Page 1 of Pioneer DV535

Thinking of buying this multi-region version... anyone got any views?

Seems to do all I need for £250.

Or any other suggestions (Hitachi poss???).

Martin - I just bought one after briefly owning a Mico and a Wharfedale (which both had unacceptable features).

So far I am very happy with this Pioneer. I have only found one thing which has bugged me - the RGB output timing isn`t quite compatible with my Philips TV. I *suspect* that the timings are a little tighter than my TV can cope with, and I get wide area flicker on certain scenes (I assume that the black-level clamping isn`t working quite right). The RGB output is fine with a friend`s Sony TV though. On my own TV I am now using S-Video, and it works just fine.

The machine is quick, and the picture quality is excellent. I am using the digital audio out with an ARCAM decoder/amp, and it sounds fine (so I can`t comment on the analogue). I suppose you know that it doesn`t have a built in DD or DTS - obviously not an issue for me.

The remote is a little fiddly, but sensibly laid out and works well. It is better than most remotes, but still not perfect.

All things considered, I am extremely happy with this Pioneer, but I recommend you try out the TV compatibility and "feel" the remote - those are the only areas of (potential) weakness that I`ve found.

I was able to get mine at £240 from a local Hi-Fi shop (in Cambridge). It was an ex-display unit, but a boxed one would have been £250. It was multi-region at this price, but I don`t know which chip it uses. All I know is that it plays R1 (as PAL-60) and R2 just fine - though I haven`t tried it with anything too nasty yet.

I`ve not seen any reviews of this yet, but the two or three shops I talked to rated it extremely highly on picture quality - the said it was the best they`d seen at the price (but they would say that wouldn`t they!) I`m certainly happy.

I bought the Pioneer in preference to the Sony (bacuse I don`t believe the Sony can do R1 in PAL). Hitachi was on my list of possibles, but I never found one to look over.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Mark

Mark, Thanks for the comments - but I thought that the DV535 did have DTS??? - I may be wrong...(just re-read the spec - it says "DTS compatible" ->>> what does that mean??? and is built-in DTS desirable for me at this stage???

That "techie" speak was over my head at this stage!!!, but I`ll only be using it through Scart lead until I change my Nicam Sony TV.

Thanks again,

Martin.

The Pioneer is DTS (&DD) cvompatible in so far as it`ll read the audio data streams from the DVDs and present it to an external decoder. If you have a decoder/amp which can handle DD/DTS then you simply make a single cable connection between the boxes and the decoder/amp will do the decode and give you the surround sound.

IF you are using external amps (no decoder), then you`ll need something to decode the DD/DTS streams. The Pioneer doesn`t have this built in. All it does is feed you a stereo output (presumably Pro Logic compatible - i.e. the older analog surround sound standard).

So you have to decide. If you want full 5.1 audio (in full digital glory), you`ll need something external to the Pioneer to create all the channels. If you only want stereo, or already have a DD/DTS decoder/amp then the Pioneer will do everything you need, and it`s excellent picture quality will make this a good choice.

If you are unsure about any of this stuff then talk to your local supplier. They`ll not only talk you through it, but show you all the boxes/connections.

Good luck,

Mark

p.s. I was also keen on the cheap Toshiba, but didn`t need the internal decoder that it provides. The Pioneer is reckoned to have a better picture quality.

I`ve got the Pioneer DV530. This is identical to the 535 in every way except it is silver and doesn`t have an optical output - no big deal, I use the coaxial.

Bought from Techtronics, currently £198 inc VAT and delivery. (multiregion)

The picture is very sharp linked up to my Panasonic 36 PF10 via S-video and is not soft at all.

Sound is also excellent through Yamaha DSP A5. DD is great as is DTS.

There are two minor problems for me though. The remote is a little bit fiddly, and although I know where the buttons are in the dark by now, I still hit the wrong button from time to time. The second complaint is the build quality. The unit is very light - I thought the box it came in was empty when it was delivered. It isn`t the most sturdy of cases in comparison to my DSPA5 amp, but it does the job.

That aside, it`s great for me in every way. It seems now that the difference between budget and mid-range players is just an inbuilt decoder and maybe trick play. I would never use trick play or zoom etc so for under £200 I think I`ve got myself a bargain.

(The 535 is strangely another £40 from Techtronics)

Bigfan, i`m thinking of buying a Pioner 530 from Techtronics, can you tell me how long the delivery time was, and how you found the overall service.

We have some far east sourced gold colour pioneer 535s in stock.
Much to our surprise it works with RCE disk the patriot.We have sold
more pioneer 515/525s until the sc-2000 came along and i wouild
personally recomend it.
nilesh
scan

bigfan,

how did you find delivery time & general level of service @ techtronics?

You also mentioned the little difference in spec between the 530 & 535, you don`t think it is worth shelling out that little extra money for the 535 then?

Bruce.

I bought a Pioneer 530 from Techtronics for £198 inc vat. I ordered it Sunday 5th November and it arrived Friday 10th November. Service was very good, they responded quickly to my emails and were always polite, to the point etc. I would certainly buy from them again.

The delivery time for the 530 model was 8 days. I know this sounds like a long time but they said that they were changing couriers on the week that I ordered so there would be no despatches. It was despatched on a Monday (1 week after ordering) and arrived on the Tuesday morning.

In terms of the difference between the 530 and the 535, it is only an optical output and the colour.

If you really can`t live with the silver colour, then get the 535. If you see the need for an optical output then get the 535. However, in terms of performance, they are apparently identical. On other sites they are the same price so it might just be a special sale offer. (Just checked Techtronics site - it`s on the sale column so it must be a special offer)

Techtronics` service is good. Before making the purchase I must have sent about 10 emails and they were all responded to quickly. About 4 of them were replied to within one hour which is pretty good.

Overall, I wouldn`t hesitate to buy from them again. Their prices are amongst the cheapest for multi region and they seem to know their stuff, especially since they program their own modifications.

Also, does anyone know how long the 530/535 has been out? Mine says manufactured July 2000, but I haven`t seen many in the shops until recently.

This item was edited on Saturday, 11th November 2000, 22:47