PHOTO: BETH PERKINS

When those of us who are into "gadget porn" look at the latest state-of-the-art home entertainment gear, and then check its prices against our dwindling bank accounts, we can't help but feel embittered. Our technolust is bust.

But we want that US $1500 DVD player; we crave the best audio and video that money can buy. Lucky for us, much of the good stuff in the top end components has trickled down into very affordable equipment. Digital processing chips, which are the brains of audio and video players, are relatively inexpensive and universally available. But if a DVD player is selling for $150, the manufacturer's costs were probably not much more than $30, and that cost includes labor. So manufacturers skimp wherever they can: on the cases, the capacitors and resistors, and connectors—common components that they can purchase for pennies.

Free of their mass-marketing imperatives, you can spend dollars, rather than pennies—and hear and see the difference. That's the basic strategy of a thriving if somewhat esoteric group of hobbyists who take such affordable electronic equipment and modify, or tweak, it to perform at levels that reach far beyond its meager beginnings. These upgrades replace cheap components with better-quality and lower-tolerance parts, and the results are often startling. Take a $150 DVD player. Add less than $100 in boutique parts, perform a bit of simple soldering, and the resulting sound and video can compete with that from DVD players costing hundreds of dollars more in retail stores.

Some have made a business out of such upgrades—charging three to five times the cost of the added parts for labor, knowledge, and experience. But if you can read a schematic, are willing to tinker a bit, have basic soldering skills, and are willing to spend about $250 altogether, you can cut out the middleman and get a disk player that will be the envy of all your gadget-lusting friends.

The Toshiba SD4960, also sold as the Samsung DVD-HD841, is the inexpensive universal disk player I chose to modify. It has received good, if not spectacular, reviews in video and audio magazines and e-zines. It uses the same digital processing chips found in considerably more expensive players and its laser mechanism is well regarded, though packaged in a flimsy plastic support. Best of all, it will handle almost all disk formats: DVD Video, DVD-R, DVD-RW, CD-R, CD-RW, SACD (Super Audio CD), DVD-A (DVD Audio), MP3, and digital picture CDs with JPEG. Toshiba licenses the design from Samsung, but most of the parts in the two models are identical. To my eye, the Samsung unit is more pleasing; it also has an HDMI video output connection that the Toshiba lacks. The Toshiba's street price is about $100, while the Samsung sells for about $120 (but prices may be even lower by the time you read this).

The first time I listened to a CD on the unmodified Toshiba player I noticed some distortion affecting the high-pitched sounds like cymbals, bells, and harmonica. Also, there was not a lot of life to the sound. It was a little congested; complex passages in the music were not entirely clear to the ear. Tonally, however, the Toshiba player does well, making instruments sound like instruments, not plastic facsimiles.

The player's video capabilities were similarly solid. Images were free from obvious grain. Colors seemed correct and contrasts were distinct and without shadows, but in the video as well as the audio, there was room for improvement.

To perform an upgrade, you'll need a few things. One of them is the service (not owner's) manual from the manufacturer, which contains the schematic. You can get a copy for $22 plus $7.95 shipping and handling from J&J International at +1 800 627 4368; ask for the Samsung DVD-HD841 service manual. Another thing you'll need is a 25- or 30-watt soldering iron and some rosin core solder.

If it's been a while since you had a soldering iron in your hand, spend a little while practicing the art of making a good, swift solder connection. To avoid damaging delicate microelectronics, touch the tip of the hot soldering iron for a second or two to one of the leads that connects the component to the board, then touch the tip of the solder to the now-heated connection point. The solder should flow freely to the component lead and the board connection. Pull the solder away from the joint, then the iron, leaving a shiny, rounded connection. Before you start, tin the iron's tip and keep it shiny and clean—wipe it with a damp sponge between tasks.

The instructions below are written for the Toshiba and Samsung players, but you can apply them to just about any of the vast array of universal disk players priced under $200. If you're willing to spend a little more, the Marantz CD5400, with a street price of about $300, is a good choice. Just be sure to plan your upgrade carefully before ordering parts.