You're right-I meant LDA-511, heck-it's right in front of me-guess I can't read.

zrdb...SORRY BOUT DAT...chippy,chippy LG LDA511...Very nice unit,except if U try to load a Disc with a printed surface..you will see O B JUAN CAN'T READ

Got the LG LRA-516 today. Checking it out now. The only thing I don't like (so far) is the power must be on to eject a disc!

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned before, but I really don't want to look through a tonne of replies for this.

When I "updated" the firmware on my first DVP642, I lost the ability to play -R's, +R's played just fine, but it would not play -R's at all. Just a disc error. Not knowing how to rollback the firmware, I simply returned it for a new one at Wally World.

I've notcied that some divx/xvids just won't play. Partiiculary the encodes of Neighbours and Home & Away that are posted on Alt.Binaries.Multimedia and a few torrent sites. Then there's other divx/xvids that play but the video is all garbled and messed up. At first I thought it was 'non-standard' resoultions on movies that are like 800 or so megs, but last weeks VTV endcode of Smallville(the girl that controls glass) had the same problem.

What's up with this? Aside from re-encoding them, is there anyway around this? Is there a "fan-made" update around this?

I've also noticed it plays asx and wmv's, sort of. If it's playing a DivX or mp3 right before, it will play the wmv/asx, but with no sound at all. Is it safe to assume that there's some sort of update that will let it be fully compatible with wmv files?

hiya all,

first of all, i wanna say that this dvd player is awesome, i bought it at radioshack here, in Montreal, Canada for 90$ in october 2005, since then i changed it today for the same one because there was a problem with the disc tray, i was not able to open it. anyway, i hd no problem at all, plays fine all my R1 and All region discs (backups) without problem, the tv video mode is set to NTSC...now i saw on the videohelp.com website that there is a region free hack for both the DVP642/17 and DVP642/37 model...i have the second one, but i cant tell what firmware i had originally because the code 5,6,9 Ok code doesnt work for me, it doesnt show the version information..but i installed today the latest firmware, wich is 1109 (i dont care about the macrovision protection) but none of the posted codes on videohelp.com work for me (with the disc tray open of course), (the 5,6,9, Ok ; the 7,8,9,Ok,0 or even the 0,0,0,0,Ok, 0)..as i soon as i press the last digit/Ok button there is this hand icon that shows up next to the Open text but i dont see the 0 on the screen that indicates that my player is region-free...if i put a region 2 disc (original from europe), i keep getting the wrong region error..does anybody had success to set the DVP642/37 Usa player region free?? i know its not firmware related, because i had the same problem before updating...anybody has other code(s) that maybe work??

Dany24

London guy, If it won't play -Rs that your older player used to then take it back... this is a well documented "defect" on some of these players.
For video that looks "garbled" try pressing the "system Menu" button twice while playing. :-)



Dany22... Did you open the tray first?
Here it is...

1. Turn on the player.
2. Open the tray.
3. Press the following sequence on the remote:
7 8 9 OK 0
4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen.
5. Your player is now region free! Put in a DVD and enjoy! :-)

nevermind guys..i got it to work :)..the problem was i pressed too fast the numbers on the remote..this is why i didnt see the 0 on the screen...both the 7,8,9, Ok, 0 and the 5,6,9 Ok codes work fine...i press them slowly :)

Dany24

Yep, my tray was open all the time when i put the code

Thanks for the tip. It worked :). Just too bad that little trick didn't work for The Warriors, which is done in 6.x I guess. edit: it also didn't work for the season 3 batch of Family Guy that's been around for a while. Anything that's static looks perfect, but once it moves it's blocky. I guess an easy way around that would be to just re-encode them as raw mpg's and play them that way.

And something weird, both Stand By Me and Thinner had weird problems. The sound was out of wack by a good five seconds and the bottum half of the video was shifted to the side a bit. Just kinda odd seeing as they're both Steven King movies, maybe they get cursed if you download them, haha. :-D

Hi fellas,
I am sure this 'topic' is covered elsewhere in a different manner. But couldn't find the exact issue I am having. So here it goes:
The AVI files I created with Handbrake (with AC3 soundtrack) plays perfectly well on my mac, the DVDs burnt with Toast again have no issue, plays perfectly on the computer. But, in the philips player, it leads to several audio glitches like stutter that leads to severe (2-3 second) lag between audio and video. This seems to be a playback issue and I am wondering if you guys have already troubleshot this.

Thanks,
Siblyn

Has anybody seen the new Philips player that replaces the 642 at Walmart? It looks to have much better specs than the 642.

Syblin,

Check out your AVI file with MPeg4modifier. There is most prolly NVOPS present or there may be 3 or more consecutive BVOPs. Ti=his player will have trouble with these files. Re-encode with Dr DivX or use some of the other re-enc techniques described in this thread. I have found that the easiest and most reliable way is with DR. DivX.
Good luck! :-)

zrdb..Hello fella why don't U give us some directions,model no.,link on the web...sumthin !!etc

DVP5140, DivX 6 "certified", 12 bit 108mhz video dac, I've seen stacks of these at several local Walmats selling for $54.99-looks to be a good deal-can't tell about performance-I don't need another xvid/divx capable player-I already have 3 of em'.

Thanks zrdb.. will check it out! :-)

DVP5140 hmmmm... no S vid (does have component and composite), no optical (does have analog L&R and digital coax). It's black, looks nice, looks like they may have gotten rid of that blinding big red light!! LOL!

Here's the full specs:

Picture/Display
Aspect ratio : 4:3, 16:9
D/A converter : 12 bit, 108 MHz
Picture enhancement : Progressive Scan, Video upsampling, Smart Picture

Sound
D/A converter : 24 bit, 192 kHz
Frequency response : 30-20000 Hz
Signal to noise ratio : 100
Distortion and Noise (1kHz) : 85 dB
Crosstalk (1kHz) : 100 dB
Dynamic Range (1kHz) : 90 dB
Sound System : Dolby Digital

Video Playback
Playback Media : CD, CD-R/CD-RW, Video CD/SVCD, DVD, DVD-R/-RW, DivX, DVD+R/+RW
Compression formats : MPEG1, MPEG2, DivX 3.11, DivX 4.x, DivX 5.x, DivX 6.0, DivX Ultra
Video disc playback system : NTSC, PAL

Audio Playback
Playback Media : CD, MP3-CD, MP3-DVD, WMA-CD, CD-R/RW
Compression format : MP3, Dolby Digital, PCM, WMA
MP3 bit rates : 32 - 256 kbps

Still Picture Playback
Playback Media : DVD-R/-RW, DVD+R/+RW, CD-R/RW, Picture CD, Kodak Picture CD
Picture compression format : JPEG
Picture enhancement : Flip photos, Rotate, Slideshow with MP3 playback, Zoom

Connectivity
Rear Connections : Analog audio Left/Right out, Composite video (CVBS) output, Digital coaxial out, ComponentVideo out Progressive

Convenience
Child Protection : Child Lock, Parental Control
On-Screen Display languages : English, Canadian French, Mexican Spanish

Power
Power supply : 120V, 60Hz
Power consumption : < 10 W
Standby power consumption : < 0.8 W

Accessories
Included Accessories : 2 x AAA Batteries, Audio/Video cable, Quick start guide, Remote Control, World Wide Warranty leaflet, User Manual, Product Registration Card

Dimensions
Set Width : 435 mm
Set Height : 37 mm
Set Depth : 235 mm
Packaging Width : 490 mm
Packaging Height : 82 mm
Packaging Depth : 320 mm

Hi. Anyone have a somewhat definitive list of what dvd-r's will work with the 642? I've been having problems with Memorex and I was wondering if it was just my player or not.

Also, CompUSA is having a sale on dvd-r's and I was wondering if they worked well in the 642? Thanks for any help.

I use Sony 50DMR47LS3's from Walmart... 20 bucks CAD, no problems.
Check out this page for a great guide to media quality: http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/dvdmedia.htm . Read this whole guide, this is an excellent source for beginners and experts alike. Just because a disc has a good name on it, doesn't nessesarily mean it is good quality. You'll see what I mean after reading this guide. Cheers!

I am interested in buying this dvd player but my main concern is the video processing. Most dvd players on the market today have 12bit/108mhz VDAC, but this one has 10bit/54mhz VDAC. This is the only thing that is holding me back from buying it. Would this be a big difference in picture quality on a 32 inch Sony CRT TV? I would be using the S-Video extension for connecting to the TV. Thanks for the help..

The LG LDA-511 looks attractive and does play DivX files, but the video processing is absolutely horrible, and the audio processing is below standard as well. Even the much cheaper philips dvp642 has better VDAC. The LDA-511 has 27mhz/10bit VDAC, as compared to Philips' 54mhz/10bit VDAC. And even the Philips dvd player is below the current standard, which is 108mhz/12bit. As for the LDA-511's audio DAC, it is 96khz/24bit, which is below the standard of 192khz/24bit (which the Philips 642 has). So if you care about video and audio quality, the Philips 642 is actually better.

Might I intrest you in the DN191H, a brand new model that does everything the LDA511 does and has a 14 bit 108 mhz video dac, 194 mhz 24 bit audio dac, has a loading slot like the 511 and lists for $129.99 at BB? Sounds interesting, huh? Think I'll fost my 511 on someone and pickup one of these babies.

My question still stands.. how exactly important is the difference in picture quality of a video DAC 54mhz/10bit vs. 108mhz/12bit? Mind you, this is on a 32 inch Sony CRT TV, using the S-Video extension. And is video DAC even that important when deciding on buying a dvd player? Again this applies to the 32 inch CRT through the S-Video connection. Thanks for any feedback.

I can tell you that I have my DVP642 connected to my 32 inch toshiba and the picture is very acceptable. Having been in home theatre for a good part of my life, and ISF certified, I am quite picky when it comes to video.

LG Progressive-Scan DVD Player with HD Upconversion
Model: DN191H



LG Progressive-Scan DVD Player with HD Upconversion
Model: DN191H

Watch vivid 1080i visual images with this upconversion DVD player that gives you an HDTV-compliant picture via
an HDMI output for spectacular picture quality.

* Stumped over which features to choose? Our DVD Player Buying Guide can help.

* 14-in-2 media reader supports a wide range of memory cards, so you can display photos on your TV

* Progressive-scan video output maximizes the picture quality when used with a digital TV or monitor




Product Features

Plays DVD, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, CD, CD-R/RW, MP3, WMA, VCD, SVCD, JPEG, MPEG-4, DivX and XviD formats


14-in-2 media reader supports Secure Digital, Mini Secure Digital, Memory Stick, Memory Stick DUO, Memory Stick
PRO DUO, Microdrive and ST1 Microdrive


14-in-2 media reader also supports MultiMediaCard, MultiMediaCard Plus, RC MultiMediaCard, MultiMediaCard Mobile,
xD-Picture Card and CompactFlash


High-resolution JPEG photo playback allows you to view your photo images in their true resolution


1080i video output gives you an HDTV-compliant picture with roughly twice the resolution of Progressive-scan
DVD players via the HDMI output


Dolby Digital and DTS 2-channel audio recording; 3D surround sound


Progressive-scan component video output delivers extraordinarily colorful images to compatible TVs and virtually
eliminates dot crawl and flicker


108MHz/14-bit audio digital-to-analog (D/A) conversion


192Hz/24-bit video digital-to-analog (D/A) conversion


DVD playback controls include chapter skip, slow motion, zoom, repeat play, auto play, resume, bookmark search,
smooth scan and subtitle still


Outputs: 1 optical digital audio, 1 coaxial digital audio, 1 stereo audio, 1 component video, 1 S-video,
1 composite video and 1 HDMI


Parent lock controls prevent your children from being exposed to undesirable material


Trilingual on-screen display allows you to choose from English, French and Spanish
Standard remote included

I'll give this one a try,I bought the LG LDA-511,but had to take it back TWICE..The printed surface DVD's would hang on inserting or ejecting..This player[DN191H] seems to have all the pluses..Priced reasonable..Hopefully will go on sale soon

I wonder if it can be hacked like the 511 and 418 to upscale through componet?

Has anyone found a solution to this issue yet with the DVP642?

-> File menu system cuts off name at 8-11 characters.

I love the player, but also like to use long file names for descriptions in my DivX files :/

TIA!