DVD up conversion VS Blu Ray

bigaudiofanatic

So as some of you know I am getting a new tv in about 35 days time. Now when I am out on BF I also want to pickup a player as well. The problem is that a friend of mine and I are arguing about this. You see I rent and burn dvd's to a single layer dvd. "My argument is I pay to see it in the theater I pay to rent it I should be able to own it? But that is another time. Anyway he is saying that if I buy a dvd up conversion dvd player my picture will look just as good as blu ray and I will hardly be able to tell the difference. My argument is that the video is already compressed and yes it will fill in the missing pixels but will not look nor sound as good as blu ray. can anyone shead some light on this? Also a side note when I burn them I do not compress the audio.

concealer404

Your friend is wrong.

If the DVD is only good for SD if you run the information without processing it, then there's no way it'll be as good as a 1080p "source." The SD DVD is missing information, and the dvd player will not be able to fill it in to become true HD.

bigaudiofanatic

So even with regular dvd's it still would not come close I take it? Also I would be better off getting a BR player.

vc69

Your friend is not only wrong, he is misguided. Bad info abounds on this subject.

Native resolution of DVD is 720x480

Native resolution of BluRay is 1920x1080

DVD upscaling involves scaling 720x480 ---> 1920x1080 which if done properly with a good scaler looks mighty good. BUT does not look like native 1920x1080 for many reasons.
Suffice to say, get a BD player with good upscaling and you will be happy. I highly recommend the Oppo BDP-83 if you can afford it.
If not, remember this: ALL BD players perform about equally when playing a BluRay disc. Where they differ is in their ability to scale SD DVD's. A good scaler is hard to do, hence the players that scale SD well tend to be more expensive.

leroyjr1

Blu Ray looks waaaaay better than upconverted sd-dvds. The HD formats sound better also.

bigaudiofanatic

Here are the 2 I am thinking about.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9338102&type=product&id=1218087587548

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9317599&type=product&id=1218083874972

vc69

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

Here are the 2 I am thinking about.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9338102&type=product&id=1218087587548

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9317599&type=product&id=1218083874972

Neither of those scale well. Both will serve their purpose. Not everyone *requires* stellar upscaling of SD DVD.

/.02

concealer404

If you're thinking about the Sony, but can't afford the Oppo, i've give this thing a shot:

http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-BDP-51FD-BonusView-Blu-ray-Player/dp/B001A5NGZU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=tv&qid=1255977022&sr=1-3


This is the one that's on my shopping list right now.

leroyjr1

Just get a PS3 for $299 and be done with it. You're not going to find a better player at that price and it does a good job upconverting.

bigaudiofanatic

Na I am not a fan of having a ps3 if I am not going to use the gaming part. That pioneer looks sick.

BlueFox

I too was wondering whether BR would be much better than upconverted DVDs, since I have a top Sony DVD player, 9100ES, that does a great job of upconverting.

Anyway, I purchased the Oppo BD83 and BR blows away upconverted DVD, and this is on a TV that only supports 1080i. Also, the Oppo decodes the new audio formats, and sends it over HDMI to my "old" AVR, and the audio is a 1000 times better than DVD DTS. No comparison at all between DVD and BR for either picture or sound. BR is much, much better. Also, the Oppo does a great job of upconverting regular DVDs.

The biggest problem with BR is that some disks take over the player, and when this happens "Resume on stop" does not work. With DVD you can stop the disk, turn off the player, and the next time you play the disk it will resume where you stopped. Many BR disks do not allow this. Since I rarely watch a movie start to finish it is a minor irritant.

vc69

BlueFox wrote: »

The biggest problem with BR is that some disks take over the player, and when this happens "Resume on stop" does not work. With DVD you can stop the disk, turn off the player, and the next time you play the disk it will resume where you stopped. Many BR disks do not allow this. Since I rarely watch a movie start to finish it is a minor irritant.

True. There are definitely some caveats with BR. Firmware updates, BD-Live (a complete joke and a major source of issues with new discs) and poorly implemented "features" of an evolving format to name a few. But as a consumer source format for movies, it rocks. I love it. But with a BDP-83, I still can purchase and enjoy SD DVD for those movies I don't watch all of the time or wouldn't benefit from the new audio formats like Action/Adventure/Scifi/etc. does.
For some movies (and the bulk of my collection) SD is just fine and an excellent upscaling player gives them even more longevity.

dvran

+1 on the PS3.

Pound for pound, you just can't beat the deal they have going for a game system, a Blue Ray player, a web surfer and a media access center.

You might want to check slickdeals.net. Amazon had a link for a Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-ray Disc Player for $128 with Free Shipping.

ballen823

If you're not into gaming, skip the PS3 and go with the Pioneer:

http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-BDP-51FD-BonusView-Blu-ray-Player/dp/B001A5NGZU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=tv&qid=1255977022&sr=1-3

Heard nothing but good things about this player and that's an excellent deal on it.

wutadumsn23

I also would recommend the PS3, if you are into gaming or not. For the cost, it can't be beat. I have a "older" 80 GB PS3 that I hardly use for gaming anymore and I still consider it the centerpiece of my HT. I own an older Sony upconverting DVD player and have watched SD DVD's upconverted and have also watched many Blu-Rays on my PS3. The difference is night and day, both in video and audio. The upconverter may upscale the video a touch to a better resolution, but won't do anything for the audio, and IMHO it doesn't get any better than the new HD codecs. If you are really against the PS3, save up your coin for a good Blu Ray player and you will be very happy with your choice.

-Jeff

bigaudiofanatic

dvran wrote: »

+1 on the PS3.

Pound for pound, you just can't beat the deal they have going for a game system, a Blue Ray player, a web surfer and a media access center.

You might want to check slickdeals.net. Amazon had a link for a Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-ray Disc Player for $128 with Free Shipping.

Well considering I have satellite internet, I can not watch anything longer than 10 minute without timing out the internet for 24 hours. And that apple tv will be what I use for my music. I think that the ps3 would be a waste of money for me.

bigaudiofanatic

So there is another thing i do not get. How can 9 year old movie such as independence day be remade into blu ray HD? Are they just doing a up conversion like a regular unconverted dvd player would?

vc69

Film transfer. Most movies are shot on film.

kuntasensei

They scan it from film. It's honest-to-God hi-def, complete with a touch of film grain. I watched the BD and was surprised at the amount of detail. In fact, I watched the BD of Silverado and was absolutely floored by how amazing it looks.

mutelight

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

So there is another thing i do not get. How can 9 year old movie such as independence day be remade into blu ray HD? Are they just doing a up conversion like a regular unconverted dvd player would?

As others have said, film, which is much higher quality than 1080p video. For example, here are some DVD vs Blu-ray shots from Bladerunner, a movie created over 25 years ago.

http://www.zonadvd.com/modules.php?name=Sections&op=viewarticle&artid=804

BlueFox

mutelight wrote: »

As others have said, film, which is much higher quality than 1080p video. For example, here are some DVD vs Blu-ray shots from Bladerunner, a movie created over 25 years ago.

Great. Thanks. Now I have to REBUY another DVD as BluRay. Oh, the inhumanity of it. :rolleyes:

mutelight

BlueFox wrote: »

Great. Thanks. Now I have to REBUY another DVD as BluRay. Oh, the inhumanity of it. :rolleyes:

Haha. Well this is the version I own, which is a great price at Amazon and you get 5 different versions of the film.

http://www.amazon.com/Runner-Five-Disc-Complete-Collectors-Blu-ray/dp/B000UBMWG4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1257657002&sr=8-1

bigaudiofanatic

mutelight wrote: »

As others have said, film, which is much higher quality than 1080p video. For example, here are some DVD vs Blu-ray shots from Bladerunner, a movie created over 25 years ago.

http://www.zonadvd.com/modules.php?name=Sections&op=viewarticle&artid=804

Very cool thanks man!

Zoomzilla

I have the samsung BP-1600 and it works just fine.

Oh, you should also not be proud you are a pirate and you should not post that you do it. You are breaking copyright laws, so your logic is retarded.

BlueFox

mutelight wrote: »

Haha. Well this is the version I own, which is a great price at Amazon and you get 5 different versions of the film.

http://www.amazon.com/Runner-Five-Disc-Complete-Collectors-Blu-ray/dp/B000UBMWG4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1257657002&sr=8-1

Its in the shopping cart. Thanks.

bigaudiofanatic

Zoomzilla wrote: »

I have the samsung BP-1600 and it works just fine.

Oh, you should also not be proud you are a pirate and you should not post that you do it. You are breaking copyright laws, so your logic is retarded.

Well whatever, I buy all my cd's and a lot of my dvd's. If it is for my own personal use I do not see the problem. I literally go to the movies every weekend and see at least one movie I do not wait for some guy at work to sell me a 5 dollar boot leg copy NOW THAT IS WRONG. Not retreaded logic just a good argument.



Anyway back to the actual subject. So when it was said earlier that film is much higher quality than dvd's or blu rays. Does this mean that we are going to see higher resolutions like the 1440 in the future?

Zoomzilla

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

Well whatever, I buy all my cd's and a lot of my dvd's. If it is for my own personal use I do not see the problem. I literally go to the movies every weekend and see at least one movie I do not wait for some guy at work to sell me a 5 dollar boot leg copy NOW THAT IS WRONG. Not retreaded logic just a good argument.



Anyway back to the actual subject. So when it was said earlier that film is much higher quality than dvd's or blu rays. Does this mean that we are going to see higher resolutions like the 1440 in the future?

It is NOT a good argument. When you BUY a DVD, you are buying the rights to use it for your own personal use. When you RENT a DVD, you do not own it, therefore have no personal use rights. So renting a DVD and copying it is in fact breaking copyright laws. If it were legal, everyone would just rent it, burn it onto a Dual Layer disk and be done with it. There is a reason you can rent it for $5, but it usually cost you more than $20 to purchase it. Don't even try to argue the point, you are going to lose.

bigaudiofanatic

K man I am not hurting anyone take care! Also i only use single layer disks. Instead of arguing with me go after the guys that bootleg them while they are in theaters and sell them. Also the ones that download them and sell them even after they are out.


As I said back to the subject.

WilliamM2

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

K man I am not hurting anyone take care! Also i only use single layer disks. Instead of arguing with me go after the guys that bootleg them while they are in theaters and sell them. Also the ones that download them and sell them even after they are out.

How is what they are doing any different? You both profit in some way.

Do what you want, but don't try to justify it.

vc69

bigaudiofanatic wrote: »

K man I am not hurting anyone take care! Also i only use single layer disks. Instead of arguing with me go after the guys that bootleg them while they are in theaters and sell them. Also the ones that download them and sell them even after they are out.


As I said back to the subject.

What you are doing is EXACTLY as bad as what you call wrong.

I don't give a rats **** what you do. But don't act like it's justifiable.

POIDOG

Zoomzilla wrote: »

Oh, you should also not be proud you are a pirate and you should not post that you do it. You are breaking copyright laws, so your logic is retarded.

Aye, Captain, but the booty be good:cool: