Warner Swayed by $500 million from the BDA

[James]

Thanks as I do all my learning here from all of the staff/members to know what's going on and what to expect as well. The other thing that is sad well for me but not slysoft's sales is I purchased the HD option as soon as it was released. Least I was prepared I guess?

What is sad about this? The HD option works fine with BD, too. :agree:

 

[SamuriHL]

Right, but without HDMI most of the players (HD-DVD, too) ... suck. At least you have "poor man's digital out" (SPDIF) until you get a HDMI receiver.
At least the PS3 outputs 7.1 LPCM over HDMI, Toshiba never managed this with their HD DVD players.

I'll grant you that. However, with my HTPC using analog out, I'm good. Better than SPDIF IMO. (I've tested both) With the PS3 and my receiver ALL I have is SPDIF which means downmixed audio. Until I upgrade my receiver, that's the best I can do. Hence, HTPC is better than PS3 for me. (PowerDVD better fix this DTS HD:MA BS asap...)

 

[Charlie]

What is sad about this? The HD option works fine with BD, too. :agree:

I don't own any of the equipment. This isn't a bad thing though as I said as I was prepared for the future.

The true sad thing is I hit black ice a few days ago and need a whole new front end well the nose piece anyways now on my Pontiac. That's first on the list and going to the shop Tuesday.

 

[James]

Now you're seeing the downside to the PS3, yes.

I don't consider this a big deal. Audio decoding in the player is IMHO the "right thing(tm)" to do, HTPC isn't different. Until recently, HD DVD wasn't different.
For anything remotely interactive (PIP) the player must do the decoding & mixing.
So, IMHO the perfect player can decode all and everything (TruHD, DTS-HD, DTS-HD MA) and outputs 7.1 LPCM. HTPC can't do this yet (only analog), as ATI implemented a cheap HDMI audio output (idiots). Where is Nvidia when you need them?
The PS3 comes close, and with its processing power it should be easy to add DTS-HD / DTS-HD MA decoding. I don't know, if Sony will do this (would Fox release all titles with DTS-HD if Sony told them, they don't?), but I must say, that the 1.5MBit/s DTS core audio isn't so bad at all...
A Receiver / Amp with HD audio decoding may be "nice to have", but isn't really necessary.

 

[Webslinger]

Is TruHD really necessary on BD? The Bluboys always touted "we have the space, we have the bandwidth, we put uncompressed LPCM tracks on the Blu discs", and if my memory serves me right, I never saw a Blu disc with TruHD but without LPCM. I believe the PS3 decodes TruHD, 399$ at amazon.com. Maybe they can add DTS HD-Master decoding with a firmware update, that would be sweet.

IMHO the PS3 is the fastest, most versatile and cheapest Blu-ray player available. It even has a network port for the Profile 2.0 update (hehe).

(Sorry for sounding sarcastic, but ... well ... )

I'm using analogue outputs to 5.1 channel headphones (I mostly watch at night, when people near me sleep).

By the way, from what I've seen with Blu-ray, they may brag about a lot of space, but I don't see clear evidence that they always use it.

 

[James]

(PowerDVD better fix this DTS HD:MA BS asap...)

Huh? What did I miss? What is broken in PowerDVD?
(Whatever it is, first they must fix the subtitle issues on my French import HD DVD discs...)

 

[SamuriHL]

I don't consider this a big deal. Audio decoding in the player is IMHO the "right thing(tm)" to do, HTPC isn't different. Until recently, HD DVD wasn't different.
For anything remotely interactive (PIP) the player must do the decoding & mixing.
So, IMHO the perfect player can decode all and everything (TruHD, DTS-HD, DTS-HD MA) and outputs 7.1 LPCM. HTPC can't do this yet (only analog), as ATI implemented a cheap HDMI audio output (idiots). Where is Nvidia when you need them?
The PS3 comes close, and with its processing power it should be easy to add DTS-HD / DTS-HD MA decoding. I don't know, if Sony will do this (would Fox release all titles with DTS-HD if Sony told them, they don't?), but I must say, that the 1.5MBit/s DTS core audio isn't so bad at all...
A Receiver / Amp with HD audio decoding may be "nice to have", but isn't really necessary.

The HTPC can send analog 7.1 to my receiver, which gives me better quality sound than DTS core through SPDIF. The PS3 can only do optical for me. I don't have a receiver that has ANY kind of HDMI on it. That means that it can't accept a decoded LPCM stream which would be more than fine for me obviously. So with the PS3, the best I get is DTS core which, as you said, isn't bad, but, isn't as good as my HTPC IMO. When I have a receiver that allows HDMI audio(don't care about decoding on the receiver...as you said it's a waste, really...I just want it to accept LPCM 7.1 through HDMI) then the PS3 becomes a much better option for me again. Unless we get a sound card for the HTPC that can give me all that and a bag of chips. For now I'm happy. And the PS3 is now getting some games. Which pisses me off, really, as I'm going to be sending it out on Tuesday for God knows how long. sigh.

 

[James]

I'm using analogue outputs to 5.1 channel headphones (I mostly watch at night, when people near me sleep).

Interesting problem... isn't there a receiver with HDMI input and 5.1 headphone output? I guess not. But wait, maybe you can use the pre amp outputs of a receiver.

 

[SamuriHL]

Huh? What did I miss? What is broken in PowerDVD?
(Whatever it is, first they must fix the subtitle issues on my French import HD DVD discs...)

According to one of the threads recently, PowerDVD is having problems with Pans Labyrinth and decoding the audio. I'm pretty sure it has DTS HD:MA on it. That's going to seriously irritate me as that's definitely on my list of titles to pick up asap.

 

[SamuriHL]

By the way, from what I've seen with Blu-ray, the may brag about a lot of space, but I don't see clear evidence that they always use it.

What do you mean?? Disney put _10_ ****ing previews on the Ratatouille Blu-ray!!! MORONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Webslinger]

Interesting problem... isn't there a receiver with HDMI input and 5.1 headphone output? I guess not. But wait, maybe you can use the pre amp outputs of a receiver.

My 5.1 channel headphones use a proprietary amplifier that requires 5.1 channel analogue outputs.

Anyway, it's not a big deal. I'll just hassle a supplier I know when the price drops low enough on these blu-ray players. I was mostly complaining that even the higher end Toshibas can be purchased for less than most Blu-ray standalone players that offer similar features.

I'm also surprised to learn that Blu-ray seems always slower to introduce new features (web enabled content, picture in picture commentary, etc.).

 

[James]

The HTPC can send analog 7.1 to my receiver, which gives me better quality sound than DTS core through SPDIF. The PS3 can only do optical for me. I don't have a receiver that has ANY kind of HDMI on it. That means that it can't accept a decoded LPCM stream which would be more than fine for me obviously. So with the PS3, the best I get is DTS core which, as you said, isn't bad, but, isn't as good as my HTPC IMO. When I have a receiver that allows HDMI audio(don't care about decoding on the receiver...as you said it's a waste, really...I just want it to accept LPCM 7.1 through HDMI) then the PS3 becomes a much better option for me again. Unless we get a sound card for the HTPC that can give me all that and a bag of chips. For now I'm happy. And the PS3 is now getting some games. Which pisses me off, really, as I'm going to be sending it out on Tuesday for God knows how long. sigh.

Knock on wood... my PS3 still works... you're right, in your case the lack of analogue outputs on the PS3 is bad, and it probably is for a lot of people.
But if you compare similar priced units, none of them has analogue outputs. And you can't beat a HTPC's flexibility (with AnyDVD) anyway, we all know that.

 

[Webslinger]

. And you can't beat a HTPC's flexibility (with AnyDVD) anyway, we all know that.

I agree. My comments are for my own unique situation.

I was not implying that anyone should do what I'm doing.

Anydvd HD with an HTPC is always more cost-effective (and allows for more options).

Sorry, I was just having a conversation when I said I wasn't going to build an HTPC right away. I didn't mean to suggest that Anydvd HD wasn't what people should be buying. Anydvd HD is, of course, the smart choice.

 

[SamuriHL]

Knock on wood... my PS3 still works... you're right, in your case the lack of analogue outputs on the PS3 is bad, and it probably is for a lot of people.
But if you compare similar priced units, none of them has analogue outputs. And you can't beat a HTPC's flexibility (with AnyDVD) anyway, we all know that.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying the PS3 is a bad choice by ANY means. It's certainly what I went with originally so I could get my Disney HD fix. But, at this point, it doesn't do me a lot of good in the sound department, no. If you've got a receiver that supports HDMI, then by all means grab a PS3 as it's an EXCELLENT machine. I really don't have any complaints with it. I'm a bit bitter about having to send mine in for repair, but, I had to do that with my 360 a month after I got it, too, so, I'm used to it. People considering a low end Blu-ray player would be foolish not to get a PS3 and the bluetooth remote. It's a great, GREAT setup. Plus you can play games. And it's updatable to new profiles. So, really, anyone not doing the HTPC thing should really look at a PS3.

 

[James]

My 5.1 channel headphones use a proprietary amplifier that requires 5.1 channel analogue outputs.

Anyway, it's not a big deal. I'll just hassle a supplier I know when the price drops low enough on these blu-ray players. I was mostly complaining that even the Toshiba HD-A35 is cheaper (well, I did get mine for a great price) than most Blu-ray standalone players that offer similar features.

I'm also surprised to learn that Blu-ray seems always slower to introduce new features (web enabled content, picture in picture commentary, etc.).

No surprise here. HD DVD had a finished spec from day one, Blu-ray was rushed to the market to compete.
And be very careful, I heard real horror stories of Blu-ray players taking ages to load Java enabled titles. No problem for HTPC and PS3, as they have enough "horsepower".

 

[James]

What do you mean?? Disney put _10_ ****ing previews on the Ratatouille Blu-ray!!! MORONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope you can skip them...???

 

[SamuriHL]

No surprise here. HD DVD had a finished spec from day one, Blu-ray was rushed to the market to compete.
And be very careful, I heard real horror stories of Blu-ray players taking ages to load Java enabled titles. No problem for HTPC and PS3, as they have enough "horsepower".

Don't get me started on that one, man. My dad's Sony stand alone Blu-ray player is FREAKING PAINFUL to watch. The PS3, it plays like a normal DVD. PowerDVD, almost as fast. His stand alone player? Holy crap is it slow! And he has the latest firmware, too, so that's not the issue. It's just BAD. Hopefully the profile 1.1 players that were just announced today at CES will fix that issue. Too late for all the early adopters.

 

[Webslinger]

No surprise here. HD DVD had a finished spec from day one, Blu-ray was rushed to the market to compete.

Well, first I was shocked. Then I became annoyed; and now I am slightly angry (I was being polite . . . )

But it is a bit shocking, really, for someone switching over from HD-DVD.

And be very careful, I heard real horror stories of Blu-ray players taking ages to load Java enabled titles. No problem for HTPC and PS3, as they have enough "horsepower".

Thank you for that information. Actually, I'm very concerned about what you just wrote.

 

[SamuriHL]

I hope you can skip them...???

Can I make your day now? On my HTPC (GRIN) when I rip it to my hard drive and let AnyDVD HD do its magic, the prohibition of hitting the menu button magically disappears. WOOPSIE. It doesn't work on the disc, though, only from a mounted image. (WTF, btw?! ) Otherwise you literally have to hit next chapter _10_ freaking times to get to the menu!!!!! Disney has lost its mind. I'll let them know when I go down there in a few weeks.

 

[SamuriHL]

Thank you for that information. Actually, I'm very concerned about what you just wrote.

You should be. I've witnessed it first hand. It's excruciating.