The SONY BDP-S5000ES Owner's Thread - Page 72

I called another location and she confirmed that both new and refurb models come with 5 year warranties, FYI. I'll be picking one up this week.

Thanks Guys !!!
I picked up mine yesterday..

When I picked up mine for $400 I thought I got a steal.

This unit replaced my BDP-83se a year ago with no regret. Blu-ray loading almost as fast, standard DVD conversion/scaling equal, fantastic analog section for CD, built like a tank, and a great warranty on top of that.

Might have to pickup a backup.

You guys are lucky you live close to an outlet store. I checked and it's not available off the Sony Outlet website and the stores can't ship. Wouldn't mind picking up a second player for those closeout prices.

I picked up two of these players from the NJ Outlet. One of them was badley damaged had to be returned.

Funny thing about the warranties. I live in Chicago and there is a Sony outlet in Aurora. Unit was 199.97. Sales person told me 90 days on the refurb. Store policy sign said check the warranty in the box and that said 1 year. They offerred 2 years for an additional $20 so I took that. 2 years from Sony + 1 year via my credit card - seems reasonable to me. Has anyone called Sony to see what the official policy is regarding refurb?

They are just trying to upsale warranties as far as I can see. The refurbs have been opened and fixed, so I'm sure Sony changed the paperwork inside to a 1 year warranty on the refurbs; makes sense to me. I called the Destin,FL outlet and she told me they all come with 5 year warranties but she was probably wrong about the refurbs. The new, never opened units obviously have the standard 5 year warranties still inside the box, so these sales reps are just trying to squeeze a little more cash from unsupecting buyers. For $20 I would definetly buy the extra 2 years, but for $50 bucks extra I would just buy a new unit and open her up nice and fresh.

I went to the Sony site and got support via chat. I asked about warranty and was told 90 days for refurb blr-rays including the ES line. If I'm bored today may call Sony to talk to someone else and confirm.

My advice to anyone would be to open the box in the store and what you see is what you get. From there you can decide if you want the extra warranty. Out of curiosity, what credit card did you use for the extra year warranty. I've heard that American Express works that way, I just have no experience with this. Thanks, Gary.

I have a Visa card. Read the brocure that they send out every year or so. They will extend beyond the mfg warranty for a year up to 3 years in total. I actually used it a few years ago. You basicaly get refunded the money of the lessor of the original and the replacement. I think you also need to ship in the defective item so they can verify its broke. Definitely off topic regarding blu-rays.
As for me - I needed a gift for the kids to give me under the tree so can't use mine for another month. It just looks so much cleaner than the Sony 470 I have right now.

wes,

Credit cards normally only extend the original warranty and not extended warranties. The 2nd year for $20 appears to be an extended warranty.

You are correct. Thanks for pointing that out. End of day, getting the unit for $230 and 2 years of warranty is something I can live with.

Sony mistakenly put 1 yr warranty paper in the box for my new s5000. It is actually 5 yrs.

Am I missing something? Why is this player so great over two year after it was released and for the the price some of you guys are paying? Is it because of the warranty?

It is great because it:

-Has great picture quality
-It is built like a tank
-Doesn't have issues playing new releases
-Has fantastic analog sound quality
-Has a 5 year warranty for piece of mind
-Was a $1999 player when released that can be found for MUCH less recently

No, it's because it is one of the best players on the market still,(video and audio) and can be had for a fraction of what it cost originally,Gary.

Ah... makes sense. I have the BDP-S760 which has many of the same features from the S5000ES. Why not grab that instead for a much lower price? The 5-year warranty is great on the S5000ES, but how frequently do blu-ray/dvd players breakdown? I've had a few players work fine for over 5-years. The others I usually get rid of after a few years, cuz something newer and better comes out.

WG

This thing is seriously a tank of a player and it comes with a 5 year warranty, my only problem with it is that it didn't come SACD capable. I'm quite concerned that Sony won't make another flagship model Bluray player and these things will be gobbled up before you know it.

weirgd,

It was a solid product when it was launched, but it was also competing with the likes of the Pioneer Elite BDP-09FD and the Denon DVD-3800BDCI in the same general price range.

If you don't require 3D, streaming or the universal playback that is being offered presently from other manufacturers, then for the price that these units have been selling for over the past 6 months or so makes for a compelling purchase. I purchased one and I didn't even need a transport, but I would not have purchased at the original MSRP because I personally didn't think the value was there in spending that much for a transport.

I briefly owned a Denon DVD-3800BDCI back when it was launched and returned it after 2 weeks of ownership, because I realized that it was overpriced for its performance. Again, this is just one man's opinion.

I also bought the Denon DVD-3800BDCI two years ago for around $500.00 at closeout. It's been a good player for me, but the difference between the 3800 and the 5000 is stricking, both video and audio. I've been so impressed that I just ordered another 5000 for my other room.

Well grasshopper its like this. I own two Sony BDP-S5000ES, the S1000ES and the S780S. The 1000ES and the 780S are like toys compared to the S5000ES in both picture and sound. In fact, I use the own the Oppo BDP-95, and I had to send it back and buy another S5000ES because the Oppo was sonically inferior to the S5000ES in both legacy DD and DTS and True Dolby HD and DTS-MA through the analog outs. The picture on both was roughly the same. So, the S5000ES is simply a superior bargain that was never properly evaluated by reviewers.

That has been my experience as well. I do own the Sony 370 and although it does do DSD direct over HDMI (which is what I use it for-SACD-which is amazing). The 370 seems like the disposable razor approach when compared to the S5000ES - may very well be the last of a rare breed from Sony. They might have "double dipped" a little with the XA5400ES (since it uses the same chassis) and now probably no more of these ES machines to be seen. I'm truly glad I got one! The analog section alone is worth the price of admission IMO.

gbaby,

You left out a very important disclaimer "in your setup". I hope the BDP-S5000ES is serving you well. I have actually been splitting time between the BDP-95 and the S5000ES for blu-ray playback. The S5000ES has definately been one of my better purchases.

I own the 1000ES and have always thought it was the picture equal to the 5000ES (I've never compared them, but based on reviews I read). It sounds like you're saying there is a noticeable difference between the two players. Do you think it's worth the upgrade? I'm connecting with HDMI for audio and video. Even if the difference is slight it might be worth it to me to get flagship quality for less than 500. Where is the best place to buy -- ebay, Sound Seller? Unfortunately I'm not near a sony outlet store.

I ordered my two new direct over the phone from Sound Seller. They shipped free the same day double boxed. You can order through them over Amazon, but you pay an additional $41.00. Unless you live near one of the Sony stores and can pick-up a new unit, Sound Sellers is the best deal. Same price through e-bay or calling direct. Ron at SS said they bought a couple of pallets of new closeouts and as of early last week only had around 20 left.

I would not buy the S5000ES if I only needed it for HDMI and I already owned the S1000ES. While the S5000ES has a great picture, its strong suit is its analog outs in my opinion.

I have both and see no appreciable difference in video quality. The audio quality is where the 5000 takes over with outstanding audio using analog outputs. If you're happy with the 1000 and hdmi is your only option, I'd stick with the 1000.

He's right. I purchased my second one from Sound Seller, and they do have the best deal.

I do have the option to hook up with analog audio. I am using a Sony STR-DA6400ES receiver and have it connected via HDMI. Will connecting with analog provide better sound? I have a separate amp driving L/R speakers, receiver driving Center and L/R surrounds, and powered sub.

MondoRock,

Hookup it up both ways and see which connection sounds best to your ears.