Best DVd player for 300.

rulocal

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I am looking to spend about 300 pounds on a DVD player and would like some recommendations. I was thinking maybe a second had 2930? Alternatively I could go for a PS3 and get BR to. Is the SD performance of the PS3 in the same league as something like the 2930?

Cheers
 
Would've thought £300 was a bit overkill for a dvd player with the advent of HD formats and that you can pick up an Oppo for £145-180 delivered depending on model.
 
PS3 upscales SD dvd very well and would compare well if not better against any DVD player of comparable money. That said there is fan noise from the PS3 which may annoy.
 
Is the SD performance of the PS3 in the same league as something like the 2930?
I have both,so i can tell you without a doubt,no it is not.
Admittedly though,its not far away,and possibly on smaller screens you might struggle to see any difference.

I think you will be doing very well if you can find a good 2nd hand 2930 for £300 though...cheapest i have seen is £350 - £400,for machines up to 1 year old.
 
Hi Rulocal,
For what its worth, here's my opinion! I, too, have been thinking about upgrading my dvd. I found that as an Arcam fan, their 2-3 year old DV78 model is now available, brand new, for £299 on line (Moorgate Acoustics.co.uk).
This really got me thinking over the Christmas holidays. Should I get a top of the range non upscaling machine, like the Arcam, or buy a new upscaling dvd player? Having trawled the websites and badgered my local Hifi shop with questions, I came to the conclusion that upscaling isn't really Hd......which we all know, but somehow like to forget!
Some on this forum will politely suggest that upscaling is a manufacturers marketing ploy to make you part with cash on something you don't really need! The reason? Well, your HDTV will upscale an SD signal automatically as it has to in order to fill your plasma/lcd/projector with a minimum of 720 lines. It is also considered that the upscaling chip will be of a better quality than that of the "cheaper" players because...well blah blah! Suffice to say their are threads on this subject pointing out that the more expensive dvd players will give a better pic than the Tv because of newer, updated chips etc etc etc!
Some have an upscaler built within their AV receiver....again, a DVD upscaler player won't be necessary unless blah blah (see above!)
People within this forum who have plenty of experience on AV (ie they appear to know form reading their postings, they know what they are talking about and aren't basing their remarks on "well, I have it so it has to be good!") and my Hifi shop, would suggest to upgrade sufficiently on an upscaling player would mean looking at machines priced £200 plus.
Trouble was for me that whilst I would love to buy anything Arcam, do I really need a new DVD player when my existing machine does such a good job? Obviously I do because I love buying anything AV! However, back in reality, I had for my Christmas present a Sky HD box. This is where my probem was eiter made easier or worse!
The BBC HD pic is so much better than I honestly thought it would be. However, and as stated by others, to really see a major difference needs a big screen. My PJ really does point out how different an HD signal is compared to the SD. Comparing the detail and quality on a 32" LCD is a different ball game though.The results aren't quite as compelling to that of a bigger screen. Threads within AV forums cover this as well.
Once you've seen HD, in my case via a Projector, you don't really want to watch the SD version! As said many times before, it's not like watching a VHS tape and then comparing the pic quality to a DVD version. HD though, is a heck of a lot better than the SD version. There are again many threads on this but I am mentioning it because now I can appreciate HD, why should I buy an upscaling machine as it isn't HD despite what it is supposed to do?
So, my current line of thought is not to buy the Arcam machine (even though it is supposed to be brilliant for SD etc) as my existing model does very well in playback mode, sound and vision wise.
As you can most probably tell by above thoughts, I am not now a subscriber to upscaling machines under £200. So, where does this leave me? In light of my Sky HD revelation, I will be buying an HD DVD player!
The war is almost over despite Toshiba's "Battle of the Bulge" recent reply. I am giving it until Easter for the hd conflict to be resolved (unless Tosh do actually do something incredible over the next 10 weeks to overturn what looks now like a Sony and co victory) by which time it should be really clear that the HDDVD format becomes the Betamax to Bluray's VHS.
Sony should also have then sorted out the stand alone models for 2008 with the correct software. Philips, Sharp, Panasonic and the Korean makers will or should have their models also available on UK shelves. What I am assuming here is that there will be a better selection of blu ray models and ,therefore, be cheaper than they are currently. Take the Sony 300 model. It is now available for around £279 with 6 dvds thrown in for good measure but it has a1.1 format issue! The PS3, however, seems to be as good if not better than this stand alone model, is cheaper, and plays games as well apparently! There are threads on this topic as well!
Easter should, and I emphasise should, have all the main worries taken care of so that we can futureproof ourselves for the years to come.....well at least a few years until something else comes along!
And there you have it! My opinion is like everyone elses etc! Wait a few weeks more and spend on an high def DVD player (it most probably will be blu ray!)
Kind regards,

Martin
 
Thanks Martin for your exhaustive relpy!

I have actually already been through my first round of HD players, having just sold the XE1 which was an excellent SD player too. What I am trying to do is replace the SD quality of the XE1 with a machine that is less clunky (the Tosh, although beautifully built was quite cumbersome to use) and plays all Region DVDs and DIV X files. Alternatively, as mentioned above I can go for a PS3.

Any more recommendations.
 
I haven't noticed a difference in upscaling between the PS3 and Denon 1940. But for DVD playback I prefer the 1940 because you can customise the picture more with sharpness and other controls. The PS3 playback gives a softer image for DVDs, and you can't change it.
 
I have actually already been through my first round of HD players, having just sold the XE1 which was an excellent SD player too. What I am trying to do is replace the SD quality of the XE1 with a machine that is less clunky

Well you just sold a machine that uses the same reon scaling chip as the Denon 2930. Not only that the XE1 can be made region free.
 
Well you just sold a machine that uses the same reon scaling chip as the Denon 2930. Not only that the XE1 can be made region free.

I hadn't realised it could be made region free for all discs? As mentioned above though, I did not enjoy the "user" experience and decided to kick HD-DVD into touch. I am also looking for something to deal with DIV X.

Maybe I should buy a relatively modest DVD player (any recommendations) and wait and pick up hi-spek Blu Ray player later in the year as I understand there are issues with the current models. I will have a read on some BR threads to confirm this and also to assess what the BR players' SD performance is like.
 
Hi Rulocal,
I'll be very interested as to what you demo and then buy. Please keep us informed as you could well influence me! I'd like to see what the £1k Pioneer and the Panasonic machines are like. Both are Blu ray and are apparently very good at playing Sd dvds. Sound is also important to me. I'm not into divx though. Oh yes, whilst the Pioneer machine might be really good, it can wait until the price drops to below £300!
Martin
 

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