newcomb being

Hey dvdtalkers.

I've decided to stick to my DVD collection instead of upgrading to HD. There are many reasons why one would do this, which we've all heard, and since that's not the point of this thread, we don't need to discuss it here.

What I would like is advice. I have a DVD collection and want to get the most out of it. So...

What's the best kind of television to get?
What's the best kind of DVD player to get?
What's the best way to connect one to the other?

I imagine my best setup is to get a good around-40" CRT television with a DVD player that uses s-video and has progressive scan. But I could be mistaken as I'm not a videophile in the least (which is one reason why I am content with sticking to DVDs).

So please, help me out! Feel free to recommend specific DVD players or TVs.

Or please correct me if I'm completely wrong and the real way to get the most out of my DVDs is to get a HD-LCD TV and an upconverter or something. This seems unlikely though.

DVD Polizei

Well, you can take a shot at Toshiba's upconverting wonder for around $100-$150 I think. The XE-500. It would be worth it if you have a rather large collection of DVDs.

For the TV, I'd stay away from CRT. A 40" is ridiculously heavy. For you, I'd recommend a "1080i" LCD TV of around 37". Maybe a 42" LCD TV. As far as the best brands, you can't really go wrong at this point. Maybe somebody else can point out a few bad brands to stay away from.

The way to connect will have to be HDMI, since upconverting is prohibited on upconverting DVD players (maybe there's an Oppo you can use as a bypass, but you'd have to check their forums or AVS and you'll be spending more). Your TV and DVD player should have the HDMI outs and ins already, so all you need is the cables.

If you don't want upconverting, then component is the best alternative. Of course, you won't be upconverting to 720p/1080i/p or anything. You'll be restricted to 480p. But, it doesn't look bad at all. I've seen 480p upconverted on a 50" plasma, and it's not so terrible.

newcomb being

I've looked at the XD-E500 quite a bit actually. It seems like quite a good buy since I imagine I could get it at around $100. But there doesn't seem to be much use for an upconverting DVD player if I stick with CRT, since I'd be playing 480i discs on a TV that outputs 480i. Right?

I already have a 36" CRT, and yes it is quite heavy. I wouldn't want to go much bigger than that as far as CRT is concerned. But if I do go the LCD route, I've considered VIZIO. My girlfriend has one and it's surprisingly good quality for how less expensive it is compared to other comparable models.

I suppose this is true IF I get an LCD TV. But not if I stick to CRT since, correct me if I'm wrong, I'd be playing a 480i disc on a 480i analog TV anyway. Right?

And what do you mean by "Upconverting is prohibited on upconverting DVD players?"

Is component better than S-Video? I really don't know the difference.

Mr. Salty

I don't understand. The whole point of your thread is asking how to get the most out of your DVD collection. And your very first question to that end was "What's the best kind of television to get?" That would imply that you are considering buying a new TV, which may mean you won't be sticking with your current 480i CRT.

You probably won't be able to, even if you want to. I don't think anybody is making large CRTs anymore. They're a dying technology.

Vizio is OK. You have a lot of better choices these days now that LCDs have been around for a while. Perhaps it would be best if you gave us some sort of idea of what your budget is, and what size TV you're interested in buying.

For example, my own recommendation would be a 42-inch Panasonic plasma, but that's without knowing other specifics from you.

Again, you're asking us how to get the most out of your DVD collection. That means getting an upconverting DVD player and a TV capable of displaying a progressive signal.

DVD Cop's answer was incomplete. Copy protection prevents upconverting DVD players from upconverting via the analog component video connection. With few exceptions they require an HDMI connection, which is digital.

Yes, component (three video leads, red green and blue) is better than S-video. The picture quality of component and HDMI is essentially the same, but as I said, upconversion is usually prohibited over component, so you'll want HDMI.

Brian Shannon

Panasonic Plasma, Oppo player, hdmi cable

newcomb being

Yes, this is true. I didn't mean to imply that I was sticking to my CRT, but just alerting that that is what I currently have.

While I'm aware that CRT is a dying technology (at least in its old form), I haven't really done any research on them recently. I thought Flat Screen CRTs were quite common still, HDReady at that.

42 inch is probably the biggest I'll need. I wouldn't mind a tad smaller either. I don't really want to spend more than $1,000 on a TV though.

I wasn't aware of this. I've noticed that many people would rather play their DVDs on a nice CRT than upconvert on current HD TVs. They're reasons are that the DVDs look great on CRT (since 480i source is played on 480i TV, it should look good), and that upconverting is just that: converting. You can only display what's given to you, after all.

I didn't know this! Good information.

If upconverting technology has come quite the long way where a DVD can look quite good upconverted on an HDTV, then I'm definitely interested. But my DVDs look great on my CRT and I've seen DVDs look HORRIBLE on HDTVs, which is why I wasn't sure which method would "get the most out of my DVD collection."

Are there different opinions on this? Or is there a clear winner (cost not being an issue)?

newcomb being

This is certainly looking like where this thread is heading. I always thought that CRT was the BEST technology as far as displaying a good picture, and that it was merely shunned because of its bulk and weight. I suppose I may have been misinformed.

I have also read mixed reviews on the Toshiba XD-E500, but some say that it's the best so far in upconversion (with the "crisp" setting turned on, the "color" and "contrast" settings turned off).

Is there anything worth mentioning about LCD vs PLASMA vs ETC when it comes to displaying upconverted DVDs? Or are they all about the same these days?

Brian Shannon

Things continue to change, much as they always do with consumer electronics.

CRT's were the best but started to lose their edge years ago.

If you intend to move forward then a set from Panasonic, Sony, Samsung, Sharp, Pioneer etc., will be able to not only display older 480p content on standard dvd's but newer material up to and including 1080p.

It seems to me that a trip to a local high end store in your area would be appropriate (if you have one) to get a better idea of the quality that can be reproduced on a newer flat panel set.

For reference I have not upgraded anything of mine to BD mainly because I am still waiting for a high quality player to be released. As far as the TV, last year I sold my Sony 36XBR400, maybe one of the last of the high quality crt's and bought a Panasonic plasma. The difference even with the plasma uncalibrated was staggering.

newcomb being

Thanks for all the advice everybody. It seems like I need to do the following to get the most out of my DVD collection:

Get an HDTV (Plasma or LCD)
Get a device that can upconvert DVDs (oppo or XD-E500 and the like)
Get HDMI cables

Any objections? As I said, I've seen upconverted DVDs that look HORRIBLE. Is that a thing of the past? Or is it merely a settings problem in most cases?

Mr. Salty

They aren't. I did some looking around, and it appears Sony and Panasonic don't make CRTs at all anymore. Sharp has models ranging up to 36 inches, but they aren't flat-screen.

Mikael79

I just bought a Blu-ray player, but I'm also going to buy the OPPO DV-980H, because of the fact that it can play discs from all regions, upconvert them to 1080p, and also play SA-CDs and DVD-Audio discs. Otherwise I'd be stuck with three players (Blu-ray, Region-free player, SA-CD/DVD-A player).

You can also get the superior Oppo DV-981HD, but I'm not going to pay over $200 for a non-HD player, and I'm not sure if you would either.

Spiky

CRT is still the best. But people don't care about the best picture, they care about cabinet looks and décor. You were properly informed.

DVD Polizei

I dunno. I will say in my own experience, I owned an Eizo CRT monitor and it was absolutely essential I had the same quality when I upgraded to an Eizo LCD monitor. I went over this with Eizo for sometime and then finally made my decision. I wasn't disappointed. And I think the LCD monitor I ended up owning, was even better than the CRT counterpart I owned.

On a side note, maybe the OP could even look into projectors. This is probably too much information, but projectors can do quite well.

newcomb being

Ah. I guess I'll just have to move on with the times then. Isn't somebody working to compress CRT technology to the point of having them the size of current HDTVs, though? I imagine if some company was successful at this, it would immediately make all other HDTVs obsolete. If all other electronics are shrinking (laptops, for example) it seems like CRTs should get smaller, too. Maybe I'm dreaming.

All-region might make me consider this over the XD-E500. I forgot to consider this. My current Philips DVD player has one of those easy hacks (open tray, 99990, close tray). But I'm strangely drawn to Toshiba's "super dvd" player. Especially if it's the current best DVD upconverter at only $99.

Does Moore's Law apply to CRT's?

If that's the case, maybe CRTs are truly obsolete. Maybe not technically, of course, but if you can't notice the difference, then who cares about that.

I am very ill-informed when it comes to projectors. But I'll start a new thread about that since it seems off topic here. But I would absolutely love a projector if it could produce an image as good as anything that's been suggested so far.

Spiky

Black level was the same? Seems impossible, even if it was a crappy CRT. My dad had a non-XBR Sony RPTV for 20 years, pretty bad by CRT standards. Still better blacks than his Bravia flatscreen.

With my projector, I accept the fact that my old 27" has a better pic in some ways. The HD resolution, system color improvements (ATSC vs NTSC), and sheer size mean I prefer the projector despite its limitations. I would love to have a good CRT projector instead, but I just couldn't afford the space and energy to keep it up.

Well, that's essentially what plasma is. But it didn't obsolete all others, as you can see if you walk into a store. Unless you mean something like this:
http://gizmodo.com/archives/samsung-...ion-024892.php

There are some technologies being developed that haven't really made it to the marketplace, these should compete with CRT quality. It's fun to look at them online, but you aren't going to find a good deal on them any time soon.

Brian Shannon

You have to remember that with any media, the quality is only as good as the transfer and the production of the disc.

Some discs just don't look good, on any equipment.

Spiky

It's certainly the best marketed of 2008. Do a Google for "region free dvd". You will find some stores that specialize. They take some machines without easy hacks and alter their hardware for region free.

I wouldn't say so. That's just about transistors/circuit boards, really. A CRT is a big tube that charges up phosphor to get a picture. Not the same at all. I mean, their circuit boards have gotten smaller, but that didn't shrink them to the point of LCD flat panel size. Tubes still need space.

newcomb being

$1,000 for a 32 inch in 2005? Why couldn't I get a good deal now? Are these for sale now?

Except on old CRTs =P

Sounds like something that's worth looking into. I only have a few Region 3 discs, but I hate being limited in what I can play.

Which makes me wonder how these Samsung Thin CRTs work. Lots of tiny tubes?

Mr. Salty

No, not lots of "tiny little tunes." A CRT is one tube.

In any case, it's irrelevant. The link above is from 2004. Samsung abandoned the technology and now only makes plasma, LCD and DLP TVs.

Spiky

Oh, there are plenty of discs that look bad no matter what.