PS3 as main DVD & Blueray player

[admin_exported]

Hello,

I shall soon be a proud owner of a Panasonic TH-37PX70. I currently own a DVD player which is more than five years old. Having recently purchased a PS3, I would like to know how it performs with DVD and blueray playback. Will it do my screen justice?

Cheers

Rzeznik

 

[Anonymous]

I can only give you my personal opinion. I have a PS3 connected to a large screen and I cannot fault it, either as a DVD player or a Blu-Ray player. I was a little wary after some bad experiences when I used a PS2 as a DVD player, but it as far as i'm concerned, the PS3 more than meets my needs.

 

[Andy Clough]

Recent firmware upgrades meant we upgraded the PS3 from four stars to five. It will do a great job with your Panasonic plasma, so have no fear.

 

[Anonymous]

It's surprising to hear a console being able to output such a decent image! So I assume the five star rating means it can handle subtle black tones, detail and motion? Will it perform as well as the Denon £300 what hifi awards 2006 winner?

 

[Anonymous]

Of course it can!

 

[Anonymous]

As others have already said, the PS3 delivers exceptional picture and sound performance! Don't forget that it also upscales standard definition DVD too! Can't wait for the next PS3 firmware update, purportedly introducing Blu-ray PIP, later this month!

 

[Anonymous]

I find that the DVD picture from my PS3 is distinctly saturated with very red skin tones, especially when I compare it back-to-back with my conventional, non-upscaling DVD player. Only by destaurating the TV picture can I achieve something watchable. This obviously is not consistent with the excellent results others have had from the PS3. I'm pretty sure that I have the latest firmware. Anybody got any ideas where I'm going wrong?

Ta.

 

[gregch]

What about fan noise? Back when the PlayStation2 came out, I tried to use that as a DVD player - and it was terrible, partly because the fan noise was so loud. How bad is the PS3 in this respect??

 

[Anonymous]

My kids are begging me for a PS3 and with the added bonus of being able to play Blu Ray and Upscaling standard DVD's ithe 60gb version does appeal for around £350.00.

Will it upscale standard DVD's to 720p and 1081i and is there also a seprate HDMI setting for watching Blu Ray Discs?

Finally would it be a better proposition than say a Pioneer AV600 upscaling Player purely in terms of Picture Quality alone or can the Pioneer beat it as an Upscaler of standard DVD's?

 

[Andy Clough]

Hi there

Initially we found the PS3 a bit disappointing with DVDs, but it's now a far better DVD player than it used to be, thanks to its recent firmware upgrade. And yes, it can upscale standard DVDs to 720p, 1080i or even 1080p.

Is it better than a Pioneer AV600? Don't know, I'm afraid, as I'm not familiar with the Pioneer, but I don't think you'd be disappointed with the PS3 - and I'm sure your kids wouldn't be!

 

[gregch]

[quote user="Andy Clough"]
Hi there

Initially we found the PS3 a bit disappointing with DVDs, but it's now a far better DVD player than it used to be, thanks to its recent firmware upgrade. And yes, it can upscale standard DVDs to 720p, 1080i or even 1080p.

Is it better than a Pioneer AV600? Don't know, I'm afraid, as I'm not familiar with the Pioneer, but I don't think you'd be disappointed with the PS3 - and I'm sure your kids wouldn't be!

[/quote]

Do I not need to worry about fan noise then?

And, how do I know whether the PS3 I buy will be the disappointing one or the new one? Or can the 'old' ones have their firmware updated?

So many questions!

 

[Anonymous]

If I play Blu Ray on the PS3 via a 1024 X 768 resolution HD ready TV, what will the output/Scaling be on my TV?

 

[FoxJA]

[quote user="gregch"]Do I not need to worry about fan noise then? And, how do I know whether the PS3 I buy will be the disappointing one or the new one? Or can the 'old' ones have their firmware updated? So many questions![/quote]

There is fan noise but not much, I don't notice it when watching films. You can update the firmware on all PS3's via the internet.

 

[Anonymous]

If I play Blu Ray on the PS3 via a 1024 X 768 resolution HD ready TV, what will the output/Scaling be on my TV and are there left and right stereo phon sockets on the back to allow me to use an interconnect with my integrated stereo amp?

 

[Andy TW]

If you are worried about fan noise then buy the new 40GB PS3 rather than the 60GB version as it is quieter due to the reduced features. I have a 40GB version and it hasn't produced any noticable noise so far.Tallyho: For video scaling I'd choose 720p for your screen unless it can process 1080p signals. I have a Panasonic TH37PX70 with a 1024x720 resolution and I can't see any benefit with 1080i signals over 720p, but as your screen resolution is slightly over 720 lines it may look better with 1080i.With the PS3 you can buy various cables which allow you to split the video/audio. As far as I can tell the only restriction is that with HDMI you have to either output sound through the HDMI cable or the optical connection as there are no separate phono outputs.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Andy. Are there any lyp Sync issues with the Pioneer as there have been with the Denons?

 

[Anonymous]

I'll be using the optical out on the PS3 to my amp but there is also an AV out (cable inc.) to provide left/right audio chanels but not the phono sockets. If your amp has optical, then that would be your best bet.