DVD upconversion

[CouchTater]

<p>I''m considering buying&nbsp; a new HDTV since my current&nbsp; 4&nbsp;y/o Mitsubishi is already obsolete as it has no HDMI or DVI inputs. I am not quite ready to sink the money into a Blu-ray or HD DVD player until a winner emerges and the price drops as I am a former Beta victim. I am thinking of a DVD with upconversion. How well do these work? Is it signifigantly better than progressive scan? Am leaning towards a JVC 61 FN97 TV. Any comments appreciated!</p><BR>

[MatthewB]

<div>Check out this thread.</div><BR><div><a href="http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/idealbb/view.asp?topicID=52408">http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/idealbb/view.asp?topicID=52408</a></div><BR><div>This would be perfect for you, because your current HDTV has no DVI or HDMI (I''m in the same boat.) I bought the 970 and haven''t been happier since. This unit is fantastic, it''s upconversion via component matches my upconverting player using HDMI to my plasma, It''s that good.&nbsp; Your current HDTV should have many more years left to it, don''t upgrade just to get HDMI, you can upconvert via component and get a fantastic picture using the Oppo 970 player (the only player to upconvert via component)&nbsp; I watch all my movies in 1080i using the Oppo and my four year old Pioneer Elite HDTV (with no DVI or HDMI).</div><BR><div>If you do decide to buy a new HDTV, get the 971 or the Oppo 981. These players have resolutions that beat out players costing thousands. The 970 is 149.00, the 971 (only upconverts via HDMI) cost 199.00 and the 981 cost 230.00</div><BR>

[yromj]

<div>The Oppo Matt pointed out is a very good option for you.&nbsp; You already have an excellent (IMHO) HDTV; therefore, I wouldn''t spend another couple of grand just to get HDMI.&nbsp; Things are changing fairly rapidly right now, so patience is a virtue.</div><BR><div>One thing I do want to point out though is that an upconverting DVD player is not a true HD source.&nbsp; The data on the disc is still only has 480 lines or resolution.&nbsp; Your TV is most likely a 1080i CRT RPHDTV.&nbsp; It either displays the image at the same resolution the player supplies it (480p if it''s a progressive scan player) or upconverts the image to 1080i.&nbsp; If it displays a 480p as 480p, then you will see a difference in the picture.&nbsp; Given the reputation of the Oppo''s scaler, the difference should be positive.&nbsp; However, if the set is displaying the 480i/p as 1080i already, then it is already doing the scaling.</div><BR><div>The Oppo may still be an improvement because it''s using a scaler that''s four years newer.&nbsp; However, don''t think it will compare to a true HD source because it''s just not one.</div><BR><div>John</div><BR>

[Jomari]

<BLOCKQUOTE><TABLE BORDER=1><TR><TD><b>Date:</b> 12/8/2006 5:59:12 PM <b>Author:</b> yromj<BR><div>The Oppo may still be an improvement because it''s using a scaler that''s four years newer.&amp;nbsp; However, don''t think it will compare to a true HD source because it''s just not one.</div><BR><div>John</div><BR><div></TD></TR></TABLE></BLOCKQUOTE></div><BR><div>&nbsp;</div><BR><div>This is a great point indicated by yromj. As much as id love to have HD id rather wait it out a bit, and see how the ol format wars will work out. The Oppo dvd player is one of the very few dvd players that upscales 480p to 720p and 1080 as well. The 981 is their newest model, and does quite a lot for under 300 clams. There are a lot of dvd players out in the market right now but the quality of upconversion is the striking point you want to have. as well as versatility with the connections it can give you.</div><BR><div>&nbsp;</div><BR><div>Do let us know what you decide on.</div><BR>

[MDRiggs]

It really depends on whether the player or the TV performs the conversion better, since the JVC will convert any non-1080p input signals to 1080p for display. If it can accept a 1080p input and the player can provide an 1080p input, and the player does a better job of converting from 480i or 480p to 1080p than the TV does, then it makes sense. Otherwise, you''re probably best off going with a really good 480p (or possibly even 480i) input to the TV.<BR>