Picked up a PS3 - Question?

[MiTT]

I went shopping with my son the other day while he's in town visiting and we ended up picking up a Play Station 3 (80G version at Best Buy for $399.00). I figured that the games would be something he could enjoy while he's here (and the old man too - but I'm gonna need a LOT of practice). I also figured I'd have a good Blu-Ray player out of the deal.

I've got everything hooked up and have to say that I'm really stunned at the picture quaility even on my lowly 1080i display. I ran the HDMI out of the PS3 to the TV and am running Toslink over to my AV receiver for the digital audio portion. Like I say picture looks amazing, but so far at least I can't get any audio out of the setup (only through the TV speakers). Am I missing something in the setup?

 

[TomDac]

Hey Tim,

I'm doing the exact same thing.. You have to go into the setup on the PS3 and tell it you wanna send audio out thru the optical port...

 

[MiTT]

Thanks Tom, DUH!

It's funny, there were a whole bunch of papers in a bag that came with this thing. There's one there called a "Quick Reference Manual". You guys ever hear of these things? Anyway, inside it there was a bunch of drawings and words that describe exactly what Tom mentions. HUH?!?! That's pretty handy!

 

[C.A.P]

Tim 1080i is nothing to slouch at. I run it too. I also run the same digital Audio set up to my reciever. I cant tell the difference from 1080p to 1080 i . Its just all hyperbole at that level but some may say there is a measurable level of difference. I run a Sony Bx-1 BD player its a S 350 re badged from Sam's to stop price wars . Identical unit. My take is that unless you have a 10k tv and a room to run it in the difference from 1080I to 1080p is minute.

I looked at the PS3 and really thought about it. I am not a big gamer (anymore) Pac man had nothing on me in the 80 . Games have changed a lot and they are more user involved. I have young kids so I guess its a matter of time before I have to get something .

Let me know whats you favorite game !

Oh boy This could get out of hand .Another Hobby ............

 

[Munster]

The difference between 1080I and 1080P is all about

viewing distance. From 8 ft and under it is quite noticable

(I think) and from beyond that it is less and less.

 

[FISH_MAN]

I think its about the high motion 1080p is for that

 

[MDSPHOTO]

Me Too.

I went shopping with my son the other day while he's in town visiting and we ended up picking up a Play Station 3 (80G version at Best Buy for $399.00). I figured that the games would be something he could enjoy while he's here (and the old man too - but I'm gonna need a LOT of practice). I also figured I'd have a good Blu-Ray player out of the deal.

I've got everything hooked up and have to say that I'm really stunned at the picture quaility even on my lowly 1080i display. I ran the HDMI out of the PS3 to the TV and am running Toslink over to my AV receiver for the digital audio portion. Like I say picture looks amazing, but so far at least I can't get any audio out of the setup (only through the TV speakers). Am I missing something in the setup?

I also just purchased the PS3 as another step toward converting my listening room to a home theater. I have to say I was very dissapointed in the whole Blu-Ray experience, but perhaps I was expecting too much. I have the PS3 hooked up via the HDMI cable right to the Sony 1080i and I really don't see that much of a difference between the regular Iron Man DVD and the Blu-Ray version.

Someone else pointed out to me that viewing distance becomes a major factor in your ability to see a true difference. However, for WAF's sake I am not going to be allowed to move all of my furniture within 8 feet of the TV in a 23 foot room!

 

[RUR]

Here's a handy chart showing display size vs. viewing distance vs. benefits of increased resolution, courtesy of CarltonBale.com:

http://www.carltonbale.com/2006/11/1080p-does-matter/

 

[JonFo]

...

Let me know whats you favorite game !

Oh boy This could get out of hand .Another Hobby ............

Well we all drive and many of us on this forum seem to dig fast cars and faster driving, so racim sims are a great use of the graphics and horsepower in a PS3.

I went all out with a Racing Sim setup that features a 7.1 MartinLogan surround system for the audio tracks. Pretty realistic surround soundfields in GranTurismo.

So yes, another hobby to throw time and money at

Oh, and Tim make sure to get the dedicated DVD remote for the PS3, it makes a world of difference in usability.

 

[Bono]

Firmware Update

Don't forget to update the new firmware. Here's the link you could read about it. http://www.techspot.com/news/32635-sony-announces-playstation-3-firmware-update.html

Mike

 

[MiTT]

Well we all drive and many of us on this forum seem to dig fast cars and faster driving, so racim sims are a great use of the graphics and horsepower in a PS3.

I went all out with a Racing Sim setup that features a 7.1 MartinLogan surround system for the audio tracks. Pretty realistic surround soundfields in GranTurismo.

So yes, another hobby to throw time and money at

Oh, and Tim make sure to get the dedicated DVD remote for the PS3, it makes a world of difference in usability.

Thanks for the pointer Jon, I was actually just looking at one over at a Circuit City but didn't grab it just yet. I watched "Batman Begins" this morning after I'd fixed my little sound issue. Great movie and looked spectacular via Blu-Ray, but I had a few interruptions and it would have been great to just have a real "Pause" button at times. I'll be picking one up.

I'd like a good driving game. I'll look for "GranTurismo". So far I only have "Ghost Recon" and "Assassin's Creed", but they're pretty cool. Any other recommendations out there?

 

[JonFo]

Hi Tim,

the remote is $20 online: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16879261053

So use that as a benchmark if shopping this weekend.

My favorites driving sims on PS3 are:

GT - it's the best, extreemly realistic.

Dirt - a rally racing sim, OK graphics, very good physics in the real races. has an 'arcade' mode (easy to drive with the handheld controllers)

For any of them, but mainly for GT, a force feedback wheel on a solid mount is the best. But all are enjoyable with the standard controllers.

Have fun

 

[TomDac]

Hey Tim,

MotorStorm is a fun racing game also. GT is good, but it's a prologue, so it doesn't have everything...

best bet is to download some free demos and play them to see what you like.. Also, there are TONS of games on the used market...

Target even has a section of "older" games that they're blowing out.

have fun!!

Tom.

 

[cstory]

I'm a little late to this thread when mentioning picture quality. True the size of the screen and vewing distance has a huge impact on what you perceive as far as the benifits of Blu Ray.

When I got my PS3 I was not "blown away" by the picture, (92" Stewart screen with Sony Black Perl Projector), but it definitely was better. Now that we have watched more and more movies, when we go back to a standard DVD, it looks like it's out of focus.

My guess is that you'll experience something similar with time.
Congrats on the PS3, it's quite a versitile machine. I love doing photo slide shows with mine. When you see a photo of the Grand Canyon at 92" it finally starts to feel like you are standing on the edge again.

Chuck

 

[RichTeer]

I'd like a good driving game. I'll look for "GranTurismo". So far I only have "Ghost Recon" and "Assassin's Creed", but they're pretty cool. Any other recommendations out there?

The driving games are my favourite. I recommend Motorstorm and Motorstorm: Pacific Rift, Gran Tourismo, and Ridge Racer. There's also Ferrari Challenge and one or two others that I've not tried yet.

 

[RUR]

Another vote for Motorstorm. One of the few games my son plays which I also enjoy. Worth it for the slo-mo, any aspect crashes, alone.

 

[JMAUSGP]

Two things, blu-ray and 1080P mean more on a bigger screen. So if you look at 1080P on a 27 inch TV versus 1080i there is really no difference. However look at 1080P on a 120 inch screen and there is a world of difference. Look at 1080P versus 1080i on a 200 inch screen and one is engaging and the other is an out of focus mess and not worth watching. So big is 1080P good and small is no difference.

As for PS3 racing games, there is a Formula One game that on a 100 inch screen with ML surrounds and a Playseat with driver controls, it will physically wear you out in 30 minutes or less. No kidding for all the racing games check out a Playseat it is the cat's .... you know what. Seriously, PS3 plus Playseat equals as close as you can get to the real thing.

 

[theWB]

I think its about the high motion 1080p is for that

THe refresh Rate has more to do wth the motion, the newer displays with the 120hz refresh rate are designed to handle motion better.

The resolution of 1080i and 1080p are exactly the same, the only difference is with a 1080i every other line of resolution is refreshed every second, with 1080p every line is refreshed every second, so I guess you could assume it would help with motion, but I haven't read anything that states that it does.

I have a PS3 and an upscaling universal player. My tv is only 1080i, to my eye the Blu-Ray has the superior picture.

 

[Craig]

I ran the HDMI out of the PS3 to the TV and am running Toslink over to my AV receiver for the digital audio portion. Like I say picture looks amazing, but so far at least I can't get any audio out of the setup (only through the TV speakers). Am I missing something in the setup?

Yes, you need to go into the settings menu of your PS3 and change the audio to play through the TOSLINK optical cable. Otherwise your HDMI cable is transmitting the audio to your TV and the TOSLINK is disabled. Otherwise, you have no sound through your AV setup and only from your TV set.

 

[Reverb2009]

When I got my PS3 I was not "blown away" by the picture, (92" Stewart screen with Sony Black Perl Projector), but it definitely was better. Now that we have watched more and more movies, when we go back to a standard DVD, it looks like it's out of focus.

The calibration of your HDTV can have a dramatic effect on how much of a difference you see in DVD vs Blu-Ray.

The Sharpness control is one of the most misunderstood and abused controls on an HDTV. A lot of people think "sharpness" I like a sharp picture and crank the sharpness control up. What most users don't know is the correct position for the sharpness control on a digital source like DVD, Digital cable or Blu-Ray is in the lowest setting or switched to "off". The sharpness control is for analog sources like a VCR or analog cable TV. Analog sources don't have any high frequency information like digital sources do so it's there to ad that missing information.

Digital sources have high frequency information or detail so turning up the sharpness control can add ringing & halo's that can obstruct the extra information from Blu-Ray making the picture look no better then a DVD unconverted. I highly recommend to any and all Blu-Ray owners that they give the Blu-Ray edition of Digital Video essentials a try. It will help make your HD look better buy walking you threw set patterns to help you properly calibrate your HDTV for the best picture possible. Only draw back to calibrating your HDTV is good sources will look really good and bad sources will look really bad.


http://www.tower.com/hd-basics-blu-ray/wapi/111372243