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Thread: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

  1. #1
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    DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Que pasa, peeps??

    I have a digital projector and a screen...

    DVD is good.... but what is the next step??

    Is there an audio difference with blu ray?!?

    Anything else I should know about??

    Thank U...

  2. #2
    Registered User Phil_dB's Avatar
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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quick reply as i'm a bit busy

    Yes, HD (blu ray) is the next step - and it's brilliant!

    Yes there's also an audio difference with blu ray, it's called HD audio funnily enough - Blu Ray discs have so much more space for data than DVDs... (they really had to compress sound on DVDs), - but you'll need an HD AV reciever to decode HD audio... (and of course a surround sound system to hear it).

    Personally I haven't updated my AV reciever to HD as yet (waiting for prices to fall), i've still got a DTS/DolbyDigital 5.1 receiver, (standard surround formats seen on DVDs) - but despite this, the sound quality I experience now is definitely a step up from DVD, - I think this is mostly because of the higher bit-rate of the blu ray player.

    Since I upgrade my telly and player to HD i'm extremely happy, it's an absolute joy to relax in front of a good movie now again, - highly recommended

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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Thanks, Phil...

    my 5.1 reciever is Nad, and it is a bit tasty, so wouldn't really want to replace it...

    SO...

    blu ray disc... digitally transfer to existing 5.1.. and will my projector handle HD visuals??

  4. #4
    Registered User Phil_dB's Avatar
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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    I know what you mean, my Denon receiver wasn't cheap either, so, like you, I didnt fancy replacing that just yet as well.. - I wouldn't get much for it now second hand.. which is why I'm going to wait until HD recievers come down in price before I upgrade. Plus i'm quite happy with the sound as it is. I think a lot of it is to do with your room, speaker placement and collaboration anyway, - so not worth the upgrade right now.

    Blu ray will have both your traditional DD5.1/DTS formats as well as HD audio (DD-TrueHD, DTS-MA and maybe others), - you'll notice your reciever choosing DTS much more of the time, whereas with DVD you probably saw it using DTS only on rare occasion. As I say, I believe you should hear an increase in sound quality from a blu ray player alone (my old DVD player was a mid-priced Denon, my blu ray is a somewhat cheaper Sony).

    Is your projector HD? Sure, you'll get a picture, - but how good it is I couldn't say as I know nothing about projectors i'm afraid,... I went from CTR to Plasma.. - I would go to http://www.avforums.com/forums/index.php - for all the info & help you could ever want

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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quote Originally Posted by CJ View Post
    Que pasa, peeps??

    I have a digital projector and a screen...

    DVD is good.... but what is the next step??
    HD-DVD is a dead format but you can get some real bargains because of it. BLU-RAY is the "winning" HD format but other than storage capacity (blu-ray has more) and insidious region encoding (hd-dvd had none) there wasn't all that much to pick between the formats. HD-DVDs tend to come in red boxes - BLU-RAY discs come in blue boxes - Stops the punters getting confused I suppose

    This is a great summary

    Quote Originally Posted by CJ View Post
    Is there an audio difference with blu ray?!?
    what Phil said for audio , also the link above has some info


    Anything else I should know about??
    Yes, manufacturers of equipment lie to you You really want something capable of delivering "full hd" which is a resolution of 1920 x 1080 - lots of tvs will say "hd ready" or even "full hd" in small letters when its is 720p or 1080i : 1080p equipment has "FULL HD" in big letters.

    Also if you already have a PC a dvd/blu-ray/hd-dvd playing drive will set you back only about £60 and if your gfx card has an hdmi out...plug it into a tv...and you're sorted (any use AnyDVD to remove region encoding from bluray).

  6. #6
    Registered User Phil_dB's Avatar
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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quote Originally Posted by Dreadful Scathe View Post

    Yes, manufacturers of equipment lie to you You really want something capable of delivering "full hd" which is a resolution of 1920 x 1080 - lots of tvs will say "hd ready" or even "full hd" in small letters when its is 720p or 1080i : 1080p equipment has "FULL HD" in big letters.
    It is confusing, yes, - however, they're not really lying, as both 1080i & 1080p are both HD.

    I don't necessarily think you definitely want Full HD... - It depends on the individual TV's quality, how big it is, how far you sit from it, and what you're going to be using it for/with.

    If you're using it for standard digital most of the time, some 1080i sets will produce a better picture than 1080p sets as they're not having to 'guess' what the rest of the pixels should be (causing blurry'ness), - other 1080i sets will produce a better picture than 1080p sets simply because it's just a better quality TV. Or, if you're sat too far away from the tv you won't even see the extra detail offered on a 1080p set (over the same 1080i tv). Similarly, if you're tv is too small, again you might not notice the extra detail.

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    Registered User Beowulf's Avatar
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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    no time to post in detail but agree with all said above.. you can always get more info from one of my other internet haunts

    http://www.thedvdforums.com/forums/

    I post as Beowulf1970.. surprise surprise !! (although not for a while as I tend mostly to just lurk these days)

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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quote Originally Posted by Phil_dB View Post
    It is confusing, yes, - however, they're not really lying, as both 1080i & 1080p are both HD.
    They're not lying about THAT, they're lying about "full hd".

    I don't necessarily think you definitely want Full HD... - It depends on the individual TV's quality, how big it is, how far you sit from it, and what you're going to be using it for/with.
    Well most blu-rays are 1080p, that ive bought anyway, but I take your point about screen quality - there is a huge difference between some screens - "try before you buy" is important, if possible that is. I have bought a few screens online without seeing them, but only because they advertised; resolution, refresh rate, contrast ratio and brightness - plus had overwhelmingly positive reviews.

  9. #9
    Registered User Phil_dB's Avatar
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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quote Originally Posted by Dreadful Scathe View Post
    "try before you buy" is important, if possible that is. I have bought a few screens online without seeing them, but only because they advertised; resolution, refresh rate, contrast ratio and brightness - plus had overwhelmingly positive reviews.

    Yes, I've done exactly the same. Trying before you buy isn't always representative, for example in a brightly lit shop LCD may look beautiful & plasma can look 'washed out', but in a dimly lit lounge the outcome can be very different.

  10. #10
    The Dashing Moderator
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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quote Originally Posted by Dreadful Scathe View Post
    HD-DVD is a dead format but you can get some real bargains because of it. BLU-RAY is the "winning" HD format
    I think it's no coincidence that Sony developed the ill-fated Betamax, and are part of the Blu-Ray consortium.

    I believe they determined that they weren't going to lose out in another format battle... (and stuck a Blu-Ray player in every PS3).
    Love dance, will travel

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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quote Originally Posted by CJ View Post
    Thanks, Phil...

    my 5.1 reciever is Nad, and it is a bit tasty, so wouldn't really want to replace it...

    SO...

    blu ray disc... digitally transfer to existing 5.1.. and will my projector handle HD visuals??
    Depends on your PJ ... if it can display native resolutions in excess of 720p then it will be ok (name & model no into google will tell you if it's HD ready)

    As for your amp if it can take 5.1 analog inputs then you can buy a BD player that decodes onboard and puts out the sound via 6 discreet channels rather than through Optical Coax or HDMI (Panasonic BD 60 does this from memory but a PS3 will not). In that case you would be able to take advantage of all of the new codecs rather than having to use "boring old" DD or DTS (which still sound mighty fine to my ears by the way)

  12. #12
    Registered User Phil_dB's Avatar
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    Re: DVD, HD DVD, Blu Ray...

    Quote Originally Posted by clevedonboy View Post

    As for your amp if it can take 5.1 analog inputs then you can buy a BD player that decodes onboard and puts out the sound via 6 discreet channels rather than through Optical Coax or HDMI (Panasonic BD 60 does this from memory but a PS3 will not). In that case you would be able to take advantage of all of the new codecs rather than having to use "boring old" DD or DTS (which still sound mighty fine to my ears by the way)
    I considered this (fiddly) route myself.. - but was eventually put off after reading about so many problems people have had in doing so, I decided it was far too much hassle than it was worth, and possibly for little benefit in the long run... - in short, its considered a possible temporary solution until a HD receiver is inevitably purchased.

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