hi everyone,

i bought this universal player last week and i use it with an Axiom HT and a Hitachi 46 inch 46f510 rp hdtv.

i have to admit, when i first bought it, it was a bit off. but then i upgraded the firmware that i got from the samsung website and since then it has been great. no glitches and it plays everything i have thrown at it. i even had it on for about 9 hours straight once and not one problem, not even with heat (some people say it overheats).

i figure i wont buy fancy players as they change every few years since new formats are always coming out. in 2 years there will be players with blue ray and hd dvd and whatnot, so i'd rather spend $180 then $1000 and always be able to buy a player with the latest formats.

i thought of the pioneer 578a but it plays VERY loudly and doesn't have DVI. this samsung gives me DVI, bass management, SACD, DVD-A and other formats as well. Overall it's a good player, for the price, with the firmware update. it corrects DTS audio drop outs, black crush, the DVI connection is automatically on, and it no longer looses its settings.

Ravi, what store did you buy this player from?

www.audiotronic.ca

same store as

www.dumoulin.ca

www.audiotronic.ca

www.dumoulin.ca

Hope that your HD841 works out for you. I was looking a few months back at different players for video upconversion, and after the slew of bad reviews on the HD841, I went with the well rated Panasonic S97. It doesn't do SACD, so it isn't a true universal player like you have, but for DVD playback, it can't be beat for the price.

Now, mind you, I am a movie guy, and I have no SACD or DVD-A stuff to play, so they weren't a factor for me. If they were important to me, then the S97 would have fallen short.

I just wish that someone could come out with something that did it all very well, was durable, had a 3 year waranty, and cost $50... I guess I'm just dreaming...

Just wait until Blu-Ray and HD-DVD get going. Then we will need another level of universal player that does not only the audio formats but all of the video formats as well. Yikes!

I would really like to try that Panny S97 player. I hear it is really sweet. My Zenith 318 looks good, but that Panny might be a touch better.

Holding on to the current upscaling players might be a good idea even when the new HD/Blu-ray players come out, unless you are planning on ditching your current DVD collection. I have heard that the new players will probably do a poorer job with upscaling standard DVD than the upscaling DVD players we have now as the emphasis (at least initially) will be focused on the performance and resolution of the high definition discs. So keeping some of these current players might not be a bad idea IMO.

i also find this player does a better job than my denon 1602 at playing back regular redbook audio cd's. the sound is richer, warmer, and more natural and detailed.

By the way, you can negotiate prices at Dumoulin and Audiotronic. I always go there for stuff and generally get prices 15% off.

Ravi,

I just purchased one of these for myself, and the wife of course!

How do you do the firmware update. I have only just hooked up the analog 5.1 connections and thrown in a SACD and a DVD audio to test it out. Both worked great just had to turn my sub WAY down.

Oh, and was the upgrade mainly for video or audio. Cause I don't have HDTV yet so if it is only for the DVI stuff I won't need it.