If we buy dvd player with hdmi output do the they gave free hdmi cable with the unit? For ns76 model, what is the audio output available (coaxial/optical)? Because I want to connect the audio output to my home theater.

The 78H model is not out here even though it is made in Malaysia, surprisingly, it is available in Thailand and Singapore as we speak but it will be launched in Malaysia but dunno when. Currently, Sony Malaysia is clearing stocks for the 76H model so get it quick, it's more than RM100 cheaper now. I bought it at RM580 earlier.

Those IQ-less sales people must be ketinggalan zaman, even previous Sony dvd player, DVPNS-575P which was bought a few years back could play poor quality dvd media with no problems but I bought the 76H b'coz of the HDMI output. The Sony DVPNS-575P dvd player is still around and connected to my trusty old Sony Wega CRT tv since those TVB series on dvds won't benefit much from upscaling.


The 76H model supports both coaxial and optical digitial outputs so enjoy ......

Despite my recommendations, I have to warn you about the Sony though. The component output signal is a bit weak.

Buy it only if you intend to use the HDMI upscaling which is it's strong point.

If you need the USB, then Philips is your choice.

This post has been edited by Ngto: Oct 26 2007, 12:36 AM

Was at Harvey Norman today, just checking the HDMI players out. The Sony is still priced at RM599 despite the price being dropped to RM499 at Sony's website. Didn't bother to ask them lah coz i was just checking out the physical look of the Sony, Philips and Pio models. The Pio is the ugliest compared to the other two. No offence to guys who bought Pio 400 ok..just my observation..

Good thing is there are loads of Sony 76H there..I think I counted 8-10 units stacked on the floor. Btw, is the 76H multi region by default?

Yea, I will use HDMI upscaling for my video output and digital coax for audio output. The USB port...hhmm..it's a nice to have feature but not a must lah. It would be nice to playback all those series like Heroes I downloaded and watch on the tv with the sound coming from my home theatre set.

Right now..i hook up an RGB cable to my laptop..PQ is good since in US, it's all in HD already. But the sound is from my laptop. Cacat a bit. Oh well, can't have your cake and eat it...

If you already have HD content via your laptop, then I can't comment whether the 76H will be better or worse than your current setup. That's because the Sony will upscale standard 480P DVD to 720P/1080i whereas your laptop already has HD as it's source.

Subject to the above, I think the colour, brightness and contrast etc. would be better using the Sony. Use one of the Dynamic or Cinema modes on the 76H together with the sharpness control to get the best results with your LCD TV.

yea, support sony 76h
it only upscales thru hdmi rite?

Thanks for the tip Ngto...

Main reason I'm looking to get an HDMI player is so I can max out my TV's capability on existing DVD formats. I reckon BluRay and HD DVD will slog it out for some time more. And once the format is decided, the initial pricing of the winning format's players would be expensive. Then gotta give it a bit of time for the pricing to come down. So all in all, I estimate it around 12-15 months before the pricing of the winning format's DVD players become more affordable. So the Sony 76H will plug the gap during these 12-15 months..hehe

The USB port thingy...not a big deal to me lah. If got, then more convenient for me. Just put my media in thumbdrive and plug it into the player. If don't have..fall back to RGB cable and laptop lor.


rx330...you hardcore Sony supporter eh....got commission for promoting Sony stuff ah..heheh

Most, if not all, current models (whatever Brand) upscales only via HDMI.

This post has been edited by Ngto: Oct 26 2007, 10:55 AM

sony 78H out in malaysia already. check out the website. same price as 76H

decisions decisions...wonder if the 78H is using mediatek chip as well

This model is too new in the market, there are no reviews yet, it could be using Sony's own mpeg chip as majority of the models are using it with the exception for the 76H model which I'm 100% certain that it is using the Mediatek mpeg chip. There's only one way to find out, open up the player and check the chip.

Aha...to open up the player means one has bought it...and upon opening it and discovering that it's not a mediatek chip but sony's own mpeg chip....the tears will flow..

sunauto...does the 76h has settings where you can set whether to upscale to 720p or 1080i or it'll automatically upscale to the highest possible?

if i get a HDMI player that's capable of 1080p but my tv maxes out at 1080i..then how?

You can select Auto/720P/1080i.

If you get a 1080P player and select that resolution but your TV only support 1080i then you will get a blank screen.

Or if your player is smart enough and automatically detect that your TV only has 1080i support, it will probably not let you enable the 1080P.

This post has been edited by Ngto: Oct 26 2007, 10:42 PM

I'm wondering, if I get a AV receiver that upscales to 1080p wouldn't it be better than getting a HDMI DVD player for upscaling?And Astro would look better too right?

The resolution can be selected from the settings menu and if your LCD tv maxes out at 1080i, then there's no point buying the 78H model since you're not able to view it in 1080p on your LCD tv. The good news is, 76H might be cheaper now b'coz of the new model. As of now, nobody knows whether the 78H is using the mediatek chip and nope, Sony's customer support people knows nothing about the technical details b'coz even though the 76H is using a mediatek chip, they purposely used a marker pen to cover the word mediatek on the chip but seasoned movie buffs will be able to know that it's a mediatek chip if it doesn't have chroma issues with Toy Story and Monster Inc.


Sadly the player doesn't auto detect the maximum resolution of your LCD tv so that means you can still select 1080p resolution even though your panel doesn't support it. My friend's first gen plasma tv is an EDTV and yet, he can still select 1080i from the menu and like what you have said, no picture at all.


It depends, if the AV receiver is using a high quality upscaling and deinterlacing chip, it can be the answer to better picture quality from standard definition sources.

Here are two threads on the NS78H from AV Forums for anyone who is interested.

Apparently, in US, it's known as NS77. And NS76 is known as NS75/71

http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=607779

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=872367

Mixed reviews. Maybe the gurus who owns the 76H can feedback a bit after reading those threads above. Some features were removed in NS78..dunno if it'll affect the player. And apparently 76H's progressive scan light irritates some ppl...that's a first!

The general impression I get is quite a lot of the AV Forum ppl like the NS78. One of the reason is it being black...haha

This post has been edited by mavric: Oct 27 2007, 02:28 AM

Yea, some displays look dull. But is it possible that the settings purposely are made to look dull, so that they can push certain models??

Yeah...i've no confidence in China products either...however, i believe there is difference buying a China made brand "Cap X", compared to branded product, although they're made in China.

In fact, in the future, and now, almost everything will be made in China. So wat to do??

My PS2 also made in China...i believe PS3 also the same. All these multinational manufacturing companies now have setup factories in China to make their products or else they can't compete with the price already.

One thing though, i try to avoid canned food from China...dunno wat they put inside...too many horror stories..

I haven't read the forums linked above, but if they mean the Progressive indicator at the front of the player's panel, then it's a non issue.

Those people are probably lazy or dumb. The just complain about everything before checking the features of the products they buy. Those indicator lights in front can be set in the menu to automatically dim after a few seconds so as not to be too distracting in the dark.

They must be kidding me, one little orange light very annoying meh? What about PS2's blue and green LED lights, that's even a bigger distraction. The reviewers must be dumb, they should be looking at the screen and not the player.

As for the link, the loss of BNR (block noise reduction) & MNR (mosquito noise reduction) functions are not important as I always disabled them because it will make the picture softer and out of focus if you were to use these noice reduction functions. Next is the connectivity issue, the loss of any optical output might not be a big deal as most AV amps support either coaxial and optical inputs but to me, coaxial will sound better than optical, it has more warmth whereas optical input tends to sound a little more bright and harsh.


Totally agree with ya, that's a lame excuse to say that it's a big issue because for myself, the illuminated progressive scan button and display come in handy especially when you need to verify the settings or to check the chapter that you're currently watching.

For the information i get, those Philips TV models feature Ambilight fully import from Belgium, not local made or China.