[RaceTripper]

I've now had a chance to do some limited viewing since I upgraded my Arcam DV88+ to add the Silicon Image deinterlacer. This upgrade offloads deinterlacing from the default Vaddis Zoran 5 chip that's built-in to the new daughter board with the SiI504 chip. It also adds a second set of component outputs: a progressive set driven by the 504 and an interlaced set driven by the Vaddis 5. This also allows simultaneous progressive and interlaced output from the player (not that I need it for anything right now, but could be useful for a seperate connection via my AVR).

Video quality was already great, but the new deinterlacer really makes a nice improvement. I used LOTR:TTT to sample what's in store for me.

So far, the biggest benefit is improved black levels -- it now has better shadow detail, and video has a much more three dimensional look to it. Colors are also more vibrant while remaining natural in tone. Skin colors look better than they ever have. And the video just seems faster somehow - when I watch scenes with lots of action, the detail is better and more consistant.

Overall I'm really pleased with the upgrade and look forward to enjoying some more DVDs with it.

If anyone has a DV88/89 I can recommend this enhancement.