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A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

post #1 of 245
3/7/08 at 8:27am
Thread Starter 
Per Sony Pictures Entertainment insider "paidgeek":
Quote:
Originally Posted by paidgeek
The S550 will do everything; Internal decoding of THD and MA internally, available on HDMI or Analog, and bitstream output of all formats via HDMI.
Post 741 @ Blu-ray.com



"The S550 will run about $500 this fall." Engadget


Paul
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post #2 of 245
3/7/08 at 1:32pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

And it's good-looking, too.
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post #3 of 245
3/7/08 at 2:02pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

This now makes it the player to beat--it does everything (except play HD DVDs ) that I originally wanted in a hi-def player. But that's okay, I have two HD DVD players already.

I was going to go with a PS3 and live without the advanced audio, but I can wait.
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post #4 of 245
3/8/08 at 8:34am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Sweet! Does anyone know if it will provide DVD-Audio playback? (yes I bought both DVD-A and SACD)

If so, then it really will do everything for me. If not, I may have to wait until Oppo joins the BD player fray. Hopefully my PS3 can hold me over until then.
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post #5 of 245
3/8/08 at 9:52am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

That's the one I'm waiting for too!!

Does anybody know if Amazon when they first get an item just released like this, provide any discount at all or will likely just go with $499???


I'd probably buy it first day if it was $449.
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post #6 of 245
3/8/08 at 11:37am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
I'd probably buy it first day if it was $449.

That is the price the player will sell for. The $499 price being published in various places is from an incomplete press release. My dealer sheet lists high SPPG as $499 and low SPPG as $449. This is Sony's equivalent of MSRP and MAP.
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post #7 of 245
3/8/08 at 11:51am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by PaulDA
This now makes it the player to beat--it does everything (except play HD DVDs ) that I originally wanted in a hi-def player. But that's okay, I have two HD DVD players already.

I was going to go with a PS3 and live without the advanced audio, but I can wait.
Does it beat the BD-50? If not then I'm going to buy that one since it comes out first.
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post #8 of 245
3/8/08 at 12:08pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

I won't be getting it until next Christmas (it's been promised to me--a Blu-ray player--for then by my wife) so that point should be moot for me. I will, of course, investigate each one and go with the one that seems better at the time but at this moment, I KNOW the Sony does all I want it to do while I'm not entirely certain of the Panny.
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post #9 of 245
3/8/08 at 12:11pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by PaulDA
I won't be getting it until next Christmas (it's been promised to me--a Blu-ray player--for then by my wife) so that point should be moot for me. I will, of course, investigate each one and go with the one that seems better at the time but at this moment, I KNOW the Sony does all I want it to do while I'm not entirely certain of the Panny.
I'm not sure this information is correct or not, but from I've heard Panny makes the players for Sony at least as far as the insides of them.
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post #10 of 245
3/8/08 at 2:59pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
I'm not sure this information is correct or not, but from I've heard Panny makes the players for Sony at least as far as the insides of them.

The exact nature of the design and internal components of the new Sony players is still uncertain. I have seen a preproduction working model of the S350 and a mock-up of the S550. Both look virtually identical to my Panasonic BD30, however, it is being reported that the latest version of the Sigma Designs video decoder chip is being used in the new Sony Players. Panasonic uses an exclusive design in their players (Unipher).

I am only speculating, but I would not doubt that Panasonic does not want to share their video decoder with others (the Unipher is the best I have seen on BD performance) but is going to OEM their chassis and drive. If that turns out to be the case, then it would remain to be seen how much improvement Sigma has made with their chip set. Based on current iterations of Sigma and Unipher, I'd take the Panasonic design. Sigma's current offerings are distinguishing themselves in players with load times of over two full minutes on some discs.
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post #11 of 245
3/8/08 at 4:48pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Robert Crawford
I'm not sure this information is correct or not, but from I've heard Panny makes the players for Sony at least as far as the insides of them.

I haven't seen a disclosure about the manufacturer of this upcoming Sony Blu-ray player. I do know my Sony BDP-S1 was manufactured by Pioneer as were at least a couple of the other Sony standalone players, possibly all of the players released to date.

Chris
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post #12 of 245
3/8/08 at 5:56pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Robert George
The exact nature of the design and internal components of the new Sony players is still uncertain. I have seen a preproduction working model of the S350 and a mock-up of the S550. Both look virtually identical to my Panasonic BD30, however, it is being reported that the latest version of the Sigma Designs video decoder chip is being used in the new Sony Players. Panasonic uses an exclusive design in their players (Unipher).

I am only speculating, but I would not doubt that Panasonic does not want to share their video decoder with others (the Unipher is the best I have seen on BD performance) but is going to OEM their chassis and drive. If that turns out to be the case, then it would remain to be seen how much improvement Sigma has made with their chip set. Based on current iterations of Sigma and Unipher, I'd take the Panasonic design. Sigma's current offerings are distinguishing themselves in players with load times of over two full minutes on some discs.
Just like me, something tells me that Obi will be buying the BD-50 too.






Crawdaddy
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post #13 of 245
3/8/08 at 8:03pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Damn, looks almost as good as a woman. Well...not really. But the geek in me had to say something. It will make my wife roll her eyes at me.

I am in. I own the Sony 300, and want to add another machine to our living room.
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post #14 of 245
3/9/08 at 8:49am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Just like me, something tells me that Obi will be buying the BD-50 too.

Possibly, maybe. More likely that I will wait for the Sony to see how it performs. I am not expecting performance gains in the BD50. Internal audio decoding and Ethernet port for BD Live. In my case, internal audio decoding is a non issue. I prefer to send native bitstream to my Denon 4308. BD Live isn't an issue either as I also have a PS3 in my rig.
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post #15 of 245
3/9/08 at 10:30am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

For me, internal decoding of ALL the audio formats AND analogue output of ALL of them once decoded is vital--I love my current receiver and do not want to upgrade it (it lacks HDMI). So between the Sony and the Panny, it will come down to the audio features as while there may be a PQ difference, it will likely be too small for me to notice on my display (and audio, generally, is more important to me than video).
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post #16 of 245
3/10/08 at 9:23pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

I'm curious as to how good the upconversion of SD-DVDs will be. If it's good, I may go for one of these new models. I have a few Sony points to use up before the end of the year.
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post #17 of 245
3/11/08 at 5:43am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

That is an important consideration for some, I'll grant, but it won't be a factor for me. My HD A2 is very good and my projector is also very good for upscaling SD DVD. So as long as the Sony (or Panny) is good with Blu-ray, that's all I care about.
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post #18 of 245
3/11/08 at 2:27pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
"Sweet! Does anyone know if it will provide DVD-Audio playback? (yes I bought both DVD-A and SACD)

If so, then it really will do everything for me. If not, I may have to wait until Oppo joins the BD player fray. Hopefully my PS3 can hold me over until then."

I wasn't expecting Sony to support DVD-A (or HD-DVD for that matter) but what about SACD? Does ANY BD player except the PS3 support SACD?
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post #19 of 245
3/11/08 at 3:29pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Apparently Philips makes a BD player that is also SACD compatible, but I don't see anyone jumping at the opportunity to create a "kitchen sink" player (BD HD DVD, DVD, DVD-A, SACD, VCD, SVCD, DivX.... is there anything I've missed that is already on the market?).
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post #20 of 245
3/11/08 at 6:52pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Stephen_J_H
Apparently Philips makes a BD player that is also SACD compatible, but I don't see anyone jumping at the opportunity to create a "kitchen sink" player (BD HD DVD, DVD, DVD-A, SACD, VCD, SVCD, DivX.... is there anything I've missed that is already on the market?).
The only one who has done it (DVD-A + SACD support seems to be the most contentious, as in very few players do both formats) is Oppo. It's rumored that since BD has emerged as the victor, that Oppo will consider releasing a BD player. Given their track record, I'd expect it to be the closest thing to a "kitchen sink" player on the market.
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post #21 of 245
3/12/08 at 6:08am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Carlo Medina
The only one who has done it (DVD-A + SACD support seems to be the most contentious, as in very few players do both formats) is Oppo. It's rumored that since BD has emerged as the victor, that Oppo will consider releasing a BD player. Given their track record, I'd expect it to be the closest thing to a "kitchen sink" player on the market.

Oppo will make a Blu-ray player, there is nowhere else to go after the DV-983H just released. Whether or not it will play SACD and DVD-A is unclear but I expect it will. Denon will likely offer an expensive Blu-ray player with SACD and DVD-A support.

Chris
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post #22 of 245
3/12/08 at 6:23am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Stephen_J_H
Apparently Philips makes a BD player that is also SACD compatible, but I don't see anyone jumping at the opportunity to create a "kitchen sink" player (BD HD DVD, DVD, DVD-A, SACD, VCD, SVCD, DivX.... is there anything I've missed that is already on the market?).

Philips does not make a Blu-ray player that supports SACD, not yet at least. The Sony PS3 supporst SACD and the Panasonic DMP-BD10 supports DVD-A but no other Blu-ray players support either high resolution audio format. I don't think we will ever see a Blu-ray/HD DVD/SACD/DVD-A player. I do expect to see a couple of players that support everything except HD DVD.

Chris
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post #23 of 245
3/12/08 at 6:38am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

That is one beautiful looking player! If it performs as good as it looks, it will be a welcome successor to my PS3 so that machine can focus on what I mainly purchased it for in the first place.....play games.
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post #24 of 245
3/12/08 at 10:54am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

I'm in the market for a Blue-ray and this may be it, but I have an older Mitsubishi CRT Rear Screen HD Television (1080i or 720p). It DOESN'T have HDMI input.

What kind of cable would I need to connect this player or another HDMI Blu-ray player to my set to optimize its performance?

Would it still upconvert standard DVDs?

At some point I will upgrade my HD TV, but I have loved it and it's still running bright and strong, and I do want a good Blu-ray player.

Thanks for any advice!
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post #25 of 245
3/12/08 at 11:58am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Component cable will deliver all the HD goodness Blu-ray can deliver to your TV BUT you will NOT get upconversion of SD DVD for about 98% of the cases.
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post #26 of 245
3/12/08 at 1:44pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

I'm still leaning toward the BD50. While I enjoy games for both it and my 360, I see myself eBaying the PS3 to help pay for it. I don't have any desire to upgrade my year-old Onkyo 604, and the 7.1 outputs on the Panny will give me the full 7.1 channels for the tracks that use it.
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post #27 of 245
3/13/08 at 2:35pm
Thread Starter 

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Robert Crawford
Does it beat the BD-50? If not then I'm going to buy that one since it comes out first.
Don't know how accurate the "Master List Of Blu-ray Players" is at (Idoblu.co.uk).

The list has the Panasonic DMP-BD50 with only 5.1 analog outs and both the Denon DVD3800BD & Pioneer BDP-05FD with no Ethernet port, making the two of them only profile 1.1 compliant!

The following model lists all capabilities:
Sony BDP-S550 = Cell processor = (Sigma SMP8634 RevC)

Update* Marantz BD8002 = Cell processor = (Panasonic UniPhier+Realta), Update: *(Profile 1.1 = No Ethernet)

 Paul
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post #28 of 245
3/13/08 at 6:14pm

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul Hillenbrand
Don't know how accurate the "Master List Of Blu-ray Players" is at (Idoblu.co.uk).

The list has the Panasonic DMP-BD50 with only 5.1 analog outs and both the Denon DVD3800BD & Pioneer BDP-05FD with no Ethernet port, making the two of them only profile 1.1 compliant!

The following models on the list show all capabilities:
Sony BDP-S550 = Cell processor = (Sigma SMP8634 RevC)
Marantz BD8002 = Cell processor = (Panasonic UniPhier+Realta)

Paul
Paul,
I'll be using the HDMI and not my analog for audio.





Crawdaddy
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post #29 of 245
3/14/08 at 6:22am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

Analogue output is the critical feature for me--which is why the Sony and Panny (5.1 is all I need) are at the top of my list.
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post #30 of 245
3/17/08 at 4:54am

Re: A Blu-ray player [Sony BDP-S550] that will do EVERYTHING! (Verified)

If the 7.1 analog outputs are used from the BDP-S550 to my Denon 3802 would I get to take advantage of all the available audio options as opposed to using just the optical out?
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