Need advice on buying first home cinema set-up

[admin_exported]

I already have a Panasonic 42" PZ85 TV and am looking to replace my current (and sadly only 6 months old!) Denon 1940 DVD player with the Panasonic BD35 Blu-ray player, Yamaha AX763/OnkyoSR606 amp and probably Yamaha YSP-600 soundbar - as for various reasons I don't really want speakers and wires going all over my lounge. However, I have a few questions . . .

1.) Will the BD35 upscale standard DVDs to 1080p as good as or better than the Denon 1940 as, like a lot of us, I have quite a lot of DVDs which I don't intend to replace with Blu-ray discs?

2.) I note the YSP-600 soundbar doesn't decode HD sound - does this mean I won't get HD sound or will the BD35 and/or the Amp do this and then just feed this to the soundbar??

3.) Do I need an Amp at all or can I just plug the BD35 straight into the soundbar with a HDMI cable and still get HD and pseudo-surround sound?

4.) Will the above set up do a decent job of playing CDs and temporarily at least ,save me the trouble of upgrading my Hi-Fi system?

 

[Andrew Everard]

First point: you don't need a receiver with these soundbars - they have all the amplifiication and processing built-in.

But your right that these soundbars won't handle the HD audio soundtracks - the best you'll manage is the original Dolby Digital/DTS stuff.

And though you don't say what your current hi-fi system is, I doubt these soundbars would be an adequate substitute for a decent stereo set-up.

 

[Anonymous]

So is buying a soundbar (the YSP-600 is the likely choice) at the moment a bad idea as in 3 months time they will bring one out that does handle HD audio? Or will the soundbar give me HD audio if I buy a receiver alongside it that can decode HD?? Excuse the ignorance - not sure how these things all work!

Current Hi-Fi is Denon DM-30 but am thinking about going for the Arcam Solo Mini with the B&W 685s.

Either the Home Cinema upgrade or the Hi-Fi upgrade will have to wait another 6 months - but which one!!

 

[Andrew Everard]

Haven't heard of any soundbars able to decode HD Audio in the offing, though I guess that's a logical progression.

And no, you can't use an external AV amp/receiver with these soundbars - they're all-in-one units designed to be used alone.

I think the Denon will be on a par with most soundbars for sound quality on CD, and the Arcam should show them a very clean pair of heels!

 

[Anonymous]

Check out your own reviews:

http://whathifi.com/Review/Yamaha-YSP-40D/

the 40D does have the necessary HDMI although maybe not the HDAudio codecs you require and upscalling is 1080i -- I hope it does 1080p thoroughput for BD input though

there are a number of other models 3050, 4000 that may have better specs?

 

[Andrew Everard]

Neon K:Check out your own reviews:

http://whathifi.com/Review/Yamaha-YSP-40D/

the 40D does have the necessary HDMI although maybe not the HDAudio codecs you require

Yes, I said the YSP-600 couldn't decode the HD Audio codecs. Neither can the other models you mention, otherwise I would have suggested one of them to the OP.

Do try to keep up...