New DVD Players are now listed on the Parasound Website!!!

[bhuskins]

For those of you who want to read the D3 or D 200 manuals they have been posted:

http://www.parasound.com/halonew/dvd.php

http://www.parasound.com/nc/dvd.php

Enjoy and let me know if you're interested

[nicholtl]

Interesting. Nothing revolutionary, though.

[bhuskins]

Common Nick...where's your enthusiasm! We should all pop open one of our bottles we've been saving for a long time. :boozer:

The revolutionary event is that it's finally here!

This is also a step in the right direction for Parasound. This will put them in a much better place to endorse one of the HD/BR formats in the future once the dust settles.

If we can get some closure to HDMI 1.3 I think the planets will align. It will be a great day once we have all the pieces in place for Prepros, Players and Displays to utilize the full benefits of 1.3.

[mitch57]

I am ready right now to purchase a universal player that plays them all! Give me a DVD/CD player that plays DVD-A/SACD/BD/HD/etc., etc., etc. with good quality DACs and processing and I will give you my credit card.

I have 300 DVD-A/SACD titles as well as numerous standard DEF DVD's that I have no intention of giving up until I don't have anything to play them on. Let's all hope for a universal player.

[audioqueso]

Wonder if it will be region-free. If it is, time to spend $6000 on pre, amp, dvd.

[bhuskins]

Mitch,

The BD and HD DVD camps can't even get their single purpose players close (1080p issues, can't decode True HD/HD Master Audio/Etc.). All you have to do is read the reviews in Widescreen and run away fast. Even worse, none of the media includes True HD or HD Master Audio tracks as of yet and the Dolby Digital Plus tracks aren't that hot either. The future formats have a lot of promise but rest assured it will take until 2008 for it to really pan out. Yes I said 2008.

[bhuskins]

Wonder if it will be region-free. If it is, time to spend $6000 on pre, amp, dvd.

A code can be entered to make it region free.

[bhuskins]

Ohh and yes on the spend money thing

[audioqueso]

A code can be entered to make it region free.

Not always though.

[bhuskins]

Specifically on the D3 and D 200 a code can be entered to make it region free...this has been verified.

[Chris D]

Not even out for 12 hours, and already we're talking hacks. Nice!

Yes, this is a big day. Now we'll just have to see what kind of response the public gives to these new models. I personally won't even be able to think about considering it until I return home in November, so I'll have to watch from the sidelines for a while. (well, I guess I could have one delivered to the Middle East, paying big $$$ for shipping and chancing shipping damage Then not even be able to use it to its potential) Naahhhhhhhh...

[nicholtl]

The BD and HD DVD camps can't even get their single purpose players close (1080p issues, can't decode True HD/HD Master Audio/Etc.). All you have to do is read the reviews in Widescreen and run away fast. Even worse, none of the media includes True HD or HD Master Audio tracks as of yet and the Dolby Digital Plus tracks aren't that hot either. The future formats have a lot of promise but rest assured it will take until 2008 for it to really pan out. Yes I said 2008.

Hey Brent, I didn't mean to sound like a downer. But my earnest question is simply that if the new formats will truly shine come 2008, why buy a DVD player now? Current DVD players are pretty darn decent now, and 2008 isn't THAT far away...

[bhuskins]

I'll get one to replace my aging player and to keep long term. I won't be selling my 1000+ DVDs anytime soon. Anybody need a Denon 5900

[nbourbaki]

Hey Brent, I didn't mean to sound like a downer. But my earnest question is simply that if the new formats will truly shine come 2008, why buy a DVD player now? Current DVD players are pretty darn decent now, and 2008 isn't THAT far away...

2008? I was hoping for some clarity by 2007.

[Peter Nielsen]

I don't care much for the new formats, but it sure would have been nice if the D3 had HDMI v1.2 support (SACD audio over HDMI).

Peter

[Vince Helm]

D3 - surprised it was not THX rated. Anyone know if it has a memory buffer for layer changes? Too bad it only has 1 coaxial and 1 optical output. Does anyone know who the primary builder/supplier is? I want this to be a GREAT player but the spec to dollar ratio is a little off balance to other things on the market... I'll need to see some great reviews first... I think?

Thanks
Vince

[audioqueso]

Specifically on the D3 and D 200 a code can be entered to make it region free...this has been verified.

Re-he-really!?! lol
I guess I will be redirecting my new money towards some new Parasound toys.

[mikepinkerton]

Too bad it only has 1 coaxial and 1 optical output.

Just curious, why would you need more than one?
-Mike

[bhuskins]

I was thinking the same thing...especially with a player like this.

Vince, what would you compare it to? The Cary Audio DVD7 for $4,000? Pricing seems in line if you ask me.

[Vince Helm]

Just curious, why would you need more than one?
-Mike

To run the signal into other components. I have a good DAC that might sound better than the D3 for 2 channel listening. I have found that the coaxial connection works better than optical and you have more and better cable choices with coaxial. So, I would like to connect the D3 to the C2 for surround via coaxial and to my DAC via coaxial and not use the optical link. Many other MFGs offer more than one and in the case of outputs and inputs... more is better for a wider appeal to more end users.

Please know that Parasound is not in business to build something just for me. But if the would have asked me I would say two of each please.

I was really looking forward to this machine and so strongly desire it to be great but I am not so sure at this point?


Thanks
Vince

[kwojciec]

Hi

I really cannot figure out all that noise about HDMI 1.3. It seems that everybody expects miracle out of a single cable. Granted single cable not 6 or 8 of those, but assuming that indeed the digital connection between player and processor are that great, we all should have our CD players connected through coax or optical cables to our processors and have the sounds of highest possible quality.

Unfortunately even in the simple-stereo case it does not work this way. The best sound is achieved through the high quality player and the analogue pass through in the processor, which act as the analogue preamp in this case. Am I missing something?

Talking about the quality of the stereo sound I do have another question. I understand that the main difference between Parasound player and Halo player is that D3 has the balanced stereo outputs. In my system I run stereo music through upgraded Dodson 217 DAC (through coax output in the universal player). This cannot be beaten even by very, very good dedicated player. It seems that because of that I can skip Halo player and get a little beat cheaper Parasound version, which has the identical video performance as D3?


best

Krzysztof

[Peter Nielsen]

I really cannot figure out all that noise about HDMI 1.3.

Me neither. However, I do understand the need for HDMI v1.2. We need a way to run all the formats in digital form from the CD/DVD to the preamp.

The new TacT TCS that will be out this fall will have a HDMI v1.2 input. This will let me use DVD-Audio and SACD without the need to purchase the $2500 6-channel analog-to-digital converter that othervise is needed to use these format with the TCS.

Likewise, an updated C2 with HDMI v1.2 input would let you run digital all the way from the D3 to the C2. HDMI v1.2 also allows you to buy a transport without DACs and use the premium DACs in your preamp/amp that you paid dearly for.

Just think about it. A lot of connectors on the DVD player can be removed. The expensive DACs and other analogue electronics in the DVD can be removed...

Unfortunately even in the simple-stereo case it does not work this way. The best sound is achieved through the high quality player and the analogue pass through in the processor, which act as the analogue preamp in this case. Am I missing something?

The best sound is usually achieved by running digital from the player to a high quality external DAC, or to a preamp that has better DACs than the player.

The problem with the coaxial and toslink digital ouput is that they don't support multichannel music (DVA Audio) and SACD. Currently you have to rely on the DVD's builtin DACs to play these formats. This makes for one expensive player if you want the best DACs possible. This is why HDMI v1.2 is needed. It will let you use an external processor and DAC to convert the digital bit stream instead of having to rely on the DVD to do it all...


Peter

[Vince Helm]

I was thinking the same thing...especially with a player like this.

Vince, what would you compare it to? The Cary Audio DVD7 for $4,000? Pricing seems in line if you ask me.

At this point I am only looking at the spec sheets. I am well aware that sound quality can not be listed on a spec sheet. But, The D3 shows no real advantage over many players at the $2000.00 range and in some cases specs are not as good as others. It is beautiful, it will blend well with my other Halo gear, It should have a voice signature as my other Halo gear, but I was hoping for a more clear advantage other than the emotional attachment I have for the Halo gear. It has potential for being out classed very quickly for $2500.00. I hope the reviewers will give an honest review of the D3 and how it compares to other $2,000 players. Without that, I might demo a unit and I might purchase if the price is right??? Having said that, please know that I would buy one today based solely on my desire to own that big beautiful D3!

Thanks
Vince

[kwojciec]

Hi

I want to thank Peter for the clearing some of the points. However, I was following some of the threads in the AVS Forum devoted to extra expensive gear. Here is the story. Theta Casablanca (version 3) 15k processor is widely recognized as one of the most musical processors around. It also has one of the best DACs avalaibles on the market. This processor was easily beaten by so called Six Shooter multichannel analogue preamp combined with Theta Compli universal player. Six Shooter was controlled by Casablanca (just the volume and the choice of the source), but it is perfectly clear that the same result would be achieved using any other high quality multichannel preamp. What I mean is that if you send digital signal from your player to Casablanca which serves as the DAC and preamp then the result is inferior to the sound which is processed inside Theta Compli player and send to Six Shooter which works as a preamplifier. The DACs in Theta Compli are not that good as the one we have in Casablanca, still the SACD and DVDA (and of course CD) sounds much better. I think that this is easy to understand. Processor is a complicated machine which contains too many electronic components and this to the great extent affect the sound quality.

Of course I understand that people with many sources indeed prefer to have a processor with multiple HDMI inputs (and outputs). It is convinent and certain degradation of the sound quality is small price to pay. However for those who want their sound as good as possible HDMI is not the way to go.

I apologize if this sounds too arbitrary. I just want to share my thoughts on this subject

Sincerely

Krzysztof

[mikepinkerton]

Well that's disappointing. I thought that was the whole point of really expensive pre/pros.

-Mike

[Chris D]

Yes, we need to start seeing D3 reviews and feedback. Wish I could pick one up, but I'm out of the country for a bit.

[Peter Nielsen]

Theta Casablanca (version 3) 15k processor is widely recognized as one of the most musical processors around. It also has one of the best DACs avalaibles on the market. This processor was easily beaten by so called Six Shooter multichannel analogue preamp combined with Theta Compli universal player.

The Six Shooter is simply a $2,400 "switch box with volume control". It barely qualifies to be called "amplifier" at all. It has 2 pairs of 6-channel analog inputs and one set of 6-channel analog outputs. What it does is that it switches between the two inputs. It also controls the volume of the 6 channels so that the volume can be handled by the processor setting. That's it! In essence, it is an external version of the bypass in the Halo C1/C2. Pretty much the very same thing!

Of course, what works best is totally dependent on the combination of gear.

A good #1 rule is to keep video processing separate from the audio processing.

If the DACs of the CD and Processor are the same, then it is better to go directly from the CD and avoid the additional electronics in the DAC.

However, if the DACs in the Processor are better, then that's the path to chose.

Peter

[Peter Nielsen]

Well that's disappointing. I thought that was the whole point of really expensive pre/pros.

It still is. However, when talking about Theta, you're dealing with a $20k setup. In this specific setup, it makes sense to go analog directly from the player.

Look at Mark Levinson #40 for a reference example on how to implement a pre/pro with audio and video capability. Video and audio are completely separated into two boxes. That's the way it needs to be.

It all depends on the approach you take. My new TacT setup is all digital. The power amplifiers only have digital inputs. The ideal signal path is to run digital all the way from the player to the amp. Any D/A/D conversion introduced in the path would be completely undesirable. (The TacT TCS pre/pro is audio only. No video stuff at all. The way it needs to be to keep things clean).

Peter

[Blazar]

this dvd player is long overdue but highly unlikely to be worth whatever its sticker price may be. This would have been reasonable when the halo series came out but now??? The Oppo Dvd player upscales and has some some oustanding ratings for a $200 dollar player.

The only reason to buy this player is aesthetics (to get a uniform Halo look). Otherwise I don't see the point.

[bhuskins]

Something interesting from CEDIA is that the new Cinema 11 Pre/Pro from Cary Audio has a special port for connection to a new video switching device to be announced after 1.3 HDMI is mainstream. Basically the Cinema 11 has only audio inputs (a full complement of Analog and Digital) and no video switching. It has already met the specs necessary for processing DTS Master HD and Dolby's best as well meaning that no extra horsepower is needed on down the road for quite some time. A firmware upgrade will be needed (in the field will be possible) to get the new processing formats natively implemented in the Cinema 11 after this future video switcher is announced, but NO hardware upgrades will be necessary. What this new video switcher will do is strip the audio off of a 1.3 HDMI input without ANY conversion and natively send it to the audio only Cinema 11 for processing via this special plug. Rumor also has it that they are looking at the Realta and/or Gennum processors as a solution for scaling. I would assume they are looking at the top Faroudja chips as well being that they have a working relationship with them in regards to their DVD players. The proprietary plug will only work with a Cary video switcher and nothing else, but this is exciting nonetheless. Any video processor/switcher can be used in the meantime, but the audio from HDMI won't be utilized. This is an excellent way to work with the new all in one plug yet keep the two functions (audio and video) completely separate. I would love to see others take this approach, but currently I've only seen Cary offer such a cool solution to such a big problem.

I'm going to post this in the general forum as well being that this is non-Parasound info.

Brent Huskins
Media Design

[Peter Nielsen]

What this new video switcher will do is strip the audio off of a 1.3 HDMI input without ANY conversion and natively send it to the audio only Cinema 11 for processing via this special plug.

HDMI v1.2a is enough to support the audio formats. Anyway, this is definitely the way to go. Sounds like Cary Audio is doing things right!

Peter

[bhuskins]

1.2a...not sure about that when it comes to DTS Master Audio and Dolby True HD.

[yba_us]

Parasound D3 regionfree help........!

Hey Guys!
Help me please! ;x(
I'd like to switch the regioncode on my Parasound D3 to regionfree. Any idea?
Thanks, and Happie New Year for all of you!

[Peter Nielsen]

This is all I can find: http://www.jvbdigital.nl/jvb.asp?cur...itle&title=888

Appears there's no software trick for the D3 ?!

[hamtor]

Hey Guys!
Help me please! ;x(
I'd like to switch the regioncode on my Parasound D3 to regionfree. Any idea?
Thanks, and Happie New Year for all of you!

Try this:

TRAY OPEN -> SETUP -> 8800 -> SETUP -> ANGLE -> REGION CODE -> NEXT -> TRAY CLOSE

Region code 0 = Region free

Good luck

[Chris D]

Huh.... hadn't heard about that for the D3. Thanks!!!!

[yba_us]

Thanks so much

;x( ;x( ;x(
You are the best!!!!!!!!!!!
THX
;x( ;x( ;x( :dancenana:

[hamtor]

glad it worked.

[Peter Nielsen]

Try this:

TRAY OPEN -> SETUP -> 8800 -> SETUP -> ANGLE -> REGION CODE -> NEXT -> TRAY CLOSE

Region code 0 = Region free

Good luck

Hah! And a company in the Netherlands has the balls to ask 200 euros for this service?! I thought things like this only happened in the US :B :T

[yba_us]

Hey Guys!
Are there any software update for the Parasound D3 universal player. I have a tray issue. It"s refuse to open the tray sometimes and when it does it, impossible to open it without unplugging it. Can it be fixed by software update if it"s available, or mine has broken?
Thanks!

[Chris D]

Hmmmm... haven't heard of any firmware updates, and I don't even know if you could apply them, unless Parasound enabled firmware updates from inserted data discs. (Denon did this) Unfortunately, the tray issue you're talking about doesn't sound like a firmware issue, though.

In case I haven't gotten you before, welcome to the Guide and Club Parasound! :banana:

[yba_us]

Hi Chris!
Thanks for the velcome and for the help also! I called the Parasound service already, and they asked me to bring it to them, so they going to fix it.
Have a nice day, Tibi:-)

[Lex]

This thread is locked.

Brent Huskins is no longer an active member here, and has no affiliation with HTGuide.com. We do not recommend him from this site, and he to my knowledge has no affilation with Parasound.

I recommend no one see this thread and view it as suggestive in any form shape or fashion to do business with this former advertiser that has no affiliation with HTGuide or it's owners or it's moderators.