BD-UP5000 Universal Player Samsung [OFFICIAL OWNERS THREAD] & FAQ - Page 335

Originally Posted by guitarman

No 7.1 analog DTS-HD/MA? Come on Samsung you're costing me grief and money. I'd like to keep my reference non HDMI HT Receivers.

Originally Posted by Nimo

I lucked out and actually got my unit back after I returned it the day before they released the 1.3 fw. About a month later I was browsing the 1500/2500 and on top of the stack was a 5k. I said urmm I opened the box and checked the unit. I had a scuff mark on the front panel by the FF/RR button and sho nuff there it was. I immediately put that under my arm and walked to the mgr I ended up getting a better deal the second time around with a four year warranty.

Originally Posted by guitarman

I thought about that machine but I'd have the hassle of switching the 7.1 inputs between the HD-DVD player and the Blu-Ray player. Stands to reason we all bought the BD5000 to cover both software formats, now if they can just follow up with the firmware we'd get what we paid for.

Originally Posted by Lordoftherings

You need a new receiver then, with HDMI inputs for everything.
Or wait for the latest firmware on the 5000.
Your choice and your time.

Main thing, be happy.

Originally Posted by yrly

Anyone else running 1.3 have problems with SD DVDs at the layer change? I've had mine lock at the layer change on SDs. It works fine on BDs and HD DVDs all the time (and I've thrown quite a few at it), but I rarely watch SDs on it and it has frozen at the layer change on at least two thus far.

Originally Posted by guitarman

I bugged Samsung about it yesterday and will keep touching base with them so they don't give up. Others should do the same thing.

Originally Posted by guitarman

I bugged Samsung about it yesterday and will keep touching base with them so they don't give up. Others should do the same thing.

The 1800 reproduced the first scene of the movie perfectly, with fantastic bass. When the bank manager takes matters into his own hands and starts firing at the robbers with a pump-action shotgun, I just had to smile, as the blasts sounded so incredibly realistic. In fact, I greatly preferred the audio quality of the 1800 to my reference Samsung player, as the 1800 offered a noticeably smoother sound. I know that many people firmly believe that “bits are bits” when it comes to digital audio, and that all components should sound the same, but via HDMI, my reference Samsung is actually a bit thin and harsh sounding compared to the 1800. This was particularly evident with stereo playback.

Originally Posted by meh130

I am running 1.3 and I have noticed a very hard, noticeable layer change when watching DVDs. Literally a half-second freeze. Very annoying for an expensive player. Something I never noticed on a standard DVD player or my Toshiba A2.

Originally Posted by vinnie97

I have serious trouble believing the HDMI output via bitstreaming (0s and 1s) was any different than the Denon. That would depend on the receiver rather than the player. Sure, you can have audible errors due to firmware glitches but that's the only conceivable explanation for an audible difference. It's just a leap of faith I can't entertain.

I agree with you about Samsung CSR and their level of knowledge about goings on within their software engineering department.

Searched out the review and found the offending paragraph:


This is hardly objective nor does it rule out the very likely possibility of placebo. Also, I wonder how much he investigated/experimented with the audio settings in both players and his receiver of choice.

Originally Posted by vinnie97

I have serious trouble believing the HDMI output via bitstreaming (0s and 1s) was any different than the Denon. That would depend on the receiver rather than the player. Sure, you can have audible errors due to firmware glitches but that's the only conceivable explanation for an audible difference. It's just a leap of faith I can't entertain.

I agree with you about Samsung CSR and their level of knowledge about goings on within their software engineering department.

Searched out the review and found the offending paragraph:


This is hardly objective nor does it rule out the very likely possibility of placebo. Also, I wonder how much he investigated/experimented with the audio settings in both players and his receiver of choice.

Originally Posted by meh130

I am running 1.3 and I have noticed a very hard, noticeable layer change when watching DVDs. Literally a half-second freeze. Very annoying for an expensive player. Something I never noticed on a standard DVD player or my Toshiba A2.

Originally Posted by dougotte

Old news. We've been complaining about this problem on this thread since the player was released.

Doug

Originally Posted by Influence

I was once skeptical of differences in digital audio signals as well, particularly since I am an IT guy by trade and know that 0's are 0's and 1's are 1's. Well, the case of the audible differences between the 1800 and my 5000 are pretty much clear as day if you take the time to listen. I will admit that the difference wasn't as large on movie soundtracks, but it was much easier to hear on 2-channel CDs.

Both the 1800 and 5000 were fed via identical 3' Blue Jeans cable HDMI runs directly to the Marantz SR6003. Both players were set up for bitstream output (each player only has 1 way to do this, so there is no way to "experiment" with the audio settings). The SR6003 used the same audio options for each player (the Audyssey "Preset" mode that I created). There was a slight difference in output levels between the two players according to my Rat Shack analog SPL meter, so I made sure that I evened things out via the volume control on the receiver. I've also done this same A/B test via optical coaxial feeds between the 5000 and my Pioneer Elite DV-47Ai player. The 5000 has the same harsh/bright qualities on 2-channel playback via optical coaxial as well, with the Pioneer (via the same Kimber D-60 optical coaxial cable) sounding much more rich/full than the 5000.

Towards the end of my reviewing session, I swapped out the SR6003 for an Integra DHC-9.9/Wyred 4 Sound multichannel amp setup and was able to hear the same differences (it was actually easier to hear due to the much higher performance of the amp/pre-amp combo, not that the SR6003 is a slouch). This combo is Audyssey Pro corrected (highly recommend it if you've got the capability) and I can share with you all the response graphs if you really care to see them.

Instead of just saying you don't believe something, I urge you to perform some A/B comparisons yourself (it's a big part of the fun in this hobby). You may be surprised in what you hear. Also, keep in mind that hearing is quite different between individuals, and many people do not have the ablility to perceive these differences. That doesn't mean that they don't exist.

In the case of the Samsung's sound, remember, there are a lot of electronic components that the signal passes through before it hits the HDMI/digital cable that feeds your receiver/pre-pro. Who knows what is going on at each of those junctions.

Originally Posted by vinnie97

Yea...

BTW, by audio settings, I meant the sampling rate, for one. That can be adjusted in the BD-UP5000's audio settings. Is this only applicable to the analog outs?

Originally Posted by vinnie97

Thanks...I couldn't remember the setting specifically. I haven't checked that section of the setup in months. OK, the only other option I forgot about was Dynamic Compression and of course Speaker Setup, both used for the Analog outs.

Originally Posted by vinnie97

Thanks again...I guess when the output is in analog form, Samsung expects the receiver or sound processor to normalize the output. The phrase "when only a Dolby Digital signal is detected" should have been the clue to me that dynamic compression is done on the digital level.