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Mark's DVD/Home Theater Page

PC-DVD Encore | My DVD Movies | DVD Links

Page last modified:
Monday, June 23, 2008 07:06:16 PM EDT

Newest Information

About a week or so ago (it's now 9/18/2004), my Yamaha DVD-C920 quit reading discs :(. Since it was out of warranty, I decided to upgrade slightly. After doing a fair amount of research on Home Theater Spot and other places, I decided to go with a Denon. I kinda made an impulse buy at my local Ultimate Electronics on a Denon DVD-2200 open box item. More information in the table below about it.

My second most recent change with my Home Theater setup is with my Subwoofer. My Cambridge Soundworks 12" Powered Sub kicked the bucket. Since it was out of warranty and would cost almost $100 to get it fixed ($50 repair cost plus almost as much to ship it more than likely), I decided to just buy a new one. I am currently trying the following: Paradigm PW-2100 Subwoofer that I bought at the local Audio Midwest. It will defintely shake the walls and rattle doors. :) Regarding my other speakers, I have found info on Cambridge Soundworks Centerstage center speaker, the Surround 5.1 speakers, and what believe are my main front MovieWorks Satellite speakers. The bulk of the wiring is made with Monster Cable. Hmmm.. should probably make some kind of table.

Home Theater

Home Theater
Component Manufacturer/Model Comments
HDTV Samsung /
52" LCD 1080p HDTV, model LN52A650 		May 14, 2008: I actually got this on the 8th. I finally got myself a Widescreen TV!
A/V Receiver Denon /
Denon AVR-3806 AV Receiver 		August 24, 2006: Bought this to replace my Yamaha that died a few days earlier. Because I really like their DVD player I have, I decided to try their A/V Receivers. Since the crickets were chirping too loud outside and would have most likely thrown the Auto Config/EQ abilities false information about the room acoustics, I set things up manually such as my speaker configuration (5.1), distances to speakers, cross-over frequency to 90Hz for the sub, and speaker levels using the test tones. After playing a few movies such as Star Wars Phantom Menace, Air Force One, and Riverdance for some musical content, the sound from this blows away what I was getting from the Yamaha. The entire soundscape is richer and fuller. I heard sounds and details I had never heard before. The surround environment was much better. Makes me wonder what it would sound like if I went through the Auto Config process. So far, very pleased. :)
DVD Player Denon /
Denon DVD-2200 		Of all the DVD players I've had, this one probably has the best video quality. I got it locally as an open box item at a discount. The store took an additional $40 off so I could get a replacement remote control. I was able to order a replacement remote from 1-800-REMOTES. Unlike my previous DVD players, this one will play MP3 CDs in shuffle mode; however, now that I have a Jukebox III MP3 player, I don't bother playing MP3 CDs anymore anyway. :) I play my music CDs on here as well. Thus, I do not have a separate CD player.
Cable/DVR Scientific Atlanta /
Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8240HDC DVR 		Just happened to be the one I got when I signed up for Cox's DVR service. I tell you what, I love this thing. I have set it to record all the series that I watch: Dirty Jobs, Mythbusters, Deadliest Catch, all the CSIs, Numbers, Criminal Minds, Ghost Whisperer, as well as any special things I might want to see and the Nascar Races incase I sleep too late after staying up too late the night before. It's great not worrying about if I am going to miss something because I leave work late, go shopping, or whatever.
Satellite Radio Polk Audio /
Polk XRt12 XM Reference tuner 		I decided to go with XM Satellite Radio and I'm glad I decided to go with this XM Receiver. It's the only component style XM radio receiver (at the time) and what really sold me was the fact that it has a video-out that can be connected to a TV or Video-In of a A/V Receiver to see what's currently being played and to navigate the menus. You can actually see what you're doing while laying on the couch. I have it connected via the optical digital connector. Even though I live on the north side of my apartment complex on the first floor and no Southern windows, I still get a good signal. The antenna is sitting on the microwave. Nuking something in the microwave really interferes with it though LOL. It rocks!
VCR Philips/Magnavox /
HiFi VCR, VRZ264AT		 Just a HiFi VCR. No information available at website any longer for it. I no longer play/record any movies with it. Currently (8/24/2006) it is connected to my computer to transfer some music videos I recorded from MTV back in the late 80's/early 90's to DVD format.
MP3 Player Creative Labs /
Jukebox III 		It's really great to be able to put my entire music collection on here and take it with me on the road or to connect to my Home Theater and not have to fool with carrying around or dealing with CDs. Normally I would not have listed this as part of my Home Theater system; however, I do hook it up every now and then to use as background music while I'm cleaning the apartment or working on the computer. I do mainly use it in my truck though on longer trips. It has a 40 Gig capacity.
Turntable Fisher /
MT-640		 Amazing after all these years it still works fine. One of the benefits of a direct-drive turntable. It's not actually hooked into my receiver as it doesn't have a phono input. Luckily my old Marantz MR 220 receiver does have one if I want to use it. That receiver is at my folk's house, however.
Front Left/Right Speakers Cambridge Soundworks /
MovieWorks Satellite 		These were part of their Movie Works 5.1 speaker package. Got the package mainly because of my employee discount. No complaints here though. They all sound great! :)
Front Center Speaker Cambridge Soundworks /
Centerstage 		This was part of their Movie Works 5.1 speaker package.
Rear Left/Right Speakers Cambridge Soundworks /
Surround 5.1 		These were part of their Movie Works 5.1 speaker package.
Subwoofer Paradigm /
PW-2100 Subwoofer 		This thing will certainly shake the walls and rattle the doors/windows if I let it! It's overkill for my apartment, but yah know what? I don't care!! Muwhahaha!! :) A frequency cutoff of 90-100Hz seems to work the best to blend it in with the rest of my speakers.

Previous Equipment

TV
A/V Receiver
  • Yamaha RX-V630 AV Receiver - On August 20, 2006 it died. Up to this point it sounded great and had been a rock-solid component. The only thing I wish it had was on-screen displays to the TV for it's settings and such... mainly cause I'm half blind and it would be easier to read on the TV than the front LCD display LOL.
  • JVC RX-884V Dolby Digital Receiver - It fried... it just wouldn't turn on one day. It either over-heated (it was in a glass enclosed stand) or lightening zapped it. Uhmmm.. I'm not buying JVC anything again.
DVD Player
  • Yamaha DVD-C920 - This unit failed after a year and five months. It stopped reading discs. A motor, gear, or rubber band failed as it stopped spinning discs. This and my previous Harmon Kardon were both 5-disc carousel player that stopped reading discs. I will probably not buy a 5-disc changer again. Too many other mechanical components to fail.
  • Harmon Kardon DVD-50 - Quit reading discs as well.

  • JVC DVD player which turned out to be a lemon.. it developed over heating problems which would cause movies to start breaking up and even lock after about playing for an hour.

Subwoofer

  • Cambridge Soundworks 12" Powered Sub - One day it fried. It started making a buzzing sound and quit working. I think lightening or some power surge got to it.

PC-DVD Encore Stuff

Well, I used to have the different versions of the Encore DVD Player software available from here; however, since Creative now has them all on their website, I removed them from here. Go here to download the latest or previous versions of the Encore DVD Player software.

3/20/2004 - Well, Creative no longer has them, so here's version 3.5 of the software. :)

PC-DVD Encore newsgroup on Creative's news server. (8/17/2006: Since the news server no longer exists, this is probably the closest forum for this).

My List of DVD Movies

Following is a list DVD Movies I own. Obviously, I think all of the following movies are good and worth having in your DVD collection. Kinda dumb for me to buy a movie I didn't like, yah know. Click on the movie to view a picture of its front cover (hey, it's an excuse to use my scanner) and any comments I have regarding the movie and the DVD itself:

  1. The 13th Warrior
  2. 2010: The Year We Make Contact
  3. 300, 8/1/2007
  4. Air Force One
  5. Alien
  6. Aliens
  7. Alien Resurrection
  8. Alien vs. Predator, 3/6/2005
  9. Apollo 13
  10. Armageddon
  11. Aspen Extreme
  12. The Avengers, 3/20/2004
  13. Bad Wives
  14. Battlestar Galactica - The Miniseries, 12/31/2004
  15. A Beautiful Mind
  16. The Best of Benny Hill, 12/24/2004
  17. Beowulf: The Director's Cut, 3/26/2008
  18. Black Hawk Down
  19. Blade
  20. Blade II
  21. Blade Trinity, 5/26/2005
  22. The Bourne Identity
  23. The Bourne Supremacy, 12/31/2004
  24. The Bourne Ultimatum, 1/27/2008
  25. Braveheart
  26. Casino Royale, 3/30/2007
  27. Cars, 12/30/2006
  28. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, 4/29/2006
  29. NewCloverfield, 6/23/2008
  30. Collateral, 1/27/2005
  31. Conan the Barbarian
  32. Contact
  33. The Da Vinci Code, 12/30/2006
  34. The Day After Tomorrow, 10/20/2004
  35. Daylight, 12/28/2004
  36. Days of Thunder
  37. NewDelta Farce, 6/23/2008
  38. Die Another Day, 3/20/2004
  39. Die Hard
  40. Die Hard 2: Die Harder
  41. Die Hard With a Vengeance
  42. DragonHeart
  43. Driven
  44. Dune
  45. Dungeons & Dragons
  46. Excalibur
  47. Fantastic Four, 12/31/2005
  48. NewFlags of Our Fathers, 6/23/2008
  49. The Fifth Element
  50. Finding Nemo, 3/20/2004
  51. First Knight
  52. A Fistful of Dollars
  53. Fortess
  54. Friday Night Lights, 1/27/2005
  55. Ghostbusters
  56. Ghostbusters 2
  57. Ghost Rider, 7/14/2007
  58. Gladiator
  59. Gone In 60 Seconds
  60. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
  61. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly - Special Edition, 10/15/2004
  62. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, 1/13/2008
  63. Hannibal
  64. Highlander
  65. Ice Age: The Meltdown, 12/30/2006
  66. The Incredibles, 4/18/2005
  67. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, 3/20/2004
  68. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, 3/20/2004
  69. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, 3/20/2004
  70. In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale, 5/3/2008
  71. I, Robot, 12/31/2004
  72. A Knight's Tale
  73. Kill Bill: Volume 1, 4/21/2004
  74. Kill Bill: Volume 2, 9/2/2004
  75. King Arthur, 1/13/2005
  76. King Kong (2005), 4/4/2006
  77. Kingdom of Heaven, 10/23/2005
  78. Kull, the Conquerer
  79. The Last Samurai, 5/19/2004
  80. Lethal Weapon 4
  81. The Lion King, 3/20/2004
  82. Lord of the Dance
  83. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
  84. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, 3/20/2004
  85. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, 6/5/2004
  86. Lost In Space
  87. Madagascar, 1/3/2006
  88. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, 4/30/2004
  89. The Matrix
  90. Matrix Reloaded, 12/11/2003
  91. The Matrix Revolutions, 4/21/2004
  92. Men in Black
  93. Men in Black II
  94. Miracle, 5/24/2004
  95. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
  96. Mortal Kombat
  97. The Mummy
  98. The Mummy Returns
  99. National Treasure, 5/26/2005
  100. NewNational Treasure 2: Book of Secrets, 6/23/2008
  101. Ocean's Eleven
  102. The Patriot
  103. Pearl Harbor
  104. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, 12/30/2006
  105. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, 1/6/2008
  106. Planet of the Apes
  107. Red Dragon, 3/20/2004
  108. Reign of Fire
  109. Riverdance
  110. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
  111. Rob Roy
  112. Saving Private Ryan
  113. The Scorpion King
  114. Shrek
  115. Shrek 2, 11/19/2004
  116. Signs
  117. Snakes on a Plane, 2/15/2007
  118. Spider-Man
  119. Spider-Man 2, 1/1/2005
  120. Starship Troopers
  121. Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
  122. Star Trek: First Contact
  123. Star Trek: Generations
  124. Star Trek: Insurrection
  125. Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
  126. Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
  127. Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith, 11/4/2005
  128. Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Vol. 1 (animated), 4/19/2005 (this is kind of Star Wars 2.5.1)
  129. Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Vol. 2 (animated), 1/20/2006 (this is kind of Star Wars 2.5.2)
  130. Star Wars IV: A New Hope, 9/21/2004
  131. Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back, 9/21/2004
  132. Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi, 9/21/2004
  133. Superman Returns, 12/30/2006
  134. The Sum of All Fears
  135. Tears of the Sun, 3/20/2004
  136. Terminator II: Judgement Day
  137. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, 3/20/2004
  138. Titan A.E.
  139. Tomb Raider
  140. Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life, 3/20/2004
  141. Tomorrow Never Dies
  142. Total Recall, 1/13/2005
  143. Transformers, 11/11/2007
  144. Tron
  145. Troy, 1/13/2005
  146. Unbreakable
  147. Virus, 3/20/2004
  148. War of the Worlds, 1/3/2006
  149. Warren Miller's Ski World
  150. We Were Soldiers
  151. The X-Files: Fight the Future
  152. X-Men
  153. X2: X-Men United, 3/20/2004
  154. X-Men: The Last Stand, 12/30/2006
  155. XXX

Home Theater Links

Page last modified: Monday, June 23, 2008 07:06:16 PM EDT

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