Denon upgrade + TV replacement

[admin_exported]

Hi

(posted this in the TV section not sure if that was the right place)

I have an old 42" Sony rear projection TV that is now taking 10mins to warm up and display a picture . I also have a Denon AVF100 surround sound system that I paid a small fortune for a few years ago, but is hardly used as babies/kids came along shortly afterwards and the subwoofer was just too loud - plus I haven't had the time to use it . Thus I have been considering 2 options:

a) Buying a top of the range TV and either trying to integrate/upgrade my Denon to blue ray cheaply, or ignore the surround sound for the time being and upgrade it with like for like Denon when they release it and when I can afford it (likely next year at best)

b) Buy a cheaper Sony lcd TV and go for a Sony all in one blue ray surround sound package (although after initial browsing I'm a bit confused as to what I should be going for).

My initial feeling is that the like for like Denon upgrade is going to be too expensive and would possibly end up requiring a full replacement which would be gutting. Also an all in one system would allow me to use the Denon either in the conservatory on a 32" HD JVC lcd or in our bedroom as a hi-fi. If I was to go for a top of the range TV and forget HD surround sound then I was looking at the Pioneer PDP-LX5090. If I was to go for an all in one Sony TV and blue ray surround package then I was looking at the Sony KDL-46W4500. Any advice on the 2 TV's and possibly more importantly what I should do with my surround sound would be most appreciated. Also is HD sound as much an improvement as HD vision and would I be blown away by it?

Thanks in advance.

Richard

 

[Andy Clough]

Hi Richard

OK, I'd start by moving the Denon AVF100 to another room to use with your JVC or whatever, and building a Blu-ray system from scratch with your new TV. The Pioneer PDP-LX5090 is a fabulous TV for sure, and if you can run to that then I'd say it's worth it.

You could then add a Blu-ray player at a later date such as the Pioneer BDP-LX71 (£600) which would obviously work well with your Pioneer screen, or the Panasonic DMP-BD55 (£400).

As for surround sound, there aren't (yet) that many all-in-one Blu-ray systems on the market, although I'm sure we'll see plenty more arriving before Christmas. Question is, do you want full 5.1 surround sound or would you compromise with a 2.1 system?

The advantage of buying a separate Blu-ray player is that a) you'll get better performance and b) you can build up your surround system as time and funds allow. And yes, HD surround sound is a significant improvement.

However, if you're fixed on an all-in-one Blu-ray system I'd get the TV first and then wait until more models come on the market.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Andy, that sounds like great advice. I really don't want to split the Denon and I definitely want 5.1. Would I be impressed with the sound from the speaker add on for Pioneer PDP-LX5090? Would the side speakers or the underneath one be the best to go for? Re: the Blu-ray (sorry for the spelling mistake in my previous post) having just started looking at the market I had the impression that Blu-ray had been out for ages and that there would be lots to choose from, but I'm amazed at the limited choice out there.