What to do!!?

[duaplex]

Rather than Chat Jack BB's thread I thought I would create a new one.

My dilemma is about the new HDMI 2.0 receivers just announced and those to follow. As many of you know I am in the process of building my cinema room, in fact its about 4 weeks away from completion. I was about to pull the trigger and buy the Marantz 8801, which will be connected to the Sony VPL VW500ES. Here is my Dilemma, the Sony does support HDMI 2.0, but the Marantz does not.

Do I go for the Marantz as its a geat Processor or wait until a new AV comes along with HDMI 2.0. While Yamaha have announced the new range, I dont know if they are capable of beating the Marantz?

:wall:

 

[ellisdj]

Depends on price and whether you think you will want 4k in the near future - think its as simple as that.

You would expect to pay a bit less for an outgoing model with co.s like marantz

 

[duaplex]

The Sony is 4k that I am installing, so I will be wanting that content eventually . The Marantz would need to be changed after 2 years or so I imagine when 4k kicks off?

 

[bigboss]

How are you expecting to receive 4K content? Current HDMI 1.4 receivers that can pass 4K can pass upto 30fps. So you should be able to watch 4K movies (usually 24fps) without a problem. If you buy a 4K blu ray / media player in the future to watch 4K TV programmes (not sure about Netflix) which are usually 50fps, just buy one with twin HDMI outs.

 

[duaplex]

Interesting, I didn't realise that you could double up on FPS using two HDMI cables. The plan would be to buy a 4K bluray player when they, and the discs, become available.

So what do you think? Go for the Marantz?

 

[mmg]

You should definitely wait for a HDMI 2.0 receiver, especially if you're buyuing a 4K television.

You can't double the framerate by using 2 HDMI cables. What bigboss was probably suggesting is 1 HDMI cable to the receiver for the sound and 1 to the television for the video.

Keep in mind that HDMI 2.0 is about (much) more than 4K @ 60 FPS (see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI#Version_2.0 ). The current receivers might pass trough 4K, but they don't support HDCP 2.2 so they probably won't be able to use the 4K content once becomes available on blu-ray or other formats.

 

[bigboss]

You can't double the framerate by using 2 HDMI cables. What bigboss was probably suggesting is 1 HDMI cable to the receiver for the sound and 1 to the television for the video.

Yes, that's what I meant.

 

[theflyingwasp]

Are a few of you not a tad frustrated by all of this? I can understand buying a large 4k tv at the moment to a certain extent .4k Blu ray players should be here soon with discs but I have a sneaky suspicion it will be sony first out of the gates with a 4k Blu ray player with the proper 4k versions of those 1080p 4k remasters that came out last year.then no doubt loads of films we already own that look great 1080p.

im not to keen spending quite a bit of cash on the first generation 4k receivers ,tvs and projectors.im sure the people who bought the first 4k tvs have just found out due to some kind of codec thing they won't be able to stream 4k through their tvs?

I was all set to get either the pioneer lx87 or the Yamaha a3030 then the reviews of the anthem 710 came out throwing a spanner in the works .whichever one I settle on am I going to be looking at it in 18months time saying why did I bother .im a film nut so when the 4k Blu ray players start to appear with new films I will no doubt retire the ZT to the toilet and get a big 4k tv with Blu ray player but will any off those receivers above be any use to me .it will be hard enough letting the £500 oppo collect dust but £2000 on a receiver that dosent properly pass through 4k and dosent have hdmi 2.0 is a lot of cash to burn.

a lot of people must be in the same situation as mr duaplex .do I buy or do I wait?

 

[duaplex]

Definitely I am at the brink of going mad. I was all set and happy, but now two items are off my list

1. The Marantz 8801

2. Oppo 103D

Both as you say are to become redundant soon.

HDMI 2.0 is a big thing but the AV processors announced so far are not in the league of the current lineup and they are first gen tech. So there are three options.

1. Buy the Marantz, Pioneer or Anthem etc and forget 4k for two - three years

2. Wait until September for better AV units.

3. Buy entry/mid range AV now and accept better options exist for non 4k material

If I had hair I would pull it out :wall:

 

[duaplex]

I'm with you.

I guess I have a bit of a wait then. I will give it two months and see what comes out.

thanks for the link that was really helpful.

 

[bigboss]

You do largely summarize the confusion currently. It is indeed the worst time to buy an AV kit (although 4K TV prices have fallen 20% from last year). Few points though:

1) A number of first generation 4K TVs (Sony and Samsung) have been upgraded to HDMI 2.0 and accepting latest codecs via updates / evolution kits.

2) I do not think current blu ray players will vanish or collect dust, at least for the next 3-4 years (enough to justify buying a blu ray player today). Yes, it may be a case of having 2 players instead of 1.

3) With the starting price of £1700 for 4K TVs, adoption will be much faster this year. Whether or not you can perceive a difference in quality between 1080p and 4K at anything less than 55 inches is another matter, what's also important is that a non-4K TV will not accept 4K at all, when there are enough 4K programmes available.

 

[bigboss]

I don't know what you think, duaplex, but Denon's flagship 4520 AV receiver is available at half the price today (around £1200). Creative Audio has special prices if you ring them. Maybe that's an ideal stop gap receiver? :?

 

[theflyingwasp]

The only people that are going to win here are the people who have just bought new kit and will not upgrade for a while or cannot afford to upgrade for a while .

with respect to both BB and duaplex it's two different situations and it's not really the money that is the problem it's choosing the right gear that will satisfy you both for a long time.

its a very frustrating waiting game to see what different company's bring out.its a shame it's not later in the year who knows what CES 2015 will bring.

i don't know what I'd do in your situation :wall:

 

[duaplex]

I don't know what you think, duaplex, but Denon's flagship 4520 AV receiver is available at half the price today (around £1200). Creative Audio has special prices if you ring them. Maybe that's an ideal stop gap receiver? :?

My exact thinking too Boss.

I will be looking at AV amplifiers, maybe even grab a used one that Denon is tempting I must admit!

 

[BenLaw]

Personally I would go for a second hand pre pro (not sure what the current options are but something around £500) to last you 2-3 years with good SQ before the new tech matures and you are buying second or third gen at a decent price.

 

[strapped for cash]

Duaplex, I wouldn't argue with the advice above, but I'm not sure why an Oppo 103D is needed.

If you're after Darbee processing that money would be better spent getting your TV professionally calibrated.

There's nothing else about the Oppo that's markedly different from your CA 751.

The two players even have identical upscaling performance, though there are likely some differences in terms of analogue performance.

I'd suggest these differences come down to issues of preference, however, and I'd regard a move from a 751 to a 103D as a sideways step rather than upgrade. It'd be an expensive sideways step, too.

 

[bigboss]

I don't think it's a move from CA to Oppo; Duaplex is building a separate projector based home cinema system in the loft which I believe is in addition to the home cinema setup he already has.

 

[duaplex]

Correct, its a second room.

I know what you mean about Oppo and CA. It certainly is a side step.

I will most likely buy a cheaper bluray player for my current setup and move the CA upstais to the Cinema room.

 

[bigboss]

The upcoming Panasonic players including the flagship BDT700 are HDMI 2.0.

 

[strapped for cash]

Fair enough.

I'd assumed kit would be migrating from one room to another. Admittedly I haven't been following related threads.

I'd still argue against paying a premium for Darbee processing, but that's probably a reflection of my tastes and requirements.

 

[duaplex]

Thats alright,your point was still very much valid and appreciated

I will most likely at some point add in a Lumagen for better video processing, but that is at a later dateand they too include Darbee processing.

BB - That player will be ideal and honestly, with a Lumagen coming, it is all I will need.

 

[duaplex]

Poblem solved - Dealer will allow me to borrow the Yamaha CX A5000. Then when the new model (Yamaha or Marantz) is out I can return it for the HDMI 2.0 capable model.

 

[simonlewis]

Well done, a happy ending. :clap:

 

[duaplex]

:cheers:

 

[bigboss]

Wow! Who's the dealer? :clap: