Newbie Sort of HT A/V decisions

[cjwolverine]

I need some of the techno people to help me educate myself here.

I am in the process (with a local dealer) setting up an A/V system. Thus far I have chosen:
I already own a Pioneer Elite pro 1130hd (2years old , max is 1080i)

1) Yamaha 2700 Receiver, I like the features have listened and especially like the zones and the ability to listen to some internet radio (i know the quality isn't top notch, but I like some of the content) via the ethernet network. I have a wireless home network with apple macs. (There is a whole nother question related to the mac / internet / itunes / ipod) I'll post in another thread.

2) B & W cm 7. I loved the cm1 and the wife actually wanted floor standing over bookshelf, so woo hoo. the cm7 center to match.

I'm undecided on the Sub. The dealer likes Martin Logan. I may opt instead for an SVS or Hsu that fits my room. It is about 6000 cuft (25widex17deepx14high) plus it is open to a kitchen and foyer. So I'm planning on a big rooom sub.

I'm also struggling with the dvd / audio source- Oppo 981/970/971 vs. the dealer recommended yami 1700. I have read quite a bit on the yami having difficulty with any disk that isn't perfect. I burn quite a bit and also make home movie stuff of the kids. The dealer looked at Oppo specs and didn't like that the 981 didn't offer component outputs. So far I'm in the camp that wants to wait for HD vs. Blue ray to battle, get cheaper, get more titles, and I will buy the universal player in a couple of years.

So here are my questions:
1) Is is a big deal that the Oppo 981 only offers HDMI outputs for video?
2) Since my plasma only works to 1080i, is it a waste to get a 1080p DVD?
should I look at the lower 970 or 971?
3) I read quite a bit about people saying don't worry about the scaler in your DVD, let the scaler in your tv or receiver do the work. Well how do I know which component is doing the converting and therefore does it matter that the lower 971 970 oppos HDMI is 480i only? Will my TV. or receiver just bring it to 1080i ( the max of my tv)?
4) Is the dealer just looking to sell the yami 1700 (obviously) and is the "lack of component out" the only thing he can find wrong with the oppo?

I've learned a ton here. I haven't bought this stuff in almost 15 years and appreciate all comments you guys can offer.

Thanks
cjwolverine
ann arbor, mi

[Pluck]

I am a big fan of Vandersteen speakers, including their subwoofers. I have one in my HT system, and when I watch Master and Commander the whole house shakes when they fire the cannons. The dog gets scared, the neighbors wonder if there's an earthquake and I'm happy. Seriously, at one time or another I've owned just about every speaker Vandersteen makes and I really like them.

[gtaylor0]

While I love my S1700 DVD player - I think it produces a superb image on my Sony XBR1 LCD, better than the TV's scaler could alone - I wouldn't recommend it for you. It might produce macroblocking on your plasma and I've heard it doesn't handle burned DVD's well; imperfect ones are fine, it's just with burned that it's supposed to go a little loopy, or so I've read a few times.

[cjwolverine]

thanks gtaylor. I think I'm going to skip the yamaha 1700 for now. Now my question about the oppo and its outputs or lack of. Again, if my pioneer plasma is only 1080i, is the oppo 981 overkill? Would the 970 or 971 be just as good on my TV? The scaling, and up/down converting is still a mystery to me. What does the scaling and up converting? my tv?, the dvd player? the receiver?

Or would the 981 beet them on sound for the music side, when I am playing a normal cd, not dvd?

thanks
cj

[MDS]

Again, if my pioneer plasma is only 1080i, is the oppo 981 overkill? Would the 970 or 971 be just as good on my TV? The scaling, and up/down converting is still a mystery to me. What does the scaling and up converting? my tv?, the dvd player? the receiver?


No TV is 1080i. All that means is that it can accept a 1080i signal.

Every digital TV has a native resolution and can only display images in that resolution. Any signal that does not match the TV's resolution must be scaled by either the receiver, the dvd player, or the TV itself to match the TV's native resolution.

[cjwolverine]

No TV is 1080i. All that means is that it can accept a 1080i signal.

Every digital TV has a native resolution and can only display images in that resolution. Any signal that does not match the TV's resolution must be scaled by either the receiver, the dvd player, or the TV itself to match the TV's native resolution.

MDS,
All semantics aside, my tv can accept a 1080i signal. Now to my original question. I understand that one of the components you listed is going to do the scaling. Some people say my TV has an excellent scaler, others suggest to let the receiver do it, and still some say let the DVD player do it. Who is right? and how do you tell the other 2 components to leave the signal alone? How do we know which specific component is doing the scaling?

What I don't understand is this. .. if for example my receiver or tv has a good scaler, then why would I (or anyone) ever need a DVD player to output 1080p or 1080i?? Under the logic of "some component is going to do the scaling" why do I need all three to do the scaling? Isn't that overkill? Why should I pay extra for a DVD player and a Receiver based on their scaling if it only has to be done once? This is the part I need help understanding.

thanks
cj

[jcPanny]

CJ,
I would bet that the high end scaler chips in the Oppo players is better than the one in your TV. On the audioholics review of the Yamaha RX-V2700 the scaler performance was OK but not great. Check out the Secrets of HT site for detailed reviews of scalers in the Oppo players. I have their entry level DV-970HD and would recommend one of their players.

Like you sugest, you display can't receive a 1080p signal, so the 971 is your best option unless you want the SACD capability of the newer 981 model.
I don't see any reason why you would need a component video connection on your DVD player. You will never need it with your current or future receiver and TV.

The Oppo, Yammy, or any DVD player will send a digital audio singal to your receiver. The receiver will do the audio processing and D/A conversion so they should all sound the same. If you use the analog connections for DVD-A and SACD playback (instead of HDMI) then the D/A converters on the DVD player are used. You will probably never want/need to use this connection with your HDMI receiver.

If you want to spend about $200 for a upscaling DVD player, I recommend one of the Oppos. If you want to send more, check out the second generation HD-DVD players.

[Ryan8886]

CJ,
Like you sugest, you display can't receive a 1080p signal, so the 971 is your best option unless you want the SACD capability of the newer 981 model
CJ,
Actually, I'm pretty sure the 971 is out of production now....the 970 and 981 are your choices. The Genesis/Faroudja chip in the 981 is quite likely better than the scaler in your TV or receiver. I've only heard of serious macroblocking issues with DLP, not plasma, so you should be alright there.
I noticed an excellent jump in picture quality when I got mine, especially with some of the older DVD's that were not real high quality transfers. It's no miracle worker, but it's a skillful little machine.
The other thing I like about Oppo is the fact that they continue to offer enhancements to the software that you can download, burn and then install on the machine. Not many companies offer that level of customer service, particularly for a little over 2 bills.
I run mine at 1080i for now and will be able to upgrade to 1080p in the future. As for the Blu-ray/HD-DVD war, I'm not sure there will be a "winner" anytime soon. If they're not careful, both formats could go the way of SACD/DVD-A (both of which the 981 will play BTW ;) )(and I'm pretty sure it will play them via HDMI).
While not true HD, high quality upconverters like the Oppo's give the HD's a serious run for their money at half the cost. Sparty on! :p