Tagged Products - 1080i

Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Player with 1080p Upconversion

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on Blu-ray and it was shaking the room. The menu is great and has tons of settings for those of us who like to tweak things. It is a beautiful looking player which you can easily find yourself staring at it. One thing that was very surprising is that the Vierra link works with My Samsung LN46A650 AnyNet function so the Blu-ray player and my tv will interact with one another. I turn the player on and the tv will turn on and change to the Blu-ray source. I turn the TV off and the player will turn off. It's pretty nifty. All in all it's a great player and probably the best that's out there right now. If you have the money go for it, it's worth it. If you don't need the analog out go for it's little brother the BD35.

Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Player with 1080p Upconversion

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of some players. Wish that was mentioned in the user manual. Fortunately, my AV receiver (Denon 2803) boosted the LFE volume on optical input when the "external LFE boost" setting was enabled. Bottom line: At $300, my price, capability, and quality point was met.

Pros
Broad audio decoding to PCM
Great DVD video output
Acceptable load times
Good price

Cons
No technical issues yet
User Manual non-HDMI use is minimal

Toshiba Multiformat DVD-R/-RW/+R/+RW Recorder/4-Head Hi-Fi VCR Combo

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of some players. Wish that was mentioned in the user manual. Fortunately, my AV receiver (Denon 2803) boosted the LFE volume on optical input when the "external LFE boost" setting was enabled. Bottom line: At $300, my price, capability, and quality point was met.



Pros

Broad audio decoding to PCM

Great DVD video output

Acceptable load times

Good price



Cons

No technical issues yet

User Manual non-HDMI use is minimal

Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Player with 1080p Upconversion

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impressive BD35) are actually less expensive than the PS3, and they've come a long way in disc loading and boot-up times such that these new BD players actually load some discs a little bit *faster* than the PS3 (details below). The PS3 still wins in overall boot-up time and in loading and interaction with BD-Java discs, but the new Panasonics are among the first to give the PS3 a run for its money in this department.

Where the BD55 wins over virtually all of the competition (including the PS3) is in its treatment of Blu-ray Discs, both from a picture performance standpoint and in the audio department. On the "big picture" front, the unit includes Panasonic's newly improved UniPhier chip which intelligently upconverts the native 4:2:0 encoding on a Blu-ray discs to 4:4:4 output. What this means from a layman's perspective is that the player restores missing color detail to each pixel in the 1920x1080 image. And while this doesn't make a big difference on smaller sized screens, it does noticeably improve color detail on the larger flat panel and projection screens which you're likely to find in a home theater system. Also, the BD55 has enhanced SD upconversion over its predecessors that makes watching DVDs a lot more enjoyable. It's not quite the equal the the best upconverting DVD players on the market, but it's not that far off either.

On the sound front, the BD55 includes 5.1 and 7.1-channel analog outputs with full decoding of multi-channel PCM, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. This makes it an excellent choice to add to a high-end multi-channel preamp/processor or receiver which lacks HDMI inputs. The multi-channel analog output allows you to take full advantage of the latest and greatest audio formats available on Blu-ray Disc. If you haven't heard these new formats yet, you're in for a treat as they exactly match the original studio recordings in quality and it can give your home theater system quite a work out! The BD55 is one of very few players on the market today that offers this feature (multi-channel analog out). The PS3 does not offer this. And while the Samsung BD-P2500 and BD-P2550 do offer multi-channel analog outputs, they do not currently offer native decoding of DTS-HD Master Audio (though there is some conflicting information as to whether this may be delivered in the future via a firmware upgrade).

For those with more modern surround sound equipment, the BD55 can output multi-channel Blu-ray Discs and DVDs in the native "bitstream" or it can decode the bitstream to full resolution uncompressed PCM. The choice is yours based on the capabilities of your specific home theater system.

One of the first things we measured when we got the BD55 in for review was the boot-up and disc-loading time. First and second generation BD players were painfully slow to boot up and to load discs. While the BD55 does take 24 seconds to boot up (vs. the PS3's 9 seconds), the BD55 was actually quicker to load a standard (non-Java) Blu-ray Disc than the PS3 - about 9 seconds faster, to be precise - and it was about 6 seconds faster to load a standard DVD. For a BD Java-heavy disc like "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," the BD55 loaded up the disc in about 45 seconds, which is only about 5 seconds slower than the PS3. The PS3, with its super-fast Cell processor, is still better (and quicker) in its interactivity with BD-Java-based menus and BD-Live, but the BD55 is certainly in the same ballpark. What's important here is that the delays in playback are short enough that they won't bother most people, and the huge improvement in picture and sound quality over standard DVD make Blu-ray playback on the BD55 worth the wait.

The DMP-BD55 is by no means a "perfect" player - all CE components have their quirks. SD conversion on specialized upconverting DVD players such as the higher end Oppo players or the Silicon Optix HQV-based players is definitely better than the SD upconversion on the BD55, but not so much as to bother me (and I'm pretty picky). Overall, the BD55 provides one of the stongest feature sets and performance packages available today, and it does it at a price in line with most home theater fans' budgets. So it gets my enthusiastic recommendation.

More information is available in our full review on Big Picture Big Sound.

TiVo HD Digital Video Recorder

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impressive BD35) are actually less expensive than the PS3, and they've come a long way in disc loading and boot-up times such that these new BD players actually load some discs a little bit *faster* than the PS3 (details below). The PS3 still wins in overall boot-up time and in loading and interaction with BD-Java discs, but the new Panasonics are among the first to give the PS3 a run for its money in this department.



Where the BD55 wins over virtually all of the competition (including the PS3) is in its treatment of Blu-ray Discs, both from a picture performance standpoint and in the audio department. On the "big picture" front, the unit includes Panasonic's newly improved UniPhier chip which intelligently upconverts the native 4:2:0 encoding on a Blu-ray discs to 4:4:4 output. What this means from a layman's perspective is that the player restores missing color detail to each pixel in the 1920x1080 image. And while this doesn't make a big difference on smaller sized screens, it does noticeably improve color detail on the larger flat panel and projection screens which you're likely to find in a home theater system. Also, the BD55 has enhanced SD upconversion over its predecessors that makes watching DVDs a lot more enjoyable. It's not quite the equal the the best upconverting DVD players on the market, but it's not that far off either.



On the sound front, the BD55 includes 5.1 and 7.1-channel analog outputs with full decoding of multi-channel PCM, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. This makes it an excellent choice to add to a high-end multi-channel preamp/processor or receiver which lacks HDMI inputs. The multi-channel analog output allows you to take full advantage of the latest and greatest audio formats available on Blu-ray Disc. If you haven't heard these new formats yet, you're in for a treat as they exactly match the original studio recordings in quality and it can give your home theater system quite a work out! The BD55 is one of very few players on the market today that offers this feature (multi-channel analog out). The PS3 does not offer this. And while the Samsung BD-P2500 and BD-P2550 do offer multi-channel analog outputs, they do not currently offer native decoding of DTS-HD Master Audio (though there is some conflicting information as to whether this may be delivered in the future via a firmware upgrade).



For those with more modern surround sound equipment, the BD55 can output multi-channel Blu-ray Discs and DVDs in the native "bitstream" or it can decode the bitstream to full resolution uncompressed PCM. The choice is yours based on the capabilities of your specific home theater system.



One of the first things we measured when we got the BD55 in for review was the boot-up and disc-loading time. First and second generation BD players were painfully slow to boot up and to load discs. While the BD55 does take 24 seconds to boot up (vs. the PS3's 9 seconds), the BD55 was actually quicker to load a standard (non-Java) Blu-ray Disc than the PS3 - about 9 seconds faster, to be precise - and it was about 6 seconds faster to load a standard DVD. For a BD Java-heavy disc like "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," the BD55 loaded up the disc in about 45 seconds, which is only about 5 seconds slower than the PS3. The PS3, with its super-fast Cell processor, is still better (and quicker) in its interactivity with BD-Java-based menus and BD-Live, but the BD55 is certainly in the same ballpark. What's important here is that the delays in playback are short enough that they won't bother most people, and the huge improvement in picture and sound quality over standard DVD make Blu-ray playback on the BD55 worth the wait.



The DMP-BD55 is by no means a "perfect" player - all CE components have their quirks. SD conversion on specialized upconverting DVD players such as the higher end Oppo players or the Silicon Optix HQV-based players is definitely better than the SD upconversion on the BD55, but not so much as to bother me (and I'm pretty picky). Overall, the BD55 provides one of the stongest feature sets and performance packages available today, and it does it at a price in line with most home theater fans' budgets. So it gets my enthusiastic recommendation.



More information is available in our full review on Big Picture Big Sound.

Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Player with 1080p Upconversion

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audio formats.

Profile 1.1 machines have been released in the last year and can play the vast majority of new discs but cannot take advantage of the new online functionalities and special features many new discs are shipping with. Also, updating the firmware can be cumbersome requiring a PC download, then that download being burned to a CD, and then that CD being inserted into your player, and then installed onto player.

Profile 2.0 machines are known as "Final Profile" or "Full Spec". These players come with a network interface, aka an Ethernet card. The Ethernet card allows you to connect your player directly to your home network. The significance of this is that with an Ethernet connection you will be able to directly download firmware updates to your player eliminating the several steps in the firmware updating process. Also, internet-based special features are available.

This is my first standalone Blu-Ray player. Since 2006, I have been using my Playstation 3 (60GB launch model) in anticipation of a full-featured standalone Blu-Ray player that didn't cost an arm and a leg. The moment I read the press release and technical specs about the BMP-BD55 I knew this was the machine to buy. The features that stood out to me are:

1. This machine has Onboard decoding of Dolby TrueHD/Digital Plus and dts-HD Master Audio audio formats, among others. This means, if you have an older receiver this machine can send the audio via bitstream or PCM, and you'll be able to enjoy the discrete audio mastered on the disc.

2. I have an older 7.1 Yamaha receiver HTR-5960 and it does not decodes the HD audio formats. **Correction** That is where your audio options begin with the BMP-BD55, as it can send decoded 7.1 and 5.1 audio to my receiver via the analog output. In other words you're not tethered, per se, to HDMI to enjoy 7.1 or 5.1 master audio and can put off buying that new receiver. The Optical Out interface supports DTS-ES, Dolby Digital EX, among more but 7.1 is down mixed.

3. Profile 2.0. Simple firmware updates, which are done automatically. Access to the internet-based special features, such as trivia games, extra behind the scenes, downloadables like ringtones etc..

4. This machine has an SD card reader. It can read SD cards up to 32GB (if the card has SDHC on it, then the Panasonic will play it). This means you will be able to view your Photos (from your digital camera: still or video), play MP3 songs, view Divx (aka those movies you downloaded from the internet), etc. I definitely recommend you getting an SD card because you may need it for future special internet- features (which are only going to get larger), as the onboard memory is rather limited. A class 6 8GB card can be bought here on Amazon for $12 and less.

5. Video quality (most important in my opinion). This machine has an excellent 1080p upconverting chipset. This means your regular DVD will look excellent. This machine also has 24p (also known as Original Source Output for those who are interested in knowing). Most movies are actually shot at 24 frames per second and this machine supports 24p for both DVD (via conversion) and Blu-Ray.

6. Price. This machine is has an excellent deal for its price. Competing machines with the same or less features still cost well above $700MSRP (Denon and Pioneer ring a bell).

7. Nice Size. This player has a very nice profile and is the size of a typical DVD player. It's not razor thin but it's a substantially slim machine and Panasonic finally got rid of that annoying face plate that you have to manually lower and raise to access the disc tray.

My impressions and personal experience with this machine:

I've been using the Playstation 3 as my Blu-Ray player for almost two years and I believe this machine surpasses the PS3 in terms of Audio (7.1 audio output via analog, and solid bitsream for optical out), Audio/Video settings option (the same picture management flexibilities that exist on my HDTVs setting are available for greater picture control flexibility). PS3 owners will know this but I can finally use my standard/universal remote again.

What I like:

I personally found the BMP-BD55 has great colour, contrast, and noise reduction performance as viewed on my Panasonic 46" Plasma HDTV. I did a direct video comparison of several movies between the BMP-BD55 and the PS3 and the Panasonic performed better.

I viewed only areas of the films where the PS3 struggled, such as in sequences with diagonal objects (to test anti-aliasing performance), intense light dark scenes (to test contrast and brightness performance). Movies I viewed:

Blu-Ray: (The Matrix, Iron Man, Resident Evil Extinction, Babel, Disturbia, Unforgiven, Tekkonkinkreet, and The Corpse Bride). I found the BMP-BD55 had great Contrast and Brightness. Colour control is exquisite, hardly any noticeable colour artifacts.

DVD: The Incredibles, the Matrix, Evolution, The Time Machine, Bourne Ultimatum, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Black Dahlia, Moulin Rouge. I found the 1080p upconversion excellent; DVDs I bought 8 years ago look better than ever and the Aspect Ratio and pull-down performance is very good as well.

Audio Processing: The onboard decoding software and chipset are great. I sent the decoded HD audio channelized audio to my 7.1 receiver and it sounded superb. This feature is important, in my opinion, because my receiver has a hard-time converting new HD audio but the BMP-BD55's on-board chipset sends a crisp decoded signal to my receiver. As a result, it doesn't have to struggle with HD audio and only needs to farm out the audio to the assigned speakers.

Load times: I was thoroughly impressed with the boot-up and load times of the machine. From start to play it took me less than two minutes to load Iron Man

What I don't like:

1. Storage Space: Given online content is going to be downloaded, they could have added at 2GB SD card (probably would have cost them only $3)

2. Would be nice if they included a USB port.

3. This is a high definition movie player. Why the heck is the included cable a composite? They could have included a short HDMI or even an S-Video cable.

I highly recommend this machine for anyone looking to enter into the High Definition Movie Disc market or looking to upgrade their 1.0 or 1.1 player. I've seen this unit for $320 (prices will ultimately go down) but if that is too much for you, I highly recommend getting the BMP-BD35 as a more affordable alternative. The only difference between the BMP-BD55 and the BMP-BD35 are the 7.1 analog out (the 35 doesn't have that feature) and Divx support for burned DVD and CD-R/RW. Other than that, the machines are identical in terms of playback functionality and quality, as they have the same video and audio cards. In my opinion, this is a great deal for a full-featured Blu-Ray player; in terms of functionality, features, and Audio/Video quality you're pretty much set.

In conclusion: I feel this is currently the best stand-alone player (especially for the price) currently on the market and a legitimate and compelling alternative to the PS3; perfect for those who are simply interested in watching High Definition movies and want to enjoy the occasional internet-based extras Blu-Ray movies are starting to offer without worrying about a new "Profile". Technology always moves along but I think, with these new players, the manufactures have finally started releasing "finalized" Blu-Ray machines you won't have to worry about being viable for years to come.

I hope you found this useful and I thank you for taking the time to read my review/opinion.

Sanyo HD1010 Xacti Digital Media Camera/Camcorder - Black

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are still all about compromises. You can buy an amazing, 3CCD beauty, but it will be completely impractical to carry such a thing on a hiking trip. Or, with some compromises on image quality, you can have a perfectly portable camera like the Xacti, easily toted almost anywhere you'd want to go. And you'll have an image quality that is, well, good enough, for most any amateur purpose.

Philips Multi-region DVD Player with HDMI (Refurb)-Philips Multi Region Free DVD Player w/ HDMI

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are still all about compromises. You can buy an amazing, 3CCD beauty, but it will be completely impractical to carry such a thing on a hiking trip. Or, with some compromises on image quality, you can have a perfectly portable camera like the Xacti, easily toted almost anywhere you'd want to go. And you'll have an image quality that is, well, good enough, for most any amateur purpose.

Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Player with 1080p Upconversion

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After I set up the Panasonic, everything became much clearer. The Panasonic manual is so much better. But, who really cares about manuals? How do these two players perform side by side?

Audio for BOTH Blu-ray discs and standard DVDs: The Panasonic unquestionably has better audio. Compared to the Sony, the highs were much clearer. The 7.1 surround sound put me right in the middle of the "explosion" (my first test blu-ray disc was National Treasure I) when the Charlotte blew up. The biggest Audio difference was the bass. The bass in the Panasonic was so much better than the Sony. In fact, my old Sony standard-DVD player had better audio than the Sony BDP-S350. I'd give the Sony 3 stars with the audio. The Panasonic had outstanding treble, bass, and surround: 5-star audio!

Video for BOTH Blu-ray discs and standard DVDs: The Sony's video was ok, but the Panasonic's video was fantastic. The skin tones were more realistic and the colors were more vibrant with the Panasonic. The Sony seemed to have a thin gray film over everything -- like looking through a filmy-dirty window. The Sony had 4-star video, the Panasonic and its upscaling gets an easy 5 stars!

Both my wife and I did the side-by-side test by going back and forth between Blu-Ray discs and standard DVDs. We didn't discuss any of our thoughts until we each independently formed our own conclusions. After seeing and hearing both players, we were both in complete agreement that in every way the Panasonic DMP-BD35K was superior to the Sony BDP-S350.

By the way, the card slot on the Sony for BD-Live is very hard to get to. I do like Sony as a brand for some things, but not Blu-Ray players.

For those of you who are doing your research, hopefully I can save you some time to answer if you should buy the Panasonic DMP-BD35K or DMP-BD55K. I called Panasonic and asked the differences; besides the price, there are only two differences. The 55K plays DivX's. If you don't have any DivX's like me and most of the people on planet Earth, this doesn't make any difference to you. The only other difference is that the 35K can only output Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio to a receiver/processor that has an HDMI input. If your receiver doesn't have an HDMI input, you won't be able to get them out of the 35K. If your receiver does have an HDMI input and you'll be using an HDMI cable, then you have absolutely no need to buy the 55K. With the 55K, if you have an older receiver that does not have an HDMI input, you can use the 55K's analog audio outputs so that you can have Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio. That's a nice feature of the 55K if you have an older receiver but want the latest surround sound formats.

Also, to save you some research time, I've already checked out all of the professional reviews including the ones on CNet.com: The Sony is considered ok, and CNet liked the Panasonic so much that it is the first Blu-Ray player EVER to receive CNet's "Editor's Choice Award."

I have to go to the store now and return the Sony player that I bought. I'm keeping the Panasonic!! :-)

Hopefully you found this review helpful!

Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Player with 1080p Upconversion

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port on the back will allow me to do future firmware updates without having to burn a CD. The owner's manual says if I have an internet connection connected all the time, the player will alert me when updates become available - cool!

The manual that comes with it covers the BD35 and BD55 and it looks like the only difference is the availability of analog 7.1 outputs and DviX playback on the BD55. One thing I will say is that these players do not play DVD-Audio or SACD discs. It will play DVD-Audio discs with Dolby Digital and DTS, but not the Advanced Resolution audio stream.

I haven't used the BD-live function yet, but there is a slot on the front of the player for a SD card which make using the BD-live feature possible.

So it looks like Panasonic finally got it right!

Onkyo TX-SR606B 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver - Black

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audio/video gear is connected to a single, ungrounded, electrical outlet (building was built in 1915). After a bit of Internet searching I found an article which discussed "common impedance coupling" whereby many high draw devices (such as a plasma TV, A/V receiver, and XBOX 360) which are connected to a common electrical run will produce a voltage drop and potentially introduce noise. I am not an expert in electricity but this lead me to investigate the way the components were connected to the SR606, rather than the SR606 itself.

I found that the XBOX 360 was responsible for the buzz. With the XBOX disconnected from the wall outlet, the buzz stopped even when all other components were connected and turned on. Thinking that the metal HDMI connection could be carrying the noise to the SR606 I connected the XBOX HDMI directly to the tv and connected the XBOX sound to the SR606 via a TOSLINK optical cable in order to remove any conductive connections between the SR606 and XBOX. This removed the buzz!

As a test I re-connected the XBOX HDMI to the SR606, kept the TOSLINK connection, and disabled the HDMI sound input for the XBOX on the SR606. This let the sound only come from the optical connection but retained the metal link between the SR606 and the XBOX. The buzz was much quieter but remained.

The last test was with the Gamecube which draws about 40 watts to the XBOX's 175. Although it connected via component, it output via the HDMI so I thought that if the buzz was related to the HDMI output on the SR606 I would hear it when using the Gamecube. I hear no buzz when using the Gamecube. Unfortunately do not have another device to test buzzing with HDMI input but it seems to me that the buzz was related to the following:

1) Using a single, ungrounded electrical circuit for all devices.
2) Connecting the XBOX 360 (which consumes a large amount of electricity) to the SR606 via a conductive connection.

I imagine that if I had independent outlets, homerun back to the breaker box I could separate the SR606 and the XBOX and correct the buzz. Unfortunately I spent all my cash on A/V gear so electrical work will have to wait. However, if you have better wiring in your house (or low draw A/V equipment) I imagine that your SR606 will be buzz free even when using HDMI connections.

Sony BRAVIA 37" 720p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV

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audio/video gear is connected to a single, ungrounded, electrical outlet (building was built in 1915). After a bit of Internet searching I found an article which discussed "common impedance coupling" whereby many high draw devices (such as a plasma TV, A/V receiver, and XBOX 360) which are connected to a common electrical run will produce a voltage drop and potentially introduce noise. I am not an expert in electricity but this lead me to investigate the way the components were connected to the SR606, rather than the SR606 itself.



I found that the XBOX 360 was responsible for the buzz. With the XBOX disconnected from the wall outlet, the buzz stopped even when all other components were connected and turned on. Thinking that the metal HDMI connection could be carrying the noise to the SR606 I connected the XBOX HDMI directly to the tv and connected the XBOX sound to the SR606 via a TOSLINK optical cable in order to remove any conductive connections between the SR606 and XBOX. This removed the buzz!



As a test I re-connected the XBOX HDMI to the SR606, kept the TOSLINK connection, and disabled the HDMI sound input for the XBOX on the SR606. This let the sound only come from the optical connection but retained the metal link between the SR606 and the XBOX. The buzz was much quieter but remained.



The last test was with the Gamecube which draws about 40 watts to the XBOX's 175. Although it connected via component, it output via the HDMI so I thought that if the buzz was related to the HDMI output on the SR606 I would hear it when using the Gamecube. I hear no buzz when using the Gamecube. Unfortunately do not have another device to test buzzing with HDMI input but it seems to me that the buzz was related to the following:



1) Using a single, ungrounded electrical circuit for all devices.

2) Connecting the XBOX 360 (which consumes a large amount of electricity) to the SR606 via a conductive connection.



I imagine that if I had independent outlets, homerun back to the breaker box I could separate the SR606 and the XBOX and correct the buzz. Unfortunately I spent all my cash on A/V gear so electrical work will have to wait. However, if you have better wiring in your house (or low draw A/V equipment) I imagine that your SR606 will be buzz free even when using HDMI connections.

TiVo HD Digital Video Recorder

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audio/video gear is connected to a single, ungrounded, electrical outlet (building was built in 1915). After a bit of Internet searching I found an article which discussed "common impedance coupling" whereby many high draw devices (such as a plasma TV, A/V receiver, and XBOX 360) which are connected to a common electrical run will produce a voltage drop and potentially introduce noise. I am not an expert in electricity but this lead me to investigate the way the components were connected to the SR606, rather than the SR606 itself.





I found that the XBOX 360 was responsible for the buzz. With the XBOX disconnected from the wall outlet, the buzz stopped even when all other components were connected and turned on. Thinking that the metal HDMI connection could be carrying the noise to the SR606 I connected the XBOX HDMI directly to the tv and connected the XBOX sound to the SR606 via a TOSLINK optical cable in order to remove any conductive connections between the SR606 and XBOX. This removed the buzz!





As a test I re-connected the XBOX HDMI to the SR606, kept the TOSLINK connection, and disabled the HDMI sound input for the XBOX on the SR606. This let the sound only come from the optical connection but retained the metal link between the SR606 and the XBOX. The buzz was much quieter but remained.





The last test was with the Gamecube which draws about 40 watts to the XBOX's 175. Although it connected via component, it output via the HDMI so I thought that if the buzz was related to the HDMI output on the SR606 I would hear it when using the Gamecube. I hear no buzz when using the Gamecube. Unfortunately do not have another device to test buzzing with HDMI input but it seems to me that the buzz was related to the following:





1) Using a single, ungrounded electrical circuit for all devices.


2) Connecting the XBOX 360 (which consumes a large amount of electricity) to the SR606 via a conductive connection.





I imagine that if I had independent outlets, homerun back to the breaker box I could separate the SR606 and the XBOX and correct the buzz. Unfortunately I spent all my cash on A/V gear so electrical work will have to wait. However, if you have better wiring in your house (or low draw A/V equipment) I imagine that your SR606 will be buzz free even when using HDMI connections.

15 Inch AC/DC 1080i ATSC Flat Panel LCD HDTV w/ DVD

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audio/video gear is connected to a single, ungrounded, electrical outlet (building was built in 1915). After a bit of Internet searching I found an article which discussed "common impedance coupling" whereby many high draw devices (such as a plasma TV, A/V receiver, and XBOX 360) which are connected to a common electrical run will produce a voltage drop and potentially introduce noise. I am not an expert in electricity but this lead me to investigate the way the components were connected to the SR606, rather than the SR606 itself.







I found that the XBOX 360 was responsible for the buzz. With the XBOX disconnected from the wall outlet, the buzz stopped even when all other components were connected and turned on. Thinking that the metal HDMI connection could be carrying the noise to the SR606 I connected the XBOX HDMI directly to the tv and connected the XBOX sound to the SR606 via a TOSLINK optical cable in order to remove any conductive connections between the SR606 and XBOX. This removed the buzz!







As a test I re-connected the XBOX HDMI to the SR606, kept the TOSLINK connection, and disabled the HDMI sound input for the XBOX on the SR606. This let the sound only come from the optical connection but retained the metal link between the SR606 and the XBOX. The buzz was much quieter but remained.







The last test was with the Gamecube which draws about 40 watts to the XBOX's 175. Although it connected via component, it output via the HDMI so I thought that if the buzz was related to the HDMI output on the SR606 I would hear it when using the Gamecube. I hear no buzz when using the Gamecube. Unfortunately do not have another device to test buzzing with HDMI input but it seems to me that the buzz was related to the following:







1) Using a single, ungrounded electrical circuit for all devices.



2) Connecting the XBOX 360 (which consumes a large amount of electricity) to the SR606 via a conductive connection.







I imagine that if I had independent outlets, homerun back to the breaker box I could separate the SR606 and the XBOX and correct the buzz. Unfortunately I spent all my cash on A/V gear so electrical work will have to wait. However, if you have better wiring in your house (or low draw A/V equipment) I imagine that your SR606 will be buzz free even when using HDMI connections.

Toshiba Multiformat DVD-R/-RW/+R/+RW Recorder/4-Head Hi-Fi VCR Combo

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audio/video gear is connected to a single, ungrounded, electrical outlet (building was built in 1915). After a bit of Internet searching I found an article which discussed "common impedance coupling" whereby many high draw devices (such as a plasma TV, A/V receiver, and XBOX 360) which are connected to a common electrical run will produce a voltage drop and potentially introduce noise. I am not an expert in electricity but this lead me to investigate the way the components were connected to the SR606, rather than the SR606 itself.









I found that the XBOX 360 was responsible for the buzz. With the XBOX disconnected from the wall outlet, the buzz stopped even when all other components were connected and turned on. Thinking that the metal HDMI connection could be carrying the noise to the SR606 I connected the XBOX HDMI directly to the tv and connected the XBOX sound to the SR606 via a TOSLINK optical cable in order to remove any conductive connections between the SR606 and XBOX. This removed the buzz!









As a test I re-connected the XBOX HDMI to the SR606, kept the TOSLINK connection, and disabled the HDMI sound input for the XBOX on the SR606. This let the sound only come from the optical connection but retained the metal link between the SR606 and the XBOX. The buzz was much quieter but remained.









The last test was with the Gamecube which draws about 40 watts to the XBOX's 175. Although it connected via component, it output via the HDMI so I thought that if the buzz was related to the HDMI output on the SR606 I would hear it when using the Gamecube. I hear no buzz when using the Gamecube. Unfortunately do not have another device to test buzzing with HDMI input but it seems to me that the buzz was related to the following:









1) Using a single, ungrounded electrical circuit for all devices.




2) Connecting the XBOX 360 (which consumes a large amount of electricity) to the SR606 via a conductive connection.









I imagine that if I had independent outlets, homerun back to the breaker box I could separate the SR606 and the XBOX and correct the buzz. Unfortunately I spent all my cash on A/V gear so electrical work will have to wait. However, if you have better wiring in your house (or low draw A/V equipment) I imagine that your SR606 will be buzz free even when using HDMI connections.

Panasonic DMP-BD50K Blu-Ray and DVD Player

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connection, the first thing it did was offer to download the latest firmware. I did that and installed it successfully. And, the setup allows you to test the Internet connection which verified that I DID have a working connection to the Internet. This was the only problem that required a call to Panasonic. A very knowledgable and courteous support person helped me and asked if I had an SD card inserted into the player - I did not, and I didn't see anything in the instructions that told me that was necessary. I tried that and, voila, the BD-LIVE worked. However, it's still upsetting that the error message was, "No connection to the Internet," rather than, "Please insert an SD card." And, speaking of network connections, I had to buy a power line network bridge to connect the player to the Internet, for about $50. My DISH PVR has that home networking bridge built into the unit - it would have been nice, if the Blu Ray player had that also, or if it had a wireless connection. Lastly, before I had the Internet connection, I downloaded the firware upgrade from the Panasonic web site. I created 6 different install CDs from two computers and the player would not recognize any of them. Having all that behind me, this is a great Blu Ray player - I'd recommend it, highly.

Onkyo TX-SR606S 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver - Silver

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connection, the first thing it did was offer to download the latest firmware. I did that and installed it successfully. And, the setup allows you to test the Internet connection which verified that I DID have a working connection to the Internet. This was the only problem that required a call to Panasonic. A very knowledgable and courteous support person helped me and asked if I had an SD card inserted into the player - I did not, and I didn't see anything in the instructions that told me that was necessary. I tried that and, voila, the BD-LIVE worked. However, it's still upsetting that the error message was, "No connection to the Internet," rather than, "Please insert an SD card." And, speaking of network connections, I had to buy a power line network bridge to connect the player to the Internet, for about $50. My DISH PVR has that home networking bridge built into the unit - it would have been nice, if the Blu Ray player had that also, or if it had a wireless connection. Lastly, before I had the Internet connection, I downloaded the firware upgrade from the Panasonic web site. I created 6 different install CDs from two computers and the player would not recognize any of them. Having all that behind me, this is a great Blu Ray player - I'd recommend it, highly.

Toshiba Multiformat DVD-R/-RW/+R/+RW Recorder/4-Head Hi-Fi VCR Combo

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to buy. It will not disappoint you!

TiVo HD XL Digital Video Recorder

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out extra for the wireless adapter. I'm now returning mine to Amazon for a refund.
3) Lifetime service (totally worth it in my opinion) now costs $399 up from $299, but you can get it for only $299 with a multi-service discount if you already have another TiVo. Even better, you can resell your TiVo in the future with the lifetime service and transfer the service to the new owner. You can't do that with a monthly or yearly plan!
4) The remote is awful compared to the old remotes. Plus, they switched around the buttons! It also now uses 4 AAAs rather than 2 AAs. However, old remotes should work with this TiVo, too. (I haven't bothered trying.)

Nonetheless, don't let this scare you off. The TiVo HD XL is a really solid product, and TiVo is definitely still the king of DVRs. The XL is a bit pricey, but if you do the math, you'll realize this is actually the best way to go. You really won't save money or time by rolling your own or by buying the cheaper one and attaching an external hard drive.

Hauppauge HD PVR High Definition Personal Video Recorder

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the menus it creates are lame. The quality of the recordings are fantastic. I love this box. You will need a fast pc and really good video card to get the most out of this unit.
I'm using a AMD 64 Dual Core 4600+, fast OCX memory, and two GF 7600 GS cards in SLI mode.