Sony BDP-S550 or Panasonic DMP-BD50?

[ZMan]

OK...which do you think is the better buy (price not a consideration); the upcoming Sony BDP-S550 or the new Panasonic DMP-BD50 and why?

[johnsmeets]

good one
would like to know the same
the panasonic will be first availible i,ll wait on some more testresults on both

the only difference i can think of right now is that the pano has 5.1 ch audio output ans the sony 7.1

[bootman]

Has 7.1 analog out confirmed on the 550?
if so and you do not have a HDMI equiped receiver but do have 7.1 inputs, this would be your logical choice.
If you have a newer receiver, then the analog outs won't apply, and its a toss up between the two.

[moviefan]

Originally Posted by ZMan

OK...which do you think is the better buy (price not a consideration); the upcoming Sony BDP-S550 or the new Panasonic DMP-BD50 and why?

Differences:

• 7.1 analog and HDMI on Sony, 7.1 HDMI only on Panny
• built in memory on Sony, SD card (not included) memory on Panny
• $100 more for Panny

Also a question on SD upconversion quality on Panny.

I have a pre-order on the Panny, but am thinking of waiting for the Sony. Sony says Oct 1 for the S550 intro.

[moviefan]

Originally Posted by bootman

Has 7.1 analog out confirmed on the 550?
if so and you do not have a HDMI equiped receiver but do have 7.1 inputs, this would be your logical choice.
If you have a newer receiver, then the analog outs won't apply, and its a toss up between the two.

The consensus seems to be that PCM from the player works best for the new audio formats. Regardless, I believe in "future proofing" each component as much as possible.
My current receiver will not decode DTS-MA or True-HD, so I need a player that does. My next receiver will decode them, and I can thengo either way.

[matthewrounds]

I have had the same question about which 2.0 player to buy. I settled on the Sony because of the price (I know thats not your criteria, but its hard to ignore) My receiver will decode TrueHD and DTS HD-MA so I don't really care about internal decoding although I may use the player in my bedroom in the future in which case I may care about internal decoding, but then will I really have a 5.1/7.1 setup in my bedroom?

I'm not really convinced about the need for a 2.0 player either, but while I don't care about the 2.0 stuff now, maybe my son or wife will and I really would hate to have to explain that we don't have the right player. That really won't fly in my home.

[ZMan]

Originally Posted by moviefan

Differences:

• 7.1 analog and HDMI on Sony, 7.1 HDMI only on Panny
• built in memory on Sony, SD card (not included) memory on Panny
• $100 more for Panny

Also a question on SD upconversion quality on Panny.

I have a pre-order on the Panny, but am thinking of waiting for the Sony. Sony says Oct 1 for the S550 intro.

I didn't hear about the 1 Oct. release of the Sony. I was still under the impression it was early Sept.

[Stephan.klose]

You don't have to wait for reviews. Get the Panasonic. Sony has as of yet not been able to produce one even halfway decent BD Player. (Except for the PS3)..

[bootman]

Originally Posted by moviefan

The consensus seems to be that PCM from the player works best for the new audio formats. Regardless, I believe in "future proofing" each component as much as possible.
My current receiver will not decode DTS-MA or True-HD, so I need a player that does. My next receiver will decode them, and I can thengo either way.

And yet those fortunate few who can properly try both appear to prefer bitstreaming.