Anyone own a Sony Blu-Ray DVD Player? Need opinion and answer.?

Question

1-How good is the picture quality if used with a HDTV using 720p or 1080i? My TV does not support 1080p.

2- I hear that audio quality is not that great even when using high-end audio equipment. Is this true?

3- All-in-all, is it worth the $1000 price tag?

All opinions are appreciated.

Answer 1

I personally wouldn't pay $1000 for a stand alone Blu-Ray DVD player, especially when you can buy a Sony PlayStation 3 for $600 which comes with a built in Blu-Ray DVD player that will display in 480i, 720p, 1080i and 1080p. It has both component and HDMI outputs with multi channel audio PLUS you are not only getting a DVD player, you are getting a complete gaming system and networked media device with a 60 GB hard drive where you can store and share your music library, upload and display high resolution digital photos and surf the Internet.... all for $400 less than the price you quoted for the stand alone Sony Blu-Ray DVD player.

However, you are not going to truly experience the advantage of Blu-Ray DVD unless you have a 1080p display, although it will still look better than a regular progressive scan DVD on a 1080i or 720p display, I definitely don't think it is worth the money unless you have the 1080p resolution. Remember, just because the Blu-Ray DVD is high definition and high quality sound, you need the rest of your av system to be able to handle the increased resolution and sound or else it is just another DVD player.

Answer 2

It is contingent on how big your TV is. Experts say that you won't see the full 1920x1080 unless you have a TV larger than 55".

The Sony Blu-ray is a great model for the price. Compared to the samsung model, the Sony doesn't lag as much and has a reletivley quick loading menu. The only downfall of the Sony is that it only plays BD, DVD, and CD. It lacks the versatility to play rewrites.

Compared to the Sony PS3, which has a Blu-Ray player built inside, the PS3 looks like the better buy. However, the PS3 will give you a great picture from BD's and it will upconvert 480p to 720/1080i but it won't scale 480p to 1080p. The Blu-Ray has a video scaler that will convert all of your regular DVD's to 1080p which the PS3 lacks.

Even if you don't have a 1080p capable TV, most HDTV's look great with 1080p being played on it. I've seen the 60" Pioneer Elite Plasma (Pro-1410HD), which is only capable of 1080i/ 720p, blow that Panasonic 65" (TH-65PX600U) , which is a fulyl capable 1080p Plasma, out of the water. There was no contest, the Pioneer Elite looked 1080p and the colors were absolutely phenominal.

As for the audio out, Blu-Ray is capable of 7.1 sound which is, handsdown, mind-boggling. You'll get fully digital sound and PCM which is better than dolby.

Verdict: The sony is worth the $1000 because it's a reputable company. It not only gives you a great blu-ray 1080p picture, but also scales your DVD's to 1080p. But, it lacks in versatility. It won't be too good if you like to burn your CD's for some partying music, or if you want to watch some home movies writed to a disc.

p.s.: You could also look into the Panasonic Blu-ray which has all those features at an affordable price as well.

Answer 3

I have used the Sony/Samsung/and Pioneer Elite Blu-Ray's. The Sony is a great piece and will look great in 720p or 1080i.

Audio quality is currently transmitted via HDMI in Multichannel PCM. Which is phenominal. The minimum you will get is the current DTS/Dolby quality you are currently receiving with DVD's which is still very good.

As to the price tag, that's up to you. :)