cine

FWIW, according to discussions at the AVS and High-Def Digest forums this Curtis Mathes CMMBX130, currently on sale at Target.com for $99 (plus tax/shipping), might be another Momitsu BDP-899 clone like the Sherwood 5003 and VisionQuest VQM-1000.

Jay G.

Here's the AVS thread:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1169983

And the player at target.com :
http://www.target.com/Curtis-Mathes-.../dp/B001B9Q11G

zombeaner

This will be okay for me (I'm inches from ordering the thing and a Sony HT-SS360 HDMI HTIB) I just need to make sure some how that there is DTS-HD AND Dolby TrueHD decoding somewhere among these two products.

E Unit

I just ordered one. Fuck it - for that price, I'll take a chance. Interesting the player is avalible only online. I hope this works out, beats the hell out of getting an Oppo, which I was about to do. Saving $400 works for me.

Dusty Bottoms

I just ordered the Curtis Mathes player also. Last night it showed out-of-stock at Target. This morning, it was available again. For $99.00, I will try it out. I found a .pdf of the manual yesterday, and the front panel and remote layout look identical to the Momitsu.

Now, I just need to decide which region locked BD to order to test it out.

E Unit

I was looking at the manual as well - looks like it does both PCM and Bitstream. It also has 7.1 analog outputs.

bugula

I ordered the Curtis Mathes earlier this week when the price drop happened. Based on reviews, the unit was released first in the UK and is in fact an 899 clone.

Jeff Edwards

Out of stock again at the moment.

manicsounds

The Curtis Mathes, Sherwood, Visionquest, TMY, RWC-RM, are all clones of the Momitsu 899, but there are some differences, the clone models are not BD-Live ready, they are all only 1.1 models, and is missing the second USB port too, if those are important.

Jaymole

I am ready now to buy a region free Blu-ray player, but I am torn in deciding between the Momitsu & the Oppo. I can get a hardware modified Oppo for $600 Total which is $220 more than the Momitsu. I love & own a Oppo DVD player but I am not sure if the Oppo 83 is worth $220 more than the Momitsu.

If anone can convince me one way or the other, I would really appreciate it...I am getting a headache over the choice.

Jay G.

Why would you get a "hardware modified" Oppo BDP-83 for $600, when you can buy an unmodified one for $500 and apply the firmware change yourself, saving $100?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002EEP3MK
http://www.hkflix.com/hardware/xq/as...qx/details.htm

Josh Z

The problem with the firmware hack is that you'll lose it if you ever need to update to a newer official firmware. For example, the Wolverine Blu-ray won't play with the old firmware, but Oppo is working on a fix for it now. Applying a new firmware will overwrite the hack.

The hardware mod is easy to install and permanent. You can continue to load official firmwares without affecting the region modification.

Jay G.

This is assuming that there won't be hacked versions of newer firmware.

I doubt the hardware mod is as easy to install as the firmware upgrade. Also, I don't know of many people who apply hardware mods themselves, hence the resell market for pre-modded players.

Dusty Bottoms

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think there has been a hack other than the first one. Oppo has continued to update their firmware though. If I purchased a title that required a firmware update, I wouldn't want to wait around on the chance that there might be another hack. It's great to have a firmware hack as an option, but I could easily see why someone would spend $100 for the hardware mod.

I considered the Oppo, but I couldn't justify $499 plus the cost of the modification to go region free right now. I'm going to try out the $99 Curtis Mathes player for region coded import BDs, and I will probably continue to use a PS3 as my primary Blu-ray player.

Jay G.

There are hacks for the original 430 firmware and for the 601 beta firmware. The current stable firmware from Oppo is 620, with a newer 905 beta firmware.

The 620 firmware has been out for 3 months, so updated hacked firmwares are, at least, lagging behind the official firmware releases.
http://www.avforums.com/forums/blu-r...-part-3-a.html

Dusty Bottoms

You're right. I forgot that there was a hack for both the original and the beta firmware releases.

I haven't followed the Oppo threads much during the last three or four weeks. Have there been any recent BDs that require a firmware update that breaks the hack? That would be my biggest fear. I wouldn't want to build up a collection of region B or C titles that won't play if I have to update the firmware to watch a new release.

If you are comfortable doing the hardware mod yourself, I guess you could always start with the firmware hack. If the hacks aren't updated frequently, you could buy a mod kit later if you felt it was necessary.

Lastdaysofrain

So I just read this whole thread and my head is spinning.

If I want a Blu Ray player that will play DVDs from any region, convert PAL to NTSC as well as play any region Blue Ray disc, is there something I can buy?

Josh Z

True, but you have to place your faith in the hackers to continue updating their hacks indefinitely.

The JVB mod for this particular player (BDP-83) is incredibly easy to install. It's a 5 minute process with no soldering required. Take the hood off the player, disconnect a cable, snap in the replacement, and replace the hood. That's it.

Jay G.

You can buy the :
Momitsu BDP-899 and apply the remote hack
Momitsu BDP-799 and apply the remote hack
Curtis Mathes CMMBX130 and apply the remote hack
Oppo BDP-83 and either use the older hacked firmware, or use the hardware mod.

Jay G.

Do you think BD players will need to have their firmware constantly updated? Or will the players reach a point of compatibility that will require no new updates?

Related to this, do you think manufacturers will update their players indefinitely? Or will players reach the end of support, and updates will be stopped?

Dusty Bottoms

Good questions. I thought once players reached BD 2.0, the firmware updates would slow down. It seems like we continue to get BDs that require the updates though. I'm pretty sure Ghostbusters required an update on the PS3. I think I read that Dollhouse Season One required new firmware on some players, and Josh Z mentioned a problem with the Wolverine disc and the Oppo.

seymouru

The Unofficial Oppo FAQs include a pretty good summary of the technical issues that may require ongoing firmware updates on all players for the foreseeable future:

More info: Why does the player need firmware updates before it will play certain Blu-ray discs?

Josh Z

It's certainly no coincidence that discs from Fox continue to cause the most compatibility problems across the broadest range of player manufacturers. The studio is ultra-paranoid about piracy and constantly changes their encryption protocols.

Gizmo

Yet all of their titles are available on torrents. They do such a wonderful job a BDRip of Wolverine has been available for about 2 months now.

Jaymole

Thanks for the info so far. I am leaning towards the Oppo (hardware modified) as it is better with upscaling and with interlaced DVDs.