Toshiba HD-XA2 Black HD DVD Player - HDXA2

[Gideon]

Just ordered from Comp-U-Plus for U$895.79 with shipping. :)

 

Advantages:

High definition playback delivers 720p/1080i/1080p resolution.

HDMI 1.3 supports improved color depth, billions of colors, reduced color banding and increased contrast ratio. Advanced audio, including Dolby® TrueHD, Dolby® Digital Plus and DTS® HD (core only), along with legacy formats including Dolby® Digital and DTS® bring an increased sonic realism to movie soundtracks

Backwards compatibility means you can enjoy your existing library of DVDs and CDs, and through the process of upconversion using HDMI, your movies are scaled to match the resolution of your HD display

An interface suite includes an abundance of audio/video connections as well as an ethernet connection for firmware updates and future internet delivered features

Benefits:

HD DVD Playback

High Definition video requires a tremendous amount of space on a disc, thus a new Blue laser (versus a Red Laser for DVD) is utilized for HD DVD. The blue laser, with its shorter wave length, allows for information to be stored more densely on the disc, thus improving storage capacity by about over 3 times compared to that of a red laser technology. Additionally, more accurate and efficient video compression like MPEG-4 AVC and VC-1 (based on Microsoft Windows Media) compress information to achieve file sizes that are less than half of those of the current standard DVD's MPEG2.

1080p Video Output via HDMI 1.3

In order to complement the newest HDTVs the HD-XA2 outputs 1080p via the industry’s newest all digital connector, HDMI 1.3, which adds a new level of performance with the potential for deep color.

Backward Compatibility

Enjoy backwards compatibility and play your collection of standard DVDs on the player. In addition, via the HDMI interface, the HD-XA2 scales the standard definition DVD output to a resolution of 720p, 1080i or 1080p to match your HDTV's performance. Not only does this output the video in HD standard resolution, but because the conversion takes place in the player, the signal remains free from excessive digital-to-analog conversion artifacts.

The HD-XA2 has built-in processors to handle the multi-channel decoders for Dolby® Digital, Dolby® Digital Plus, Dolby® TrueHD, DTS® and DTS® HD (core only).

Features:

• VIDEO

o HD DVD Playback via HDMI™ 1.3 (video) interface with 1080p, 1080i or 720p Video Output

o HD 4X Oversampling with 297MHz 12-Bit Video DAC

o New HDMI 1.3 with support for Deep Color

o Plays HD DVD (including twin format discs), DVD and DVD-R/-RW

• AUDIO

o New Dolby® TrueHD, Dolby® Digital, Dolby® Digital Plus, DTS® and DTS® HD (core only)

o High-perfomance 32-bit SHARC® Digital Signal Processing

o CD Audio Playback (CD, CD-R/-RW)

• CONVENIENCE

o Backlit remote control with improved response time

o New slim cabinet brushed aluminum design

o Ethernet Connection

o HDMI 1.3 connection, Gold-plated Component Video, S-Video, Composite Video

o 5.1 Analog, Digital Optical, Coaxial Digital and Stereo Analog Outputs

o Bi-directional RS-232 Connector

Specification:

• 1080p Video Output yes (1080p/60Hz)

• DVD Video yes

• DVD VR yes

• Twin format Disc yes

• DVD-ROM (Video) yes

• DVD-R (Video) yes

• DVD-R DL (Video) yes

• DVD-RW (Video/VR CPRM not supported) yes

• 297MHz/12-Bit Video DAC yes

• AUDIO

o CD, CD-R, CD-RW, CD (CD-DA) yes

o Dolby® Digital Plus yes (5.1ch)

o Dolby® TrueHD yes (5.1ch)

o DTS® yes (5.1ch)

o DTS® HD (core only) yes (5.1ch)

o Digita/Analog Out simultaneously yes

• CONVENIENCE

o Fully Backlit Remote Control yes

o TV Control (preset) yes

o AV Cable (Video/L/R) yes

o OSD Language English/French/Germany/Japanese

• TERMINALS

o Video Output

 Composite 1 (gold)

 S-Video 1 (gold)

 Component 1 (gold)

o Audio Output

 Analog 2ch 1 (gold)

 Analog 5.1ch 1 (gold)

 Digital Coaxial 1 (gold)

 Digital Optical 1

o HDMI Output Ver. 1.3 for Deep Color yes

o Ethernet (10/100BASE) 1

o Control (RS-232C) yes (Bi-direction)

o EXTENSION Terminal 2

Approximate Dimensions:

• Height: 2.91"

• Width: 17.2"

• Depth: 13.58"

 

 

[Doggie Howser]

Hope to get mine by Friday (3 days delivery from ValueExpress). From FedEx, it looks like the package is at least in the same state as me ;)

 

It did cost more, but then they do ship with 2 HD DVDs and VE seems pretty reliable (from the guys who did the first MO)

 

 

[Doggie Howser]

Yes, just got it delivered. One day ahead of schedule. ;D :D 8)

 

I saw both the A2 and XA2 in Fry's earlier. Selling at list prices.

 

I saw some A2s Made in China and at least one A2 Made in Japan

 

All for the same price. XA2s I found were all Made in China. The unit I got from VE was also Made in China. :(

 

 

[Doggie Howser]

Just booted it up but no way to hook up a display! :( Dang hotel TV got no inputs :(

 

Oh well.. tested out Lucky # sLevin (bundled with the player) and a DVD and both seemed to be playing fine (according to the LED display).

 

Unit feels hefty.. Good weight and the build quality looks decent.

 

Boot up time seems slightly longer than my XBox 360. But not onerously so. Definitely none of the long boot times from the A1/XA1 series. Unit is also very quiet. Far quieter than my XBox360.

 

Can't wait to get it home. Just wish they'd put in a universal 100-240 PSU :(

[eggz]

Doogie, seen any Wiis around?

[Doggie Howser]

Doogie, seen any Wiis around?

 

PS3 yes. Wii No.

 

Get the local set lah. Shd be out soon.

 

I only bought the XA2 because chao Toshiba dun wanna launch XE2 here. NBz.

 

And I only bought the XA2 cos they seem to have committed to delivering 1080p24 through firmware upgrade. The A2 would have been decent enough for me since I already have the Reon in my projector.. oh well.

 

 

[SiriuslyCold]

I saw a Wii at Lucky plaza... thought they'd been released here?

[IwishIwasToneDeaf]

I saw a Wii at Lucky plaza... thought they'd been released here?

 

Not officially released yet if i'm not wrong.

[enthusiast1624705824]

pirates of carribean 2 is on HD-DVD or Blu-ray?

[audionoob1624705779]

pirates of carribean 2 is on HD-DVD or Blu-ray?

 

All indication is that this will be a BD title.......

[Doggie Howser]

Finally lugged the set back home today, and even before I showered (*phew* lucky no one else was around in the house), I got the unit plugged into my Amoi 37" 1080p LCDTV.

 

I would have loved to plug into my projector but without an HDMI input, it is a real challenge to hook it up at the moment.

 

With the Amoi, I just hooked up the HDMI and optical cable (left behind when I transferred the PS3 to the living room) and there was a handy transformer just next to the system.

 

Thankfully, the Toshiba automatically recognized the HDMI connection was active and booted in 1080i.

 

It took abt 30-40 seconds from the time I first powered up. Not the fastest gun in the west, but decent I guess.

 

Went into Setup and enabled 1080p.

 

Then saw enhanced Black Level and I enabled it too. Word to the wise: DON'T. Unless you have an HDMI 1.3 capable display I think.

 

I booted up MI3 and everything looked fine (even with Enhanced Black Level enabled). The stairs scene didn't shimmer and detail was good though color was off. Will need to spend some time to tweak the settings later, MUCH later.

 

But definition in some of the Paramount HD initial openers looked pretty damn good. I think even than the PS3 when I saw them last on this display.

 

When I put in a DVD and upscaled it to 1080p. There was a weird ghosting/greenish pattern in some of the shots.

 

I disabled Enhanced Black, but it was still there. Had to switch to 1080i for the enhanced black to be completely disabled. Switched back to 1080p and everything looked hunky dory again. Hope this is helpful (in case someone else here decides to tinker without reading the manual like moi)

 

I used to think Monsters Inc was one of the better SD DVDs but looking at it now on a 1080p display upscaled by even a Reon scaler/deinterlacer, it just looks soft :(

 

Anyway, the XA2 is huge and heavy. I would not recommend handcarrying this if you could. I learnt things the hard way. The good thing is despite going through immigration, and 2 XRay checks and handcarrying it across two flights, it was still minty new. The immigration guys in US didn't even give me any grief for carrying it. They just asked me if I was carrying a DVD player :) and I said yes. Another woman carryng an aerosol hair spray got waaay more grief than me.

 

 

 

 

 

[wwyjoe]

congrats on your purchase bro!!

 

now where is that 1080/24 firmware upgrade..... ;D

[Doggie Howser]

congrats on your purchase bro!!

 

now where is that 1080/24 firmware upgrade..... ;D

 

Yeah dunno when they will have the upgrade

[Genesis]

I'm hoping for 1080/24p firmware by April or May, but won't hold my breath  :P  My XA2 is arriving next week....man what anticipation.  Now I just have to dump my 720p projector and order the JVC HD1  ;D

[Doggie Howser]

One minor niggle abt the XA2.

 

Say you are watching a movie halfway.. in 1080p mode over HDMI.

 

Now you switch the AV amp to another input, maybe cos your favourite show is on, or yr kid/nephews/nieces wanna watch Barney.

 

XA2 switches to 1080i mode or something

 

Now you switch back to the XA2 HDMI input

 

The XA2 recognizes that the HDMI input is now active and will want to revert to 1080p again.

 

Except that after switching to 1080p on HDMI, it promptly restarts the movie, cos the output format has changed.

 

UUuggh...

 

 

[Doggie Howser]

Despite what the AVS forummers said, I can't say that the XA2 upscaling capabilities for DVD is worth shouting that much.

 

The image looks a bit soft actually. I found my old Denon 1920 seemed to do a better job with it. Looks like I need to think about hooking that source back into my system.

[eggz]

Despite what the AVS forummers said, I can't say that the XA2 upscaling capabilities for DVD is worth shouting that much.

 

The image looks a bit soft actually. I found my old Denon 1920 seemed to do a better job with it. Looks like I need to think about hooking that source back into my system.

 

Is it just too much HD?  ;D

 

After watching blu-ray for a few days, went back to DVDs and felt that even the best ones looked, soft or "blur"

 

I think once you've tasted HD, there's no going back  :-\

[Doggie Howser]

Is it just too much HD?  ;D

 

After watching blu-ray for a few days, went back to DVDs and felt that even the best ones looked, soft or "blur"

 

I think once you've tasted HD, there's no going back  :-\

 

I think you are right :)

 

Damn. I thought I could still go back to regular SD but it seems very very hard to do these days, and getting harder.

 

 

[Genesis]

Despite what the AVS forummers said, I can't say that the XA2 upscaling capabilities for DVD is worth shouting that much.

 

The image looks a bit soft actually. I found my old Denon 1920 seemed to do a better job with it. Looks like I need to think about hooking that source back into my system.

Interesting Doogie….I just received my XA2 so I "decommissioned" my Denon 3910 from my HT (well, not completely, still need it for region 3).  I found that SD upscaling to 720p (native rez of my Panny AE900) in the XA2 (SO Reon processor) is superior to the 3910 (Faroudja processor).  After recalibrating the Panny with DVE last night I was amazed at how much cleaner the blacks are (less noise) combined with slightly more accurate sharpness watching SD discs.

 

In addition, with SD, the audio quality using the analog outs of the XA2 is absolutely superb compared to the 3910.  The 3910 is no slouch in this regard, but the XA2 opens up the soundstage that much more.  The clarity in my center channel with the XA2 is really outstanding.  The finer details (sounds of people breathing, incidental background noises, etc) are more noticeable.

 

Unfortunately, can’t say the same about the audio with HD discs.  I watched Perfect Storm hoping that the DD+ would blow me away, but I kept having to adjust my sub levels for being too quiet in the raging ocean scenes.  I couldn’t get the bass mgm’t right, more tweaking required.  But then when I switched back to SD, the sub levels were too high.

 

I’ll forgive the HD audio issues in the XA2 (firmware updates to resolve?) because that HD picture at 720p is phenomenal.  Even after one HD movie, I can’t wait to upgrade to a 1080p projector…yikes.

 

I’m impressed with the performance of the XA2 to date, but its early days yet.  More experimentation will take place over CNY.  I’m keeping both the XA2 and the 3910 in my system

:)

[tigaanak]

Unfortunately, can’t say the same about the audio with HD discs.  I watched Perfect Storm hoping that the DD+ would blow me away, but I kept having to adjust my sub levels for being too quiet in the raging ocean scenes.  I couldn’t get the bass mgm’t right, more tweaking required.  But then when I switched back to SD, the sub levels were too high.

 

I had the same initial impression for my XA2 but found a workaround for this.

 

You may want to check out the following thread in AVSforum which is pretty informative on this topic http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=748147.

 

For HD-DVD, if you are decoding in the player and sending PCM over HDMI or analog, you will need to adjust your channel levels such that the SW channel is "boosted" relative to the other channels by about 10db.  For the XA2, this means that you will need to lower all channels except the SW by 10db, and increase your source level accordingly in the receiver.  Alternatively, check if your receiver has this option to boost the SW db level. 

 

Hope this helps.

[Guest francis woo]

Hi Genesis, mind telling me where you bought the HD-XA2 and the cost!!  In two minds whether to get the A2 or the XA2!!.  ValueElectronics is selling for us$429.99 + shipment cost us$175.00 which is rather expensive in total.

[Genesis]

I had the same initial impression for my XA2 but found a workaround for this.

 

You may want to check out the following thread in AVSforum which is pretty informative on this topic http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=748147.

 

For HD-DVD, if you are decoding in the player and sending PCM over HDMI or analog, you will need to adjust your channel levels such that the SW channel is "boosted" relative to the other channels by about 10db.  For the XA2, this means that you will need to lower all channels except the SW by 10db, and increase your source level accordingly in the receiver.  Alternatively, check if your receiver has this option to boost the SW db level.   

 

Hope this helps.

 

Thanks for the link tiga, I'll give that a go and reset my speaker levels in the player via SPL meter but starting at 10db lower for all channels and leave the sub flat at 0....good idea!  Thing is, I hope the level adjustment can go lower than -12db else I might not have enuff room if starting at -10db.  I'll try later tonight....

[Genesis]

Hi Genesis, mind telling me where you bought the HD-XA2 and the cost!!  In two minds whether to get the A2 or the XA2!!.  ValueElectronics is selling for us$429.99 + shipment cost us$175.00 which is rather expensive in total.

 

Hi francis...I took the que from Gideon's post at the beginning of this thread....same price from Comp-U-Plus as he posted  :)

[Doggie Howser]

I don't have the 1920 or my Momitsu as a comparison now. In fact, it could very well have been clouded by my own recollection of watching Batman on HD DVD, when I should have been trying to remember watching the SD version :)

 

I do remember vaguely that the Momitsu seemed crisper than the Denon though.

 

Using the Yamaha 2700 through HDMI MPCM audio and it seems that there are no issues with the LFE (tho there are no adjustments)

 

[Guest francis woo]

Tks Genesis, did you get the same pricing as Gideon's!  Was payment made by Amex or Viisa and how long before the package arrived after the order!  Any GST levied by our Customs?