Ok, first Blu Ray advice, looking at Sony, Panny, LG, please help. [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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jamison162
07-08-2009, 12:34 PM
Any experience or opinions on these. They are all available at one store locally, I want to buy this week.

1) Panasonic DMP-BD60: $230
2) LG BD370: $238
3) Sony BDP-S360: $250

Side Note: I'm somewhat sore at Sony right now over my 60" LCD and all the purple spots showing up, supposedly a bad light engine ($800-$900) and the recall expired 12/08...before I had the problem or even knew about a recall on the light engine.

nightflier
07-08-2009, 02:13 PM
Well if Sony did not notify you, isn't this on them? You could always draft a threatening to sue them if they don't honor the recall because they failed to notify you in time.

pixelthis
07-09-2009, 01:15 AM
I am quite happy with my Sony (BDP-S300).
Your receiver or pre-pro determines what type you need.
If you have a receiver that handles all of the new codecs then no problem,
but if its older (like mine) you need a player with 5 to 7 line outs, and one that will decode the new formats and send them out this output so your multichannel on on your receiver
can receiver them.
This will keep you from having to buy a new receiver to get the new codecs.
My player decodes the new DD and DTS lossless formats into LPCM
and sends highq analog out the 7.1 , which any receiver with multichannel inputs can handle.
Some players don't have multichannel outs.
All players do send the lossless audio through the HDMI connection, but if your receiver can't handle it its no good.
As for picture, even with a 720p set BLU beats anything out there, even broadcast HD,
but a 1080p set is preferred.
One other bonus is DVD "upconversion", which is more of a marketing gimmick on DVD
players, gives some real benefit on a blu player.:1:

Mr Peabody
07-26-2009, 02:52 PM
Have you made your purchase yet? My vote would be for the Panasonic out of the three.

N. Abstentia
07-27-2009, 04:54 AM
I have the Sony, but either the Sony or Panasonic would be fine.

pixelthis
07-27-2009, 08:19 AM
I have the Sony, but wish I had waited for the OPPO, since it has DVD/A and SACD,
it would do away with one or two DVD players that I have.:1:

N. Abstentia
07-27-2009, 05:57 PM
I too would like to have the Oppo, but considering the price I'm not too concerned about it. You can buy 3 normal BluRay players for the price of one Oppo. I did have to give up SACD to go BluRay and I'd love to have it back, but honestly how many folks have SACD's?

Mr Peabody
07-27-2009, 07:56 PM
I've had 3 Blu-ray players in my system and they are definitely not the same. My Samsung BD-P1200 has better picture quality than my daughter's BD-P1500, and my Marantz is better than either of them. That surprises me since the 1200 has the Silicon Optix. I know the 7003 doesn't have the Realto like the 8002 but I haven't been able to find what chip set it does use. This is in both Blu or standard DVD. So you can get cheaper players but it is possible to get better performance for your money. It really depends on what your needs are, if some one had SACD's then the Oppo would present a good value, if you were doing gaming then the PS3 would be the best BDP, if just wanting to watch some BR discs and keeping in a budget then the models listed would be alright, if wanting best possible picture then some money would have to be spent and some research/viewing done to see what fits that bill.

If any one else has had a chance to try different players I'd be interested in knowing if they saw any difference between them.

frahengeo
08-04-2009, 06:23 AM
I've had 3 Blu-ray players in my system and they are definitely not the same. My Samsung BD-P1200 has better picture quality than my daughter's BD-P1500, and my Marantz is better than either of them. That surprises me since the 1200 has the Silicon Optix. I know the 7003 doesn't have the Realto like the 8002 but I haven't been able to find what chip set it does use. This is in both Blu or standard DVD. So you can get cheaper players but it is possible to get better performance for your money. It really depends on what your needs are, if some one had SACD's then the Oppo would present a good value, if you were doing gaming then the PS3 would be the best BDP, if just wanting to watch some BR discs and keeping in a budget then the models listed would be alright, if wanting best possible picture then some money would have to be spent and some research/viewing done to see what fits that bill.

If any one else has had a chance to try different players I'd be interested in knowing if they saw any difference between them.

I also read and hear that the Oppo BDP-83 is for the budge conscious that desire performance.

pixelthis
08-04-2009, 10:22 PM
I too would like to have the Oppo, but considering the price I'm not too concerned about it. You can buy 3 normal BluRay players for the price of one Oppo. I did have to give up SACD to go BluRay and I'd love to have it back, but honestly how many folks have SACD's?

I have several, and also had to give up my multichannel in for BLU, but dont really
mind since I just listen to SACD and DVD-A in two channel anyway.
Multichannel would be a nice option, tho.:1:

rob_a
08-25-2009, 04:27 PM
I would go for oppo

I have heard mixed review on Oppo, some say it's a great mult. format player and some say it is an average player with too many formats????

I have the Panasonic and have had no problems with it all. As far as movies or blu ray audio it's great. It's a little harsh when it comes to CDs.

Mr Peabody
08-25-2009, 05:41 PM
rob_a, when you say the Panny is harsh on CD playback is that with analog or digital/HDMI connection? If analog, it's the Panny's fault as decoding is being done by the Panny. If digital the decoding is being done in the receiver so the fault is the Marantz.

pixelthis
08-25-2009, 10:53 PM
I have heard mixed review on Oppo, some say it's a great mult. format player and some say it is an average player with too many formats????

I have the Panasonic and have had no problems with it all. As far as movies or blu ray audio it's great. It's a little harsh when it comes to CDs.

Most DVD players are not optimum CD players.
I have a Panny that is an exception, has 192khz dacs and a "remaster" button that upsamples CD's , but it did cost 800 bucks, and had been on the floor four months.
CD sounds great , also pretty good in my DVDA/SACD player from Samsung, but dvda/sacd players have always tended to have better sound.
None of my dedicated DVD players have ever had decent CD audio, capability
for CD playback is just an afterthought, really.
I dont understand about Blu players tho, compared to the Blu soundtracks the CD sounds
sucky, maybe its just by comparsion.
Everybody has been used to CD being the gold standard for so long its going to take some getting used to the format being second to newer form factors(I have Blu music
discs that have 96khz audio, CD is not going to sound good next to that):1:

Mr Peabody
08-26-2009, 05:06 AM
Pix, you saw that Panny, or purchased it? If you bought it I am amazed you'd pay that much for a source. That is probably the most you paid for any of your components.

rob_a
08-26-2009, 01:04 PM
rob_a, when you say the Panny is harsh on CD playback is that with analog or digital/HDMI connection? If analog, it's the Panny's fault as decoding is being done by the Panny. If digital the decoding is being done in the receiver so the fault is the Marantz.

I have it running through my HDMI only since I really only watch movies on it, I had only mentioned the CD quality just as a curtsey. I have an Adcom DVD player that has HDMI and there is a difference, not harsh at all. also my friend with the same Blu-ray player, who is running it through a Yamaha processor, has the same opinion. The sound is Good but a little harsh compared to a good dedicated CD player. The higher bit rate of blu ray audio sounds very nice, no issues there.

Mr Peabody
08-26-2009, 05:26 PM
rob.a, I believe you, I find your observation interesting as multiple players going digital into a receiver should have no difference in sound as the receiver's decoder would be decoding each one's input signal. Same decoder (DAC) for all, so what could cause any sound difference?

If each sends a PCM signal via HDMI there could be a difference, have you ever checked the set up menu to see what type of CD signal each player outputs? Do you use the same brand cable on each?

Sir Terrence the Terrible
08-26-2009, 06:09 PM
I am quite happy with my Sony (BDP-S300).
Your receiver or pre-pro determines what type you need.
If you have a receiver that handles all of the new codecs then no problem,
but if its older (like mine) you need a player with 5 to 7 line outs, and one that will decode the new formats and send them out this output so your multichannel on on your receiver
can receiver them.
This will keep you from having to buy a new receiver to get the new codecs.
My player decodes the new DD and DTS lossless formats into LPCM
and sends highq analog out the 7.1 , which any receiver with multichannel inputs can handle.
Some players don't have multichannel outs.
All players do send the lossless audio through the HDMI connection, but if your receiver can't handle it its no good.
As for picture, even with a 720p set BLU beats anything out there, even broadcast HD,
but a 1080p set is preferred.
One other bonus is DVD "upconversion", which is more of a marketing gimmick on DVD
players, gives some real benefit on a blu player.:1:

Sorry Pix, but your S300 does NOT decode the Dts-HD Master Audio. It decodes Dts-HD, the lossy version. I know because I own one. I use it to pull screenshots for my reviews. It does not have the processing power to do Dts-HD Master Audio, and it doesn't stream it either. It does decode Dolby TrueHD, and can bitstream it as well.

rob_a
08-27-2009, 03:49 PM
rob.a, I believe you, I find your observation interesting as multiple players going digital into a receiver should have no difference in sound as the receiver's decoder would be decoding each one's input signal. Same decoder (DAC) for all, so what could cause any sound difference?

If each sends a PCM signal via HDMI there could be a difference, have you ever checked the set up menu to see what type of CD signal each player outputs? Do you use the same brand cable on each?

Hi Peabody, I hear you, data is data, right? In theory there should be no difference, but in real time use there are other factors I believe that can add coloration to the sound, even digital.
I do use the same HDMI cables on all of my audio/HT equipment, so I have factored that out. I have messed around with every setting on my CD players and receiver to get the best sound that I like. I can’t explain it??? It seems to be a characteristic of the player.
side note: The Panny does have a re-EQ option, which I think is a junk option, no real improvement. :p

Mr Peabody
08-27-2009, 04:12 PM
rob, I've had some digital experiences I couldn't explain either. Many of which provoked some lively discussion. :)

Here's a link I recently lifted from another thread you might find interesting on digital. It's pretty long and sometimes deep but it does explain a few things. http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/diginterf1_e.html

rob_a
09-02-2009, 12:03 PM
rob, I've had some digital experiences I couldn't explain either. Many of which provoked some lively discussion. :)

Here's a link I recently lifted from another thread you might find interesting on digital. It's pretty long and sometimes deep but it does explain a few things. http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/diginterf1_e.html

OK, half way through reading that my brain blew up, Thanks for the link :6: