Iomega Screenplay Director Owner Thread

[WHATSINANAME]

How is the sound output from this player if played in stereo mode? Does it scores over normal DVD players?

I really don't know how it compares to dvd players in terms of sound output, my understanding is (experts please correct me if I am wrong) that a media player/dvd player both decode the digital file and send it out to the speakers/av receiver/DAC etc and it is there that the actual quality of sound is generated.

But in terms of music file formats, of course, any media player is much ahead of any dvd player or CDP because it can play dozens of formats like MP3, WAV, WMA, OGG, and FLAC etc, while the format compatibility of a dvd/cdp is very limited.

I'm not an audiophile (or maybe I can't afford to be one yet ) but I can't really tell the difference between this and the DVD player I used for music earlier. Also I have the same speakers now that I had then.

 

[Anil Sehrawat]

I almost baught this player on last SAT from nehru place i was offered Rs 7700 with 500GB hard disk but i rejected and got my WD TV and i m happy with my purchase so far.

 

[WHATSINANAME]

I almost baught this player on last SAT from nehru place i was offered Rs 7700 with 500GB hard disk but i rejected and got my WD TV and i m happy with my purchase so far.

The Screenplay Director comes only in 1TB or 2 TB versions. If anyone is trying to sell you this model with a 500 gb hard disk they must have swapped the drives themselves and were trying to pull a fast one on you!

Good you didn't fall for it.:clapping:

I would advise anyone against going for such a deal as you won't even get warranty on a modified product!

 

[bansal98]

I am happy to report that Iomega Screenplay Director played all the media files successfully, except just one (Baraka). We just had to fiddle with the audio settings on the TV. I think the problem was that we were connecting it directly to the TV and not through a receiver. Another thing was that the player itself was not very helpful in finding out the problem. It would just say 'bad container' or something instead of giving any useful information. After getting a taste of hi-res movies, my friend now wants the 2TB version hyeah:

 

[WHATSINANAME]

After getting a taste of hi-res movies, my friend now wants the 2TB version hyeah:

How much are you getting the 2TB version for?

 

[bansal98]

How much are you getting the 2TB version for?

No idea yet. The dealer said he'll get back (on ebay).

 

[bansal98]

The 2TB version is not available in India as of now. So he is planning to get it from US. The normal price there is about 14-15k. Will be putting up 1TB version for sale soon.

 

[WHATSINANAME]

The 2TB version is not available in India as of now. So he is planning to get it from US. The normal price there is about 14-15k. Will be putting up 1TB version for sale soon.

Pardon me for saying so, but what is the use of going to such lengths for a 2TB version from the US (having to wait so many days, warranty issues, etc), when all you have to do if you want more space for HD rips is:
a. keep the 1TB;
b. buy a 1.5TB external hard drive for around 6k

and you still keep within your budget of around 15k (+shipping) AND get half TB more storage + keep your warranty on everything! It is not as if the 2TB Iomega will play any extra formats, it is just more storage space!

 

[bansal98]

Finally figured out the problem of files not playing etc. This player does NOT do DTS decoding or pass-through. Tested it with a receiver. So if a media file has only DTS soundtrack, you won't get any sound out of it. Other than that, no issues so far. Plays 1080p files just fine (stupid documentation).

 

[bansal98]

The Screenplay Director comes only in 1TB or 2 TB versions. If anyone is trying to sell you this model with a 500 gb hard disk they must have swapped the drives themselves and were trying to pull a fast one on you!

Good you didn't fall for it.:clapping:

I would advise anyone against going for such a deal as you won't even get warranty on a modified product!

There is actually a 500GB version. I have seen it myself at computer warehouse in Bangalore which is a reputed shop. I think that does only 720p though. Not sure.

 

[WHATSINANAME]

There is actually a 500GB version. I have seen it myself at computer warehouse in Bangalore which is a reputed shop. I think that does only 720p though. Not sure.

That is not the Screenplay Director, but an older model called the Iomega Screenplay Multimedia Drive (No 'Director') and you're right, it is only 720p/1080i.



Moreover, even though it is still being sold I think the company has discontinued production of this model.
---------------------------------------
Edit:
Or it could be this one: (which even looks like the Director, except for the remote, so it is easy for anyone to get fooled)

Iomega ScreenPlay Pro HD Multimedia Player



Drive attributes

Capacity

* 1 TB
* 500 GB


Niether of these are 1080p full HD, so be careful if you happen to be in the market for an Iomega product. The Iomega Screenplay Director is the only one with full HD playback and only comes with a 1TB or 2TB hard disk.
----------------------------------------
There is a Iomega TV Link Director which is also full 1080p, but that is without a hard disk.

 

[bansal98]

Finally figured out the problem of files not playing etc. This player does NOT do DTS decoding or pass-through. Tested it with a receiver. So if a media file has only DTS soundtrack, you won't get any sound out of it. Other than that, no issues so far. Plays 1080p files just fine (stupid documentation).

And the saga continues. Turns out that this puppy can do DTS but only over optical out, not over HDMI . I really do not know what to make of Iomega's intentions.

 

[sunnykumar]

hi all,

i bought the iomega screenplay director yesterday...

i am having one problem...

the audio of the movies, is very low......

i tried to make some settings also but didnt knw much on how to do that...

i have also attached a 5.1 home theater with the device but still its sound is very low...

rest it plays the mp3 files quite loudly

pls help me on this issue

thanks in advance!

 

[adamparsons]

Hi WHATSINANAME

I also have the Iomega ScreenPlay Director and although its taken a long time to get anywhere near usable I'm starting to come around to it.

But how are you getting your blu-ray rips to work? I'm am using DVDFab to create .m2ts files but I get no sound. I have tried to remove HD auido and encode with AC3 rather than DTS.

I have connected the SP Director to my surrond sound system via the optical out but it's still not working.

I'd love to know how you managed to get it to work. Thanks.

 

[vishalp]

So Iomega finally came out with their firmware update for screenplay director that fixes the youtube playing problem. I upgraded to 1.4.0.92 firmware released February 2011 and it does seem to fix some issues. Some mkv files that it never played now play flawlessly. Now it not only recognizes but plays most .flv files. Will update when I find more things about this firmware. BTW, I have'nt tried youtube but believe it will work since most .flv files play flawlessly.

 

[Anilvarma]

So Iomega finally came out with their firmware update for screenplay director that fixes the youtube playing problem. I upgraded to 1.4.0.92 firmware released February 2011 and it does seem to fix some issues. Some mkv files that it never played now play flawlessly. Now it not only recognizes but plays most .flv files. Will update when I find more things about this firmware. BTW, I have'nt tried youtube but believe it will work since most .flv files play flawlessly.

Wow thanks for the news, have to update mine today....have they made any changes to GUI and loading times......hyeah:

 

[Deleted member 17547]

Hi All,

I have Imoega TV Link director. I am having a problem with that though m not sure that it is a real problem or not.

I am not getting full 5.1 Surround sound from it. I have connected the player using optical cable to my Receiver. I generally play 720p BRRips downloaded from net. Sometimes i do get 5.1 sound but then sound keeps breaking.

Is there any solution to this ?

Thanks in Advance.

Cheers..!!

 

[raj29shenoy]

So Iomega finally came out with their firmware update for screenplay director that fixes the youtube playing problem. I upgraded to 1.4.0.92 firmware released February 2011 and it does seem to fix some issues. Some mkv files that it never played now play flawlessly. Now it not only recognizes but plays most .flv files. Will update when I find more things about this firmware. BTW, I have'nt tried youtube but believe it will work since most .flv files play flawlessly.

Currently my firmware version is 1.4.0.36 and plan to update it to 1.4.0.92 as the iomega website claims that it has importat bugfixes including better subtititles handling. But website also cautions that I have to take back up of data before doing firmware update! This I feel is very stupidHow I am supposed to backup of such huge data (its a 1TB HDD and in mine 300GB is full)?!
So my question to people who have already done the firmware update is that, is the back up really necessary? Can it be ignored? Do we need to format the HDD by any chance after the firmware update? Thanks

 

[Anilvarma]

Currently my firmware version is 1.4.0.36 and plan to update it to 1.4.0.92 as the iomega website claims that it has importat bugfixes including better subtititles handling. But website also cautions that I have to take back up of data before doing firmware update! This I feel is very stupidHow I am supposed to backup of such huge data (its a 1TB HDD and in mine 300GB is full)?!
So my question to people who have already done the firmware update is that, is the back up really necessary? Can it be ignored? Do we need to format the HDD by any chance after the firmware update? Thanks

I updated mine to 1.4.0.92 without backing up anything, there is no need to format the drive after update, its just a caution.

Mine is 700gb full and i installed update without any problems.

 

[raj29shenoy]

I updated mine to 1.4.0.92 without backing up anything, there is no need to format the drive after update, its just a caution.

Mine is 700gb full and i installed update without any problems.

Thanks. I will try updating the firmware now...