Clueless about Blu-ray

[Gov]

I have an old Sony CRT RPTV that I love and am not ready to give up. I still use a Denon DVD-2200 for DVD's, DVD-A and SACD. I want to get into Blu-Ray, but is it worth it for me? Do I need a newer technology display to benefit? If it is worth it, what player should I be looking at? Is it better to go through your A/V receiver (have Pioneer SC-05) or straight to the TV?

Thanks

 

[The Dukester]

I would venture to say that you will see a little benefit from a BD player on your set provided you have component video connections. I doubt your set has DVi. You need one of those two or HDMI to get any benefit from the increased resolution. Optical or coax will not carry the HD signal. You would see a bigger difference on a nice 1080p display, however. As for running it through the receiver, yes, you would get the benefit of the lossless audio tracks with that receiver.
As for which one you buy, it would depend on several things. For one, you would need to decide if profile 2.0 (BD live web interactivity) is something you value or do you really just care about watching the movie. If the later, you can go with a profile 1.1 player and save some money. Since your receiver will decode the new audio tracks, you don't have to worry about internal decoding, either. Use HDMI out from the player to your receiver and component video out to the tv.
Let us know your budget and needs/wants for recommendations on a player. Black Friday is coming as well and there are already leaked ads with sub $200 players

 

[Gov]

My TV has one HDMI input. I don't want to spend more than $200 if possible, I'm just interested in movie watching.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I have an old Sony CRT RPTV that I love and am not ready to give up. I still use a Denon DVD-2200 for DVD's, DVD-A and SACD. I want to get into Blu-Ray, but is it worth it for me? Do I need a newer technology display to benefit? If it is worth it, what player should I be looking at? Is it better to go through your A/V receiver (have Pioneer SC-05) or straight to the TV?

Thanks

How large is the set and how far away do you watch it from? What resolution is it capable of. This has a bearing what resolution you may see or not see.

 

[Gov]

How large is the set and how far away do you watch it from? What resolution is it capable of. This has a bearing what resolution you may see or not see.

57" 1080i. I sit about 14 feet away

 

[jostenmeat]

57" 1080i. I sit about 14 feet away

Yes, you will notice. You don't get any benefit of 1080, but you will with 720: therefore, you will notice an improvement with PQ nonetheless.

Now, sure, you can check out Insignia BD players for instance, my guess is $200 +/- $20.

The thing is, if you don't mind spending about $80 more, you are getting a product that is basically as good as it gets for bluray-only PQ. How about a Panasonic BD-35 for $286. Or you can shave off $30 or so for the BD-30 like I use . . .

Just FWIW.

 

[Gov]

Yes, you will notice. You don't get any benefit of 1080, but you will with 720: therefore, you will notice an improvement with PQ nonetheless.

Now, sure, you can check out Insignia BD players for instance, my guess is $200 +/- $20.

The thing is, if you don't mind spending about $80 more, you are getting a product that is basically as good as it gets for bluray-only PQ. How about a Panasonic BD-35 for $286. Or you can shave off $30 or so for the BD-30 like I use . . .

Just FWIW.

I am strongly considering the BD30. Costco has them for $249, as does Amazon. I will still keep my Denon DVD-2200 for SD DVD, DVD-A and SACD, so I will not benefit from the BD35.
Then there is Oppo that will be coming out with supposedly a true universal player that will do it all. But, I fear that will be closer to $1000.
My SC-05 has all the new codecs so I would love to put them to use via Blu-Ray.
And then there is whether or not DD True-HD or DTS-MA is much better than the lossy stuff. And the fact that I only use 5.1, so would the HD audio even be worth it.
The more I research the sicker I get
I need help!!!!!!

 

[jostenmeat]

I am strongly considering the BD30. Costco has them for $249, as does Amazon. I will still keep my Denon DVD-2200 for SD DVD, DVD-A and SACD, so I will not benefit from the BD35.
Then there is Oppo that will be coming out with supposedly a true universal player that will do it all. But, I fear that will be closer to $1000.
My SC-05 has all the new codecs so I would love to put them to use via Blu-Ray.
And then there is whether or not DD True-HD or DTS-MA is much better than the lossy stuff. And the fact that I only use 5.1, so would the HD audio even be worth it.
The more I research the sicker I get
I need help!!!!!!

lossy vs lossless = debated ad nauseum. Might as well though.

btw, the above has nothing to do with 5.1 vs 7.1. not really anyways.

i vote you splurge $30 more for the 35 over the 30. if only for profile 2.0. i don't need it, but you might as well. i bought my player last year.

 

[allargon]

1080i and 1080p have the EXACT same resolution. A buddy of mine has a 1080i Mits RP CRT. He definitely gets benefits from Blu-Ray and (to a lesser degree) from HD DVD (Xbox 360).

Component is just fine. I've never seen or heard of a HD capable (not one of those silly HD ready ones or EDTV's) CRT without component connections. Two things you lose with lack of HDMI--upscaling of SD DVD and HDMI audio. Notice that I didn't say no lossless audio. Lossless audio is perfectly achievable via the multichannel analog outputs of many Blu-Ray players.

Most HD audio tracks are 5.1. I do agree with Josten on the Panasonic players. Since your display actually has HDMI, there's no reason not to use it. If spending the extra $80 is too much, you can get an Insignia player from Best Buy for around $200 with a coupon for $100 worth of discounts on Warner Blu-Ray movies. That effectively makes the Insignia around $100. The Insignia player is profile 1.1 (allows for picture in picture) and will bitstream high res audio codecs to your Pioneer receiver for decoding. The only you won't have with the Insignia is profile 2.0/BD-Live for Internet functionality or top notch upscaling. Otherwise, you're golden.

 

[Gov]

How is the PQ on the Insignia's vs the BD30?

 

[jostenmeat]

How is the PQ on the Insignia's vs the BD30?

No idea, and you might have a hard time finding good info on that. However, I've read that it uses the same Uniphier chipset that the Panny does, coupled with a Sony drive.

If anything, Panasonic firmware support is pretty tough to beat. You should see the AVS threads, its insane. And the Panny folks are actually reading them.

Not that I ever needed to. If it wasn't for an LFE cut, I might still be on the original 1.1 version OTB.

I guess I've watched 80 titles, zero hiccups, except for one at the end of Sunshine. And I was using 1.1 for several months . . .

 

[Gov]

I heard a rumor from a very reliable Best Buy source that says, Insignia's lowest Blu-Ray player is going to be priced at around $100 on black friday. Stay tuned my friends..................

BTW, will the Insignia's pass all the HD audio to my Pioneer SC-05 for it to decode?

 

[jostenmeat]

From the AVS sticky:

Profile: 1.1
HDMI: 1.3
Ethernet: No

Audio-
Internally Decode TrueHD: No
Internally Decode DTS-MA: No
Bitstream TrueHD: Yes
Bitstream DTS-MA: Yes
Analog Output: Magnavox. Sylvania and Insignia only have stereo analog outputs, Phillips has 5.1 output, but does not decode Dolby TrueHD nor DTS HD-MA.

 

[Gov]

From the AVS sticky:

Profile: 1.1
HDMI: 1.3
Ethernet: No

Audio-
Internally Decode TrueHD: No
Internally Decode DTS-MA: No
Bitstream TrueHD: Yes
Bitstream DTS-MA: Yes
Analog Output: Magnavox. Sylvania and Insignia only have stereo analog outputs, Phillips has 5.1 output, but does not decode Dolby TrueHD nor DTS HD-MA.

Well....my SC-05 can decode and for $100 to break into Blu-Ray its a no brainer, I would think

 

[BMXTRIX]

Geez, lots of people saying that you won't get an improvement.

This is just incorrect. DVD is stored on the disc at 480i, in comparison to Blu-ray at 1080p. Your display is a true 1080i model if it is CRT rear projection model. This means you get the resolution jump.

Whoopie!

What is often missed is the added benefits which include that Blu-ray uses less compression and newer CODECs on the discs which mean that you get better color accuracy and less compression across the disc. Fast motion will be far more accurate on BD vs. DVD, and in general you can get a bit more pop from the colors. This is even apparent on non-HD televisions, but in your case, should be plainly visible.

On the other hand, a sub-$200 budget doesn't afford you much for Blu-ray just yet. In fact, no player I'm aware of, is priced at this point and is currently in production.

I would look towards the forthcoming Panasonic BD-55 - closer to $350, but likely to be one of the reference players this holiday season, from a very good manufacturer. It also includes HD audio decoding and analog outputs for your listening pleasure.

I think the Ethernet is a huge plus as firmware updates are becoming more and more standard on players, and this connection allows that update to happen automatically. I recently installed a BD-50 and the first thing that happenned was that the player update its own firmware. Very nice to have that happen for you instead of having to think about it.

If you really just want the basics of the basic, then I would wait for the holiday season and keep an eye on the Samsung 1500 which seems to be doing alright and has had some recent firmware upgrades to make it quite a contender for the money...

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-BD-P1500-1080p-Blu-ray-Player/dp/B0014H16V0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1225332828&sr=1-1

 

[allargon]

With that sweet Pioneer receiver, the OP doesn't need multichannel analog outputs or internal decoding at all.

That $200 budget also puts the OP within range of quite a few older generation, used (or closeout) players that bitstream--e.g. the Sammy BD-P1400, the Panny DMP-BD30 (well probably not $200), the Sony BDP-S350 (maybe), the Funai 1.1 clones, the Sammy BD-P1500 (profile 2.0!) and that weird Memorex player. Even the 6 HD DVD players that bitstream aren't available that cheaply used (well--maybe the A35).

By the by, there will be a new profile 2.0 Insignia player for around $250 this/next week. No, Insignia is not a great brand name. It won't have the build quality of a Denon or Arcam player. However, the Insignia will definitely fit within your price range and requirements.

(It does seem so wrong to pair such a cheap, flimsy optical disc player with such a behemoth of a receiver! )

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Products/HomeEntertainment/AV-Receivers/EliteReceivers/ci.SC-05.Kuro?tab=A

 

[Gov]

I am looking hard at the Panny BD30 at the moment.