Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Needed: DVD Player with auto replay

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Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 01-27-2005, 05:34 PM:

We have a playback-only VCR with an auto-replay function that we use to feed the lobby monitors. It's used to display promos for our up-coming live shows. The Auto-Replay function is perfect for our application: it rewinds at the end of the tape and initiates play again without intervention. The fact that we were able to find one that was a playback only unit was an added plus -- no one wants to steal a VCR that only plays back tape and has no tuner in it.

Now we want migrate to a DVD system. Does anyone know of any particular brand/model DVD player that has an auto-replay feature? OR better yet, do you know if commands can be embedded in the DVD program itself to tell the player to replay? It would seem so since at the end of any DVD movie, the units return to those annoying front-end menus.

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 01-27-2005, 06:02 PM:

Just author the DVD to repeat endlessly and you can stick it in any generic DVD player and it will never stop.

Alternatively, there are models out there such as made by Panasonic that have a repeat button on the remote. Fair warning, when left running 24/7 they die after 9-12 months.

Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 01-27-2005, 10:42 PM:

Thanks Brad; I figured there was a way to imbed a command, I just wasn't sure.

We only keep it running during our live shows. They turn the thing off at night. Probably it won't see more than 4 hr a night, three or four nights a week. And with DVDs going for so cheap, it's not a big worry. Besides, it only has to last until I retire. [Wink]

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 01-27-2005, 11:33 PM:

Brad,

How about letting the folks who burn multi DVD's for trailers that they can imbed the auto repeat feature into the DVD. I've replaced two players already... and the continual run is part of the problem. Of course, had someone had the foresight to put a small monitor in the office, with the DVD player, as opposed to having only the monitors downstairs IN THE LOBBY which display the title/menu options.. I would set them to repeat quite easily every day.... now it's the chore of getting someone who can help navigate the menu prompts via radio... PITA.

I forget the name of teh company we get ours from, but I know they've been mentioned here before... Used to be CInema Concepts out of Atlanta, but now they're somewhere out west I think... Kansas maybe?

Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 01-28-2005, 06:11 AM:

quote: Frank Angel
The fact that we were able to find one that was a playback only unit was an added plus -- no one wants to steal a VCR that only plays back tape and has no tuner in it.

Frank, do you really think that somebody out to steal your VCR player cares or even understands what the tuner is? I don't think so. All they want to do is get the thing which looks somehow technical, and trade it for a few bottles of Listerine.
What is the name and logo for the new DVD system going to be? How about MetaView(TM)?

Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 01-28-2005, 11:05 AM:

If you burn a trailer disc without a menu and simply identify the first Title on the disc as the menu, (did this on accident somehow using Nero) when the disc reaches the end, it will replay. The player will go back to the "menu" (which is really your first trailer) and just continue playing.

I think you can do this by simply selecting "no menu" or "movie only" in your burning program, but I think I messed with some other settings too.

=TMP=

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 01-28-2005, 05:28 PM:

Every piece of DVD authoring software does it differently.

And why is it my job to tell the advertising companies how to do theirs? [Razz]

Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 01-28-2005, 11:25 PM:

Brad,

Because you're cool like that? LOL

Posted by Brian Guckian (Member # 1678) on 01-30-2005, 03:40 PM:

Frank, what about a hard-drive based system? I'm thinking of something like a Tivo. It would possibly be more robust. You'd need something that could preferably play back MPEG 4 files, but if it's just for small lobby monitors, MPEG 2 could be satisfactory. You'd still load from a DVD, but the continuous playback would be from the drive.

Looking at the price of pro- and semi-pro systems over here, the prices seem to be affordable.