept 1080p over that type of connection.

As for the quality of HD-DVD, while some people complain about the differences between the HD-A1, I am not one of those people as I can't afford a new $500 dollar device everytime one is available.

The HD-DVD Addon is an amazing bargain. The picture quality far outshines that of Standard DVD except on the best of Upscaling DVD players and even then most DVD Compression is very noticable on sets nearing or above 40 to 50 inches.

On my original 27 inch ED/HD Tube Television from samsung, I was very impressed with DVD Quality. But on my 50 inch CRT Rear Projection Toshiba regular DVD's compression is much more noticed.

Comparing HD-DVD to some of the Broadcast HD stuff is a no brainer, while some video HD material may look superior, anything that is not running at a high bitrate gets really blocky in high movement scenes. That does not happen on HD-DVD at least at my level of perception. I may be getting a little old but I have a very good eye for compression artifacts etc.

If you have a decent sized TV, ie 32 inches an higher then I would say that getting the HD-DVD addon for the XBOX360 is a Win-Win situation for you.

Now for the bad news,

I already told you that the XBOX 360 does not upscale DVD's over component. While it doesn't upscale they still haven't improved DVD playback a whole lot more then the original XBOX 360. I have an HTPC hooked up to my TV over HDMI and with Theatertek I can get a picture that outshines all but the most expensive DVD players.

However if your happy with the DVD playback on the XBOX 360 then it will look just as good if not slightly better than your used to. This may be due to updates that come as part of the HD-DVD addon, but the quality on S-DVD is just not comparable with a really good DVD player or HTPC.

ALso, in case you see some of the people complaining about the Dolby Digital + soundtracks, I wouldn't worry too much about it unless you have a very high end Home Theater setup. The sound is pretty good in my book and it's good enough until good Receivers come down in price and the whole audio part of HD-DVD / Blue Ray get's shaken out.

And the Dolby True HD soundtracks that are on some of the movies are amazing.

Good Luck

TimT

[t_tringle]

I wish they would give us specifics as to what "title specific" updates were! :)


I wish that Microsoft would stop being so damn secretive about what they are planning with the XBOX 360. I know that they have to wait until they are near release of some things before speaking about them but it takes them months to make announcements and even when they do make announcements it's a little hard to get the true facts about what they have actually released, done, patched etc.

TimT

[dtro]

This has been discussed quite extensively here, but I'll answer quickly so hopefully others won't ask the same question again. No offense to you, but if others read the previous posts they would get most of the answers they are looking for.

If you are using Component Out, SD-DVD that is Standard Definition DVD's will only be capable of 480p, this is not a limitation by microsoft but in that they are following the letter of the law and not upscaling DVD's over a non digital connection. So to answer your question, the add on will not make your SD-DVD's look any better. Yes you can play them through the Add on drive, but the only difference is that the HD-DVD add on's drive is quieter (much quieter) than the built in drive on some of the 360 models.

With regards to Hi Def the Xbox 360 is capable of 1080i over component for HD-DVD's and it is capable of 1080p for games over component on TV's that accept 1080p over that type of connection.

As for the quality of HD-DVD, while some people complain about the differences between the HD-A1, I am not one of those people as I can't afford a new $500 dollar device everytime one is available.

The HD-DVD Addon is an amazing bargain. The picture quality far outshines that of Standard DVD except on the best of Upscaling DVD players and even then most DVD Compression is very noticable on sets nearing or above 40 to 50 inches.

On my original 27 inch ED/HD Tube Television from samsung, I was very impressed with DVD Quality. But on my 50 inch CRT Rear Projection Toshiba regular DVD's compression is much more noticed.

Comparing HD-DVD to some of the Broadcast HD stuff is a no brainer, while some video HD material may look superior, anything that is not running at a high bitrate gets really blocky in high movement scenes. That does not happen on HD-DVD at least at my level of perception. I may be getting a little old but I have a very good eye for compression artifacts etc.

If you have a decent sized TV, ie 32 inches an higher then I would say that getting the HD-DVD addon for the XBOX360 is a Win-Win situation for you.

Now for the bad news,

I already told you that the XBOX 360 does not upscale DVD's over component. While it doesn't upscale they still haven't improved DVD playback a whole lot more then the original XBOX 360. I have an HTPC hooked up to my TV over HDMI and with Theatertek I can get a picture that outshines all but the most expensive DVD players.

However if your happy with the DVD playback on the XBOX 360 then it will look just as good if not slightly better than your used to. This may be due to updates that come as part of the HD-DVD addon, but the quality on S-DVD is just not comparable with a really good DVD player or HTPC.

ALso, in case you see some of the people complaining about the Dolby Digital + soundtracks, I wouldn't worry too much about it unless you have a very high end Home Theater setup. The sound is pretty good in my book and it's good enough until good Receivers come down in price and the whole audio part of HD-DVD / Blue Ray get's shaken out.

And the Dolby True HD soundtracks that are on some of the movies are amazing.

Good Luck

TimT


Thanks Tim, I appreciate the synopsis. I did try reading this thread and only made it to about page 14 and got tired of all the 1080i/1080p arguments. Honestly, I could care less. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

I guess that's one my of my beefs about dedicated threads and having to weed though them.

Anyways, it sounds like the addon would make a good addition to my setup. I am running an Epson Livingstation 47" RPLCD.


The more research I do, the more I'm convinced that HD-DVD will come out at top.

That it a concern however, as I don't need another minidisc or laser disc player collecting dust on my stand.


It's bad enough that I bought a TV that I can't even find a replacement bulb for anymore (2 years later):mad:


Thanks again

[TriplePhatGoose]

Good synopsis. Thanks for your input.


This has been discussed quite extensively here, but I'll answer quickly so hopefully others won't ask the same question again. No offense to you, but if others read the previous posts they would get most of the answers they are looking for.

If you are using Component Out, SD-DVD that is Standard Definition DVD's will only be capable of 480p, this is not a limitation by microsoft but in that they are following the letter of the law and not upscaling DVD's over a non digital connection. So to answer your question, the add on will not make your SD-DVD's look any better. Yes you can play them through the Add on drive, but the only difference is that the HD-DVD add on's drive is quieter (much quieter) than the built in drive on some of the 360 models.

With regards to Hi Def the Xbox 360 is capable of 1080i over component for HD-DVD's and it is capable of 1080p for games over component on TV's that accept 1080p over that type of connection.

As for the quality of HD-DVD, while some people complain about the differences between the HD-A1, I am not one of those people as I can't afford a new $500 dollar device everytime one is available.

The HD-DVD Addon is an amazing bargain. The picture quality far outshines that of Standard DVD except on the best of Upscaling DVD players and even then most DVD Compression is very noticable on sets nearing or above 40 to 50 inches.

On my original 27 inch ED/HD Tube Television from samsung, I was very impressed with DVD Quality. But on my 50 inch CRT Rear Projection Toshiba regular DVD's compression is much more noticed.

Comparing HD-DVD to some of the Broadcast HD stuff is a no brainer, while some video HD material may look superior, anything that is not running at a high bitrate gets really blocky in high movement scenes. That does not happen on HD-DVD at least at my level of perception. I may be getting a little old but I have a very good eye for compression artifacts etc.

If you have a decent sized TV, ie 32 inches an higher then I would say that getting the HD-DVD addon for the XBOX360 is a Win-Win situation for you.

Now for the bad news,

I already told you that the XBOX 360 does not upscale DVD's over component. While it doesn't upscale they still haven't improved DVD playback a whole lot more then the original XBOX 360. I have an HTPC hooked up to my TV over HDMI and with Theatertek I can get a picture that outshines all but the most expensive DVD players.

However if your happy with the DVD playback on the XBOX 360 then it will look just as good if not slightly better than your used to. This may be due to updates that come as part of the HD-DVD addon, but the quality on S-DVD is just not comparable with a really good DVD player or HTPC.

ALso, in case you see some of the people complaining about the Dolby Digital + soundtracks, I wouldn't worry too much about it unless you have a very high end Home Theater setup. The sound is pretty good in my book and it's good enough until good Receivers come down in price and the whole audio part of HD-DVD / Blue Ray get's shaken out.

And the Dolby True HD soundtracks that are on some of the movies are amazing.

Good Luck

TimT

[bkilian]

I wish that Microsoft would stop being so damn secretive about what they are planning with the XBOX 360. I know that they have to wait until they are near release of some things before speaking about them but it takes them months to make announcements and even when they do make announcements it's a little hard to get the true facts about what they have actually released, done, patched etc.

TimTVideo game consoles are a very competitive business, and information is incredibly useful to competitors. Heck, even people working in the teams only know about stuff if they're actually working on it, and even then you don't know much. Our team worked on the addon, and we found out the price from Engadget and the launch date from Amazon. What we don't know, we can't accidentally let slip :).

As to the specific titles affected by the update, most of them haven't been released yet and some are non-US titles. So I'm sure you can understand why the actual list of titles hasn't been released? We wouldn't want to get into trouble with a studio for accidentally announcing we'd made a fix in a title they haven't announced they're releasing, or something like that.

[Jdog35]

Hey Tringle...thanks. Seriously, instead of being a a--hole about telling somebody to STFA, you took what was probably 2.5 minutes out of your day to answer an easy (for you) question that everyone could benefit from. If everybody on this, and every other forum I frequent, was as straightforward, there probably wouldn't be 97+ pages to have to search on every topic. Thanks again.

[UxiSXRD]

I can't for the life of me figure out why the studios aren't setting the resume feature on.. I guess WB thinks bookmardks are the answer, and the others ??????

Why is this dependent on the studios, anyway? I can't imagine it's a HUGE feat for the 360 itself to remember the last n number of titles and the time stamp on said title. We could even configure that option for how much space on our hard drive we'd want to dedicate for that purpose...

Anyone else having the stuttering problem with 1080i over component? I'm only having the problem with King Kong. It's very noticible yet disappears when I do 720p output. This does NOT happen Serenity or MI3, which display 1080i without hiccup or issue.

[t_tringle]

Why is this dependent on the studios, anyway? I can't imagine it's a HUGE feat for the 360 itself to remember the last n number of titles and the time stamp on said title. We could even configure that option for how much space on our hard drive we'd want to dedicate for that purpose...

Anyone else having the stuttering problem with 1080i over component? I'm only having the problem with King Kong. It's very noticible yet disappears when I do 720p output. This does NOT happen Serenity or MI3, which display 1080i without hiccup or issue.

UxiSXRD, I'm sure someone with a more detailed understanding of the new HD-DVD authoring standards can answer this better.

But the way I understand it is that they developed HD-DVD to be extensible via the software side of the players, and not to depend so much on the hardware. This was so that they could keep adding new features without having to change firmwares everyday.

One example is FF/RW on HD-DVD's, on standard authored HD-DVD's when you Fast Forward and or Rewind on the XBOX 360 add on you get only the basics as it shows what speed from the 360's menu you are FF or RW'ing at.

On King Kong however, they have programmed the disc with it's own status bar so that when you FF or RW it shows a Tivo like bar at the bottom of the screen that shows your current location within the movie.

Apparently the resume feature for some strange reason was determined to not be a very high priority. However they did give you the ability on most (if not all) discs to create a personal book mark. So when you are going to shutdown your player you can hit the "B" (on the 360 add on controller) button and it will bookmark that exact spot on the disk. The next time you are playing the movie you can go into the bookmarks menu and then go back to that exact moment.

There are going to be alot of innovations during the next few years, and luckily most of them won't require all new hardware to take advantage of, hopefully.

As for the stuttering problem, you might want to scan this thread for the commands to clear your cache on the 360, it will clear patches for all your installed games though, but I believe it leaves save games intact etc. I haven't ever had the need to do this as King Kong played flawlessly on my system. Neither have I seen the lip synching problem that others have complained of as well. Guess I've been lucky for once, usually I'm the guy stuck with these problems that make a product all but useless to me.

Also I'm sure that if the HD-DVD Addon is as popular as I believe it to be, then Microsoft would be stupid to not assign considerable time into improving the interface and responding to user requests for new features, fixes etc. This is only the first Salvo in what may likely be an extended campaign against Blue Ray, but we shall see after the numbers come in for Christmas. If HD-DVD makes significant progress in sales due to the Microsoft Add on, (I've bought 6 HD-DVD titles in less than 2 weeks) then studios might finally let their cowardly ways pay off in a good way finally. We know how scared they are of losing money and if they smell more on the HD-DVD side they might just have to cave in and start releasing titles for HD-DVD. Once the first studio falls, the rest will go like dominoes, now we just have to wait for that first.

TimT

[t_tringle]

Hey Tringle...thanks. Seriously, instead of being a a--hole about telling somebody to STFA, you to