PS3 as a Blu-ray player in a theater (1 Viewer)

[Girish]

I am going to use it primarily as a blu-ray player for the movies. Am I better off buying a Blu-ray player instead? I need to hook it up with projector(which had component video), and to Proceed Mark Levinson processor which had optical and digital for audio.
BTW does PS3 come with a remote?
Thanks for help as always!!!

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

I'd think it should be fine as long as you don't need upconversion for DVDs and don't need 1080p output since you need analog component out.

The PS3 doesn't normally come w/ a BD/DVD-style remote -- that's a ~$20 extra/option (and uses Bluetooth, not IR) unless you happen to find some bundle sale that includes it. If you need IR remote capability (for your universal remote), you can try the 3rd party Nyko USB-to-IR remote solution (w/ a USB-to-IR dongle) though it's not a particularly complete solution since you can't power on/off w/ that.

For component output, you'll also need to buy the PS2/PS3 breakout component cable for ~$20.

For audio, you can just connect to your processor w/ standard toslink/optical for standard DD and DTS playback.

One consideration for going w/ something else other than PS3 is if you want the player to output the various lossless audio formats as 5.1 (or 7.1) analog out since it sounds like you don't have a processor that handles HDMI. Another detail to consider for the future is how critical you want to be about how the lossless audio formats are handled across HDMI if/when you upgrade your processor, ie. the PS3 decodes to multi-channel PCM before passing it via HDMI. Otherwise, it's mostly just about preferences wrt ergonomics/useability and cosmetics/aesthetics...

_Man_

 

[Chris S]

No but you can use the PS3 controller. When I first got my unit I was very skeptical about this and very much wanted a real remote, however I've really come to like the quick response times of the bluetooth enabled controller and really can't find a valid reason to spend ~$20 to replace it.

 

[Sanjay Gupta]

Believe me the PS3 remote is far more convenient than the controller for movie viewing. By the way the remote is also 'bluetooth' and therefore has the same response time and is also non-directional, like the controller. THe $20 is money well spent, ie. if you use the PS3 for movie watching.

 

[Girish]

Thanks for all the wonderful responses. Does it matter how many gb the PS3 ahs to be?

 

[Girish]

Any deals on PS3 anywhere?

 

[Scott-S]

This statement confused me. I thought the PS3 did a great job of upscaling standard dvds. Is this not the case?

The reason I ask is that I am very close to buying one myself and if it sucks at sd-dvd upscale then I need to rethink.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Gish,

The only deal I know is Sony's own deal where you get $100 back w/ a new Sony credit card when purchasing at their own retail stores (or at the SonyStyle online store). It's good for any first-time Sony purchase of >=$299 -- and not specific to the PS3 though the PS3 would be a prime choice for it. That's what I did a few weeks ago.

There's also rumor that there will be a $100 price cut coming next Monday, so you might want to wait until next Monday or Tuesday to see if that's true. No idea if the Sony card deal would still be in effect if/when the price cut happens.

As for which one to get, if you don't care about playing old PS2 games or SACDs and don't see a need for the extra USB ports (4 vs 2) or the built-in SD card reader, then the cheaper 40GB version should be all you need -- and that's the one that comes w/ the 1-disc Spiderman BD instead of some game bundle. The harddrive can always be upgraded later, if you eventually decide you want more space for doing stuff other than strictly playing BDs -- and the upgrade is apparently very easy to do.


You overlooked the rest of that reply/sentence. The OP needed component out. The PS3 (and most other players) does not upconvert via component out. If you're using HDMI, then it should do well.

_Man_

 

[Chris S]

If you are going to use it solely as a Blu-ray player it doesn't make any difference. Now if you were thinking about playing a few PS2 and PS3 games then that is a little different.

 

[Chris S]

Good to know that it's also a bluetooth device as I really do like that aspect a lot. I suppose it doesn't hurt that I was already somewhat accustomed to the control since I do play video games. But if I find one for cheap one day I might give it a shot based on how much you really seem to like it.

 

[Matt Hough]

The PS3 is a superb upconversion DVD player.

 

[Scott-S]

Thanks for the answers to my upscaling question. I feel better now. If the price drops monday as rumored, I will finally get off the fence.

 

[alan halvorson]

Curious as to where you heard this. I just bought one today and if there is a price drop, I can take advantage of the price guarantee.

Something else to consider - when you buy a PS3 or most other (all other?) Blu-Ray players, you qualify for 5 free Blu-Ray discs by mail. However, the offer expires on January 31, 2008 so you have that long to benefit.

 

[Chris S]

There is a story floating out there that Best Buy has distributed a memo that the 80Gb model is going to be discontinued and recently FCC(?) filings have shown up with pictures of a white PS3. So the speculation is that a new model with possibly a price drop is in the works, although I doubt we'll see a price drop. The reason I say that is because if that were the case then we'd see leaked details via early glances at the Best Buy and Circuit City advertisements and there hasn't been any reports yet.

 

[Girish]

Bought the PS3 40gb. Can I connect HDMI to the projector for video and toshlink for the audio to the Mark Levinson? Or do I need to buy a component breakout adapter.

 

[Matt Hough]

No problem at all with that configuration to get video and audio. Can you get the HD audio (PCM et al) through the optical connection (I'm ignorant about the Mark Levinson processor)?

 

[Mark Zimmer]

Because of the audio limitations I've opted to wait for a profile 2.0 standalone player; I've gotten too happy with the lossless formats to be happy with downconversion. If you can use HDMI then you should be happy, though.

 

[Ron-P]

I just bought a 40gig that is replacing my Samsung BD-P10000 in my theater. Should have it all hooked up in the next couple of days. I bought it mainly for Blu-ray as I am not a gamer, at least not since Intellivision. Although, I did buy Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, just for fun. Hopefully it's better then my Intellivision games.

 

[Dave Getson]

I'm just about to take the jump and get a PS3 (taking back my Samsung player as they are the same price now) and just wanted a bit of clarification on the sound.

If I'm running HDMI through my reciever, and the receiver can decode DTS HD and Dolby True HD (Onkyo 805 for example), will I be able to hear both of these formats, assuming the disk was done with one of them, of course.

 

[PaulDA]

It should be no problem (though decoding for DTS HD in the PS3 may not be a full decoding, barring a possible firmware update).