Panasonic BD30

[admin_exported]

Really impressed with the BD 30. Just watched Ratatouille via the Onkyo 875 on an Infocus 1080i projector. Both the sound and the pic were absolutely fabulous. Blu ray really is the business.

Couple of questions for those of you more experienced than me. How much of a difference would an 1090p projector make? I mean the 1080i is really very good, much better pic than with DVD, would it be worth the investment?

Secondly the BD 30 has a digital co-ax output for sound. Would there be any advantage in using this instead of the HDMI to outputs sound, thus using the HDMI for the picture only? As I said its really good via HDMI, just trying to learn from other's experience

 

[professorhat]

You may notice a difference of 1080p over 1080i on a projector showing a large screen, though I would think it would be hard to discern other than in fast moving scenes. Whether this is worth forking out a load more money for, I'm not sure - you'd have to have a look yourself and decide how much you needed it!

Stick with HDMI for the audio as well as the video - digital coax won't be able to send the new HD sound formats to your amp so you'll only get the older Dolby Digital / DTS 5.1 soundtracks.

 

[stevee1966]

I was given a demo of the BD30 recently - was shown Casino Royale and Ratatoille. Was very impressed and am fairly certain that i'm going to take the plunge.

The screen i was given the demo on was a Panasonic 42" FULL HD plasma (not sure which model). My screen at home is the Panasonic 42" HD READY PX70 version plasma. Will i see a big difference in picture quality between the Full and HD versions, or will my plasma still show off impressive results ?

I'm waiting to see what tomorrows new issue of What Hi-Fi has to say before deciding on the purchase but does anyone else have any opinions on the quality of image i will get ?

Thanks for any info.

 

[Clare Newsome]

Your HD Ready plasma will look amazing with Blu-ray - don't fret. Yes, you'd see more detail on a Full HD set, especially if you sit quite close to your screen, but there'll be little in it.

Going back to the projector question, however: I moved from an HD Ready to Full HD projector (InFocus IN76 to IN82) at home relatively recently and the difference with HD is incredible - not just from Blu-ray discs but on well-upscaled DVDs and Sky HD (I too have just switched to one of the big Onkyos to take advantage of the superlative upscaling).

But then I do sit probably closer to my 80in screen than I should, so differences in detail are more apparant.

If you can budget for a Full HD projector - InFocus IN82 is looking v.tempting at £2750 - with such a set-up, it'll stun.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies. I have a screen thats about 91" wide and I sit approx 14 feet from it. Presumably, from your experince, Clare, I would see a big improvement if I switched. I currently have the Infocus IN76 and was thinking of either the IN81 or IN82 if I was to upgrade. Would the IN82 be worth the extra cash over the IN81? Trouble is I live in Ireland and can't find any dealer either in Dublin or Belfast (I live on the east, halfway between both) that can demonstrate. One or two have Sim projectors, but they really do cost an arm and a leg.

 

[Clare Newsome]

I thought I was bad sitting 12 feet away from an 80in screen! Good stuff

Yes, you'd notice a big difference, especially with your receiver's upscaling ability. The IN82 is worth the differene (hence it being product of the year over the IN81).

And with the IN83 due out any day (we've just got one in our test rooms) it should be worth haggling to see if you could get the price down even further (or at least a free cable upgrade) on the IN82.

 

[Anonymous]

thanks Clare. Yea, it is a big picture, but its really great!! As the IN83 is due out I'll sit tight for a while as I'm pretty sure the price of the IN82 will drop once the IN83 becomes generally available. By the way does anyone know of a dealer in Northern Ireland selling InFocus (with the present strength of the Euro v Sterling I can save about ?900 by buying in Sterling!!). Prefer to buy in Ireland in case there are any problems.