OFFICIAL "HELP ME CHOOSE A PLAYER" THREAD: Can't decide? Start HERE. - Page 60

Unless I'm mistaken (and sometimes I am) I don't believe that you will get 2 channel lossless PCM from a DTS-MA track with the 350 since it does not support decoding of DTS-MA.

What you are going to get is the DTS core audio track instead of PCM from DTS-MA.

Ah, I was sure I was missing something. Thanks a lot.

I'm liking the Panasonic BD35, then...wish I didn't have to wait.

All indications are that the Panasonic BD35 is going to be an outstanding player, especially if Panasonic follows Sony into a $299 price point on this machine before the holidays!

Wait, I got confused -- couldn't I just always select DD or DTS from the audio track and PCM it, as I have been? I wouldn't try to decode DTS-MA with a Sony 350 -- I'd just always select DD or DTS. PCM is PCM, as I understand it.

What you seem to be misunderstanding is that PCM from digital dolby and PCM from DTS is not the same as PCM from DTS-MA or True-HD.

The PCM produced from decoding a lossless track is the same PCM as the original recording. PCM from a lossy codec such as DD or DTS is something less than the original.

I sort of agree, I did enjoy using the BD30 while I had it, but not being BD Live killed that right away. But the problem now, for me and some others, is that the BD30 and BD50 are said to be poor at upscalling regular DVD movies. Now supposedly, both the 35 and the 55 are coming with new UniPhier chips in them, so who can say for now . . . . .

I'm not in a rush.

You should take a look at the new Pioneer 51, although no BD Live (but better PQ for both BD and SD DVD upscaling).

Just a note of caution. The 350 is now sold under their 'Outlet Center' channel and their price guarantee small print reads
Quote:" Exclusions:
The Best Buy Price Guarantee does not apply to our or our competitors' free offers, limited-quantity items, open-box items, clearance and Outlet Center items, mail-in incentives, financing or bundle offers. The policy does not apply to typographical errors or a competitor's price that results from a price match. Unquote

This may only apply to purchases on their web-site, but it is worth confirming.

My wife was just asking about what I want for a B-day that comes up in about a month. I think it may be time to put my PS3 into the bedroom:-) and get a new player. What should I get?

My primary consideration are:

a) HDMI video quality to Kuro 60" 1080p plasma
b) 5.1 analog audio quality and speaker management (Pioneer Elite VSX-53TX AVR)
c) support for playing AVCHD and JPEG files on SD cards (like my PS3 does)
d) stability
e) responsiveness

The systems I am considering are:

1) Panny BD-50
2) Panny BD-55
3) Sony BDP-S550 (support for AVCHD on SD card is a question)
(Sure I would love to get that $2K Denon, but not going to happen)

Things I don't care about:

* BDlive stuff
* DVD upscaling
* 7.1 audio

Which of these will give me the best audio and video experience?

""""""""
You should take a look at the new Pioneer 51, although no BD Live (but better PQ for both BD and SD DVD upscaling).
"""""""

Almost sounds that if one wants most of the whistles and bells from a modestly priced BluRay player and be able to still play their standard DVD's well, they might want to want a generation or so?????

Not sure anything I've read about so far does it all?

Al

I was initially considering the 51FD, and I'm fairly certain it would give me the best PQ with my Kuro. On the other hand, it does not have very good speaker management -- and I've been reading about LFE problems as well. Finally, I don't believe it supports playing AVCHD on SD cards -- no SD slot or USB port.

Hello Everyone!!

Well as much as I love my PS3 to play back BD and the SD films, (I am connected to a Elite PIO 92), the performance of the marriage and PQ & SQ IS out this world no doubt.. You PS3 owners will confirm to that claim.. HOWEVER..

Issues that have cropped up that have now become sorta of an irritating, situation for me, for as much as I love my PS3, it has made me look at re-evaluate my HTS looking to improve a more ahh, (how should I say this) seamless AND more important, a more user friendly HT experience for my family. So for now, I am looking for a replacement BD player only to replace the PS3 in my "main" entertainment system in the Family room...

Let me list my complaints and problems and issues I currently have.. most of these are well known and documented all over our forum.. But have gotten out control IMHO..

1-- Lack of control using IR, (without spending more money on a converting system). Can't control my entire HTS with my Harmony ONE << this issue has become a royal PITA at the moment..

2--FAN NOISE!! UGH, (wife comes over today and states, "honey do you here this humming noise"?)I walk over & guess what? LOL, come to find out that she has been watching 2 SD movies she purchased @ Wally world this afternoon and the PS3 fan was on hyper speed..LOUD mother let me tell ya, I can hear this sucka all the way across my house..from 30 feet away and OVER the audio system.. yea it sucks BIG time especially since the ladies watch all these mushy movies and in a low volume, not like me, that watches high powered shoot-em up bang bang type films of course much LOUDER than she & my girls watches stuff.. BIG neg when I get complaints from my wife & daughters.. Big time negative this has become after owning this unit for 4 months..

3--Since my last S/W update, when ever we turn on the system (PS3), it seems not to able to sync up with the Pio XBR4, the PS3 starts but not getting vid on my 52XBR4 thru the PIO, I am having to power off the PS3 again after the initial power up other systems have been up for a bit, then I get video.. (Not a problem for me but a MAJOR issue for non-techie ladies in the house).. they get frustrated when ever they want to watch a movie ANY movie..(not good for me).. Could be a setup problem not sure. I keep telling them to turn the PS3 on FIRST, but apparently even doing that, its not working.. whereas it takes several PS3 boots to get video, sound is OK, no Video.. most frustrating. and then #4 below, coupled to this issue..

4--Now when powering up as in above, it ask me 3 questions each and every time on what I want, (sorta like a power switch off in back, instead of standby-by off or power failure scenario I guess), at one point it just use to go to the movie, or to play the movie screen, last 2/3 items could be a setup issue, but heck I already setup this thing up multiple times.. updates COULD be changing settings, or F/W could also be changing how stuff is being handled, which IF so, I will be doing less & less F/W updates once I figure out to make it more friendly to use.. (IF that is even possible)

OK, other than those issues, which IMHO is 4+ to many, I am looking to replace my PS3 which being a guy love it to death.. However I am getting hammered and creamed by my ladies over how "You bought this thing, it is a piece of shlt! Why can't I just turn the dam thing on and have it work...blah blah blah blah..I'm getting killed here with my toy that I will NOT get rid of & love it to death..

Now mind ya, she approved with me these purchases of our HTS, but I picked the items and components being the geek in the family and an electronic engineer I might add.. the PS3 was purchased mainly because the speed of the boot up time, recommendation of another electronic geek and yes, the playback quality is still #1 IMO.. HOWEVER, if I would known about all these problems ahead of time..I would of purchased something else...

Many players are my hit list to buy, looking at ALL of them, but down to these basically, in the running are, Sony's 350, 550, leaning to Pioneers Elite 05 (my fav), or the 51 might be an option, couple dollars cheaper..AND I will not discount any Panasonic newer models being introduced... Panasonic has always made quality products IMO. Right now I am in a holding pattern, reading, researching & waiting to let the tree shake out a bit, and for price reductions that are coming next month or 2.. In the mean time we will tolerate my beautiful albeit noisy fella PS3 (unless it decides to blast off), until I pull the trigger on its silent and IR capable replacement.. Sorry for ranting and long post.. Just trying to share experiences so another unsuspecting guy doesn't go what I am going thru..

Looking for suggestions on buying a low-to-moderate cost BD player for our bedroom to be paired with a new Samsung LN-40A750. Main considerations are:

> Picture quality is by far the most important, including great upscaling since this would be our only player in this room.

> Sound quality is much less important, since this is a bedroom and volume will be kept pretty low. Speakers consist of a center, right and left fronts and a sub, but no surrounds. The receiver (basic digital Panasonic SA-XR10) has no HDMI so video would go straight to the TV (via HDMI) and I will probably just use just one of the two optical audio inputs for sound (the other is being used by the cable box DVR). The receiver does have 6CH analog connections but unless there is any advantage using them without surrounds I'd probably use the optical connection. Again, simplicity and the ability to play sound on all discs are more important than achieving absolute best sound quality.

> Must be IR (use Harmony remote) and am not a gamer so PS3 is out.

Have skimmed over this (long) thread my top choices in modest price range would seem to be the Sony BDPS350 and Panasonic DMP-BD30K. Given my priorities and system, which one should I buy, or are there any others less than $400 that would be a better choice? Also any links to unbiased reviews or comparisons would be appreciated also.

The Panny does not have "geart upscaling" and so that rules that one out, according to your post.

I would recommend the Sony BDP-S350. It offers excellent blu-ray picture and has good dvd upscaling.

Kage, your recommendation and BillP's reply on the Panasonic reinforced my gut feeling that the Sony would probably work best for our situation. I had read through the user reviews at Amazon and most everyone has given the Sony excellent marks for its PQ, so I was already leaning in that direction.

Thanks to both of you for your replies - JB

I am currently saving up for the Pioneer Elite 111FD and I am looking for the best PQ and SQ in a Blu Ray player out there.

The player's I am looking at include:
Pioneer 51FD
Pioneer 05FD
Denon DVD3800BD
maybe Sony 550

I would like to know which has the best picture quality and what video processor it uses for 1080p BD output (SD upconverting ability is less important as the Kuro already has a very nice video processor for that). As important as PQ - I want to know which has the highest quality audio DACs. I plan on purchasing VMPS ribbon speakers so they will be VERY revealing.

Any help would be much appreciated!

You know, not meaning to be OT, but this is something that has bothered me for a bit. I currently have a Panasonic 58PZ700U plasma, and it too can supposedly upscale. But, if a 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i signal is sent to it, when I press the display button for the info to appear on the screen, it shows it as its native resolution = 480i, 480p, etc . . . So how does the TV convert or upscale the picture, if according to the info screen, it is being show as it is sent. Sorry, but was just wondering about this for some time now.

Why the LG BH200 ($399 @ Best Buy) is not on everyone's short list is beyond me. Incredible BD picture, outstanding SD upscaling with QDEO, BD 2.0 compliant (just awaiting factory confirmed FW update), bitstreaming of HD codecs and oh, BTW it also will play those bargain bin HD-DVD's put there.

You know what? I don't know why. As a matter of fact, looking over its specs, it is not too shabby at all. It bistreams (have an 805 for that), and most likely is BD Live Profile 2 (as it already meets HD DVD standards for that) so would NOT be obsolete already (unlike the $$$$ Pioneers that are only 1.1), and it sounds like it does a great job with normal DVD movies.

Hmmmmm, and I still have HD DVD's (which I am keeping as some might never get onto BD as in Grand Prix with Jamer Garner) and my A35 which I could at least get $62 back from BB as a trade in (not much, but perhaps better than nothing???), and this would free up the weight on my glass shelving, free up an HDMI port, and use less ($$$$) electricity. DAMN THOUGH! I was just in BB today, didn't even think about it (as LG is still a relatively new company, though I had a double door fridge and a built-in microwaver at my old condo that were AWESOME), and the 12% off coupon ended today! Argh.

Hey. My guess is that your television (I work at Best Buy - very nice set you got there!) is just telling you the incoming signal's resolution. Otherwise how would one know what resolution the set is receiving from the player (other than the disc's specs, etc.)?

All resolutions that aren't the native resolution of the set must be scaled or converted to that resolution. (correct me if I am wrong)

Peter

--- Any player suggestions in reply to my topic are greatly appreciated!

Thanks, I really love the PZ700U a lot, and it still looks great - though I wish I had one of the newer 850's out now I think those now do 24f, mine doesn't. (and boy have I helped to support you through the years of being a BB customer hehehehe)

Well, if you are in the Grapevine store, you''ll see me tomorrow. Just ordered the LG BH200 online for store pickup. I HOPE this will be THE one From some of what I just read on here, it truly is an amazing machine, and should be BD Live, as it had to do the HD DVD online extras. And some seem to think it is near the Reon quality that the XA2 had. Will see tomorrow . . . .

I had the XA2 and loved what the Reon did for SD DVD's. I was very skeptical that the LG could match (heck, even come close) to the Reon but after watching several SD DVDs I immediately went and sold the XA2, The Qdeo is a very very good upconverter. You'll be pleased with your choice. There is a reason this thing had an MSRP of nearly a grand when it was first introduced.

Hey all,

So if I have a Pre/Pro (Onkyo PR SC885) and I want to future proof myself for Master Audio - do I have to wait for the S550 or will the S350 get me there. I understand that BD-Live is a difference, but the S350 will get a firmware upgrade that address that. Is that the only major difference since I don't need the 7.1 Analog outs?

May seem dumb, but where do I want the decoding to take place? In the pre/pro and pass it through or through the BD player? Not sure who will have the better decoding?

Man, this gets confusing.

Thanks,

Mark

If you do the decoding in the Blu-Ray player, it can mix in the secondary audio for bonus content.

If you don't care about analog out, and want a Profile 2.0 player, watch for the Panasonic BD35.

I think this I got my purchase all planned out, need confirmation.

I was right about to pull the trigger on the Sony S300 as the price is right. However, I am not reluctant after reading up on it's audio limitations. I have a Onkyo 606 with hdmi so analogs for lossless is a moot point for me.

All I care about is a good picture and lossless audio. PIP and BD Live does not come into play for me so from my understanding profiles don't matter.

For the best bang for my buck is the BD30 or S350 with the rumored pricedrop the way to achieve my goal? PS3 is not an option, have two Xbox 360's in the house.

What is the difference between the player decoding the lossless audio internally vs. streaming if my receiver can do it? Better quality if the player does it???

Thx - DBK

As mentioned above, with bitstream, you won't get that "extra" audio during PIP playback. But unless you are a fanatic, and need to know the background of every scene in a movie, its just fluff. And as you have a 606 that CAN decode, then enjoy a player that bitstreams - I CERTAINLY do! And my Harmony can control it W/O needing a Blue Toothed extra controler.

But, the BD30, which I had and thought was not too bad, has been said by others that it is weak (soft) with standard DVD movies. The S350 is better, and I thought it looked very close (for DVD) to the Samsung 2550 which had the exhaulted Reon chip in it. But right now, I am trying out the LG BH200, which is a combo player, both HD and BD as well as DVD with a GREAT upscaller!!!!! And so far, except for a few MINOR problems, I think this might just be a keeper. But one problem with the DVD side - if it is a 4:3 movie, it stretches it out and so far there is no way to control that. But if a widescreen movie (and most are), it is just perfect and so too the PQ!!!!!

Turn on times are pretty darn quick. Loading a movie can be a bit sluggish, but that is because the system needs to check which format the disc it (HD, BD, DVD, CD . . . . . . cause it can just about play ANYTHING). But once the system recognizes the disc (even lights up large letters on the face plate HD or BD - cool), it loads the HD movies very quickly, the DVD's very quickly (faster than the other BD players I have tried), and not too shabby with the BD movies - not PS3 speed, but not S300 sloooooow either.

So far, just testing the PQ and audio, the PQ is every format is awesome. The audio bitstreams perfectly too. Only nag was the Java popup menu while playing Rambo (the latest one just out in BD). When I did a screen (chapter) selection, the screen got messed up a bit. But doing the popup menu and exiting it cleared it all out, and didn't happen again (yet).

Except for the 4:3 screen stretch, the other minor things that sort of bug me a wee bit was the info screen - does say time watched, but can't check for time left. Cool way though, to change audio, chapter, and a few other things though while watching a BD movie (doesn't work with HD though????). There were a couple of other things too, but must not have been too important, as I already have forgotten them. Oh, and the Harmony works great with it too.

But one of the BEST parts of this, and a good nudge to make it a keeper - is less RACK space used, less electric used, and less HDMI cable/ports needed! Can use this one player for all = HD, BD, DVD, CD, etc. So no need for a seperate BD (or PS3) player, an HD player (can now sell my A35!!!), and an upscalling DVD (Oppo) player.

Oh, not sure if it will be BD Live though. It does already have internal memory (a spec required by HD standards), and can D/L content for HD DVD, but didn't work when I tried to use BD Live yet.

Thanks on the bitstream info did not catch that.

My friend has the BH and is please and from what he advised me it is 2.0 ready so BD Live should be a go.