HELP! Denon 1940 or Toshiba HD-EP35 - also multi-region & SACD /DVDA support on an HD player

[profile23]

I was just about to place an order for a Toshiba HD-EP35 as, after reading the recent review (WHFSAV Dec07), it appeared to be perfect for me. However, now I am not so sure! I had been considering a Denon 1940 or perhaps something better to become my new DVD source but since the review suests that the HD-EP35 is a match for the Denon at playing SD DVDs and I can get it for an extra £70 with 7 HD DVDs to start my collection I was about to place an order. My wife had agreed so long as I sell my current DVD player. BUT then

I realised that I would lose the capability for SACD playback... OK I can live with only having SACDs available in the bedroom, for now. So once again I was ready to order... OH NO what about multiregion?

I have a decent collection of DVDs which is probably 60-70% region 1! (I started my collection in the early days when region 2 disks were inferior in either sound format or extras) What should I do?????

I reckon that the Toshiba deal with 7 disks is almost too good to miss but is there any chance there will be a multiregion hack for it ever?? I could (MAYBE) persuade my wife to let me keep both for now but I only have one 5.1 analogue input on my amp (no HDMI until I can afford to uprade!) so I couldn't use SACD without swapping cables (nightmare!) so probably wouldn't and I'll already have to swap HDMI cables (or buy a switch) between SKYHD and the HD DVD.

I guess what I want to know is, should I give into temptation and grab this bargain now? (Maybe adding Blue Ray support with a PS3 or a BDROM drive for my HTPC later) or should I wait for an all-in-one player that does both Blue Ray and HD DVD as well as SACD and DVDA? And will they ever be multi-reion capable for SD DVDs?

My TV only supports up to 1080i not full 1080p (Samsung LE40M61B) Amp - Pioneer VSX-AX5Ai

 

[Andrew Everard]

[quote user="profile23"]

I reckon that the Toshiba deal with 7 disks is almost too good to miss but is there any chance there will be a multiregion hack for it ever??

[/quote]

Don't know of any HD players with multiregion hacks right now, although they may be out there, and Toshibas aren't known for being remote hackable - usually need some internal tinkering, AFAIK. That's not to say someone won't find a way of hacking it, but who knows...?

[quote user="profile23"]

Or should I wait for an all-in-one player that does both Blue
Ray and HD DVD as well as SACD and DVDA[/quote]

You could be waiting a while - universal players such as this seem to have some problems playing CDs decently, let alone SACD and DVD-A, which are unfortunately falling off the priority radar as the new HD video formats become more popular.

[quote user="profile23"]

And will they ever be
multi-reion capable for SD DVDs?[/quote]

To be honest, who knows?

 

[Andy Clough]

Hmm, I can see your dilemma, but as Andrew says, you could be waiting quite a while for a multiregion HD DVD player that also plays SACDs! Given that HD DVD players are likely to continue to drop in price, I'd hold fire on the Tosh (good a bargain as it may seem) and maybe upgrade to the Denon for now.

At least then you'll be able to continue playing your R1 and SACD discs.

 

[profile23]

You are like the angel on my shoulder (despite still suggesting that I spend at least £200) but the devil on my other shoulder is still shouting "Toshiba, Toshiba"!! Looking at the free HD DVD discs, there are probably 5 that I would be tempted to buy on DVD anyway so I'm thinking why not have them on HD DVD with a new DVD player to boot?My wife is, surprisingly, siding with the devil by telling me that I don't have time to watch all my old R1 DVDs again for quite some time anyway so should go for the Toshiba.

Also, I do have my HTPC that I can use for R1 DVDs if needed. My HTPC is a bit of an experimental testbed for my business so I don't usually count it. However, having just tried it again after a recent host of updated drivers, it now seems quite happy to output DTS ES Discrete, which, previously, was its only significant failing (Vista is still a little way from having all the necessary stable driver support!)

OK, so I watch R1 DVDs using my HTPC and listen to SACDs in the bedroom... this leads me to the following questionso you think my TV (Samsung LE40M61B) is able to do the HD-EP35 justice?

I absolutely love the picture through SkyHD and have only been disappointed by the SD DVD quality, which I'm thinking is as much down to the player anyway (Pioneer DV-575A) since picture quality is sooooooo much better from my HTPC.

I'm concerned only by the lack of info on the Toshiba HD-EP35 which states that it outputs HD DVDs in 1080p (I'm hoping this is "up to 1080p" and that it will also do 720p or 1080i) and the probable lack of 24fps support from my TV.

What exactly are the limitations of the audio output of the HD-EP35? I have always treated the sound quality and detail with at least as much importance as the video. (probably even more - maybe demonstrated by my current setup!) So HD DVD and Blue Ray interest me almost as much for the increased sound quality as the obvious video improvements.

Am I likely to notice an improvement through the 5.1 analogue output to my AX5Ai? I hope to upgrade to an amp with HDMI 1.3 capability and capable of ALL current DD & DTS formats when the funds (or credit card) allow me (obviously I'm disappointed that the EP35 only manages DTS HD (core) but since tis is probably someway off I will no doubt look to change my player at the same time!)

I also plan to upgrade to a new 1080p TV at some point (is it just me that can hear Del Boy's "this time next year..." speech?)I love to listen to CDs but only manage very rarely. I have a Sony CDP-XB930EQS which has served me well for years but has this been caught up or even overtaken by any of the DVD options such as the Denon 1940? What is the Toshiba like with audio CDs? Or should I not even ask that?!!!

I have limited funding available to me so, usually have to try to raise money from sales of surplus equipment to help fund new purchases but I have been a regular reader of What HiFi for probably around 20 years (subscriber for much of that time) and you have severely infected me with the HiFi/AV bug and it is a fever I MUST FEED!!

My current setup consists of: Pioneer VSX-AX5Ai, Pioneer DV-575A, Sony CDP-XB930EQS, Sansui SR-222 mkV, SkyHD, HTPC, Samsung LE40M61B, Mission 75C (centre), 735i (front L R), 3x 77DS (rear L C R) I also have a second system in the bedroom consisting of: Sony STR-DB930EQS, CDP-C245, TC-WR645S, Pioneer DV-444, Toshiba RD-XS30, Yamaha NS-C110 (centre), Kef Q35i (front L R) + 55S (rear L R)The purchase of a new DVD or HD DVD player will push the DV-575 upstairs and the DV-444 to ebay!

I'm sorry for the length of this reply but I couldn't think of a shorter way to put it and I must let it all out!!!!!

 

[Anonymous]

Hell....when I opened your thread up....I was convinced that a Virus had got to my PC!

 

[profile23]

One more thing.... Can you tell me what the "Extension Terminal" is for? It looks like a USB socket to me but I can't find any description of it on Toshiba's website, just that it exists!!!

 

[profile23]

yeah, sorry about that! I started with a quick query that turned into one of those..."oh, and another thin...." kind of situations!