price, dual tray, DTS

JUNK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

this is the third toshiba (DVD) unit I have had. What a dissapointment, I have never had problems with my 2 other toshibas, but after about 2 months of vary infrequent use i got the "insert disc" message, when I had 2 discs in the machine. nothing I could do would fix it. sent it back to best buy (service) and waited over a month to get it fixed. it has been working for the last couple months (time will tell). I hate using a product for 2 months and having it be repaired for 1 month. THIS IS THE LAST TOSHIBA PRODUCT I EVER BUY-PERIOD!!! This is a great thing about the internet, let toshiba know how you feel. good luck toshiba, I hope you go out of business!!!

Similar Products Used:

poineer 333, toshiba 2100

Zoom, Spatializer

Problem playing new Godfather DVD's, Menu problems on a few discs

Generally, I've been very pleased with the overall performance of this player for the past few years. I'm now shopping for a new player due to my problems -- culminating with my experience with the "Godfather DVD Collection."

Aside from a generally good picture, other features make this a good palyer. The zoom is very handy. I'm a widescreen fan, but some detail can be hard to see on my current 20" monitor. Their Spacializer audio feature is also great for CD audio. This player also plays back HDCD encoded discs in 20-bit audio, but I haven't tried any yet of those discs yet. This format doesn't seem to be catching on too quickly. I hope it does.

The first problems was on one of the earliest DVD's that I purchased, "From the Earth to the Moon." The highlight bar on the menu of two of the discs wasn't there. I'm still able to view the discs with no problem by mearly counting the "beeps" when I move the cursor up and down and selecting the episode that way. I have the same problem on the menu for "Excalibur."

The problem that's prompting me to shop for a new player is "The Godfather DVD Collection." As a Coppola/"Godfather" fan, one could imagine my frustration when much of my $75 investment wouldn't work on my player! The movies themselves appeared to be playing fine, but whenever I try to play the documentaries and additional scenes on my Bonus Materials disc, my player freezes before after playing a split-second of audio! I later played part of "Godfather, Part III" while listening to the commentary track and it froze again. That problem hasn't repeated though. Hoping against hope that it was a problem with the disc, I exchanged it. The problem is still there. I found others with this player on alt.video.dvd having the same exact problem! I contacted Paramount Home Video and Zoetrope (Coppola's company who mastered the DVD). Zoetrope responded that some older players may have problems playing newer discs with more elaborate content and sophisticated navigation and suggested I contact the manufacturer. Based on what I've heard, I shouldn't be surprised that Toshiba hasn't responded to my e-mail yet.

Sadly, when I look at the reviews of other players, the newer Toshiba models rate very high with users and they have the features that I like. I'm looking for something -- preferably with the newer NUON technology -- and would like to try another brand this time around. Any suggestions for a replacement player?

For those of you who opted to scroll down past my rant and get to the bottom line -- don't buy this player. The technology is apparently too old for newer discs.

Similar Products Used:

none

Dual Tray

Remote Kind-of UGLY
no Backlite
No seperate FF button

Excelent System.

I've had my SD-3109 for one month, absolutely no problems.
RATING 4/5

Likes:

1. Great picture.
2. Good remote.
3. Has both DTS and Dolby Digital decoding for those without up to date processors.
4. Has HDCD, don't have any HDCD disks yet but you never know...
5. Has two disk trays for movies that exceed one disk.
6. I like the intelligence of the display panel messaging, its cool.
7. Great sound.
8. LOVE the zoom feature.
9. Great price.

Dislikes:

1. I can't get it to properly play CDRs from made on my HP 6020i CDR. I can hear music, but it is very very noisy, sounds like a sampling or framing mismatch between the encoded and decoded signals. (Rating of 4 because of this).

2. The ability to open the tray door remotely would be nice.

I've seen a lot of reviews that have complained that the disk trays are cheaply made, I don't have a problem with the tray system on this player at all...its a bit clunky, but who cares?

I bought my SD-3109 about a month ago, and have been nothing but impressed by the quality of this player. The bulid quality is excellent, and even the remote is pretty easy to use; the player providing a reassuring beep on receipt of each command. The onscreen menus are a cinch to navigate, with the manual providing clear descriptions of each fuction. Sonically and visually the SD-3109 is a treat, and comes highly recomended.

I bought this Player about a month ago, so far i have not had any major problems with it. The Video is perfect and the adio is outstanding. I would recomend it to anyone insterested. The only things that i was dissapionted about were the weight, adn the cheapness of the remote control.

Have had the Toshiba SD3109 for one week now and it's operating perfectly. No problems on 10 different disks including the often cited as problematic "The Matrix". Love the dual tray feature. I'm using monster cables - I400MkII for Audio and Monster Video 3 Component (MV3CV) to hook it up to a Sony Wega FV15. It's working flawlessly. Great picture, good sound (still need to get my 5.1 setup). Remote is nice, good sized buttons, glows in the dark. Overall I feel I got a great buy.

The sound, dual disk, and everything about this machine! Disks load quick, and the picture is crystal clear. Its also very easy to setup...thats always a positive!

I have found none to date, and I have watched probablly 20-30 movies.

I couldn't imagine how much better a DVD player could be compared to a VCR. It is incredible, and the sound is even more amazing. You pick up sounds and things I have never herd before....not even in the theater. Some have complained about the remote, but I have yet to figure out what there problem is. Its very easy to use! I highly recommend this system. Its not far from the top of the line, and for the price you cant beat it! I almost had a stroke watching sixth sense on it! Good luck, and enjoy!

Similar Products Used:

None

Built in 5.1 decoder with 6 ANALOG outputs for easy upgrade

Dual tray sometimes awkward, but not that bad once you figure it out

This is my system:
HK AVR 25 Mk II
Paradigm Monitor 5 Mains
Paradigm CC-50 center
Paradigm 10" Passive Sub
BSR (off-brand) surrounds
1991 27" Zenith TV

This is my first DVD player ever. I bought it primarily for a good CD player. I listened to every single CD I owned on it before I even put a DVD in it. Phenomenal sound.

Then I plugged in The Matrix, and it made my mediocre television scream with superb video quality. Imagine what it could do with a nice Sony Wega. The only picture freezes I ever got were on rental disks that I could see the scratches on.

I chose this one above the 2109 primarily for its Dolby Digital 6-channel analog outputs so I wouldn't have to get rid of my HK receiver to get Dolby Digital sound.

I give it only 4 stars on overall rating because of the slight awkwardness of the dual tray. I bought this one for $269 off U-bid. Of course the nextt day, I could've gotten one for $219, but that's life.

For those of you that are concerned with the 3109 ability to play two channel music, take a look at the latest issue of Stereo Review's Sound and Vision magazine. They have a review of the 3109. In summary, they state that the audio quality of the 3109 is clear and natural and every bit as good as a standalone CD player. This reinforces my own evaluation that Toshiba's DAC coupled to MicroPacific's HDCD's produces a sonic quality that rivals a CD player. Sonically its a big step above the usual DVD transport out there.