HD DVD Players Sold Out Nationwide This Weekend - Blu-ray In Trouble?

[kennyt]

Guys,

I have to agree with Lotus on this one.

Having owned/owning five Blu-ray players and on my second HD DVD player (Toshiba HD XA2) I can say NONE of the BLu-ray players I have do as good a job upscaling SD DVD's as the XA2.

As for the PS3, well, it's a great video game, and a Blu-ray player, but not a good one, and definitely not a great one (Yes, I own one of these too.) In fact, I would put my XA2 against any other up-converting player and be surprised if it didn't at least match or beat them. It really is that good, far superior to the PS3, ANY Samsung BDP player, and the Sony BDP-S1.

[DaViD Boulet]

Are all BD players the equal of the best Toshibas in upconversion? No. And neither would be other HD DVD players if someone other than Toshiba (and Meridian) would actually make one.

The best Toshibas are excellent upconverters. In fact, they represent some of the best upconversion I've ever seen of standard-def DVD... surpassing even "tweaked" HPTC systems from the past. However, even if average BD players from other manufacturers don't match this ultra-high level of performance, they are hardly "bad" by comparison, as a hit-or-miss notion would imply. My PS3 provides outstanding upconversion quality which bests my formerly outstanding dedicated Oppo upconversion player. It might not quite match the best Toshiba, but it creates a beautiful upconverted DVD image nevertheless.

[Lotus]

I'm not going to give in and say "Ok, BD are all great upconverters," because it would be a lie. Accept the fact there are poor, average, above average, and good upconverting BD players.

Some even use the same chipset as Toshiba but still don't take full advantage of the chipset.

The Onkyo HD DVD players will do as good a job as the XA2 if not better at upconversion. I've heard they've tweaked the chipset as well as made noticable improvements to CD playback.

Obviously the Meridian will have a specialized Faroudja chipset made to make the most out of HD DVD and upconversion.

[DaViD Boulet]

Lotus,

Not all Toshiba players are outstanding upconverters. Several reviewers have stated that the entry-level model doesn't provide the same high-level of upconversion quality as the other units. Would it be fair then to say that upconversion is "hit or miss" with Toshiba units? Or does just one exception in a large group of players represent too small a chance to make that categorization reasonable?

I'm sure that the Onkyo and Meridian units will have outstanding upconversion. As do the Pioneer and Denon BD players.

BTW, off topic, has anyone heard if that Meridian will be a combo-player? It would be nice to see a high-end combo player alternative.

[tigeraudio2007]

As for upconverting SD DVD, both sides have good players for it and both sides have poor players for it. The new Panasonic player does a poor job at upconversion, while the Toshiba A30 HD DVD player does a poor job as well. But then the Samsung 1200 is a great upconverter as well as the Toshiba HD-XA2. Each side has its pluses and minuses.

[Lotus]

Originally Posted by DaViD Boulet

BTW, off topic, has anyone heard if that Meridian will be a combo-player? It would be nice to see a high-end combo player alternative.

Even current BD players are poor (as in fail all deinterlacing tests) at upconversion.

Tiger claims the new A30 is poor as well, which would be the first Toshiba unit to be described as such. I haven't seen this unit so I can't comment. I know the A3 and A35 are good at it. I haven't seen the A30 so I can't comment, but it's doubful he is wrong.

Denon has a combo player in the works (as well as a HD DVD standalone) and I think the combo will see the light of day (not sure on the stand alone).

Arcam has a combo player in the works too.

Obviously the Arcam would be high end.