# Blu-ray player other than Oppo?



## mjcmt (Aug 30, 2010)

Are Denon, Pioneer, Yamaha, or Marantz Blu-Ray players any good in the $400 range?


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## spartanstew (May 7, 2009)

Good for what? What are your needs?


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## mjcmt (Aug 30, 2010)

DAH. For playing blu-ray disks.


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## recruit (May 9, 2009)

There are plenty of good players around atm, Sony and Panasonic would be my choice although the Higher end Marantz and Denon players are tempting too, but at say $400 there is a wealth of choice and I believe that the Sony and Panasonics have good players around that price point.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

For playing Bluray there is little to no difference between any players unless you go really cheep. The big diff will be with direct outs and upconversion. Bang for buck the Panasonic DMP BD85 gets top marks in all these areas and sells for well under your price range.


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## mjcmt (Aug 30, 2010)

Now that you mention up-converting. That will be important for me to play DVDs. My Denon DVD1930ci does well w/ DVDs and CD's. I only want one unit for BLuRay, DVD, and CDs.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

As long as your not looking for a SACD capable player most BluRay players will play CDs just fine. For upconversion as I mentioned the Panasonic gets top marks. It is as good as the Sony PS3 and rivals the OPPO.


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## mjcmt (Aug 30, 2010)

Which Panny BDP would you recommend, or does it not really matter. I will be using the HDMI to TV for picture and then an analogue output to a 2-channel receiver or integrated amp for the audio. I'm sure the picture will be fine, but what about the analogue sound? 

Incidentally is a $400 Sony not as good?


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## 1hagop (Apr 13, 2010)

I went back and forth on this about 3 months ago and just ended up with the ps3 slim. Infinitely upgradeable and good all around player.


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## recruit (May 9, 2009)

The Sony BD players have been getting some good feedback as technology from the 5000SE model has trickled down into there latest players and by all accounts that has some excellent scaling for DVD's, BD players at 1080p24hz will always be nearly the same across most players.


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## mjcmt (Aug 30, 2010)

The SPS3 seems like an very worthy option, as well as any stand alone BDP. 

One question I have is that the SPS3 and other BDPs don't have analogue outputs anymore. Can I use a HDMI cable to the TV, then mute the TV speakers, and use the TV's L/R analogue output to feed an integrated amp/speakers to improve the sound vs. using the tiny TV speakers?


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## nholmes1 (Oct 7, 2010)

That would depend on the TV, but I know the BDP-570 definitely has analog audio outputs still.


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

The previously mentioned Panasonic DMP-BD85 have 7.1 analog outputs. I have last years BD80 and highly recommend the Panasonic.


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