How does the Toshiba HD-A1 compare to the 360 add-on?

[Bren]

Any info would be appreciated.

[Digicon]

Originally Posted by Bren

Any info would be appreciated.

First Point at least there is no audio compression on the E1 so if you have optical out you get DTS Audio in place of the DD+ on the 360 you only get DD 5.1 640kbps.

The picture in my opinion is slightly better but that could be due to the HDMI connection on the E1.

No Where near as noisy as the 360 one fan compared to 3 on the 360 including the Fan on the HD drive itself.

Now this one goes to the 360 i have a Home made Authored HD-DVD on a DVD+R Dual Layer a movie which plays fine on the 360 but will not play on my E1.

Overall the HD-E1 Wins Hands Down IMHO.

[blicky_1]

Well on price..............

As long as you have a 360 it's a no brainer until the format war is over.

(I have no experience on the Tosh, just my op on price)

[astirling]

The HD-A1 has analogue outs which will allow you to use 'next gen' sound formats like True HD. It also has an HDMI connection though the importance of this is overrated imo.

For all those going on about the noise of the 360 I doubt it's as much of an issue as people believe. The noisiest thing in the 360 is the DVD drive which isn't being utilised when watching an HD-DVD. The 360 does have audible fans but then so does my HD-A1. The HD-A1 might be slightly quieter but not by all that much.

[Bren]

Ok thanks guys. i already have the 360 drive but wondered if it was worth buying the Tosh and ditching the 360 drive.

[Oakleyspatz]

Originally Posted by Bren

Ok thanks guys. i already have the 360 drive but wondered if it was worth buying the Tosh and ditching the 360 drive.

I also have a 360 add-on and have just bought a HD-E1. The E1 blows the add-on out the water with regards to detail retrieval. The HDMI connection really does make a difference where HD is concerned. Sharper, more detailed images compared to the component connected add-on.
Plus you can access some ( but not all) of the advanced audio options through HDMI as long as you have a HDMI equipped suitable amp.
The add-on is a bargain if you are already a 360 owner, but it can be comfortably beaten by the E1 in my opinion.

[Digicon]

Originally Posted by blicky_1

Well on price..............

As long as you have a 360 it's a no brainer until the format war is over.

(I have no experience on the Tosh, just my op on price)

How come everyone goes on about price with the 360 addon let us not forget that for £130 you are in effect buying an External HD-DVD Rom drive that is completely useless without its £200 counterpart and with the Component lead at £25 if you add all these figures you are paying roughly the same.

Ok i know yes the Xbox 360 plays games and the E1 does not but everyone knows why they bought the addon for Veiwing pleasure only.

If you are a constant gamer and a once in a while film person then yes the 360 is the way to go but film buffs alike ahould really stick with the E1 as already been said it blows the 360 clean out of the water.

I will be keeping my Xbox 360 purely for its HD streaming capabilites, And of course i do like the odd 30 minute shoot em up LOL

[seanm]

Originally Posted by Digicon

How come everyone goes on about price with the 360 addon let us not forget that for £130 you are in effect buying an External HD-DVD Rom drive that is completely useless without its £200 counterpart

Not completely useless.....
It works great connected to my HTPC and PowerDVD 7.2

[astirling]

Originally Posted by Digicon

How come everyone goes on about price with the 360 addon let us not forget that for £130 you are in effect buying an External HD-DVD Rom drive that is completely useless without its £200 counterpart and with the Component lead at £25 if you add all these figures you are paying roughly the same.

Ok i know yes the Xbox 360 plays games and the E1 does not but everyone knows why they bought the addon for Veiwing pleasure only.

If you are a constant gamer and a once in a while film person then yes the 360 is the way to go but film buffs alike ahould really stick with the E1 as already been said it blows the 360 clean out of the water.

I will be keeping my Xbox 360 purely for its HD streaming capabilites, And of course i do like the odd 30 minute shoot em up LOL

Well he did qualify his statement by saying...."If you have a 360 it's a no brainer"

[astirling]

Originally Posted by Oakleyspatz

I also have a 360 add-on and have just bought a HD-E1. The E1 blows the add-on out the water with regards to detail retrieval. The HDMI connection really does make a difference where HD is concerned. Sharper, more detailed images compared to the component connected add-on.
Plus you can access some ( but not all) of the advanced audio options through HDMI as long as you have a HDMI equipped suitable amp.
The add-on is a bargain if you are already a 360 owner, but it can be comfortably beaten by the E1 in my opinion.

I think the difference you see in between HDMI and Component is largely display dependent. Glad it's benefited you though.

Personally I bought an A1 instead of the 360 add on but that's because it has analogue outs for the next gen sound formats and they are important to me.

[Oakleyspatz]

Originally Posted by astirling

I think the difference you see in between HDMI and Component is largely display dependent. Glad it's benefited you though.

I think it has more to do with the fact that Component is an analogue connection that requires D/A and A/D conversion whereas HDMI is purely digital and requires no conversion. My display is an Infocus Screenplay 7205 which contains one of the best inbuilt video processors/de-interlacers available in the top of the line Faroudja processor.

No, the difference I see is down to connection, not display.

[Vinny74]

Originally Posted by Oakleyspatz

The HDMI connection really does make a difference where HD is concerned. Sharper, more detailed images compared to the component connected add-on.
Plus you can access some ( but not all) of the advanced audio options through HDMI as long as you have a HDMI equipped suitable amp.
The add-on is a bargain if you are already a 360 owner, but it can be comfortably beaten by the E1 in my opinion.

Totally agree.

360 itself is very noisy, and the audio quality has yet to be fixed by Microsoft.

[ash]

Originally Posted by Oakleyspatz

The E1 blows the add-on out the water with regards to detail retrieval. The HDMI connection really does make a difference where HD is concerned. Sharper, more detailed images compared to the component connected add-on.

That is scary! I was going to buy the HD-DVD add-on and PS3 and wait for the war to finish... but from what you say the difference is massive. Maybe you are using a PJ and you can tell the difference more? I will only be using a 42" plasma.

[Vinny74]

Originally Posted by ash

That is scary! I was going to buy the HD-DVD add-on and PS3 and wait for the war to finish... but from what you say the difference is massive. Maybe you are using a PJ and you can tell the difference more? I will only be using a 42" plasma.

I'm only using a 42" plasma and the visual difference between the 360 add-on connected via component, and the HD-E1 connected via HDMI is VERY noticable.
This may be down to either the display, the connection, or the player though.

[nick501]

imho, using VGA gives very noticable improvement over component. I wonder how the add-on VGA compares to the tosh hdmi?

I only have the add-on and am slighty underwhelmed and would love to try a standalone with my set up.