Difference between dvd players

[Guest]

Hi all, i am thinking about buying a dvd player but what is the difference between a cheap one and an expensive one?
I know that with cheap one's there won't be as many connections for extra speakers and video equiptment,
but is there any difference with the picture quility?
Thanx in advance

 

[HolyGrenade]

Cheap dvd players often produce video with artifacts on the screen. There is also a difference in image quality, especially if you are using a scart rgb cable (in europe). In this case the picture from the expensive players are much clearer.

Having said that, Unless you have a top quality tv, you wont see much difference between the picture quality. Some extremely cheap players may show artifacts, which is bad whichever tv you have.

Audio wise, make sure your player supports Dolby Digital and DTS. DTS isn't too important in Europe, but More and More US (Region 1) titles are using DTS. Again, if you don't have a really expensive audio system, don't bother shelling out extra for a THX certified player.


<font color=red>"My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and dispair!"</font color=red>

 

[dbrown]

fudgemunky,
You want to get a DVD player with progressive scan for best picture quality like the Panasonic DVD-RP56 DVD/CD-R/CD-RW Player w/ Progressive Scan. You can find it at my store link.

My Store http/daveshardware.shopexcite.com

 

[williamc]

I'm gonna say it again and again, GO AWAY PROFESSIONAL TROLL!

nVidiot: Message board Troll employed by nVidia to terrorize aTidiots.

 

[mattburklund]

I have a panasonic, but I recently bought a toshiba for my bro. I think the pan has better sound if your not using a nice surround sound system,has a 5.1 simulator that makes it seem like you have surround without the surround speakers-obviously not nearlys as nice as the real thing. So if you have surround that should not be an issue. Besides that I would devfinaltely take a toshiba 4700.

 

[ejsmith2]

At $99-$120, I wouldn't call them cheap.

But then again, I've never noticed the difference between the PS2 and all the other ones I've used.

With the higher priced ones ($150+), you get a whole slew of hookup options. The way I look at it, what's the point of Dolby Surround when a bunch have 5.1? Even the 'cheap' ones come with a optical out; what do you need the 5 a/v outs for? That said, the $350 players come with a built-in decoder. Which lets you use it with a reciever that doesn't have a decoder. But what if you get a DAT; it's gotta have a decoder too. So it's cheaper to buy a receiver that has a decoder in it, and use that for all your other devices.

Also, check out <A HREF="http/www.vcdhelp.com" target="_new">http/www.vcdhelp.com</A>, under the dvd compatibility on the left side. Several of the $120 players, availble down at K-marty and Wally World, support VCD/SVCD, mp3, wma (gawd-dam msft), and DVD+. There's a few companies that are comming out with divx support and pure AC3.

You're better off getting a good receiver ($350) and a cheap DVD player ($120), then vice versa.

 

[Stiffler]

<i>originally posted by HolyGrenade</i>

DTS isn't too important in Europe ???

We not good enough ?? I am confused to what this statement means ?? And I point to the recent DVD review of Back to the Future where Tom complains that it isn't DTS in the region 1 version. Well the Region 2 is DTS So NananananA !!!!


But anyway some of the very cheap players still have amazing performance but yes you should aim to spend over a certain amount... As I am from the UK I couldn't say what that would be in the US but for example DVD players can be bought here from about £60 to £90 that I would consider "Cheap" and I would say the advisable amount to spend is over £110-120 and for a normal user nothing more than £150 (Not including a Home Cinema set)

Tim

<font color=blue>Its winter now... So how come my CPU temp is still </font color=blue><b><font color=red>55C</font color=red></b>

 

[r2k]

You may want to check out this site for a very thorough comparison and rating of different DVD players (from $60 to $8000):

http/www.hometheaterhifi.com/cgi-bin/shootout.cgi?function=search&articles=5

In short, the expensive DVD players offer progressive scan (though via different chips and implementations and thus different picture quality), higher sampling and bitrate video and audio DACs, DVD-Audio playback and sometimes audio-only mode, better response times and larger buffers for smooth transition when changing layers or having reading problems, etc. You may be surprised to know that the best offering in the picture quality was Panasonic RP-82 at ~$230. If you're into DVD-Audio (or universal players that also support SACD) you can check Denon and Yamaha because their video system is borrowed from Panasonic while audio is generally higher quality and done in-house.