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

[HomeTeam]

Its being reported in a lot of places that the 80 GB one is going to be replaced by one with a larger hard-drive, about 120-160 GB for the same price.

I wonder if the rumor of this is indeed true, will it have the audio fixes that's been mentioned a lot in this thread.

[wbassett]

If it's the same price then that's not too bad but hard drive space is really a non-issue since you can add as much space to any PS3 as you want via external drives. Also I'm not sure if people are aware of this but it is actually pretty easy to change the internal hard drive in a PS3 and you don't even have to open the case cover. I'll double check but I'm pretty sure it doesn't void the warranty although I would keep the original drive as is and intact just incase you ever did have to send the unit in for repair.

As far as the audio, I hope we get a definitive answer on that but it doesn't really sound like it's a major issue.

[bobgpsr]

So far only the newer HDMI 1.3 AVR's have implemented dts-HD MA audio codec decoders. They need a HDMI 1.3 HDM player that will output raw bitstream over HDMI in order to decode the new audio codecs in the AVR.

As to which is best (decoding in the player or in the AVR) -- really not a significant issue except that players do not have 7.1 decode or dts-HD MA yet. IIRC Samsung has promised better (more complete codec choice) decoding with a firmware update for their HDM players.

[wbassett]

Onyko responded back already and this is what they said:

Onyko wrote:

Thank You for contacting Onkyo USA Product Support.

The PS3 does have the ability to decode True HD itself and send it through a LPCM signal to the reciever in which case the display will read Multichannel (Not True HD) because the PS3 is doing the decoding. Decoding from a reciever will always be better then from the player. But the difference isn't really too much. You are still getting uncompressed audio which sounds way better than traditional sound formats.


Again, thank you for contacting Onkyo USA Product Support, if you need further assistance feel free to call us at 800-229-1687 or visit our websites integrahometheater.com, onkyousa.com or shoponkyo.com for product information, purchasing new and refurbished products, catalogues, hookup diagrams, authorized service & sales center locations, and warranty information.

ONKYO Introduces its First HD DVD Player, Including High-Bit-Rate and Lossless Audio Streaming via HDMI 1.3A

[Sonnie]

I am no longer considering the PS3 for a Blu-ray player. The decision is made and the PS3 is in my HT room as I type. I'll probably be looking for a quality combo player on down the line if someone will make a good one with less problems than those available now.

I got the PS3 connected and started fiddlin' with the settings. It acts totally weird while in the settings mode. The screen constantly flashes. I thought maybe at first it was the HDMI cable or receiver input, but I swapped those around and the problem still exist. Finally, after about an hour, I got past the settings screen to the main menu. The main menu functions fine... no screen flashing.

I popped in my first BD, David Gilmour - Remember That Night concert. No flashing on it either. At first I was disappointed because I thought the entire concert was going to be filmed "in the grain". It looked worse than SD. Why any producer thinks a grainy film has any attraction to it is totally beyond me. Anyway... after the first couple of songs it cleared up and you could actually tell it was filmed in high definition. I didn't get much further than that, but a few of the distance shots looked a tad grainy as well. I suppose someone decided they wanted to ruin a good show. The sound was excellent... no complaints there. I am anxious to try out a few movies later on, but the wife it hollering at me for us to go shopping for furniture that I have been promising her. If it were home theater equipment it would be fine, but furniture? .... Don't tell her I said that.

This flashing issue is bothersome. I'm not sure if I have a bum unit or not. I tried to get into the Internet settings to enter in my wireless info, but I can't get it to quit flashing long enough to even change the settings.

Anyway... wife coming again... gotta run for now.

[yourgrandma]

I don't know, Sonnie, I've never heard of that issue before. Perhaps contacting sony may be a good idea. At least having purchased yours new, your warranty should come into play. My experiance with this type of thing is that it starts as a small nusance and eventually gets worse and worse until it becomes unuseable.

Hopefully thisinsn't the case with your PS3, though.

Get any games yet?

[John Simpson]

I had some of that flashing using a component switch box -- each time the screen went white, the component box would do something that would freak out the plasma screen, and it would flash off for a few seconds. All resolved now that the Denon 4308 is doing the switching.

Might also be an issue with your screen, not being able to process the input signal fast enough -- does it happen when you go from 720 to 1080P, for example?

As for games, I reckon that's the weakest thing about the PS3. Most of them bore me silly. Hopefully the Star Wars one later this year will sway me

[Sonnie]

I'm not sure about going from 720p to 1080p. The default setting is 1080p. I'm not sure how I would get it to 720p or even why it would need 720p. I'm also not sure what the screen would have to do with it either. If you mean my projector... the main menu and the one BD I played worked fine, so the projector doesn't have any issues. I'm not sure how the PS3 would be too fast for any projector anyway.

This is only a problem with I'm in the settings menu... nowhere else.

[wbassett]

Sonnie this is a strange one.

My son just bought the 40GB PS3 (he also has an XBox 360) and I was asking him if he had any problems. None to mention. I specifically asked him about the setup menu and he checked it and it's fine.

Now we are also going directly from the PS3 to the TV. I'd say try that and see if it still does it. If so, you may have a defective unit. If it doesn't, then it doesn't like going through your receiver.

I know that's not an answer as far as a 'fix'... if it doesn't play nice with your receiver and another BD player does, then there's a problem. I have read early on were some people had some problems with HDMI switchers, but it was a lack of signal, not a flashing one.

What's odd is you say this only happens during the setup menu? I would test it directly to the TV to make sure there isn't a problem with the PS3. Either way, it sounds like you may be taking it back. If the problem follows connected just to the TV, there's something wrong with your PS3. If it goes away, then the PS3 doesn't like your reciever, or the receiver doesn't like the PS3... either way it doesn't matter, it's a problem. If it's the PS3, at least you can replace it then.

Is this what you are having a problem with?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gj_gEwHOQEI

Here's the blog they mention
http://www.popularmechanics.com/blog...s/4212161.html

[Sonnie]

Yeah... that is pretty much what it is doing, but only during the settings menu. The main menu is fine and the one movie I played is fine, which would lead me to believe it has nothing to do with HDCP. I also swapped HDMI cables and swapped inputs... no change.

[wbassett]

Sonnie I am at a loss why it's just the setup menu that is doing it. Like I said I am not having this problem and I checked with my son and he isn't either.

Can you try going straight to the TV just to test if it's the unit itself?

[Sonnie]

Yes... I can go straight to the projector. I will try this, but it may be tomorrow evening before I can get to it.

[bgilly]

I want blu ray..

PS3 299

Panny 30 499

or wait til the summer when new models come out?

HDMI video connection directly to the Mitsubishi HC4900 projector

[Sonnie]

I would recommend starting a new thread so maybe you get more response since this thread pertains to PS3 for Blu-ray.

[HomeTeam]

wbassett wrote:

If it's the same price then that's not too bad but hard drive space is really a non-issue since you can add as much space to any PS3 as you want via external drives. Also I'm not sure if people are aware of this but it is actually pretty easy to change the internal hard drive in a PS3 and you don't even have to open the case cover. I'll double check but I'm pretty sure it doesn't void the warranty although I would keep the original drive as is and intact just incase you ever did have to send the unit in for repair.

As far as the audio, I hope we get a definitive answer on that but it doesn't really sound like it's a major issue.

This may be a stupid question so forgive me if it is. But theoretically, say you run out of space on the ps3 internal HD, can you use an external drive to continue your saves?