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Review of the N9100

The N9100 was the first DVD player I bought. The reason I chose this machine was firstly the price. At the time (about 18 months ago) it was the cheapest machine in the shop at AUD $199.00. While that might seem like a lot now, at the time it was an extremely low price. The other thing I wanted was SVCD compatibility and the ability to switch off macrovision and switch region. The shop provided me with a photocopied sheet with the remote code so I went home, set it up, applied the hack and I was away.

Apart from DVDs, the first thing I tried was standard SVCD from digital home video. After a steep learning curve, I managed to get it happening with great results. Nowadays I encode to CVD format with even better results.

I'll give a bit of a rundown of the machines capabilities. Basically it has full DVD functionality so I'll concentrate on SVCD/CVD compatibility.

Video Resolution

Handles standard SVCD resolutions plus CVD resolution in both NTSC and PAL. I recently encoded a video to 352x480 PAL and it played fine so I'm assuming it handles weird resolutions.

Audio

Handles non-standard SVCD Audio so you can use Sampling frequencies other than 44.1 at a range of bitrates. I usually encode with 44.1 for compatibility with other players and use from 128 to 192 for the bitrate depending on how much space I need to dedicate to video . I have a friend with an old Sony player that plays lower frequencies faster than they should. I'm assuming it plays everything at 44.1 by default. Multiple sound tracks work fine too.

Overlay Graphics

In other words, subtitles. Sorry, I've tried everything and subtitles won't work on this machine.

Issues

Audio Sync

I've had problems with still menus. A still at the beginning of an SVCD will throw your audio out of sync, even if you've muxed with BBMPEG and everything seems ok. I've got around this by using a short clip with a low bitrate audio track, which makes everything play correctly. I spent hours remuxing thinking that was the problem. Don't waste your time. Either don't use an intro or outro image or use a short clip with encoded audio. Unfortunately VCDEasy won't take clips shorter than 5 seconds so If you are really pushing the space limits, don't bother with the intro image.

Zoom

With DVD, the zoom function of this player gives a strobing effect. This isn't a problem with VCD or SVCD/CVD. I'm assuming that the decoder can't zoom effectively at the high bitrates.

Problem Disks

I've had major issues with Lord of the Rings, both the fellowship and Two Towers. The latter just wouldn't even get started.

Vaddis IV chip in the N9100 (the N9100 chip is actually the Vaddis IV-LC2)

Vaddis IV-LC Integrated DVD Decoder IC w/Video Encoder and DTS Audio
Exceptionally featured DVD playback for the cost-sensitive market!

Description	The Vaddis IV-LC ZR36732 DVD decoder is targeted at low-cost fourth generation DVD and convergence products. With its high level of integration and flexibility, the Vaddis IV-LC is a versatile digital video and audio processor. Full DTS decoding capability is integrated, thus eliminating the need for an external processing chip. Other leading audio algorithms, such as HDCD, MP3, DTS, Dolby Digital, Pro Logic, and MPEG 5.1 decoding are also supported with this single chip solution. The video feature set has been expanded to include image quality enhancements and augmented On-Screen-Display (OSD) functionality. Through the StandardPlus™ design methodology, Zoran is building upon the standard to provide leading-edge capabilities for advanced DVD players and video appliances. The Vaddis IV-LC is the ideal solution for DVD, WebDVD, Set Top Box (STB), Personal Video Recorder (PVR), DVD Recording, and Video-On-Demand products. Due to Programmability of Zoran ICs, third party licenses may be required.

Features	Single Chip Decoder Solution for DVD Player Designs Compatible with Vaddis CompanionCPU for ultra __low-cost designs Full DVD/VCD/CVD/DVCD/HDCD/CD Compatibility Meridian Lossless Packing (MLP) Decoding for __DVD-Audio Support Full DTS Decoding Embedded NTSC/PAL Encoder w/10-bit VideoDACs Image Enhancement Filtering: Sharpness, Contrast, and __Brightness Adjustments Enhanced On-Screen-Display with 32 Colors and __8 Blending Levels Highest Certification for Dolby Digital Audio Patented Single 16 Mbit SDRAM Usage for Full Operation Picture Zoom Capability Advanced Trickplay Features: Smooth Reverse Playback, __Smooth Fast Forward DTS and MPEG5.1 Passthrough via S/PDIF Output Enhanced Karaoke 3D Virtual Surround, Music Modes, 3D Headphones Simulatenous 2 Channel, 6 Channel, and S/PDIF Outputs Dolby Digital, Pro-Logic, MPEG Audio Decoding Embedded 54 MIPS DSP Integrated 4 bits-per-pixel On-Screen-Display (OSD) __Processor 160-pin MQFP Package 1.1W power consumption during full operation 0.18 Micron Technology

Applications	DVD/DVD-Audio/VCD/CVD/HDCD/CD Players Portable DVD Players Automotive DVD/DVD-Audio Entertainment Systems DVD Kiosks



Part Numbers	Vaddis IV-LC - ZR36732

Vaddis IVLC incorporates CSS, Dolby, and Macrovision technologies. To obtain Vaddis IVLC, the recipient must have the appropriate licenses with these entities. Due to the programmability of the Vaddis IVLC, other licenses may be required.

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