Thread: Home Theatre Blues - Part 4: Choosing the Blu-Ray Player

A few years ago (early 2000's), the days were of transition for the video market. People were slowly but surely switching to DVD from VHS. DVD costs had come down. They were readily available in the local Blockbuster Video store and almost at the same price. The cost of the player had come down to less than $200.

I feel that we have entered the transition phase today - people are slowly moving to the Blu-Ray (BD) format. With the end of the HD format war, BD players, discs and rentals have come down drastically. To illustrate this, consider the following:

Typical cost of a (good/reputed) BD Player: 2007 = $500+, 2008 = $275+, 2009 = ~$200, 2010 = $150+
Typical cost of a BD movie: 2007 = $35+, 2008 = $30+, 2009 = ~$30+, 2010 = $25+ (on online sites such as Amazon.com, a BD movie can be purchased for $18~$20).

What is happening is that, the BD titles are now costing near to DVD titles cost of two years ago. But it should be noted that DVDs have fallen in price too - sometimes as much as 50%.

This may not be apparent in India. The DVD revolution was also never seen in India. Very few people deal in DVDs, even today. Just the other day I was at Crossword's where I saw a family pick up a bunch of VCDs. I asked the guy why he was buying (inferior quality) VCDs when (superior quality) DVDs are available at marginally more (Rs. 99 for DVD to Rs. 39 for VCD). He told me that he does not care too much about quality and Rs. 60 saved allowed him to buy more titles. Well, one can hardly argue with that when put like that.

But I am going way offtopic in my thoughts.

I intend this article to help people choose a proper BD player.

The important thing to consider for a BDP is the region capability. Just as with DVD player, BD players are also region locked. There are three regions for the world of BDs:

Region A/1: The Americas, and their dependencies, East Asia (except China and Mongolia), Southeast Asia and Japan.
Region B/2: Africa, Southwest Asia, Europe (except Belarus, Russia and Ukraine), Oceania, and their dependencies.
Region C/3: Central Asia, East Asia (China and Mongolia only), South Asia, Eastern Europe, and their dependencies.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc


Obviously, we would like to have a region-free player. But unlike the DVD player, it is not easy to hack the BDP and make it region free. A BDP requires changing of the circuit and installation a new chip/circuit to make it region free. This is a complex task and can only be done by expert agencies. Moreover, some players like Sony, are much more difficult to modify than others. The cost of the hardware chip/circuit and the cost of the service is almost the same as the cost of a new player.

My sincere suggestion: Forget about making your BDP region free. And here are the reasons why:

• You will ultimately find that you will end up buying BD's from a particular country, e.g., US, alone. So why bother with a region free player?
• Only 20th Century Fox and Walt Disney/Dreamworks are releasing region coded discs. Most other studios have region free BD titles. So why bother with a region free player?
• The cost of mod'ing the BDP to make it region free is nearly $150. You can get another BDP of other region for the same price. So why bother with a region free player?
• To mod a BDP, you will have to send the BDP to a company that will provide this service. This shop is not available onm the typical High Street. You will incur shipping cost on top of the mod'ing charges. So why bother with a region free player?
• In India, Hollywood BD titles are mostly imported from US while Indian BD titles are not region coded. So why bother with a region free player?

Simply buy two players - one for Region A and another for Region B or vice versa.

Features to look for in a BD player:

• Media Support:
  
  • BonusVIEW - BD "Profile 1.1" enables "picture-in-picture" and secondary audio features for viewing director or actor commentary while the main movie is playing.
  • BD-Live™ - Check whether the BDP supports BD "Profile 2.0" and contains all necessary hardware - audio/video decoder, Ethernet port, and 1GB of internal storage - for BD-Live.
  • DVD Up-Conversion - Check whether the BDP uses de-interlacing and scaling technology to upconvert DVD 480i/p to 1080p The up-converted picture quality bridges the visual gap from your current DVD library to Blu-ray discs.
  • DVD-Audio - Check if the BDP plays DVD-Audio and supports both stereo and multi-channel high resolution audio programs. Users can select whether to play the DVD-Audio or the DVD-Video portion of the disc.
  • Additional Media Formats - Additional disc and file formats, such as audio CD, Kodak Picture CD, AVCHD, MKV, and other audio/video/picture files on recorded discs or USB drives must be played back on the BDP.
  • True 24p Video - Many Blu-ray Discs are recorded at 24 frames per second, the same frame rate as the original movie's theatrical release. Check whether the BDP can faithfully redeliver the original frames using 1080p 24Hz output (compatible display required) for smoother motion and a flicker-free, film-like home theater experience. It can also restore the original 24 frames per second progressive-scan video from well-authored DVDs and output as 1080p 24Hz.
  • Source Direct Mode - For users who wish to use an external video processor, high-end audio/video receiver or display, the BDP must offer a "Source Direct" (or bitstream) mode. The original audio/video content on the discs is sent out with no additional processing or alteration.
  • Multiple Zoom Modes - Check whether the BDP supports multiple levels of aspect ratio control and image zooming, including a vertical stretch mode for customers with a 2.35:1 CIH (Constant Image Height) display system.
  • HDMI - HDMI is an all digital interface for the cleanest possible connection. It delivers high-quality digital video and audio through a single cable. Check whether the BDP features an HDMI v1.3 output with 30-bit and 36-bit Deep Color support.
• High Fidelity Audio:
  
  • Dolby® TrueHD - Dolby TrueHD delivers lossless studio master quality audio designed specifically for high definition entertainment. Check whether the BDP supports bit-stream output of Dolby TrueHD via its HDMI 1.3 output. It should also internally decode Dolby TrueHD into LPCM and output via HDMI or the 7.1ch analog audio output terminals. Other varieties of Dolby Digital audio formats must also be supported.
  • DTS®-HD - DTS-HD delivers up to 7.1 channels of surround sound and audio that is indistinguishable from (DTS-HD High Resolution) or identical to (DTS-HD Master Audio) the original studio master. Check whether the BDP supports bitstream output and internal decoding of DTS-HD High Resolution and DTS-HD Master Audio. Other varieties of DTS audio formats must also be supported.
  • 7.1-Channel Analog Output - Individual analog 7.1-channel surround outputs are ideal to connect to a 7.1-channel or 5.1-channel surround sound system. Check whether the BDP delivers this surround experience.
  • Dedicated Stereo Output - Check whether the BDP features a dedicated 2-channel analog output with specially optimized Digital-to-Analog Converters and output driving stage.
  • Digital Optical and Coaxial Outputs - For simple and easy connection to more traditional A/V receivers, the BDP must feature both optical and coaxial outputs for digital audio.
• Convenience:
  
  • USB Ports - USB 2.0 high speed port must be provided. Users can enjoy high definition video, high resolution photos and music directly from their USB drives.
  • PAL/NTSC Conversion - The BDP must supports NTSC and PAL systems for both disc playback and video output. It should also convert content of one system for output in another.
  • Universal Power Supply (nice to have) - The BDP should features a wide-range world power supply that is compatible with the AC power of all regions. No worries about damaging the

Some notes:
1. PAL, SECAM, NTSC applies to analog video only and is meaningless for digital video via HDMI, i.e., it does not matter.
2. PAL, SECAM, NTSC also does not matter if your TV is multi-system - and almost all TVs sold in India are multi-system.
3. BD-Live requires internet connection. While it may be very nice to have, it will consume huge (and I mean grotesquely huge) bandwidth.

Suggestions welcome.

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Part 5 of the series is available now: http://www.indiabroadband.net/home-a...t-your-av.html (Home Theatre Blues - Part 5: Connections for getting the maximum out of your AV)

And I would love to hear some comments, especially questions

When i was in Dubai, me and my dad had gone for some Bluray player shopping. We had seen around 6-7 different players. Some had rather useless features for us indians (youtube and hulu streaming if i remember correctly). Some had LAN capabilities which i felt was pretty ok. But those Bluray players were rather expensive. They were around Rs 16,000. There were cheaper ones,but they had limited output capabilities. Many just had stereo out and HDMI out at the rear. One BD player had a really dumb option was USB, but i call it dumb(useless) as the USB was placed in the rear of the player making it rather hard to access every time.

With all the confusion, i added some more. At only Rs2500 more, we could get a PS3 250GB version with 2 free games. PS3 is one of the best bluray players with many input and output options.

At the end, we decided it was not yet time for us to get a player as they were pretty costly and movies were limited (parents primarily watch Hindi movies so not much for them as of now), also the prices of Bluray movies is pretty bad. Probably 1 more year and i will join this bluray club

Originally Posted by rajan1311

When i was in Dubai, me and my dad had gone for some Bluray player shopping. We had seen around 6-7 different players. Some had rather useless features for us indians (youtube and hulu streaming if i remember correctly). Some had LAN capabilities which i felt was pretty ok. But those Bluray players were rather expensive. They were around Rs 16,000. There were cheaper ones,but they had limited output capabilities. Many just had stereo out and HDMI out at the rear. One BD player had a really dumb option was USB, but i call it dumb(useless) as the USB was placed in the rear of the player making it rather hard to access every time.

With all the confusion, i added some more. At only Rs2500 more, we could get a PS3 250GB version with 2 free games. PS3 is one of the best bluray players with many input and output options.

At the end, we decided it was not yet time for us to get a player as they were pretty costly and movies were limited (parents primarily watch Hindi movies so not much for them as of now), also the prices of Bluray movies is pretty bad. Probably 1 more year and i will join this bluray club

Most good Blu-Ray players have etherner or wi-fi LAN capabilities. This is because of two reasons:

a) Firmware upgrades are required from time to time. The BD format is still changing. Some latest titles/discs may not play on a BDP will old firmware
b) BD-Live and Netflix/Youtube/other streaming video requires LAN connection

For us Indians, we do not care about streaming video or BD-Live - mainly because bandwidth is so costly for us. But BD-Live allows users to connect to the studio's website to download additional content and commentaries. Just pop-in the disc and naviagate thru the BD-Live menus.

Streaming video service from Netflix/YouTube/etc. allows you to rent movies online and watch them via streaming. No discs to order, handle, and return. It is quite popular abroad.

Middle-east will not be the cheapest for BDPs. But I have seen netry level players (from reputed companies like Sony, Panasonic) for £99 to £150. This translates to Rs. 8000 to Rs. 12000. There is not need to buy expensive ones.

Finally, the USB. Many players have USB at the back side. An annoying feature. But I suppose that front panel design does not allow front USB.

Originally Posted by rajan1311 from PM

I had a small doubt, if i have a blu-ray player and i just have a 5.1 setup, is it possible to get that 5.1 audio via optical? I mean, does it downgrade automatically to 5.1 from 7.1 ch audio?

A typical Blu-Ray player may have one or more or all the following audio outputs:

• HDMI-out: This outputs digital audio as well as digital video. Connection is via HDMI cable (preferable v1.3) to any device that accepts HDMI-in.
• Optical out: This connector outputs digital audio. Connection is via optical cable to any device that accepts optical-in.
• Coaxial Digital out: This connector outputs digital audio. Connection is via a single coaxial cable (has RCA lead) to any device that accepts coaxial-in.
• Composite out: The composite out has three terminals - Yellow, White and Red. The Yellow is for video only and White and Red output analogue stereo sound.

Rajan has asked a very important question. What is the difference between 7.1 and 5.1? Simply put and in crude terms, 7.1 channels means 2 extra channels - left side surround and right side surround.

It is important to note that only latest movies on blu-ray discs have full 7.1 channel sound. Blu-ray does not automatically mean 7.1 sound. Older movies on blu-ray may have DTS-HD MA or Dolby TruHD sound, but it may still be 5.1 channel. So assuming that you have the latest blu-ray, e.g. Avatar BD, and you wish to play it on a 5.1 system:

• You can still use HDMI if the sound system (read AV receiver) has HDMI-in. 7.1 channels will be converted to 5.1 by elimination of the left side surround and right side surround channels.
• Optical and Coaxial digital are audio digital outputs of the 5.1 channel days.
  
  • They output 5.1 channels only regardless of the source.
  • They eliminate the left side surround and right side surround.
  • Even if you have a 7.1 channel system, if these connectors are used, what you will get is 5.1 sound.
• Composite out produces analogue stereo sound (2-channel) only. If the source is encoded in Dolby Prologic, the AVR with Dolby Prologic or PLZii will produce surround sound; else it will simulate it.

My own HT setup has Denon AVR 1910. This is a full 7.1 channel AVR. But I have only 5.1 speakers. I use HDMI-out from BD player and optical out from DVD player. I get 5.1 channel output from both. By adding two extra speakers, I can get 7.1 channel sound from 7.1 channel blu-ray discs.

thanks j4k,great explanation, really useful for those trying to build a HT.

thank you very much for the extensive and exhaustive information provided.