Late Posted February 19, 2009 Report Posted February 19, 2009 This may have come up before, but if not — I was wondering if you guys might have some recommendations for a single tray DVD player. I'm not looking for the home theater experience (surround sound, etc.), but rather a reliable player to watch some of the Jazz Icons DVDs. Maybe all DVD players are roughly the same these days, but I'm guessing not. Anyway, I appreciate any recs! Quote
Quincy Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 I've heard good things about Oppo from several different friends. I too ignore the surround sound. It can also give you SACD and DVD-A if you're into that. Unfortunately for me I bought a Cambridge Audio player for about $100 more than an Oppo. It's been having warranty work done on it for 2 months now (it was supposed to be 3 weeks to & fro to upstate NY.) Any day now they say. It's gotten a few great reviews so maybe I just got a lemon. As far as I know you'll have to buy Oppo online. Quote
jazzbo Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 Laton, Buy a Blu-Ray player. They make dvds look absolutely fantastic. They sound really really good with cds and dvds. And you can play Blu-Rays, which are fantastic. Going to be lots of Blu-Rays, getting cheaper and cheaper all the time. I have two Sony Blu-Ray players, one that used to be their top of the line, the first one in the ES series, and a midline one bought last year, for about 300 bucks, both totally problem free, totally enjoyable. Quote
.:.impossible Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 I bought a Pioneer Elite for $100 on Craigslist about three months ago. Unreal. Upconverts DVDs to look better than cable-fed 1080i, plays SACD, etc. Look for a deal. Quote
Late Posted February 20, 2009 Author Report Posted February 20, 2009 Thanks for the recommendations so far! The Oppo's seem fairly priced (and upconvert as well), and I didn't know that Blu-Ray machines could play DVD's. Do all of them? Quote
Quincy Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 Thanks for the recommendations so far! The Oppo's seem fairly priced (and upconvert as well), and I didn't know that Blu-Ray machines could play DVD's. Do all of them? I believe they all do. Oppo is supposed to come out with a blu-ray sometime this spring and the hope is it will be nicely priced. I can understand if you don't want to wait that long though. Some people use a Sony Playstation as a blu-ray player. Just mentioning this in case you're secretly a video game addict. Quote
Van Basten II Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 (edited) Depending on where you get your DVDs and what are your center of interests, you might also think about getting a multi-zone player which would allow you to play any DVD from anywhere. I do know however that with a Blu Ray or the HD cable you need more stuff to make it work but with a regular dvd it works like a charm. Edited February 20, 2009 by Van Basten II Quote
jazzbo Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 Blu-Rays all play dvds, upsamples them all, they look and sound incredible. Nd now you don't need anything extra for Blu-Ray. HDMI is nice but not essential. Quote
robviti Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 Another for the Oppo. Actually that's :tup. I bought the OPPO DV-970HD Universal DVD Player in 2007 for the video setup in my loft, and this past year I got the OPPO DV-980H for my stereo in the living room. Both are great and have played all my DVDs and CDs without any problem, which is more than I can say for more expensive equipment I've bought in the past. Quote
Van Basten II Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 Precision, the extra stuff is to make work the multi-zone player, North-American tvs adaot to it with regular cable but not with the HD cable Quote
Dave Garrett Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 I my Oppo DV-980H. In addition to upconversion, Oppo players are also region-free and perform PAL->NTSC conversion nicely. My previous region-free player was markedly inferior in terms of picture quality and tended to choke on DVD+/-Rs; not so the Oppo, which has played everything I've thrown at it without a hitch. Blu-Ray does appear to be the future, but I haven't upgraded yet for several reasons: I am still using an analog CRT TV, the number of available titles I'm interested in hasn't reached critical mass yet, and I understand that region-coding is much more of a sticky issue than it is with standard DVD. Quote
Ted O'Reilly Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 I my Oppo DV-980H. In addition to upconversion, Oppo players are also region-free and perform PAL->NTSC conversion nicely. My previous region-free player was markedly inferior in terms of picture quality and tended to choke on DVD+/-Rs; not so the Oppo, which has played everything I've thrown at it without a hitch. Blu-Ray does appear to be the future, but I haven't upgraded yet for several reasons: I am still using an analog CRT TV, the number of available titles I'm interested in hasn't reached critical mass yet, and I understand that region-coding is much more of a sticky issue than it is with standard DVD. Oppo for me, too... The DV-981HD, hooked up to a 37" Sharp Aquos HD. Hooked up a Blu-ray player to it once, but I must admit I couldn't see enough of an improvement to replace the Oppo. All the sound goes through a 10 year old Panasonic stereo receiver (which hasn't been turned off in about 10 years), so the Oppo plays music CDs, too, including SACD and CDR, DVDR, DIVX, MP3 audio on CDR, everything! Quote
Ted O'Reilly Posted February 20, 2009 Report Posted February 20, 2009 BTW, I bought the Oppo after hearing raves about it here on organissimo a couple of years back. I had to phone them for some advice on the original set-up, and they put me right through to a technician who solved the (user-caused) problem in 10 seconds. Quote
Late Posted February 21, 2009 Author Report Posted February 21, 2009 Instead of starting a new thread, any suggestions for a television to go with a new DVD player? Any suggestions are welcome, but my actual budget is limited. I can probably afford a DVD player now, and will have to save for a new television. I've had a 13" RCA for over fifteen years now. Quote
Van Basten II Posted February 21, 2009 Report Posted February 21, 2009 According to the Oppo site they will unleash a Blu Ray player, will let you know when more info will be available. Quote
robviti Posted February 21, 2009 Report Posted February 21, 2009 According to the Oppo site they will unleash a Blu Ray player, will let you know when more info will be available. "The BDP-83 will be fully universal -- a Profile 2.0 BD deck with SACD, DVD and DVD-Audio support -- and for SACD playback, it will support DSD over HDMI and DSD-to-analog without any PCM conversion. Anticipated price will be between $499 and $599." Quote
jazzbo Posted February 21, 2009 Report Posted February 21, 2009 Instead of starting a new thread, any suggestions for a television to go with a new DVD player? Any suggestions are welcome, but my actual budget is limited. I can probably afford a DVD player now, and will have to save for a new television. I've had a 13" RCA for over fifteen years now. There are three or four threads about TVs on the board. . . . Quote
kinuta Posted February 21, 2009 Report Posted February 21, 2009 Definitely try a Pioneer DV-410 V with HDMI and front USB port, DIVX compatible with great pic quality and sound. I use it as a cd player sometimes. The US model is also region free, I think. Anyhow it's without doubt the best of the six players we've had. Quote
Claude Posted February 21, 2009 Report Posted February 21, 2009 Buy a Blu-Ray player. They make dvds look absolutely fantastic. They sound really really good with cds and dvds. And you can play Blu-Rays, which are fantastic. Going to be lots of Blu-Rays, getting cheaper and cheaper all the time. I agree about the recommendation for Blu-ray, but not all Blu-ray players have great DVD playback, compared to DVD players of the same price (i.e. the $200-400 range). Quote
Chuck Nessa Posted February 22, 2009 Report Posted February 22, 2009 FWIW, I find cheap Sony dvd units produce more detailed cd sound than regular priced cd decks. I have two. Quote
jazzbo Posted February 22, 2009 Report Posted February 22, 2009 I like the Sony sound too. Claude, all I will say is that every Blu-Ray player I've seen (six so far, two of mine, four elsewhere) upconverts dvds and they look fabulous. I think its foolish to buy a dvd player at this time, withi Blu-Ray bursting onto the scene, and setting up camp to stay. Quote
.:.impossible Posted February 22, 2009 Report Posted February 22, 2009 No need for blu ray on a 480i 13". Look for a deal on a used player, and sell it or move it to another room when you do upgrade the tv. By then br will be prime time. I've read that 2011 or 2012 is the anticipated year that br becomes the household technology that DVD became. Prices are expected to drop significantly by then. I'm in no rush since my pio elite player looks so amazing. I think it stacks up very well to br, and at 1/4 the cost! Quote
BERIGAN Posted February 23, 2009 Report Posted February 23, 2009 I've been in 2 different Radio Shacks in the last week, and they have on clearance, a Sylvania Blu-Ray player, for $139! That's as cheap as I have seen one so far.... Quote
.:.impossible Posted February 23, 2009 Report Posted February 23, 2009 According to the Oppo site they will unleash a Blu Ray player, will let you know when more info will be available. "The BDP-83 will be fully universal -- a Profile 2.0 BD deck with SACD, DVD and DVD-Audio support -- and for SACD playback, it will support DSD over HDMI and DSD-to-analog without any PCM conversion. Anticipated price will be between $499 and $599." That price is not very Oppo, is it? They built a great reputation on solid upconverting players at a fraction of the price for the "brand" names. Guess it's time to step up. Quote
_forumlogo.png.a607ef20a6e0c299ab2aa6443aa1f32e.png)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.