What is the best Blu-ray player available now?

**Sonnie** · **01-10-08, 02:00 PM**

Now this guy made me realize something I've embarrassingly overlooked...

Quote:

The two "issues" that exist wrt the PS3 are the inability to turn Off or On the PS3 with the Harmony remote. I view this as a non-issue as I walk over to the PS3 to insert the DVD/BD and this action turns the PS3 On. At the completion of the movie I walk over an eject the DVD/BD snd either turn the PS3 Off or leave it on as desired.

**wbassett** · **01-10-08, 02:04 PM**

Quote:

Sonnie wrote:

For me... part of being the best HD player includes its ability to upconvert SD-DVDs. I own quite a few and many of them are not offered in HD format at this time. Plus I rent a lot of movies that I don't buy and they are not available in HD for me to rent, therefore, upconversion in whatever I buy is very important.

I can say this, it plays everything thrown at it (of course with the exception of HD DVDs) and upconverts it too...

It plays store bought SDVDs, DVD-R, DVD+R, and even handles DL with no problem which my A2 did have some issues with. For the fun of it I made a double feature disc out of my Planet Terror and Death Proof discs so I could have the same 'double feature' as when it played in the theater and it plays flawlessly, which it wouldn't on the A2. Home videos burnt to DVD play fine too and I've had some quirks with those on other players at times.

My brother has a Panasonic BD player, I think the BD30 and he is very happy with it. I don't know the full specs/features of it though.

**Sonnie** · **01-10-08, 02:12 PM**

Now that I actually sit here and think about it... I usually get up and go over to my XA2 and eject the disc I was watching before I leave the room, especially if it's a rental disc... then I back away from everything and press the Power Off button to power down everything. I may be making too big of a deal out of the PS3 not having remote power on and off. Of course I'll still want an IR remote to learn into my MX-810 for various functions such as navigation, stop, pause, play, skip, FF and RW, etc.

**MrPorterhouse** · **01-10-08, 07:28 PM**

Quote:

Sonnie wrote:

Now that I actually sit here and think about it... I usually get up and go over to my XA2 and eject the disc I was watching before I leave the room, especially if it's a rental disc... then I back away from everything and press the Power Off button to power down everything. I may be making too big of a deal out of the PS3 not having remote power on and off. Of course I'll still want an IR remote to learn into my MX-810 for various functions such as navigation, stop, pause, play, skip, FF and RW, etc.

If you want to be able to Power On/Off the PS3 with your MX-810, that link I gave you above takes you to the remote solution that can do it. Its a little more cash(about $50 I think). If you can live without the Power ON/Off, then the Nyco IR solution is cheap. For me, I thought I would be annoyed by not having the remote Power Off, but in reality, its not a big deal . I always get up out of the chair to walk out of the room and its no big deal to walk past the PS3 and touch it.

**wbassett** · **01-10-08, 10:22 PM**

One reason for wanting/using a remote power up/down feature is if the PS3 is setup as a media server with a ton of TV shows and DVDs archived on an external HD. For that there is no need to go over and put a disc in, so it is nice having a normal function like that.

Sonnie I agree that Sony missed the boat on that (not having an IR pickup to integrate with existing systems/remotes) and they should have thrown in an HDMI cable too seeing how inexpensive they are on Monoprice and RiteAV.

Other than that, the biggest issue for some people is the limited audio out options, but it does play SACD, which a lot of players won't. If you can live with that the PS3 really is one of the best BD players and most update-able. What I would do is see if Best Buy has a display setup with the PS3 also connected and have them spin a disc and let you play with it to check it out. Otherwise see if someone you know (or your kids) have one and will demo it for you.

Games... I had my PS3 for a year and my wife got me my first game for Christmas. I wanted one mainly to check it out, but also as a 'show off' piece of my setup. Although I'm not a gamer, both my wife and I were saying WOW!

Other than that, how many HD DVD's do you have? You might want to check into a combo player like you were originally thinking, or wait and see what Toshiba is going to do, they might end up putting something out.

**Sonnie** · **01-11-08, 12:19 AM**

Quote:

MrPorterhouse wrote:

If you want to be able to Power On/Off the PS3 with your MX-810, that link I gave you above takes you to the remote solution that can do it. Its a little more cash(about $50 I think). If you can live without the Power ON/Off, then the Nyco IR solution is cheap. For me, I thought I would be annoyed by not having the remote Power Off, but in reality, its not a big deal . I always get up out of the chair to walk out of the room and its no big deal to walk past the PS3 and touch it.

Yes... I chatted with that guy a good bit... thanks for those links. He even recommended the same Nyco IR solution if I was not needing power on and off and didn't want to wait on his IR/USB contraption. Really the only difference between his $35 doohickey and the $14 Nyco is his doesn't stick out like the Nyco does... it is contoured and matches the front of the unit nicer. He does not supply a remote either, but you can get the codes easy enough. I probably have the PS2 codes in my MX-810.

I agree it seems easy enough to physically turn it on an off. I just really wasn't thinking at first.

Quote:

wbassett wrote:

Other than that, the biggest issue for some people is the limited audio out options, but it does play SACD, which a lot of players won't. If you can live with that the PS3 really is one of the best BD players and most update-able.

The only audio connection I have ever used on the XA2 is HDMI. I have very few cables being used. As long as I get what BD will output, I'm fine.

Quote:

wbassett wrote:

Other than that, how many HD DVD's do you have? You might want to check into a combo player like you were originally thinking, or wait and see what Toshiba is going to do, they might end up putting something out.

Not too many because I sold most of them a few months ago. I may have about 15 now. The one I will probably miss the most is the Eagles in concert. That is one awesome looking image and I watch it frequently. But I'm sure I can pick up an SD version of it and be happy enough. I think I can survive. HOWEVER, I do kinda wanna see what Toshiba says. I would hate to bypass the dual player if they end up pulling some miracle out of the hat and end up having to wait forty forevers for HD versions of some of my favorites.

**yourgrandma** · **01-13-08, 12:23 PM**

I noticed that Denon is now in the Blu-ray market with two players, one of which has no connections other than HDMI. I thought that was interesting. The other has actual 7.1 outputs, so people with an older AVR can run the new surround formats (I surmised). However, at $2500, one would be better off getting a newer receiver.

**John Simpson** · **01-13-08, 04:17 PM**

Quote:

yourgrandma wrote:

I noticed that Denon is now in the Blu-ray market with two players, one of which has no connections other than HDMI. I thought that was interesting.

Denon's new Blu-ray *transport only* is a fabulous idea... there's no need to buy more decoders when your new receiver will do it all for you! Forward thinking on their part.

The weirdest thing is that they don't have Denon Link... I'm still looking for an explanation as to why...

**Sonnie** · **01-13-08, 04:25 PM**

Yeah, but at $1200 it's killin' me!

**avaserfi** · **01-13-08, 04:27 PM**

Quote:

John Simpson wrote:

The weirdest thing is that they don't have Denon Link... I'm still looking for an explanation as to why...

HDMI does everything that Denon Link does and its cheaper and more common. The mass adoption of HDMI spelled the end of Denon's proprietary connection.

**yourgrandma** · **01-13-08, 04:41 PM**

Doesn't denon link transmit dvd-a and sacd?
I've been doing some homework and the 60gb PS3 is no longer produced. In order to get PS2 game compatability, I'd need an 80gb. Way to reward repeat business, Sony. Thanks. I really cant think of any reason I need any hard drive space, so this bothers me. $500 is sort of a lot for me right now, especially for a game consol. I'm doing some more shopping.

EDIT: Ya know, I'm looking at the other BD players, and I guess I'll just have to get the infernal PS3. It just bugs me that I'm buying another computer.

**avaserfi** · **01-13-08, 04:44 PM**

Quote:

yourgrandma wrote:

Doesn't denon link transmit dvd-a and sacd?

HDMI 1.1 allowed for the transmission of DVD-A and I believe HDMI 1.2 allowed for SACD transmission.

**Sonnie** · **01-13-08, 05:07 PM**

Quote:

yourgrandma wrote:

EDIT: Ya know, I'm looking at the other BD players, and I guess I'll just have to get the infernal PS3.

What influences your decision?

**yourgrandma** · **01-13-08, 05:16 PM**

Price vs. features.

I'll be able to play games on the PS3. It will limit the number of video input resources I'll need. From what I hear, it's actually a good player, and I don't have room for another component in my rack. And as little as I need the hard drive and media center functionality, it's nice to know it's there and that my money has gone to something that has the potential to be upgraded.

I'm new as all get out to hd, so I wouldn't put much value in my decision, the PS3 seems to have my needs covered.

It's just that price that irks me.

**Sonnie** · **01-13-08, 05:28 PM**

I think the price is what gets me too. $550 or so with a second controller and IR remote.

**yourgrandma** · **01-13-08, 05:32 PM**

Yeah, but my justification is that it's not a whole lot more than most other standard Blu-ray players, and the gaming is a nice added value. Although I can only think of three games I want, surely there are more to come.

**Sonnie** · **01-28-08, 01:30 PM**

This thread was turning out to be more about the PS3 than what the best Blu-ray player available is, therefore I created the following thread to continue discussing the PS3:

Considering the PS3 for my Blu-ray player...

**Ayreonaut** · **01-30-08, 01:36 PM**

Here are links to two comparison charts showing various player capabilities.

http://idoblu.co.uk/page2%20Blu-ray%20Players.html

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=980672

**Funkmonkey** · **01-30-08, 03:12 PM**

Quote:

Ayreonaut wrote:

Here are links to two comparison charts showing various player capabilities.

http://idoblu.co.uk/page2%20Blu-ray%20Players.html

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=980672

excellent post. both charts are very helpful even at a quick glance. The second link contains pricing information.
PS3 is included... Missed it at first glance.
Thanks Ayreonaut

**John Simpson** · **01-30-08, 04:26 PM**

Yep, an excellent table -- makes a mockery of some of those prices, as you look down the list of features and see the PS3 at $399. Even the Denon transport is looking a bit (!) expensive

I'm still trying to get my head around the PS3 PCM feed for Dolby True HD. So it decodes it internally, and outputs it as a pure digital stream? What's the final difference between that and the receiver processing the signal? Don't they all sound the same?

And why is the PS3 the only one that does it that way?...

**Ayreonaut** · **01-31-08, 08:27 AM**

There should be no audible difference whether the codecs are decoded to pcm in the player or in the receiver. A receiver that decodes all these codecs usually costs more. The players that stream the codecs but don't decode them usually cost less.

I've decided on the PS3 and the Denon AVR 888.
The PS3 will decode and send 7.1 PCM to the Denon.

If I bought the Panasonic DMP BD30 which only streams the codecs, I'd have to step up to the Denon AVR 988 (to decode) which costs quite a bit more.

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