What are Blu-ray and DVD region codes, country codes, multi-region or zone locks? Read DVD Player region codes and Blu-ray region codes.
| DVD Player | Hacks | Updated | Add |
| Philips DVP642 | 191 user region code comments |
May 26, 2010 | Post region code/hack comment |
 Region code hack posted by divuer, April 20 2004: | |||
- Open the tray. - On your remote press '0000'. - Press '0' to make it region free or whichever zone you want to set it to. - The newly selected region will appear on the top left corner of the screen. - Close the tray. BTW the player appears to be macrovision free out of the box! *** and some folks want to charge $120 for this! LOL *** *** Buy this unit for $70 and do it yourself!!! *** | |||
| Other hack posted by zyx, April 21 2004: | |||
Open the tray. - On your remote press '0000'. - Press '0' to make it region free or whichever zone you want to set it to. - The newly selected region will appear on the top left corner of the screen. - Close the tray. It's no work! | |||
| Region code hack posted by divuer, April 22 2004: | |||
The '0000' hack I posted earlier DOES NOT work on this player. It works on a very similar Philips model (DVD 640) but not on this one. Still looking... | |||
| Region code hack posted by junkmalle@hotmail.com, April 23 2004: | |||
Not exactly region free but you can change regions between 1, 2, 3 and 4 after the firmware update at philips web site: 1) Open tray. 2) On the remote press "5 6 9 OK" 3) Use up/down arrows to select between model numbers (probably same player, different regions). The value at the far right is the region code. Choices (about 10) look like: VER0409 642/17 02 1 VER0409 630/00 01 2 4) Power down, then power up. I've played both region 1 and region 2 (both on an NTSC TV) using this method. I don't know if it works before the firmware update, but before the update the version (in the USA) was: VER0113 642/17 02 01 Good luck! | |||
| Region code hack posted by fede, April 29 2004: | |||
I bought it on apr 2004 from BestBuy (for firmware ref). I did not upgrade the firmware. I confirm that 5 6 9 + OK shows the hidden menu and if you play immediately a region 2 DVD it works fine. But I also confirm that if you turn off and on you get b/w image and a "moving" screen. I discovered that when you input VER113 (note that mine is different from the other hacks) 630/00 01 02 you change much more than the region code. In particular you change the video system too (NTSC into PAL or MULTI) which is the cause of the trouble. Once you have changed the code (for me VER113 630 02 02 2 worked fine but I believe that any code ending with 2 will do well) you reboot. Then, when the messy screen appears, enter the setup, go to the video section and change the video system back into NTSC. You now have the system playng correctly zone 2 DVD set permanently | |||
| Region code hack posted by Mats-Åke Larsson, April 29 2004: | |||
I cracked the region code sequence on my DVP630/02 yesterday. The DVP630 is a European version (DAN, DEU, ELL, ENG, ESP, FIN, FRA, ITA, NOR, POL, POR, RUS, SWE, TUR), but the sequence should work on the 642/640 (and 632) as well. http://buan.nu | |||
| Region code hack posted by Joe Moe, April 30 2004: | |||
The hack published by Mats-Åke Larsson works perfectly on my DVP642. I'm copying it here for your viewing pleasure: 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. Your player is now region free! Put in a DVD and enjoy! :) NOTE: The 0 in the sequence above represents the region code. 0 = region free. If you want to change your player to just a specific region code, replace the 0 with the region number you want. The hack should be perfectly safe, but USE IT ON YOUR OWN RISK! | |||
| Region code hack posted by wewa, April 30 2004: | |||
Philips DVP642 Region Free * Turn on player and open tray. * Use remote: 7-8-9-OK-0 (0 is region free, use desired region number) * 0( appears on lower left of TV. why a 0+(? Tip: Hold down 'stop' button on remote for 2 seconds to open/close tray. On 724 unit, it was the '1' button... I have been waiting patiently for a hack since buying it and just tried it on my 2 week old DVP642 and played R2, R3 PV DVDs (Hiro, Eriko Imai, Namie, Ayu) titles OK! 'Wrong Region' message until now. Kudos to 'Mats-Åke' for being the savior, as i was about to return it to the store b4 the 14 day return ran out. Still like my DVD727 better, as it does 32x and this 642 only goes up to 8x FF/REW. :( Maybe for MPEG1 FF/REW compatibility? As the 727 will play MPEG1 but sometimes locks up. Time display is normal on 642. my 727 mixes chapter and time together with extra zeros so hard to decipher. :( Playing MPEGs burned to DVD-R has problems on this unit. When choosing REW during MPEG1 playback, it skips around. Called Philips support and asked about Firmware update 'playability enhancement' in their lingo, and he said there was none. but then initially, he couldnt even find a dvp642 listed in his reference, so maybe i have to call again. i think folks are saying that there is a firmware update available at the divx.com forums for this divx capable unit. i have not tried it yet. share your experience/results if u do try it. Aloha! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Josep, May 02 2004: | |||
This applies to DVP 630. It looks like this version is sold in Europe. Several models share same set of firmware (630, 632, 642,...). I have upgraded fw to latest version from Philips website, following their directions. After doing so (no problem, quite simple), it shows VER0409 630/00 01 02 and several other options you can scroll through using the remote. At least in my case, there were several models listed (630, 632, 642, etc) for different regions, but none for region 1 (the latest number). I got several for region 2 and 3. For moving to multiregion, do as follows: Power up, open tray, dial 7 8 9 OK 0 in the RC. 0 appears in the left low. Close tray and reboot. That's it! You have it multiregion. | |||
| Region code hack posted by GLQ, May 02 2004: | |||
Hi guys, It worked very well!! I just bought it on walmart and tested it! I used the following sequence: Region code hack posted by wewa, April 30 2004: Philips DVP642 Region Free * Turn on player and open tray. * Use remote: 7-8-9-OK-0 (0 is region free, use desired region number) * 0( appears on lower left of TV. why a 0+(? Thank you all! GLQ | |||
| Other hack posted by WaverBoy, May 04 2004: | |||
"Still like my DVD727 better, as it does 32x and this 642 only goes up to 8x FF/REW. :(" No matter; small price to pay for correct PAL-to-NTSC conversion. The 727 suffers from frame-dragging/motion-blurring when converting PAL-to-NTSC. The DVP-642 converts smoothly, with no motion-blurring, as well as in the correct aspect ratio, with no squeezing whatsoever. I just picked one of these up, the above-posted region hack works perfectly, and to convert PAL-to-NTSC, just use the setup menu, go down to VIDEO, and select NTSC. Voila! My earlier Philips DVD-623 wouldn't convert PAL-to-NTSC properly, squeezing the picture; it also had issues with correct playback of DVD-Rs made on my Panasonic DVD recorder. The DVP-642 plays them perfectly. The ultimate player!!! :) :) :) | |||
| Region code hack posted by pepe, May 06 2004: | |||
- Open Tray - Press 7 8 9 OK - Press 0 and you should see a "0" appear on the bottom center screen. - Close the tray. and you're done !! | |||
| Other hack posted by wewa, May 06 2004: | |||
I checked the back of my 642 and it is 120V only. sorry. dont know about the other models (630, etc.) but of course, in order to sell it in the corresponding countries, should be matching, but not a universal power supply. those are far and few between for this kinda price range. Out of box firmware version is: ver0113 642/17 02 1 check using remote: Open Tray-5-6-9-OK Did the update to version: ver0409 could not find any documentation as to what the fixes/improvements are for v0409. At your own risk! I didnt even know what version this was until i did it! Web site indicates nothing! Poor documentation! Shame! I still like philips region free tho... :) But DVDR985 is a POS! I have one to sell if you're interested! :P Unplugged unit as instructed, then after about 5 minutes, plugged back in and removed the disc by pressing the open/close button directly. Found that i had black and white rolling video (i am on s-video cable). damn. whoever did the firmware defaulted it to PAL. should have made 2 versions to download, PAL and NTSC. Here's the steps for getting back to NTSC blindly: - if you messed with menus, then power off, and power on again. on your remote, press: - system menu, down arrow 2x (video setup), ok, right arrow, up, ok, left arrow, ok, (image will clear but you're not done yet), then left arrow again, ok again (to confirm). whew. sux. Did open tray-5-6-9-ok and found that it was defaulting to: ver0409 630/00 01 2 and pressed down arrow 4x to get back to my North American 642/17 01 1 version. Make sure to press 'OK' as instructed on the screen below or it will turn back on as a 630 again. dont know if that's good or bad... What's the diff between these models? Regions? Features too? Hmm... Update observations: - had to reapply Region Free patch again. open tray-7-8-9-ok-0. this time just a plain '0' appears. R1, R2, R3 discs play ok. Still Region Free, thank god. - in system menu, i now have a DivX VOD registration code. - Every DTS 5.1 DVD i play has the error: 'could not decode DTS!' dont know if this existed b4 update. sounds ok tho... (Toto Amsterdam, Fifth Element Superbit, Wasabi) - still can only do up to 8x FF/REW. I prefer my 727 as it can go as high as 32x. - tried my DVD-R disc with MPEG1 movies, still has the problem of skipping around when i try and REW a movie. sux. Also will NOT play my MPEG1 movies extracted from my ReplayTV 5040 using DVarchive. Dont really wanna have to recode (takes 30 min+) them with Nero to be able to play them on TV... :( Next step for Philips would be a DVI HD port on the back with 64x FF/REW (like Akai!). We'll be waiting and ready to buy. Make sure it is still remote menu Region Free hackable or we'll go to another maker! :P Aloha! Downloaded firmware 642_17 from: http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/dvp642_17_fus_eng.zip Instructions from: http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/dvp642_17_fur_eng.pdf Manuals and other downloads: DVD_PLAYERS_SU&externalProductId=dvp642&externalBrand=PHILIPS&sourceType=4&_requestid=45081 | |||
| Region code hack posted by TheButcher69, May 09 2004: | |||
If you keep pressing 789, ok, 0 in you get 0 with a bunch of characters in the lower left of the screen & in the system menu you get more languages & RGB is list along with S-video, & the component settings. Also after appling the 789, ok, 0 code you have subtitles while watching a movie no matter if you choose subtitles on or off. The only way to get them off is be using the subtitle button on the remote. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Fantasma que anda, May 31 2004: | |||
Perfeito!!! Sem mistério! Moro na cidade do Rio de Janeiro - Brazil. Comprei pela internet na Loja Walmart o Philips DVP642 com certificação DivX no dia 12/05/2004 e o recebí no dia 20/05/2004. Hoje acessei o www.videohelp.com e escolhi o código de desbloqueio menos complicado. Resultado: 1. Abra o prato do DVD Player; 2. Tecle 7 8 9 OK 0; 3. Aparecerá 0 no canto inferior esquerdo da tela; 4. Coca-Cola e pipoca à gosto. Perfect!!! Without mystery! I live in Rio de Janeiro City - Brazil. I bought through the Internet at the Walmart Store a Philips DVP642 with DivX certification on 05/12/2004 and I received it on the 05/20/2004. Today I visited www. videohelp.com and I chose the unlock code thats appears to be less complicated. Result: 1. Open DVD Player tray; 2. Type 7 8 9 OK 0 (Zero for region free. Replace the 0 with the region number you want). 3. will appear 0 (zero) on the bottom left corner of the screen 4. Coke and popcorn. Note: You can use it that I garantee Thank you all... Mr. Walker | |||
| Other hack posted by zyx1, June 14 2004: | |||
Divx subtiles works!!! Read http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/dvp642_17_fur_eng.pdf Instal http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/dvp642_17_fus_eng.zip Enjoy:)!!! | |||
| Region code hack posted by spec1sef, June 21 2004: | |||
The Region code works successfully. The player is Macrovision Free only if you want to backup DVD to a VHS or on a analog device such as VCR. However, the Macrovision is not OFF if you try to backup DVD from Philips DVP642 to a DVD recorder such as Philips 880/985. The DVD recorder says that DVD is "Copy Protected". So if anyone is buying this DVD player with intension of Backing-up DVD on a DVDR/RW recorder, keep in mind that DVP642 will not let you backup the disc. I read a small article about Macrovision and found out that there are several kinds of Macrovision protections present in DVD's. The most common ones are Analog Protection and Digital. I figured that this Philips DVP642 defeats analog Macrovision and thats the reason you are able to backup DVD on a VHS. But it fails to block Macrovision when you try to backup DVD on a digital recorder or a stand alone DVD recorder. Excluding DVD-Rec for PC. Its very simple to backup DVD on PC. So if someone has a solution to bypass or modify the player to make it work on Philips DVDR880 or 985, please post it here. Thank you. | |||
| Region code hack posted by kalnierius, June 29 2004: | |||
Awsome player. I can confirm that 7-8-9-Ok-0 hack works for 0531 firmware. Also, new firmware has no "cannot decode DTS" message when DTS selected and plays over digital connection through DTS capable receiver. Awsome. | |||
| Other hack posted by kwagle, July 01 2004: | |||
I just upgraded the firmware in my Philips 642 (which I got yesterday at Wal- Mart) to 0531. I made the upgrade CD using Mac OS X, burning a disc at 1x with the Finder. As a Mac user, I expect things to work the first time, but I'm still pleasantly surprised. I had to reapply the region code hack (7 8 9 ok 0) which still works. However, I still can't play the episodes of "The Jury" which I downloaded from the #tvtorrents web site. (Everything else I've gotten from there works fine.) ~ Kiran <entropy@io.com> | |||
| Region code hack posted by columbia_or, July 25 2004: | |||
I confirm that the method press '0000' doesn't work but the following steps (from Joe Moe) below, works fine! >> 1. Turn on the player. >> 2. Open the tray. >> 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: >> 7 8 9 OK 0 >> 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. >> 5. Your player is now region free! Put in a DVD and enjoy! :) | |||
| Other hack posted by shagz7, July 26 2004: | |||
Just a quick summary for all those visiting this page for the first time including how to install the newest firmware & region-free hack. I'm from the USA (region 1 default) My DVP-642/17 was manufactured in May of 2004 and had firmware version 0409 on it when it arrived at my doorstep. Directions for applying Region Hack: 1. Open DVD Player tray (You can do this also by holding down the stop key on your remote for a couple seconds). 2. Type 7, 8, 9, OK, 0 (Zero for region free. Replace the 0 with the region number you want). 3. A 0 (zero) will appear on the bottom left corner of your screen. 4. You should now be ready to rock with other region encoded DVDs! Full DVP-642 product details, firmware upgrades, and owners manual can be obtained at the following URL: http://www.consumer.philips.com/global/ ... =DVP642_17 To verify what version of firmware you have do the following: 1. Open the tray. 2. On your remote punch in 5, 6, 9, OK 3. Your firmware version will be displayed on the screen. The direct link to the most recent firmware upgrade is (version 0531): http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/dvp642_17_fus_eng.zip And the Instructions on how to run the firmware upgrade at: http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/dvp642_17_fur_eng.pdf If you have any questions or comments about this feel free to send me an IM or email. -Tom | |||
| Region code hack posted by pharaoh^J, August 08 2004: | |||
THIS METHOD IS CONFIRMED ON MY DVP 642-17 Put in your disc, wait til the player complains. PRESS and HOLD STOP for 2 seconds. The dvd player will open. Press 7, 8, 9 on your remote. Press OKAY. Select 0 for region free. If everything went okay, a 0 will appear in the bottom left corner of the screen. Congrats, your dvd player is now region free :) (special thanks to whoever posted this hack first. i just wanted to post a confirmation that is DOES work, thanks!!!) | |||
| Region code hack posted by outspoken, August 10 2004: | |||
After reading the hacks here I tried all the codes and only one worked: HOLD STOP UNTIL TRAY OPENS PRESS 0-0-0-0-OK-0 (will see one 0 appear) HOLD STOP UNTIL TRAY CLOSES This is a Region-Free hack for the Philips DVP 642. I purchased mine July 3rd 2004 from WalMart in the USA. I'm guessing it all depends on which firmware or revision you purchased for which code works. if 7-8-9 works for yours then you possibly have a different version or firmware than mine. I do not own a 630 or anything else, this is the DVP642 which plays DivX/XviD/MP3 and sells for a retail $70 at most USA stores. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Z3RO, August 15 2004: | |||
Anyway, just bought this today and installed. Mine is DVP 642/37 Checked the firmware is version 0531. I tried the 7 8 9 OK 0. It works! But I haven't tried putting in any other region DVDs. Thank you guys for the hack. | |||
| Region code hack posted by lizzoqops, August 17 2004: | |||
Just verifying...got this player today (August 17th, 2004). It comes with firmware version 0531 now. The 7-8-9-ok-0 works fine. Just put in a R2 Japanese disc and it plays fine. Pal R0, that worked. PAL DVD+RW, that worked. DVDR, that worked. AVI on a cd, that worked too. No subs yet, but I'll need to study up on this. | |||
| Other hack posted by azara, August 26 2004: | |||
Linux compatibility hack: FFWD/Rewind & Subtitles work It took me a looong time to figure out why my DVP632 did play most DivX files, but never allowed to fast forward/rewind. Also, it never recognized subtitle files on the disk. Reason is: I burnt most of my CDs on Linux, using mkisofs/cdrecord, and creating (as usual) CDs with a combined ISO9660 *and* Joliet filesystem. Point is, the Joliet filesystem that's created on Linux slightly differs from those Joliet CDs that you create with Nero on Windows... they are confirming to the standard, but the DVP632 (and most likely the DVP642 as well) does not like them - it's a bug in the DVP firmware. What to do? - either: do not use Joliet when creating CDs on Linux. The DVP632/642 works fine when there's no Joliet file system, but only ISO9660. Drawback: These CDs are hardly usable on Windows platforms, as Windows requires Joliet on the CD. - or: use my patch for mkisofs at <a href=http://arost.redirectme.net/sw/mkisofs/>http://arost.redirectme.net/sw/mkisofs/</a>, which allows you to create combined Joliet/ISO CDs that look identical to those created by Nero. This is really a very subtle, yet easy to remove bug in the DVP642/DVP632... in any case, don't forget to bug Philips to resolve the issue in a later firmware release. | |||
| Region code hack posted by jyk, September 16 2004: | |||
This is just confirmation. DVP 642/37- bought 9/16/2004 at CompUSA($69.99). Applied 7,8,9,OK,0 . Working perfectly. Thanks nice information for contributors. | |||
| Other hack posted by eesahmuu, September 25 2004: | |||
Mac hack -> working subtitles Toast burns a type of ISO9600/Joliet CD that the DVP642 does not like .. no matter what combinations you use to burn the CD w/ Toast .. the DVP642 will regard subtitle files as question mark files .. it will read the .avi file fine however .. there's two ways to burn a working .srt CD on a Mac .. first -> use Virtual PC and NERO to burn ur .avi + .srt using the default settings second -> use Discribe and CD-ROM + ISO Level 1 Settings Discribe seems to use a different ISO9600/Joliet system than Toast's .. nonetheless Discribe burns working subtitles w/o havin' to use emulation ! .. | |||
| Region code hack posted by penmig, October 03 2004: | |||
Confirmed sequence 789 OK 0 for DVP642/37 | |||
| Region code hack posted by oldfart13, October 08 2004: | |||
Just bought a 642 from Wal-Mart Canada for $100CAD + tax ($115CAD). Used the 7-8-9-ok-0 hack and put in a region 2 Japanese disc which proceded to play without a hitch! Build on this unit is August 2004. This replaces my Norcent DP-300 which, while a good machine, can't play DivX or Xvid. | |||
| Region code hack posted by desertracer, October 13 2004: | |||
Just bought the DVP642 from Amazon.com, did the 7 8 9 ok 0 hack. It works great! The firmware comes with the player is up-to-date, so no upgrade is needed. The player is so thin and nice, you can beat the price! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Code101, October 18 2004: | |||
I can confirm that the "Open tray, Press 7 8 9 ok, Press 0" works. Also, macrovision is disabled. It's also shipping with firmware Ver0531. | |||
| Other hack posted by ElvesBrew, October 21 2004: | |||
The hack that several others have listed does in fact work. Go ahead and use this method. With the tray open enter "789 OK" then what ever region code you wish to use, 0, 1, 2, etc.. The region code number you enter will show up on the screen to indicate you have succeeded. I did want to mention tho that there is a newer update for the firmware than what has been listed here. That would be version 0.37 rather than 0.17. Both are available from the Philips support site. Here is the link for each and the PDF instructions for burning the firmware update to CD and the proceedure for installing it. http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_37/ I have installed this firmware and it is working just fine along with the region hack. The main improvement I found was that I could now use external .srt subtitle files with my Divx .avi videos. Also I seem to have better compatibility with xvid since upgrading. I wish this unit had a DVI output and would also play my OGG files but it is by far the best unit I have found and the price can't be beat. | |||
| Other hack posted by manija, October 23 2004: | |||
How to Modify the Power Supply of PHILIPS DVP 642 DVD player to 220 V ? To convert to Autovoltage (100V to 240V) Just replace the following components from the power supply board: Original Part Replace by this ============== =============== C304 68uF 250V 33uF 450V C301 .1uF 250V .1uF 650V VTR1 (remove it) The design uses the Fairchild KA5H02659R IC to drive the power supply, and there's no further changes needed to work as Autovoltage 100V to 240V At this time there are at least a dozen of this DVD players working fine with this modification. Enjoy it! Manija | |||
| Other hack posted by fmc2k, November 09 2004: | |||
DO NOT attempt the 220v conversion described above by user "manija". I changed the mentioned components, and when I plugged the PS to 220v, the power extension fuse blew off. Unless of course there's something that he forgot to tell. | |||
| Region code hack posted by amershin, November 18 2004: | |||
I Confirm that my DVD Player Model Philips 642/37 Firmware VER0531 642/37 01M1 works for the above hacks: 1. Turn ON; Open the Tray; Press 5 6 7 OK; "The hidden menu appears to show your Firmware Version" 2. Turn ON; Open the Tray; Press 7 8 9 OK 0; "There is no hidden menu, but the last "0" you put in appears at the left bottom of the screen!" This confirms your zone-free region "0 (Zero)". But if you would like to select a particular region, follow the above procedure and after OK press the number corresponding to the region of your choice. 3. To open and close the tray from your remote control: Press and hold for two seconds the STOP Button. Enjoy it! | |||
| Other hack posted by manija, November 19 2004: | |||
Sorry FMC2K but this modification works perfectly fine, you forgot to change something for sure or need more experience on electronics. >> Other hack posted by fmc2k, November 09 2004: >>DO NOT attempt the 220v conversion described above by >>user "manija". I changed the mentioned components, and >>when I plugged the PS to 220v, the power extension fuse >>blew off. >>Unless of course there's something that he forgot to tell. How to Modify the Power Supply of PHILIPS DVP 642 DVD player to 220 V ? To convert to Autovoltage (100V to 240V) Just replace the following components from the power supply board: Original Part_____Replace by this ==============....=============== C304:_68uF_250V_by_33uF_450V C301:_.1uF_250V_by_.1uF_650V VTR1:_(145V_10mm_Varistor)_by_(300V_10mm_Varistor). (you can also remove this component) The design uses the Fairchild KA5H02659R IC to drive the power supply, and there's no further changes needed to work as Autovoltage 100V to 240V At this time there are at least a dozen of this DVD players working fine with this modification. If you feel scare, try using a serial Lamp 25W 220V, if something goes wrong, the lamp will be On all the time, it's normal if on the first 2 seconds. Enjoy it! Manija | |||
| Other hack posted by luckyboy, November 20 2004: | |||
>> How to Modify the Power Supply of PHILIPS DVP 642 DVD player to 220 V ? This is just confirmation. Autovoltage 100-240 V modification on my DVP642 Power Supply. It works fine. I Don't need any transformer converter any more ! | |||
| Other hack posted by manija, November 25 2004: | |||
>>Other hack posted by alegator, November 21 2004: >>Manija, where can I obtain the replacement components you describe for the autovoltage hack? You need common electronics parts, so go to any electronic store in your city or, In the UK you may enter to: www.rs-components.com Further questions by Private Msg. Manija | |||
| Other hack posted by javierperezch, December 01 2004: | |||
Tired of hard to read DivX subtitles??? Try this... it's amazing!!! 1- Insert a disc with a DivX or Xvid movie with subtitles file, and select the subtitles as usual. 2- Press DISC MENU button on the remote. The movie starts playing automatically 3- After the READING INDEX message, press SYSTEM MENU button twice Doing this procedure, subtitles will be displayed over a semi-transparent gray background, making them much easier to read!!! Believe me!!! This really works!!! This only works if the disc has only one movie file and one or more subtitles files. For discs with more than movie file, there is a more complicated workaround. I'll try to explain it in another post. Another thing you can do is select ENCODING LATIN 2. The font in this encoding is larger than the default encoding one, but some characters like ¿ and ¡ (used in Spanish) show up bad. I hope all of you can find this "bug" as useful as I do Greetings from Argentina Javier | |||
| Other hack posted by willmore, December 01 2004: | |||
It appears that there is new firmware for the Philips CDP642. On: <http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/> There are files dated Nov 25, hmmm, now that I look again, they're dated Nov 30. They must be updated by a script. Maybe there's even newer firmware? :) The files I installed last night say they're version 1109. Okay, I just checked and the files are the same at the above mentioned site as the ones that I downloaded. I just looks like they changed the timestamps on them. There is also: <http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_37/> but the files there are the same as the _17 version. My player is a dvp642/37. After installing the new firmware and doing 569OK I see listed: Model firmware ver 642/37 ver1109 642/37 01 s 1 632/04 ver1109 632/04 01 s 5 630/04 ver1109 630/04 01 s 5 640K/fk ver1109 640k/fk 01 s 3 640k/75 ver1109 640k/75 01 s 4 640k/69 ver1109 640k/69 01 s 3 642/17 ver1109 640/17 01 s 1 632/05 ver1109 632/05 01 s 2 632/02 ver1109 632/02 01 s 2 632/00 ver1109 632/00 01 s 2 630/05 ver1109 630/05 01 s 2 630/02 ver1109 630/02 01 s 2 630/00 ver1109 630/00 01 s 2 My USA model is running 642/37 ver1109 642/37 01 s 1 and seems to be fine. There is no list of improvements/bug fixes that I could find. I also have no out of region DVDs to try to play, so I can't verify that the 789ok0 code works. FWIW, it is accepted, but I don't know if it has any effect. Thanks to everyone who posted before me. I found all of the information I found here very helpful. Cheers! | |||
| Region code posted by ah802, December 01 2004: | |||
Macrovisison is functional out of the box on this Philips DVD 642. Hooked the player to A/V inputs on two seperate VCR's hooked up to older RF TV's and found my custom disk worked perfectly but 'Finding Nemo' had macrovision, unwatchable. Latest bios.. workaround? | |||
| Region code posted by Route 66, December 13 2004: | |||
DO NOT UPGRADE to 1109 firmware!!! The new firmware (1109) ENABLES MACROVISION in the DVP 642 player, according to http://www.ryan.com.br/prod_dvp642.htm (in portuguese). In his site, Jefferson Ryan reports his tests with both firmwares, 0531 e 1109. The conclusion is that 1109 has the infamous MacroVision, while 0531 is REALLY MacroVision free If your player has the 1109 firmware, you can make it MacroVision free by downgrading its firmware to the 0531 version. Note that it will void the warranty, but can be useful if you really need a MacroVision free unit. | |||
| Region code hack posted by giannid, December 14 2004: | |||
I can confirm that the devious 1109 firmware update resets the region code to 1 for my DVP642/37, however the hack can be reapplied. I didn't notice at first because I was only playing non-region stuff plus a region 1 DVD, but then I read about how the latest bogus firmware update screws with the region hack. I then put in a region 2 DVD and it wouldn't load. It said something like "wrong region". I then reapplied the hack and the region 2 DVD loaded fine. Hack ---> Open tray, press 7,8,9,ok,0 | |||
| Other hack posted by giannid, December 15 2004: | |||
Jefferson Ryan's page has a link to a couple of sites that have the 0531 firmware update files. http://www.websamba.com/jlcortes/dvp642k_78_fus_eng.zip http://www.geocities.com/ryanxor/arquivos.htm I'm not sure if this version 0531 is the same for all DVP642s or is just particular to the DVP642k/78. He said the version numbers are used to take into account regions, OSD languages, etc. Jefferson also points out that the 1109 has an extra file (3 in all) whereas the 0531 has only 2. Again, I don't know if this means that if you try to revert your DVD player back by using the 0531 firmware update you will only overwrite the 2 files, or if all 3 of the 1109 files will be erased and then the old 0531 would be written over it. Jefferson says that he used the 0531 to replace the 0521 that his DVP642K_78 came with and by doing so he lost the Karaoke feature on his DVP642K (K stands for Karaoke) and on screen menus in his native portuguese. He was able sometime later to redo a different 0531 firmware update specifically for his DVDplayer and it works fine now. Now does this mean if you try to apply this 0531 update you will end up with an OSD (on screen display) in portuguese? If you did you could probably change it to english (or spanish) in the system menu. Here is the link to Philips PDF file with instructions on how to do the upgrade. http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642k_78/dvp642k_78_fur_eng.pdf I was going to try to revert the upgrade but when I could just reapply the region hack, I didn't bother. | |||
| Other hack posted by freestylegreek, December 15 2004: | |||
I think this firmware is not for the american version of Philips 642. I wish someone out there can really give a 100% info on what the new firmware does or doesnt do. | |||
| Other hack posted by javierperezch, December 16 2004: | |||
For those who found the trick to enable the subtitles background useful, here is a method to use with discs with more than one movie file. In order to use this trick, first there is something you all must know. When the player is set to NO MENU mode (by pressing DISC MENU button when the menu is on, or by setting it through the preferences menu `MP3/JPEG Nav' option), it first scans the whole disc to determine all the recognizable files (movies, subtitles, pictures, mp3) and assigns them a sequential number, while a PLEASE WAIT message is displayed on screen. This numbers are assigned to the files in the same order they appear on screen when you navigate the disc directory structure through the menu. Once you know this, do the following steps: 1-Determine the file number assigned by the player to the AVI file and the desired subtitle file. You have to do this by navigating the disc structure in . For example, let's say the AVI file is number 11 and the subtitle is number 10 2-Enter NO MENU mode. After the PLEASE WAIT message disappears, the player starts playing the first file y finds. Press STOP 3-Enter the number of the subtitle file with the remote (in this example, 10) and press OK. The `little hand' is displayed on screen. Then press SUBTITLE button. DIVX SUBTITLE SELECTED message is displayed 4-Enter the number of the AVI file with the remote (in this example, 11) and press OK. The movie starts playing. 5-After READING INDEX message is displayed, press SYSTEM MENU button twice. After this, the player usually skips a few seconds of the movie. If this is unacceptable, just STOP and start playing again. That's it! It seems kind of complicated, but after doing this procedure a couple of times you'll get used to it. Greetings Javier | |||
| Region code hack posted by maryloo, December 20 2004: | |||
I would like to ask you guys if this hack with remote need to be apply each time I will watch a DVD or it fixes the problem one and for good. I heard that it works only 6 times. I have DVP 642/37 form US and it plays only region 1 or region free. I would like to have region free because I'm from Europe. Should I first replace the software in DVD or the remote code combination is enough? | |||
| Region code hack posted by ruloso, December 20 2004: | |||
Excelente Javier, funciona muy bien el "truco" para los subtitulos, tanto para una Pelicula, como para varias en el mismo CD/DVD. It works fine the subtitle trick for 1 movie or more than one on the same CD/DVD. Me compre el DVP-642 hace una semana el USA y tanto el desbloqueo de zona (open tray, 789 OK 0) como el tema de los subtitulos funciono OK. I bought the DVP-642 (open tray, 789 OK 0) last week and the zone trick works OK and the same for subtitles. Gracias Javier Ruloso Un Argentino mas... | |||
| Other hack posted by vobnovice, December 22 2004: | |||
Check this out: http://mtz.softpedia.com/index.php?option=com_weblinks&catid=71&Itemid=4 Various subtitle modifications. Mods are available for other standalone divx players, too. | |||
| Region code hack posted by giannid, December 22 2004: | |||
MaryLoo, You don't have to update the software, just apply the region hack: 1. Open tray 2. Press these buttons with remote: 7, 8, 9, OK, 0 That's it! The last zero you pressed sets the DVD player to multi-region - it plays DVD's from any region. You could've put in 2 instead of 0, but it's better to have it at 0 so it can play anything. Now, if you do a firmware update it will likely reset your DVD region code as it did to mine (reset to region 1) depending on the model you choose (e.g. DVP642/37 sets to 1). I simply reapplied the region hack to "0", and it works fine. I wouldn't bother with the latest firmware update (1109), as it is worthless. By the way, the six time changing option is for software related DVD drives on computers and that isn't related to this. Also I hope your DVD player is compatible with your power outlet. The US version is for 110 volts. I had a friend bring me one of these from america and I had mine taken to an electrician who changed the voltage to 220 volts. | |||
| Region code posted by Clonie, December 23 2004: | |||
Guess what, I've just turned my DVP642/17 firmware from 1109 back to 0531. I upgraded to 1109 earlier this month and experienced the Macrovision headaches. Tonight I accidentally found this place: http://home.ica.net/~robert/Philips (yes, there is a ~) this place has all three firmware 0409 (my original version), 0531, and 1109 for DVP642/17. 0409 and 0531 only have two files "dvpxx.rom" and "dvpxxdv.rom", 1109 has three files (plus dvpxxEW.rom). I followed the steps stated in http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp642_17/dvp642_17_fur_eng.pdf burned a CD (with two files) and did installation. After successfully installed 0531, I played my favorite DVD "Roy Orbison's Black & White Night" on DVP642 and recorded it to my new Liteon LVW-5005 DVD recorder without a problem. (5005 displayed "Content Protected" message when DVP642 with 1109 firmware). Region free also works fine. Many Thanks to Robert(I believe this is that website owner and lifesaver's name). | |||
| Region code posted by Clonie, December 26 2004: | |||
Many different DVP models are using the same copy of firmware. You need to select the model number which matches your hardware model number after installing "new" firmware. To verify this: (1)Open the tray. (2)Punch in 569 OK (3)The Current model and firmware version will be displayed on the screen. (4)Scroll up and down the model number by arrow keys you will see many different model numbers including 642/17 and 642/37. New features provided by 1109 will be gone after rolling back to 0531, this is a trade off. | |||
| Region code posted by deadskullz, December 27 2004: | |||
!!Update!! I have successfully downgraded my player to 0531 working very sweet. It's the firmware I got off roberts site. | |||
| Region code posted by Zisguy1, January 04 2005: | |||
I did a binary compare of the 0531 firmware .rom files here: http://home.ica.net/~robert/Philips with the ones available here: http://www.geocities.com/ryanxor/arquivos.htm#english The good news is they check out identical... meaning that it's 99.99% they haven't been messed with. So it's OK to get the firmware from either site & downgrade with confidence. | |||
| Region code posted by RONK, January 06 2005: | |||
I agree with MDG. I have not been able to downgrade my 642/37 from Ver1109 to 0531 either. The player just spins for a while and then ejects it. From the notes above , it appears that DEADSKULZ was able to do so. I suspect my software/cd burner was not able to perform "Disc at once" burning... May I ask what cd burning application has the "disc at once" functionality?? thanks. | |||
| Region code hack posted by YESSS!, January 08 2005: | |||
I confirm 789ok0 for DVP642/37 which I recently purchased from CompUSA in the U.S., manufactured JUL'04. It ships with the VER0531 ware, which can be viewed with 567ok which I also confirm. You can use the remote (holding down 'stop' to open and close the tray door), don't have to open from the unit like some DVD hacks. Furthermore, I also confirm THIS version is "macrovision free"; don't know about DVD recorders, but now I can record from DVDs that I couldn't before with the same videorecorder. So it *is* macro-free out of the box :)You don't have to upgrade (and from reading here I suggest you do not) if you have this version (again manufactured in JUL04 or earlier, it says right on back of unit). Last I knew there were still units of this type left in CompUSA in the Southwest. One more point, using the 567ok code to check your version *resets* the unit to default, that is Region 1. So if you're going to check, do it first. That is apply 789ok0 after 567ok, or anytime you see "WRONG REGION" for any reason. If you just do the 789ok0 and you see an '0' on the lower left portion of the screen, you can rest assured it did work and you don't need to worry about it, as far as regions are concerned. I've played 0, 1, and 2 region discs with no hitch. (Have yet to try Pal but I'm sure it'll work fine.) So don't worry about downloading anything unless you have a newer version (I haven't seen) and need to get rid of macro like the other notes here (try the simple hack first): from the remote, press and hold 'stop' to open, press 7,8,9,'ok',0. Press and hold 'stop' to close tray. That's it! It will play any disc ever after, not just one right following, you can turn power on and off and it will still work, you don't have to reuse the code for each time you turn it on or play a disc. If electricity to the machine is cut off (unplugged or power failure), just reapply the hack. It really *IS* that simple! I'm posting this to confirm and to reassure a bunch of average American consumers who will be confused by all the talk about versions and downloading software. | |||
| Region code posted by mdg, January 09 2005: | |||
@RONK: My player was made in Oct 2004. I suspect either recent players have been modified to not allow downgrading, or the 1109 firmware was modified after its initial release so that once it's been flashed the player can't be downgraded. | |||
| Other hack posted by giannid, January 10 2005: | |||
There are certain settings you need to use to make a firmware update disk like making sure your file system length is set to Level 2, and use ISO mode. I used Nero Burning ROM and not Nero Express to do it. From Philips .pdf document How to make an upgrade disc Write dvpxx.rom, dvpxxdv.rom and dvpxxEW.rom files onto a blank CD-R , using the following settings : · File System CD-ROM ISO Level 2 · Mode 1/2/XA · Character set ISO 9660 · Finalised, single session · Write speed slow (e.g. 2x, 4x) Finalize the disc. (The application may do this automatically.) NOTE : Packet writing application for drag & drop copying cannot be used for creating an upgrade disc. Use only a dedicated CD writing application allowing disc at once recording. No UDF setting as well. | |||
| Region code hack posted by ascaria, January 12 2005: | |||
Hi, I received my DVP642/37 manufactured on November 2004 from Amazon.com with the latest firmware (1109). As I wanted to use this player for my DivX files and Japanese DVD's through my TV-VCR combo, latest firmware (1109) didn't work because of macrovision. I downloaded Robert's site files for (dvp642_17_fus_eng 0531) and after burning CD and flashing the player I must say I cannot be happier. If you guys weren't able to flash your player, then the problem is with the writing (I used nero 6, DAO). I also got this player for 35 bucks when I applied to the Amazon.com credit card. THis was a HOT deal. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Splat, January 13 2005: | |||
Just bought the unit today. It's got a sticker indicating October 2004 build date. Here's what I did and it worked fine: 1. Power on the player. 2. Open tray via remote (press & hold "Stop" button). 3. Enter using remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. You're now region free, baby! | |||
| Other hack posted by eyager, January 19 2005: | |||
ATTENTION LINUX, MAC, AND UNIX USERS! In order to get divx subtitles to work properly, you must take the following precautions 1. If you used mkisofs to create the cd image, you cannot use the -J (joliet filenames) option. Although the avi files seemed to be recognized properly, subtitle files are not. 2. Every line of text in a subtitle file must end with a carriage return and a linefeed character in typical MS-DOS fashion. Linux, unix, and mac by default use only linefeeds at the end of each line of text and thus subtitle files authored in a non-windows operating system will not be properly recognized by the player. A conversion utility such as Tofrodos, available at http://www.thefreecountry.com/tofrodos/index.shtml, is needed. 3. Opendml extensions in avi files must be turned off. Recent versions of mplayer/mencoder have them turned on by default. | |||
| Other hack posted by skarp, January 20 2005: | |||
Using firmware 0531 (the default on my just-purchased player), I'm finding that the 789ok0 hack works well. What I'm also finding is that if I use the DVD menus to select any language other than the default, when the player reaches the end of a track, it drops back to the default language. This is especially annoying on TV shows, as it means I have to reselect my preferred audio track (Japanese) at the beginning of every episode. Is this normal behaviour, or is there a problem with my player? Either way, is this something I can cure by reflashing 0531 or moving up to 1109? | |||
| Region code posted by jimmybs, January 22 2005: | |||
For all of u tring to downgrade to version 0531, try the following: open tray enter 567 ok now open tray and begin firmware downgrade. jim | |||
| Other hack posted by ItsMeAgain, January 23 2005: | |||
I just want to let all know that if you follow the advice here and on the philips site downgrading from the 1109. I have not had any problems For the price this player does what it says it can do. Just my thoughts | |||
| Region code hack posted by toaster100, January 26 2005: | |||
I also was able to downgrade my newer player to 0531 with no problems. Mine was manufactured in Dec '04 and purchased at Wallmart in Jan '05. Curiously, there were two box styles for sale there, a skinny white one and a fatter black/blue one. I bought the thin white one. That's probably TMI, but who knows. I burned the CD using Nero Express 6.3.1.25 where the only settings I could make was to uncheck multisession and lower the burn speed to 8x. | |||
| Other hack posted by ItsMeAgain, January 29 2005: | |||
Downgrading from the 1109 firmware is quite easy as long as you follow the instruction listed here and slow the burn rate to 2x, mode 1, and close session Hope this helps | |||
| Region code posted by dvpolaris, January 29 2005: | |||
Plextor, Sony, or Creative, 2x or 4x, ISO 1 or 2, Mode 1 or 2, CD-R or CD-RW, Nero Burning Rom or Expert, every which way tried here, and all finalized, it ain't happening. November 2004/1109 machine simply can't be downgraded, clearly for many of us if not all, who knows why. Thanks for all advice anyway. Barring getting a Sima, looks like a macrovision remote hack will be the only hope. The region-free does seem to work on this model (not playback tested here, but the little 0 appears). | |||
| Region code posted by boomer1959, January 30 2005: | |||
Just thought I'd add to the downgrade thread by saying I was able to downgrade my 642/37 (bought just yesterday at a local Wal-Mart) manufactured Nov 04 with no problem, using the 531 file at <http://home.ica.net/~robert/Philips/> I used a Samsung TS-H492A CDW/DVD burner and Nero express 6.3.1.18 bundled (came with the Samsung burner) I set the burn speed to 8x and used a Verbatim data-life 1-52X CD-R. Placed the disc in the tray, closed it, FIRMWARE appeared in upper left corner of screen, then ERASE, Then WRITE. After approx 4 minutes player turned off, then I pressed the open button to eject the disc. Macro Vision was not present when running composite video output into the front input on my Sony SLV-777HF VCR. And yes, I previously confirmed that Macrovision was functional (my 642 had the 1109 firmware) | |||
| Region code hack posted by POLISH_PRINCE, January 30 2005: | |||
The hack published by Mats-Åke Larsson works perfectly on my DVP642. I'm copying it here for your viewing pleasure: 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. Your player is now region free! Put in a DVD and enjoy! :) NOTE: The 0 in the sequence above represents the region code. 0 = region free. If you want to change your player to just a specific region code, replace the 0 with the region number you want. The hack should be perfectly safe, but USE IT ON YOUR OWN RISK! | |||
| Region code posted by borodisha, February 02 2005: | |||
bought 642/37 (manufactured Nov 04) from CompUSA (store) this January $69 ---------- it still has 0531 firmware (Macrovision-free) I suppose comparing serial numbers will allow to determine which version you are buying. I have KN020446044217 | |||
| Region code posted by Zisguy1, February 03 2005: | |||
"I am curious as to whether including that file with the two 0531 files might solve the problem... or will mixing versions just kill the machine. Debating whether to try it..." I tried it (mixed EW file from 1109 with first two from 0531). The player appeared to flashed successfully, but a check of the version afterward again showed 1109. IMO this may be a hardware issue, i.e. a chip was physically changed in the most recent players. The only way to be sure is for people who successfully downgraded to "upgrade" again, and then try downgrading one more time. Doubt anyone will risk it. | |||
| Region code posted by terminator_nemo, February 08 2005: | |||
Just a confirmation: I've got a 'slim white boxed' DVP642/37 made in December'2004 from Target yesterday. It says "released in Jan'05" on the box, probably some Target warehouse thing. It had 1109 firm. Macrovision was ON out of the box. 1. Downgraded to 0531 firm without any problem whatsoever, and Macrovision was GONE. I connect it through a VCR since my TV has no component inputs, so I notice the change right away! Now I can watch my "Blade Runner" which I actually bought in the store (which is a rare occasion). I did not see any significant comparative change in quality of the DIVX/XVID videos with the downgrade, and it shouldn't be, really. As it looks and suggests, newer firmware's decoding algorithm was probably slightly better speed-optimized, that's all to it. 2. Region hack '789-ok-0' works, as expected. Tried some region 5 disks along with american region 1, all works. BTW PAL to NTSC conversion is not bad either. So now this player really plays everything. I'm pretty happy with the results. | |||
| Region code hack posted by illusions, February 09 2005: | |||
I got the Philips DVP 642 directly from Philips -- manufactured date Nov 2004 confirm that the region hack work However i am not able to downgrade it to 0531 firmware, like some other user when i load the cd, it just spins for awhile and the tray opens. Will someone who is able to downgrade successfully upload the iso image somewhere so i can just burn it using nero to try again? Thanks | |||
| Other hack posted by medudder, February 13 2005: | |||
I have a PHILIPS 642. I was able to convert the subtitles to YELLOW!! go here: http://www.cfide.com.br/dvp/dvp642-0531-bruno-1.1-yellow.zip instructions are in the ZIP file. V.1.1-yellow 01/16/05 Second version - Yellow font - Latin 1 charset - Firmware 0531 - as released from Philips - 1st Font: Author: Bruno Type: Arial bold 28 - 2nd Font: Author: Bruno Type: Arial 28 with translucid background - 3rt Font: Removed by lack of space | |||
| Region code posted by Fonet, February 13 2005: | |||
The player is Nov. 2004 model with 0531 original firmware. Brought it for my sister. Macrovision was no issue for her (She uses direct connection and it's so easy to copy ANY DVD on your PC...), so I did upgrade and YES, noticed downgrade in my XVID movies playback quality; (increased visible pixelation). Downgraded back to 0531 and noticed no improvements and some of my newest XVIDs refused to play. Flashed back to 1109 WITHOUT 'dvpxxEW.rom' file in it and there is improvement!!! Didn't test it for Macrovision, though, as I mentioned it's no issue for us. I don't now what to think of it, but it looks like our famous extra file does all the mess here. Hope this will be helpful for you guys. Ps: My own player is Norcent DP-501M (Rebaged LiteOn DVP-2001). If you want it ALL; this is it for mere $5 more (not as great looking, though). | |||
| Other hack posted by shagz7, February 14 2005: | |||
I hosted the original zip file including the PDF instruction sheet on my site for the 0531 files. http://tomhoffmanjr.com/DVD/Philips dvp642_17_fus_eng 0531.zip I also have links to the Philips DVP642 page and instructions on how to apply the region free hack revisited at http://tomhoffmanjr.com/DVD/ | |||
| Other hack posted by Pescador, February 19 2005: | |||
I burn my compressed DVDs on 700 mgs CD media in mini-dvd format. The stranger, in player Philips DVP 642K, it is that the video is without sound. This was the only problem, until here, detected in this device. I looked for in some specialized sites and I did not get explanation for the absence of the sound in mini-dvd format. I thought nothing is perfect, not even the DVP642K. But I did not give up. For mere attempt of error and rightness, I think, now, that I discovered the way to hear the audio in the mini-dvd format in the DVP642K. Pressing the audio remote control key when a mini-dvd disk is playing, it is showed the following chronological order on the TV screen: 1ª order - 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87 2ª order - A0, A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7 3ª order - C0, C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7 Accurately in the C0 specification (I do not know what it represents), correspondent to 17THº click on the audio button of the remote control, it appears, finally the sound of the video in mini-dvd format. My mini-dvd disks are 352x480 video resolution and 112 kbs audio bitrate. Pescador | |||
| Region code hack posted by buhduh, February 21 2005: | |||
I just wanted to say that I applied the 7-8-9-ok-0 region code hack, and at first was disappointed and confused, as it apparently did not work. I then tried all regions in succession to see if I could apply just the region the disc was designed for (I did not know for sure what region it was). The DVD still gave me the "this disc is not formatted for this region" message. Anyway it all worked out well. Finally I just pushed "Play" anyway and it worked! So if at first it seems not to be hacked, try anyway. Other than that I am very pleased with this player as it plays everything else I throw at it so far. I get the feeling it won't last as long as my old Panasonic (build quality is suspect) but it'll play way more formats, so I'll get more use out of it while it lasts! | |||
| Region code hack posted by punch, February 24 2005: | |||
Okay folks, with all the hype of the Philips DVP 642 being the hackers DVD, I decided to purchase one from Amazon.com. I had to wait for a few weeks since it was out of stock but the wait was worth it (due to the price w/ free shipping and the ability to hack this DVD). I received a DVP642/37 firmware 1109 manufactured November 2004. Confirmed that Macrovision was enabled on firmware 1109 by connecting the DVP642 to a VCR then TV. Region free could be hacked regardless of firmware version. Region free: completed pressing these buttons with remote: 7, 8, 9, OK, 0 and got a 0 on the lower left corner of my TV. Still need to confirm the ability to play different region DVDs. Macrovision: Downloaded from http://home.ica.net/~robert/Philips the 0531 firmware, dvp642_17_fus_eng%200409.zip. Unzipped file and burned the files to a CD-R using Nero Express v6.0.0.28 with the following settings: Writing Speed 8x (lowest possible), unchecked "Allow files to be added later (multisession disc)", Write Method "Disk-at-once" and checked "Finalize Disc". Placed the CD-R in the DVP642, got a "Flash" in the upper left corner of the TV followed by a series of "Read", "Erase" and "Write" messages then the DVP642 powered off. Once powered on, 569 OK revealed that my DVP642 was now on VER0531. Macrovision confirmed disabled by using the infamous Nemo DVD (orginial copy), picture quality with the DVP642 hooked up to a VCR improved greatly and recording to a VHS was crystal clear. Those who posted previously who weren't able to downgrade the firmware from 1109 to 0531, I can vouch that one should be able to hack a DVP642/37 manufactured on or before November 2004. Anyone needing the 0531 firmware on a CD-R, I'd be happy to send you a copy if you got something to trade :-) Oh by the way, this thing plays every DVD format including DVD-R/RW, the manual only states DVD+R/RW... | |||
| Region code hack posted by thebigsee, February 25 2005: | |||
Just wanted to confirm that as of Feb. 24, 2005, this region code hack still works beautifully. I purchased the Philips DVP 642 last night at Kmart in Burbank, California for $69.99. I based my decision after cross-referencing currently available DVD players in the moderate price range with the simplest, most reliable hacks listed on this wonderful web site. I set it up last night, tested it with Region 1 DVDs and CDs/CD-Roms, then I did the hack and it went exactly as everyone said -- four buttons pushed and within 10 seconds, the player was running my Region 2 copy of "Little Britain" from the BBC. In addition, the player produces lovely video and sound quality and I was astonished at how fast it is compared to my old Toshiba 5-disc player. I put the disc in and I had content on-screen within about 5 seconds, compared to the 30 secs or so my old player took. Don't waste your time with any other player, just get this one. Even if you have an existing player that takes a complicated hack, consider getting one of these, they're great! | |||
| Region code posted by Zipjack, February 27 2005: | |||
My DVP642/1109 would not accept the 0531 2-file downgrade and appeared unable to read the disk as has been reported by others. I reflashed 1109 with the 3-file upgrade including the EW file. That worked as prescribed and of course I was still in 1109. I noticed that the process quickly read the EW file first before proceeding to erase and write the other two files. This made me wonder if an EW file is missing from the posted 0531 downgrade file so I burned another CD with the 1109 EW file and the two 0531 files. This appeared to proceed correctly; it still showed V.1109 on the version screen afterwards but since it had definitely ingested the two 0531 files I feel certain that it must now be at the 0531 level. Audio disks play OK but I've not yet tested to see if Macrovision has finally been exorcised. I'd be interested to see if anyone has success with this procedure. | |||
| Other hack posted by Jefferson Ryan, March 05 2005: | |||
Hi, We were wondering for the last weeks why some guys can´t do a downgrade to the 0531 version and why the 1109 firmware has three files. It´s because there are at least three differente hardware configs of the DVPxx in the market. In the firmware screen you can see a code like this: Version: 0531 642/78 01 M 4 The letter "M" is the hardware config. I counted three configs in the wild: "M", "S" and "E". The "M" uses only the file dvpxx.rom (tested - I have one unit) The "S" uses only the file dvpxxDV.rom (tested - I have one unit) The "E" requires the file dvpxxEW.rom, not present in the 0531 firmware (not tested, but seems obvious) So, you can´t downgrade because you do not have the file for your hardware. Maybe it was not Philips intent to block the downgrades. I think that some parts changed in the production line and so the firmware was changed acordingly. Philips puts the three files in the same ZIP to simplify the process to the users point of view. Each unit picks the right file based in information stored in the 512Bytes EEPROM (a little chip). But what parts changed? What difference we can expect in the unit behaviour? I don´t know for sure, but we will need to take that letter in consideration for now on when trying to understand the DVP642 quirks. The full reasoning for this was just published in my site, but in Brazilian Portuguese. My English is not enough to explain everything here, sorry. If you understand Portuguese: http://ryan.com.br/prod_dvp642.htm#27022005 []'s Jefferson Ryan http://ryan.com.br | |||
| Region code hack posted by oayz, March 05 2005: | |||
New firmware - 0112. Never mind it says only for 630. Works just fine for 642 (tried on 642/17). Upgrade, zone free etc. - as before. Good luck! http://www.p4c.philips.com/cgi-bin/dcbint/cpindex.pl ;searchtxt=dvp630 http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp630_00/dvp630_00_fus_eng.zip | |||
| Region code posted by deadskullz, March 06 2005: | |||
I can confirm the following: DVP642/37 Came with 0531 Firmware from Walmart.com Packaging was a big black/blue box. I made a cd with 1109 firmware not knowing it came w/macrovision and had to redowngrade it back to 0531 firmware and was successful. What I used to make the cd's was Ahead Nero Burning Rom v6.6 and disc at ounce, also followed along with .pdf file from philips site. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Patty, March 06 2005: | |||
Hi deadskullz, When did you buy your DVP642/37 from WalMart? walmart.com does show the model number is DVP642/37. http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=2598455 BTW, the Macrovision protection is joke. I can copy my DVDs just fine using my PC (and remove Macrovision). Why would I copy DVDs to VHS tapes? The Macrovision make it impossible for me to connect to my VCR, which is the signal source of my old Sony TV. | |||
| Region code posted by Steven Lee, March 07 2005: | |||
I had 630/05 with Ver 0531, I upgraded to Ver 1109 and wasnt happy with the macrovsion protection, so i went back to 0531. Then Philips release their new firmware Ver 0112, so i downloaded it, and followed 'their' instructions on how to burn onto CD, there were 3 files (dvpxx.rom, dvpxxdv.rom, dvpxxEW.rom) in the .zip folder but their instructions say only burn the dvpxx.rom and dvpxxdv.rom, i dont know if it's a mistake in the instructions, but i did what they said, After upgrading the firmware to 0112, the macrovision is off, i can now burn DVD to VHS, it work for me, give it a go and see what happens. Maybe the dvpxxEW.rom file is the macrovision protection file, the file was NOT there in 0531 so the macrovision was OFF, it was there in 1109 so macrovision was ON, it is there on 0112 but i didn't burn it to CD. I dont really know how & why, its just my theory!!! | |||
| Region code posted by aaron, March 07 2005: | |||
can anyone confirm if this works? 1.) After putting in DVD, hit Stop, then Setup to bring up the Setup menu. 2.) Go to VIDEO > SYSTEM > OUTPUT and change the output setting. (Ex. If you set to output S-video, change it to composite. If you are set to composite, change it to S-video.) 3.) Macrovision should now be disabled. Change your output setting back to your preferred method, hit return twice to exit the Setup menu, and press Play. i got it on another forum, my vcr is on the fritz at the moment but i wonder if this disables macrovision. | |||
| Region code posted by illusion, March 07 2005: | |||
I got philips 642/37 01 E1 with the 1109 firmware I am able to upgade it to the New firmware - 0112 got from http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvp630_00/dvp630_00_fus_eng.zip (dvpxx.rom, dvpxxdv.rom, dvpxxEW.rom v0112) however it still has microvision : ( I have tried the following ... 1. burn cd with only (dvpxx.rom, dvpxxdv.rom) v0112 result -- cannot flash, cd spin and eject 2. burn cd with (dvpxxEW.rom v0112) + (dvpxx.rom, dvpxxdv.rom, v0531) result -- still show the v0112 firmware | |||
| Other hack posted by deadskullz, March 07 2005: | |||
In reference to when I baught my unit and where. Retailer: Walmart.com Ship Date: 02/21/2005 Model: DVP642/37 Design: Very Slim w/silver color Packaging: Black box w/ Blue trim Price: $69.84 Note: Information posted above is for educational use only. | |||
| Region code hack posted by hk, March 07 2005: | |||
I bought this DVP 642 manufactured December from bestbuy in US (made in china). I tried a DVD from china (My only non-region-1 DVD), the vide shows up, but not the audio!!! I tried the hack 789 ok, it did not work. (The 0 shows up). The american DVD audio works fine. Any ideas? If I can't fix it, I think I will have to return it. | |||
| Other hack posted by John, March 16 2005: | |||
I received my DVP642/37 bought from Amazon yesterday. The unit was manufactured 01/2005, with the version VER1109 642/37 01 E 1 The Macrovision was on (so that you cannot record DVDs to VHS tapes), but I can use S-video link to my VCR to view DVDs on my old TV. The Macrovision took effect when I pressed the record button on my VCR. BTW, to get to the firmware menu: 1) Open the tray. (Wait for at least 30 seconds; this is important; otherwise, the player won't accept the input below.) 2) Press "5 6 9 OK" on the remote. I have not tested the "region free" hack, becaue I don't have non-region-1 DVDs. | |||
| Region code hack posted by dvddivd, March 17 2005: | |||
Hi every one , First I wish to say a special thanks to shagz27 for taking the time to explain in SIMPLE TERMS how to change the region on the dvp-642 as well as showing us how to find which firmware version our machines have.BIG HUG shagz27. I enetered the code as instructed and it played my region 2 pal formatted U.K disc perfectly. It also played my dvd-r discs without a problem. I am curious though as to how this machine plays the Pal format.My tv is an ntsc and it is not miltiformatted.Video converters which you can hook up to any dvd player in order to play any region and Pal discs cost quite a bit of money.I have to assume because the dvp-642 only cost me $ 89.00 cdn. at Walmart that it does not have a video converter inside.Therefore how does it make the PAL to Ntsc conversion? Any ideas anyone ? I love this site because everyone is soooooo helpful !!!!! Thank you dvddiva | |||
| Region code posted by aaron, March 18 2005: | |||
REPOST: can anyone confirm if this works to disalbe macrovision WITHOUT firmware mods!!! 1.) After putting in DVD, hit Stop, then Setup to bring up the Setup menu. 2.) Go to VIDEO > SYSTEM > OUTPUT and change the output setting. (Ex. If you set to output S-video, change it to composite. If you are set to composite, change it to S-video.) 3.) Macrovision should now be disabled. Change your output setting back to your preferred method, hit return twice to exit the Setup menu, and press Play. i got it on another forum, my vcr is on the fritz at the moment but i wonder if this disables macrovision | |||
| Other hack posted by Bart, March 21 2005: | |||
I just purchased the Philips DVp 642/37 and was excited to try the hack. I was very surprised to see that the DVD player plays my DVD's from USA and from Europe STRAIGTH FROM THE BOX. I didn't do anything to the DVD player and it already seems to be code free. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Danny, March 29 2005: | |||
I got a Philips dvp642 at Target today 3-28 in the smaller white box. Got home and tryed the opening the tray and type 7-8-9 ok then 0 and it worked!!!! To know if you did it right do it again and press 2 instead of 0 then try and play a region 1 dvd in it. Wrong Region came up on the screen! HAAAA WOW this has got to be the easiest hack ever, Nice dvd player to. | |||
| Region code hack posted by no_problem, March 31 2005: | |||
Today I got one 642/37 from Amazon in a sleek white box. It was manufactured on Dec. 2004. 5-6-9-ok returned ver1109 642/37 01 M 1. Out of box it couldn't play region 3 DVD - "wrong region". After 7-8-9-ok-0, it played the DVD. I didn't try the firmware downgrade. I just don't feel the need yet. But according to terminator_nemo's experience, I guess I won't have any problem for that. Thanks for all great info in this site. | |||
| Region code hack posted by stfunoob, April 02 2005: | |||
Just bought two re-manufactured 642s from overstock.com for $59/each. 589 hack worked, 789 hack didnt, 0000 worked. Had to try it a few times, you have to get all the numbers in before the disc opens. going to test macrovision next. My D-VHS has rgb yc INPUTS! Will update. later fellas STFUNOOB. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Vortex Swirling, April 04 2005: | |||
I ordered one of these when I found it was one of the most popular players. Was just a wee bit disappointed when I got a "E" model, dated January 2005. What a difference a month can make. 5-6-9-OK shows this firmware info. VER 1109 642/37 01 E 1 Note: Be very careful in the version menu as you can accidently choose a model (with the up and down keys) not compatible with your TV. I did this by accident and resulted in a rolling image that I could barely see. I was able to just make out the model number and fortunately was able to get it back to 642/37. Verified 7-8-9-OK-0 as the region code hack. Macrovision working very well. Since there is no E version of the 0531 firmware that is pretty much on going forward. That isn't a real big deal. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Adam, April 05 2005: | |||
i have the January 2005, DVP 642/37 and the hack is working you have to push 0 after ok. make sure! 7-8-9-OK-0 as the region code hack. thanks for the tip guys, now i have a really cool DVD player. i will by the second one.... | |||
| Other hack posted by BLMage, April 07 2005: | |||
Newer firmware plays divx better then older/original one, recorded 6 different instances of divx/xvid wouldnt play with older firmware, with new no problems and about 10x better audio compatability. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Mookster, April 08 2005: | |||
I got a DVP 642/37 a few weeks ago at Best Buy here in Canada. White box manufactured in January 2005. It has the 1109 firmware. I did the remote region hack: 1. Turn on the player. 2. Hold down 'stop' button on remote until the tray opens. 3. Press on the remote: 7, 8, 9, OK, 0. 4. The number 0 will appear on the screen. 5. Hold down 'stop' button on remote until the tray closes. 6. Turn off the player When I restarted the player it played region 1,2 and 3 DVD's without any problem. It does a great job on all my "home made" DVD's + / - R and RW as well as CD's. I have it hooked to an HDTV and 5.1 audio system and the progressive scan gives a great picture, even when it is cinverting PAL to NTSC. It also outputs both dolby and DTS digital audio. Thanks to everyone in this forum for the information on the Philips 642. It helped me choose a great DVD player!! Cheers from Canada | |||
| Other hack posted by Michael Meyer, April 08 2005: | |||
Question to <Manija>: How to Modify the Power Supply of PHILIPS DVP 642 DVD player to 220 V? I have the following questions concerning your advices to the necessary modifications to connect this DVD player to a 220 V power supply: 1) How will the device react to the different power supply frequencies (USA: 60 Hz, Europe: 50 Hz)? 2) Could you give more detailed information about how to connect the serial lamp (25 W), please? | |||
| Region code hack posted by Robert, April 09 2005: | |||
This hack verified working. Thank you! Please note that I had no real non-region 1 discs so I used DVD shrink to re-encode a region 1 disc to region 2. Then I tested it with other dvd players and verified that it would be rejected. Applied hack to this player and it worked on this player. Once again -- Thank You! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Obtuse, April 09 2005: | |||
Picked up a blue boxed version at Mal-Wart today. No Macrovision here. Manufactured November 2004, yet has 531 firmware (VER0531 642/37 01 E 1). (Wonder if this means there actually is 531 firmware out there for "E" machines). I sure won't be upgrading the firmware (in case I can't go back). So far looks like the blue box may be the key to getting a 531 Firmware machine. Luckily there seems to be plenty of these still around. Anyone end up with a 1109 machine in the older blue box yet? Also, region free hack works just fine. | |||
| Other hack posted by GMJ, April 09 2005: | |||
I bought a DVP642/37 (Blue Box) from Target about a month ago and it is an E machine. Original firmware was VER0531 642/37 01 E 1. I was dumb enough to upgrade the firmware to 1109 and thus macrovision was enabled. :( I tried going back using the links given here but no luck. Without the dvpxxEW.rom file on the disk it just won't take the firmware. I also tried upgrading to the 0112 firmware without the dvpxxEW.rom file and it wouldn't take, so I did it with the file and it went. My player is now VER0112 but macrovision is still enabled. If anyone has a Macrovision-Free dvpxxEW.rom file, PLEASE post a link to it! | |||
| Region code posted by anest, April 09 2005: | |||
Some one was trying to rename .bin's ? ;-) (all files have same length and same hardware, so its will work ;) this trick for E models too :) just try and tell me this work for you or not | |||
| Region code posted by GMJ, April 09 2005: | |||
"Some one was trying to rename .bin's ? ;-) (all files have same length and same hardware, so its will work ;) this trick for E models too :) just try and tell me this work for you or not" ... Well, since I have my DVD player setup to run through the VCR I was about to take it back and get another one that was hopefully macrovision-free. I decided to give this a try though and it rendered my player useless. I'm not sure I understood you correctly but what I did was copy the dvpxxdv.rom to dvpxxEW.rom and then burned all 3 files to disk. It flashed, went through that standard procedure and appeared as if it had worked. When I powered off and started back up everything seemed like it was fine. I ran the region hack TrayOpen-7-8-9-ok-0 and it took, then I checked the 5-6-9-ok and it was reported as VER0531 642/37 01 S 1 (remember mine was an E before). I then tried a DVD to see if macrovision was off and it wouldn't read it. I tried a few others and they all just spinned for awhile and came back "No Disk". I tried flashing it again and "No Disk". It wouldn't read a thing. I ended up taking the DVD player back and exchanged it and now I've got another one which I'm about to find out if it's 0531 or not. What a ride! :) | |||
| Region code hack posted by mezhan, April 12 2005: | |||
Just flash my 642 w/ just DVPXX.ROM & DVPXXDV.ROM on cd. After flash check the version, I got VER0112 642/17 01 M1 It also can play UDF disc now. Tested w/ a single file 2.4GB. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Balaji, May 03 2005: | |||
I bought my player on 2nd may 2005 in India. The sticker on the player says it has auto voltage select 110 ~ 220 V. The region hack works perfectly. The method to do it is - Powerup the system. Open the tray & keep it open. Press 789 - then OK - then 0 on the remote (789 OK 0) Close the tray. Power off the system. Restart. Thats it, the player is region free. I have tried Region 1, Region 3 & Region 4 DVD's. All of them play very well. Both PAL & NTSC formats play well on this player. | |||
| Other hack posted by CaliGuy, May 04 2005: | |||
For everyone who doesn't understand Portuguese, here is Ryan's site in English: http://fets5.freetranslation.com/?seque ... d=x6ufr0ew | |||
| Region code posted by wgeddings, May 16 2005: | |||
My earlier post was deleted but I do not know why so I will post again. Earlier posts mention some 642/37s with the "E" chip that will not take the upgrade and which have Macrovision enabled (unlike those with other chips). I had a 642 that came in the big blue box and it did not have the Macrovision enabled. The open/close tray stopped working so I had to return it and ended up with one of the ones in the slim white box. Using the methods described above, I confirmed that it has the E chip and it also has Macrovision enabled. I tried getting some other ones in the slim white box (no more blue boxes available) but all 3 I have tried have the E chip. Mine was manufactured March 2005. What I want to know is whether anyone has gotten a slim white box from Wal-mart within the last month that had other than an E Chip? The region hack still seems to work, even with the E chip, but I have not found any solution to the E Chip problem. | |||
| Other hack posted by jaca24, June 05 2005: | |||
Pixelate picture on some newer XVID movies I`m pretty sure that you came across movies (specially those newer XVid ) when you try to play them picture is really blurry and pixelate and therefore unwatchable. To fix this simple enter general system menu(on the remote) and exit right away without doing any changes Works 100% on my files Enjoy | |||
| Region code hack posted by Hosay Leeto, June 23 2005: | |||
I muts say that this player has played everything that i have thrown at it and the hack posted earlier by Joe Moe works perfectly :D "1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. Your player is now region free! Put in a DVD and enjoy! :) NOTE: The 0 in the sequence above represents the region code. 0 = region free. If you want to change your player to just a specific region code, replace the 0 with the region number you want." :D It's also Macrovision free out of the box :D | |||
| Region code hack posted by Gene Hackman, July 07 2005: | |||
This code worked on Philips DVP642/37 purchased from Amazon. To make your DVD region free do the following, Open tray, hit 7-8-9-ok-0. A 0 will appear on the lower right, then yer good to go! That's it. Tested with region 1, 2 ,3 DVDs. Worked great. Almost cried. Do not try the others listed, the 5-6-9 code probably works but can potentially black out your screen and then you are kinda screwed. Almost gave me a heart attack. Enjoy! | |||
| Region code hack posted by filmeditor, July 23 2005: | |||
7-8-9-OK-0 has worked on at least three firmware revisions. The latest one on Philips' website, the 0517 is a piece of sh*te. After flashing the ROM it came back with Korean lettering on all the menu options and text overlays on screen, and in response to the 5-6-9-OK version check it would not even give me a normal 642/17 or 642/37, only about 5 different 640K and 642K version. I have sent email to Philips tech support. Fortunately I have all previous updates (I save them), so I could revert back to 1109. BTW, is the 0112 version more recent than the 1109? Who can figure out Philips' labeling methodology? One sure cannot tell from the numbers which one is more recent than the other without having to download the dam* thing and look at the mod date for the rom files. If anyone finds out more, please post!! I am currently using version 1109 and it works great with multiregion and all. Haven't checked Macrovision yet. | |||
| Region code hack posted by inquiring mind, July 24 2005: | |||
There is some great info on the differences between the players: http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?p=620583#post620583 Quote: Ver0531 642/78 01 M 4 The "M" uses only the file dvpxx.rom (tested - I have one unit) The "S" uses only the file dvpxxDV.rom (tested - I have one unit) The "E" requires the file dvpxxEW.rom , not present in the 0531 firmware (not tested, but seems obvious) /Quote Overall, to downgrade to the Macrovision free version one needs to have the unit "M" or "S". Such bioses were present in the older version 0531. "filmeditor" report is correct that firmware 0517 does not even have 642/37 in the list. Philips forgot about it! Choosing something like 642K/69 gives reasonable settings, which need to be customized a bit (changing "Multi" TV to "NTSC"). So the players have no substantial differences as long as the type is "M", "S" or "E", and can be flashed up or down at will using any of the 630/632/640/642 firmwares. Memorize the path to set "English" and "NTSC" if the defaults for a given model are different, and fix things accordingly if needed. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Trinidex, July 31 2005: | |||
Bought this player in Toronto, Canada from "The Source by Circuit City" previously "Radio Shack". Paid CD$99 (WalMart have it for CD$79 but were sold out!) Model: DVP642/37 Manufactured: Feb 2005 Installed firmware:1109 642/37 01 E 1 (retrieved using: Tray Open, 5,6,9,OK) Out of the box, this unit was NOT multi-region and NOT macrovision free. Changed region to "0" using: Tray Open, 7,8,9,OK,0 (0 indicates region to set) a "0" was displayed in the bottom of the screen. Unit is now region free. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Vicky, August 07 2005: | |||
buan.nu silence. Philips DVP642 in the US Region Code Hack The hack should be perfectly safe, but USE IT ON YOUR OWN RISK! 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. Works great! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Kaeru, August 17 2005: | |||
Used this mod: Open the tray & keep it open. Press 789 - then OK - then 0 on the remote (789 OK 0) Close the tray. Power off the system. Restart. Thats it, the player is region free. I have tried Region 1, Region 2 & Region 4 PAL DVD's. No complaints, just wanted to verify that this one worked right out of the box from Target. They are also sold at BJ's Wholesale for $59. Very pleased! | |||
| Region code posted by TheDude, August 17 2005: | |||
This is the shit! Rollback/downgrade from Firmware 1223 to 531! First I'd like to thank everyone who has contributed to this DVD player hack up to this point. I had to search for hours and try many things until I got this to work, so here it goes. I just got the latest make of the DVP642/37 Mfr. Date of 7/2005. The firmware that it ships with is 1223 E. As stated before, everything after 1109 requires 3 ROM files instead of 2 to do a firmware update. And from 1109 up the macrovision is enabled. Well, here is what I did to get it back to Firmware 531 and disable the Macrovision. I downloaded firmware 0112 (listed above somewhere) and firmware 1109 (listed above) and 531 (listed above). I burned 3 disks (actually I used a CD-RW even though they say use a CD-R) one with 0102 ROM, the second with 1109 ROM ...you get the idea. I used these settings to burn each disk: Nero burning ROM 6, selected CD-ROM ISO, chose NO MULTISESSION, Data mode of 2/XA, Filesystem of ISO9660 only, ISO (file name length) Level 2 (max 31 chars.), Char. Set was Standard ISO. Uncheck all the Relax Restrictions. Label was set to Manual (just named it NEW). Burn Rate was set to slowest (4x for me), Write method was Disc At Once. Now ROM 0112 and 1109 have 3 files but 531 has only 2. I ran the downgrades in reverse order, meaning I downgraded to 0112 then 1109 then 531. You may not need to do that. You may just be able to get away with downgrading to 1109 and then 531, but this is way I got it to work. Once you have downgraded to ROM 1109, you can check your screen for the firmware number. It should now have changed the E type to an M. At this point I was able to follow update procedure with the 531 CD that I made. Here is the catch, once you have updated to 531 successfully (and you will know it worked) your screen will roll like a bad TV and it will be black and white. At this point you have to go into the firmware menu (5 6 9 ok) It will be rolling as well and be quite hard to read. But you have to select your proper model type here. This is what I did (you will laugh but it worked) I blinked my eyes for a few seconds at the same speed as the rolling screen. This allowed me to see the model number on the screen (it may already be at 642/37) just long enough to select it and press Ok. Once you do this the player will shut off. When it comes back on it will be in color and no rolling. If it doesn't shut off then do it manually and turn it on again. You may want to use the region hack as well just in case (7 8 9 ok 0 ok). At this point you are now region free (if you did the hack) and macrovision free. I tested it on Sin City and the fading and fuzzy lines went away after this. I hope this helps some people. Now you know this DVD player can still be code free. You can email me if you have questions and I will try to help. You really have to read this whole thread to know what you are doing, but once you have made it to my reply you will understand what I am talking about. Good luck! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Edmilson Barbosa, August 29 2005: | |||
Awesome Unit ! Bougth the 642/37 at Bestbuy in Salsalito CA for 59 U$ and brought to my parents in Brazil. Procedure: - Open the trail - Type 5,6,9,ok Unit displayed: "Model 642/37" "Ver1223 642/37 01 E 1" - Type 7,8,9,Ok,0 Unit displayed: "0" on the downleft corner Unit is playing region 1 and 4 Divx subtitles is also working fine, with a good character size and a grey background when superposes the image, with no firmware upgrade. This is an excellent DVD/Divx player and the price is fare ! | |||
| Region code posted by Mukund, September 01 2005: | |||
I bought DVP642/37 from Walmart for $58. The FW version:1223E. I was encouraged by "TheDude" experience and I gave it a try. Here is what I did to get my DVP downgrade to 0531M version. I made 3 file disk out of 0531 FW. Basically, I made a duplicate of dvdxx.rom and renamed it as dvdxxEW.rom. The downgrade went smooth and the player was showing 0531M version. However, I encountered other problems. The DVD was slow and sometimes it took minutes to load any DVDs and sometimes it throwed "Disk Error" and stopped. When I pressed "Play", it started playing again. I felt there was a initial DVD loading problem. I also experienced that DVD player was staying little longer [around 10 sec] when I removed the power cord. I checked it in Walmart for the same and it was about 7-8 secs. It seems a hardware problem as suggested by "TheDude". He was very helpful to answer my questions. Did anybody got lucky? | |||
| Other hack posted by dvd dude, September 02 2005: | |||
this isnt a hack,but some good ino on dvp642 you can go to pawn shops and find the ones with 0531 firmware on them for like 20 bucks each with remotes!!!,i bought 6 today at a local Detroit pawnshop!!! happy hunting ! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Iroquois, September 10 2005: | |||
I bought a DVP642 manufactured in Aug 05 had 1223E. I created upgrade CD by duplicating dvdxx.rom to dvdxxEW.rom and burnt 3 files using the settings provided in the philips manual. Downgrade went smooth and after flashing, DVD player went to standby. I removed the main AC outlet and waited for 2 mins [manual says only 15 sec]. After powering the player on, it showed 05 31 M version!!! I quickly entered region hack on remoted and it showed 0 on the bottom of the screen. The macrovision was off and I did not see any hardware or slowdown problems. Note that, I went directly from 1223E to 0531M in one downgrade. Hope this helps rest of the people who have contributed to this segment. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Comicshead, September 17 2005: | |||
Hack Posted by Edmilson Barbosa, on August 29 2005, works great. Now plays region 3 disks, no problems. First time through, nothing happened, but no disk was in trey. For second try I loaded a region 3 disk and received "Wrong Region" error. Ejected the disk, entered the code and the magic "0" appeared at the bottom of the screen. Disk loaded immediately, and I did not need to change the firmware. Woo-Hoo! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Thos, September 24 2005: | |||
Thanks Barbosa (August 2005 posting)! Most of the other stuff was gibberish to me, but I opened the tray and inputed your codes and I go the magic "0" -- so now my region 1 and 2 play. Thanks again -- no need to download anything. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Napoleonic Dude, September 25 2005: | |||
Just wanted to post to confirm that the following hack worked on my Philips 642 that I pick up at Wal-Mart in the US. 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: 7, 8, 9, OK, 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. Your player is now region free! NOTE: The 0 in the sequence above represents the region code. 0 = region free. If you want to change your player to just a specific region code, replace the 0 with the region number you want. | |||
| Region code posted by ASR, October 01 2005: | |||
Macrovision hack posted by TheDude, August 17 2005 works great. i tried directly downgrading to macrovision free version. the player spits out the disc. But his hack works perfectly. http://home.ica.net/~robert/Philips/ use above link to get various version of firmware. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Elmo, October 05 2005: | |||
I just bought a 642/37 at Walmart. the 789 ok 0 with the remote worked fine even though the box clearly states that the unit will only work with region 1. At first, I made the mistake of changing model #. No need to do that Thanks very much for the good info | |||
| Region code hack posted by Eugene, October 06 2005: | |||
I just hacked DVP642/37 with firmware ver.: 1223 7-8-9 ok 0 works well. Now I can watch all regions disks! To check your firmware version: Open the tray and press 5-6-9 ok. To set the region code on 0: Open the tray and press 7-8-9 ok O. Region Code 0 allows you to play all regions discs. | |||
| Region code hack posted by NNOVAK, October 06 2005: | |||
Just purchased a DVP642/37 today, if you do the 789 OK 0 and keep going down the line eventually it brings up a Version Window. This window allows you to change the firmware set of the machine to make it a handfull of different models/revisions. Anywho, I didn't see this posted yet, so I figured you'd like to see this. | |||
| Region code hack posted by George Kinal, October 06 2005: | |||
Probably noone will believe this, but here is my experience with Model 642/37: I did the 5,6,9, ok sequence, and it showed Model 642/37, Ver1223 642/37 01 S 1 . It did not then seem to take the 7,8,9 region hack but that may have been finger trouble. Anyway I then did the 569 bit again, and scrolled down to a model which showed Region 2 (which is what I wanted to try). Of course I then got a rolling B&W display, but I could do the 569 and then scroll back to a region 1 version. The 7,8,9,OK,0 hack then seemed to work. When I next did 569 I got Model 642/17, Ver 0531 !!! I have now reset to Model 642/37, but it still shows Ver0531 642/37 01 S 1 . Seems that the ROM must contain the V0531 code as well as the latest 1223. This seems odd to me. | |||
| Region code posted by goog, October 08 2005: | |||
I just helped my parents do the Macrovision hack on their DVP642. This was a region 1 player bought in the US from Amazon in September 05. The hardware version was 647/37E I followed the instructions as posted by The Dude. I went from 1223 firmware to 1109 firmware without any problems. However, the player would not accept the 0531 firmware at this stage. So I did the renaming trick - I burnt a disc with the 0531 firmware with the dvpxx.rom file copied and renamed to dvpxxEW.rom The player accepted this file without any problems and is now Macrovision free. The region code described multiple times in this page also works. I'm almost 100% certain I did not need to go through 1109 to do the downgrade. I think if you copy and rename dvpxx.rom to dvpxxEW.rom things should work OK. Note that this was for a US player using a US TV. Also, at no point did I get the rolling screen reported by the Dude. | |||
| Region code posted by Prem, October 12 2005: | |||
This confirms that the downgrade sequence from 1223 to 1120 to 1109 to 0531 does work using the downloadable files found earlier in the forum. For the final downgrade to 0531, I renamed the file dvpxxEW, as suggested by goog, Oct 28 2005. The downgrade was flawless, no problems whatever, did not see and b/w scrolling as reported by The Dude, Aug 17, 2005. Region code hack "789 ok 0" is good as well. Note that this is all for a Philips dvp642/37 bought from comp USA on oct 10 2005, with a mfg dat of aug 2005, which came with VER 642/37 01 E 1. After downgrade, macrovision is off and version is VER0531 642/37 01 M 1. | |||
| Other hack posted by hardKraft, October 16 2005: | |||
Here is the ultimate solution to all of you who had problems with subtitles not displaying. First as it's been mentioned before the subtitle needs to be in the right format. I only had success with srt files. But having an srt doesn't guarantee success either. Lines need to be terminated in windows fashion so if your file was created on a mac or a unix system you need to convert it (all this has been covered elswere). Now for burning the CDs, this is really stupid. The format doesn't matter. Both ISO and UDF might or might not work PC or MAC. All that matters is a version extension that is usually put in with ISO format (it's an option in Toast). UDF never puts it in but you can do it yourself. So for example if you have sub.srt you need to burn it as sub.srt;1 . The file name doesn't need to be the same as the movie but it helps to group the files together. You don't need to put version extensions on movie files. The number you use doesn't matter. I was hoping that I could have sub.srt;1 and sub.srt;2 and cycle between them with the subtitle button but no such luck. Now, if you were unable to get this subtitle feature to get to work for years like me :P you didn't miss much. The text is tiny and unreadablre untill you use the trasparent back trick descibed elsewhere. Hope this solves all your problems. | |||
| Region code hack posted by pochrist, November 01 2005: | |||
Purchased this Unit (DVP 642/37) 11/1/05 at BJS Warehouse. Used 5,6,9, ok to get Firmware version "1223 01 E 1" Just for the fun of it tried the 7,8,9, ok 0 hack and tried the only non US Region movie I own and it plays fine. Don't really need the hack but it helps to have if I end up with another movie out of my region. | |||
| Other hack posted by mrduke, November 04 2005: | |||
disc open/close hack ok..many of the guys saying that there isnt a key for open/close on the remote..here is a trick that u can open/close the tray...press STOP fora few seconds to OPEN the tray...and do the same for CLOSE of the tray have fun**...enjoy cheers | |||
| Region code hack posted by raf, November 05 2005: | |||
just purchased a Philips DVD DVP642 at The Source (formerly Radio Shack). here is the hack: 1. open the disc tray 2. on your remote control press "7, 8, 9, ok, 0" 3. keep repeating this sequence till you see the number "0" (for region free) on the bottom left of the screen (it took me 4 times the sequence 7,8,9,ok,0 till it showed the 0) Your dvd is now region free!!!! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Sinue R. M., November 20 2005: | |||
Just purchased a Philips DVP-642/37 at Wal-Mart Canada in Montreal. here is the hack: 1. open the disc tray 2. on your remote control press "7, 8, 9, ok, 0" Your dvd is now region free!!!! | |||
| Region code posted by lord db, November 22 2005: | |||
with many thanks to the folks already on this page, here's what worked for me on a 642/37 01 E 1 - slim white box - bought at target ($60) this week (11/19/05): burned disc of 3 531 files available above (the two in the folder as well as one dvpxx copy renamed dvpxxEW, as recommended) on a mac g5 using disc blaze 5 - iso 9660 at 4x; put files disc in player, which then went thru read & write cycles; ejected disc, closed tray, cut power, unplugged unit for 1 minute; checked 569ok and it's now 642/37 01 M 1. shakes the clown dvd (copy protected video scramble five minutes ago) now plays perfectly with player plugged into vcr. so this confirms that you can go straight from 1223 back to 531 for sure, with no problems or difficulties. cheers! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Gustavo, December 08 2005: | |||
Region code hack posted by Sinue R. M., November 20 2005: Just purchased a Philips DVP-642/37 in Toronto. here is the hack: 1. open the disc tray 2. on your remote control press "7, 8, 9, ok, 0" Your dvd is now region free!!!! it really works! (I played region 1,3,4 DVD) amazing!!! thanks to all | |||
| Region code posted by arlington, December 09 2005: | |||
Just got my white-box 642 in the mail and applied both hacks. Only THEN did I find out (as one of the many posts in this thread pointed out) that it's not entirely Macrovision-free. I still get the copy-protected message when I try to record onto a DVD-R. Here's to reading the ENTIRETY of a thread before getting all excited! | |||
| Region code posted by kdnelson, December 17 2005: | |||
Another confirmation that DVP642/37 E with firmware version 1223 E can have firmware version 531 M safely. GMJ (Apr. 9 2005) reported that version 531 S caused problems, but several reports say 531 M worked fine. This was true for me as well. I installed version 531 M by copying the 531 M rom in file dvpxx.rom to dvpxxEW.rom and burning the CD as reported elsewhere. Player is working fine since, and does not have macrovision enabled. | |||
| Region code posted by skifiend, December 18 2005: | |||
I can also confirm lord db's results (Nov. 22). I performed a 1223 -> 531 direct hack on 642/37 01 E 1 by copying dvpxx and renaming it dvpxxEW, using in the method described by goog on Oct. 8. Tried it on two separate players purchased from Amazon in Nov. & Dec. 05 with success. No rolling screen and a straightforward process. I burned the CD using Nero 6 with the settings recommended on the Philips document. BTW, why does everyone keep parotting the 7-6-9-ok-0 hack? As if mentioning it ad infinitum adds anything. Don't respond - this is not a forum. | |||
| Region code posted by robddd, December 26 2005: | |||
I downgraded my firmware to 531 very easily using the above method of burning the three files to a cdrom, can dvd now be recored to vhs? yes, BUT anyone looking to disable macrovision to record dvd to dvd beware IT WILL NOT WORK. | |||
| Other hack posted by graja, January 02 2006: | |||
How to Modify the Power Supply of PHILIPS DVP 642 DVD player to 220 V ? Manija had originally posted a modification for converting the philips 642 to an autovoltage box. I have posted the same below for reference. The original modification suggested that VTR1 be removed since it was a 145V component. The VTR1 has a part number of TVR 14561. As per the spec in http://www.thinking.com.tw/db/pdf/varistor/TVR.pdf, this is a 560V part capable of being used in AC circuits upto 350V RMS. This zinc oxide varistor is used for surge protection. Based on this, this part should not be removed. I have a couple of boxes with this modification that are working fine. Original Part Replace by this ============== =============== C304 68uF 250V 33uF 450V C301 .1uF 250V .1uF 650V VTR1 (remove it) ------------ no need to remove | |||
| Region code posted by kdnelson, January 02 2006: | |||
Additional information regarding the use of a type "M" rom on a type "E" player (that is, copying dvpxx.rom to dvpxxEW.rom): Although the movies themselves play great, you may experience problems with certain special features. For example, the Scene-It? games, which do a lot of seeking on the DVD, will occasionally give a "Disc Error" and stop when choosing certain features. I also observed intermittent problems with the game features on other discs (e.g., the "tour of Hogwarts" on "Harry Potter"). No trouble was observed since returning to an "E" ROM. These minor problems should probably not deter you from using version 531 M if macrovision is a problem for you. But if you later start observing disc errors and want to go back to an E version, please note the following: To go back to the correct letter version after fooling the player to accept the wrong one, you must reverse the procedure. After making the player think it is an M player, it will thenceforth read its ROM updates from the dvpxx.rom file. So to return to version 1109 E, for example, copy the file dvpxxEW.rom to dvpxx.rom. After the update, the player will be back to thinking it's an E player. | |||
| Other hack posted by ExIT, January 06 2006: | |||
How to Modify the Power Supply of PHILIPS DVP 642 DVD player to 220 V ? Originally posted by Manija. I have replaced only the 2 capacitors as mentioned by graja. It works just fine. The whole operation took maybe 30 minutes. Thanks for posting this mod. Original Part Replace by this ============== =============== C304 68uF 250V 33uF 450V C301 .1uF 250V .1uF 650V VTR1 (remove it) ------------ no need to remove | |||
| Other hack posted by m0d, January 06 2006: | |||
Original Part Replace by this ============== =============== C304 68uF 250V 33uF 450V C301 .1uF 250V .1uF 650V The only difficulty with this hack was sourcing a 650v 0.1uF safety cap. The original part is Handing Electronics MPX-X2 0.1uF @ 250vac, which is metallized polypropylene. I do not believe the part should be replaced with a radial capacitor. | |||
| Region code posted by mech1, January 08 2006: | |||
I tested the "Open Tray-5-6-9-OK" hack to find out which firmware was installed in my player and confirm that it works - I'm using the dvp 642/37 with the 0531 firmware. Beware, once I applied the hack it had reset my dvd settings. when I tried watching a movie the screen colors were blue, but I quickly fixed this problem by using the remote and going into the "System Menu" and scrolling down to video and selecting the "component cable" setup which is what I use to connect my dvd player to my tv. the player had reset itself so that it had selected the "s-cable" rather than the "component cables", once I switched it back to the component cables everything was fine. I haven't tried the 7-8-9-OK-0 hack yet but will as soon as my R2 discs arrive. | |||
| Region code hack posted by sbr200, January 11 2006: | |||
I recently (Jan 2006) purchased a DVP642 from Target. Out of the box, it played some UK DVD's but not others. Applying the 789- ok-0 hack enabled play of all the R@ DVD's I have tried to date. Applying the downgrade to 0531 firmware worked when I duplicated the dvpxxdv.rom file an renamed it as dvpxxEW.rom as advised. CLARIFICATION re macrovision disabling: The 0531 appears to disable macrovision to the extent that you can make back-up copies of DVD's to VCR. BUT, it seems that the part of the protection that prevents one making back-up copies to DVD (such as one might wish to take to a potentially hot, scratchy, theft-prone DVD-unfriendly environment such as our mini-van) is still in place. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Chuckles, January 20 2006: | |||
Interesting outcome from using the 789-ok-0 hack. Now my player wants to automatically turn on Spanish subtitles when they are present. It also thinks it's Region 4 (Latin America), as evidenced by playing Region 4 warnings when they appear on a disc, even though the DVP642 is confirmed set to Region 0 (via the hack). This player was just purchased at Best Buy, and was not region-free out of the box. Anybody have similar experiences? | |||
| Region code hack posted by Monty, January 21 2006: | |||
The hack as described above worked on a player purchased on January 17th at Best Buy (a label states "made in December 2005"). However, I watched a region 1 disc before attempting the hack and the player would not take any changes. I had to first unplug the unit for a few minutes for the hack to work. So far, I tested German, French and Brazilian DVDs - no problems... | |||
| Region code hack posted by Greg CM Granger, January 25 2006: | |||
I just bought mine today (last one on the shelf at Best Buy West Edmonton for $84.99). The 789-OK-0 hack works like a charm! I tried it first without the hack on my Region 1 NTSC copy of Jean-Michel Jarre's Solidarnosc concert. It immediately said "WRONG REGION". I entered in the hack, and it went through it like melted butter. Voila ... it plays it perfectly! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Mo, February 09 2006: | |||
I just bought the 642/37 at Best Buy in SF today. I came home, set it up, entered the 7 8 9 code and my Region 3s and 2s work perfect on them. | |||
| Region code posted by lizeroo, February 26 2006: | |||
Was about to try the 789 hack when I decided to check under set-up preferences. Under video set-up there are three choices, multi, ntsc and PAL. I chose multi and "ok" and it saved my preference. I am unable to test this as my R2 DVD's have not yet arrived - but seems too good to be true! If problems will try the 789 hack. This player was bought fall 2005 at Wal-Mart in Canada. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Jason, February 27 2006: | |||
Just bought a 642/37 at Best Buy, DSM IA (Feb 2006). Manufactured Jan, 2005. 789-OK hack does NOT work. | |||
| Region code posted by Shikado, March 10 2006: | |||
OK guys, I have 2 different version of dvp642 with one being /17 (M) and the other /37 (E). As medudder suggested in here (February 13 2005), I went to this site and found tons of hacked firmware. It's in Portuguese. You need to use bable fish translation engine from either google or altavista. http://www.cfide.com.br/dvp/ As for the older one (/17 M), I upgrade to Bruno 1.1 version that based on 0531. It works perfectly but I have no idea about macrovision (it should work since it based off 0531 but someone needs to try it). Region hack (7,8,9 ok 0) works. V.1.1-yellow 01/15/05 - Latin1 alphabet Archive: dvp642-0531-bruno-1.1-yellow.zip Checksum: (fb52193ce220d4db89d0c746d6b806d6) Archive: dvp642-0531-bruno-1.1-yellow.iso Checksum: (915c3bf8e5fa16c5d50a126d4ac58ef1) Based in firmware 0531 - original of the Philips - Spanish Consertos for lingua - Fonte1: Author: Bruno Type: Arial bold 28 turns yellow (example) - Fonte2: Author: Bruno Type: Arial 28 turns yellow with deep transl?do (example) - Fonte3: disactivated for quest?de espa? For the /37 E, I use the Bruno 2.0 since it needs dvpxxEW.rom Everything turned out perfect as well. Region hack is still the same (7,8,9 ok 0) Though, I have no idea if macrovision works here. No scrolling problem, no long disc loading problem. I'd recommend anyone that want to upgrade their /37 to go this route instead of renaming dvpxx.rom. V.2.0 03/06/05 - Latin1 alphabet Vers?based in firmware 1109 for the DVP642/17 - original of the Philips: Archive: dvp642-17-1109-bruno-2.0.iso Checksum: 5262510417237c5318fb7e45db4f01d2 - Accents n?usados in portugu?do removed Brazil and Spaniard. - again complete Menus of player. - Character espa?(ASCII32) he was very narrow: - ( - Fonte1: Author: Ryan Type: Impact bold 28 yellow color - Fonte2: Author: Ryan Type: Impact bold 28 white color - Fonte3: Author: Bruno Type: Impact bold 28 white color with deep cloudy black color Hoped this help. :) | |||
| Region code posted by seanld, March 13 2006: | |||
Here is how to get subtitles to work, once and for all, and it doesn't require using ISO format and all that!!! Thanks to everyone who helped me, bit by bit, to gather the following information... People who are having trouble with subs, are mostly either Windows users using XP, or not using Nero, or Mac users not using ISO with PC naming conventions. But others may be hit also, so I'll just address this to all... ALL that needs to be done is this, AFTER the suffix of the sub file, type a semi-colon and the number 1 [;1] (don't type the brackets), keep the file name under 12 characters, do not use ANYTHING else than letters and numbers (in other words, don't use funky characters in the filename), and use only ONE period, right before the suffix. For example, here is a movie file, and it's sub file right under it... Jaws.avi subtitle.srt;1 That is it, you won't see the --> ;1 <-- when it is in the Philips 642/37 player, you'll just see a little cartoon balloon with three periods in it, next to the subtitle filename. Now, you MUST be careful to do this in the Get Info box of a file if you're using a Macintosh under OS X. In OS X, when you simply type a ;1 after the filename, it will rename it as (for example) subtitle.srt;1.srt BUT IT WILL SHOW IT AS subtitle.srt;1 in the Finder, the extra .srt will be invisible, so you have to do a Get Info on the file [from the File menu in the Finder] or (hold down the Command key [the apple key] and type I), and then in the Get Info box, you have to erase the extra .srt from the filename in the Name and Extension typebox, so it just says subtitle.srt;1 and that is it. On the Mac, it will ask you if you want to change it from .srt to .srt;1 tell it yes, and then close the Get Info box, and that's it. After you do that, you can burn the files in WHATEVER format you usually use for your Philips 642/37 player. I use UDF format, and put all the movie files and their subs in separate folders, so I can simply name each subtitle file as subtitle.srt;1 or if there are two movie files, and two subtitle files, I name one subtitle1.srt;1 and one subtitle2.srt;1 and you're good to go. When you put this in the Philips 642/37 it will pop up the Data menu, with all the files on the disk, you simply highlight the subtitle file you want to use, and then hit "subtitle" on your remote, then choose the movie file and hit "Ok", then you're off an running. I have heard, but I haven't tried it yet, that if you name the subtitle file the same name as the movie file, and you make sure you use the suffix I showed you above, then when you are playing the movie, all you have to do is hit "subtitle" on your remote, and it will begin to play the subtitles, but again, I haven't tried this yet, so who knows? Here is a website that has a bunch of .srt subtitle files available for download (they also have a search function to find the files)... http://subscene.com/subtitlesearch.aspx That link will put you right into the search page. Good luck. OHHH, P.S. On the Pal/NTSC/MULTI thing, that is a setting for what YOUR t.v. is, you must set it to what YOUR t.v. is, that is NOT a setting to allow you to watch PAL disks on your NTSC t.v., that is a setting for you to set the format of YOUR t.v. Multi t.v.'s are those that can show a PAL and NTSC broadcast, very few tube t.v.s do that (although some of the newer ones can), but a good amount of LCD and Plasma's can. The Philips 642/37 does the conversion FOR YOU, there is no setting for that, you simply put in a PAL disk, and it converts the signal to show on your NTSC t.v. (or vice-versa). The PAL, NTSC and Multi setting is for you to tell the Philips 642/37 what YOUR t.v. is, then it will output that signal to your t.v. If you tell it you are "Multi", it will play an NTSC as NTSC and a PAL as a PAL signal, but if you have an NTSC only t.v., then setting it to multi will send a PAL signal to your t.v. when you play a PAL disk, and it won't work. If you want it to play a PAL as an NTSC signal, then set it as NTSC. If you have a PAL t.v., and you want to play NTSC disks, then set it as PAL and it will convert it. Just set that setting as whatever your t.v. IS, it will do the rest. | |||
| Region code hack posted by viviany, March 17 2006: | |||
Just got it yesterday from Amazon. Use 7 8 9 OK 0 in remote. It is region free. It also worked with .avi file I got from Internet. I couln't get it play .rm file in CD-R. I will try to record in DVＤR and see if it play. Has anybody made it work with .rm or .rmvb file. | |||
| Region code posted by K J, March 20 2006: | |||
thx to u guys i dont have to ship this player back to the place i bought it with the 20% restock fee. i stumbled on this site on accident and to my amaze u solved my problem. i bought this player for region 2 dvd's but it would not play. hopefully i'll try the hack and it will be all gravy. thx u smart ppl. :) | |||
| Region code posted by K J, March 21 2006: | |||
verified: Philips DVP 642 -Turn on the player. -Open the tray. -Press the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 -The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. the region free hack works great, a little too much disc spinning noise comming out he player but other than that works fine. also verified: Coby DVD-224 with no disk in the player press: Setup, Vol+, Vol-, Vol+, Vol- | |||
| Region code hack posted by Lennart Nielsen, March 27 2006: | |||
I can confirm the hack mentioned by George Kinal, October 06 2005, in which he, on a Ver1223 642/37 E1, changed to a region 2 and got the rolling B/W screen, then switched back to region 1 (through the rolling screen) and still using the 569OK sequence. Then using the 7 8 9 OK 0 sequence you get a "0" display and now it works! The version still shows 1223. I have tried to unplug and power up again and it still works; and all without changing firmware. | |||
| Region code hack posted by maaig, March 27 2006: | |||
Open the tray, press 789 "OK" 0. 0 appears in a left bottom corner of the screen. You are all set Play any region DVD Works on four players, bought in March, 2006 | |||
| Region code hack posted by Jim, April 01 2006: | |||
I don't think the 7-8-9 OK 0 hack will work. I open the tray, and as soon as I press 7, the hand symbol comes on the screen. | |||
| Region code posted by Heywood, April 23 2006: | |||
"Has anybody made it work with .rm or .rmvb file?" No. This player will play .avi files encoded via DivX or Xvid - not rm/rmvb/mp4/mov etc. You will need to transcode your rm or rmvb files to DivX or Xvid in order to play them on this machine. | |||
| Region code hack posted by satisfiedhacker!, May 05 2006: | |||
The 789 OK 0 hack works perfectly! I just bought the Philips DVP642 from Wal-Mart tonight (May 5, 2006) for under $60, used the hack as soon as it was out of the box, and am now enjoying R2 DVDs with no problems! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Joseph, May 17 2006: | |||
Just bought a DVP 642/37 from Best Buy for $54.99 + tax. Frist I tried the 7-8-9-ok-0 and it did not work, then I did this: 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. put in a region 2 Japanese disc close the tray. 4. screen say wrong region. 5. Press menu then the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 6. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. Your player is now region free! It's got a sticker indicating Mayo 2005 build date. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Jim P, June 13 2006: | |||
Purchase DVP642/37 last night from Circuit City. $49.99 is the online price. Device sticker states a manufacture date of April 2006. 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. put in a region 2 Japanese disc close the tray. 4. screen say wrong region. 5. Press menu then the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 6. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. Your player is now region free! It worked just fine! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Stu, August 03 2006: | |||
Just purchased 642 from C.C. last night(08/02/2006), Manufactured June 2006,tray open, 7 8 9 enter 0 still works. Second unit to be purchased within a year for region free entertainment around the house. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Linda, August 08 2006: | |||
This one works for the Philips DVP642. 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. Your player is now region free! Put in a DVD and enjoy! :) Great! I have a bunch of Dutch DVD's. This Hack saved me the purchase of 2 DVD players. Thanks! L. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Michael Kelly, August 11 2006: | |||
Just wanted to comment... this hack (below) is still working great. I took a chance and bought the DVP 642 from amazon because of this site. The hack worked beautifully. I had no need to do anything else. I am playing region 2 and region 4 discs without a problem. 1. Turn on the player. 2. Open the tray. 3. Press the following sequence on the remote: 7 8 9 OK 0 4. The number 0 will appear on the lower left side of your screen. 5. Your player is now region free! Put in a DVD and enjoy! :) NOTE: The 0 in the sequence above represents the region code. 0 = region free. If you want to change your player to just a specific region code, replace the 0 with the region number you want. | |||
| Region code hack posted by philip, August 18 2006: | |||
PHILIPS DVP 642/37 PURCHASED WALMART 17/08/2006 JUST LIKE BEFORE I CAN CONFIRM THAT TO MAKE THIS PLAYER REGION FREE, OPEN THE TRAY, PRESS ON THE REMOTE NUMBERS 7,8 AND 9 FOLLOWED BY THE OK BUTTON THEN THE NUMBER 0 - YOU WILL SEE A 0 IN THE LOWER LEFT HAND CORNER OF THE SCREEN - CLOSE THE TRAY, POWER OFF THE UNIT AND THEN USE AS NORMAL - NO FURTHER MODIFICATIONS ARE NEEDED - I TESTED IT WITH A REGION 2 DISC FROM THE UK AND IT PLAYED FINE. | |||
| Region code posted by Enrique, August 26 2006: | |||
I applied the hack (whoever discovered it, GENIUS!) and it worked fine, i popped in a region 2 dvd and it played, video was good BUT it has NO SOUND! so now i can "see my movie" but not hear it. Anybody encounter this problem? or is it because I have an american made tv and not european or what? is there any way to fix this i would like to hear what theyre saying in the movie! thanks | |||
| Region code posted by Worm, August 29 2006: | |||
Isn't the DVP630 firmware v0603 the newest for the 642/37? The ROM files are dated 6/8/2005 in zip file. Thus the firmware release order goes 0531(05/31/2004) -> 1109(11/09/2004) -> 1120?(11/20/2004) -> 1223(12/23/2004) -> 0603(06/03/2005). I have never seen the 1120 so I don't know if it exists. Currently on 0603 and everything is working good on my 642/37. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Henry, September 26 2006: | |||
Shikado, whoever you are. I saw you have a Bruno 1.1 based on 0531. Can you send me a line on where I can get that or send me the file direct? ahnree yahoo.com All of the original sites are down, and I can't get the bruno firmware anymore. I want yellow subs! By the way, - Open the tray. - On your remote press '89 OK 0'. - Press '0' to make it region free | |||
| Region code posted by d.wayne, September 29 2006: | |||
You'll notice that some XVID file will not plat correctly. You'll initially get a severely colourful and distorted image (but you can still make out the action) The Philips-642 CAN play this file correctly...Here's how: After the problematic file begins to play, press the 'SYSTEM/MENU' button on the remote. Press it again to return to the video. You'll notice that you've now jumped ahead 5 seconds, and that the video is now playing correctly. (You'll also notice that you cannot go to the very begining of the video file...I'm not sure why) Anyway, hope this helps someone out. I just found it out today after dealing with it for a few months. I'm not sure what version of the firmware i have, and i'm too lazy to check right now.d | |||
| Region code posted by Artem F, October 01 2006: | |||
Philips 642/37 Version 1223 642/37 01 E 1 has been purchased in the US, in September 2005 the trick with "System menu" button really works for "unplayable" DivX files, thanks! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Gary, October 04 2006: | |||
That trick with pressing the system/menu buton really works for playing "unplayable" DivX movies. I had all but given up after getting the colorful, but essentially unwatchable video. I came here out of desperation and this forum came through. Thanks to whoever figured that one out! | |||
| Region code hack posted by KB, November 26 2006: | |||
9-12-06 - Just purchased a DVP642 at CC (39.99 after rebates): 642/37 VER 1223 642/37 01 E1 and before I applied the above Region 0 hack, I popped a Region 2 disk in and it played without a hitch. Tried the disk in my other DVD player and it wouldn't recognize it as playable. Applied the hack anyway and it's working like a charm! Is 1223 the latest firmware version? | |||
| Region code hack posted by Anubis, January 24 2007: | |||
Bought the DVP 642 from Walmart in St Catharines, Ontario Canada. Applied the hack below and it worked perfectly! I'm now able to watch any commercial dvd from any country. Steps: 1. Connect player and power it up 2. Open disc tray 3. Press the Disc Menu button (not system menu) 4. Press 7, 8, 9, Ok, 0 5. A message will appear saying 'Old region code = 1'... New region code = 0' 6. Open your favourite drink and enjoy your dvds! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Jerfu, January 25 2007: | |||
Bought the dvp642 from amazon couple days ago and the hack worked perfectly. I am in California, USA. Confirmed hack: Turn on the unit, open the tray, then 7 8 9 ok 0. A message shows "OLD REGION: 0 NEW REGION: 1" and you are done! | |||
| Region code hack posted by Le Piou, February 06 2007: | |||
The "Turn on the unit, open the tray, then 7 8 9 ok 0. A message shows "OLD REGION: 0 NEW REGION: 1" woked fine for me... | |||
| Region code posted by ganju, February 21 2007: | |||
i just got mine from http://www.popularelect.com and it works fine they gave me life time warranty | |||
| Region code posted by John Franson, May 14 2007: | |||
Toggle off counter when playing DIVX The counter is on by default when playing DIVX and maybe other files. To toggle it off, just press Display, hit the down arrow twice, and press display again. Gone! You'll have to do this each time you watch a different file. | |||
| Region code hack posted by William Larsen, August 08 2007: | |||
As others have reported, 7 8 9 hack does not work. Hand symbol appears in upper left corner of screen. | |||
| Region code hack posted by Fred Longnue, August 21 2007: | |||
I also tried the noted hack. It simply doesn't work. Does anyone have one that does?? | |||
| Region code hack posted by vbspurs, December 22 2007: | |||
It's almost 2008, and I just changed my new DVP 642 to Region 0 with the hack posted back in 2004. Here it is, once again: 1- Turn on Philips DVD 2- Open DVD tray 3- Leave it open 4- Press 7 8 9 OK Zero A small 0 should appear immediately on the screen, to the lower left-hand side. Your DVD player is now region free. Should you want it set permanently to a region, just change "0" to whichever region you want. NOTE: When using Region 2 DVD players, make sure you go to the Setup, and choose NTSC as your TV output. Choosing Multi crops the picture. Good luck! | |||
| Region code hack posted by scramp3, January 04 2009: | |||
Region code hack posted by vbspurs, December 22 2007: It's almost 2008, and I just changed my new DVP 642 to Region 0 with the hack posted back in 2004. Here it is, once again: 1- Turn on Philips DVD 2- Open DVD tray 3- Leave it open 4- Press 7 8 9 OK Zero A small 0 should appear immediately on the screen, to the lower left-hand side. Your DVD player is now region free. Should you want it set permanently to a region, just change "0" to whichever region you want. NOTE: When using Region 2 DVD players, make sure you go to the Setup, and choose NTSC as your TV output. Choosing Multi crops the picture. Good luck! Ive tried with 2 dvd players and its working!! | |||
| Region code hack posted by screwman_2, May 26 2010: | |||
I have the Philips 642k/69 DVD player.Tried the region code un locker with the remote using 1.Power on 2.Open the disc tray 3.type 789 ok and 0 ok 4.Close the tray and power off. Switch on the player and the region code is open. A small problem though,certain DVD's region marked region code 2 do not still play beyond the initial warning. The DVD's with code 2 that play do not play smoothly.Stop play, stop play and alternating the sound equalizer between Dolby PLII and normal,giving sound interruption. Any way to solve this one?? | |||
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