Match

I am in the market for a region free dvd player to replace my old Pioneer DV606D (which is not region free).

Are there any know problems about the Cyberhome?

Will the Cyberhome 500 dvd player have a better PQ than my old Pioneer?

If the Cyberhome is a bad choice, what other players do you consider?

Thanks

pro-bassoonist

"search".......will answer your questions!!!

renaldow

Also check out the Cyberhome forum on www.nerd-out.com They're good players that do a very good PAL/NTSC anamorphic conversion, but there are some problems with SVCD playback and progressive scan playback. If you don't want SVCDs or use PS, it might be a very inexpensive option. I've got one and enjoy it. It's got a good pic.

skokefoe

i've had mine for a few months and have been very happy. as for SVCD issues; it's noticeably stuttery at times, but i can live with it and it hasn't been that bad on the couple dozen SVCDs i've played on it. the anamorphic PAL -> NTSC playback worked very well (4:3 NTSC tv)

skokefoe.

paranoized

Yes, several. Do a search here for more information.

No way. PQ is not one of the Cyberhome's strong points. Don't get rid of that Pioneer yet.

The CH is decent for playing PAL, but you wouldn't want one as your main player. If you have HDTV, you'll be way better off with a Mediamatics player.

Numanoid

Hmmm...well I DO have one as my main player and don't have a single issue with it. It looks great, it plays all my PAL stuff beautifully, and I don't have a single complaint about it. Note: I do not watch SVCDs or have a widescreen television, which can lead to the impedence issue (fixable with a mail-in).

cinemaman

I replaced my high end panasonic with the CH500 and no complaints. tweaked it with Video essentials, pix looks great.. great sound and I get DTS decoding (which my panasonic doesn't have because it's an older model).

PAL to NTSC looks great... a few quirks (doesn't remember where you left off if you shut down the machine), but haven't even thought of bringing back the panasonic.

connecting component cables to a pre-wega 4:3 sony xbr

Sartana

Yeah, picture quality definitely is one of the player's strong points. A search here and at the nerd-out forum will reveal that that's the general consensus. The only people who seem to be dissatisfied are those who wanted the player for SVCD playback. I don't use SVCDs, so the jerky playback issue doesn't affect me. Something else to point out is that the progressive scan issues have been fixed. If anyone is still having problems they should exchange their machine through Argus Electronics. They'll give you an RMA no matter how long ago you purchased the machine. Which of course is another big selling point for this company--they have great customer service. For under a $100 you aren't going to find a better option. If you want to spend a couple hundred or more, then you might want to consider other players like the Malata, Jaton, Mediamatics, etc, but the Cyberhome is certainly still in the running, even against higher priced machines.

dleedlee

Do they repair or replace the player?

...Nevermind, I see you said "exchange".

renaldow

Also, CH released a new firmware update yesterday that supposedly fixes the SVCD issues. It's available on their website www.cyberhome.com I've installed it and haven't had any problems with it, but then I also don't play SVCDs.

And yeah, picture quality on the 500 is very good. The only complaints I've seen in that dept are the PS problems on widescreen TVs. I've got a great pic on a Sony Wega after calibrating it to the player.

Sartana

Yes, you will definitely need to recalibrate your set, which may be one reason why some people aren't happy with the picture quality right out of the box. This machine pumps out intense colors compared to other players and an adjustment with Avia or Video Essentials is, well...essential. Right out of the box, the hot reds and oranges will look completely out of whack compared to many others players. After a few adjustments though, it will look great.

mrwilson

The Pioneer will give you better PQ. You can still buy chips to mod the 606 to region free. You won't get pal->ntsc conversion like you would with the Cyberhome though.

Sartana

Well, we could list a lot of players that arguably have better picture quality, but I'm sure that most people buying this machine are interested in proper PAL-to-NTSC conversion. The competition narrows significantly when you realize that there are only a handful of machines that do proper PAL-to-NTSC. Factor in price and features, and I still say that the 500 is the way to go.

Bilbo Baggins

I have a question for those of you who said you have this player with a Sony WEGA set. My current region-free player is dying and I want to get a new one. The one problem I have with my current player is that it does not display anamorphic PAL dvds properly. I have a 36" WEGA set and if i put the TV in anamorphic mode it will squeeze the picture. If I don't put the TV in anamorphic mode the picture is stretched. So I am curious if this player will play anamorphic PAL dvds in the correct aspect ratio. Do these dvds look streched or squeezed to people that have the Cyberhome 500 and a WEGA set with anamorphic mode?

pro-bassoonist

short answer :YES it will display all images properly.

Go for it!!!!

UKingdom

does this player do smooth 2x playback with subtitles?

what i mean if for example if i skim a movie at 2x with subtitles running will playback be smooth (albeit at 2x) with the subs running consistently?

what are the fast forward speeds? 2x then 4, 8, 16, etc?

i also just visited the website; they don't advertise it as being region free; if there a rom flash involved after purchase?

thanks

Bill Geiger

UK,

No it doesn't.. and I believe the FF goes to 6x or 8x..not exactly sure. www.nerd-out.com has the answers as to how to make it region free. Only downfall is its progressive scan, unless fixed, will jump during explosion scenes.

UKingdom

are there any good region free players that "scan" movies well? my xbox does it perfectly...but i'd like to get a region free player

Bill Geiger

Everyone seems to swear on the Malata...

renaldow

If you already spent $300 on a region free player because it does accurate anamorphic PAL conversion, and then a player comes along for $60 that also does accurate anamorphic PAL conversion, well...

dyerjp

i got the malata as well, but when the ch-500 came out. i bought 2 of them. one as a backup fo the malata and one for hte bedroom. i love it.