Advice on blu-ray and speakers

[admin_exported]

Hello all,

would appreciate some advice on choice on blu-ray and choice on speakers as i am going to set up a first home cinema environment.

My set up till so far: Pioneer 5090, Marantz 8002 receiver, Van den Hull flat HDMI, Isotek Mira mains, speaker cable Chord Carnival Classic for back speakers and Chord Carnival Silverwire for front speakers (already in walls).

- Thinking of following blu-ray players: Sony S760, S5000 ES or Pioneer LX 52. Are these first preferences logical or did I forget any and what would be the preferred option? (for music I would also use my Yamaha CD-S1000 player)

- Thinking of following speakers (style package): Monitor Audio Radius HD, BW MT 30 of Focal Dome 5.1. Same question as with the blu-ray players.

Thanks in advance for the trouble taken!

 

[dcanham001]

Welcome Bunt

any idea of a budget?

the blu-ray players you've suggested are all very good but vary in price considerably.

the S760 retails for £400 and the S5000 for around £1000 (though you can now get both cheaper if you shop around)

 

[chrisup]

Hello Bunt,

Happy Christmas. I have an Onkyo 905 and I bought the B & W 685 theatre package but I upgraded the sub to ASW610 and it sounds superb. It excels with music and and movies sound fantastic and Sky HD has never sounded better!! I would add these speakers to your list I am certain you won't be disappointed. You will need stands eg Atacama Nexus 6 and cables eg Chord Company Carnival Silver Screen. Try to find a good dealer who will advise you and allow you to listen to your alternatives. I have used Grahams London N1, Sevenoaks HiFi and Superfi in Birmingham to buy my hifi seperates and home cinema systems. My oldest system still works superbly and everything was pruduced inb the UK!!

Best wishes

Chris

 

[Anonymous]

Hello Chris and others,

First of all: best wishes for 2010: health and happiness.

Thanks for the advice on B&W but i am not such a B&W fan. Always sound a little "foggy", as if a blancket is put over the speakers. After some advice from dealers took the decision to buy the Radius HD package as in the award winners style package winner for 2009.

On the budget: budget can stretch to the Sony 5000ES, but will it be worth it, as i use my Yamaha CD-s1000 for listening to CD's.

Next to that i read some advice on the LX52 being advicable over the Sony's - both S760 and 5000SE (taking into account my plasma is also a Pio)?

Can any one comment on that?

Thanks in adavance for the trouble taken.

 

[bigboss]

I don't see much point in spending more on the Sony 5000ES when the Sony S760 uses the same picture processing employed in the 5000ES. Besides, the S760 is faster & has built-in wi-fi.

The Pioneer LX52 is also a very good player.....but you won't get any performance improvement simply because it's of the same brand as your TV. The only real advantage of a Pioneer blu-ray player to pair with a Pioneer TV is the Kuro link, which will enable you to use one remote to operate both equipments.

I can vouch for the Radius HD speakers

I've got them, & they're absolutely superb!

Haven't you considered a receiver? If you go for Monitor Audio Radius HD, then Yamahas pair with it the best, but you must take a demo. Which receiver depends on your budget really.

 

[Anonymous]

Hello big boss and others,

already purchased that some months ago: Marantz 8002 receiver. Also bought a Yamaha CD-S-1000 SACD player.

Bought the Marantz as it has a beautiful sound and was very cheap as they were throwing it out the collection.

So if the choice would be between the Pio LX52 and the Sony S760: which would be preferable?

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Anonymous]

pioneer

 

[bigboss]

You won't go wrong with either the Sony S760 or Pioneer LX52. I would personally prefer the S760 as it's faster to load & has more features (wi-fi etc.) than the LX52. The S760 is also the first blu-ray player to get reference status for HD playback in one of the reviews. It's also What Hi-Fi's best buy (in its category) & product of the year.

The Pioneer LX52 is an excellent player, & arguably has a slightly better performance than the S760, but at a much higher price. Only you can decide if it's worth the extra premium.

 

[Anonymous]

Hello Big Boss, thanks.

Would you also make that choice if the difference in price was not an issue?

Do you by accident have anuy knowledge on the speed of the Sony5000ES?

THX.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Bunt

I'd recommend you get a demo of all 3 players with your kit, see which you prefer!

James

 

[Deleted member 2457]

Bunt:

Hello Big Boss, thanks.

Would you also make that choice if the difference in price was not an issue?

Do you by accident have anuy knowledge on the speed of the Sony5000ES?

THX.

I read in a review it was lightening quick, something about loading faster than eating donuts.

 

[bigboss]

Bunt:

Hello Big Boss, thanks.

Would you also make that choice if the difference in price was not an issue?

Do you by accident have anuy knowledge on the speed of the Sony5000ES?

THX.

Even if price was not an issue, why will I spend more on Sony 5000ES when I won't see any performance improvement? Besides, it's an older model & has less features than the Sony S760.

The thing that goes in favour of the Sony 5000ES is its build quality which is better than the S760 (although even the S760 is built to a high standard).

The Sony 5000ES is amongst the faster blu-ray players in the market, just like the S760. PS3, Oppo, Samsung & LG players are faster to load.

As JTD said, don't take my word. Demo all three & see which one you prefer the most.

 

[Anonymous]

bigboss:Bunt:

Hello Big Boss, thanks.

Would you also make that choice if the difference in price was not an issue?

Do you by accident have anuy knowledge on the speed of the Sony5000ES?

THX.

Even if price was not an issue, why will I spend more on Sony 5000ES when I won't see any performance improvement? Besides, it's an older model & has less features than the Sony S760.

WHF says you will - the Sony5000ES is superior to the S760.Read the February 2010 issue.

 

[bigboss]

I haven't seen an improvement in my demo (although I demoed them at different times). Just demo it yourself & see if there's any improvement & if the improvement is worth the extra money.

 

[Anonymous]

Perhaps a side-by-side demo will exhibit, dare I say, a stark contrast between the two?

 

[bigboss]

Unlike the S5000ES, the S760 keeps 1080p/24 content as 1080p/24 all the way through the signal path. The S5000ES uses a 1080i/60 centric design, which meant that even pure 1080p content ran the risk of combing.

 

[scene]

Hi Bunt,

For my part, I went through a whole Pioneer BD to match my Kuro (KRP-500a) vs. Sony thing - read the threads. In my case I was torn between a 51FD and s760, but along the way I did look at the LX52. I settled for the Sony s760 for all the reasons quoted so far, newer, faster, wi-fi, etc. It looks superb with the Kuro

Regards the S5000ES vs. the S760. The main advantage of the S5000ES, from what I can make out, over and above the build quality, is the quality of the Video out over composite and the better audio quality (better DACs / less jitter) over the m/channel analogue outs.

If you're not going to use the analogue outs, the only significant difference I can see, IMHO, is the build quality. So I'd say, save the money to spend on the speakers / cables / discs.

 

[bigboss]

scene:
Hi Bunt,

For my part, I went through a whole Pioneer BD to match my Kuro (KRP-500a) vs. Sony thing - read the threads. In my case I was torn between a 51FD and s760, but along the way I did look at the LX52. I settled for the Sony s760 for all the reasons quoted so far, newer, faster, wi-fi, etc. It looks superb with the Kuro

Regards the S5000ES vs. the S760. The main advantage of the S5000ES, from what I can make out, over and above the build quality, is the quality of the Video out over composite and the better audio quality (better DACs / less jitter) over the m/channel analogue outs.

If you're not going to use the analogue outs, the only significant difference I can see, IMHO, is the build quality. So I'd say, save the money to spend on the speakers / cables / discs.

Bang on!