I am going to be installing a pioneer PDP-5040HD plasma, and the cutomer wants a HD DVD player. since true HD DVD is not yet available does any one know how well a Denon DVD-2910 would display. especially with the dark scenes and black issues. the player has both DVI & HDMI outputs any preferences, or os it worth the money.

Is he an HD satellite customer with a receiver to hook via DVI?
and
How many HDMI/DVI inputs are on the Pioneer media box?

If there is only one, will your client be willing to spend even more $ on upconversion/switching right now?

You've gotta admit, that is a cool looking DVD player! Haven't seen it play though, but I'll bet it IS worth it!

-the customer is going to use hdcable, not my first choice
-the pioneer unit has 2 hdmi inputs
-all other hd distribution through the home will be routed via Xantechs new MRC88HD
-BUT STILL MY QUESTION IS, is there still issues with low light scenes and black images form hdmi signals. any help would be appreciated.

Unless I remember it wrong, the box for that TV does a D/A conversion then an A/D conversion on the video even if you bring it in via DVI. I'm sure that I saw that somewhere. I have used two of those panels with the Samsung DVD-HD931 that upconverts to 720p. The signal didn't look any better coming through a DVI to HDMI cable than it does coming through a component hookup. So, I just used component and let the receiver do the switching.

May be some difference if you are coming with a true HD signal, but I haven't had the chance to look at that. I'm going to put an HD Tivo in one of the installations in the near future and I will probably take a look at it then.

Just my opinion.

John

From what i uderstand one of pioneer's claim to fame is that it only converts a-d one time and that digital inputs bypass that circuitry all together. check out their sight, animated examples. and from what I hear the samsung 931 has been a problematic unit (I have not used one, only what I've read)

Yeah, it was the only reasonably priced DVD player that upconverted, at the time. I had to actually do a firmware upgrade on the first one I used to get it to display a picture over the DVI.

They've replaced the 931 now, but I haven't seen the new 941 model. The only one that I have seen is the 841, which is a more inexpensive model that also upconverts but with an even cheaper video chip.

I will go back and search here and at AVS forums to find the thread where I read that about the A/D and D/A conversions. But, as I remember it, it was contrary to their published specs. But, it was on a chat forum, not in the Bible.

Either way, the Pioneer panel is a good picture. I just don't like having to use the media box. Just another box that you have to put somewhere.

I agree that placing the xtra box is somtimes a pain. and the cost of longer cables is a bit expensive. BUT when remotly mounting the plasma away from the a/v euipment it does actually save time and money only having to run one cable to the display. and if the customer wants to add somthing down the line, your only installing short 2-3 meter cables in an a/v rack rather than 50' cables through the attic and walls. Also the outboard media receiver picks up one hell of agood HD antenna signal with a terk tv55 antenna.
Zack Clark

As HDMI is digital all the way through, the black issues once seen may have been a problem with the original signal or the display device.

I just stayed up late here at the office looking through our new HD content sent via HDMI to DVI into a Fujuitu P50XHA30WS Plasma for any issues in playback, and it looks great! Across the board the picture looks better than a comperable component signal.

Tooting own horn: If your client's got the $$, our entertainment servers are doing HD today. Sock the server in the basement, ethernet to the player that acts like a 1 rack U DVD player with no drive, and put a DVD reader anywhere you've got ethernet in the house. Our new players have HDMI output. Check it out at http://www.kaleidescape.com.

The 841 SUCKS!

Was that direct enough.. I can never tell.

Picture quality was pretty seriously below that of a Bravo and just crushed by a DVDO iScan HD. It costs more but it offers scaling and source selection for other sources... let us not forget the usefull audio delay...

I have tested two 841s. First one locked when I hit eject while the disc was in menu mode. Player froze and would not respond at all. Had to extract the disc manually. Won't even get into the amount of picture artifacts this baby but into the signal. Also its ouput signal was very different from that of the other DVI sources I was using.

Second unit.... Started hopping around inside of tracks. Not skipping.. just moving forward then back suddenly. Had the most problems with my Start Trek TNG DVDs. Proplem was repeatable on same discs but nat at the exact same fram... like side change frame. Just jerky.

Having to set up DVI manually beofre it works.. well that takes some time the first time you deal with the unit. Had a unit reset itself and had to go through the process again... SERVICE CALL WAITING TO HAPPEN.

Overall really unhappy with the player and have removed it from all bids that it was in. Were waiting for the 941s but it just keeps us held up on jobs. Looking to get in a denon or something to test. We need a DVI player in the arsenal.

A good DVI signal does improve things over component to digital devices like DLP LCD Plasma. Stuff with fixed pixels...

The iScan made Dark City watchable on my 61DLP. Now if I just had a steady stream of SDI DVD players...

Hey IAN... any thoughts of having your playback units include SDI... TOTAL PIPE DREAM HERE.

Can you expand on this unit? I could not find it on the Xantech site.

THX

A meeting with my xantech rep informed me that the unit was supposed to released befor CEDIA. He told me that the unit would be available by bid november. Contact your local WAVE rep.

I was at Xantech traningn like a month ago and I don't recall mention of a MRC88HD. There was some time spent on the MRC88 but I would like to have thought I would have noticed a unit that handeled High Def.

I kept having to step outside for phone calls. :(

Straying OT...


By license, we can't provide CSS protected material over any output unless it contains an approved form of copy protection. So, HDMI (or DVI w/HDCP) is good, analog outputs with Macrovision (such as it is) are good, RGBHV bad, VGA bad, and SDI bad.

Sorry.

This message was edited by Ian Epperson on 10/01/04 20:47 ET.

What exactly does the MRCHD do? Does is switch DVI? What is a WAVE rep?

Please don't quote me on the model number MRC88HD. All I was told is that the MRC88 was going to be upgraded to handle HD and that it would have 4 HD inputs and outputs to all 8 zones. As far as the conections I was told either 15 pin D-sub or component, I think component would be better so that the signal could be transmitted up to 200 feet with the use of balons.