Bluray vs 1080p upconvert

[Navi]

Whats the pros/cons here guys.

I currently have a ps3 that I play lburays off simply because I was scared of buying a standalone unit without knowing how long they are going to be around. Now that it looks like BLuray might hang around a few year Im thinking about buying a true player for them. Being the Denon junkie I am its not going to be a cheap venture but Id like to know that Im not ****ing away money that I could save half of and get a fine upconverting unit and see similar results with less invested in the disc.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

 

[Reverb2009]

The PS3 is still one of the best Blu-Ray players out there. Blu-Ray will be around for at least five more years, the sales numbers keep climbing and sub $200 players are expected in time for this Christmas.



Denon just announced a new player the DVD-1800BD with an MSRP of $749.

http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1738

 

[Navi]

The PS3 is still one of the best Blu-Ray players out there. Blu-Ray will be around for at least five more years, the sales numbers keep climbing and sub $200 players are expected in time for this Christmas.



Denon just announced a new player the DVD-1800BD with an MSRP of $749.

http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1738

Dont let my wife see that, I have been dropping the hint I was buying the 3800 for months

Back to reality thanks for the info, will have to wait and see some reviews on this bad guy.

 

[Feltran]

Under the right circumstances, upconverting really can't compare to Blu-Ray. And by right circumstances, I mean a film with a good conversion to Blu-Ray, and a large high quality TV.

Reality is, upconverting doesn't really do a lot for DVD. With a small TV, or a large TV that's a long way away, you may not see that much of a difference, but that's not because it isn't there.


Also, one very important detail (considering this is an audio forum)! Sony has tried to make it known, but it's still pretty uncommon knowledge. Blu-Ray isn't just about better picture, it's also about better sound. Most Blu-Ray movies have better audio encoding than you'd find on a DVD.



As for what player to use? The PS3 makes a bit more noise than other Blu-Ray players, and consumes more energy, but otherwise every review I've ever seen says that it's right up there with the best Blu-Ray players. If you don't already have a top of the line TV and sound system (And Sony just announced amazing new TVs), there's almost certainly better things to spend your money on than an ultra high-end Blu Ray player.

 

[Cherian]

The PS3 is an excellent blue-ray player. Don’t forget the processing power inside this box. From what I have seen and read the PS3 is fast for disk access and menu loading. The picture quality is also very good. The big advantage to the PS3 is the frequent firmware upgrades that enhance its capabilities. For $399.00 you can not go wrong.

 

[Reverb2009]

The PS3 is an excellent blue-ray player. Don’t forget the processing power inside this box. From what I have seen and read the PS3 is fast for disk access and menu loading. The picture quality is also very good. The big advantage to the PS3 is the frequent firmware upgrades that enhance its capabilities. For $399.00 you can not go wrong.

The PS3 is definitely the best bang for the buck in Blu-Ray.

However it does not have any analog outs, so only HDMI will work for Dolby +, Dolby TrueHD and DTS Master audio.

The PS3 does a good job with DVD's but not great, Secrets tested it if you want to read more. http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/dvd-.../dvd-players/sony-playstation-ps3-fw-2.1.html

There are stand alone players that that do audio and video better then the PS3 but you will pay a lot more at this point in time. I have my eye on the new Sony 5000ES player. :drool:

 

[C.A.P]

Sept 28 Sony is dropping their prices on most Blue ray players in their line to spike the industry. The S350 will be $299, its a great player but lacks the upcoming S550 which can decode DTS HD MA as wel as all the other HT standards. . It should retail for $400 Ill be buying the S550 or the Panasonic DMP BD 50 which is a great player too. It too can do all the HT formats. Niether are SACD.

 

[Reverb2009]

Dont let my wife see that, I have been dropping the hint I was buying the 3800 for months

Back to reality thanks for the info, will have to wait and see some reviews on this bad guy.

O' buy the way rumor has it Denon is working on a new flagship Blu-Ray player that will support SACD & DVD-A and some new features. MSRP is rumored in the 4K range.

 

[rockeratheart]

blue-ray audio?

When I get a blue ray player, I'll go out HDMI directly to tv for video, but what audio options are there? My receiver only decodes DD and DTS. Can you still use the same coax that I use for my current dvd player? Or am I stuck having to use the ext. inputs for my HT?

 

[C.A.P]

When I get a blue ray player, I'll go out HDMI directly to tv for video, but what audio options are there? My receiver only decodes DD and DTS. Can you still use the same coax that I use for my current dvd player? Or am I stuck having to use the ext. inputs for my HT?

NOPE you can use your Coax . I will run my system EXACTLY like you have . HDMI directly to the TV and Coax from the Blue Ray Player to my Receiver. Most new players have coax and HDMI. many have the optical too. I use that for my SAT to receiver !

 

[Diamonds]

I am waiting for Oppo to make one as well as Esoteric. Once they get in the game I will get in the Blu-Ray game.

I purchased a Panasonic Blu-Ray player. Not sure the model it was about $500 from Bestbuy. I was so unimpressed I took it back and got my money back. The sound was terrible in comparison to my Cary DVD player.

 

[RUR]

When I get a blue ray player, I'll go out HDMI directly to tv for video, but what audio options are there? My receiver only decodes DD and DTS. Can you still use the same coax that I use for my current dvd player? Or am I stuck having to use the ext. inputs for my HT?

NOPE you can use your Coax . I will run my system EXACTLY like you have . HDMI directly to the TV and Coax from the Blue Ray Player to my Receiver. Most new players have coax and HDMI. many have the optical too. I use that for my SAT to receiver !

Players which decode lossless codecs (TrueHD/DTS HD MA) in the player (vs. bitstream to the AVR for decoding), will send the decoded audio as MPCM via HDMI or, if the player has them, via analog outs. Using coax or toslink will cause the audio to default to DD or DTS core (lossy).

 

[C.A.P]

Players which decode lossless codecs (TrueHD/DTS HD MA) in the player (vs. bitstream to the AVR for decoding), will send the decoded audio as MPCM via HDMI or, if the player has them, via analog outs. Using coax or toslink will cause the audio to default to DD or DTS core (lossy).

OK , IM learning now! So with my TV I have 1 HDMI port, and none on my older Sony HT receiver. How would I get Lossless CODECS to work ??? get a new receiver that has RCA 5.1 or 7.1 and go to the player for the audio?

 

[RUR]

OK , IM learning now! So with my TV I have 1 HDMI port, and none on my older Sony HT receiver. How would I get Lossless CODECS to work ??? get a new receiver that has RCA 5.1 or 7.1 and go to the player for the audio?

Without an HDMI input on your AVR, the only way you can get multi-channel lossless is via analog. You'll need to buy a player which decodes both lossless codecs (all handle LPCM) and which has 5.1 or 7.1 analog out. 5.1 is easy, the Denon 3800 was the first to have 7.1, but there are likely more at this point.

Edit: BD player details may be found here: http://www.blu-ray.com/players/

 

[zaphod]

OK , IM learning now! So with my TV I have 1 HDMI port, and none on my older Sony HT receiver. How would I get Lossless CODECS to work ??? get a new receiver that has RCA 5.1 or 7.1 and go to the player for the audio?

yep, you have to get an AV processor that will split the hdmi into A and V and then decode the A. or you get a processor that has analog 5.1 inputs and have the player decode the audio for you.

now i went the separates route - my bryston audio processor is audio only. and my extron video switch/scaler is video only. i take the HDMI from the BRplayer and route it into a small box called an HDFury that turns the HDMI video into RGB which i then pass through to the CRT projector. very very nice.

the bryston does a great job of decoding the coax signal, but it's not the best track from the the disk. however the players mostly have 5.1 and not 7.1 analog outs so i lose my rear channels if i use the 5.1 analog bypass on the bryston.

i wish that the bryston would have an HDMI input that decoded the audio channels. but repeated emails to them about product lines have gone unanswered.

 

[RUR]

A running scorecard of SSP & Pre/Pros which support HDMI and MPCM or Lossless decoding may be found here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=12233966#post12233966

 

[zaphod]

awesome list, and had a pointer to the work on the new bryston SP3. very cool indeed.

 

[greg_slo]

there are definitely some great video processors available to take any vid source up to 1080P, but no way to get the most out of the audio (as compared with an actual BRP with correct equipment). At the price of these vid processors, you might has well spend the same on top notch BRP. My honest opinion if $$$ allows: blu-ray for blu-ray stuff, comparable quality DVD player for DVD stuff...to me its almost the same thing as using a DVD for a CD player if you can afford to get top notch [realtive] "seperates."

...and after writting so far,i see that wasnt your question...i think you would be happiest (assuming future upgrades is an option) to get a real nice upconverting DVD player in the short run...then as funds permit get a real nice BRP...im still a sceptic to some degree as the longevity of the format, which im starting to lessen (a little).


As for some of the points that were brought up in the thread...if you use an analog 5-7.1 out for the HD audio codecs....how will this affect ppl who already have SACD/DVD-A...are there any pre/pro or receivers that have multiple sets of analog inputs?


ive read conflicting reports on the ability for BRP specific codecs to be carried (and decoded) over SPDIF...id imagine it would depend on player pre/pro/receiver combo...but i was under the impression that HDMI (and analog if ur BRP decodes 1st) was the only way to handle the HD and other BRP specific audio codecs?


are there any stand alone 'boxes' that will decode audio (namely the BRP specific codecs) into analog audio?


are the any quality 5-7.1 analog audio 'switch boxes'?

....i think i should have started a dif thread??

~greg

 

[Navi]

So now another question is posed after reading all this, I currently have the ps3 routed via hdmi through my denon avr3808 and then output of that to the monitor.
Would I be better off doing as mentioned and taking the hdmi straight to the TV and then using an output for audio to reciever by itself?

 

[MotorToad]

So now another question is posed after reading all this, I currently have the ps3 routed via hdmi through my denon avr3808 and then output of that to the monitor.
Would I be better off doing as mentioned and taking the hdmi straight to the TV and then using an output for audio to reciever by itself?

I would think you'd be running HDMI from the receiver to the TV already. The audio (probably) won't pass through the receiver.