Topic: Low cost DVD Player with HDMI?

[tscales]

I know the DVD-Audio player topic has been discussed but I haven't seen a discussion for HDMI players - Is there a good DVD player (that consistently plays DVD-audio (24-bit with a respectable DAC), DVD-Rs and all other fomats that I might burn) with an HDMI output.  Thoughts on HDMI versus S-Video?  (sorry, if this should be more audio oreinted, but I trust the boards opinions)

Is this model a joke??

LG *DVB418* HIGH DEFINITION DVD HDMI Divx Player 1080i

thanks for your thoughts.

[Nick's Picks]

the beauty of hdmi is that decks w/that output are "upsampling" decks that will output 1080i from a DVD.
just about anything over $100 will have that output. 

as for which deck excells at audio as well...got me.
thats wh I use an external DAC.  then things like "whats that deck sound like" become irrelivent.

[Lil Kim Jong-Il]

the beauty of hdmi is that decks w/that output are "upsampling" decks that will output 1080i from a DVD.

have you played with any of these?  Do they automatically adjust the scaler to match the native display resolution of the monitor?  Can the player be configured to scale to a specific rate or to not scale at all?  I'm always skeptical of chained scalers. 

If one has a 720p native display, which is better:

a) the panel scale up from 480p
b) the panel scale down from 1080i
c) force the player to scale to the native display rate
d) force the player to send the media rate and let the panel scale

?

Not so far off topic, I know someone who saw the HDDVD player on display and he was very impressed with the HD content but noticed that the new players also have awesome scalers.   A standard DVD scaled up looked very close to the HD content so that he said he thought the extra cost of the movie on HD was only marginally worth it.   I don't know what monitor was used but I assume it was 1080.

[Nick's Picks]

no..i've not played w/them.
my TV only has one digital input, and i'd need a splitter to use a 2nd high res source

[jpschust]

i don't know about lg's dvd player but i can tell you that the picture on my lg plasma is possibly the best ive seen on a plasma.

[tapeworm48]

I just came across this on the circuit city website:  Philips DVD Player with HDMI (DVP5960)

They are selling it for $70 online.  Anyone have any experience with it?   I'm putting together a new system as well and was looking for a DVD-Audio capable player w/ HDMI.  I looked at the Pioneer Elite series (non-HDMI) and some of the Denon players.   All nice w/ great reviews but $$. 

Maybe its better to focus on the HDMI aspect and forget about the DVD-A capabilities.  After all i could just hook up the PC w/ my stereo and playback in 24/96.

Thoughts?  Suggestions?

[tscales]

I'm also still on the fence...

I want a Elite DV-59AVI but their still over 500 on ebay.

A squeeze box or direct hook up would take care of any 16 or 24 bit playback.

Then there's this...

http://www.woot.com/
RCA DVD Recorder with HDMI and HD Upconversion
$129.99

Not as cheap as your Phillips, but I thought i'd give the heads up.

[Nick's Picks]

fwiw...
I found the Dennon 1920 online, referb'd full warrantee for $250
its a universal player that upconverts via hdmi output

[Lil Kim Jong-Il]

I just came across this on the circuit city website:  Philips DVD Player with HDMI (DVP5960)

They are selling it for $70 online.  Anyone have any experience with it?   

We bought one of these over the weekend.  It plays DVDA and plays the discs I authored with Audio-DVD-creator.  The 24-bit stereo output is good - better than I expected for the price.   The video quality is very sharp through the S-video port.  The remote is small and simple - in a good way.   The on screen menus are not all that sexy - they are similar to VCR menus from 12 years ago.   But how often does that matter? 

It has a USB port on the front.  I have not tried that yet but I'm excited to see if it plays mpegs from an HD tuner that I have access to.

I don't have a monitor with HDMI interface, so I can't comment on the upscaling. 

It seems like a decent unit for the price.  I wanted to get a Denon 1910 off agon but the GF wanted immediate gratification so we went to Best Buy.  The Denon might be better at upscaling but I'm not disappointed in this considering how it is being used.

[pjdavep]

Costco is selling a Toshiba upconverting DVD player w/HDMI output.  I am not sure on the model number, but in the Costco coupon booklet, there's a $20 off coupon that will bring the price down to $59.99.   The coupon is good from June 12th to 18th.

Later,
  pjdavep