Blu-ray decision, multichannel PS HELP

[sta99y]

Hi forum members,

I currently use a Yamaha RXV-2400rds, Kef 2005.1 eggs, Pioneer 565A DVD and a Samsung PS50 476A Plasma.

I am upgrading to a BD player in July as Birthday money is going to fund it. So im doing my homework now before i buy.

My amp at the time of purchase was £1200 and salesman told me "it's Future proof (Sevenoaks Reading) but obviously not! Other forums have told me unless i buy a high end BD player which is out of my budget, i will not get very good sound from multichannel analogue as these are flawed on entry or mid level BD players. As amp does not have HDMI inputs i will either have to get a BD player with Multichannel outputs to try or use an LG or Samsung with a Re-encode feature to play in DTS if im correct?? Which is going to sound best and which BD player should i audition at several HI-FI stores in my area (Reading Berks) My budget will be £250 MAX!!

As you techie guys know your stuff would you be able to clear up any confusion as to which is going to partner my amp better for sound and taking into consideration i would love a great picture also!!!

Many thanks for reading

Darrell
edit: can someone who has the time and knowledge give a breif run down of BD players with miltichannel out to pair with my amp above. Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

From what I can ascertain from a quick Google, this re encode function simply strips out the max bit rate DTS 'core' from the HD file and outputs this via optical or coaxial to your amp. Bottom line is that while this will be a higher bit rate and thus quality than standard DVD audio, it will still not be, technically speaking, HD audio.

I would suggest therefore that your best bet is to go down the multi-channel route. I did this as I was unwilling to upgrade my otherwise ok amp, and thus bought my player which has multichannel outputs. This was a mid range player of about 300 notes and it sounds fine to me, and is a huge improvement over standard DD and DTS. If you get some decent cables and a fairly decent player it should sound great, and miles better than the re-encode function.

As for the specific model, I'm a bit out of the loop with current models, so someone else may have to step in, but WHF reviewed a Panasonic this month (the DMP-BD85) which is £280 and has them, as does the Sony BDP-S760, which is £259 currently at Richer Sounds, and comes well recommended.

Hope that helps!

 

[sta99y]

Thanks for your reply, the DTS core thing i had read about, not fully understanding of it tho lol.

What my other worry has been is that if i spend £250 ish on the BD player and connect using multichannel outputs this means that the BD player uses its own processor rather than the Yamaha's, which is the Digital top art? i think. My understanding of this is that its a high end product and is maybe better than that in the BD player? I know the amp cant process High def audio but surely it can sound great....

Darrell

 

[Anonymous]

Glad it made sense!

Yes you're absolutely correct in that assertion, as the player's DAC will be doing the decoding, and not the amp's. I forgot to mention that in my last post because of how late it was! For me this was not too much of a problem as my amp is only worth about £250 quid, but I can see from your point of view with such an expensive amp how that could be an issue.

The decoder in the amp will almost certainly be of better quality than that in the player, but while your amp will sound great playing the higher bit rate DTS, I'd suggest (though can't be sure without listening to it) that HD audio multichannel would still sound better even if decoded in the player, albeit not quite as good as it could sound if it was decoded in your nice amp.

Ultimately, its up to you to decide both what you want to do, and if you get one, what method sounds best. Most if not all players which have multichannel out also have an optical or coaxial out (mine does and its quite old now) so you could try to audition one from a dealer at home, and try it with a Blu-Ray both through the multichannels and through the optical, which should, model dependent, take the highest bit rate DD or DTS and let the amp do the decoding. Then you can decide whether there is a noticeable difference, and what course of action to take.

Personally, I have both connections connected, and use the amp via coaxial to decode the audio when playing DVDs or Blu-Rays with no HD audio track, and the player to decode the HD tracks then send them multichannel when playing HD audio.

Hope that helps

 

[chudleighpaul]

I use multi ins on my Yamaha amp. Very good results on Bluray. If you want to use the amps decoder for DVD then use a coax or optical as well. Just use the multi for Bluray

 

[sta99y]

Todds, great advice and well explained, think we on the same wavelength there! My choice at present is the LGbd390 as it has all connections for me to try, 2nd choice I have no idea at the moment but if anyone would recommend in the £250 bracket then please do.
Paul I did think to use both also, yamaha amp is just a class piece of kit.
Thanks all

 

[sta99y]

Hi forum
I have edited my thread as answers by members were satisfactory to my questions but now I need the advice of which BD player to go for at £250, must have multichannel out to pair with my Yamaha RXV-2400RDS & also play 1080p/24fps to pair with my plasma. Would love a sharp picture and the sound from my amp which will do the processing should be fab.

Thanks

 

[chudleighpaul]

What about Panasonic BD80 or the new BD85.

I have the 80 and the Pic and sound quality is excellent