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[Roarer]

I recently upgraded from my 5 year old 20" CRT to a Panasonic PT-AX100 projector. The only HD capable source I have at the moment is an Xbox 360 (using component cables). While games look wonderful, I'm not too sure about DVDs.

Does the 360 upscale DVDs? Would I be better off with an HDMI equipped upscaling DVD player or is the difference negligible?

Any advice appreciated!

(I know the obvious answer is to get an HD-DVD addon/BluRay player, and I will someday).

 

[Kildace]

The 360 only upscales when connected via VGA or HDMI, I believe.

 

[Doc Evils]

upscaling DVD player

 

[AZ Greg]

I thought the 360s upscaling quality was good, but the system is just too loud for me to use it as my main DVD player. So I'd go with a dedicated upscaling DVD player.

Also, the 360 only upscales over VGA or HDMI.

 

[tak]

The 360 only upscales when connected via VGA or HDMI, I believe.

This is true, the max you'll get with component is 480P; however, the 360 will upscale the DVD to higher resolutions with VGA or HDMI.

I have not seen the 360 upscaling first hand, so I cannot speak to how good it is.

 

[Vic]

dedicated

 

[Roarer]

Thanks, any particular DVD players you guys recommend?

 

[Tokubetsu]

Thanks, any particular DVD players you guys recommend?

If you've got the money for it, I hear you can't really go wrong with an Oppo.

 

[AndersTheSwede]

As said, when using VGA or HDMI the 360 upscales.

I use mine for DVD's all the time and it works great and isn't very loud.

 

[CoG]

Thanks, any particular DVD players you guys recommend?

OPPO DV-980H or DV-981H

 

[derder]

Instead of spending 100 on a good upscaling DVD Player or 30 the 360's VGA cables (pretty bad quality), go out and find a used 20 gig PS3. You can get one for about 300-350. It will also play blu-ray movies.

I'm not messing with you, its upscaling is very good, much better than the 360's.

If you still have your heart set on a dedicated upscaling player, I hear the Oppos are the best bang for your buck.

http://www.oppodigital.com/

 

[Cold-Steel]

Instead of spending 100 on a good upscaling DVD Player or 30 the 360's VGA cables (pretty bad quality), go out and find a used 20 gig PS3. You can get one for about 300-350. It will also play blu-ray movies.

I'm not messing with you, its upscaling is very good, much better than the 360's.

If you still have your heart set on a dedicated upscaling player, I hear the Oppos are the best bang for your buck.

http://www.oppodigital.com/

^ This is very sound advice.

 

[rubso]

VGA/HDMI Xbox 360 is great for DVD upscaling.

 

[tedtropy]

Honestly I still use my PSTwo as my primary DVD player. Using progressive output my TV does a pretty good job of scaling it. Honestly it looks surprisingly good, plus it's a helluva alot more quiet than my 360.

 

[AndersTheSwede]

Instead of spending 100 on a good upscaling DVD Player or 30 the 360's VGA cables (pretty bad quality), go out and find a used 20 gig PS3. You can get one for about 300-350. It will also play blu-ray movies.

I'm not messing with you, its upscaling is very good, much better than the 360's.

If you still have your heart set on a dedicated upscaling player, I hear the Oppos are the best bang for your buck.

http://www.oppodigital.com/

It can't be that much better than a VGA 360 (which I think looks very good) to justify spending $300 on one.

 

[Shins]

Dedicated, without question.

 

[MidgarBlowedUp]

Thanks, any particular DVD players you guys recommend?

A PS3. It also plays PS1 PS2 and PS3 games, surfs the web, runs linux, and plays Bluray disks.

 

[BboyDubC]

The VGA cable for the 360 is amazing with the patch that fixes colors from being washed out. Don't listen to anyone that tells you otherwise. I watched Bourne Identity/Supremacy on it and was blown away. Even though I have an HDTV, it looked almost as good as some HD-DVD movies that I have.

 

[SlickWilly223]

I use the 360 with a VGA cable to upscale my movies on a Gateway 22 inch monitor... I set the black level on the Xbox 360 Dashboard to "extended."

DVDs look too good.

The VGA cable for the 360 is amazing with the patch that fixes colors from being washed out. Don't listen to anyone that tells you otherwise. I watched Bourne Identity/Supremacy on it and was blown away. Even though I have an HDTV, it looked almost as good as some HD-DVD movies that I have.

Exactly

 

[mr_bishiuk]

What inputs does the projector have? If it has VGA inputs then buy a VGA cable for the 360 this will upscale dvd's. In my experience the VGA is the best cable for the 360 even better than HDMI for some reason.

If it only has component then I think you will find nothing legally upscales over component so the 360 or PS3 upscalling tech is lost for DVDs.

 

[Cold-Steel]

The 360 generates a lot more background noise than standalone upscaling DVD players (or the PS3 for that matter) so you should take that into account if you really like movies.

 

[ex0du5]

Upscaling DVD player.

The 360 is a terrible upscaling DVD player. The upscaling hardware in the 360 is just very cheap in general, so you probably won't even be outdoing a $50 mainstream upscaling player. You'd be better off using a cheapo $100 player, by far.

An Oppo 981HD is a very recommended choice. Great upscaling player for the money. I think it's around 200.

If you want the best of the best (which I don't recommend at this point, what with HD media and all), then the Denon 2930CI and Denon 3930CI are some of the best players on the market (you can get them used for probably around 500 and 1000 respectively).

If you ever plan on getting a PS3 however, it's also a very solid upscaling player (scores around the same as the Oppo 981HD, though I still say the Oppo is a tad better). Since the PS3 is somewhat affordable now, it's a solid choice, and plays Blu-Ray. Though, since it has a fan, it will generate some background noise, so if you're anal about that, you might want to look elsewhere (though it's still much, much quieter than the 360).

It can't be that much better than a VGA 360 (which I think looks very good) to justify spending $300 on one.

Oh yes it can. By the way, you know when you compare screenshots for PS3 games and 360 games, and the PS3 games always look washed out in comparison? That's because the PS3 is outputting the games as what they should look like, and the 360 really, and I mean really, oversaturates the entire picture. The 360 has abysmal component-out.

Though I forgot to mention, if you go PS3, make sure you hook it up through HDMI, since the PS3 does not upscale through Component, and it does not have the greatest analog output.

 

[watership]

I thought the 360s upscaling quality was good, but the system is just too loud for me to use it as my main DVD player. So I'd go with a dedicated upscaling DVD player.

Also, the 360 only upscales over VGA or HDMI.

The 360s most quiet mode is when playing a DVD. Llama.com and others have confirmed this. If you have a launch player, it might be too loud, but some of the new Pros and Elites don't seem very loud to me at all.

 

[HyperZone<3]

does the PS3 handle upscaling well at all?

and thank you all for the wealth of good info here.

 

[prelude514]

does the PS3 handle upscaling well at all?

and thank you all for the wealth of good info here.

Most people seem to think that the PS3 is one of the best, if not the best DVD upscaler there is.

 

[ex0du5]

does the PS3 handle upscaling well at all?

and thank you all for the wealth of good info here.

Yeah if you look it up, it actually does pretty darn well. It'll about match a 971HD or 981HD Oppo, which are some of the most recommended players priced at around $200.

I'll try to find some of the benchmarks that were conducted.

Most people seem to think that the PS3 is one of the best, if not the best DVD upscaler there is.

It's really good, though it won't match any of the higher end players. Anything with an Reon or Realta upscaler will beat it handily. So that means pretty much any other Blu-Ray player on the market (I think they all have the Reon, I might be wrong), and players like the Toshiba X-A2. The Denon 3930CI (along with the high end 5930) is the best upscaling DVD player on the market, since it has the Realta upscaler. My dad is a big movie buff, so we have that hooked up to our projector. It cost a whopping $1300 though.

 

[Cold-Steel]

The 360s most quiet mode is when playing a DVD. Llama.com and others have confirmed this. If you have a launch player, it might be too loud, but some of the new Pros and Elites don't seem very loud to me at all.

Even the new Pros and Elites generate more background noise than a standalone upscaling DVD player.

The PS3 is a good bargain if you want to double dip in both SD and HD media.

Otherwise, stick with Oppo - you won't be dissapointed in either choice.

 

[watership]

Even the new Pros and Elites generate more background noise than a standalone upscaling DVD player.

I wouldn't dare debate that a standalone dvd player is more quiet that a 360, but even soft conversation in any film would block out the 360 sound. Unless your watching a movie in a closet.

 

[Proc]

Get a PS3 dude.

 

[Scottlarock]

Even the new Pros and Elites generate more background noise than a standalone upscaling DVD player.

The PS3 is a good bargain if you want to double dip in both SD and HD media.

Otherwise, stick with Oppo - you won't be dissapointed in either choice.

I use my 360 as a dvd all the time. I never notice the fan while watching a movie, or one of my boxsets. hell my AC unit is probably 5 times as loud and I hardly notice it when it pops on.

 

[AZ Greg]

The 360s most quiet mode is when playing a DVD. Llama.com and others have confirmed this. If you have a launch player, it might be too loud, but some of the new Pros and Elites don't seem very loud to me at all.

I actually have an Elite with a BenQ drive. The system isn't anywhere near as loud while playing DVDs as it is while playing games. However, my system produces a high-pitched "whine" whenever it is playing a DVD. Normally the sound of a movie can drown out the noise a 360 produces, at least that was the case with my launch system, but for some reason my brain picks out this "whine" from my Elite over the movie unless I have it uncomfortably loud. Maybe its just a problem that bugs me and not many others or maybe its my particular system, but I'd just rather stick to my PS3 for all my movie needs.

 

[Cold-Steel]

I just don't see why you guys would want the added noise.

Apples and oranges, oh well.

 

[dante786]

So i just put a dvd in my ps3 and it upscales right? I have it set to 720p, i dont know why for some reason i thought 360 did it better via VGA, which is what i have that hooked up with. Guess im an idiot, gotta try the ps3.

 

[RavenHawk]

The 360 does a good job at upscaling, so if the sound of the fans on the 360 don't bother you, go pick up a VGA cable from BB or CC - if it doesn't look good to you, you can return it. You might want to call around your local EB/GS also, they had "preowned" VGA cables by me awhile back pretty cheap.

Because you are considering a standalone, I assume that you have enough connections on your A/V receiver, don't mind running extra cables to the projector and receiver, and have the space for the additional equipment. With that in mind, I personally can't see the point in getting the standalone upscaling DVD player. The money spent on one could be put to better use by getting a HD-DVD player or PS3, both of which will upscale your DVDs and allow you to watch higher resolution movies. They both have offers good for 5 free (HD-DVD or Blu-Ray) discs, which is a perk, plus if you opt for the PS3, you have an additional gaming system.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[Cold-Steel]

So i just put a dvd in my ps3 and it upscales right? I have it set to 720p, i dont know why for some reason i thought 360 did it better via VGA, which is what i have that hooked up with. Guess im an idiot, gotta try the ps3.

Make sure you have the latest System Update and then under BD / DVD Settings make sure you set the DVD Upscaler to your desired format (Full Screen, etc.)

The PS3 will take care of the rest.

 

[soco]

dedicated without question. you'll get better quality than either console from everything i've read.

 

[Magnus]

How does the PS3's upscaling (via the firmware from a few months back) compare to DVD upscaling players?

 

[Aleman]

360 looks pretty good upscaling to 1360x768 via VGA on my LCD. But the PS3 does a little better job. I watched Apocolypto on DVD with the PS3 yesterday and it honestly looked like a lower tier Blu-ray movie.

 

[CrunchinJelly]

I just don't see why you guys would want the added noise.

Apples and oranges, oh well.

My DVR makes quite a lot of noise, anyway, so I'm used to the sound of fans all the time.

 

[Phoenix Down]

PS3 all the way.. you cant go wrong with RGB option.. blacker blacks

 

[MonkeyLicker]

If you ever plan on getting a PS3 however, it's also a very solid upscaling player (scores around the same as the Oppo 981HD, though I still say the Oppo is a tad better). Since the

Neither system upscales over component so it's not an issue.
The scaling hardware in the 360 is far from cheap.

 

[DantesWrath]

PS3.

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

PS3.

.

 

[Last Hope]

There have been several articles detailing how the Xbox does a pretty bad job of scaling the image. Whether it is 720p to 1080p or any other resolution. Does the HDMI units do any better job or is it still as poor as it always had been??

 

[FightyF]

My projector is louder than my 360 and PS3. Granted, it's getting older now (it didn't even have an HDMI input), and I do not have it on silent mode to extend the life of the lamp.

I only notice the noise from my PS3 or 360 when my projector is OFF.

It's something you'll definitely want to consider.

If I were you, I'd buy some 360 VGA cables right now, no matter what.

1) Buy 360's VGA cables (some are better than others, I have MS's ones which are considered in the middle, you're looking at $20-40). Games will look better, watch upscaled DVD movies and they will look great.

2) Buy an upscaling DVD player for $200 to watch movies.

3) Buy a PS3 ($600) to watch movies

So if you start out with option 1, you are spending a small amount and seeing decent gains in both movies and games. From a investment/returns standpoint, this is the best option. Less than $50 invested, immediate returns for your movies and games.

Option 2 is a bit more of an investment, and it just means movies will look better. From an investment/returns standpoint, I think this is the worst option. DVD movies will look excellent...but was it worth $200? That's up to you to decide...though I think the extra power and cables simply jumble up an entertainment centre.

Option 3 is quite a bit of investment, but the returns are excellent. You get a BluRay player, get to play some Sony exclusive games (3rd party games are usually better on 360), and it upscales very well. Some may say not as good as a standalone DVD player, but at the same time, you're getting a BluRay player, so it just means one power cable and one hdmi cable to watch BRs, DVDs, and play games. Again, the cost is massive, but most BR players aren't that cheap either.

Though I dismissed Option 2, that's because I value different things than you do. Considering that you posted this thread it seems that you would value making your existing DVD collection look as good as it possibly could...and so with that in mind an upscaling DVD player would do the best job. But to me, Option 1 and 3 are more enticing. I would suggest option 1 no matter what (to have your games come out sharp on your projector), and then consider the other options.

 

[MaX_PL]

A PS3. It also plays PS1 PS2 and PS3 games, surfs the web, runs linux, and plays Bluray disks.

how much does that cost when compared to a standalone dvd player?

btw i love how he asks 360 or standalone and fanboys run in with "PS3" "."

 

[Roarer]

Thanks for all the input. I just ordered an upscaling Pioneer DV-600AV. My projector does have a VGA input, but I decided not to go with that option since I prefer to have everything hooked up using just one HDMI cable from my A/V receiver (it converts composite/component to HDMI, though it doesn't upscale the signal, nor does it have a VGA connection).

As for getting a PS3, well, I just got a new apartment and blew a shedload of cash on furniture, A/V equipment etc, and I just can't justify a PS3 at the moment. The Pioneer DV-600AV supports Divx/Xvid over USB and at $150 it felt like a complete steal.

 

[Roarer]

Though I dismissed Option 2, that's because I value different things than you do. Considering that you posted this thread it seems that you would value making your existing DVD collection look as good as it possibly could...and so with that in mind an upscaling DVD player would do the best job. But to me, Option 1 and 3 are more enticing. I would suggest option 1 no matter what (to have your games come out sharp on your projector), and then consider the other options.

Uh, don't make me have second thoughts! Argh, I really hate the idea of having another cable running from my A/V setup (in front of the screen) to the projector (in the back of the room).

But knowing that I could enjoy a, hmm, crispier, smoother , more faaabulous picture might just tip me over...

 

[dogmaan]

I have an upscaling toshiba dvd player, and a ps3, since buying the ps3 the toshiba is pretty much defunct (except for divx), as the image quality is a lot better

If you use a ps3 make sure you enable full RGB, also there are options for deblocking and noise reduction with multiple levels for each.

Make sure you enable upscaling, either in the main menu, or you can enable upscaling during the DVD to see the difference it makes

 

[The Main Event]

Xbox 360 or dedicated upscaling DVD player?

HD DVD