Hi - I've just stepped into the world of Blu Ray (am due to get my Sony KDL40z4500 and Blu ray BDPS550 installed at the weekend) and have collected loads of DVDs over the past few years. My query is whether the upscaling abilities of the BDPS550 will significantly improve the picture on my existing DVDs or whether for my favourite films I should buy them again on Blu Ray. Will I notice a significant difference in terms of picture and sound, or will the upscaled picture be basically the same?
Upscaling on Blu Ray
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Upscaled will be better but obviously not Blu-Ry quality , note that not all Blu-Rays are stunning some Blu-Rays are rubbish and only seem to be put out to get more of your hard earned cash. I think most people go the route you suggest of buying their favourites on Blu-ray to some extent but check reviews that it's a good transfer before purchase.
Gerrardasnails
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Steve123:Hi - I've just stepped into the world of Blu Ray (am due to get my Sony KDL40z4500 and Blu ray BDPS550 installed at the weekend) and have collected loads of DVDs over the past few years. My query is whether the upscaling abilities of the BDPS550 will significantly improve the picture on my existing DVDs or whether for my favourite films I should buy them again on Blu Ray. Will I notice a significant difference in terms of picture and sound, or will the upscaled picture be basically the same?
I have the S550 and use it with a lesser LCD than your proposed one. DVDs look great upscaled, you would have to pay a fair whack to get a dvd player that does a better job - certainly more than the BD player costs.
I have the S550 and use it with a lesser LCD than your proposed one. DVDs look great upscaled, you would have to pay a fair whack to get a dvd player that does a better job - certainly more than the BD player costs.
I can only comment on the BDP-S350 with the KDL 40W4500, but I have been really impressed with the quality of the DVD upscaling. I've been rewatching series 1 of 24, as my girlfriend hadn't seen it (and it's not exactly a chore to rewatch such a great programme!). The picture seems so much sharper than I remember, and I didn't even watch it on rubbish kit the first time. If it's as good as it is on my setup, I have no doubt that you will love it.
On a side note, and without wanting to restart the old backlight bleed debate, 24 is a programme with lots of dark scenes and black screens, and despite looking for it, I can see no backlight bleed whatsoever.
On a side note, and without wanting to restart the old backlight bleed debate, 24 is a programme with lots of dark scenes and black screens, and despite looking for it, I can see no backlight bleed whatsoever.
Thanks for the comments. I am looking forwards to viewing my DVDs on the BDP. I'll probably start by getting some blu ray films where I dont already own them on DVD and take it from there. Any recommendations on blu rays that really show off what the format can do? Rob, totally agree with you on 24 one of the best TV shows ever!!
Incidentally, we've a special upscaling feature in our forthcoming April issue (out early March), that compares the DVD upscaling abilities of Blu-ray players (from Sony BDP-S350 upwards) to that of TVs, projectors and AV receivers. A kind of upscaling olympics, as suggested by the very users of this Forum....
If you don't like your sony's upscaling try Toshiba's XDE-500. Superb and better than a Pioneer pd51 with DVD. Available for well under a hundred pounds now.
Gerrardasnails
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drummerman:If you don't like your sony's upscaling try Toshiba's XDE-500. Superb and better than a Pioneer pd51 with DVD. Available for well under a hundred pounds now.
Seriously DM, the Tosh won't beat the BD player at upscaling. Mine is better than my old Denon 1940.
Seriously DM, the Tosh won't beat the BD player at upscaling. Mine is better than my old Denon 1940.
I have the same set up as Rob 981 (Sony 40W4500 and S350), so my BD player is not as good as yours. I've been mightily impressed with the upscaling job the S350 does on my DVDs. I have watched The Lord of The Rings, and it is much better than on my old DVD player, however the DVD player wasn't exactly top notch. I recently watched Blade Trinity, and again the picture is over and above what I expected. The upscaling is that good that I can't imagine myself repurchasing any of my old DVDs on blu-ray. From my own point of view, it is the films that rely on CGI which will come across a lot better on blu-ray. I recently watched one of the Harry Potter films on blu-ray, and saw detail on the Dementors (check me out) that I had not seen on my own DVD copy (well, my wife's copy).
Clare Newsome:Incidentally, we've a special upscaling feature in our forthcoming April issue (out early March), that compares the DVD upscaling abilities of Blu-ray players (from Sony BDP-S350 upwards) to that of TVs, projectors and AV receivers. A kind of upscaling olympics, as suggested by the very users of this Forum....
Any plans to include dedicated video processors from the likes of DVDO, Lumagen and Crystalio?ÿ
Any plans to include dedicated video processors from the likes of DVDO, Lumagen and Crystalio?ÿ
Gerrardasnails:drummerman:If you don't like your sony's upscaling try Toshiba's XDE-500. Superb and better than a Pioneer pd51 with DVD. Available for well under a hundred pounds now.
Seriously DM, the Tosh won't beat the BD player at upscaling. Mine is better than my old Denon 1940.
I perceive it to be better with DVD than my bd51even without XDE switched in. With it it's no contest imo as long as colour and contrast is left out.
Seriously DM, the Tosh won't beat the BD player at upscaling. Mine is better than my old Denon 1940.
I perceive it to be better with DVD than my bd51even without XDE switched in. With it it's no contest imo as long as colour and contrast is left out.
I've noticed an annoying issue on a number upscaling DVD & BD players (into 1080p TVs) and it's very difficult to get rid of. What happens is occasionally you get a really 'electronic feel' to the picture, especially on a lateral movement or pan. There's a kind of odd parallax and the film looks decidedly like it was shot on video.
To cure it, I generally adjust the TVs settings (take off all processing), but sometimes this doesn't fix it.
Is this simply a function of the upscaling process or is it a kind of double upscaling issue, (like double de-Dolbying), where two separate bits of kit both do their stuff and create interference with the pic quality?
To cure it, I generally adjust the TVs settings (take off all processing), but sometimes this doesn't fix it.
Is this simply a function of the upscaling process or is it a kind of double upscaling issue, (like double de-Dolbying), where two separate bits of kit both do their stuff and create interference with the pic quality?
Clare Newsome:Incidentally, we've a special upscaling feature in our forthcoming April issue (out early March), that compares the DVD upscaling abilities of Blu-ray players (from Sony BDP-S350 upwards) to that of TVs, projectors and AV receivers. A kind of upscaling olympics, as suggested by the very users of this Forum....
I will be fascinated to see your findings.
Personally I have a Sony KDL40Z4500 TV and Sony BDP-S350 Blu-Ray running on the default "auto" settings -- so to be honest I have no idea which of the two devices is actually doing the upscaling -- and the result is stunning. Soon I will do a test to compare forced upscaling at the BD player and upscaling at the TV side. It will be interesting to see if a £1200 TV or a £180 player does a better job...
I will be fascinated to see your findings.
Personally I have a Sony KDL40Z4500 TV and Sony BDP-S350 Blu-Ray running on the default "auto" settings -- so to be honest I have no idea which of the two devices is actually doing the upscaling -- and the result is stunning. Soon I will do a test to compare forced upscaling at the BD player and upscaling at the TV side. It will be interesting to see if a £1200 TV or a £180 player does a better job...
AndrewFG:Soon I will do a test to compare forced upscaling at the BD player and upscaling at the TV side. It will be interesting to see if a £1200 TV or a £180 player does a better job...
It is interesting to discover that the Sony BDP-S350 blu-ray player has the following options for video output: [Auto, 576i/p, 720i/p, 1080i/p ] -- this presumably means the following:
1) if I select (say) 576i then DVDs will not be re-scaled by the player but BDs will be downscaled by the player.
2) if I select (say) 1080p then DVDs will be upscaled by the player and BDs will not be re-scaled by the player.
In other words it seems that there is no single setting on this player to turn off re-scaling entirely for bot DVDs and BDs. (Apparently earlier Sony BD players used to have a "Source Direct" setting but it was removed from this later model. Go figure...)
It is interesting to discover that the Sony BDP-S350 blu-ray player has the following options for video output: [Auto, 576i/p, 720i/p, 1080i/p ] -- this presumably means the following:
1) if I select (say) 576i then DVDs will not be re-scaled by the player but BDs will be downscaled by the player.
2) if I select (say) 1080p then DVDs will be upscaled by the player and BDs will not be re-scaled by the player.
In other words it seems that there is no single setting on this player to turn off re-scaling entirely for bot DVDs and BDs. (Apparently earlier Sony BD players used to have a "Source Direct" setting but it was removed from this later model. Go figure...)
beaverme:
Clare Newsome:Incidentally, we've a special upscaling feature in our forthcoming April issue (out early March), that compares the DVD upscaling abilities of Blu-ray players (from Sony BDP-S350 upwards) to that of TVs, projectors and AV receivers. A kind of upscaling olympics, as suggested by the very users of this Forum....
Any plans to include dedicated video processors from the likes of DVDO, Lumagen and Crystalio?
Not in this instance, no - we're purely looking at the key scaling-capable components in a typical system (a range of systems, actually, from budget set-up upwards) to see which handles DVDs best.
Clare Newsome:Incidentally, we've a special upscaling feature in our forthcoming April issue (out early March), that compares the DVD upscaling abilities of Blu-ray players (from Sony BDP-S350 upwards) to that of TVs, projectors and AV receivers. A kind of upscaling olympics, as suggested by the very users of this Forum....
Any plans to include dedicated video processors from the likes of DVDO, Lumagen and Crystalio?
Not in this instance, no - we're purely looking at the key scaling-capable components in a typical system (a range of systems, actually, from budget set-up upwards) to see which handles DVDs best.
It would be Interesting to throw Dedicated Video Processors into the Mix .
I've got a DVDO edge video processor being fed by a Pioneer LX50 DVD player (outputting to the Dvdo edge processor at 576I over HDMI) and a Humax Freesat PVR (outputting at 576i and 1080 i over HDMI) .My screen is a Pioneer KRL 37 . I am delighted with the results. The picture from quality DVD's (the edge can output 1080p at 24F from a DVD movie) is jaw dropping ! 🙂.
I've got a Blu ray Player , the Sony S550, so have watched movies that i have in both formats. While Blu Ray is better , Upscaled DVD on certain movies , Batman Begins for Instance, is in my humble opinion definately on the same playing field. My DVD collection has been given a whole new lease of life , and i find at the moment that i am watching more DVD than Blu Ray.
I've got a DVDO edge video processor being fed by a Pioneer LX50 DVD player (outputting to the Dvdo edge processor at 576I over HDMI) and a Humax Freesat PVR (outputting at 576i and 1080 i over HDMI) .My screen is a Pioneer KRL 37 . I am delighted with the results. The picture from quality DVD's (the edge can output 1080p at 24F from a DVD movie) is jaw dropping ! 🙂.
I've got a Blu ray Player , the Sony S550, so have watched movies that i have in both formats. While Blu Ray is better , Upscaled DVD on certain movies , Batman Begins for Instance, is in my humble opinion definately on the same playing field. My DVD collection has been given a whole new lease of life , and i find at the moment that i am watching more DVD than Blu Ray.
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