Video Asylum

Posted by oldvinyl (A) on August 04, 2006 at 14:26:11

Wanted to post my impression of the new Cary Cinema DVD 7. This DVD player is being used in my home theater and replaces a Cary DVD-3 DVD player and Faroudja DVP-2200. I had the Faroudja DVP-2200 for a little over 6 years. The DVP-2200 has been surpassed in price and performance since then. The new generation Faroudja video processor have shrunk the contents of the circuit board in the DVP-2200 down to an ASIC and added additional features.

The new Cary player uses 2 of the Faroudja video processors and performs 12 bit video processing (the DVP-2200 had 10 bit video processing). The new noise reduction filters in combination with eliminating the A/D and D/A of the external processor got rid of the "mosquito" noise. All that is left is a great looking image that reveals film grain (when present).

My home theater has a Sony G70 CRT projector with a StudioTek 130 80 in X 45 in screen. The projector works best with the 800 X 600 resolution selected. The video quality at this resolution, this size screen and an 8 - 10 foot viewing distance is film-like (cinema quality).

Fortunately, the DVD 7 is very flexible and includes composite, S-video, component, RGBHV BNC and HDMI video outputs - all these on one DVD player. With the Sony G70, the natural choice is the BNC connectors and 5 wire RGBHV. As I mentioned above, this let me forego an external upscaler/upconverter and artifacts associated with multiple steps of video processing.

When used with component video, the output is selectable to 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i and 1080p. With HDMI and RGBHV the output is selectable to 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024, 1366x768. While I could use the 1366 X 768 output, that would require a full calibration (ala ISF) to another input.

The color output on this DVD player is exceptional. Skin tones are natural, reds (on a proprerly calibrated system) and their various shadess project naturally without bleeding. The dark drowns and greys have detailand depth. The image has depth, on the right scenes, you could walk right in to the screen.

The DVD 7 weighs 35 pounds, is well shielded and has hefty power supplies. The unit has performed flawlessly in operation.

Audio outputs on the coax digital sounds great (thanks to the Cary P-7 surround sound procesor also in my system). The soundfield is enveloping, the bass is firm and thunderous (when called for).

Stereo audio for CDs is also audiophile quality. The 2 channel audio output is based on the Cary 303/300 CD player. Nice to have a great sounding CD player built in to the home theater.

Overall, Cary has done a superb job on this DVD player. The video output is superb, the upscaling/upconverting is beautifully rendered. The video is free of artifacts and allows film grain to come through. Seems that Cary is doing well in the audio components and the video components. Check one out at a dealer or friends home theater.

Now I wonder when Cary will offer a DVD player with tube buffered outputs??

Enjoy the music.