Blue-ray newbie questions??

[Bob O]

About 1 month ago I bought a new memorex blue-ray dvd player as my old dvd player broke. I was told/under the impression that the blue ray player should be able to play your old dvd's with no problems. I have tryed several old and newer dvds(non blue-ray) and with each one it will often yhave a real quick pause/stutter(dpnt know exactly how to put it) where you will miss several words said before it agains plays normally for awhile(some time short/some time longer)before it does it again. Im using the wires that came with it, Do I need speical cords to plug in from my blue ray player into the tv, or is something wrong with the new blue ray player???

Any thoughts/ideas would be helpful as we lost the receipt and I doubt target will do much without one. Never had any issues like this with my old dvd player.

 

[rwdavis2]

It is definitely NOT the cables.

My guess is that there is something wrong with the new DVD player. I bought a Sony Blu-Ray last year and it's been flawless with all types of DVDs even home made ones. Go to Target and ask. Do you still have the original box they may be able to track the purchase from the bar code on the box.

As a side note: I hope you did not buy expensive HDMI Monster cables for the blu ray. You can do just as well with $5 ones.

 

[java]

I'm confused? Is it a Blu Ray/DVD combo? Or is it a blu-ray player?
A blu-ray player will NOT play DVD's generally. Think of it as 2 different languages-

 

[rwdavis2]

A blu-ray player will NOT play DVD's generally. Think of it as 2 different languages-

That is definitely NOT true. All blu-ray players should play normal DVDs unless the blu-ray is broken. Mine does.
BD

 

[DrCavin]

You should update the firmware of the blu-ray. How does it play blu-rays?

Yes blu-rays should definitly play DVD's some even better than a DVD player since it up-converts them, some do better at this than others so your mileage may vary.

 

[rwdavis2]

You should update the firmware of the blu-ray. How does it play blu-rays?

Yes blu-rays should definitly play DVD's some even better than a DVD player since it up-converts them, some do better at this than others so your mileage may vary.

Yes, excellent advice. There may be instructions in your manual on how to update a blu-ray player's firmware. In case you don't know what this means: firmware is just the software embedded in the player itself that runs it. Most manufacturers offer updates. Check your owner's manual for instructions. If your player is not hooked up to the internet then they may give you instructions on how to do it by writing to a cd-rom and putting that in the player.

My first recommendation, again, is to try and return it.
BD

 

[java]

That is definitely NOT true. All blu-ray players should play normal DVDs unless the blu-ray is broken. Mine does.
BD

Shoot I have should have said most do but not all do. I believe there are lists out there on which companies make backwards compatible ones- I don't think Magnavox is one of those companies. Our blu ray does play dvds- but I don't believe they ALL do. Sorry for screwing it up!

 

[LilyWDW]

I would have to agree with rwdavis2. To me it sounds like an issue with the player. All Blu-rays from Memorex that I have found online say they can play DVDs (honestly, I have yet to find one that does not while I have been looking to buy one myself). It sounds like something in faulty on that specific machine and it is not reading the disc correctly.

Have you tried playing a blu-ray disc on it? I would be interested to know if it is having issues reading those as well.

Personally I believe you have a faulty unit. I would return it and get another one and I would NOT get Memorex. The reviews for their systems and their updates are HORRIBLE!

 

[Golf4food]

Shoot I have should have said most do but not all do. I believe there are lists out there on which companies make backwards compatible ones- I don't think Magnavox is one of those companies. Our blu ray does play dvds- but I don't believe they ALL do. Sorry for screwing it up!

Nope, all Bluray players play DVDs, otherwise nobody would be buying Bluray players right now.

Skipping can also be a problem with the disc, not the player (scratches, etc.)

Or it could be dust or something inside the player.

Or it could be the firmware (previously mentioned).

Never had a problem like that with our LG with a DVD or Blu.

 

[bumbershoot]

That is definitely NOT true. All blu-ray players should play normal DVDs unless the blu-ray is broken. Mine does.
BD

Absolutely. And they upconvert them. Our DVDs look *incredible*, almost like movies we've never seen, even in our cheapie Vizio bluray player.



Have you checked what your DVDs look like? The bluray player is very sensitive, at least ours is, and it "alerts" us immediately to fingerprints etc on the DVDs.

 

[Micca]

Bob O--this stutter or pause of which you speak...are both the picture and the audio pausing or only the audio?

If the unit is faulty I'd try and reason with Target. I too would have some concern about the Memorex brand. I don't have any experience with their disc players but I'm recalling some really cheapo, poorly performing VCRs from them years ago.

Hey Bicker--you handy to help with this one?

 

[Bob O]

Im going to buy new a blue-ray dvd tomorrow and see if that works better. Ive only played standard dvd's so far.
I could see it skipping if it was a disc or two, but it does it with all disc's, even new ones I got for x-mas and never played on the other dvd player that broke. And these same discs work fine in my kids play station systems with no problems.
I do have the original packaging, so I can try that at Target and see if it works.
As for skipping, it is both the picture and audio, the picture skips and audio advances several words into what is being sasid from having seen the same movie at the theatres.

Thanks for all the suggestions/help!!!

 

[Micca]

Having thought about this a bit more, I don't know that it matters if it will play blu-ray discs flawlessly. If it's going to be your main source to watch dvds and they don't play, the machine is broken and needs to be repaired or replaced. Save yourself a trip buying a new blu-ray disc and just return the unit. I'll bet it won't be the first Memorex they've seen come back to the store.

Speaking of Playstation, the Sony PS3 is a killer blu-ray player. It retails for $299--probably quite a bit more than you paid for the Memorex, but if you'd consider upgrading... (wives love me when I do stuff like this)

 

[Bob O]

My son did watch his Batman Dark Knight blue-ray and it played with no problems at all.

What does this mean???

 

[Micca]

You could try another regular DVD in the machine again, but I stand by my previous post: If it won't plays DVDs, it's not right. Good luck Bob O.

 

[Golf4food]

My son did watch his Batman Dark Knight blue-ray and it played with no problems at all.

What does this mean???

I still lean towards problem with the DVDs if everything else plays.