View Full Version : Blu-Ray
Obama
(my understanding is that's mandatory for General Discussion threads, now)
Anyway ... This morning my wife picked up a Panasonic dmpbd30ak for 169.99. I don't know the first thing about Blu-Ray, but I guess it was some huge sale or something so she grabbed it.
For those audo-videophiles amongst us, is this thing reasonably useful? I don't need every feature known to man, I just need something that will look good playing both DVD and Blu-Ray discs. I've got separate surround sound system.
Advice, thoughts, recommendations?
Todd,
Blue Ray is great, but you need one of those 1080P (I believe) TV's to play them.
You also need a HDMI cable that connects it to the TV...those cost about $130 for the best one, which you need to get the best picture.
It's expensive but if you get the right TV and Cable, you will never go the the theater again.
Will upconvert your regular DVD to an HD signal if you have a HD set.
It will upconvert to 720P if thats the sets resolution.
As far as cables go, monowire.com has some really good prices on HDMI cables. After visiting numerous A/V enthusiast forums their belief is anything over $20 for an HDMI cable is pretty much gouging. Since HDMI is a digital signal its either there or not (unlike analog). Take it as you like but some of these guys have spent about $10k on a home theater setup and use cheap HDMI cables and love the results (even after paying for the $100+ ones).
Check this (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8473546&st=HDMI+Cable&lp=3&type=product&cp=1&id=1188558642139) out.
Todd,
Blue Ray is great, but you need one of those 1080P (I believe) TV's to play them.
You also need a HDMI cable that connects it to the TV...those cost about $130 for the best one, which you need to get the best picture.
It's expensive but if you get the right TV and Cable, you will never go the the theater again.
Nah. It's not nearly that bad. I assume you have a HDTV. If so you're good. 1080p is the best, but 720p or 1080i is just fine. You will want to use an HDMI cable. Don't pay a lot for one. I get mine from monoprice.com for $15.
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024004&p_id=3658&seq=1&format=2
Remember..these are "digital" cables, not "analog" cables. A cheap cable is good as an expensive one. If it works it works 100%. If it doesn't it fails 100%. Same goes for optical cables. Don't pay much for them.
Enjoy your player! BTW, the reason you want to use an HDMI cable is that BluRay players usually "up convert" standard DVDs to HDTV resolution. They only do that when you use a HDMI cable. If you use a component cable they play them at the standard DVD resolution, 480p.
Verbal Kint
12-14-08, 15:39
I assume you already have an HDTV? If so, yeah, you'll definitely notice a difference between your old DVDs (which it will still play) and Blu-Ray discs that you pick up.
If you don't have an HDTV... well... at least you now have something to work towards and use with in the future. lol. Otherwise you're no better off than having your old dvd player.
You'll see Blu-Ray, over the coming years, phase out DVDs... just as DVDs phased out VHS tapes. Studios are still putting their labels out on both right now, but since Blu-Ray come out on top in the media wars you can be sure that they'll start going in that sole direction soon enough.
IMO, your wife picked up a pretty good deal... and as long as you already have an HDTV in place, or plans to by one, you'll be good to go.
EDIT: Guess I type too slow... lol. Beaten to the answers.
Check this (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8473546&st=HDMI+Cable&lp=3&type=product&cp=1&id=1188558642139) out.
No way in hell I'm paying $100 for a 4' digital cable. That's insane. I don't pay that for far more complex cables in my data center.
platinumdude
12-14-08, 15:41
Here is a good resource for all things blu-ray
http://forum.blu-ray.com/
There is no 'good' or 'bad' HDMI cable. It's a digital cable, it transfers a digital signal, either it works or it doesn't (and if it doesn't you'll see miscolored pixels). It's not like analog audio cables.
All those jacked-up prices, gold plated HDMI cables are scams. Just get one that has the HDMI logo on it and works. It won't make one bit of difference.
Verbal Kint
12-14-08, 16:04
No way in hell I'm paying $100 for a 4' digital cable. That's insane. I don't pay that for far more complex cables in my data center.
My wife works at Best Buy. It's crazy how much they mark up accessories and cables.
Let me preface that statement, by saying her discount varies on whatever item is in question. Apple products have zero markup. She pays what everyone else does. TVs, computers, games, etc... all just depends what the discount is.
That said... those $100 cables only cost her about $4-5, after employee discount. No joke. They actually track and limit how many of them they can buy, with their discount, so they don't turn around and make a huge profit by reselling them. lol
But if you know anyone that works at BB, the accessories (cables, cell phone accessories, etc etc) are the biggest areas of savings. Definitely worth getting them to buy them for you.
Check out avsforum.com - your wallet may never forgive you though.
If it doesn't it fails 100%. Same goes for optical cables.
That is not correct.
There are plenty of issues which arise in fiber optic cables that lead to degraded performance. Just because something goes in one side and out the other doesn't mean it wasn't changed along the way.
That is not correct.
There are plenty of issues which arise in fiber optic cables that lead to degraded performance. Just because something goes in one side and out the other doesn't mean it wasn't changed along the way.
True. But you'll pick up errors. It's not like analog cables where you get a "green shift" or something and you sit there and try to compare. A bad optical cable will cause dropouts or noticeable changes in sound.
My main point is that a working $5 optical cable is every bit as good as a working $500 optical cable. No more of this "Well..the cable made of virgin hair and volcano gold really makes the highs come alive!". 1s and 0s on this end. 1s and 0s on that end. If a 2 slips in there you'll know. ;)
Thanks much, guys.
TV is a Panasonic 50" plasma that does 1080i.
My primary concern is whether this particular player lacks some critical feature that we'll be sorry we don't have six months from now, requiring us to replace. It doesn't sound like it, so I guess I'll install it tonight. Now we just need to buy some Blu-Ray movies.
BTW, I think it comes with an HDMI cable. If not, I have a nice expensive Monster HDMI capable that I bought to connect another player to the TV before I knew what a sucker I was. :cool:
Todd,
Blue Ray is great, but you need one of those 1080P (I believe) TV's to play them.
You also need a HDMI cable that connects it to the TV...those cost about $130 for the best one, which you need to get the best picture.
It's expensive but if you get the right TV and Cable, you will never go the the theater again.
Correct on the HDMI, necessary, however the $130 cables are a HUGE ****in rip off. Enormous and foolish waste of money. And as mentioned, if your TV isn't 1080p, then Blu Ray isn't being Blu Ray. Blu Ray is a 1080p player....it only counts on a TV capable of that degree of resolution. It'll still look good on 1080i however.
tiger seven
12-14-08, 18:17
The great news is that Blu-Ray movies are really coming down in price. Two weeks ago I bought Enter the Dragon, Bullitt, The Road Warrior, From Russia With Love and the 40th Anniversary Edition of The Planet of the Apes for $15 each. :cool:
Blu-Ray is awesome. Enjoy!
Derek
True. But you'll pick up errors. It's not like analog cables where you get a "green shift" or something and you sit there and try to compare. A bad optical cable will cause dropouts or noticeable changes in sound.
My main point is that a working $5 optical cable is every bit as good as a working $500 optical cable. No more of this "Well..the cable made of virgin hair and volcano gold really makes the highs come alive!". 1s and 0s on this end. 1s and 0s on that end. If a 2 slips in there you'll know. ;)
I love that descriptioon and you are 100% right. Stuff like monster cable or 'gold plated' cables are a scam. The signal doesn't travel far enough (even with a 6' or 10' length) to degrade over plain old HDMI cables from Wally-World.
Anyways I have a 1080p TV, HDMI cable, all connected to my upconverting DVD player and to be honest I didnt even ask for a Blu-Ray player for Christmas. The picture IMO is marginally better and not worth the price of players. That's the problem. Due to what I just described folks arent willing to pay the over inflated prices for Blu-Ray players. So long as the industry ignores demand then Blu-Ray isnt ever going to effectively penetrate the market. My personal prognostication is that Blu-Ray wont be in the market long. I think its going to shift to digital delivery methods long before Blu-Ray has a chance to reach critical mass.
But if you got em, enjoy em.
Thanks much, guys.
TV is a Panasonic 50" plasma that does 1080i.
My primary concern is whether this particular player lacks some critical feature that we'll be sorry we don't have six months from now, requiring us to replace. It doesn't sound like it, so I guess I'll install it tonight. Now we just need to buy some Blu-Ray movies.
BTW, I think it comes with an HDMI cable. If not, I have a nice expensive Monster HDMI capable that I bought to connect another player to the TV before I knew what a sucker I was. :cool:
Your player does lack BD-Live, which may or may be be any issue for you. If you just want to watch the movie, the BD30 is fine. There have been a bunch of promotions for Panasonic's next gen player for around $200 but I don't see a current sale. Are you running an audio/video receiver with a 5.1/7.1 setup? The newer player could have other advantages depending on the age of your current equipment. Get Netflix for all you Blu ray movie needs, plans for less than $10/month, great plans for less than $20.
\That's the problem. Due to what I just described folks arent willing to pay the over inflated prices for Blu-Ray players. So long as the industry ignores demand then Blu-Ray isnt ever going to effectively penetrate the market. My personal prognostication is that Blu-Ray wont be in the market long. I think its going to shift to digital delivery methods long before Blu-Ray has a chance to reach critical mass.
But if you got em, enjoy em.
BR players are a lot cheaper this year. I know they were going for $169 the other day when I was at HHGregg. I got a PS3 last year for my birthday and I use it 90% of the time as a BR player. Matter of fact, I'm watching Dark Knight right now on it. I haven't bought any BR movies..just using NetFlix for that.
My friend has a Vudu box that does digital delivery of HD movies. They have a higher level quality HD now and it looks REALLY good. I'm considering trying that next, but so far I'm very happy with NetFlix. I send a movie back tomorrow and the replacement will be here on Wednesday.
Your player does lack BD-Live, which may or may be be any issue for you. If you just want to watch the movie, the BD30 is fine.
I never use BD Live..he might, but I don't. I'm just not big on a lot of extras. I watch the movies and maybe deleted scenes and that's it.
I never use BD Live..he might, but I don't. I'm just not big on a lot of extras. I watch the movies and maybe deleted scenes and that's it. I also don't use it, but you never know if they will come out with something worth connecting to BD-Live. If you're a person who never really cares about the extra stuff on DVDs then BD-Live is a non issue.
Correct on the HDMI, necessary, however the $130 cables are a HUGE ****in rip off. Enormous and foolish waste of money. And as mentioned, if your TV isn't 1080p, then Blu Ray isn't being Blu Ray. Blu Ray is a 1080p player....it only counts on a TV capable of that degree of resolution. It'll still look good on 1080i however.
Now you guys tell me (F$CK).
That could have been ammo.
Thanks guys- learn something new every day.
AMMO IS AMMO it shoots or it wont its all the same !!!!
well yes and no ?
its what happens along the way and a few other things that do factor in and to some it does matter but if you are shooting dead cars at the gravel pit for fun it does not matter !
it also might matter the gear you are running it with and out of and the distance etc...
I guess thats the way I read it about cables :) you get what you pay for but you can also get ripped off
Monoprice and bluejeancables will cover you
but to say its digital its there or its not ? well true and many times its NOT ! and that will get you sparklies and drop outs and such
I think bluejeans is a small step up from monoprice
http://www.bluejeanscable.com/
lets say a 8 foot cable
which will run you $15-$40 tops from bluejeans or monoprice (like mentioned)
but many $5 cables will give you drop outs sparklies etc..
and $100 is marketing and not worth it
the only time you will run into more issues if you need to run over 20 feet then cables will be important (but again not have to be expensive)
chances are your player will work fine for you :)
went and looked up this for you :) way to much info but you can skim parts
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=936144
I think this is the model from what you posted ?
take this AVS forum to be a bit like arfcom :) some good some bad info but overall you can get issues that might pop up etc... like you are having issues setting something these long threads can help you out by doing a search in them etc...
depending on whats running your audio ?
if you end up with decent speakers and decent receiver say spend around $1500 - 2K on a setup it will blow you away with how much more enjoyable movies are
as they say Audio is %70 of what you see !!!!!
just so you know where I am coming from
I have pretty decent stuff and have about 7K into just the audio (speakers and amps) stuff so decent enough amount to enjoy and enough that for 30K you dont get tons more but it blows away other stuff :)
and I am the kind that will buy a $1000 DVD or Blu-Ray player :)
I dont figure in projectors and plasmas as I tend to get them each year and update :)
I am a sucker that way but I can see it and appreciate it
(I do photography for a living) so my eyes are also kinda used to seeing nice I guess
I might say am kinda more into HT junk that guns :) but love both
hope this helps :)
I see the 1080i vs 1080p thing being thrown around a bit ?
remember thats more about the signal than the set
HDTVs are generally 720 and 1080 in resolution the i or the p is the way its displayed and one is not always better than the other but p is preferred by many
all the HD broadcast junk you watch is most likely all 1080i
OK decided to go grab a article that might help some :)
http://blog.ultimateavmag.com/scottwilkinson/052608interprog/
Looks like your wife scored a good deal Todd!
For cables, I always go here: http://www.bluejeanscable.com/
High quality a good price.
C4
If you plan on buying more than a handful of movies a year, Netflix is totally worth it. $10 a month gets you all you can eat Blu-Ray movies, one at a time. Movies get to you within a day of receiving back the one you already have. And their selection is just impossible to beat.
Might want to see if your Blu-Ray comes with the latest "lossless" audio formats, DTS HD Master Audio or Dolby Digital TruedHD. If it doesn't the regular Dolby Digitial 5.1 sounds just fine, but I think (as a non-audiophile, admittedly) the lossless formats really sound good. Might have to invest in a new receiver to get them, depending.
Got my HDMI cables from monoprice.com :)
Blu-ray looks excellent, even on a 720P/10801 TV, and my blu-ray player does an excellent job upconverting my regular DVDs as well.
Thanks again for all the advice, guys. I knew there would be more than a couple former AV Club nerd kids here. :cool:
I'm not much of an "extras" guy, so the BD-Live doesn't sound like something I need. If it becomes popular, my thought process is that two years from now the price of everything will have gone done substantially and I can always replace the machine. For now, it appears it will do what I want.
Our sound system is 5.1 and quite a few years old, but still works great for our needs. It's a Sony with a built-in DVD player that is starting to struggle which is one reason we were looking at Blu-Ray. We actually canceled our Netflix account because our DVD player couldn't handle scratched disks. Looks like we'll need to re-up.
Should have bought a PS3!
Congrats on the BR.
I just picked up 300 for 19.99 at Circuit City yesterday.
Two words with a hyphen: KICK-ASS
There's a whole lot of info here. I believe these guys take Audio/Video discussion just as serious as those in the AR Forums.
The first link is a thread about your specific player.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1064552
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=149
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=149&order=desc
Obama
(my understanding is that's mandatory for General Discussion threads, now)
That... was priceless. :D
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