Buying 1080p LCD and Blu-Ray Player - Need Help

xocomaox · Post by **xocomaox** » 26 Aug 2008, 20:19

So yeah I'm moving into my own condo soon and I'm eying some new toys...

47" 1080p LCD
Blu-Ray Player
Maybe a speaker system...

I just wanted to know if there was anything special I needed?? Here's what I'm looking at:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889104105
120Hz, 2ms response

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889234003
6.5ms response and no 120Hz.. but cheaper.

Not sure about the right BR player either.. the one that I've been looking at is:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882103341

No BR 2.0 profile, will that matter?

I know I will need to buy good HDMI cables, but I'm not really planning on having and cableTV or satellite hooked to this. It's strictly going to be for movies (DVD, BR, and the occasional downloaded HD movie that I will stream from my MacBook Pro.

DaFox · Post by **DaFox** » 26 Aug 2008, 20:35

Just get a PS3, Its still the best Blu-Ray player for the money.

You dont need "Good" HDMI cables, they are pretty much all the same at 3-6 feet since its a digital signal it either works or it doesnt having cool guy stuff like a low gauge, gold plated connectors wont do anything to boost quality.

xocomaox · Post by **xocomaox** » 26 Aug 2008, 20:44

I was just going from the reviews on Newegg that the included cables are mostly junk. but I was thinking of buying some low cost cables that will perform well.

As for a PS3, they are 399.. which is more expensive than the Samsung player I was quoting from Newegg. Plus, does the PS3 playback all the file types that the Samsung does?? The way I see it, it's an extra 60$ for and older player??

Wiz33 · Post by **Wiz33** » 26 Aug 2008, 22:14

I was just going from the reviews on Newegg that the included cables are mostly junk. but I was thinking of buying some low cost cables that will perform well.

As for a PS3, they are 399.. which is more expensive than the Samsung player I was quoting from Newegg. Plus, does the PS3 playback all the file types that the Samsung does?? The way I see it, it's an extra 60$ for and older player??

PS3 is the best and most flexible blu-ray player around. It's the only profile 2.0 ready player in existence due to it's ability to have firmware upgrade delivered via the web. It's has build in Wi-Fi, can interact with your home PC and playback media files store on there.

If you can dual boot your Mac, Get "TVersity" it will transcode almost any video format on the fly and you can play it back on your HDTV thru the PS3.

Also, I would avoid the 47" LCD panel (from any make). as they are all form the same Taiwanese panel manufacturer. What's your budget? I would take a smaller Japanese Panel or a Korean panel over a larger Chinese panel any day because the quality difference is really noticeable. I would get this for $100 more:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889101121&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-LCD+TV-_-Sharp-_-89101121

The stock HDMI cable should do the job just fine. Don't buy into the monster cable hype. If you need different length. Go here:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240

xocomaox · Post by **xocomaox** » 26 Aug 2008, 22:25

I don't really understand the benefits of Profile 2.0.

Also, thanks for the information on the Chinese panel and the link for the cabling. I still think the Phillips has the best features, but I'm going to some local stores to check and see with my own eyes what screen has the best look.

If I were to give you a budget, I would say from $2000 to $2500. I was also thinking of using my Logitech Z-5500's as speakers for the television. Not sure how well that would work though..

Wiz33 · Post by **Wiz33** » 26 Aug 2008, 22:34

I don't really understand the benefits of Profile 2.0.

Also, thanks for the information on the Chinese panel and the link for the cabling. I still think the Phillips has the best features, but I'm going to some local stores to check and see with my own eyes what screen has the best look.

If I were to give you a budget, I would say from $2000 to $2500. I was also thinking of using my Logitech Z-5500's as speakers for the television. Not sure how well that would work though..

The best thing about profile 2.0 is the mandatory network port. Which make any potential bug fixes and upgrade easily accessible.

Looking at the TVs in store will not help. Most B&M retailer have really incompetent sale staffs and I have never seen a properly calibrated HDTV at any mass market retailer. Even the factory preset cannot be trusted as a lof of manufacturer will have high contrast and brightness setting at default to make their set look sharp and bright in the show room.

The only way you can really tell is if you can run some sort of calibration disc thru all the sets and adjust the settings. Then you will see the real difference in the panel quality. Short of that, do your research at places like AVSforum and read up on actual user experience.

The key to a good HDTV is not high brightness, high contrast, blackest black or fast response (which most sales person will try to sell you on). The key to a good HDTV is color saturation and details. you want the set with the best color saturation and details not when the scene is bright and full of color. You want the set that have the best color saturation and detail when the scenes are dark or in shadows

I personally have gone thru more than a few Taiwanese and Korean panel before finally settling on the non-120hz version of the Sharp 46" (120hz model was not out yet then). Basically, Most HDTV Guru will admit that Japanese panels > Korean Panels > Chinese panels

The Z5500 will work in the interim. However, it does not decode the latest HD audio codec so you won't be able to use the best audio track on some Blu ray disc.

xocomaox · Post by **xocomaox** » 27 Aug 2008, 14:10

Thanks for your knowledgeable opinion on the matter! I'll do some more research and see what I can find out.

As to the audio, I don't care about that too much so I think the speakers will work just fine. Don't need 7.1 surround to enjoy a good movie.

DaFox · Post by **DaFox** » 27 Aug 2008, 14:19

As for a PS3, they are 399.. which is more expensive than the Samsung player I was quoting from Newegg. Plus, does the PS3 playback all the file types that the Samsung does??

Considering you can install any version of linux on it, it basically has unlimited file support and you can also your media on its internal harddrive.

Theres no reason to buy something else over it.

xocomaox · Post by **xocomaox** » 27 Aug 2008, 14:58

Looking at some other Blu-ray players, it seems the PS3 actually is, in fact, a really great player. And I've got 500GB of HD movies on my computer, so I guess getting an 80GB SATA PS3 from Newegg is probably my best bet. All the other players seem to have so many flaws... sad but true. Unless I shell out 600 for some top of the line Pioneer unit.

Wiz33 · Post by **Wiz33** » 27 Aug 2008, 18:38

Looking at some other Blu-ray players, it seems the PS3 actually is, in fact, a really great player. And I've got 500GB of HD movies on my computer, so I guess getting an 80GB SATA PS3 from Newegg is probably my best bet. All the other players seem to have so many flaws... sad but true. Unless I shell out 600 for some top of the line Pioneer unit.

One word of warning. The PS3 will only playback AVI and Mpeg2 files. If you have downloaded movies on Xvid, MKV or RMVB. You'll have to use a transcoding program on your PC to decoding those program before sending it to the PS3. I don't know if there is a Mac version of Tversity but you might need to dig around a bit.

Also. The biggest pain on the PS3 is that it does not come with a dedicated media remote. Unless you are comfortable using the game controller to control you media playback. You'll need to order this too:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16879261053

Cynagen · Post by **Cynagen** » 27 Aug 2008, 19:17

Frankly, I'm in the same boat with these guys. If you're going blu-ray, and building your first major entertainment center, then yes, PS3 is your ticket. I went the other route with the Xbox360, and i'm perfectly happy with it, even as an inadequate media player. I have to transcode literally everything I get in order to be able to watch it on my projector. And if it's in HD, i'm waiting a day for it to be transcoded over. (God I hate microsoft for making EVERYTHING proprietary on that box...)

My cousin's PS3 when it was over looked REALLY nice on my projector, so that's a possible route for me if I want to go to Blu-Ray as well, but I get the same thing from certain special places from special friends who have the same interest as high definition as me. And I use a computer already as my HTPC, which reminds me, I need to switch to a Silverstone case. Anyone wanna take a look at those and pick a nice silver one out for me? $200 or less, as many neat features as possible though. (I do enjoy those front status displays, but one with a 7 inch touchscreen would be even cooler.)

xocomaox · Post by **xocomaox** » 27 Aug 2008, 19:46

One word of warning. The PS3 will only playback AVI and Mpeg2 files. If you have downloaded movies on Xvid, MKV or RMVB. You'll have to use a transcoding program on your PC to decoding those program before sending it to the PS3. I don't know if there is a Mac version of Tversity but you might need to dig around a bit.

Also. The biggest pain on the PS3 is that it does not come with a dedicated media remote. Unless you are comfortable using the game controller to control you media playback. You'll need to order this too:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16879261053

Haha, already have that remote in my Newegg wishlist! As for the streaming of movies, I have a few in avi/mpeg2 format already, but I don't see why I can't just play them off my MBP hooked to the TV directly with a DVI to HDMI cable.

Will probably be the best solution for me, but will definitely go the PS3 route. Thanks for your help and words of wisdom. Scouring the AVSforum for panel info as we speak!

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