Which DVD Player for Panasonic TV ?

[admin_exported]

Early in 2008 I bought the wonderful Pana 32LXD700 television based on the glowing review in What HiFI. We're more than happy with it. Now I'd like to replace my ageing Pioneer dvd player (the 545) with an upscaling dvd player and I'm a bit stuck for choice. I guess the simplest option would be to buy a Panasonic DIGA player, like the DMR-EX78, so I can use the Viera link - on the other hand we don't record much TV. I've seen all the glowing reviews of the Denon 1940. I've also seen good reviews of the Pioneer DV600 or even the LX50. All we want is a good quality upscaling dvd player for our extensive dvd collection. Any advice gratefully received !

 

[Anonymous]

Go for the DENON DVD 1940

Got mine from here http://www.richersounds.com/productlist.php?cda=productlist&sgroup=DVDPLAYERS&sort=price&pg=2&hidethumbs=false

Was £250 when it first came out.............now £150.00.........It's a great Player

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the recommendation - I shall investigate the Denon 1940. I checked Richer Sounds but they're out of stock - will check other online dealers. By the way (anyone) I am guessing a good quality hdmi cable is a must ? Or is that a waste of money for a 32 inch LCD ?

 

[Clare Newsome]

I second the Denon - the DVD-1740 (one step down from the 1940) is also a superb player.

And yes, a decent HDMI cable will help you get the best out of your new player - you obviously have a Richer Sounds near you? If so, pick up a Cambridge Audio HDMI - only £30 and fine for what you need.

 

[Anonymous]

If I bought either one of these players could I route a basic Sky signal through the player and get an upscaled picture out of it?

 

[Clare Newsome]

I'm afraid not - but any flatscreen TV will automatically upscale the Sky signal to suit its higher resolution. That's not saying it'll look great, but it's a start!

 

[Anonymous]

Ahh I see, that would explain why some channels look good and others don't

Does that mean that the TV should upscale the DVD signal as well?

thanks for the help

 

[Clare Newsome]

Any HD Ready or Full HD TV has a higher resolution than standard-def TV or DVD, so will upscale it to suit (otherwise you'd have a small picture in the middle of your screen).

However, the upscaler in your TV (or projector) may not be as good as the upscaler in your DVD/Blu-ray player or surround-sound receiver. For example, a decent TV (like the Panasonic mentioned above) will have a better scaler than you'd find in, say, a really cheap home cinema in box system, but something like the Denons would offer superior DVD upscaling.

Any more questions, just ask!

 

[Anonymous]

The exchange above has been really useful, thanks guys, I shall get google-ing ! Just one final question: will I get a better picture from the Denon 1940 than from one of the Panasonic DIGA players (say the recently reviewed DMR-EX78) ? It's sort of a toss-up for me between convenience (having the Pana's talk to each other via Viera Link) and quality (having the best picture). I'm inclined to the Denon, it's mentioned so often, but I'd appreciate any views on this before I part with any cash. Thanks again !

 

[Clare Newsome]

I'd expect the Denon DVD-1940 to outperform the DMR-EX78. It'd be far closer between the DVD-1740 and the Panasonic.

 

[fr0g]

Give the Cambridge Audio 540D a try too... Sound quality wise it destroys the Denon, and the picture isn't bad either.

 

[timwileman]

[quote user="Clare Newsome"]
I'm afraid not - but any flatscreen TV will automatically upscale the Sky signal to suit its higher resolution. That's not saying it'll look great, but it's a start!

[/quote] so the video upscaling that the onkyo 606 has is a bit pointless?? ......

 

[professorhat]

Nope, it depends what upscaling chip you have in your TV. My TV has a relatively rubbish one, plug my old DVD in via component so letting the TV do the upscaling and the picture isn't that great. Route the old DVD player through my new Onkyo 905 via component and let it do the upscaling and the picture is dramatically improved.

 

[timwileman]

i have the panna th37px80 so it should be decent at scaling to 720p

 

[professorhat]

Hopefully - mine is the Panasonic TH42-PX600 so a couple of generations older than yours!

 

[timwileman]

just about to enjoy dr who on mine

 

[Anonymous]

Cheers folks

Finding this new technology a bit of a jungle lol