Page 1 of Hi to all ....just getting into this DvD stuff But here goes

OK i have at the moment a DvD rom running through a Hollywood plus Decoder Card....
On looking on here i found out that a Audio Copy Enhancer may Remove the macrovision..so i went out and bought one.....It will copy a R2 disk fine but R1 not (black n white) This reminds me of the NSTC playstation games. ie will work in colour through a scart lead..This i cannot do...
So i thought i might as well by a seperate DvD player. Can anyone tell me a good one to go for as i was going for the AristonDvD2000 as it says according to Richer Sounds that it is multi region AND they have it up for only £139

All depends on your requirements....

The Wharfedale is a nice cheap multi-region (& you can pick it up in tescos!!) which gives good performance (allegedly!)

Doesn`t have an in builty Dolby digital decoder and probably sod all round the back connection wise.

For me the whole point of the DVD is the 5.1 surround sound. So ideally you need at least a digital out on the back so you can hook it into a decoder.

I have a sampo which is multi-region (thru the remote) has shed loads of connections at the back, normal stereo phono, 5.1 phono, digital optical and coaxial. And an in-built decoder.

I just bought a videologic digitheatre - which makes the decoder redundant. If you`re gonna plug it into a stereo-you need the inbuilt decoder (I think).

Sampo is now Encore and I wouldn`t recommend it, coz although it`s cheap & multi-region, lip sync is an issue for R1s, though I`ve had no probs with R2s, and as far as I can tell you can`t switch off the macrovision on the Encore (boo hiss!).

Know nothing about Ariston but for that price you can bet your nuts that there`s gonna be no decoder and minimal outputs.

So you can buy cheap now and then get a decent sound system (Digtheatre £214 online - bargain!) or spend in the region of £200 on sommat you can plug into a stereo and go. Really depends on the rest of your equipment.

That`s been no help at all has it??

B

I`d avoid the Ariston (incidentally, NOT the same as the washing machine company, but a company called Ariston Acoustics) because the sockets at the back are VERY poor - for the best piccy you want S-VIDEO (or better still RGB) or at the very least a SCART out that is configurable. The Ariston has neither which seems to defeat the whole point of excellent DVD piccies - you`re pretty much stuck with the same level of output (composite - lowest of the low) as a VCR, albeit slightly improved.

B you forgot to mention that the Encore/Sampo also has component video out : ultra rare ! There is a firmware update which a kind soul is sending me which eradicates lip-sync problems (never exprienced it myself, must have the fluke machine out of the millions they sold) and disables Macro too.

An alternative to the Ariston is probably, as B says, your Wharfedale 750 : comes with a warranty from Tesco`s if it goes belly up.Even my little Tesco Metro in Nottingham is selling them ! Try their website http://www.tesco.com and get me a can of beans whilst your there.

Have a roam thru the hardware forum on this site too : all these `famous` budget players have their plusses and minuses so check it`s got everything you want before splashing the cash. There are some real horror stories out there on that forum !!!