# Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread



## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

*Edited on 25 Aug 2006 to reflect current Official release status!*

NEWS: Firmware 2.0 was officially released today (25 Aug 2006 ~6:12am EDT) for internet connected player update. Toshiba player owners (RCA may take a couple more days) can get this update over the internet using the player's ethernet connection. The major thing it does is add 5.1 Dolby TrueHD decode, fixed the 720p output and has improved error recovery.

-------------- from: http://www.tacp.com/dvd/product.asp?model=hd-a1 ---------------


> Firmware Update Information for Owners of Toshiba HD DVD Players: Models HD-XA1, HD-A1, and HD-D1
> 
> Firmware Update Version: 2.0
> 
> ...


Bob


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Well I was gonna wait a bit before jumping into the hd-dvd players but b-day is this week and the wife was still searching for something to get me when she decided on this yesterday. Unfortunately we went to about 4-5 different stores to get it and no one had it in stock. 

We even called and specifically asked if it was in stock before going to these stores. Needless to say I was driving to some of the places that were 30 minutes away just to find some guy saying, Oh I must have misunderstood you... 
And of course then the wife gets mad at me for embarrassing her when I dress these people down.

Another thing that really gets my goat is all these stores wanting to pay for things that they don’t actually have. Really now if I wanted to order it, I didnt need to come to the store then. How bout you stock the items that you want to sell so that when a customer hands you money they can actually leave with it.

Anyway now that I would like to order the hd-dvd, I don’t trust any of the places online that say "In Stock".

Does anyone know a reputable store that actually has it and will send it out immediately? I'm having company next Saturday and would like to have it before then.


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Value Electronics seems to have the most reliable stock and a very good reputation. They will ship out of NYC a HD-A1 for $499 with free shipping and two HD DVD's of your choice.

http://www.valueelectronics.com/avstc.htm

Sears is also now supposed to have them in stock. They likey would have to ship from their warehouse to your local store for pickup.

Good Luck!
Bob


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Thanks Bob


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

I'm not seeing the $300 difference between the two models.

Bob... why did you choose the XA1?


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*



Sonnie said:


> I'm not seeing the $300 difference between the two models.
> 
> Bob... why did you choose the XA1?


:laugh: Availability! I had a HD-A1 on order (March 27th) that did not get fullfilled till last week (a good price though). And I thought that I might play with the XA1's RS232 control input. I've now run both units and the perfomance is the same :T. I'm giving the A1 to my adult son as a birthday present  

Bob


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

I asked someone else about the difference and he said it was just a better remote and the unit size was smaller.


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Cool... I think I'm gonna go ahead and drop 500 bucks with Robert at VE and get the free shipping and 2 free HD-DVD's. Unless you guys know of somewhere to save a tad. I was hoping my Toshiba rep was going to tell me they were going to offer them but no such luck yet. It would have been nice to get one at dealer cost.


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

I think thats a good deal. Everywhere I've seen it, it was the same price. Mine didnt come with the 2 free hd-dvd's though. It gives a month to netflix's however.


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

I just tried watching a brand new HD-DVD, about the 2nd one in a row and was experiencing problems with it freezing up during the movie. Not sure if it was the player of the new hd-dvd disk.

Also I kept restarting the movie and using the fast forward button to skip scenes to get back to where it froze. Apparently (not always) but when you use the fast forward button it can cause the audio to get out of sync with the video. It was off by about 5 seconds, it made it unbearable.

 :yikes: :rolleyesno: :rant:


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Some player problem fix possibilities:

1. The player can get confused with too many, too rapid, commands by the remote control. This problem is especially bad with the original 1.0 firmware.

2. Somehow your player still has the original 1.0 firmware which for about 30% of the players had problems with reading certain disks. The 1.2 firmware fixed most people's problems. What is curious is the high percentage of users that did not have problems. Some of us suspect a difference in the alignment/sensistivty of the internal NEC drive. The new firmware may have opened up things for tracking and has better error correction. To check your version go to Setup (button under remote sliding cover) / General / Maintainence / Update (IIRC) and check the displayed version. The first number should be 1.2 If it is and you still have problems likely the best bet is to exchange the player.

3. Some report laser pickup was dirty and a DVD laser cleaner (Philips ?) solved their problems.

4. Some report cleaning the HD DVD disc solved the problem. But a few have reported getting heavily scratched discs (loose in container) that played fine (with their problem free players).

Hope this helps! I've been lucky with two problem free players.
Bob


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

I've read the 1.2 update fixes the freeze up issues and read of some having problems with the 1.3 update. I downloaded the 1.2 firmware and will update tonight, hopefully that will solve everything.


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

I installed the 1.2 upgrade last night. From what I read the 1.3 upgrade is only for certain hd-a1 machines and since I dont know which one, I thought it best not to jump right to that one yet.

Anyway I found the 1.2 firmware to download, burned it to a CD and installed it. The HDA1 version went from 1.0 to 1.2 after upgrade. I tried 2 disks that previously were freezing up. The HD-DVD disk that was freezing the night before is now working without any problems. The other disk which was a DVD-R of something I burned is still freezing up at the exact same points. The disk works fine in a regular dvd player.


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Got my A1 installed this evening... watched Serenity, which was the only movie that has come in so far. It's one I haven't seen yet anyway, so I was excited to watch it.

Only one little glitch in the beginning... about a 1-2 second freeze. I probably need to update to 1.2.

One thing I noticed right off was that my brightness and contrast settings for the Denon 3910 do not work for the A1. While this particular movie has some dark scenes, the blacks were crushed and it was unbearable until I adjusted it. After that I thought the picture was nothing short of stunning although it may not be exactly spot on. The color looked good to me. Sound for that movie was equally impressive on the subs.

I'm wondering if AVIA and/or Video Essentials will work in 480 mode to adjust the brightness and contrast and it work okay for 1080i? I guess I could just try it and see. I hope we'll see an HD version of AVIA or VE soon.

All in all I was impressed and happy now that I went ahead and got it. I'm anxious to get the other DVDs in and see them.


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Sonnie,

Glad that it is working for you, although I am suprised that yours does not have the 1.2 firmware. Are you using HDMI audio input or analog? It can be a bit tricky getting the LFE/Sub analog out of the A1 to the right level for proper sub cal. I also am waiting to see where I can get a HD DVD calibration disk. I read that Stacy Spears of MS made his own. Hoping that Ulead will put back in HD DVD authoring in their product (they had it but removed it  ). 

Rumor has it that a firmware update my give us 5.1 (instead of 2.0) Dolby TrueHD (lossless) audio decode capability. I'm hoping to see a 1.4 firmware update in the next few days. It will be interesting to see what it changes/fixes. There are still a few HDMI connectivity issues with certain targets (Samsung HLS TVs, etc.) that 1.4 update is supposed to fix. 5.1 Dolby TrueHD is the big question -- in 1.4 or later?

Bob


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

I may have 1.2... I haven't even checked yet. I'm using the digital coaxial audio output on the A1. I haven't tried the analog yet. Sub level seemed right on though for the digital output. I'll check it later on and see what version I'm on.

Surely someone will eventually come out with a retail HD-DVD calibration disk.


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*



Sonnie said:


> Surely someone will eventually come out with a retail HD-DVD calibration disk.


eventually...


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

*Re: Toshiba HD DVD player Owner's Thread.*

Shucks! It only fixes the Samsung HL-Sxxxxx TV HDMI problem.



> Originally Posted by DTV TiVo Dealer
> 1.4 only fixes the Samsung anomaly. Nothing else is in 1.4 that is not already been fixed with 1.2
> 
> -Robert


I still expect Dolby TrueHD 5.1 to be added with a firmware upgrade. Likely sometime in July it looks like now 

Bob


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

Hey Bob... you wrote:



> Users who use PCM over HDMI or the analog outputs get the full benefit of DD+ or the current 2 channel limited (current player firmware) Dolby TrueHD.


... in another thread.

I'm using the digital coax to my Denon and have the HDMI running straight to my projector. 

Should I be connecting this differently to get the most out of my player?


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

Sonnie, have you tried calibrating it yet?


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

Version 1.4 is now available if you connect your Tosh to the internet


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

Sonnie said:


> I'm using the digital coax to my Denon and have the HDMI running straight to my projector.
> 
> Should I be connecting this differently to get the most out of my player?


I would, in your shoes, run the HDMI to the Denon, then from the Denon to your projector. Set your Denon to use the PCM audio from the Toshiba player. Set the Toshiba player in the Setup / Audio to have the HDMI out set to "Auto". Then it will decode the DD+ on HD DVDs to LPCM and send it to the Denon. With normal SD DVDs the "Auto" setting will send the legacy DD or DTS bitstream to the Denon for it to decode there (in the AVR). This is the best currently possible connection -- better than my use of analog outputs :envy:.

Bob


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

Tommy said:


> Sonnie, have you tried calibrating it yet?


Not yet, but I plan on trying to maybe tonight with AVIA. All I will probably attempt to set is the contrast and brightness... the color looks pretty good to me already. I'm just not real happy with the blacks and I'm sure the contrast and brightness probably needs more adjustment than just from my eyes.

-----


Thanks Bob... I didn't realize this little tidbit until you mentioned it.


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

New 1.4 firmware is now available. Check the first (edited today) post in this thread.

Bob


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

Okay... AVIA will not play in the A1... not sure why not but it won't. I get "ERROR" on the machine and "Can not play disk" on the screen. Tried it every which way... no luck.

I'll try the Star Wars disc calibration section later or one of those I got that has that on it.

I did however pop in Batman returns just to see how an SD-DVD looked and it looked really good. It looks just as good if not maybe a smidgen better than my Denon 3910. 

I checked and I have version 1.2 already. I did try to download the 1.4 just for the **** of it but got the error "Could not find server". I'll try again later.

I gotta complain about this remote. It is impossible to read, even in the light. Does this thing light up and I'm just not seeing the button or maybe I've got a bad remote? Poorly designed at best. I finally encoded it all into my MX-800 so I won't have that problem anymore. Still this is the worst remote I've ever put in my hands.

Oh yeah... I did get the HDMI connected up correctly too.


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

Did you set up the ethernet to turn on DHCP and DNS?

Try the THX calibration avail as a menu choice on some DVD's (Pirates of the Caribbean, etc.) Oh yeh Star Wars disc. Hopefully that will work I'll have to dig out my Avia and try it. :huh: 

Yes ,the A1 control really sucks. The XA1 is lighted at least. Most A1 users end up using universal controls.

Bob


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

Yep... I did turn on DHCP and DNS and confirmed it. I got the screen with all the writing and had to select OK or CANCEL. Clicked OK and it said it was downloading... display on player flashing.... looked like it was gettin' jiggy with it... then bloop!


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

Hey Sonnie, I'm sure there swamped at the moment with everyone trying to connect for the update, give it a day or two or an off time and try again. The remote does not have a back light, thats the extra ya get for buying the better Tosh... And from what I read the new firmware update is supposed to fix alot of the HDMI errors people are getting now


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

Sonnie said:


> ...AVIA will not play in the A1... not sure why not but it won't. I get "ERROR" on the machine and "Can not play disk" on the screen. Tried it every which way...


I dug out my Avia and re-calibrated the Toshiba player's analog outputs. The Avia disc played fine for me. :huh: It appears that the 1.4 firmware update changed a few things. I thought the analog sound was sounding hotter after the update. Per Avia, my center and surrounds were too high....and the overall level was higher. I had to tweak up the L/R mains by 1 dB and the Center/Surrounds down by 2 dB. Now the SPL is set at 75 dB SPL for L/R,center/surrounds and 72 dB SPL for the subwoofer (per the RS SPL meter's known 3 dB sub tone drop off). I get now approximately the same levels as I get for when I use a digital S/PDIF input to the AVR (Panasonic SA-HE70). IMO Toshiba may have cranked up the analog output levels a little bit. I will have to re-run the levels with the THX tones to see if I get a different result than Avia's. :scratch: 

Bob


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

Check first post (edited) for new official release of 2.0 firmware info.

Bob


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## bobgpsr (Apr 20, 2006)

Oh and before I forget -- Everybody! -- *DO NOT HAVE A DISC IN THE TRAY *when you do an ethernet update of the Toshiba or RCA HD DVD player's firmware. It you do you may "*brick*" your player.

Bob


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

What is "brick"?


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