Best DVD player for $1100 or less? (1 Viewer)

Hey guys, if this question has been asked, then I'm sorry about it, but I checked and could not find a question for this. Ok, here is what I'm looking for. I have a Yamaha s2300 right now, and it's pretty good, but I'm looking to upgrade. I was hoping someone would have a good combo player, like an HD and Blu ray player but I have not seen anything as of yet. I have this as a system so far. I have a 65 inch Mits TV, Arcam avr300 receiver, the Yamaha DVD player, Dish network 622, a DVDO I scan upscaler, a Monster power signature hts5100 thingy, and Acoustic Zen towers, center speakers and a Von Schweikert sub.
What would be good here? I'm also adding a good HTPC soon as well.
Thanks in advance

If by HD and Blu-ray player, you mean HD DVD, I don't know what formats you want but I would not buy an HD DVD/Blu-ray combo player now unless you already have a collection of HD DVD. HD DVD is dead. I would recommend a Blu-ray player and a separate DVD player if you want SACD/DVD-A and the best DVD-V playback. My recommendations for possibilities for both:

Blu-ray
Panasonic DMP-BD50
Sony BDP-S550
Sony PS3

DVD/SACD/DVD-V
Oppo DV-983H
Denon DVD-3930CI

I think the DVDO I Scan performance can be matched by the Oppo DV-983H, but it might be you want a player that can be processed by that scaler. I don't know what sources it accepts, but if it will process from HDMI, the Oppo DV-980H might be a good choice and it is only $170.

Chris

I second Chris' general idea of two players instead of one. The Oppo players will give you SACD/DVD-A plus are able to be made region free, if you want to play DVDs from other regions. You can easily get the top Oppo plus a BR player within your budget.

Ok I was at the Anderson's TV this evening and they were saying that the Panasonic dmp bd30k is every bit as good as the 1000 dollar denon blu ray. What do you guys think? I'm not sure I will ues the up converter with the new dvd player. You guys think 2 is better then one??

The Panasonic DMP-BD30A is very highly regarded for a Profile 1.1 Blu-ray player. It is not a highly regarded DVD player. Although I own a fleet of players, I don't own that one and can't give you first hand impressions so somebody that does own it will be able to. Since you started with a budget much higher, I would still recommend one of the three Blu-ray players I stated in my first post above the DMP-BD30A. All three of those are Profile 2.0.

I only think two players are better than one if you want more than just Blu-ray and Region 1 DVD-V. The DVD players I suggested offer a lot in addition to Region 1 DVD-V. I don't know what you want though and you might find that a Blu-ray player suits your purposes for DVD-V.

Chris

Since you mentioned you have plans for an HTPC, then of course that could negate your need for a separate DVD player, maybe even negate your need for a standalone Blu-ray player. I have never used an HTPC for DVD or Blu-ray so I can't help at all in that regard.

Chris

Here is a list of Blu-ray players and summary of features that should help with your decision.

Master List Of Blu-ray Players

Chris

If DVD-A and SACD are a requirement then you absolutely will need 2 players. None of the released Blu-Ray players support both DVD-A and SACD. Most versions of the Sony PS3 do support SACD.

If DVD-A and SACD audio performance is important I would pass on the Oppo, keep the Yahama S2300 and just add a good Blu-Ray player. If you want to upgrade your DVD-A/SACD audio performance, a used Yamaha 2500 or better yet, a used Denon 5900, would be good options.

Hey guys, thanks for the answers. I looked into the PS3 a little, but I'm not much of a gamer, and the video and audio quality from what I understand, and for what I would be using it for, is just not there. SACD and DVD-A are not important at all. Blu Ray and great sound and picture is important as well as is the ability to play a few other formats.

The Panasonic BD players and the Denon (and Marantz) players all use Panasonic's Unipher scaler, though the Denons have a better deinterlacer. Other than that, they have the same basic options.

As for the PS3, there are better BD players out there. The PS3 is very, very fast compared to other players, but isn't as flexible as, say the Panny DMP50 or upcoming Sharp BD50 player. The picture quality for BDs isn't better than other players, and is even inferior to, say, the Pioneer Elite BD player. I, also, recommend separate BD and DVD players.

I would recommend the Oppo 983 mentioned above. It has the same processing power as the DVD IScan VP30 (ABT 1018 and ABT102 chips), though won't customise output resolutions. It's a strong player, and I have it hooked up to an Epson projector, and I couldn't be happier with the results. It's a much better upscaler than any BD player out there today.