OPPO DV-981HD DVD Player

Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Firmware Update Instructions

Version: MVer: 05.00.01.07 Batch: 08-0910A, 10-1018A or 10-1018B
(All three batch numbers correspond to the same firmware release and contain the same feature/improvement set. Different batch numbers are used in different production runs.)
Category: Minor Update
Release Date: October 2, 2007

Warning: Although DIY firmware upgrade is an easy and usually trouble-free process, an improper or failed firmware upgrade could render the DVD player unusable. Choose DIY only if you are aware of and accept the risks of performing DVD player firmware upgrade. Otherwise, you can contact OPPO at service@oppodigital.com or OPPO authorized resellers to send the player back for the upgrade.

Before You Start

• Follow the instructions EXACTLY; Don't press the "Open/Close" key until the player reboots itself. The entire process takes between 2-3 minutes. Stay focused and be patient during this process.
• Make sure the AC power connection is secured; use an Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) from your PC if necessary (in areas where AC is not stable). Do not interrupt power on the DVD player during the update process.
• The firmware will have factory default settings that may be different from the settings you currently have. You may want to note your current settings as you will have to reconfigure them after installing this firmware.

DIY Instructions

1. View the release note below.
2. Download the firmware from http://www.oppodigital.com/dv981hd/download/DV981HD-10-1018.iso
3. Burn a CD from the downloaded ISO image file. Be sure to burn the CD as an ISO image file, not a data file. The CD should contain a 935.BIN and a 981.BIN file if you burned it successfully. Please consult your CD burning software's help/instruction manual for more information on how to do this. Some general instruction for common CD burning software is listed below.
4. Turn on your TV display and the OPPO player.
5. Open the player tray and insert the firmware CD, and then close the tray.
6. As soon as the CD is loaded, you will see "Press Play To Start" on your TV display. Press the PLAY key on the remote or the player once.
7. The TV display shows "File Copying" and then "UPGRADING"
8. In about 8 seconds, the CD will be ejected.  Remove the CD quickly; DO NOT DO ANYTHING ELSE. What follows is the process when the player will reboot itself.
9. DO NOT PRESS ANY BUTTONS NOR ATTEMPT TO CLOSE THE TRAY NOR UNPLUG THE POWER DURING THE REMAINING UPGRADE PROCESS.
10. After approximately 1 - 2 minutes, the player reboots itself and closes the tray automatically to complete the process. The update process is completed when the front panel of the DVD player shows "No Disc".
11. After updating the firmware, the TV display may lost synchronization with the player and show no picture. It is recommended that you turn off the DVD player, unplug it from the AC power, wait a few seconds and then plug back the AC power.
12. Turn on the DVD player and adjust the settings if necessary.
13. With the tray ejected, press the "OSD" button on the remote control to verify the firmware version.
14. Congratulations! You have just completed the firmware upgrade.

Release Note

The following new features and improvements are included in this version:

1. Manual Color Space Selection

A "Color Space" selection item has been added to the "Video Setup Page" of the setup menu. The available options are "RGB", "YCbCr 4:4:4" and "Auto". Previous firmware version did not have this selection, and the player always automatically chooses color space based on HDMI or DVI handshake with the TV.

Adding the color space selection menu allows the user to specify which color space to use. This feature may potentially be used to work around some color accuracy issue with certain TVs. For example, the HDTV specification requires the use of BT.709 color conversion matrix for YCbCr signal in high definition, and the DV-981HD correctly implemented this requirement. However there are some TVs on the market incorrectly applies the BT.601 color conversion matrix, which is intended for SD YCbCr signal, to HD signals. When this incorrect color conversion matrix is applied by the TV, it will result in so called "green push" - green becomes too saturated or the image has a green tint. By selecting the RGB color space, a user can avoid the TVs color conversion matrix and work around this problem.

2. Super Audio CD (SACD) Track Number Display

With previous firmware version, the front panel display of SACD track number indicates the selected/highlighted track in the user interface, but not the currently playing track. This firmware version makes the front panel display show the currently playing track number. Users who do not turn on their TV while listening to SACD can now check the track number by looking at the front panel display. The on-screen display also follows the currently playing track when the user is not in the process of moving the cursor to select another track.

3. Alternative Remote Control Code

This firmware version adds an alternative set of remote control code that the player will respond to. The alternative remote control code enables users to program their universal remote controls that comes with TV, Projector or A/V Receiver to operate the DVD player. If the universal remote control has a DVD player control function, please program it with the code for TOSHIBA, PHILIPS, MAGNAVOX, MARANTZ or ZENITH DVD players. Since each brand of remote control may have several sets of codes, you may need to try several times using different codes to get the working one.

Response to the alternative remote control code can be turned off by setting the "Alt RC Code" option to "Off" in the "General Setup Page" of the DVD player's setup menu. This setting is useful for avoiding remote command conflict when a user owns another DVD/LD player which uses the same remote control code.

4. Light Control "All Off" Option

The "All Off" option for the "Light Control" setup menu item is now memorized even if the player is turned off. Previously the "All Off" option is cleared after turning off the player in order to avoid user confusion. This version maintains the "All Off" setting and avoids user confusion by momentarily turning on the front panel display when there is user operation.

5. Adjustable Slide Show Interval

When playing digital picture files, this firmware version allows the user to select the interval between each picture (5 - 30 seconds approximately). Please use the "JPEG Slide Interval" setup menu item in the "General Setup Page" to set the interval.

6. "Silent OSD" Mode

The new "OSD Mode" setup menu item in the "General Setup Page" enables a user to select how long the on-screen display information, such as elapsed or remaining time, stays on the TV screen. The available options are:

Normal - On-screen display information stays on the TV screen until the user cancels it.

Silent - On-screen display information shows on the TV screen momentarily and then disappears. The front panel display still maintains the selected display information.

7. Other minor improvements includes:

With previous firmware version, when the "TrueLife" picture enhancement option is turned off in the "Video Setup Page" of the DVD player's setup menu, the noise reduction feature is triggered and could cause image retention issues. This firmware version fixes the issue. When "TrueLife" is turned off, noise reduction is not triggered.

When SACD trackers are playing, the "ANGLE" and "ZOOM" keys on the remote control can be used as "Page Up" and "Page Down" for quicker navigation of the track listing.

A few compatibility issues regarding playing PAL disc with the "Video Mode" setup menu item set to "Video 2" are resolved.

Y/C delay, especially Y/C delay for PAL mode is fine tuned.

General instructions on working with ISO image files

Note: These are general instructions on how to burn the firmware CD with common CD burning software. Please consult your CD burning software's help/instruction manual for more detail.

• In Nero Burning Rom version 6 or 7 , go to the ‘Recorder > Burn Image…' menu and select the ISO image you downloaded.
• In Nero Burning ROM version 5 or earlier, just go to Nero Burning ROMs ´File > Burn Image' option and select the ISO image you downloaded.
• In Nero Express select the option for 'Disc Image or Saved Project' to select the ISO image file you downloaded and burn to CD.
• In Easy CD Creator , go to 'File > Record CD from CD Image' and select the ISO image you downloaded.
• In Burn At Once (third-party free software), go to 'File > Load Image File...' and select the ISO image you downloaded.