Tosh HD-A2 HD DVD - First End User Reports! - Page 172

Not to mention that I can get 2 episodes (~42 minutes) of the Big Bang Theory on a DVD-R in HD DVD format and play them back in HD. Better than you can buy in the store.

I'm with Netflix and didn't get that email "yet". Not sure why they would eliminate thier existing stock but maybe it's more hassle then it's worth? I did get the email last year saying they would not be buying any more HD-DVDs but thier existing stock would remain. I subscibe to thier HD-DVD first selection.

BTW, my HD-A2 quit recognizing hd dvds a few weeks back. Figured it was toast. Still worked for regualr DVDs as an upconverting DVD player. Had version 2.7 on it. Updated to 2.8 after this problem came about. Still would not read HD DVDs. So today I read here that 4.0 was out. Went to download it and it directed to firmware 3.0 (guess they pulled 4.0?). In any case, 3.0 brought my HD player back to life. Can't say why, but it did. It now recognizes HD DVDs again and plays them fine.

Tom

Download the A2 4.0 firmware ISO here: http://tacp.toshiba.com/tacpassets-i...D-A2-4000N.zip

any problems with 4.0 after transferring it to your player?

does it seem to speed up start up time?

"Quote:
Originally Posted by red71rum
Sometimes when I go to watch a movie on my A2 it says that it cannot upconvert the movie(when playing an SD DVD). Anyway, if I restart the A2, the message is not displayed. I have the 1026 firmaware for the Samsung 4695D(I had it upgraded by samsung, but don't remember the exact #) and the latest 3.0 firmware for the A2. I am connected to the Samsung directly by HDMI. Is the 4695D known to have handshaking issues over HDMI or could this be an A2 problem?"

originally posted by singitloud
Problem is my Samsung 4695D will not show the HDMI input for the HDDVD player until it senses that the A2 is on. The latest firmware update did not fix the problem. I still have to restart the A2.

update took a little longer than the previous ones, but no problems

havent noticed any differences though.

what were the improvements for this update?

speed up start-up time?(hope so)

that sucks, but now a days you can get HD-DVD's for anywhere from $5.99-$20

im going to start buying some titles for my HD-DVD, my Blu-Ray collection is about 3 to 1 lol

I did the 4.0 today. Took a while and I see no differences; load times are just as slow as before but the picture (Potter) is just as awesome as it was.

I received an A2 from ebay recently to add to my A3 . I have one question to ask you other owners: Does this player transcode DD to DTS? When I play Planet Earth,for example, on the A2 my Yamaha receiver indicates DTS not DD. In contrast, the A3 audio shows up as DD for same disk on the receiver. I know this is a newbie question but I did not want to sift through this long thread for an answer. Thanks for any help.

long thread, short answer.

Yes, it transcodes to DTS via optical (noted many times here as an advantage over the A3)

Thanks for the quick answer.

anyone notice any improvements after upgrading to 4.0 firmware?

I just picked up a Panasonic Blue-Ray which sits on top of my Toshiba HD-A2.
I bought the same movie in Blue-ray that I have in HD.
Both are hooked up to a Onkyo 605. When TrueHD is selected for the HD movie "MULTICH" is shown. BUT the same movie in Blue-Ray "TrueHD" is shown. Doesn't the A2 send out TrueHD?

The A2 does not have the ability to bitstream TrueHD (or DTSHD) to your receiver - and never will. However, the sound you get should be identical as the A2 decodes the TrueHD track and sends it to your AVR as PCM.

Thanks for the reply

I am using my A2 to output 480i, anyone know if the setup option for video/audio does anything when set to interlace output? to me only make sense for progressive output.

Ack! Sorry, but why on earth would you use this slow, clunky sucker as a 480i player...?


Which ones? I do know that some of these options don't make a lot of sense. For instance, you have to set the Optical audio output to a certain setting in order to get the most out of the HDMI audio.

Nevermind..I got it...

my pioneer has a good de-interlacer and decently upscales so 480i HDMI output is ideal. Using it basically for my kids dvds, rather wear the a2 out then my ps3. The 30 second bootup is my only main complaint.



forgot to look last night, setup menu, video option, auto.movie or video mode is the optins.

I think the pulldown modes would probably still apply since they have to do with frame rates as opposed to resolution. I would try playing with them and see which looks best.

I'm thinkin of gettin an A2 (i know its 1080i) instead of an A20, due to cheaper costs... my tv does 1080p would it do a good job at deinterlacing?

I have a Sony XBR4

Is there a consensus on which firmware version is the best to run on the A2? I have 2.8 running right now and also have the 4.0 disc, but what benefit would that upgrade give me?

Unless you're talking 24p, I doubt you'll be able to tell the difference.

Heck, I'm running 1.6 and don't see the need to update since all my discs work and the player is doing all the decoding. I don't see myself buying any other HD discs (unless at $7 or less) since I have a BD player as well.

BUT...as Robert said, if there is a definitive best firmware to use, especially for PQ and AQ, then I will update...load times do not bother me.

I just bought a used A2 from CC for $36 (no remote) but with version 1.2 on it. The fan is very loud and annoying. Should I take it back or is should I swap out the fan for a quiet one?

I found FW revision 2.7 gave me the best picture for both HD DVD and SD DVD upscale, and since I've no issues with the player, I've stayed put -- 2.7 is my official A2 rev . (Same thing with 2.4 on my RCA HDV-5000.)

I'd like to know of a quieter fan as well. I've three A2's and one has a distinctly louder fan -- anybody know of a good replacement?

+1. Anything above that also prevents my access to the menu on the "The Searchers".

So, I am loving my A2. I have a 1080i CRT set (FD Trinitron FTW) so 1080P isn't important to me, my Sony DG-510 is a 5.1 only receiver so I have little interest in TrueHD/DTS-MA, so . . . is there any other reason to consider upgrading to one of the higher class HD-DVD players?

I haven't done a whole lot of research but it seems the main selling point of these higher end devices is their 1080p output and HD Audio capabilities, is there anything else I'm missing, say improved PQ, improved interface speed, improved upconverting?

All in all, this was the best $25 I have ever spent, so unless there's any good reason to go with something else, I suspect this will be my HD source of choice for some time.

Thanks

tno

I dont know if this will affect certain disks but the internal clock can not be set after this update.