Help choosing new Blu-ray player

[Nibbs4469]

Hi - I'm looking for some advice on which Blu Ray player to buy.

I current have a Panasonic BDP35 which overall seems like a decent player. I am thinking of moving it upstairs to the bedroom and replacing it with something slightly higher-end. I've done quite a bit of research but opinions seem to vary so much about the available players. I have been mainly trying to choose between the Denon 2500 or a Pioneer - either the LX71 or LX51.

I am using a Pioneer LX 50 Amp which can decode HD audio, A Sony KDL40 W4500 TV

My understanding is that performance wise there's nothing significant to choose between the LX51 and 71 players so I guess the real choice is between the Denon (£600) or the Pioneer (£300ish)

I'd be grateful for thoughts from those who've experienced these players as to which to choose. Obviously the Pioneer is much cheaper but I'd be willing to pay more if the Denon offered significantly better picture and sound performance. I'd also be interested to know if people think either player will be significantly better than my existing Panasonic.

Thanks - look forward to reading your views

 

[Kamin99]

Hi - I'm looking for some advice on which Blu Ray player to buy.

I current have a Panasonic BDP35 which overall seems like a decent player. I am thinking of moving it upstairs to the bedroom and replacing it with something slightly higher-end. I've done quite a bit of research but opinions seem to vary so much about the available players. I have been mainly trying to choose between the Denon 2500 or a Pioneer - either the LX71 or LX51.

I am using a Pioneer LX 50 Amp which can decode HD audio, A Sony KDL40 W4500 TV

My understanding is that performance wise there's nothing significant to choose between the LX51 and 71 players so I guess the real choice is between the Denon (£600) or the Pioneer (£300ish)

I'd be grateful for thoughts from those who've experienced these players as to which to choose. Obviously the Pioneer is much cheaper but I'd be willing to pay more if the Denon offered significantly better picture and sound performance. I'd also be interested to know if people think either player will be significantly better than my existing Panasonic.

Thanks - look forward to reading your views

good post ,same thoughts here ,was initially going for LX91 then decided to invest in yamaha Z7 and now looking for a player ,reviews in What hi fi doesn't justify the price of LX71 over LX51,but Denon has its own problems ,lower LEF by 5db ,doesn't work well with universal disks,upgrade software at your own risk ,Denon will not stand by its own software (strange) so would be waiting for more views

 

[kingfats]

Hi - I'm looking for some advice on which Blu Ray player to buy.

I current have a Panasonic BDP35 which overall seems like a decent player. I am thinking of moving it upstairs to the bedroom and replacing it with something slightly higher-end. I've done quite a bit of research but opinions seem to vary so much about the available players. I have been mainly trying to choose between the Denon 2500 or a Pioneer - either the LX71 or LX51.

I am using a Pioneer LX 50 Amp which can decode HD audio, A Sony KDL40 W4500 TV

My understanding is that performance wise there's nothing significant to choose between the LX51 and 71 players so I guess the real choice is between the Denon (£600) or the Pioneer (£300ish)

I'd be grateful for thoughts from those who've experienced these players as to which to choose. Obviously the Pioneer is much cheaper but I'd be willing to pay more if the Denon offered significantly better picture and sound performance. I'd also be interested to know if people think either player will be significantly better than my existing Panasonic.

Thanks - look forward to reading your views

Hi Nibbs4469.
I've directly compared the 35 against the 51 and to be honest there wasn't much in it regarding Blu-ray playback,of course this is just my findings others may disagree.
So maybe look into the Denon? see what feedback you get.
All the best.

 

[Nibbs4469]

Hi Nibbs4469.
I've directly compared the 35 against the 51 and to be honest there wasn't much in it regarding Blu-ray playback,of course this is just my findings others may disagree.
So maybe look into the Denon? see what feedback you get.
All the best.

Thanks - I find the blu-ray playback on the Panasonic really impressive but not so impressed by standard DVD playback. Any thoughts on the upscaling abilities of the BDP51

 

[kingfats]

Thanks - I find the blu-ray playback on the Panasonic really impressive but not so impressed by standard DVD playback. Any thoughts on the upscaling abilities of the BDP51

The best image with DVD was using Source direct from the Pioneer and letting my amp process the signal.

 

[goose51]

For what it's worth, purely from a BD replay point of view, I couldn't tell any difference whatsoever in PQ between the samsung bd1500 and the high end denontransport.The sound via my onkyo amp was exactly the same. If you're spending a lot on a BD player i'm sure it's easy to convince yourself that you are seeing an improvement over cheaper players. I upgraded my £150 DVD player to a high end unit (£600) and it was certainly worth the extra outlay, I'm yet to be convinced that the same is true of the high end BD players. However, audition the players side by side if possible, you may see something that I don't..... What hi-fi S&V do see a difference, but then their sales sort of depend on new kit being purchased....in my opinion only of course.

Standing by for the spears being chucked in my direction by what hi-fi readers.

 

[Nibbs4469]

For what it's worth, purely from a BD replay point of view, I couldn't tell any difference whatsoever in PQ between the samsung bd1500 and the high end denontransport.The sound via my onkyo amp was exactly the same. If you're spending a lot on a BD player i'm sure it's easy to convince yourself that you are seeing an improvement over cheaper players. I upgraded my £150 DVD player to a high end unit (£600) and it was certainly worth the extra outlay, I'm yet to be convinced that the same is true of the high end BD players. However, audition the players side by side if possible, you may see something that I don't..... What hi-fi S&V do see a difference, but then their sales sort of depend on new kit being purchased....in my opinion only of course.

Standing by for the spears being chucked in my direction by what hi-fi readers.

Thanks - interesting view - I am quite keen to have a player that upscales DVDs really well too. I had seen that Oppo who apparently make really good upscaling DVD players were bringing out a Blu Ray player but apparently it's not due until March and will only be available in USA and Canada, initially at least.