At last buying a AX100 but...

elliotjames

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Hi
After weeks of changing my mind backwards and forwards I am buying the AX100 next week :clap:
I had a demo at soundandvision in Bolton who were very helpfull (And have a few in stock:smashin: )
My only problems is which dvd player to buy (mines a Pioneer 626 !!) and the best way to connect it.
I only have about £100 for a player and the same for a cable so which do you recommend? HDMI or Component?
Not sure if it should be posted here but i am spending far too much time on the pc my eye sight is getting worse:eek:
Your help much appreciated :)
 
Have a gander at my thread below "Thinking about getting a new projector? Read this!!!".

I have my Panny partnered to a Sony NS-DVP76H via HDMI with the Sony outputting 720p to the Panny. Very very happy with this set up.

The Sony costs about £90 multiregion (try Superfi). Is very quiet, has a fine picture, looks good, no real flaws (apart from a slight issue with some DIVX files).

You'll probably get a few recommendations for sub £100 HDMI upscalers - there are a few others that get quite well rated.

I use HDMI as I just assume that all digital must be best, although again many may prefer Component. I think that either will be fine. A HDMI lead may actually be cheaper than a Component cable as so long as it works then it works - you won't notice a difference by spending £50 rather than £10. This isn't necessarily the case with an electrical analogue cable such as Component.

Good luck - you'll love the Panny.
 
Hi
I have read your thread a few times and TBH thats why I decided to buy the AX100.
the only thing with searching forums is you can sometimes have too much advice and end up more indecisive than before you started :D
I fancy the Tosh 360 but when I told the dealer he said I'd be better with a Pioneer dv 490 so thats where i am looking next.
the other thing is cables if I use hdmi I wont be able to use it with my ntl samsung box as thats only scart so I think I may be better off with component and use an adapter so I can switch between the two.
looks like more hours glued to the forums!!!
 
Hi there

Just a word of warning about those two players. The tosh is very well rated by What Hi-Fi - though not many people on these forums trust what they say to be honest!!! I read whilst doing my research that there are problems with these players such as freezing up etc. The Pioneer may also be best avoided as it apparently was designed more for NTSC playback rather than PAL and again has a few problems. If you search for both these in the DVD player forum you should be able to see what I mean.

If it's a Pioneer you fancy the model up from this (the 696) is very highly regarded but is about £30-£40 more than the Sony I have. It is apparently better with DIVX playback, and is also DVD-Audio & SACD compatible, although it may be slightly noisier.

Like I say, may be worth a few hours trawling through the thread for the Sony. Apart from problems with some DIVX files there don't seem to be any known issues with this player and for the price it's DVD playback is also pretty faultless. I have no brand loyalty to Sony and all other things being equal would have gone with the Pioneer 696, but in the end I wanted a silent, good performing, reasonably priced player without any annoying problems and after extensive research this seemed to suit my needs best.

Regarding the NTL box, if that only has an RGB SCART output, you'll need an RGB to Component converter like the one I mentioned in my thread. You would then have the HDMI socket to connect the DVD player. I'm not sure what you mean when you use the issue with the NTL as a reason why you wouldn't use HDMI for the DVD player? I may have misunderstood but it seems that you seem to be thinking of linking the 2 together or something, but I'm not sure why you would think this? Both devices should link separately to the Panny. If I've totally misunderstood then please put me right!!!
 
Hi
Thanks for the reply.
Regards the ntl box I meant that if I used component to connect to the pj I could just unplug the cables at the source end to suit which I was using as the source.
I will look into the dvd players a bit more as i think you are right regards the 360 although Samsung HD 860 looks a better bet.
One other thing I have thought about is how far is your dvd player away from your pj as I have a wanted thread for a 10 meter hdmi but its been suggested to use component instead ?
Any thoughts?
Cheers.
 
Hi there

I have my source equipment about 1m away from my Panny so I see what you mean.

Regarding HDMI cables, try this
http://www.audiovisualonline.co.uk/...vo-primary-hdmi-interconnect-10m/display.html

HDMI, DVI, Optical (Toslink) cables are all digital cables and basically they should either work or not work - it really shouldn't be worth spending a King's Ransom on such a cable. As an example, it is quite possible to spend a fortune on Optical cables, yet I bought 2 10m cables for about £9 each, I've run them through 3 walls and through the loft and into my amp, and they both work flawlessly. I'm sure you'll have the same experience from a £22 HDMI cable. And if in the unlikely event that it doesn't work, just send it back!! I found this example cable quickly as I've bought from these several times and they're quite reliable. There may be even cheaper cables out there.

The same logic doesn't necessarily apply to cables such as Component & RGB SCART which carry electrical signals and could more easily be affected by outside factors. I've always found it worthwhile to spend a little extra on these (but never a fortune).

I have generally heard good reports about the Samsung players.
 
Correct me if I´m wrong but doesn´t the Ax100 have a decent inbuilt scaler? I think that I read on avs that you should be alright if you bought a decent pregressive scan player instead of a upconverting player if so then that could shave a few punds of the DVD player.
 
The Panny is supposed to have a decent inbuilt scaler, however, I've found the picture to be much better letting my Sony DVD player do the upscaling. This is the exact opposite of what I expected.

My thought when buying a DVD player to partner the Panny is that as these HDMI upscalers cost less than £100, it may be a false economy to buy anything cheaper as it at least gives you options of trying both the pj and the DVD player at doing the upscaling and seeing which looks best to you.

I considered the Oppo as I've heard great things about it, but they aren't the easiest things to get hold of and I think only have coaxial sound output (I required Optical).
 

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