BR Player Guidance!!!!!!!!!

[speakerman39]

Hello people hope all is well. I have been wanting to get me a BR player for some time now. Right now, there are a few strong contenders. Thus, here they are:
Sony BDP-S350, Panasonic DMPBD30K, or the Samsung BD-P1500. All three of these are closely priced. Of these, would anyone here care to explain the SIGNIFICANT difference(s) between them. For the most part, I am not really sure there are any SIGNIFICANT differences-thus the main reason for me posting this thread.

I also have been considering the Panasonic DMPBD50K, and the Sony BDP-S500. Now these two players are around the $600 price point. What would I really be gaining by spending this much as compared to the (3) up above? In other words, would spending this much enhance anything SIGNIFICANTLY?

Lastly, would I be better off waiting a bit longer in the hopes that the BR player prices coming down to more affordable levels? I kinda been holding out to see what OPPO comes out with, but I am a bit tired of waiting. The Sony BDP-S350 really looks promising and as such am leaning more towards it. But, would the Panasonic DMPBD30K be better??? I have more or less ruled out the Samsung BD-P1500 because of reliability problems I have had with Samsung products in the past. Can anyone here help me sort this all out as my head is spinning.

 

[j_garcia]

It would be between the S550 (not the 500) and the BD-50 IMO. The real question is, do you have a receiver with HDMI capability and if so, what capabilities? That would be the main reason for the 550 or BD50, as they do internal decoding and can pass that via multichannel analog to any receiver with preamp inputs. If you are ready and waiting with HDMI, I don't think you will see huge differences between the S350 and the BD30 and the 1500, IMO. My 2 cents.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

I still say the PS3 is the best out there.

Plus you can surf porn on it!

 

[speakerman39]

It would be between the S550 (not the 500) and the BD-50 IMO. The real question is, do you have a receiver with HDMI capability and if so, what capabilities? That would be the main reason for the 550 or BD50, as they do internal decoding and can pass that via multichannel analog to any receiver with preamp inputs. If you are ready and waiting with HDMI, I don't think you will see huge differences between the S350 and the BD30 and the 1500, IMO. My 2 cents.

Thanks John for the info. I own a Yamaha RX-V663 receiver. So, which would you go with and why? I mean, what will the S550 or the BD-50 really give me the 350 won't? Still a bit confused.

Cheers,

Phil

 

[speakerman39]

I still say the PS3 is the best out there.

Plus you can surf porn on it!

Hi Greg and thanks for posting. Why do you feel the PS3 is the best out there? I really am NOT a gamer so not sure if the PS3 is right for me. Just curious is all.

Cheers,

Phil

 

[ParadigmDawg]

You mean besides the porn?

It is just so robust. Awesome SD and HD play back, Frequent firmware updates and great for wireless streaming of your music from your CPU.

I am not a gamer either.

 

[unreal.freak]

Hi Greg and thanks for posting. Why do you feel the PS3 is the best out there? I really am NOT a gamer so not sure if the PS3 is right for me. Just curious is all.

Cheers,

Phil

Ive read somewhere that the PS3 is faster with the loading time of the movies. I don't have one to compare anything to, but i have read it in several reputable spots. I Think you can also browse the web with the PS3. When i get the money i think i will be getting the PS3 for BD playback.

Peace,
Tommy

 

[unreal.freak]

The only downside i have heard anyone complain about is the lack of compatability with any of the universal remotes. i think the PS3 uses bluetooth or something.

Peace,
Tommy

 

[j_garcia]

Thanks John for the info. I own a Yamaha RX-V663 receiver. So, which would you go with and why? I mean, what will the S550 or the BD-50 really give me the 350 won't? Still a bit confused.

Cheers,

Phil

The difference being the BD50 and the 550 will decode the high def audio formats and pass them via analog (7.1 channel) to your receiver vs passing it on to your receiver via HDMI (a few different options for how that is done, PCM or bitstream). Your receiver should be able to handle either via HDMI, so should be OK.

Ive read somewhere that the PS3 is faster with the loading time of the movies. I don't have one to compare anything to, but i have read it in several reputable spots. I Think you can also browse the web with the PS3. When i get the money i think i will be getting the PS3 for BD playback.

The PS3 has already booted by the time you put a disc in, but compared to some other players I've seen, it is still faster than most.

Yes, PS3 is Bluetooth, and yes you can browse the web with it (wired or wireless).

The only downside i have heard anyone complain about is the lack of compatability with any of the universal remotes. i think the PS3 uses bluetooth or something.

Yes, bluetooth only, though there are a few IR remotes available for typical functions and at least one aftermarket product that converts the BT to IR.

I bought my dad the Insignia BD player for $199 and it works surprisingly well. It is slow to load discs and the remote is a little cheap feeling, but it is a pretty decent player overall, especially for the price.

 

[speakerman39]

The only downside i have heard anyone complain about is the lack of compatability with any of the universal remotes. i think the PS3 uses bluetooth or something.

Peace,
Tommy

Well, that is good new since you have my universal remote eh? Ha!Ha! Just kidding Tommy. Hope all is well in Florida. Looks like there has been some very nasty weather down there. Just be careful and stay safe my friend.

Cheers,

Phil

 

[speakerman39]

Hey guys, I noticed Seth has had some issues with his PS3 player and certain BR disks. Has anyone else ran into this as well? Oh btw, what does Profile 2.0 really mean? Why is it so important???

Cheers,

Phil

 

[avaserfi]

I think you missed the point the PS3 is the best choice...Greg already told you why!

Plus you can surf porn on it!

Besides that it really does do a phenomenal job upscaling, decoding and being updated constantly. Plus it is a powerhouse that will allow for quite a bit of other functionality such as music/video streaming from another computer.

Hey guys, I noticed Seth has had some issues with his PS3 player and certain BR disks. Has anyone else ran into this as well? Oh btw, what does Profile 2.0 really mean? Why is it so important???

Cheers,

Phil

I have a 60GB PS3 that I have had for a year and a half with no issues. Profile 2.0 adds interactivity to supported titles [online features maybe games etc...]. I find it pretty useless and played with it once for novelty and never bothered again.

 

[speakerman39]

I think you missed the point the PS3 is the best choice...Greg already told you why!



Besides that it really does do a phenomenal job upscaling, decoding and being updated constantly. Plus it is a powerhouse that will allow for quite a bit of other functionality such as music/video streaming from another computer.



I have a 60GB PS3 that I have had for a year and a half with no issues. Profile 2.0 adds interactivity to supported titles [online features maybe games etc...]. I find it pretty useless and played with it once for novelty and never bothered again.

Thanks for the info. Sorry, if I missed something as for the last (2) days all I have done is take my Mom from one doctor to another. Then, to the hospital and back to the doctor, and etc. I am absolutely worn out. Not complaining just acknowledging. It has really been a long day.

Cheers,

Phil

 

[ParadigmDawg]

I have never had issues with mine. The only thing that gets on my nerves is the fan noise. It has 3 levels and mine stays on level two most of the time. The exhaust comes out on the right side of the PS3 and mine is a little too close to the side of my credenza. I think the easy fix is to move it over a few inches but my HDMI cable is too short to allow this. I have meant to buy a longer HDMI cable for almost a year now but never get around to it.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Yeah, if you don't care about the way the PS3 looks (game console vs traditional rack component), I think you should consider the PS3. It is not just a game system and blu-ray/DVD/CD/SACD player. It is a super computer that has proven numerous times already that it can handle future upgrades like no other machine.

For example, no other machines were able to upgrade to DTS HD-MA with just a firmware, except for the PS3! And I don't think any other machines have been able to upgrade to profile 2.0 with just a firmware, except for the PS3! Not even my $2K Denon BD player can upgrade like the PS3. And the PS3 has WiFi, which makes firmware updates simple.

If you are considering the PS3, just know that it decodes all the HD Lossless audio codecs internally and send out via HDMI. It cannot send bitstream of these HD Audio. But it's no big deal since you have the Yamaha 663.

But it goes back to the first point: can you handle the way the PS3 looks?

 

[j_garcia]

I have mine inside a closed rack (glass doors, no back, sides are perforated) and I don't hear the fan unless it is REALLY quiet. Mine only steps up to level 2 when it is very warm out - even then, when playing games or watching movies, there is very little chance of actually hearing the fan going over the rest of my system....

 

[jostenmeat]

My Pana BD-30 is in an open audio rack. I got it when I saw that someone had finally solved DTS-MA (Sony had not quite yet provided FW at this point).

If its significantly cheaper than the BD50, I don't see why not. DVD's look like crap on it, though. I still don't care about 2.0.

If using a 7.1 system with 663, you cannot matrix the bitstreams, and the BD-30 only bitstreams the lossless codecs.

Works like a charm. Remote is not backlit, but how many are these days?

Sony is very upgradable because they took the software approach, cost effective. Decoder chips in players are cheaper than those in receivers because they don't need surround processing, post-processing, room correction, and A/D conversion. But, companies can't wait forever for chip companies, so Denon used receiver decoder chips, and just turned off most of the features. This is partly why ADTG's 3800 player is so expensive and overpriced.

 

[j_garcia]

BD-30 for $299 with free shipping:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000Y634SU/ref=nosim/panandscathed-20

 

[speakerman39]

I have never had issues with mine. The only thing that gets on my nerves is the fan noise. It has 3 levels and mine stays on level two most of the time. The exhaust comes out on the right side of the PS3 and mine is a little too close to the side of my credenza. I think the easy fix is to move it over a few inches but my HDMI cable is too short to allow this. I have meant to buy a longer HDMI cable for almost a year now but never get around to it.

Thanks Greg for the info. I can certainly relate to getting around to doing something. Guess we all are guilty of that from time to time. Appreciate you taking the time to post my friend.

Cheers,

Phil

 

[speakerman39]

Yeah, if you don't care about the way the PS3 looks (game console vs traditional rack component), I think you should consider the PS3. It is not just a game system and blu-ray/DVD/CD/SACD player. It is a super computer that has proven numerous times already that it can handle future upgrades like no other machine.

For example, no other machines were able to upgrade to DTS HD-MA with just a firmware, except for the PS3! And I don't think any other machines have been able to upgrade to profile 2.0 with just a firmware, except for the PS3! Not even my $2K Denon BD player can upgrade like the PS3. And the PS3 has WiFi, which makes firmware updates simple.

If you are considering the PS3, just know that it decodes all the HD Lossless audio codecs internally and send out via HDMI. It cannot send bitstream of these HD Audio. But it's no big deal since you have the Yamaha 663.

But it goes back to the first point: can you handle the way the PS3 looks?

Yeah, I can handle how a PS3 looks. Thanks for the info. Sounds like the PS3 is really the way to go with respect to future upgrades. I will keep all of this in mind. Just wished I knew what OPPO was coming out with. So would a lot of other members here for that matter......LOL!!!!!

Cheers,

Phil