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For those that cannot play PAL DVD's....

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PLEASE DO NOT DOWN CONVERT to NTSC - you will lose a LOT of quality and waste a TON of time (that and most free convertors cannot ITVC the video!)

IF you just go to WAL-MART and buy one of the cheap $20-$35 Cyberhome CH-DVD 300 DVD players and you will be able to play the PAL discs just fine.

MOST allegedly "cheap" asian DVD players will convert to NTSC or PAL on the fly with little quality loss!

visit Videohelp.com and do a search and check the "Multisystem/PAL to NTSC/NTSC to PAL" button when searching.

If your concerned about DVI outputs you can still score a sweet player for about $80-100 - Check out this link!

A one time purchase of about $100 will save a TON of conversion time not to mention saving the quality!

- RiK

“My skill are no longer as Mad as the once were” RiK

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I have the above mentioned DVD player, and for the price you pay its actually a pretty good player. It has played any dvd ive thrown at it so far (and yes I have played pal discs, babyhum's releases, with it). There is also a very easy 'hack' that will allow it to be region free (I dont have a link to the instructions but it can be easily found on google).

so listen to Rikter, he knows of what he speaks

-Darth Simon
Why Anakin really turned to the dark side:
"Anakin, You're father I am" - Yoda
"No. No. That's not true! That's impossible!" - Anakin

0100111001101001011011100110101001100001

*touchy people disclaimer*
some or all of the above comments are partially exaggerated to convey a point, none of the comments are meant as personal attacks on anyone mentioned or reference in the above post
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The same rule applies over here in the UK. The cheaper the player, the better it is..........

I have yet to hear about a cheap supermarket DVD player that will not play all formats.

PAL and NTSC

+R, +RW, -R and -RW

All have multi-region hacks available after the quickest of searches on Google. Some even come region free straight out of the box!!!

Buy a big name brand and you can be in trouble.

4 - 5 - 3 - 1 - 6 - 2

Discuss…

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VIDEO SETTING FOR DROPPING THE FRAMES WITH PAL DVD's

I have noticed a small problem with this model that it would drop frames at different intervals. It only drops with PAL dvd's I know that few people had troubles with it described above. Please listen carefully to me how to fix to get the smooth video transition for the PAL dvds here is the fix that works:

1) Make sure there is no disk in.
2) Hit the Setup key on the remote control.
3) Then go to Video
4) Hit Enter key on the remote control
5) Go to TV system
6) Hit Enter key on the remote control
7) Set the TV system to Auto




edited for proper display - originally from videohelp.com

“My skill are no longer as Mad as the once were” RiK

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I can also attest to the quality of this DVD player, the Cyberhome. Like Simon's, it's played every disc I've ever put in it in any format. It's play all the PAL DVDs I have just fine and the reigon hack I used so I could play the R2 'Shaun of the Dead' DVD was incredibly easy. Really a bang for your buck on this thing.

I used to be very active on this forum. I’m not really anymore. Sometimes, people still want to get in touch with me about something, and that is great! If that describes you, please email me at [my username]ATgmailDOTcom.

Hi everybody. You’re all awesome. Keep up the good work.

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Originally posted by: russs15
The same rule applies over here in the UK. The cheaper the player, the better it is..........
I wouldn't totally agree. We got a £25 model from Asda - sure it plays every format, but the picture is so muddy when compared to a more expensive model, and the build quality is shit (a piece of plastic keeps dropping off the disc tray).

My parents had a different model from Kwik Save - that lasted a year, just out of warranty, before it decided to no longer recognise any discs.

Back on topic, Rik do you have any more details on the exactly how these players do the conversion?

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I have a Pioneer DV-260 and it plays all region DVDs, DVD-R, DVD+R, I recorded a PAL Laserdisc (Art of Noise Concert) on my standalone Cyberhome in PAL format and it plays on the $89 Pioneer no problem, looks fine on 42" widescreen US TV. That same Pal DVDR also plays on my other 2 DVD players, Sony(free), GE $95 (Hacked).

“Good… Bad… I’m the guy with the gun.”

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Originally posted by: Rikter
I suggest going to wal-mart and picking up a cheapo Apex or Mintek DVD player ($35.00) that can play the PAL discs and save time converting...


Not only will you save time converting, you might save time watching as well
if your $35 cheapo plays PAL 4% too fast, as mine does.

I've heard it said "most people" don't notice the speedup, but for a movie I've seen as many times
as STAR WARS, it sticks out like a sore thumb to my ears.

Which players (cheap, or not so) play PAL films at ~24fps ?

However, in practice you must take into account the “fuckwit factor”. Just talk to Darth Mallwalker…
-Moth3r

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I got a multi region DVD player for £25. YES!!!
"A Jedi can feel the force flow through him".
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I've heard it said "most people" don't notice the speedup, but for a movie I've seen as many times
as STAR WARS, it sticks out like a sore thumb to my ears.


Same thing with me. Although part of my problem is that I have "perfect pitch", which means my brain immediately gives me the names of the 12 pitches upon hearing them. So when I start SW in PAL, my brain's busy reminding me that the Main Theme is playing in the key of B instead of B flat.

Which is why I don't watch SW in PAL.

Episode II: Shroud of the Dark Side

Emperor Jar-Jar
“Back when we made Star Wars, we just couldn’t make Palpatine as evil as we intended. Now, thanks to the miracles of technology, it is finally possible. Finally, I’ve created the movies that I originally imagined.” -George Lucas on the 2007 Extra Extra Special HD-DVD Edition

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Originally posted by: Jedikev
I got a multi region DVD player for £25. YES!!! That's not an issue with my DVD as it's region free.

Originally posted by: Darth Mallwalker
... if your $35 cheapo plays PAL 4% too fast, as mine does.
I don't think you mean it plays PAL 4% too fast (i.e. 8% faster than NTSC ), I think you mean that it plays PAL at the correct speed, which is 4% faster than NTSC.

But wait a minute, if it is playing the audio at the correct speed, and your TV is still in 525/60Hz mode (480i), then you will either get juddery playback as additional frames are inserted to make up the correct framerate, or the audio will very quickly go out of sync.

I don't know if it is possible to transcode AC-3 in realtime from 25fps to 23.976fps. Certainly when I used to play XviDs via the TV out, I could make 23.976 up to 25 with the ReClock filter, but only if they had MP3 sound. It was not possible to resample AC3.

The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that a PAL -> NTSC conversion using VirtualDub or AVISynth is superior to an on-the-fly conversion by a DVD player.

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I gotta tell you that for the last two years I've been more than happy with the playback features on my CDN$79 Malata DVP-500. It plays back DVD±R/RW, NTSC or PAL discs without a hitch. I don't expect it to last much longer, especially since it probably works harder than any piece of electronics in my house other than my computer. If it were to die today it wouldn't owe me anything, how could it for the price I paid for it. When it does die I won't be replacing it with a $35 jobby though. I'll probably go for the next step up and get the Philips DVP642. Not only is it a name brand that most people are familiar with, it plays DVD±R/RW, NTSC, PAL, DiVX & XviD! In the US you can find this guy at your local Wal-Mart and in Canada you can find it at Best Buy.
My DVD Collection

alt.binaries.starwars
Usenet. Get it! Learn it! Love it!
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yeah, i think that phillips is the same one that gets kudos over in the myspleen forums as well. and when i replace my dvd player (or just decide to upgrade after i get my own place and then get enough money back in my pockets to get a nice home theater system going) its probably the one i would get. though id spend the money on the tv and sound system first because those need upgrading more.

but when i got my player i was basically looking for a good inexpensive player that could replace my laptop as my dvd player (dont mind hooking my laptop up for divx as i dont do that as often, but i wanted to be able to use my laptop while i watched movies) and i got the cyberhome because of its price point. it wasnt till afterwards that i found it could play pal discs...so for a purchase that was meant as a 'temp' dvd player to get me by im more than satisfied with its performance.

-Darth Simon
Why Anakin really turned to the dark side:
"Anakin, You're father I am" - Yoda
"No. No. That's not true! That's impossible!" - Anakin

0100111001101001011011100110101001100001

*touchy people disclaimer*
some or all of the above comments are partially exaggerated to convey a point, none of the comments are meant as personal attacks on anyone mentioned or reference in the above post
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Originally posted by: 88keyz
in Canada you can find it at Best Buy.


I've also seen it at Superstore and Wal-Mart in Canada...

My brother has one, and says it's awesome. He tried to tell me all about it, but I quietly (OK, not so quietly) pointed out to him that I'd raved about it to him some months earlier, at which point he blew me off.

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Yeah, I've seen it at a bunch of other places as well, Best Buy was just the only one I could think of quickly with an online site that showed the product. Actually come to think of it the last time I was in Wal-Mart, here in Canada, I didn't see any of the Philips DVP642 players. RadioShack, which apparently has changed to The Source by Circuit City (Holy Shit, no more RadioShack!), also carries it for those of us that don't live close to a Best Buy here in Canada.
My DVD Collection

alt.binaries.starwars
Usenet. Get it! Learn it! Love it!
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Philips DVP642


I've been raving about these players for MONTHS!

THEY play just about everything including my XVIDS of the MagFan Edits

I have a DVP642 and just tried a PAL disc and yes, it plays them fine funny that I never tried one on this player till now

BUT I must say that the Mintek plays the PAL discs much smoother

“My skill are no longer as Mad as the once were” RiK