PhilMays Posted December 1, 2008 Share Posted December 1, 2008 So, I just read about the 7.1 analog abilities of the newer BR players. So in your opinion, what is the best player on the market? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roaddog359 Posted December 1, 2008 Share Posted December 1, 2008 ps3 you get firmware update all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 ps3 you get firmware update all the time. +1. Future-proof to any Blu-Ray firmware upgrade, decodes lossless formats internally so any receiver that accepts PCM over HDMI will be able to take advantage of the lossless Blu-Ray audio formats, incredibly fast load times...too many positives to list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJkizak Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 That's a tough one. Look at some of the video playback specs---192 at 14 bit, 214 at 14 bit, and the audio spec is around 192 for all of them. Some can play PAL/NTSC. Some can play all the Bluray stuff plus Divx, AVCHD, jpg, WMA, WMV, DVD-Ram, and some have the SD slot and network capability. Some cannot play Bluray-DL. Most of them play 7.1. They are all 1080P and upconvert DVD's. Check the reviews at Best Buy, Newegg, B & H Photo/Video. Panasonic does make the basic units for a lot of manufacturers and they are re-badged. JJK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted December 2, 2008 Moderators Share Posted December 2, 2008 PS3 has been great for me. Only two negatives is that it is strange navigating a DVD with a controller ( I don't have the remote yet) and the other is that the remote and controller work off of Bluetooth technology and to my knowledge, that format does not yet work with universal remotes (Harmony, Universal etc). Other than that, it has been a great player for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhw59 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I will be very interested in the forthcoming oppo blu ray. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyKlipschFan Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 The newer PS3 with the 80 gig hard drive. Again, you can hook it up for updates firmware wise.. And separate audio and video cards to the max performance wise.. The guys at the local Sony Store prefer this to the top of the line blue ray player so far too. They showed me and swear it is better. It is 399. I think too... I am very pleased so far. I was even able to go DVI out and optical out for sound...(I have a non HDMI pre amp) While I am sure I amissing some of the newer formats, it sounds GREAT in DD or DTS to me..And the picture in 1080p is awesome! The PS3 also plays older movies, so non Blue Ray and Blue Ray discs and older PS2 games...(At some point your "gunna wanna" play or try something...LOL. Seems to be the best package... Some might be cheaper this Christmas... But I doubt beat Sony for feateures and future upgrade ability too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eskimo1 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 What's your budget and the rest of your equipment? I could call out some names that cost more than a car, but the improvement over something like a PS3 (which is what I use) isn't that much, and wouldn't be seen at all unless the rest of your equipment is absolutely top-notch. For the rest of us, and especially in the hot sub-$500 area, Panasonic & Sony seem to have the market wrapped up, and I doubt you'd be unhappy with any of 'em. The Sony 350 can be had now for $199 - that's quite a deal! Grab an HDMI cable from Monoprice and enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMays Posted December 2, 2008 Author Share Posted December 2, 2008 It sounds like the PS3 is the way to go....at least in this theater. The kids will eventially have full control. The system is a Yammy RXZ1 used as a pre-pro and for the time being, using a 150wpc AMC 5 channel amp. The screen is a non-hdmi 720P Pioneer RPTV which to this day looks spectacular, and as good if not better than the Samsung LCD in 720P mode. Of course RF-7's, RC-7, and RF3-II's for sourrounds. KSW15 sub as well as a Pinnicale Referance sub of some type. All-in-all, pretty sweet set-up. The idea is the future theater, which will have some sort of amazing projector and I am studying what type of system to get. So far the Integra 9.8 or 9.9 (which ever one without the amp) or the Yamaha RXZ11. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted December 2, 2008 Moderators Share Posted December 2, 2008 The idea is the future theater, which will have some sort of amazing projector and I am studying what type of system to get. I'm looking to purchase the Panasonic AE3000u projector. BTW, looks like you have a great system already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMays Posted December 2, 2008 Author Share Posted December 2, 2008 Nice link youthman! I saved this under favorites! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Youthman Posted December 2, 2008 Moderators Share Posted December 2, 2008 Nice link youthman! I saved this under favorites! Definitely worth checking into. I've been doing quite a bit of online research about it and the biggest draw for me is the ability the zoom memory which allows you to project 16:9 and even 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Super wide screen viewing like in the theaters. Here is the AE-3000 Owners Thread in the AVS Forums. One of the guys in the forum purchased this projector and shot it against a black wall and the picture looked amazing. Thread. There are a lot of great options but for the price point and feature set, this has everything I'm looking for in my first projector. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsu99999 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Hey Phil, You mentioned ANALOG 7.1. The PS3 (I don't think) doesn't have analog audio outputs, only hdmi for the 7.1 hd sound. If you are lacking a HDMI 1.3 device (or HDMI 1.2 receiver) you won't be able to benefit from the new codecs or 7.1 sound. With this being said, you will need an alternative method for blueray. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsu99999 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 And a follow up to my previous post - you would literally gain almost nothing by going bluray if you go the ps3 route. With your TV only being 720p, you won't benefit from 1080p performance. In my opinion, on my projector which was 720p, I couldn't tell the difference between an upconverted DVD and a Bluray or HD-DVD. Both appeared to have an almost even picture, and in that room, I couldn't benefit from the new codecs either. With that being said, if I take the same 2 test movies to my 1080p setup with the new codecs, the picture is 2x as sharp and the sound is phenomenal. Considering the price of blurays is double or triple that of dvd's, I really don't think you will gain much by going to bluray now. Especially if you use a PS3. On the other hand, if you play videogames AND would be interested in upgrading your theater room in the future, you would be crazy not buying a ps3.. All in all, you can't go wrong with it. But you will need a receiver capible of processing hdmi. Also, my projector may have been the reason I couldn't tell the difference between the upconverted & HD movies. Your projector may be better than mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunburnwilly Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I agree with wsu . With a 720 display you won't see much if any differance in pic quality . At least I didn't with my 50" Samsung DLP . But now that I finally got a working Pioneer PDP-6020 last week it's a world of differance , depending on source material . As far as blu-ray players I have only experienced the PS3 . Come Dec. 26th mine will be 2 years old with no problems . Can't go wrong with the PS3 , unless you wanted to stack other components on top of it . Which you can't do . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMays Posted December 2, 2008 Author Share Posted December 2, 2008 WSU, thanks for the input. I guess I was confussed in the 7.1 analog configuration. I thought it would be like a DVD-A or SACD connection, which my reciever will take...at least the 5.1 part. I may as well wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psg Posted December 3, 2008 Share Posted December 3, 2008 Some of the standalone players have 7.1 analog outputs. I'll be looking for this feature as well. It will mean disconnecting my SACD player, so it would be nice to get a blue ray player that can play SACDs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsu99999 Posted December 3, 2008 Share Posted December 3, 2008 Phil, The new audio codecs can only be transmitted over HDMI OR analog 7.1 channel. Since the PS3 doesn't have analog, you would have to update your receiver to take advantage of the new codecs. However, as psg mentioned, there are a lot of players with analog 7.1 hook ups out there but I think it would be better to just get a ps3 and a new receiver. The ps3 is awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMays Posted December 3, 2008 Author Share Posted December 3, 2008 Just hurts getting rid of a reciever I paid about $2,300 for. Why would my SACD 5.1 analog connection not work? I guess I'm confussed with the analog 7.1. Isn't analog simply analog? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eskimo1 Posted December 3, 2008 Share Posted December 3, 2008 The idea is the future theater, which will have some sort of amazing projector and I am studying what type of system to get. I'm looking to purchase the Panasonic AE3000u projector. BTW, looks like you have a great system already. It's a great PJ, and the power zoom/focus memory is icing on the cake.. I have about 70 hours on mine now.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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