Ready to take the plunge

Cemil Gandur -- Tue, 12/30/2008 - 11:43

I have resisted going for it so far, but I am toying with the idea of getting my first blu-ray player. I would appreciate suggestions in different price brackets. Will be hooked up to Arcam AVR-350 one-box receiver and Sony VW50 projector (which I believe can do up to 1080i ). I suppose the Arcam's HDMI pass through connectors would be compatible?

Robert Harley -- Tue, 12/30/2008 - 14:52

I bought the Sony BDP-S350 and it has worked well, with fairly fast loading times and a terrific picture (I haven't compared it with other BD players, however). The only shortcoming is that it doesn't decode high-resolution bitstreams like TrueHD to high-resolution PCM for output on HDMI. When playing a disc with 96kHz/24-bit TrueHD soundtrack, the S350 downconverts it to 48kHz for output on HDMI. The 350 also lacks 7.1-channel analog output (the BDP-S550 has this feature).
I've used the S350 with an Arcam AV9 controller feeding my Sony VPL-VW50 projector via HDMI with no problems.

Cemil Gandur -- Wed, 12/31/2008 - 05:48

Thanks Robert. I looked at it and at the S550, which seems to be an upgraded version of the 350.
The power requirement is specc'ed at 120V/60Hz. Would you know if there would be an issue using a small transformer to stepdown from my local 240V/50Hz? The voltage should be fine, but I am worried about the frequency. Having said that, in most cases, it doesn't really matter (turntables excepted).

Natas -- Wed, 12/31/2008 - 08:06

I just recently went to blu-ray as well. My player of choice was the PS3. So far it's been great with no problems to speak of. You get wireless connectivity and the ability to play some really good looking games.

Robert Harley -- Wed, 12/31/2008 - 15:51

The player should be available in a 240V/50Hz version. If not, a step-down transformer should work.

Cemil Gandur -- Fri, 01/02/2009 - 03:08

It is, but only plays Region 2 discs. want a 240v/50hz that plays region 1 discs. Will buy one when I go to CES and use a stepdown.
Is there any reason whatsoever to Regional coding beyond sheer corporate greed?

oz (not verified) -- Wed, 12/31/2008 - 10:38

Hi Zeb
I own Sony BDP 500 the old version. the problem with the BDPs is the loading time is taking ages...
sony addressed the problem in their new player ES 5000 i guess is the model...you can find it on the sony.com.. its about 2k but with time and lack of demand they will certainly lower the price...I think its best to stay with Sony as they own the technology...the 5000 will also carry the audio via HDMI 1.3...

as for your projector i have looked at the sony VW line and found the picture quality a little on the soft side..I purchased a JVC DILA RS2 with 30000:1 NATIVE contrast ratio and its to die for...strongly recommended...however its hard to source it in Europe...(I live in Turkey and had to ship mine from USA)...in Europe you can try and alternative brand which is cineversum....

Cemil Gandur -- Fri, 01/02/2009 - 03:21

Thanks.
My Sony still has mileage in it (about 1500 hours on the lamp) - I'll continue using it until it conks out or becomes pretty outdated, by which time the technology would have probably moved up substantially and the prices moved further down. It has been superceded, no least by Sony's own models, but to be honest, I'm pretty happy with it (on DVDs - no Blu-ray yet) and I'm nowhere near as picky on video as I am on audio...

Cemil Gandur -- Mon, 01/19/2009 - 17:28

I bought the S550 whilst I was in Vegas. I have to say, the picture is absolutely stunning (driving my Sony Pearl projector to 1080p for the first time). Even DVDs look much better than my old player. I should have done this earlier !