great reliability in my setup, decent transport for higher resolution audio {hdcd}ect.

did freeze up on dvd "dinosaurs" but i read that there is a combatibility problem between this disc and some dvd players {"walt disney"}, occasionally seems somewhat slow loading.

the toshiba has worked fine for me up to this time,i really cant complain about the picture as i dont currently have a hd tv yet. it does fine with my older 27 inch zenith, naturally a huge improvement over vhs.this toshiba currently serves as my main quality transport along with two sony jukeboxes cdpcx400-and a cdpcx 200 slave.the tosiba and sonys connect to a monarchy dip{jitter reducer}as the sonys only have a toslink out,the dip will accomodate this and convert to a ballanced out, while my toshiba utilises straight wire mega link all feeding the dip and then out to a Kora 24 bit 192 kilohertz triode tubed upsampelling dac.this then is fed to my lexicon preamp.then that to a plinius sa 100 mk 111 amplifier, mit terminator 2 speaker cables and mirage om6 speakers in the front of a 7 channel setup. while i like the convenience of the jukeboxes the toshiba does sound better {although marginally}with regular cds. however recently listening to neil youngs hdcd {silver and gold}track #9 razor love- i was stunned at the difference in the sound even though the new kora and plinius are surely largely accountable for this the toshibas pacific mirosonics hdcd decoder "clicked"in and wow- really the sound just seemed to open up i swear i heard a piano off to my left so real i had to keep looking just to make sure it wasnt theryre,also listening to patricia barbers cd "cafe blue"the tosiba serves its dual purpose well {movies and cds}by keeping complex orchestra sounds from congealing or becoming blurred, on track #9 too rich for my blood,the sounds just stay seperated the cymbols and drums are clearly distinct and some cymbols are more forward in the soundstage and some seem to be further back, this level of listening is all new and exciting to me,the fact that the toshiba sd 3109 can serve as a transport along with such fine equipment allows me to wholeheartedly endorse this dvd player to anyone building a hometheatre/2 channel audio integrated setup.regards to all, enjoy!!!!

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none this is my first and last dvd until audio format wars subside

Great picture and sound, zoom feature

big, clunky remote. Not forgiving of dirty rentals disks.

I really like this unit. It gives me a spectacular picture with component video outputs and incredible sound -- even with my aging, but soon-to-be-replaced, Dolby Surround receiver.
The zoom feature is great for deciphering some of those hard to see background details -- of course, this is less of a "big deal" since most DVD players now have it, but they didn't a year and a half ago.

Minor complaint: The remote is too big overall and the buttons should light up, not just glow-in-the-dark. (they quickly fade out)

I don't have the lock up problems others have described when playing DISKS THAT I OWN, but I did notice that it locked up easily when playing a rental DVD. I found that the disks I rent are filthy -- I can't believe the condition of some of them, it's like they're used as drink coasters!
The solution? Now I clean all DVDs that I rent or borrow. (Hold under running water, use a TINY amount of dish soap and later well. Rinse and dry THOROUGHLY!)

picture quality, features

laser problems, heat

I'm submitting a review again as a reply for my earlier review complaining about the freezing problem. I GOT IT FIXED MYSELF :) I knew that without the warranty it would cost a fortune to repair the unit as for sure the repair company would change the whole laser pickup mechanism from the unit. Well, I opened the unit up, took out the whole transport mechanism (very easy to take out just a few screws and cables) and took the laser pickup out of the transport. I started the usual checking of the mechanics and noticed that the laser spindle isn't sliding smoothly over the rails. The spindle irrationally "got stuck" - just as if there would be some dirt or something between the gears. Well, I took out some gears and then I found it. The smallest gear - right on the shaft of the transport motor - was cracked! I could hardly see the crack as the gear was so small but you could see the problem when sliding the spindle forwards and backwards as the spindle got stuck always when the smallest gear rolled around once. I took the gear out and mailed toshiba and surprise surprise they never replied. I tried glueing the gear with no luck and ended up just putting the gear on a different height on the motor shaft. That way the spindle isn't getting stuck anymore and the player plays fine again. I'll probably get some problems in the future as the gear moves down the shaft but atleast I know the problem and what part to service then. Whew, i hope this helps someone - if you are just able, go on and check the mechanics yourself. The repair store will for sure replace the whole transport and charge you $300 for it :)

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several

DTS, HDCD and very good picture.

Media recognition

This is a terrific unit -- if you only want to play DVD / CD pressed by a manufacturer.

At some point though I tried to create a VCD from my home DV footage. Although Toshiba says the unit should read VCD, it will not read a VCD you create yourself... I thought my creation attempt failed until I played the disc back in a friends Apex unit.

On the Toshiba website the SD3109 has a small notice at the bottom of the spec that mentions possible problems reading discs created by home burner. The same notice seems to be included on the other models specs that I checked. I've got to assume the same problem with the entire model lineup... Maybe someone else could comment on laser type or focus depth that could be an issue.

Some other reviews I see here dislike the dual tray and load times. I like the dual tray and I don't have a problem with the load time. I've seen some very quick loads with discs that don't offer much menu overhead, and even with heavily menu'd discs the spinup and read start only take about 3 seconds.

For value I give 5 stars; it does what it is supposed to do at a resonable (street) price.

For my disappointment in not reading home creations I give an overall rating of 4, and I am looking for a second or replacement unit.

Just got my SD-3109 from www.800.com yesterday, for $399 (and $75 worth of free DVDs, no shipping.) Service was good - ordered on Monday, on my doorstep Thurs.
So far performance is good, although a few too many *bright* red/green LEDs on the panel for true home-theater. I am using the 5.1 decoder on my Harman/Kardon AVR-75 with a TOSLink input - the sound is incredible, even without a sub.

A couple of gripes - the player does not appear to remember disc settings from one play to another, so I have to select 5.1 every time. My TV is 6 years old, so I don't expect the greatest resolution (although the 3109 has component outputs) but the machine-resident setup menus seem to be worse than usual. The remote is OK, although the fast/slow viewing is a bit clunky - a jog/shuttle would have been nice.

The 2-drawer feature is convenient, but probably not worth a decision. One of the features that made me pick this player (apart from the price) was the HDCD capability, since I intend to use it as a primary CD player as well. I only have one HDCD disk so far (Natalie Merchant, Ophelia) -- the sound stage is more apparent (spacious) with the extra 4 bits of encoding.

Overall, the player seems to be a quality product at a good price. I've only watched one movie, so I can't comment on problems with individual disks.

I decided to purchase a DVD player about 3 months ago and read about the 3109 and its March (turned April) release date and decided to wait. The major attraction was the HDCD player that nothing else in this price range has. Since my current CD player (A '93 SONY CDP-C725) is very old, why not kill to birds with one stone? Last month I picked up my first Dolby Digital receiver (a Sherwood New Castle R-925 (review coming soon)) from Audio Classics in NYS and I have actually rented a Toshiba SD-2107 twice from the local rental store to try it out. I ordered from OneCall with no difficulties and set it up with Video Essentials, a sound meter and my SONY 27" using a 75 ohm composite video cable as the tv doesn't have better inputs.
The video and DVD-sound so far is great. I own Super Speedway and it looks sublime. I also tried Boogie Nights and Blade Runner. I am very happy with the overall performance of the DVD section of the player.
Trying a few CD's, the sound is wonderful as well. Using HDCD's such as Chris Issac's Baja Sessions and Mark Knopfler's Golden Heart the performce blew away my old CD player. I also played a few normal (16 bit) discs such as Lyle Lovett (Joshua Judges Ruth)and the Dire Strait's Communique and they were also impressive.
Now the negative.....
The dual disc idea is neat, but some how I am convinced that a couple of years from now the flimsy door mechanism will some how be the first part of this unit to break. The rest of unit feels very solid. The remote is a big disappointment as well. I guess the buttons glow in the dark, but not brightly. The button to skip to the next chapter/song is the same one to fast forward, depending on how long you press it. That is stupid. It is also much more dificult to program in song order on cds or DVDs than it should be.
For the price, I would buy this unit no matter what. Performance is outstanding and convience is resonable and I will always go for performance.
I give it 4 stars and reserve the 5th due to the minor problems above.

ps... I have ordered the new Chesky 96/ 24 adudio DVD sampler that this unit promises to play. I will let you all know how it sounds in the discussion area when it arrives.
Next purchase: a big screen tv :>) any ideas?

current equiptment:
Sony KV-27S20 27” Trinitron TV
Sherwood New Castle R-925 A/V Receiver
Boston Accoustics A60 Speakers (front)
Boston Accoustics CR2 Center Speaker
Boston Acoustics SW10 Powered Subwoofwer
PSB Alpha Surround Speakers
Cables:
Main Speakers: Audio Quest F14 (3 front Speakers)(MIT 6 on the way)
Surrounds: Tributaries SP12W (70 Feet) (with RS Gold Terminations)

Interconnects:
1 Tributaries DCV 100 Video Cable (A/V to TV)
2 Audio Quest Video 1 (Coax Digital and Video from DVD to A/V)
2 XLO/VDO ER 5 (THX) (2 channell analog out for CD player to A/V)

Took Ross advise and just got my 3109 from AVI. Compared to the VCR I was using, the video display is absolutely stunning. I upgraded all of my video cables to support the added resolution...I can now use the SVideo inputs of myTV. Its going through a Sony TAE 9000ES preamp and the Sony's remote works it.
This DVD also sounds better than my Pioneer CD player. I went to www.hdcd to see what CD are encoded with HDCD and purchased Lucinda Williams. The sound dynamics are amazing. The two trays are handy also. I also ordered from AVI
the clearance NEAR speaker specials and got the 15m for a steal and the 20mv for
my center. Can't wait for these to arrive. I got the picture I always wanted, now I can have the sound too. For those of you who want to know I know that getting hold of a 3109 can be a hassle, AVI had them and delivered them for $350 at 773-271-8807.

Just got mine from onecall. I have seen deals out there that are much better so you may want to checkout Techtalk for more info. Anyway, I plugged it in and away we went. So far, It has been excellant. The picture is solid and the audio into my HK 65 is perfect. I have only watch two movies on it, Die Hard (pretty mediocure) and Star Trek First Contact (VERY nice).
The other reviews are right about the remote, it is pretty damn auckward, and down right stupid looking. But, I am using a Sl-9000 so its not like it matters to me. Other then that, I have no complaints. The dual trays is pretty damn handy. Nice that it allows you to switch the one that is not being used when the other is playing.

I just purchased this wonderful player at of all places Montgomery Ward! I looked around everywhere and I finally got it. This unit replaces my Pioneer 414. Initially I saw a great improvement in picture quality over the 414. I watched a 16:9 enhanced disc and notice no glitches in the downconversion. Austen Powers has no lip synch problems anymore!! I really like the menu system on the 3109 but the remote leaves something to be desired. The dual tray thing is great. Ill probably just keep my favorite disc in the second tray for easy access. My home theater includessony kv20v80 television
yamaha v-905 dolby digital receiver
harmen karden 5 disc changer
toshiba 3109 dvd player
panasonic vcr
paradigm mini monitor front speakers
jbl hls center channel (will replace this summer with a paradigm center)
jbl bookshelves as real (also will replace this summer with paradigm titans or mini monitors)
no sub (neighbors wont allow it :) )

I got this player nearly three weeks ago from DVDCity ($389 + $21 2-Day Fedex). Both myself and my steady stream of friends coming over are totally loving it. The picture quality and sound is just awesome when playing DVD's. I use the on-board AC-3 decoder and feed the 5.1 output into my awiwa sound system until I can afford getting an A/V receiver and better speakers (if anyone has purchased the Klipsch Quintet system, please let me know what you think of it.) It also sounds great playing HDCD. The sound quality is much, much better than playing through the awiwa system.
My only complaints are: (1) when i reload a previously played disc, it doesn't remember the setting that i used before so I haveto reprogram the thing; and (2) the fast forward feature is buggy. Sometimes it skips to the next chapter, other times it advances correctly. After three weeks I'm still trying to get it right. I also noticed that it sometimes loads discs with the subtitles options turned on but I don't know if this a function of the player or the disc's programming.

The greatest feature: ZOOM. My set is only 27" so viewing widescreen disc is a problem (I wish somebody would tell the studio's that we still need 4:3). Usually using Zoom 1 or Zoom 2 allows me to fill my set without loosing too much of the picture.

Conclusion: I would highly recommend this player to anyone looking to get their first player. The price/quality is just better than anything Sony or Panasonic can offer. And when your looking for disc, try BuyVideos.com. Most disc are just for $14.99 + $4.99 for two day shipping.

A final word: Has anyone bought the Toshiba 40" widescreen tv? I was thinking about purchasing the Sony 36" Wega set but now I thinking that I need a set that can display widescreen disc full screen. Please let me know if you have a set recommendations.