Are HD players really worth it?

[patnshan]

Darn. That brings up another issue. How is one to tell before buying, whether or not, the high def is going to be worth the extra money given that some transfers fare no better than SD.

There is a huge thread over at AVS forum where members have rated the transfers for audio and video on a HUGE number of HD discs.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=942015
I still think bad transfers on HD look better than SD.

Pat

 

[westcott]

I think it also depends on what SD DVD player you were using before. If you had a quality SD DVD player then I think the difference is far less noticeable, even at 100+ inches!!!

If you had a so so DVD player and get an HD player with a quality video processor like the Silicon Optix offering, then I feel that the differences would seem much greater, but not necessarily all attributable to the HD player formats!!!

I just got finished watching Seabisquit on HD DVD and A,B'd it against my own SD DVD version and even with a large screen, I would not want to bet anyone which was which.

As far as audio, the jury is still waiting for a court date. I do not have an AV receiver that supports the new audio standards.

 

[j_garcia]

Darn. That brings up another issue. How is one to tell before buying, whether or not, the high def is going to be worth the extra money given that some transfers fare no better than SD.

www.highdefdigest.com I don't always agree with the opinions of the movies themselves, but I have found his comments on the video quality to be spot on.

 

[abefroeman]

Yeah,

Some disks are like wow that is much better. But others, not so much.

I bet if you compared a great DVD like the matrix or LTOR or Star wars to a poor quality HD-DVD, the DVDs would be better. I am sure it has been said before but DVDs and HD-DVDs are just storage devices, sometimes they store crap and sometimes they store great stuff.

 

[boxinghris]

I think it also depends on what SD DVD player you were using before. If you had a quality SD DVD player then I think the difference is far less noticeable, even at 100+ inches!!!

If you had a so so DVD player and get an HD player with a quality video processor like the Silicon Optix offering, then I feel that the differences would seem much greater, but not necessarily all attributable to the HD player formats!!!

I just got finished watching Seabisquit on HD DVD and A,B'd it against my own SD DVD version and even with a large screen, I would not want to bet anyone which was which.

As far as audio, the jury is still waiting for a court date. I do not have an AV receiver that supports the new audio standards.

Hi Wescott,

I just signed up to these forums to post a message seeing if anyone had compared a good upscaling Denon with a good HD DVD player but your thread has probably provided he information I need.

I own the Denon DVD A1XV (5910) which is possibly the best upscaler out there, and my own exposure to hi-def video via the usual 42" and 50" screens in high street stores has been very underwhelming.

While at Audio/AV Shows I have been very impressed with HD content via projectors on large screens, but on a plasma in the home I'm not sure there will be any appreciable improvement for me and of course the software is scarce, expensive and sometimes glitchy.

One of the best HD DVD players in the UK is apparently the Toshiba HD-XE1 but this costs the equivalent of $900, and of course the newer XE2 with 1080p even more, ad it's probably one of these I'd have to buy to stand any chance of competing with my Denon but from what I've read here I think I'll give it a miss.

Finally, although you don't have a receiver which supports the HD audio formats you probably are aware that you can still get full HD audio resolution if your player has 5.1 analogue outputs and on board processing.

 

[Joe Schmoe]

Apparently, most people feel like you do and that's why the HD disc technology is floundering in the marketplace. I think the format war might be over in a year or two with both formats losing to DVD. I have players for both formats as well and they are both for sale. I've watched all the HD movies I want to watch on them.

I always laugh at threads titled "Movie X looks/sounds great on Blu Ray!" They could leave off the "...on Blu Ray" part and still have a true statement. It is all about the mastering.

 

[westcott]

Hi Wescott,

I just signed up to these forums to post a message seeing if anyone had compared a good upscaling Denon with a good HD DVD player but your thread has probably provided the information I need.

I hope my insight has helped. I am all for better video and audio quality but I only thought it fair to share my experience. The cost vs. performance return is not what it should be, IMO.

 

[gus6464]

Although I must say that Ratatouille on BD has by far the most gorgeous PQ I have ever seen on any high def disc so it really depends on the studio as well.

 

[westcott]

Although I must say that Ratatouille on BD has by far the most gorgeous PQ I have ever seen on any high def disc so it really depends on the studio as well.

Its in my Netflix Queue!!!

But I would expect an all digital format to look good, as does digital video.


"Cars" was incredible too!!!

 

[evilkat]

I don't own an HD player, but I do see OVA HD channels, and I have to say I'm addicted to them. To my eyes, the quality difference is substantial and very perceptible. This was most recently illustrated when I bought the DVD version of POC III. I don't know if I didn't have the filters set right on my computer, but when I watched it, it was god-awful horrible on the TV. Insanely noisy transfer...or maybe I'm completely hooked on HD

 

[funked up]

I picked up the HD-A3, since it was only $100 bucks when I bought my Panny Plasma(be here on tuesday), gonna see how nice the picture and sound is before I drop any more money on a BD player. I'm sure stepping up to 42" plasma with a HD-DVD player from a 27"SDTV and basic dvd-player is going to blow me away. Atleast I'm really hoping it is.

 

[Duffinator]

I felt like their wasnt a big difference when I first got a HD player but after a month of watching BD and then trying to go back and watch a SD movie is where I really noticed. Now you cant even get me to watch a SD. If your display is not that big, it will be harder to notice the difference but to me; it is very worth it.

This is where I'm at as well. For me there is no going back to SD and I too will probably buy a BD player very soon.

But I also have the same problem with not enough inputs on my AVR or TV (component for me) and will end up changing my ATV to S-video instead of component to free up the third component input on my AVR.

I was given the Planet Earth HD DVD's for Christmas and they look amazing. But just like SD DVD's there are good and not so good transfers in all the formats.