Samsung BD-2550/BD-P2500 Master Thread - Page 3

OPPS....Thanks ivon and KramerTC!!! Sorry guys....somehow missed posting the most important pic....

Yes, the 2550 has the REON shown.


Here ya go....

Yes, but in the case of the 2550, both the REON and Broadcom are heatsinked to the bottom chasis. Samsung should have used a heavier gauge steel if they are going to use the chasis as a heatsink.

What pics do you want?

Decided to pick this player up today at BB.

I had resolved to wait for the next round of BD players since I wasn't too impressed with the new offerings from other manufacturers. I've been using my launch PS3 for both BD and DVD, and while it's performance is solid, it's become rather loud during playback.

What got me interested in the 2550 was the HQV processing; I still watch a lot of DVDs, many of which feature animation and other video based material. I've tried a number of other HD players over the last year and most struggle with detecting and properly displaying video material. I had an Toshiba HD-A1 which performed well, but it was extremely slow and somewhat flaky in reading certain discs. I briefly tried a Toshiba HD-35, but it was poor with video and still slow.

Anyway, I've only had the 2550 for a couple of hours, but so far it's been performing well. I have a Pioneer PDP-5080 as my display and a Yamaha V1800 as my AVR. I have the 2550 set to output 1080p (with 24f mode on) and audiophile bitstream on.

Here are some observations so far:

-Loads DVDs quickly; about as fast as my PS3 and much faster than any other HD player I've used.

-BDs load slower that the PS3, but faster than the other HD players I've used. I tested several BDs and the loading seemed consistent except with Batman Begins, which was slower than the other.

-DVD quality is excellent and the 2550 handles video material well. I wouldn't expect HD quality, but performance is great with no noticeable artifacting.

-The 2550 has a fan (unlike Samsung's 1500) and it stays quiet during BD playback. The unit also remains cool to the touch after several hours of playback.

-Seek noises are kinda loud during the initial loading sequence, but remain quiet during playback.

-The Samsung logo is jaggy when the player powers up, but I didn't notice any jaggies during playback.

-The player menu is pretty straight forward, I was able to have everything setup quickly.

I realize that Samsung has a poor reputation with their BD players, but I figured that this player was worth a shot, I can always take it back if anything pops up. I will continue to look for any playback irregularities or disc compatibility issues, but for now things look good.

It's automatically on.


If you like 4:3 DVDs stay in 4:3 instead of stretched, use 16x9 Normal mode on display settings. If you have a plasma and scared to have black bars on sides, use 16x9 Wide mode.


If you use a non-HDMI 1.3 receiver and connect to your receiver using optical or coax for digital audio, set digital audio setting to Bitstream (Re-encode) mode. If you later upgraded to the new receiver, you need to set it to Bitstream (audiophile) mode. If you use analog 7.1, these settings do not matter but you do need to set up speaker sizes etc.

All you care to post. Any of the thermal pads on the bottom of the case?

Yeah I have it on 16 x 9 Wide, is this stretching the image? I just want it to be shown the way the DVD was meant to be shown. Also, anyone notice a difference when turning on the Noise Reduction DVD to high? That sounds like the ideal place to be in, since no1 ever wants noise.

P.S. When I initially first plugged in my BD-2550, everything was boxy and pixelated and blurry, so I just turned it off, and unplugged it and replugged it back in and now everything works beautiful. What could that have been? Is that common? I just got a brand new Samsung 52 inch 750 LCD and I wanna make sure nothing could be wrong with the HDMI input on it, but like I said, I replugged it back in and now everythings perfect. Possibilities? Or if anything, might it have just been the Blu Ray not feeding the source correctly originally, and would have nothing to do with my tv?

For some reason the fan in this blu-ray player makes a buzzing sound that I can hear it from my viewing position. Its very annoying. My PS3 fan does not make a buzzing sound, but its louder.

Supposedly 16x9 Normal is the mode you should be using if you want to view DVDs in its original aspect. That is, for 16x9 anamorphic DVDs, either 16x9 wide or 16x9 Normal are ok. There should be no bars on sides. Now if you have 4:3 DVDs, 16x9 Normal will show bars on sides so that it keeps 4x3 aspect ratio. 16x9 Wide will stretech 4x3 to 16x9 cause image distortion. 16x9 Normal mode is an addition Samsung newly added to 2550 because many previous Samsung BD player owners don't like watch 4x3 DVDs stretched. If you have some old non-anamorphic DVDs, you should see bars on all four sides in 16x9 Normal mode but aspect ratio is correct. If you use 16x9 wide mode on this kind of DVDs, you will stretch the image.

So, in conclusion, 16x9 wide should only be used if you don't care about keeping DVDs in correct aspect ratio and want screen filled all the time.

iove,

Thanks for taking the time to post pics. A close up of the Broadcom chip to settle which chip it is once and for all would be great.

I got back from Best Buy to hear if their display model has the buzzing fan sound, and it does. The store manager at Best Buy told me that the P2550's fan is louder than the other blu-ray players, because it has better video processor and it heats up quickly. He said that he is glad that Samsung put a fan in this blu-ray player than the P1500 which does not have fan. Anyway I bought their service plan in case I get issues with the P2550 and it would be easier for me to get a hold of Best Buy than Samsung.

Same sentiment exactly. Here's hoping for late 2008 batch of players.

Except that this player, like the Samsung 1500 and the Sony 350, will be upgradeable to BD-Live by firmware update. Also, Profile 1.1 is the Final Spec while BD-Live is optional, so these players are, in fact, "up to spec."

See attached.

Does anyone have Chris Botti Bluray? When I select LPCM it directs the sound to the wrong channel which is wierd.

P.S. How do I attach pics and make it viewable in thread?

Would someone be kind enough to start an official thread?

This is it, juts get someone to edit the subject line.

Thank you. 7440 it is then.

Anyone stop a blu ray, and when you resume it, it starts from the beginning again?

Also, I have this Sammy sitting on top of my Comcast DVR box. The DVR runs pretty hot, and I noticed it makes the blu ray on top of it, underneath hot. I figure samsung made these players so that they can sit atop of other devices, is this going to be ok?

You're welcome. One issue I had with LG 200 and Samsung 1500 (Both Broadcom chip) is the drop outs and HDMI handshake glitches. On my gear, that issue appears to be resolved with the 2550. Based on what I have seen thus far, that chip is the fastest SOC in market today, save for the Cell.

I wouldn't do it. There are reports that ppl use other Samsung players encountered mysterious problems when stacking on top of DVR.

Hmm...only thing is I have to, or put it on top of my receiver, which needs as much oscillation as possible. Isn't it true this blu ray has a fan in it that the others did not? I would imagine this should not be a problem.

The other player I refer to is BD-UP5000 which also has fan on it.

Would that be "wishful thinking"?

true, but the area just right of bottom center is where the reon and broadcom chips are....which is proably were you observed the heat.

If you have no other option than to stack units, I would put the 2550 on the bottom...being heat rises, you may create a potential problem to the 2550 by having your other unit on the bottom...

Doesn't matter if it has a fan. Your DVR probably runs at about 125 degrees. How long do you think the 2550 would last if it was used in a room that was 125 degrees all the time?


PS. Can't put it on top of the receiver either, as it probably vents out the top.

I put a small very thin towel in between both the DVR and the Blu Ray. I'm not going to put the DVR on top of the 2550, as the DVR is quite a bit heavier and I don't want such a heavy unit on such a fragile piece of equipment. The player is now not running hot at all.

By the way, your right in that it's probably about 125 degrees. But I also don't run my DVR 24 hours per day, more like 4 hours a day. Most of the time it's just off. Is the thin towel a good idea?

That towel is going to act like insulation......

I don't know which DVR you have, but even when they're off, they're on. How do you think it records shows? Off is merely standby and has no effect on the units temperature.

Tsalt, now that the towel is on, i slowly lift up the player and feel on top of the dvr and it's just warm, not hot, like it was before the towel. DO you think the towel is a good idea or won't do anything?

I'm about ready to go Blu but I'm still torn about whether to get a stand alone player or go with the PS3. I realize that the PS3 also is a next gen game console but I actually prefer the games on XBox better. But seeing as I don't have either yet, I thought the PS3 would kill 2 birds with one stone. I have an Oppo 983 and a Toshiba XA2 so I don't need upconverting capabilities at all. Will Bu-Ray playback be equivalent on the PS3 and 2550?

Yes, Blu Ray playback should be equivalent.