velocity1624705768 Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 WooHoo....just lugged back a Tosh HD-A2 from Hawaii together with about 8 HD-DVD titles. I dumped the box to conserve space in my check-in luggage. Its a sleek black beauty (like Darth Vader's helmet with just a solitary power and eject button) Its just a bit longer than my Oppo 971 and taller by about 2-3cm. On the back are 1 HDMI output, 1 component, 1 optical and a L/R anlaog audio. It also has an ethernet connector. Will post initial views and screenshots once i shake off jet lag/ complete my last minute xmas shopping. Will be hooking it up to my Epson TW600 PJ and via optical to my Panny XR55. too bad, I don't hv a HDMI receiver.
kzone Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 Congrats on ur purchase... I'm sure many here have similar PJ/AVR setup as u & are keenly waiting for ur review... making me very tempted as well...
velocity1624705768 Posted December 22, 2006 Author Posted December 22, 2006 Thks, me very eager to set it up too but gotta accompany wifey for xmas shopping soon. Keep you guys posted. ;D
zapp1624705742 Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 Come come hook up at my place XD got HDMI receiver :p
zapp1624705742 Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 Velo - how much you bought it at Hawaii?
velocity1624705768 Posted December 22, 2006 Author Posted December 22, 2006 Was lucky. hunted all over Honolulu and managed to track down one set at Best Buy. Thes salesman there said that they only got in three sets that week and my box was the last. The price was US$499 plus 4% tax. So works out to about US$520 or S$810. Hitachi is also giving three free HD-DVD if you purchase any HD-DVDP between Nov 06 and Feb 07. Anyway, i downloaded the form, chose 3 hd-dvds and sent it out via US postal svcs in Hawaii.
velocity1624705768 Posted December 22, 2006 Author Posted December 22, 2006 Come come hook up at my place XD got HDMI receiver :p Kool. Will defintiely consider if yr place is not too far. Can probably make it later next week as got a lot of xmas activities. Will let you know.
htfreak Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 Kool. Will defintiely consider if yr place is not too far. Can probably make it later next week as got a lot of xmas activities. Will let you know. Zapp, don't mind if I pop in for a visit hor since I'm just one road away from you. ;D
enthusiast1624705824 Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 This is an improved model is it? no more slow loading or out of sync audio? but how come still no 1080p? is the firmware upgrade available?
xboxfan Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 velocity, U are so lucky bro, got to see it upclose. For me, I am waiting for my HD-A2 to be delivered. Should be getting it in a week's time. ;D Can't wait to watch HD. Getting bored already. Got HD discs but no player..... :(
xboxfan Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 Anyway, i downloaded the form, chose 3 hd-dvds and sent it out via US postal svcs in Hawaii. Any idea how I can get my 3 HD-DVDs? Do I fill up the form like you did and mail them? Wish my player is here then I can ask u to get for me the 3 discs, if that is of any hassle to u. From what I know, the offer is valid in US only. Not sure about overseas purchases.. :(
xboxfan Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 This is an improved model is it? no more slow loading or out of sync audio? but how come still no 1080p? is the firmware upgrade available? Yup this is the 2nd gen model.The XA2 has the 1080p. ;)
htfreak Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 Any idea how I can get my 3 HD-DVDs? Do I fill up the form like you did and mail them? Wish my player is here then I can ask u to get for me the 3 discs, if that is of any hassle to u. From what I know, the offer is valid in US only. Not sure about overseas purchases.. :( This offer is open to US residents only. Hence, the only way you can get the discs is to look out for a friend who stays in the States to send the form and await the arrival of the discs which can take anything from 2 to 4 weeks. When the few of us bought the A1 eons ago, we had to give up on the $25 rebate offer back then too.
jan97 Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 Hi guys, anybody wants to start a MO for this baby?i am in for 1!
htfreak Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 You may still be able to get it at a cheaper price of $449 with 2 titles thrown in at ValueElectronics using the HTF member special page. Use the below link to get the offer price but you would have to send the player to VPOSTUSA as they only ship domestic. Shipping fee is US$14.99 but they do accept international credit cards. http://www.valueelectronics.com/htf.htm
SiriuslyCold Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 re: free discs couldn't you use the vPost address for that? incur vPost shipping but at lest you get something
htfreak Posted December 22, 2006 Posted December 22, 2006 I remember that it was mentioned somewhere that the receiving address has to be a US residential address. No harm trying VpostUSA's address if you don't have any contacts in US.
velocity1624705768 Posted December 23, 2006 Author Posted December 23, 2006 Got my taste of HD last nite and its awesome! Popped in Phantm of the opera,Batman Begins and King Kong and the details are exceptional! Even the colours and saturation seem more vivid and vibrant. As I was using the optical out, I couldn't assess the Dolby TrueHD sound of the TPOO or or BB disc but (perhaps I am bias) the sound was crystal clear. Will try to set up my digital camera to get some screen shots tonight. The set only does 1080i and as correctly pointed out by bro jeffong, only the XA2 will do 1080p. There is also no coax output so you can only use HDMI or Optical. As for the 3 free HD-DVDs offer, you can just download the pdf form but you will need to get the UPC code on the sticker outside the box as well as submit a copy of your receipt. I put down the vPost address as my receiving address and mailed it from a Hawaii Post office. If you are receiving the set in SG, no reason why you can't send the form thro' airmail and put vpost address.
darthmax Posted December 23, 2006 Posted December 23, 2006 You can try Eagles HD-DVD, the Melbourne concert... SQ & PQ :o :o :o
velocity1624705768 Posted December 23, 2006 Author Posted December 23, 2006 managed to get some pics of the set. For the screenshots, will hv to wait for tonite as I don't hv blackout curtains. Pic of the set compared to Oppo 971 Another angle of the set compared to Oppo Pic of back of the set Pic of the remote You can try Eagles HD-DVD, the Melbourne concert... SQ & PQ :o :o :o Don't hv that title but now that you mentioned it, will look out for it.
zapp1624705742 Posted December 23, 2006 Posted December 23, 2006 Whats the LAN point for? Stream DIVX?
htfreak Posted December 23, 2006 Posted December 23, 2006 For now the LAN point is for firmware upgrading over the Internet only. No media centre type capabilities for the moment.
velocity1624705768 Posted December 24, 2006 Author Posted December 24, 2006 Am very satisfied with the PQ & sound quality after playing around with the set. After running thro' a few discs, feel that the sound quality is definitely better than normal DVDs. Here are a few other observations : 1. Loading time : takes about slightly less than 20s to load up a disc once you press the close button on the tray 2. I really like the "U-cool" and Menu features which allow you to access extras (picture-in-picture) or change settings without getting out of the movie. 2. Unit can decode Dolby TrueHD, DD+ and DTS-HD but can only output in multichannel PCM over HDMI 3. If you connect via the Optical output, for DolbyTHD, DD+ or DTS-HD discs, it will convert to a normal DTS bitstream. One strange thing is that the SPDIF output is reduced if the HDMI output is set to 'Auto' or 'PCM'. You will have to set the HDMI output to 'Downmixed PCM' if you are using the Optical connection to yr recevier to get maximum levels. I aslo read in another forum that you should not turn the 'Dialogue Enhancement' on or yr multi channel experience will be compromised. 4. The unit has two USB (5V/500ma) extension ports in the front flip down cover (see pic below) which can be used for additional control options. Maybe there will be interactive or gaming HD-DVDs in the future but thats just my personal view as the manual is very cryptic about it. 5. The remote has this 'Cursor' as well as a eight option directional pad which the manual says will be used to support gaming or drawing software so my observation in (4) may not be too far out. So far, my attempts to take pics of the screen has not been satisfactory. The pics do not do justice to what the naked eye perceives on the screen hence I will not post any pics. Maybe its my digital cam. Thats all for now. I will probably drop by Zapp's place next week to check out the DolbyTHD/DD+ sound on his HDMI receiver. My next target is the Epson TW1000 or Mit HC5K to mate with the Tosh player as well as a HDMI v1.3 receiver :P but waiting for wallet to recover first... Just out of curiosity, has any bro managed to change his Tosh A1 or XA1 to multi-region yet. I am very keen to do so as I still have a lot of SD-DVDs which I want to play on the Tosh. Thks to any bro who can enlighten me. Cheers and a very merry X'mas to all XP forumers !!!!!!
Audio Posted December 24, 2006 Posted December 24, 2006 We been telling you folks for the last few months about HD-DVD...... We even took pictures off our screen to inform.... What took you guys so long. :) A word about VPOST. I am totally disgusted about their service and I will try my best not to use them. The last order was a Sony Blu-Ray player which they charged me $200+ to deiver and with GST, I paid $340!!! My other Sony player got delivered for less because they introduced volumetric weight into the picture. On top of that, a later order of a single HD_DVD (Barry Manilow -Live) got delivered first with no sign of my Blu-Ray Player.... Sigh! Welcome to HD-DVD....the best!!! (Audio)
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