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Pioneer DV-400V Owners Thread

409K views 1K replies 347 participants last post by  John McMartin 
#1 ·
I purchased a DV-400V from Best Buy yesterday. I was shopping for a DVD player that featured USB flash drive support and was capable of playing AVI files encoded with the Xvid codec. Based upon that criteria, the DV-400V was an excellent fit.


I tested AVI playback using DVD+R DL media and a 16GB Corsair Flash Voyager USB 2.0 drive. So far it has played every AVI file that I have thrown at it, including those using external subtitle files.


Interestingly enough, although Pioneer makes no mention of this in their specifications, I was able to successfully play a multi-region PAL DVD. The DV-400V itself is region locked.


One quirk that I discovered is that my unit appears to suffer from video clock jitter. When connected to my Samsung SPN4235X/XAA EDTV plasma and set to 1080i output, the horizontal and vertical sync signals fluctuate sufficiently to cause a band of distortion along the right side of the display. The Samsung reported frequencies alternating between 33.76 kHz H / 60.08 Hz V and 33.84 kHz H / 60.22 Hz V.


My Westinghouse LVM-42W2 HDTV LCD did not appear to be affected by the clock jitter and was able to display all signals, including 1080p, without distortion.
 
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#903 ·
I'm only about halfway through the posts, so I apologize if this was addressed previously.


My player has been working great but my only complaint is the length of characters displayed in the windows.


I am using the original firmware YGB73281....so which one can I upgrade to so this problem is address.


I purchased the WD MyBook 500gb Usb drive and it works great. Haven't noticed any slow downs when playing back movies and tv shows.
 
#904 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by jsmiddleton4 /forum/post/13895264


What is it the USB port is blocking for you?


That depends on which angle your player is at relative to where you are SITTING. My player is set up so that it's on top of a shelf, and I watch tv sitting on a couch.


This means I have to look up to see the player and any USB stick will block the view of the LCD.
 
#908 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Torque12 /forum/post/13931965


Hey!


Thanks a bunch!


At first sight I see almost no difference ..


I'll nee to do a closer look!


no problem,

well, there is some differences due to the different USB port location (you can easily track the cables to the same main board connector).

There was some rearrangements for around the meditek video processor chip, there is also a changed power plug. Nothing major I guess (unless someone more knowledgeable than myself gives a thorough inspection).
 
#909 ·
Yes,


Indeed there are a few cables here and there (as for a difference) ..

As for the power plug, that is not due to another version, the pictures from your side are simply from the

European Version of the player
(You can tell by the SCART-Connector!)


But there is still almost the same layout and placement of the circuit boards.

So nothing ground-breaking ...


Btw. is this the right board to ask about why this player is unable/unwilling to play *.mpg files?


I'm quite disappointed that the player does not play any MPEG1/2 files on a single file basis!


I have installed another firmware, but no change ..



Any clues why that is the case?


Cheers!
 
#910 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by jsmiddleton4 /forum/post/13934200


torque...


Since this thread, partly my fault. has gotten mixed with the 400/410 which model are you talking about? And which one had the firmware you mention?



Sorry about the mixup ..


I'm referring to the 400 and the firmware is on the 400 as well.

I used the Smash The Mac Firmware from
http://www.pioneerfaq.info/english/d...tion=Firmwares



Besides I think that 410 and 400 might be able to share the same firmware base...
 
#912 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by jsmiddleton4 /forum/post/13949997


torque...

At this point I haven't run into anything that I would like to see the firmware change.

Obviously I don't own a 410, but I have read the manual throughly just to make sure it has the same crippled firmware plaguing the 400.

If you really "didn't run into anything that you would like to see the firmware change" then I my best guess you aren't into using divx movies.

let me recap ( I just doubled checked with couple of my 410 friends to make sure )

- no multispeed FF/REW into divx files (on dvd or on USB)

- no time seek on divx files (on USB)

- no pan and scan for ultra wide screen content on wide screen displays (yes, the letterboxing you see on almost all new movies can be dealt with on some other players)


Although the Hakan firmware doesn't handle any of these concerns, yet multi-region was a break through + lots of other features he took from AV-600 and surprisingly enough it worked.


Sorry for the long and non-constructive post but these are my 2 cents,
 
#913 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Torque12 /forum/post/13934112



Btw. is this the right board to ask about why this player is unable/unwilling to play *.mpg files?


I'm quite disappointed that the player does not play any MPEG1/2 files on a single file basis!


I have installed another firmware, but no change ..



Any clues why that is the case?


Cheers!

Torque,

Found several players out there that wont run .DAT/.mpg/.VOB without the proper VCD/DVD file structure. I remember one customer support guy telling me "This is to limit piracy and prevent direct copy" LOL, but looking at the bright side, lots of free encoders will take around 20-30 minutes to convert a VCD movie into a divx file with no loss in quality and in around 1/4 - 1/6 of the original size. Same for VOBs as well (check pocket encoder).

Hope that helped,
 
#915 ·
Hi, I have just bought Sony KDL-40D3550 LCD TV(it has same technical specifications as 40D3500). I tried upscaling dvd film with Pioneer Dv400V-S DVD player by HDMI(Monster Ultra 600 cable) but some problems occured. When I set the HDMI resolution 1080p from DVD player settings thin black lines appears on the bottom of screen and increases and merge, finally becomes black strips. If I set the resolution 720p screen looks good for approximately 1 hour, after then same damn! thin black lines appears again. I have to set the resolution 576p and in this resolution there is no black line. Where is the problem? Another problem is no sound on TV while HDMI upscaling 720p or 1080p.I tried some TV and DVD player HDMI settings but no success.

Thanks in advance
 
#917 ·
I use RGB because I use an HDMI to DVI cable. That allows me to see the best color. My blacks and whites were clipped when using Extended, and Component is only for a HDMI to HDMI connection.
 
#918 ·
Do either the 400 or 410 have USB 2.0? I understand that USB 1.0 caused choppiness/stuttering for the Philips 5982, but haven't seen such a problem for the Pioneer.


I would think that since Philips corrected the problem with the 5990/5992 release with USB 2.0, Pioneer would do the same


I have also seen a suggestion that the 400 was USB 2.0 capable with a firmware upgrade. Can anyone confirm this or does anyone have this firmware upgrade?
 
#919 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by blackrain /forum/post/14004325


Do either the 400 or 410 have USB 2.0? I understand that USB 1.0 caused choppiness/stuttering for the Philips 5982, but haven't seen such a problem for the Pioneer.


I would think that since Philips corrected the problem with the 5990/5992 release with USB 2.0, Pioneer would do the same


I have also seen a suggestion that the 400 was USB 2.0 capable with a firmware upgrade. Can anyone confirm this or does anyone have this firmware upgrade?

both of them are 1.1 which means that it wont power the devices connected (i.e. external HDD that is internally powered),

Dont know about any firmware that claims to upgrade the port.
 
#920 ·
The 400 and 410 HAVE USB2.0. They do power external HD's, thumb drives, and will even charge your Ipod while listening to it.


I use my USB all the time.
 
#922 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by danifilthfans /forum/post/14006860


The 400 and 410 HAVE USB2.0. They do power external HD's, thumb drives, and will even charge your Ipod while listening to it.


I use my USB all the time.

Hello,

There is two main differences between USB 1.1 and USB 2.0: Data rates and power consumption.

- Thumb drives are backward compatible with USB 1.1 in terms of data rates ( they will be slower on USB 1.1 but will still work), most thumb drives doesn't need power levels of USB 2.0.

- Ipods will still charge using USB 1.1 it will just take longer, apple link here

DV-400v doesn't support USB 2.0 data rates:
Here is a detailed discussion for the USB cababilities of the DV-400 here

bottom line is the transfere rates of the USB port on the DV-400 around 3 Mbps max as opposed to 480 Mbps for USB 2.0 (thats why any higher quality xvids regardless of the resolution will be choppy on the USB and play fine on the DVD)

DV-400v doesn't support USB 2.0 power levels:

Check the manual, it clearly states (Chapter 6):

"If a USB ERR message lights in the display, it may mean that the power requirements of the USB device are too high for this player."

Now given the fact that there is no internally powered USB device out there that requires power more than what USB 2.0 already provides, this is pioneer saying "don't count on compatibility with USB 2.0 devices."


I think I can safely conclude that the DV-400v USB port IS NOT USB 2.0 (even if some reports that the Mediatek Chipset used would support USB 2.0, experiments showed that Pioneer has messed it up with the implementation.


Sorry for the long post, I hope it was informative,

Regards,
 
#923 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by aasoror /forum/post/14007795


Hello,

There is two main differences between USB 1.1 and USB 2.0: Data rates and power consumption.

- Thumb drives are backward compatible with USB 1.1 in terms of data rates ( they will be slower on USB 1.1 but will still work), most thumb drives doesn't need power levels of USB 2.0.

- Ipods will still charge using USB 1.1 it will just take longer, apple link here

DV-400v doesn't support USB 2.0 data rates:
Here is a detailed discussion for the USB cababilities of the DV-400 here

bottom line is the transfere rates of the USB port on the DV-400 around 3 Mbps max as opposed to 480 Mbps for USB 2.0 (thats why any higher quality xvids regardless of the resolution will be choppy on the USB and play fine on the DVD)

DV-400v doesn't support USB 2.0 power levels:

Check the manual, it clearly states (Chapter 6):

"If a USB ERR message lights in the display, it may mean that the power requirements of the USB device are too high for this player."

Now given the fact that there is no internally powered USB device out there that requires power more than what USB 2.0 already provides, this is pioneer saying "don't count on compatibility with USB 2.0 devices."


I think I can safely conclude that the DV-400v USB port IS NOT USB 2.0 (even if some reports that the Mediatek Chipset used would support USB 2.0, experiments showed that Pioneer has messed it up with the implementation.


Sorry for the long post, I hope it was informative,

Regards,



I guess there are no firmware upgrades floating around to enable USB 2.0 transfer speeds?


Also, I am surprised that the 410V doesn't boast USB 2.0 transfer speeds with the new Philips 5990/5992. It would seem that Philips has the edge now for a lot cheaper. Have you heard or seen anything about the 410V? I don't even understand the purpose of the 410V
 
#924 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by blackrain /forum/post/14011162


I guess there are no firmware upgrades floating around to enable USB 2.0 transfer speeds?


Also, I am surprised that the 410V doesn't boast USB 2.0 transfer speeds with the new Philips 5990/5992. It would seem that Philips has the edge now for a lot cheaper. Have you heard or seen anything about the 410V? I don't even understand the purpose of the 410V

Check out the posts in the last couple of pages for a thorough discussion about the purpose of the infamous 410v. Beside making the potential buyers happy with the 400v "reduced to clear" price, there is no single advantage of 410v over 400v .. oh how can I forget ?!, HD JPEGS


I wouldn't hold high hopes for unlocking the USB port, even if, its highly unlikely to find any difference in image quality for bit rates above 3 Mbps considering the fact the image would still be of the standard definition resolution.

And yes, being a pioneer owner I hate to admit that, Philips does have the edge since the second half of 2007 all their released players (even non-upconverting) are equipped with USB 2.0 ports
 
#926 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kage /forum/post/14012416


I wrote an email to Pioneer about the USB version on the 410V and I just got an email from them and they said that the DV-410V has USB 2.0.

These are the same CS guys who confirmed that "DLs disk aren't compatible with the player" which turned out to be wrong.


I would suggest actual test, try a divx file with bitrate around 8 - 10 Mbps and see how that works.

I would be very thrilled if that turned out to work, this would imply a possible firmware porting from the DV410 to unlock the DV400's USB port.

Thanks,
 
#927 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by aasoror /forum/post/14012636


These are the same CS guys who confirmed that "DLs disk aren't compatible with the player" which turned out to be wrong.


I would suggest actual test, try a divx file with bitrate around 8 - 10 Mbps and see how that works.

I would be very thrilled if that turned out to work, this would imply a possible firmware porting from the DV410 to unlock the DV400's USB port.

Thanks,

I don't have any divx files to try out. If someone could send me a divx file, I'll glady will test it on the DV410 to make sure it has USB 2.0 port.
 
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