XBox 360 HD DVD Addon FAQ. Please posts questions here!

[bkilian]

Looking at the "one and only HD DVD addon thread", there are a lot of questions that come up time and time again. I think it would be pretty helpful if we answer them all in a single place.

Playing HD DVD

Can it play HD DVD at 1080p via Component?
No. Max HD DVD resolution for Component is 1080i. Over VGA or HDMI you can get 1080P. Note that this doesn't mean the 360 cannot do 1080p over component, it can. AACS rules limit the max resolution of a HD DVD over component to 1080i. Your XBox will automatically switch resolution to 1080i if you have it set to 1080p when you play a HD DVD.

Does it matter?
No. Film content is 24P, both 1080i and 1080p should display all the information in the individual film frames. A good 1080p display should correctly deinterlace the 1080i signal. See here (http://www.projectorcentral.com/retailing_HD-DVD_Blu-ray.htm).

Can it output 1080p24/48/72 directly?
Not at this time. Amir suggests that this could be provided at some point in the future. Until then you're stuck with motion judder, unless you have a really good video processor that supports a 24 multiple.

How is the picture quality compared to the HD-A1?
Anecdotal evidence so far suggests it is about equal.

Can it output True HD or DD+ in an uncompressed form?
No. The addon re-encodes everything to your choice of DD, DTS, or WMA Pro.

Which is better? DD, DTS, or WMA Pro?
Hard to tell, on different equipment, and depending on your personal preference, any of those may sound better than the others. Theoretically, WMA Pro should give you the best quality, if you have a receiver capable of decoding it (Pioneer receivers, I believe). You should choose whichever sounds best to you.

I chose the DTS option, but my receiver reports it as Dolby Digital
Yes. All audio tracks get re-encoded as the codec you choose.

The sound is terrible! There's no dynamic range!. SD DVDs sound better!
Yes, it appears that due to a dolby requirement, the original software release forced a compressed dynamics mode on all DD+ decodes. You need to get the latest update from xbox.com or off XBox live. (The update will automatically download and install if you are connected to Live, and you try to play a disc)

I got the update, but there are no audio settings in the Dash that let me choose DTS
The settings are not in the dash, they're in the player itself. Play a HD DVD, while it is playing, press B on your gamepad and select "Advanced" (Or press "Display" on your remote). Choose the "Digital Audio Settings" button to get to the correct settings dialog.

Does it play homebrew HD DVD's written to DVD +/- media? Dual Layer?
This has been confirmed by some users. It will play HD DVD formatted DVD-R and DVD-RW discs.

Playing SD DVD

Does it upconvert Standard Def DVD over VGA/HDMI?
Yes. It will upconvert a SD DVD to a max of 1080p over VGA or HDMI.

Does it upconvert Standard Def DVD over Component?
No. The max resolution for SD DVD over Component is 480p. This is a CSS rule. Over component, your SD DVDs will be 480p no matter what resolution your dash is at.

Does a regular DVD look different on the Addon compared to the internal drive?
No.

Connections

Is there an HDMI option?
Not unless you have a XBox 360 Elite.

Can we get 5.1 LPCM through HDMI with the Elite?
No, the Elite apparently cannot pass a 5.1 LPCM signal. You can get 2.0 LPCM, or the same compressed streams you get out of the optical.

What about ICT?
If a disc has the ICT flag, it will be displayed in a degraded form over analog connections. No current HD DVDs have this flag, and the studios have mentioned that they do not have any plans to turn this flag on in the near future.

I have it connected by VGA, but the colors are all washed out!
That's not technically a question, but yes, some TVs expect PC levels (0-255) in their VGA input, and the 360 sends video levels (16-235) by default. The result is that a video black (RGB 16,16,16) looks gray, and white (235,235,235) looks grayer too. If you have this problem, you may be able to solve it by making sure you have the latest Dash update, and then finding the VGA levels setting. Try setting it to Expanded.

Does it need to be attached to the 360 to play movies?
Yes. It's just a drive. The 360 does all the hard work.

Will it work on a PC?
Some AVS members have connected it to their PCs with varying results. It recognises as a Drive on XP, on some machines, the HD DVD filesystem can be read (if your PC supports UDF 2 - 2.5). On Vista it recognises fine and discs can be read. Someone has successfully played a standard def DVD off it on a PC.

Will it play HD DVDs on a PC?
Yes. See this post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8880202&&#post8880202) and the rest of that thread. There are a lot of hoops to jump through, and you need a pretty beefy machine, but it is definately possible. I believe a number of the official software players now support it too. Note that this function is not supported at all by Microsoft.

Troubleshooting

I got the Addon but it looks terrible and squashed on my TV (connected with VGA)
Go into your XBox settings blade and set your resolution to the highest your display will support. Also (if needed) set the aspect ratio correctly for the type of your Display. The default resolution for the VGA cable when you first plug it in is 640x480. User emonsh suggests that the best setting for VGA is the one closest to the true resolution of your display, so try that if you're having quality issues.

What are those black bars at the top and bottom of my movie? Is my addon busted? (No... really... a lot of people ask this. If someone invents an AVSForum Drinking game, you should have to down your drink everytime someone asks this)
No, your addon is not busted. It's your TV. For some reason, your TV is finding it hard to bend space sufficiently to convert your 16:9 TV into a 2.35:1 version. This is not surprising. A simple application of Relativity shows that the TV would have to be travelling up past you at 0.65C (or 121800 miles per second) to achieve this contraction in the vertical direction (the speed for a 4:3 TV is left as an exercise for the reader). It would be difficult to watch a movie like this. When it fails at this task, it is forced to compensate by displaying black bars at the top and bottom of your screen. This site (http://www.rexer.com/cine/oar.htm) shows some examples.

Can you make the remote eject button eject the addon, and not the console tray?
Apparently not. The Eject button appears to only eject the console tray. Why do you need this functionality? It's not like you don't need to get up to change discs anyway ;)

I installed the update, and tried to play a movie, but it stutters and behaves horribly
Try a full reboot of your console. A number of members have reported that power cycling the console when this happens fixes the problem.

General

Is it loud?
There are conflicting views on this so far. Some users say it is loud, others say it is almost silent. If you think your 360 playing DVD or at the Dash is loud, then you will probably think it is loud.

How many have been sold?
No clue, but you can go to this thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=748353) and see how many AVS'ers have them (or add yourself)

Will the US version work in the UK/Wherever
Yes according to Amir (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8865957&&#post8865957). All you need, apparently is a US->UK plug adaptor. Note that a US HD DVD addon used on a UK console will not play region 1 (US) SD DVD discs. Region control is a function of the console, not the drive.

What are the load times compared to the HD-A1?
Load times are much shorter than the HD-A1. From the Dash, with the disc already in the drive, startup time is less than 9 seconds. If you have to insert the disc, it's around 20 seconds.
For comparison, the time to first video when inserting a disc into the HD-A1 is about 1 minute, 15 seconds.

I keep getting online notifications while watching a movie! How do I turn them off?
It is possible to turn off notifications while movies are playing, but the method to do so is a little obfuscated. It's not in the system blade, and it's not in your gamer profile.
Method: Hit the Guide button (the silver one with the stylized green X), navigate down to "Personal Settings" and hit "OK" or the A button. Now navigate down to "Notifications" and hit OK, navigate down to "Show During Movies" and hit OK to deselect it. Now you can hit "B" repeatedly to exit.

Is there some way to have movies play at 1080i/p and games at 720p
Yes. Go into the system blade and switch resolutions when you play movies. There is, unfortunately, no way currently to do that automatically.

Can I put game discs into the HD DVD addon and play games from it?
No. There's nothing stopping you physically putting game discs into the drive, (just like you could also put a slice of cheese, or a round piece of sandpaper), but the game will not play from that drive. It would be nifty to be able to switch between two games, but alas, that is not possible.



Any other questions I should add? I'll start adding links to reviews too as they start coming out.

Reviews
DVDTown.com (http://www.dvdtown.com/news/reviewofxbox360hddvdadon/4186)
Krunker.com (http://www.krunker.com/2006/11/12/xbox-360-hd-dvd-player-review/)
Gamespot.com (http://www.gamespot.com/features/6161610/index.html)
PC Perspective (http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=325)
hidef.com (http://www.hidef.com/hardware-accessories/349-xbox-360-hd-dvd-player-review-comparison-toshiba-hd-a1.html)
User Reviews (Off Forum)
http://aroganworld.blogspot.com/2006/11/xbox-360-hd-dvd-drive.html
Forum Reviews
DPowers (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8864549&&#post8864549)
DMRSX (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8862010&&#post8862010)
RAVEN56706 (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8869019&&#post8869019)

Links
Official HD DVD Addon page at Xbox.com (http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360hddvdplayer/default.htm)

(Note I'm not doing this in any official MS capacity. I'm doing this as an AVSForum member who has seen the same questions go past 20 times on the other threads.)
Answer to relativity problem posed above: 0.82C, or 153000 miles/s

[efjay]

Thanks, good info for those that have questions. Hopefully will be made a sticky.

[Cherokee180c]

If you have a rear projection CRT HDTV that is 720P compatible; what resolution is better to display HD DVD movies, 720p or 1080i on the X360 with HD DVD add on? Also do you have to manually switch to 1080i for movies if that is better back in the dashboard or does the software upgrade allow of a custom specific resolution for HD DVD movies? I normally use 720p as I was told that it was better due to the fact that most games are rendered natively at that resolution. Any help appreciated.

[david803sc]

There is only one setting for the console for both games and movies. you can choose from 720p, 1080i or 1080p. Which one is best for you? I would just try them all and see which one is best, I keep mine in 10801 for everything, I dont see a difference when playing games between 1080i and 720p.

[Jboy001]

I have not gotten my add-on yet (supposed to be shipping today) but on my 720p DLP I've noticed that 720p is sharp while 1080i gives me a softer look.

My personal opinion is to go with the native resolution of your display, but I could be wrong.

- John

[WirelessGuru]

It all depends on which scaler is better.... the one on the 360, or the one on your TV.

The only verified benefit from having the 360 do the scaling is that it could reduce latency since the scaling is done local to the console, rather than adding delay caused by your set scaling and de/interlacing the image. this could be important for gaming and audio synchronization.

[orogogus]

I second for this to become a sticky. For the love of all that is holy...

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

1080i/p summary:

1080p over component
Games - yes
1080p HD DVD movies - no
480p HD DVD extras - no
DVD - no

1080i over component
Games - yes
1080p HD DVD movies - yes
480p HD DVD extras - yes
DVD - no

1080p over VGA
Games - yes
1080p HD DVD movies - yes
480p HD DVD extras - yes
DVD - yes

1080i over VGA
Games - yes
1080p HD DVD movies - yes
480p HD DVD extras - yes
DVD - yes

[1loudsuv]

now sticky and lock it!

[maverick0716]

Since your TV is 1080i, I would just set the 360 to 1080i.

[outlanderbz]

great post, answered 3 of my questions in 2 minutes. sticky vote from me

[lymzy]

Will it work on a PC?
Some AVS members have connected it to their PCs with varying results. It recognises as a Drive on XP, on some machines, the HD DVD filesystem can be read (if your PC supports UDF 2 - 2.5). And someone has successfully played a standard def DVD off it on a PC.

Will it play HD DVDs on a PC?
Unknown at this time.



Very nice! Hope to see the PC thing get confirmed.

[DPowers]

Oh thank you. For those of us who have stuck with the thread since it's inception I was growing really bored with some posters' inability to use the search function. There was a ton of bad info being slung all over the place. Great idea and nice synopsis!

Sticky please! :)

[emmonsh]

Looking at the "one and only HD DVD addon thread", there are a lot of questions that come up time and time again. I think it would be pretty helpful if we answer them all in a single place.

Does it Upconvert Standard Def DVD?
Yes, and No. It will upconvert DVD over VGA. It will not upconvert DVD over Component.

Can it play HD DVD at 1080p via Component?
No. Max HD DVD resolution for Component is 1080i. Over VGA you can get 1080P. (AACS Rules - The XBox 360 is fully capable of 1080p over component)

Does it matter?
No. Film content is 24P, both 1080i and 1080p should display all the information in the individual film frames. A good 1080p display should correctly deinterlace the 1080i signal. See here (http://www.projectorcentral.com/retailing_HD-DVD_Blu-ray.htm)

Will it work on a PC?
Some AVS members have connected it to their PCs with varying results. It recognises as a Drive on XP, on some machines, the HD DVD filesystem can be read (if your PC supports UDF 2 - 2.5). And someone has successfully played a standard def DVD off it on a PC.

Will it play HD DVDs on a PC?
Unknown at this time.

Is there an HDMI option?
No. Currently the only HD connections supported are VGA (to 1080P) and Component (to 1080i). Microsoft has stated in the past that "if they see enough need for HDMI, they will provide it", but there is currently no such option.

What about ICT?
If a disc has the ICT flag, it will be displayed in a degraded form over analog connections. No current HD DVDs have this flag, and the studios have mentioned that they do not have any plans to turn this flag on in the near future.

How is the picture quality compared to the HD-A1?
Anecdotal evidence so far suggests it is about equal. I will update this question when proper reviews come out.

Does a regular DVD look different on the Addon compared to the internal drive?
No.

Can it output True HD in an uncompressed form?
No. The addon re-encodes everything to DD 5.1. Multiple users on AVSForum have stated that the resulting encode is better than DVD audio, and that the TrueHD option on the HD DVD provides even better audio than the DD+. See this post (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8864549&&#post8864549) and this one (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8862010&&#post8862010) for examples.

I got the Addon but it looks terrible and squashed on my TV (connected with VGA)
Go into your XBox settings blade and set your resolution to the highest your display will support. Also (if needed) set the aspect ratio correctly for the type of your Display. The default resolution for the VGA cable when you first plug it in is 640x480.

Does it need to be attached to the 360 to play movies?
Yes. It's just a drive. The 360 does all the hard work.

Is it loud?
There are conflicting views on this so far. Some users say it is loud, others say it is almost silent. If you think your 360 playing DVD or at the Dash is loud, then you will probably think it is loud.

How many have been sold?
No clue, but you can go to this thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=748353) and see how many AVS'ers have them (or add yourself)

Will the US version work in the UK/Wherever
Yes according to Amir (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8865957&&#post8865957). Note that a US HD DVD addon used on a UK console will not play region 1 (US) SD DVD discs. Region control is a function of the console, not the drive.

Any other questions I should add? I'll start adding links to reviews too as they start coming out.

Reviews
User Reviews (Off Forum)
http://aroganworld.blogspot.com/2006/11/xbox-360-hd-dvd-drive.html
Forum Reviews
DPowers (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8864549&&#post8864549)
DMRSX (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8862010&&#post8862010)

(Note I'm not doing this in any official MS capacity. I'm doing this as an AVSForum member who has seen the same questions go past 20 times on the other threads.) you are way off on one point. thru vga the 360 has to be set as close to possible as the native resolution of your tv.when its set right it is fantastic. too many problems that people report when set to higher than native thru vga.

[huntaar]

Great thread. Thanks for doing this. One more question(and hopefully answer):

Does the 360 add-on play homebrew HD DVD's written to DVD +/- media? Dual Layer?

[MidnightWatcher]

A post in the HTPC forum noted that someone in France has been successful at getting the XBox 360 HD DVD add-on playing HD DVD in Windows Vista 64bit. Can anyone translate French pour moi et chaque personne ici svp?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8865073&&#post8865073

[lymzy]

A post in the HTPC forum noted that someone in France has been successful at getting the XBox 360 HD DVD add-on playing HD DVD in Windows Vista 64bit. Can anyone translate French pour moi et chaque personne ici svp?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8865073&&#post8865073

I almost certain that post is BS or at least HD DVD is self authored(not protected by AACS).

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

I almost certain that post is BS or at least HD DVD is self authored(not protected by AACS).
Even if that were the case, that would still prove the naysayers wrong.

There are a lot of people that feel that the drive will be locked out of Windows, despite having no proof or good reason for saying that. In fact, IIRC, amirm said that there is nothing specific in the drive that will prevent it from being used on a PC. It's just not supported in this type of usage.

[lymzy]

There are a lot of people that feel that the drive will be locked out of Windows,

I am not one of those people. I always think it would be crazy stupid to lock this addon out of Windows. If I were Microsoft, I would sell those at cost or even a little below the cost to the HTPC crowd. Embed the HD DVD playback in the Vista hi-end version next Jan. How many people use PC to play multimedia files again? :) It will be at least a year before blu-ray burners could even come to the $250 price point.

BTW, I just think that particular french post is BS. WMP11 already play HD DVD? Give me a break.

[Cherokee180c]

Since your TV is 1080i, I would just set the 360 to 1080i.

My TV will actually do both 720p and 1080i, so now that I know there is only one setting I can use for both games and movies, my question is still which one is best for HD movies? If they are actually 1080p and scale down to 720, then my guess is that it would be better to use the higher resolution of 1080i, especially as most film is only filmed at 24 fps so there is no inherent benefit to going progressive scan, but since I do not really know for sure I was trying to ask the experts. Hopefully somebody knows what will be the best setting if your TV does both, but does not support 1080p.

[WaldorfSalad]

bkilian, very helpful thread, thankyou!
P.S. Q: Will the XBox 360 be updated to include an integrated HD DVD drive rather than as an add-on?

[WirelessGuru]

It may accept both resolutions, but your TV has a native resolution doesn't it?

[NOHDjunkie]

thanks I'll look for the thread

[andreo]

I just tested a Single Layer DVD -R (The Terminal). It worked fine. I thought I had a Dual Layer movie laying around but I don't.

[Cherokee180c]

Not sure, I probably need to go back and read the manual, as I have had this TV for about 3 years now. I actually hooked up the HD DVD player and tried both and it definitely looks a lot better on 1080i, so I guess that is the right answer for me. I wonder if games would actually look better at that resolution on my TV regardless of what the game was originally rendered in. I will check tonight of tomorrow.

[efjay]

bkilian, I found the 5.1 sound was better when selecting a TrueHD audio track where available over the DD+ track (Batman Begins, V 4 V). Could be something to add as most people may be going with the default sound setting.

EDIT: I see the info is there already, probably before I made this post. :o

[Jeff Williams]

It works under Vista. Now if I could just find software to playback.

[Arpeggio]

It works under Vista. Now if I could just find software to playback.

I can play my own home brewed Red Laser HD-DVD's under Vista build 5840 by doing the following. (not using the Microsoft HD-DVD drive though)

Loading PowerDVD 7
Loading VLC player 0.8.5

Browse to the HDDVD_TS folder and open one of the video files with either VLC or Media Player 10.

I get GREAT video but choppy audio.

Give it a whurl and see what happens :D

[huntaar]

I just tested a Single Layer DVD -R (The Terminal). It worked fine. I thought I had a Dual Layer movie laying around but I don't.

Andreo, is that a homebrew HD DVD or just a copy of a regular DVD?

[Arya Stark]

has pal playback been confirmed?

[bkilian]

has pal playback been confirmed?
PAL playback of what? For DVDs, since it's the 360 doing the playing, it'll play whatever your 360 can.

[BLK 04]

Does anyone have link showing VGA can output 1080P. I thought max resolution for 360 was 1080i.

[TheCHAMPisHere]

::In Borat Voice:: Very Nice!

[gooki]

What about ICT?
If a disc has the ICT flag, it will be displayed in a degraded form over analog connections. No current HD DVDs have this flag, and the studios have mentioned that they do not have any plans to turn this flag on in the near future.

Might want to get confirmation on that. Last offical word i heard was that ICT flag had no effect on the VGA output - ie you still get full 1080P res.

Does anyone have link showing VGA can output 1080P. I thought max resolution for 360 was 1080i.

Latest live update adds 1080p support to the xbox 360. FYI VGA can go even further if it wanted to.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Does anyone have link showing VGA can output 1080P. I thought max resolution for 360 was 1080i.
That all changed with the last update. 1080p is now supported.

[gooki]

It may accept both resolutions, but your TV has a native resolution doesn't it?

CRTs don't have a native resolution. As per the psoters answer i would have bet on 1080i being the better looking image as 1080i does not reduce the quality of the image where as 720p is effected by down scalling.

[BLK 04]

That all changed with the last update. 1080p is now supported.
awsome, thnx guys.

[apodaca]

What are the load times as compared to HD-A1 assuming both units start from power up.

[tclp]

Aparently Nvidia 'PureVideo' allows for playback of HD-DVD, mind you -- you need a supporting video card. Anyone happen to have both (MS HD DVD & Supporting video) :)

[tclp]

apparently someone over at TheGreenButton.com has gotten it to work in Vista...



SUCCESS!!!

I re-installed the Japanese version I downloaded in September since Chris didnt seem to think that downloaded version wouldn't work. And low and behold everything works perfectly! I am watching an HD-DVD on my PC for the first time...

Setup was easy, just plugged the xbox hd-dvd drive in, XP found it quickly. It couldnt find an Xbox 360 HD-DVD Memory driver, but it doesnt appear to be needed.After the drive was connected I re-installed WinDVD 8 HD, rebooted and all is good with the world!

Thanks M$!!!

Charles


The japanese version (http://www.intervideo.co.jp/products/wd8p/) of WinDVD 8. I purchased it back in September when I pulled my HD-DVD drive out of my HD-A1, but was unsuccessful in getting it to work.

I am running XP MCE as there are no Nvidia Purevideo HD drivers out yet for Vista :( As soon as they are available I will be installing on another drive to try it out.

As Bryan mentioned you have to have a HDCP compliant video card, Nvidia Purevideo HD drivers, HD-DVD drive and software to run it. Unfortunately the HD-DVD drive has to be one supported by the WinDVD software, which the Toshiba is but the NEC is not.



Charles



P.S. I also have the blu-ray drive working with Cyberlink Powerdvd as Bryan mentioned above.

[ShinHed]

Aparently Nvidia 'PureVideo' allows for playback of HD-DVD, mind you -- you need a supporting video card. Anyone happen to have both (MS HD DVD & Supporting video) :)
I met all the credentials but, you still need HD-DVD playback software.

[Spiderman2006]

Local Sears, Wal-Mart and Gamestop don't have it? Will Best Buy have a big supply of them? I have to drive bout 50 miles to the nearest one.

[amirm]

Local Sears, Wal-Mart and Gamestop don't have it? Will Best Buy have a big supply of them? I have to drive bout 50 miles to the nearest one.
If you have compusa near you, go online and check their web site. They show what stock they have at different stores...

[tclp]

I met all the credentials but, you still need HD-DVD playback software.


can you give the Japanese version of WinDVD 8 a try and let us know ?

[vinodk]

Anybody using X360 HD-DVD connected to Sammy HLS series dlp at 1080p? Sammy can accept 1080p via component. I am wondering if I can connect X360 to Sammy via either PC input or via component input with VGA to component breakout cable.

[ShinHed]

Unfortunately, there's no download link to the Japanese WinDVD 8. Only an update and older versions.

[venk]

My Local Best Buy told me they wont get them until the 17th. GRRRRRRR!!!!!! I need to go there since i've got about $60 in gift cards to spend and not much else to spend it on.

[cliftonrouse]

I got mine from EB Games website. They are still shipping in 24hrs. You can get next day shipping for like $9.99 + Tax.

[knpm]

if you have a circuit city in your area, you can check online for availability and order one for in store pick up
hope you find one.
knpm

[Robert D]

How about the Target stores?

[MidnightWatcher]

Someone got it to work with the Japanese version..

http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/permalink/148348/148368/ShowThread.aspx#148368

That's it, gotta get me one of these babies and upgrade my video card to HDCP

[Robert D]

If the xBox player can be made to work on PC's imo Microsoft will sell millions of them.

[tclp]

Robert,

The drives work just fine with PC's, it's just the software that is an issue (assuming you have supporting hardware). I just tried to buy one online BB Canada with a $25 off coupon (had to spend $250+, was ordering two hd-dvd movies and the xbox to make use of coupon) .... but I'm too late they aren't even taking orders anymore.

I've already seen/heard of tons of people buying them just because they want them for PC, but I do agree unless another company like LG/Toshiba/Sony/LiteOn/etc starts offering a 'desktop' drive for cheaper MS will sell a few extra million ontop of the millions that they will sell due to xbox owners

[Robert D]

Amazon says they have two of them http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-HD-DVD-Player/dp/B000JHO4L0/sr=1-11/qid=1161381410/ref=sr_1_11/104-4088890-0172754?ie=UTF8&s=videogames

[candyrocket786]

Someone got it to work with the Japanese version..

http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/permalink/148348/148368/ShowThread.aspx#148368

That's it, gotta get me one of these babies and upgrade my video card to HDCP


Christ! The price of the Video Cards are as much as a 360 console. :eek:

[Robert D]

Christ! The price of the Video Cards are as much as a 360 console. :eek:

Here is a HDMI HDCP video card for $140 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102032

[MidnightWatcher]

Christ! The price of the Video Cards are as much as a 360 console. :eek:

Some, yes, some are even more (for hardcore gamers), but some are MUCH less as well.

[rdjam]

apparently someone over at TheGreenButton.com has gotten it to work in Vista...
RESULT! Yes!

I saw someone on another thread also got the drive running with no work at all under Media Center.

However, he did not have HD DVD playback software installed.

He ran the POWERDVD (or somesuch) HD player test and it "passed" the add-on drive as a valid HD DVD player.

Sounds like it'll work fine and we'll probably have a poster here soon to that effect. Seems all you'll need is a decent graphics card capable of AVC decoding, and the playback software.

[rdjam]

Here is a HDMI HDCP video card for $140 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102032
I like... I buy...

[candyrocket786]

RESULT! Yes!

I saw someone on another thread also got the drive running with no work at all under Media Center.

However, he did not have HD DVD playback software installed.

He ran the POWERDVD (or somesuch) HD player test and it "passed" the add-on drive as a valid HD DVD player.

Sounds like it'll work fine and we'll probably have a poster here soon to that effect. Seems all you'll need is a decent graphics card capable of AVC decoding, and the playback software.

Lets say I pickup the HDCP Card, Software and compliant display device.... am I still screwed because I'm running a P4 @3ghz with 1gig of RAM?

[Star56]

So I check Circuit City's website earlier today and I see my local store has them in stock. I drive on down to the store. Here is the actual exchange with the young man working at CC.

Me: I'm looking for the HD-DVD add on for the xbox360

CCemployee: AH...the what?

Me: I'm looking for the HD-DVD add on for the xbox360. Your website says you have it in stock.

CCemployee: Ah gee...( walks over to XBOX stuff...picks up a remote) is this it?

Me: No it is a HD-DVD player.

CCEmployee: Gee I am not sure what that is...let me ask someone.

CCEmployee#2: Sir there is no such thing....

Me: Yes there is. It is the hottest add on for the Xbox360...and you have them in the back where your shipment from today is stored.

CCEmployee: Xbox360 cannot play HD-DVD's.

Me: Can I use your store computer to show you that you are worng?

CCEMployee: sure ( walks me to computer)

I pull up the HD-DVD add on from their website. The Employees look at each other and start mumbling....one writes down the item number and goes to the back storage area.

Walks out with a look of amazement..." yes we have 4 of these back there...wow...look at this ( as reads the box)...passes it to the other employee...who then calls another employee over...all are amazed that such a device exists...they had never heard of it. They call the manager over....he is amazed...they are all fondling the box like it is the Holy Grail.

The Manager exclaims " well...we gotta get these out on the floor!!!!"

I purchase it and walk out....

Between Best Buy and CC I am never at a loss for pure entertainment.

[BoSoxMole]

Hmmm, I wonder if it will work on a Mac.

I doubt it, but I'll give it a shot.

[Ian_S]

People, once PowerDVD for HD-DVD is available you will NOT need an HDCP compliant card. It will work over VGA, I am running PowerDVD BD over VGA with no issue, and as far as I can tell no down-rezing. I believe the initial Japanese WinDVD HD version has a bug which wrongly assumes that no HDCP, do 960 x 540 anyway. PowerDVD appears not to do this.

Also with PowerDVD as long as you have an ATI X1600 or nVidia 7600GT or higher you will be fine with what you have.

The other thing to bear in mind is CPU. BD in MPEG-2 can run an E6600 to 60% CPU... :eek: The software I would argue is not yet that refined for performance. Beware, but enjoy. :D

[HockeyDog3133]

how do you get the remote that was supplied with the hd dvd drive to open the disk tray on the hd dvd drive. So far i can only get it to open the original 360 drive and not the hd dvd drive.

[MidnightWatcher]

People, once PowerDVD for HD-DVD is available you will NOT need an HDCP compliant card. It will work over VGA, I am running PowerDVD BD over VGA with no issue, and as far as I can tell no down-rezing. I believe the initial Japanese WinDVD HD version has a bug which wrongly assumes that no HDCP, do 960 x 540 anyway. PowerDVD appears not to do this.

Also with PowerDVD as long as you have an ATI X1600 or nVidia 7600GT or higher you will be fine with what you have.

The other thing to bear in mind is CPU. BD in MPEG-2 can run an E6600 to 60% CPU... :eek: The software I would argue is not yet that refined for performance. Beware, but enjoy. :D

Have you tried it over DVI instead of VGA?

[maverick0716]

I assume that when you connect the HD DVD drive to the 360, they basically become one unit more or less.........so the remote only has one eject button, how would it know which one to open? The drive on the 360 probably overides the HD drive......if that makes any sense.

[maverick0716]

So I check Circuit City's website earlier today and I see my local store has them in stock. I drive on down to the store. Here is the actual exchange with the young man working at CC.

Me: I'm looking for the HD-DVD add on for the xbox360

CCemployee: AH...the what?

Me: I'm looking for the HD-DVD add on for the xbox360. Your website says you have it in stock.

CCemployee: Ah gee...( walks over to XBOX stuff...picks up a remote) is this it?

Me: No it is a HD-DVD player.

CCEmployee: Gee I am not sure what that is...let me ask someone.

CCEmployee#2: Sir there is no such thing....

Me: Yes there is. It is the hottest add on for the Xbox360...and you have them in the back where your shipment from today is stored.

CCEmployee: Xbox360 cannot play HD-DVD's.

Me: Can I use your store computer to show you that you are worng?

CCEMployee: sure ( walks me to computer)

I pull up the HD-DVD add on from their website. The Employees look at each other and start mumbling....one writes down the item number and goes to the back storage area.

Walks out with a look of amazement..." yes we have 4 of these back there...wow...look at this ( as reads the box)...passes it to the other employee...who then calls another employee over...all are amazed that such a device exists...they had never heard of it. They call the manager over....he is amazed...they are all fondling the box like it is the Holy Grail.

The Manager exclaims " well...we gotta get these out on the floor!!!!"

I purchase it and walk out....

Between Best Buy and CC I am never at a loss for pure entertainment.

I know what you mean.......it's actually rare to find an employee that actually knows what the HD add on is.....it's frustrating! I want one so bad and I can't find them anywhere!

[HockeyDog3133]

damn that sucks you should be able to chose which one you want

[Ian_S]

Have you tried it over DVI instead of VGA?DVI will only work without HDCP if you're using an analogue DVI->VGA connection. If you use digital DVD->DVI or DVI->HDMI then HDCP is required, and you get NO picture if you try and play. You should only get a down-rezed picture over analogue if the disc has the ICT flag set (none do so far) or the software is in error as apparently some versions of WinDVD HD are.

[Dave Mack]

More $$$ from Sony to keep the masses in the dark says my conspiracy theorist brain. I'm sure the salesman probably WAS clueless but the manager....? riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight..............
Went to BB tonite in Emeryville, whole HUGE display of 360's, not an add-on anywhere in site. Didn't ask as I was there for something else and didn't want to wind up in jail for strangling a BBB tonite with my temper lately.

;)

[maverick0716]

.......Didn't ask as I was there for something else and didn't want to wind up in jail for strangling a BBB tonite with my temper lately.

;)

Is that an acronym for Best Buy Bull$&t? :)

[stoked]

Unfortunately, there's no download link to the Japanese WinDVD 8. Only an update and older versions.

http://www.intervideo.co.jp/products/wd8p/

The first red button is to purchase the download full version of WinDVD8 Platinum.

[LAGOSIAN]

http://www.intervideo.co.jp/products/wd8p/

The first red button is to purchase the download full version of WinDVD8 Platinum.
Read this online today. I will order mine as soon as possible. :)

[tclp]

what do you need it to open the disc tray for anyways ? you still need to go to put in / swap discs ?

[tclp]

LOL!!! that story is awesome about the CC employees ...

anyhow lots of people are now scrambling for the HD-DVD unit, I just picked one up off ebay from a reputable seller at this time there is 18 units left, aside from getting shanked on shipping (I'm in Canada though, maybe cheaper for US -- he actually is using a shipping calculator instead of charging some over inflated rate)... was also worried that he was going to be removing the king kong and remote but he states they are coming along with it. :) ... anyhow I had to pay a $30 or so premium (including shipping) but I'm getting one soon now ;) ...

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Xbox-360-HD-DVD-Player-BRAND-NEW_W0QQitemZ170048702775QQihZ007QQcategoryZ122517QQssPageNa meZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

for those who are interested.

[HockeyDog3133]

i like the thought of knowing i can do it if i wanted to

[HockeyDog3133]

alright mate you know that store next to holywood video called gamecrazy go there/call them up and see if they have it. Thats where I got mine. Not a whole lot of people know about it in comparison to say eb games so you might have a good chance.

[rlsmith]

More $$$ from Sony to keep the masses in the dark says my conspiracy theorist brain. I'm sure the salesman probably WAS clueless but the manager....? riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight..............
Went to BB tonite in Emeryville, whole HUGE display of 360's, not an add-on anywhere in site. Didn't ask as I was there for something else and didn't want to wind up in jail for strangling a BBB tonite with my temper lately.

;)

Give me a break! They don't know much about Blu-Ray either, or any other new product.

This isn't about Sony, it's about the knowledge and training of the employees at these stores.

If Sony did pay them to do something, they wouldn't be able to follow the instructions anyway. :)

[cwerdna]

I think a good entry for the FAQ is the power consumption of the 360 and HD DVD drive combined. Does anyone w/the drive have something like a Kill-A-Watt (http://www.p3international.com/products/special/P4400/P4400-CE.html) to report their findings?

With my Kill-A-Watt, I find that the 360 draws ~138 to 140 watts at idle in the dashboard and about 110 W while playing a DVD on the internal drive.

[madpoet]

Once you get past the first screen what does the next one want :). Google won't translate it.

[aaronwt]

What are the load times as compared to HD-A1 assuming both units start from power up.
Around 20 to 25 seconds to start a movie. the A1 is over twice that.

[pernar]

Walks out with a look of amazement..." yes we have 4 of these back there...wow...look at this ( as reads the box)...passes it to the other employee...who then calls another employee over...all are amazed that such a device exists...they had never heard of it. They call the manager over....he is amazed...they are all fondling the box like it is the Holy Grail.

This actually happened to me at EBGames. I had reserved mine, but two employees and a customer who had never seen it before were looking at the box, and they did the exact same thing. They studied every panel on the box - it was like they found Cortez' gold. "It even comes with King Kong! Whoa!" etc...

[zappa2001]

lol @ the Circuit City story!!

The employee that I talked to at CC knew what the HD-DVD drive was but he didn't think they had any in stock. I told him I just saw it available via their website. Then he was very doubtful because he just apparently came from the back looking for the product. He then told me that he hasn't seen anything coming in on a truck or a warehouse for at least a week. I asked him to check the website. He did and saw that indeed the website claimed he had one in stock. He then checked his store inventory on the computer and what do you know? THEY HAD A COUPLE IN STOCK IN THE STORE RIGHT NOW!

lol, he was so sure they didn't and wasn't about to check his inventory via the PC until I asked him to.

[Blasst]

My homemade HD DVDs play just fine in the Addon.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

I'm in Canada... (Note that the unofficial release date here was the 10th.)

I called EB Games and asked if they had the HD DVD drive in stock, and they gave me the same story... First he said they had lots of the 360 hard drive in stock. Uh, no thanks. Then tried to sell me a PS3 pre-order "because it is the only console to play HD DVD". I asked them to check their computer. "Oh, I didn't know about that. It's being shipped from our distribution centre and should arrive next week."

I then went to Future Shop near work, and asked for the drive. Of course, I was shown the same 360 hard drive. However, he asked his coworker, who knew what it was, but said they didn't have any yet.

Then I went to Best Buy nearby. Same thing. After showing me the hard drive, two of the sales guys tried to get me to come back a week later for the PS3, cuz that's the "only console that will play back hi-def DVD". Of course I politely informed them that the 360 HD DVD drive exists and it's right on their website, and no, the PS3 does not play HD DVD. So they look online and can't find it, so they ask me to search for it on their site, looking at me as if I was some crazed customer who didn't know WTF he was talking about. Wouldn't ya know it... It's gone from the website! Dunno why, but it just wasn't there. I did show them the drive on Xbox.com though, so at least they realized I wasn't crazy. :p Finally they found a guy who knew about it, but informed me it hadn't arrived yet but was on its way.

The common theme here is that it seems that Sony has done a much better job of educating/hyping their product to the retailers. I don't know how retail works, but I was a little surprised that so few knew about the HD DVD drive, since it's a heluvalot more interesting (to me) than a wireless steering wheel or whatever.

Then again, when I called the Best Buy closest to my home:

Eug: Do you have the Xbox 3....
Salesgirl: Oh, you're calling about the HD DVD drive right?
Eug: <<Shocked>> Wha'? How'd you know?
Salesgirl: We've had a LOT of people coming in or calling to ask about it.
Eug: Cool. So, do you have it?
Salesgirl: Well, it's on its way here, but if we don't get it today, it might not be until Monday.
Eug: Are you taking pre-orders, and if so, am I too late to get one?
Salesgirl: We aren't taking pre-orders, and there's a lot of interest, but you should be able to get one if you come in fairly soon after the shipment arrives. Not sure when the shipment arrives, maybe today, or maybe Monday, but we're getting 60 of them at this store.
Eug: <<Shocked again>>

[candyrocket786]

Ordering WinDVD 8 (Japan)

http://www.intervideo.co.jp/products/wd8p/

Add 通常版 to your Cart (→ 8,800円)


Vector Check Out - Screen 1


Section 1:

The first two fields require your e-mail address (Does not accept Hotmail)

Field 1: Email
Field 2: Verify Your Email

Section 2:

Click on the link Address not in JAPAN and complete the recipient fields.

Finally, hit the submit button at the bottom of the page.

Vector Check Out- Screen 2

This is your confirmation page.

You will be emailed a link for their payment Gateway (where you will enter your Credit Card info).

Vector Check Out - Payment Link (Via Email)

Section 1:

Do not deselect the option with the red text . This indicates you are paying via Credit Card

Section 2:
Field 1: Enter the name on your CC
Field 2: Enter your CC #
Field 3: Enter the card expiration month
Field 4: Enter the card expiration year

Section 3
Option 1: Registers you as Vector Passport Member
Option 2: Registers your CC for future use.

Section 4
Option 1: Register to receive Vector Newsletter
Option 2: Register to receive HTML Guide

Hit the submit button (gray) and check your email for the software link and serial #

File Size: 275MB

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Hmmm, I wonder if it will work on a Mac.

I doubt it, but I'll give it a shot.
Well, while DVD Player.app supports HD DVD, it does not yet support either VC-1 or ACSS I don't think.

Still you can navigate the disc's file system, cuz Tiger supports UDF 2.5.


People, once PowerDVD for HD-DVD is available you will NOT need an HDCP compliant card. It will work over VGA, I am running PowerDVD BD over VGA with no issue, and as far as I can tell no down-rezing. I believe the initial Japanese WinDVD HD version has a bug which wrongly assumes that no HDCP, do 960 x 540 anyway. PowerDVD appears not to do this.

Also with PowerDVD as long as you have an ATI X1600 or nVidia 7600GT or higher you will be fine with what you have.

The other thing to bear in mind is CPU. BD in MPEG-2 can run an E6600 to 60% CPU... :eek: The software I would argue is not yet that refined for performance. Beware, but enjoy. :D
Sweet. I have an iMac Core 2 Duo 2.33 GHz with GeForce 7600 GT. Even if it doesn't work on the primary screen, it could work over VGA out. Well, since DVD Player.app might not get full HD DVD support any time soon, I might have to install Windows on the iMac to get HD DVD support though, and I'm not keen on doing that. :p I already have Vista beta on my MacBook, but that machine only has integrated GMA 950 graphics.

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Can it output True HD in an uncompressed form?
No. The addon re-encodes everything to DD 5.1. Multiple users on AVSForum have stated that the resulting encode is better than DVD audio, and that the TrueHD option on the HD DVD provides even better audio than the DD+. See this post and this one for examples.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding is that it can output TrueHD in an uncompressed form... if it's TrueHD 2.0. The signal would just be sent out over the analogue stereo outputs.

Also, it might help to have another entry, or else an entry that expands on the above:

Can it output Dolby Digital Plus?
No, it reencodes it to Dolby Digital 5.1 for output over Toslink or coax.

[GamerGuyX]

Christ! The price of the Video Cards are as much as a 360 console. :eek:

Where have you been?

[Issac Hunt]

Can it play HD DVD at 1080p via Component?
No. Max HD DVD resolution for Component is 1080i. Over VGA you can get 1080P. (AACS Rules - The XBox 360 is fully capable of 1080p over component)

Does it matter?
No. Film content is 24P, both 1080i and 1080p should display all the information in the individual film frames. A good 1080p display should correctly deinterlace the 1080i signal. See here (http://www.projectorcentral.com/retailing_HD-DVD_Blu-ray.htm)
Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that it doesn't matter if the content has been properly flagged. If it hasn't the deinterlacing will not properly recreate the 1080p original. This incorrect flagging seems to be more of a problem with commercial discs than I'd thought.

[madpoet]

Well, I bought it and it's downloading... I think :). Navigating those pages was interesting to say the least. We'll see what happens!

[candyrocket786]

Well, I bought it and it's downloading... I think :). Navigating those pages was interesting to say the least. We'll see what happens!


So do you already have a HDCP vid card?

[Preditor74]

When you put in a HD-DVD...and assuming the system is already turned on...does it automatically start up the movie or do you need to manually press play?

[TMSKILZ]

When you put in a HD-DVD...and assuming the system is already turned on...does it automatically start up the movie or do you need to manually press play?

Not sure, since I have a game in the XB360 drive & when I place a HD-DVD into the HD-DVD, the game plays automatically, so in the dashboard I have to manually play the HD-DVD,

[HorrorScope]

Oh man this could change everything for me in a good way! Do I go for the 8800's? Gulp.

[candyrocket786]

Yes, you choose the first option for 8,800 Yen

[HorrorScope]

^ Man that is ironic! I was thinking the NVidia 8800GTX video card for my HDCP compliant card. And then you mention the 8,800 yen, sounds like a sign from above it I've ever seen one. lol The wife would say it's a sign from the deep south.

My HTPC is a secondary gaming unit though, just did a search fo HDCP at newegg and there are some solid gaming cards with HDCP right at $200, I think I'll go that way.

[yipchunyu]

what is the voltage of the power adapter? Will it works in 220v countries?

[CaptDS9E]

Everyone is checking the regular electronic/game chains. If you cant find one hit Toys R Us, which is where i got one this morning. They had a bunch of them

[andreo]

Andreo, is that a homebrew HD DVD or just a copy of a regular DVD?

It's a copy.

[dfmcki]

Mine has auto started as soon as I put the HD-DVD in. Also I have turned the 360 on with a HD movie still in the drive and it went straight to the movie. It seems to behave the same way it would with games or movies placed in the regular drive.

[madpoet]

I have an 8800GTX ;). And I now have, I believe, a hybrid BD/HD DVD player. I'm going to do some more testing and make sure everything is still working correctly, and then I'll document the entire creation process and how it all works together. It's not exactly the most intuitive system but I think it works! :) I'm not trying to be a tease, it will likely be Monday evening before I can have everything up. So if you want to try it yourself, then here's what you need:

The Japanese WinDVD release with patches
Altiris' Software Virtualization Personal Edition (free)
XBox HD DVD drive
Blu Ray drive
HDCP compliant video card
Fairly beefy system or a card that can handle the decoding

Use the Altiris software to create virtualization layers of both the HD and BD versions of WinDVD. Activate whichever layer you require for the disk you want to play. It worked for me with the HD DVD drive, and based on that it should work fine with BD. I'll be able to tell you for sure on Monday evening. Is it cheap? Nope. But having a hybrid player feels pretty good.

[Diode1]

This post maybe some-what in possible violation? if so' mod's feel free to delete
If you search around you may find a CC save $40 off a $199 purchase in store only and it expires at the end of the month.
I tossed mine in the trash some weeks ago, I found a jpg of it.
Went back to CC this morning and they applied credit back from my HD drive purchase yesterday. This is strictly ymmv since it say's that no reproductions/photo copies.
Nonetheless, my local CC took it without a problem.
I hate paying full retail on anything ;)

[TheLion]

I have an 8800GTX ;). And I now have, I believe, a hybrid BD/HD DVD player. I'm going to do some more testing and make sure everything is still working correctly, and then I'll document the entire creation process and how it all works together. It's not exactly the most intuitive system but I think it works! :) I'm not trying to be a tease, it will likely be Monday evening before I can have everything up. So if you want to try it yourself, then here's what you need:

The Japanese WinDVD release with patches
Altiris' Software Virtualization Personal Edition (free)
XBox HD DVD drive
Blu Ray drive
HDCP compliant video card
Fairly beefy system or a card that can handle the decoding

Use the Altiris software to create virtualization layers of both the HD and BD versions of WinDVD. Activate whichever layer you require for the disk you want to play. It worked for me with the HD DVD drive, and based on that it should work fine with BD. I'll be able to tell you for sure on Monday evening. Is it cheap? Nope. But having a hybrid player feels pretty good.

Looking forward to it! Enjoy.

[jruser]

So if you order Windvd 8 Japanese from the website, how much does that cost in USD?

Without GPU acceleration, how fast of a CPU would be required?

Will the Japanese Windvd 8 play HD-DVD over a VGA connection?

[madpoet]

About $80. No idea on the CPU or whether it will play over VGA, though I can test the VGA thing at some point.

[jruser]

About $80. No idea on the CPU or whether it will play over VGA, though I can test the VGA thing at some point.

Ok, when you get around to it let us know if it works over VGA (and what card it is).

Although it wouldn't be definitive, if you get a chance, could you play a movie with hardware acceleration disabled and let us know what your CPU utilization is (and what CPU you have)?

[Jon Spackman]

I merged several questions together in this FAQ thread. Lets keep it to questions and answers only as there is a 360 Impressions thread for your review/thoughts about the 360 add on drive.

Thanks

[fergiej]

As far as ejecting the disc, here's the behavior. I assume you all know that the tray ("play the game") icon in the dashboard is now split into two? The top is for a game in the Xbox and the bottom is for the HD-DVD drive. If there is a HD Disk in the addon, the only option you will get is to play the movie. if not, you get the option to open the tray. The media remote "open/close" only opens the console tray.

One other thing, I wish there were a way from the dashboard to turn on/off the addon drive. I'm sure it's not taking too much power in idle, but I'd just as soon have it off if i'm not using it. I could unplug it, but, yech.

[fergiej]

One additional thing. The player plays SD movies ripped and reburned to DVD +R dl media perfectly. I just wanted to test it. I ripped Harry Potter Chamber of Secrets to a +R Dl TDk disk. I didn't watch the whole thing, only skipped to each chapter and played a couple of minutes from each one. I may have missed the actual layer change, so, I can't say how it handles the change, but I assume just fine.

[BoSoxMole]

Question.

Now, if I get one of those VGA to Component converters, will it still upconvert DVDs?

[cathoderaytube]

Question: How do I do slow motion or frame advance with the Xbox 360 HDDVD player?
Answer: You can't. (or am I wrong? Is there some button voodoo on the remote that lets me do slowmo or frame by frame? I'd love to be able examine action scenes and special effects, etc.)

[tpizarro]

how do you get the remote that was supplied with the hd dvd drive to open the disk tray on the hd dvd drive. So far i can only get it to open the original 360 drive and not the hd dvd drive.

Just Highlight the HD DVD tray using the arrows on the remote and press OK, the Open/Close button only works for the Xbox360 drive, not the HD DVD Drive

[multiblitz]

madpoet, where did you get your Windvd-Version from ? Is that simply the version from the japanese webside ? Where to get the patches ? I am looking forward to your report...it is exactly what everybody was waiting for...

-----------------------------------------

madpoet, can you please as well comment on this one from the other forum:

"Update: I was having issues with a few movies last night (King Kong specifically) where it would pause for a split second. I started looking at processes running and removed some software I was not using. After uninstalling my Cyberlink Powerdvd software that came with my Blu-Ray drive, WinDVd would no longer play King Kong. I can only imagine it has to do with the AACS Chris mentioned earlier in this thread. The player still played Van Helsing and a few other HD-DVD's, but not most of my collection.
I am not sure how the Cyberlink software has anything to do with the Intevideo software, but after re-installing it along with the Sony drive Patch King Kong worked again (but still with the same issues stated earlier.)

Just wanted to give you guys the heads up in case you were to try to install the Japanese version alone....
"

[Vivix729]

Not sure if this question has been answered or not...

Toshiba stand alone players will upconvert copy protection-free DVDs over component. Will the add on do the same?

[Dex4788]

I've read the faq, but I was confused about something. I was under the impression that the recent dashboard update allowed 1080p for both vga and component.

So in regards to standard DVDs, can component upconvert to 720p? And do you need the HDDVD add-on to do this? Or is the 360 capable of this by itself due to the update?

[Fox Mulder87]

Hi guys,

I'm from Europe and just can't wait until the HDDVD Player comes out here. I've read that the US HDDVD Drive can be used on a Europe 360 console. So what do I need apart from the drive?

And will I then also be able to watch HDDVDs from Europe on a US HDDVD Drive?

Where should I order the drive to have it the fast possible?

[kplant]

Hello,
I apologize in advance for this relatively naive question.
Does anyone know if there is any way to connect the 360 to two video sources?

I have an old HDTV with only component inputs that I'd like to use for Gaming and casual DVD watching and I have a PLV-Z3 that I'd like to hook up via component (or VGA) for use with the HD-DVD add-on. However, it seems that the xbox 360 (with or without the add-on) can only output 1 video signal at a time.

Other than continually plugging in and unplugging cables from source to source, is there anyway to get output to two different sources and switch between them. Maybe there's a receiver or splitter or something than can provide 2 HD video outputs from one HD video input?

Any help is appreciated to this newbie!
Thanks,
Kevin

B.T.W King Kong and VfV look great from HD-DVD add-on (component) through the Z3!

[bkilian]

I've read the faq, but I was confused about something. I was under the impression that the recent dashboard update allowed 1080p for both vga and component.

So in regards to standard DVDs, can component upconvert to 720p? And do you need the HDDVD add-on to do this? Or is the 360 capable of this by itself due to the update?
I updated the FAQ to make it more clear. The resolution for DVD and HD DVD over component has nothing to do with the resolutions the XBox is capable of. It's a legal requirement due to AACS and CSS rules.

[Dex4788]

I updated the FAQ to make it more clear. The resolution for DVD and HD DVD over component has nothing to do with the resolutions the XBox is capable of. It's a legal requirement due to AACS and CSS rules.
Ah, thanks for the clarification.

One more question if you don't mind. If I still plan to use the 360 as a dvd player (I know, people say it sucks because of no upconverting)....will I benefit in PQ at all if my hdtv has it's own video processing technique? I got this from the product's webpage:

Advanced Pure Cinema with 3:3 pull down, film-based material on DVD, videotape or even regular TV will match the smooth and nature reproduction seen in a movie Theater

Seeing as how my tv can accept 480p, I gather it'll upconvert that to my native 720p (as assigned on the 360), correct? Just wondering cause if I can just save money doing this, instead of buying another upconverter player...I'll stick with this.

Sorry if it was a bit off-topic, I'm sorta bummed since it's sorta ruined my plans on buying this add-on. :(

[sneals2000]

Hi guys,

I'm from Europe and just can't wait until the HDDVD Player comes out here. I've read that the US HDDVD Drive can be used on a Europe 360 console. So what do I need apart from the drive?

And will I then also be able to watch HDDVDs from Europe on a US HDDVD Drive?

Where should I order the drive to have it the fast possible?

AIUI HD-DVDs are currently region-free so will play with a US HD-DVD drive connected to a European 360.

HOWEVER - the US HD-DVD drive IS I believe regionally coded when it comes to regular DVDs. Of course if you have a European 360, then you can replay Region 2 DVDs using the 360 DVD player?

[Fox Mulder87]

So how is this:

When they include a Region Code, let's say Code 2 for Europe and Code 1 for the US. And I buy now a US HDDVD Drive. Will I be then able to only watch HDDVDs from Code 1 or Code 2?

[jblank74]

Anyone figure out how to zoom from the HD-DVD remote that came with it? I wish the manual explained in a bit more detail, what does what.

[madpoet]

Not to toot my own horn, but long live the hybrid player! Details found here :)

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8880202&&#post8880202

[BoSoxMole]

Question.

Now, if I get one of those VGA to Component converters, will it still upconvert DVDs?
Anyone?

[lymzy]

Anyone?

I see no reason not to upscale. xbox360 doesn't know about the converter.

[Blippy2005]

Companies like GEFEN have such tools. But there are probably cheaper ones out there. GEFEN works well if you have setups that can automate via RS-232 (serial connections), like Crestron etc. Extron also is another company. Both of these however are high end solutions and probably overkill for what you want.

Actually I would be willing to bet that most simple multi input component switchers would work for you (just plug the 360 into the output ports of the switcher and plug the input ports of the switcher to your output devices e.g. projector/rear-proj/lcd/plasma/monitor etc.) Now if the switcher is just created a path for the signal and it's just simple connections on the inside with no fancy polarity or signal flow processing it should work as you want allowing you to switch the xbox 360 output between more than one display device. For VGA/RGB 15-pin most KVM switchboxes will work. These can range in price (Belkin has several), from $50-$400+. The key that you will want I assume is a remote control to operate a switcher. Most of these units start at the $100+.

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=202139566&SearchEngine=PriceGrabber&SearchTerm=202139566&Type=PE&Category=Game&dcaid=15890#moreimg

You can try the above. In theory it should work for you.

If you're looking for something simpler and cheaper without remote etc. The below is pretty sheap and can be found at Circuit City.

http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/productDetail.do?oid=126035&WT.mc_n=67&WT.mc_t=U&cm_ven=COMPARISON%20SHOPPING&cm_cat=PRICEGRABBER&cm_pla=DATAFEED->PRODUCTS&cm_ite=1%20PRODUCT&cm_keycode=67

Hope that helps.

[Ja Phule]

Radioshack 4x2 component switch.
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103918&cp=2032057&f=Taxonomy%2FRSK%2F2032057&categoryId=2032057&kwCatId=2032057&kw=component+switch&parentPage=search

I'm using one of these right now with no problems. Though it seems from other threads, some people are having problems with it.

I saw it on clearance at my local radioshack.

[likev]

VGA seems washed out on my TV running at 768. Sony KDL-46XBR2. Until Microsoft releases and update for the XBOX I won't be able to try 1920x1080 over VGA on my TV yet. :(

Connecting my computer to VGA running at 1920x1080 works great though, not washed out like it is with the XBOX.

[bkilian]

Ah, thanks for the clarification.

One more question if you don't mind. If I still plan to use the 360 as a dvd player (I know, people say it sucks because of no upconverting)....will I benefit in PQ at all if my hdtv has it's own video processing technique? I got this from the product's webpage:



Seeing as how my tv can accept 480p, I gather it'll upconvert that to my native 720p (as assigned on the 360), correct? Just wondering cause if I can just save money doing this, instead of buying another upconverter player...I'll stick with this.

Sorry if it was a bit off-topic, I'm sorta bummed since it's sorta ruined my plans on buying this add-on. :(
Yes, your TV will upconvert the 480P to it's native resolution, otherwise the DVD would be a small block in the middle of your screen with black all around it.
I don't know much about your TV, but it sounds like it has decent video processing, you'd probably benefit from a decent upconverting player, but not as much as you might think. I would suggest running the HD DVD addon at 1080i so the player can deinterlace and do the 72hz conversion, otherwise you might be stuck with 720P60 with 3:2 judder. But that's just a guess. :)

[Blippy2005]

As MadPoet has noted. HTPC with 360 HD-DVD addon works! :D

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=748426&page=1&pp=30

[Dex4788]

I would suggest running the HD DVD addon at 1080i so the player can deinterlace and do the 72hz conversion
How would I do this, in the video settings for the 360? I'd have to change it back to 720p if I want to play my games, no? I'm assuming this is just for playing standard DVDs, so I'm wondering why 1080i in particular if that isn't my native? :confused:

otherwise you might be stuck with 720P60 with 3:2 judder. But that's just a guess. :)
Can you elaborate on what that is? Sounds bad. :p

[vexum]

is there any color correction on the xbox 360 / hd dvd drive? i have neither, but was thinking of buying both....but i like adjustments...is there color, tint, brightness, contrast etc?

[originalprime]

is there any color correction on the xbox 360 / hd dvd drive? i have neither, but was thinking of buying both....but i like adjustments...is there color, tint, brightness, contrast etc?

No, Sir... The 360 is still a wonderful purchase, though ; )

Edit: Certain games have adjustment capabilities built-in.

[kplant]

Thanks for your suggestions. They're both really helpful!
At this point I'm trying to decide whether or not to go the route of buying a whole bunch of these wiring add-ons or to just get a single receiver that could do the trick...if there is one that can pass an HD input to a choice of two or more HD outputs(?).

Thanks Again,
Kevin

[GizmoDVD]

Anyway to bookmark things in movies? The manual for the HD is useless.

[coops75]

Hope this is not a stupid question, I am new to all this. I got the xbox dvd today and will run it to a Sony HS10 pj. Because of the distance from system to pj, I need to run the component cables from the xbox into my Yamaha receiver and then out to the pj. Will this degrade the picture at all? Also, I believe the pj's native res. is x768, should I set the xbox to 720 or just play around with the settings and see what looks best? Thanks

[efjay]

Anyway to bookmark things in movies? The manual for the HD is useless.

Press B on the remote, to access later go to the scene selection menu. Some early movies (eg Aeon Flux) dont support this though.

[Fox Mulder87]

how many watt does the drive consume?

[amirm]

Hope this is not a stupid question, I am new to all this. I got the xbox dvd today and will run it to a Sony HS10 pj. Because of the distance from system to pj, I need to run the component cables from the xbox into my Yamaha receiver and then out to the pj. Will this degrade the picture at all? Also, I believe the pj's native res. is x768, should I set the xbox to 720 or just play around with the settings and see what looks best? Thanks
I don't see any issues with running the cable to your receiver first.

As for your second question, I would start with 1080 as the output of Xbox. That way, there is only one scale operation to bring it down to 768. Otherwise, you would be scaling down to 720 and then back up to 768.

[chad473]

haven't seen this answered. how long is the supplied usb cable?

[joffer]

haven't seen this answered. how long is the supplied usb cable?
maybe 3 feet?

[chad473]

thanks

[joffer]

when you power on the XBOX with a game in the console and a HD-DVD in the add on drive, is there any way to have it default to the movie and not the game?

[Ja Phule]

I believe some of the Denon receivers have 2 component outputs.

[neveron]

are those generic vga cables for 360 any good?
thanks.

[kiomon]

I have a Denon 3806 for this very reason.. works great. it even does HDMI simultaneous with the two components. So I can run two plasma and a projector off it.. AWESOME

[flipcody]

I'm loving this addon. KK looks fantastic, I'm looking very forward to getting some more HD-DVD movies. What a great value for $160.

I can not figure how to get ucontrol to work. I can activate it but then can not do anything. I can see the U icon in lower right. I have tried all the buttons on gamepad with no success (I read somewhere that if you pull left trigger and push buttons it will work).

Can some one describe how to operate ucontrol with gamepad and remote? I think it should be added to FAQ as well. Thanks!

edit: I figured it out ...doooooh! I just went through ucontrol tutorial on HD-DVD.

[oleus]

will standard definition setup discs like Digital Video Essentials and Avia be a good or bad way to set up the HD DVD video of the xbox 360 add-on drive??

i never quite had my component 360 input to my projector 100% calibrated, but i had it to where games looked great and i left it at that. now with HD-DVD's, i have found i have been tweaking A LOT and once i get one disc looking great the next disc will have a few more tweaks, then i play a game and it looks off to me.

thanks

oleus

[HighDeff]

Sorry I´ve not checked the entire thread, but will the XBOX360 alone or in combination with the HD-DVD add on, play WMV-HD discs, like the "Coral Reef Adventure" or "Amazon".??

Thx

[BuGsArEtAsTy]

Anyway to bookmark things in movies? The manual for the HD is useless.Press B on the remote, to access later go to the scene selection menu. Some early movies (eg Aeon Flux) dont support this though.
Doesn't seem to work with Pitch Black either.

[tsb]

http://www.xbox-scene.com/xbox1data/sep/EEyFuVlZuADeQBqmdW.php

add-on on PC no problem

[ryanvb]

I'm using the official Microsoft component cables with my HD DVD player, and I'm seeing a lot of electronic interference in the midtones (mostly greys). It looks like the picture isn't solid, but there's interference, especially noticeable on a still and dark background. I tried moving my cables away from any power sources, which helped a tiny bit, but the problem persists. This is why I would have preferred HDMI cables -- not susceptible to interference.

Should I spring from Monster cables for my 360?? Is anyone else experiencing this problem?

[aaronwt]

No problems on either of my 360's and VGA cables. All my components are connected to a UPS though and surge protectors. Without those I would get interference, at least that ws the case 5 years ago when I first got my UPSs and surge protectors.

[madpoet]

http://www.xbox-scene.com/xbox1data/sep/EEyFuVlZuADeQBqmdW.php

add-on on PC no problem

Sure, except that there are plenty of problems if you actually want to watch moveis ;)

[ryanvb]

No problems on either of my 360's and VGA cables. All my components are connected to a UPS though and surge protectors. Without those I would get interference, at least that ws the case 5 years ago when I first got my UPSs and surge protectors.

Thanks for the response. I heard that the VGA cables are less prone to signal interference, but sadly, my 1080p Toshiba doesn't have VGA inputs. I am powering my HT through a surge protector, so I'm still not sure where the interference is coming from. I assume its all of the power cords around the back of my television.

Anyone else have suggestions for solving interference with the stock MS component cables? I'm strongly considering the Monster cables, but everyone seems to be saying they're a waste of money, so I'm torn.

[jblank74]

Sure, except that there are plenty of problems if you actually want to watch moveis ;)

Exactly. No problem means plug and play. A problem is having to spend 80 bucks on software.

[madpoet]

Well, more of a problem is spending $80 on software and then having it downrezz your display :(

[jblank74]

Well, more of a problem is spending $80 on software and then having it downrezz your display :(

Ya know what, thats right. Excellent point.

[Cherokee180c]

Has anybody reported any issues with the HD DVD drive add on? I rented the Lakehouse in HDDVD for my wife over the weekend and watched it on the X360, but it had a weird color fade pulse, for lack of a better description, or slight blinking that occured about every 10 seconds. I am hooked up component @1080i to an Hitachi 57" rear projection HDTV. The video runs direct to my TV so it was not anything to do with my Yamaha receiver. Any thoughts? The issue was not dramatic, but was very annoying once you noticed it.

[Dex4788]

Can it output True HD or DD+ in an uncompressed form?
No. The addon re-encodes everything to DD 5.1. Multiple users on AVSForum have stated that the resulting encode is better than DVD audio, and that the TrueHD option on the HD DVD provides even better audio than the DD+. See this post and this one for examples.
IF Microsoft does offer HDMI support for the 360 in the near future, does anyone know if it's possible/probable (through a firmware update) that the HD-DVD player can output DD+ and/or TrueHD?

[gibson10ma]

Call me crazy, but has anyone here done an A/B comparison between DD and DD+ and/or TrueHD? I can't believe the amount of discussion that surrounds the lack of this feature. Does anyone know what kind of equipment you'd need to take advantage of the theoretical superiority of TrueHD? I doubt I'd be able to tell a difference on my low end system.

[ryanvb]

I think it essentially comes to the difference between a 192kbps MP3 file and the original CD. Some people can't notice the difference, or their equipment isn't precise enough to differentiate between the two. Of course there is inherently a difference between moderately compressed lossy audio and lossless audio. The severity of that difference is in the ear of the beholder, no pun intended.

[jjkozlow]

Call me crazy, but has anyone here done an A/B comparison between DD and DD+ and/or TrueHD? I can't believe the amount of discussion that surrounds the lack of this feature. Does anyone know what kind of equipment you'd need to take advantage of the theoretical superiority of TrueHD? I doubt I'd be able to tell a difference on my low end system.

Yes, I have. On a low end system the difference is not worth losing sleep over and would be unnoticable. However, on even a "low end" mid-fi system, say with the latest $400 Pioneer receiver from Best Buy and a 6-pack of PSB Alpha-Monitors or Paradigm Atom's, the difference is discerned. It's not "night and day" like jumping from an 8-track tape to SACD/DVD-A (or even better--VINYL), but the difference is still there. As always, as you move up the hi-fi chain the difference becomes even greater.

[Sorax]

Sorry I´ve not checked the entire thread, but will the XBOX360 alone or in combination with the HD-DVD add on, play WMV-HD discs, like the "Coral Reef Adventure" or "Amazon".??

Thx

The XBox 360 plays WMV-HD burned on a DVD or CD. I tried this last night with The Fifth Element WMV-HD. When inserted the disc is recognized as Mixed Media and can be played from the Media tab of the Dashboard. I only received the add-on today so I can't confirm it will play from that drive.

[protovision]

The XBox 360 plays WMV-HD burned on a DVD or CD. I tried this last night with The Fifth Element WMV-HD. When inserted the disc is recognized as Mixed Media and can be played from the Media tab of the Dashboard. I only received the add-on today so I can't confirm it will play from that drive.

I think the ability to play WMV-HD from the dvd drive came with the recent dashboard update. Previously you could only stream WMV-HD from media center.

Still can't play drm'ed WMV-HD though.

protovision

[pappy97]

I hate to be the guy with problems re: black bars, but here it goes:

I have a Samsung 1080p TV (HLS5087). I have it hooked up to the XBOX 360 (with the addon) via VGA, so I can send the TV 1080p.

When I watch King Kong and The Fast and the Furious on my HDTV, the picture is too squished. It reminds me of trying to watch a non-anamorphic movie on a widescreen TV, if that helps.

I know because I have seen many other 2.35:1 movies on my TV, and have done a comparison. The black bars with my HD-DVD's in my set up are larger by what seems to me epic proportions. The example I did was comparison a still frame of this HD-DVD with SW: Episode 4 from Cinemax HD on demand, which is also 2.35:1. Why did SW: Episode 4 look correct, but The Fast and the Furious HD-DVD look squished?

Any advice on how to solve the problem? I'd like to watch HD-DVD's OAR if possible :-) Thanks!!

P.S. Please keep in mind I love OAR, but I want just that: OAR, not a 2.35:1 squished to what looks like 2.6:1.

[omegamerc]

Hi to all, first off thank you for all the info around this forum on the subject. I bought the Xbox360 drive and just finished ordering the Wdvd8 plat (japan). I would like to make some suggestions. The Japaneses ordering process made me climb up the walls mainly because poster #36 maybe didn't complete the end process as I would've expected. After placing your order and receiving the confirmation by mail, and entering the CC information, you will get a SECOND email giving you the download link and registration information. I must've sat in front of the new confirmation/thank you screen (the guy that keeps bending over in gratitude) for about 15minutes before I realized maybe something was in my inbox. Also note that even for speedy computers the install file is super-compressed, and it will take its sweet time to install.


System info:
Xbox-360 HD-DVD ( :D )
2.5ghz dual core 2mb L2 opty
2GB OCZ Plat Rev 2
8800GTS
20.1" WS LG :D
50" Philips ambilight Plasma :D

[huntaar]

I hate to be the guy with problems re: black bars, but here it goes:

When I watch King Kong and The Fast and the Furious on my HDTV, the picture is too squished. It reminds me of trying to watch a non-anamorphic movie on a widescreen TV, if that helps.




Have you tried the following from the first page of this thread?

Troubleshooting

I got the Addon but it looks terrible and squashed on my TV (connected with VGA)
Go into your XBox settings blade and set your resolution to the highest your display will support. Also (if needed) set the aspect ratio correctly for the type of your Display. The default resolution for the VGA cable when you first plug it in is 640x480. User emonsh suggests that the best setting for VGA is the one closest to the true resolution of your display, so try that if you're having quality issues.

[pappy97]

Have you tried the following from the first page of this thread?

Troubleshooting

I got the Addon but it looks terrible and squashed on my TV (connected with VGA)
Go into your XBox settings blade and set your resolution to the highest your display will support. Also (if needed) set the aspect ratio correctly for the type of your Display. The default resolution for the VGA cable when you first plug it in is 640x480. User emonsh suggests that the best setting for VGA is the one closest to the true resolution of your display, so try that if you're having quality issues.

Yes of course I have done this. I am outputting 1920 x 1080p from the XBOX 360 to my TV, which is 1920 x 1080p native resolution.

I still get this problem on 2.35:1 movies, and it doesn't make any sense to me. Are the HD-DVD's non-anamorphic? If they are, why the hell would that be? Thanks!

[lymzy]

I am outputting 1920 x 1080p from the XBOX 360 to my TV, which is 1920 x 1080p native resolution.



What is the model of your TV? Some of the 1080p TV couldn't accept 1080p60 on VGA input. You might want to try the component with 1080i. Does the picture turn out to be the same?

[bkilian]

Yes of course I have done this. I am outputting 1920 x 1080p from the XBOX 360 to my TV, which is 1920 x 1080p native resolution.

I still get this problem on 2.35:1 movies, and it doesn't make any sense to me. Are the HD-DVD's non-anamorphic? If they are, why the hell would that be? Thanks!
Did you also make sure the aspect ratio is set correctly? I don't have VGA on mine, but in some resolutions it still assumes 4x3 even when it should be 16x9. (On component, all the HD resolutions are by default 16x9, but on VGA it varies)

[pappy97]

Did you also make sure the aspect ratio is set correctly? I don't have VGA on mine, but in some resolutions it still assumes 4x3 even when it should be 16x9. (On component, all the HD resolutions are by default 16x9, but on VGA it varies)

On the XBOX 360, you have no choice: When you select 1920 x 1080, it is set to widescreen.

I have no problem with 1.85:1 movies, it is just the 2.35:1 and smaller that doesn't appear right.

And my TV, the 5087 from Samsung, does accept 1080p60 from vga.

Thanks again for anyone has any ideas.

I have not tried 1080i via component, because I don't want that to be my solution, because right now the XBOX 360 is my only upconverting DVD player.

[mcurtis]

I read where everyone is saying the last update allows for 1080p. Is that mean everyone is connected to the internet. I am not connected to the internet, is that the only way to get 1080p. I guess I need to get a wireless adapter. Is that pretty easy to use? Thanks, sort of new to all this stuff

[SolidSnake526]

Wow... any and every question I might have had has now been answered. Thanks!

Now to get a TV that doesn't suck...
I have an HDTV, but it's some piece of crap Advent that I found for cheap at Best Buy last year. It's not awful, but it isn't good by any means.

[Category 5]

1080i/p summary:



1080i over VGA
Games - yes
1080p HD DVD movies - yes
480p HD DVD extras - yes
DVD - yes


How can you select 1080i over VGA? The only standard resolutions I see over VGA (AV mode compatible) are 720p and 1080p.

[Rhegaana]

Can someone confirm that wmv-hd discs play on the hd dvd drive. I want to purchase some of the nature stuff and imax movies from amazon, but don't want to use the 360 drive.

[hardballpete]

They work!

[seanb61]

I read where everyone is saying the last update allows for 1080p. Is that mean everyone is connected to the internet. I am not connected to the internet, is that the only way to get 1080p. I guess I need to get a wireless adapter. Is that pretty easy to use? Thanks, sort of new to all this stuff

It is pretty easy if you already have a wireless router in your home. You should get the 360 online ASAP, you are missing some of the best parts of the system by not being on-line.

[bx10]

Sorry I´ve not checked the entire thread, but will the XBOX360 alone or in combination with the HD-DVD add on, play WMV-HD discs, like the "Coral Reef Adventure" or "Amazon".??

Thx

If they use Microsoft DRM then the answer is probably no.

[jcutner]

Hey.

I have the 360 HD-DVD drive, really liking it too. The quality is incredible, especially on faces.

Right now I have a 19" LCD monitor and a 42" 1080i HDTV.

So, on the monitor, I hook up my 360 via VGA, choose 1280x1024, and the movies play back at 720p (I assume) and they look good, albeit small.

On my TV, they look good too, at 1080i, through Component.

However, what I'm getting at is, I want to get a Dell 2407FPW monitor, which has a resolution of 1920x1200. If I plug in my 360 via VGA, this monitor will not do 1:1, and will fill the 1920x1080 to 1920x1080, therefore not maintaining the aspect ratio. For games, I do not mind, but for HD-DVD movies, this is a major issue. (Any solutions or workarounds would be of great help.)

The other alternate would be to hook up my HD-DVD to my computer, which would also plug into the monitor via DVI. My issue here is, from what I've read, WinDVD8 will only do 540p, and not 1080p? So, if that is the case, there isn't much point in getting a monitor which can handle a resolution of 1080p if the software cannot output as such. Whether this *is* a software issue, driver issue, or hardware issue, I'm not entirely sure, but from what I've read, it seems like WinDVD8 will not output at 1080p as of yet.

Any help on both these situations would be great, because I'd love to see HD-DVD movies at 1080p.

[aaronwt]

It won't ouput 1080P unless you have an HDCP compliant video card and HDCP compliant monitor.

[jcutner]

It won't ouput 1080P unless you have an HDCP compliant video card and HDCP compliant monitor.

Well, afaik the Dell 2407FPW is HDCP compliant, but I don't think my nVidia eVGA 7800GT is HDCP compliant. I guess at least if I get the monitor, I can do 1080i through Component on the monitor.

(I'd prefer it on my monitor, only because I have my Logitech Z680's hooked up there with the 360 Optical Audio cable, and I have no surround sound system for my 42" TV)

[omegamerc]

Would like to report back here in regards to the HD-DVD addon, windows reports (during the installation of the xbx360 hd-dvd) that it found "xbox 360 HD DVD memory unit" two times, disabling it doesn't affect the drive. Uninstalling it makes windows "re-detect it". Running 3Dmark 2006 when the drive has power creates an "IRQ DRIVER NOT LESS OR EQUAL" Blue screen of death. There are no IRQ conflicts in the actual windows device manager, if anyone has any solution to this I would appreciate it.

[MSpeed6]

Is there a way to make the player resume the movie after being powered off???

[lymzy]

It won't ouput 1080P unless you have an HDCP compliant video card and HDCP compliant monitor.


Windvd8 hd dvd pack won't output 1080p on any output regardless of what you have. They don't have confidence and don't want to be sued by AACS, so much so that they enforce 540p all the way.

[rudy2112]

I already have the 360. Thinking of buying the addon, or the toshiba. I have panasonic 50" plasma. I have downloaded some trailers from xbox live marketplace. All the trailers I have donwloaded were the 720 version. I noticed some downloads look better than others. 1- How true are these demo downloads? 2- Do HD dvd's look better through the addon vs. the downloads? I also have a sony dvd player that upscales. 3- How much better will a true HD player look vs a upscaling player.

Also I am not too familiar with true HD sourround. Is this something that is in the encoding of the software that my current DD reciever will output. I have a Denon 3801, and if so is this transfered through optical outputs, or discrete analog.

Thanks for any help

[JOHNnDENVER]

Dolby TrueHD has to be decoded by the player and sent via either multi-channel analog or HDMI to the processor already decoded.

Not to much of an issue as the player will also convert it to high bit rate DTS and send over the standard non hdmi digital audio connections the stand alone 1st gen players, and as low bit rate DD from the 360 system.

[jcutner]

Windvd8 hd dvd pack won't output 1080p on any output regardless of what you have. They don't have confidence and don't want to be sued by AACS, so much so that they enforce 540p all the way.

So this is a software restraint then. Will we ever see 1080p on XP/Vista with the HD-DVD drive?

[sanctus1765]

So I check Circuit City's website earlier today and I see my local store has them in stock. I drive on down to the store. Here is the actual exchange with the young man working at CC.

Me: I'm looking for the HD-DVD add on for the xbox360

CCemployee: AH...the what?

Me: I'm looking for the HD-DVD add on for the xbox360. Your website says you have it in stock.

CCemployee: Ah gee...( walks over to XBOX stuff...picks up a remote) is this it?

Me: No it is a HD-DVD player.

CCEmployee: Gee I am not sure what that is...let me ask someone.

CCEmployee#2: Sir there is no such thing....

Me: Yes there is. It is the hottest add on for the Xbox360...and you have them in the back where your shipment from today is stored.

CCEmployee: Xbox360 cannot play HD-DVD's.

Me: Can I use your store computer to show you that you are worng?

CCEMployee: sure ( walks me to computer)

I pull up the HD-DVD add on from their website. The Employees look at each other and start mumbling....one writes down the item number and goes to the back storage area.

Walks out with a look of amazement..." yes we have 4 of these back there...wow...look at this ( as reads the box)...passes it to the other employee...who then calls another employee over...all are amazed that such a device exists...they had never heard of it. They call the manager over....he is amazed...they are all fondling the box like it is the Holy Grail.

The Manager exclaims " well...we gotta get these out on the floor!!!!"

I purchase it and walk out....

Between Best Buy and CC I am never at a loss for pure entertainment.

That is the funniest post I have ever heard. I had almost the exact same experience when I went to buy the wireless headset at Best Buy.

[Luffy]

Well, afaik the Dell 2407FPW is HDCP compliant, but I don't think my nVidia eVGA 7800GT is HDCP compliant. I guess at least if I get the monitor, I can do 1080i through Component on the monitor.

(I'd prefer it on my monitor, only because I have my Logitech Z680's hooked up there with the 360 Optical Audio cable, and I have no surround sound system for my 42" TV)

I am pretty sure the Dell 2407 is NOT HDCP compliant, maybe the 3007 is but I am not sure about that. Having used the component inputs on my 2407 I can say the PQ is terrible. The only 2 connections you should use on the 2407 are the VGA and the DVI. The component is usable but not nice to look at.

[bobzoila]

That is the funniest post I have ever heard. I had almost the exact same experience when I went to buy the wireless headset at Best Buy.

This last Friday I had exactly the same experience at CC here in Santa Barbara. Fortunately I had printed out the Internet CC website showing it "in stock" in SB.
I also used the $40 coupon, which wouldn't scan but supervisor OKed. Great HD add-on, hats off to Bill Gates.

[jcutner]

I am pretty sure the Dell 2407 is NOT HDCP compliant, maybe the 3007 is but I am not sure about that. Having used the component inputs on my 2407 I can say the PQ is terrible. The only 2 connections you should use on the 2407 are the VGA and the DVI. The component is usable but not nice to look at.

According to google, the 2407 does have HDCP via DVI.

Component isn't that good though, eh? Shame

[rudy2112]

Anyone?????

[Capfacsurf]

Does anyone know how I can toggle from watching a HD DVD to game play on the 360 using the remote? Is there a "shift" key that allows one to control the add on's drive bay?

[dklayn]

The demos are only a shadow of what you'll see from an HD-DVD. The demo bitrates are fairly low to allow for streaming, which has a significant impact on quality. Full fledge movie downloads from the marketplace will look much closer to HD-DVD, since the 6 Mbps average bitrate for 720p30 is actually quite good -- nearly as good as the 12-25 Mbps average rate for 1080p24 used for HD-DVD.

Of course, we're talking 1080p versus 720p here, which may or may not be a huge difference depending on your display. I'm assuming that's a 768p plasma, in which 720p would be great. Still, the HD-DVD addon is more economical, easier (waiting for a DL is no fun), and sane than going all out with marketplace "for rent only" movie downloads.

Compared to an upscaling player, the difference is very noticable. Less compression artifacts, higher resolution, and an overall better experience with features like HDi. If you have the time, take a look at the LO