Pioneer Elite BDP-LX500

[JohnAV]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

Game consoles simply can't compete with even midrange Ultra HD Blu-ray players. The consoles are limited to only the basic HDR10 and only feature one HDMI output meaning you can't establish direct connections to both your display and your sound device. They also do not include a front panel display.

High-end players like this Pioneer are not very popular among the general public for obvious reasons, but among home theater enthusiasts, especially those with high-end displays and audio systems, they are very popular. This is the audience Pioneer targets with their players, and Pioneer knows these people would be disappointed if they stopped producing players.

Your not a expert. If consumers turn on the console to the TV, load a UHD BD and play it they are not going to be HT enthusiast, its perfectly adequate for a typical consumer usage as a another player that has a bit less source features.

Pioneer players have never been that popular because they were expensive for their given feature set. Quit talking like a Pioneer sales party because you don't even own a Pioneer BD player.

[R3P0]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

Game consoles simply can't compete with even midrange Ultra HD Blu-ray players. The consoles are limited to only the basic HDR10 and only feature one HDMI output meaning you can't establish direct connections to both your display and your sound device. They also do not include a front panel display.

High-end players like this Pioneer are not very popular among the general public for obvious reasons, but among home theater enthusiasts, especially those with high-end displays and audio systems, they are very popular. This is the audience Pioneer targets with their players, and Pioneer knows these people would be disappointed if they stopped producing players.

Oppo knew people would be disappointed if they ceased manufacturing and that didn't stop them from getting out of the hardware game. As others have told you numerous times stop talking like you are a representative of the company and have knowledge regarding specific products because you simply don't. If There was a ton of money to made in high end hardware you would not have seen Pioneer drop Plasma TV's, Nor would you have seen Oppo and other hardware manufacturers kill High End 4k players. You have 0 knowledge of the costs to manufacture said products not to mention the break even point to keep the line operating. You most likely do not even have a background dealing with supply chain and distribution.

No one here is telling you not to be optimistic because the loss of Pioneer/Onkyo/Oppo etc is a blow to our community and hobby as a whole. What everyone is going to tell you and will continue to tell you is stop taking what some random $17.00/hr. helpdesk person may have told you as a fact that X/Y/Z will change. You do not have any inside knowledge regarding any Pioneer product and you do not have viable confirmation that things will or are changing especially with Onkyo currently in insolvency which could very well lead to bankruptcy in the current economic climate.

The only person in this thread that I would believe right now regarding anything with this product is the guy who was first to tell us it was coming the NA market, which is Robert Zohn. When he says it is returning then it is returning. The fact that a distributors of said product cannot even tell you for certain it will return or that Pioneer Elite will even continue past this year is a damning statement on the current state of things.

The typical consumer cares about 1 thing right now and it is not UHD Physical media it is streaming. Out of the 4 people in my house only 1 person cares about the quality of said movies and it is me. That is your typical household. Toss on D+ and be done with things because it is easy and convenient. Out of the 100+ members of my family extended or otherwise only 1 person cares about video or audio quality, guess what again that is me. Welcome to the typical consumer. Thus endith the lesson.

FYI your best bet for a HQ player right now is the UB9000 which Robert does have in stock as of tomorrow 12/7

https://www.valueelectronics.com/Pan..._DMP-UB900.php

I would recommend just buying it before they go out of stock as well, as nothing is making it from overseas due to the US issues with China.

[BijouMan]

Originally Posted by JohnAV

Your not a expert. If consumers turn on the console to the TV, load a UHD BD and play it they are not going to be HT enthusiast, its perfectly adequate for a typical consumer usage as a another player that has a bit less source features.

Pioneer players have never been that popular because they were expensive for their given feature set. Quit talking like a Pioneer sales party because you don't even own a Pioneer BD player.

Originally Posted by R3P0

Oppo knew people would be disappointed if they ceased manufacturing and that didn't stop them from getting out of the hardware game. As others have told you numerous times stop talking like you are a representative of the company and have knowledge regarding specific products because you simply don't. If There was a ton of money to made in high end hardware you would not have seen Pioneer drop Plasma TV's, Nor would you have seen Oppo and other hardware manufacturers kill High End 4k players. You have 0 knowledge of the costs to manufacture said products not to mention the break even point to keep the line operating. You most likely do not even have a background dealing with supply chain and distribution.

No one here is telling you not to be optimistic because the loss of Pioneer/Onkyo/Oppo etc is a blow to our community and hobby as a whole. What everyone is going to tell you and will continue to tell you is stop taking what some random $17.00/hr. helpdesk person may have told you as a fact that X/Y/Z will change. You do not have any inside knowledge regarding any Pioneer product and you do not have viable confirmation that things will or are changing especially with Onkyo currently in insolvency which could very well lead to bankruptcy in the current economic climate.

The only person in this thread that I would believe right now regarding anything with this product is the guy who was first to tell us it was coming the NA market, which is Robert Zohn. When he says it is returning then it is returning. The fact that a distributors of said product cannot even tell you for certain it will return or that Pioneer Elite will even continue past this year is a damning statement on the current state of things.

The typical consumer cares about 1 thing right now and it is not UHD Physical media it is streaming. Out of the 4 people in my house only 1 person cares about the quality of said movies and it is me. That is your typical household. Toss on D+ and be done with things because it is easy and convenient. Out of the 100+ members of my family extended or otherwise only 1 person cares about video or audio quality, guess what again that is me. Welcome to the typical consumer. Thus endith the lesson.

I never intended to sound like a representative. What I said is only based on what I can tell and what logically makes sense to me. I do not know any information about the status of the company beyond what has been shared to the public. I am in the group who would suffer the most from discontinuation as I have never had an Ultra HD Blu-ray player before and am waiting to get one of these. The only reason I'm so active on this thread is because people try to convince me I'll never get one, and I've been trying to make the case why these players should still exist. All I wanted to know was when I would be able to get one.

UPDATE: It looks like Pioneer has all but, albeit quietly, exited the disc player market. I have owned the Panasonic for a while now, and if you do want a machine with all these features there is the MAGNETAR.

[JohnAV]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

I never intended to sound like a representative. What I said is only based on what I can tell and what logically makes sense to me. I do not know any information about the status of the company beyond what has been shared.

Best thing you can do is look at alternatives in their respective threads. This product line is for all purposes "dead" presently. There is no other way to look at it given the manufacturers insolvency status. The UB9000 would be a nice player for you, even if it doesn't do SACDs.

[R3P0]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

I never intended to sound like a representative. What I said is only based on what I can tell and what logically makes sense to me. I do not know any information about the status of the company beyond what has been shared. I am in the group who would suffer the most from discontinuation as I have never had an Ultra HD Blu-ray player before and am waiting to get one of these. The only reason I'm so active on this thread is because people try to convince me I'll never get one. All I wanted to know is when it would happen.

Just a heads up people are posting on AVS forums that Pioneer reps have confirmed the LX-500/800 are discontinued.

https://www.avforums.com/threads/pio.../post-28657331

Buy the Panasonic UB9000 from Robert when it hits stock tomorrow if you want a 4K player. I would even message or email him from here as the will respond quickly always does.

[Lee A Stewart]

Originally Posted by Filmfan73

And what is the hugest elephant in the room with that statement?

The fact that 150-200 million people are going to own 4K disc players in the next 5 years or so with the Xbox Series X, and PlayStation 5. That is a whole new audience, and consumer base for the disc based 4K market (Sony has already branded some of their 4K films with the PS5 logo for marketing purposes).

Now I don't deny that dedicated high end UHD players may leave us. But it won't be because of lack of interest of discs, it will be the gargantuan competition from Sony, and Microsoft game systems that double as outstanding 4K BD players.

4K ain't goin nowhere.

Do either of those game consoles support Dolby Vision?

[R3P0]

Originally Posted by Lee A Stewart

Do either of those game consoles support Dolby Vision?

Microsoft Series X does I believe

[Lee A Stewart]

Originally Posted by R3P0

Microsoft Series X does I believe

Yes - for streaming and gaming. But what about for 4K UHD BD? AFAIK neither do so how can you call them "outstanding 4K BD players."

[BijouMan]

Originally Posted by R3P0

Microsoft Series X does I believe

Not for Ultra HD Blu-ray. And even if it did, it's only the "low latency" version.

[JohnAV]

Originally Posted by Lee A Stewart

Do either of those game consoles support Dolby Vision?

See below

PlayStation 5 is optimized for 4K gaming. It supports HDR10 but not Dolby Vision in any form. Dolby Atmos bitstreaming is supported for Blu-ray and UHD Blu-ray, but PS5 does not support Dolby Atmos for gaming.

XBOX Series X - Before getting into how it performs, there are a few features and set up considerations to cover. Starting off with the fact that despite the console already supporting the premium Dolby Vision high dynamic range picture format for streamed video, the DV support doesn’t extend to 4K Blu-ray playback. Lacking Dolby Vision (which adds extra scene by scene image information to help screens do HDR better) is a shame with any 4K Blu-ray player these days, but it feels particularly frustrating on a device that’s committed to Dolby Vision in other areas. Don’t forget that Dolby Vision game support is coming in 2021.

[BijouMan]

Originally Posted by R3P0

Just a heads up people are posting on AVS forums that Pioneer reps have confirmed the LX-500/800 are discontinued.

https://www.avforums.com/threads/pio.../post-28657331

Buy the Panasonic UB9000 from Robert when it hits stock tomorrow if you want a 4K player. I would even message or email him from here as the will respond quickly always does.

Just because they discontinue the current one doesn't mean they're not working on a follow-up, which I think they have a chance of introducing in the near future. People on other forums want one of these too, some of whom are actually not happy with their experience with the competitors' machines!

Oh, and just so you know, Voxx will be at CES. Since they own Klipsch, the new U.S. distributor for Pioneer, Pioneer could be at CES and introduce the new model through Klipsch, making the U.S. the place of introduction. Companies can introduce new products anywhere in the world, no matter where they are based.

UPDATE: It looks like Pioneer has all but, albeit quietly, exited the disc player market. For those who want a machine with all these features there is the MAGNETAR.

[JohnAV]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

Just because they discontinue the current one doesn't mean they're not working on a follow-up, which I think they have a chance of introducing in the near future. People on other forums want one of these too, some of whom are not happy with their experience with the competitor's machine!

Based on the current health of Pioneer producing anything . . .

Dr. McCoy - He's dead Jim - YouTube

[Lee A Stewart]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

Just because they discontinue the current one doesn't mean they're not working on a follow-up, which I think they have a chance of introducing in the near future. People on other forums want one of these too, some of whom are actually not happy with their experience with the competitor's machine!

Oh, and just so you know, Voxx will be at CES. Since they own Klipsch, the new U.S. distributor for Pioneer, Pioneer could be at CES and introduce the new model through Klipsch, making the U.S. the place of introduction. Companies can introduce new products anywhere in the world, no matter where they are based.

[ronboster]

Originally Posted by BijouMan

I never intended to sound like a representative. What I said is only based on what I can tell and what logically makes sense to me. I do not know any information about the status of the company beyond what has been shared to the public. I am in the group who would suffer the most from discontinuation as I have never had an Ultra HD Blu-ray player before and am waiting to get one of these. The only reason I'm so active on this thread is because people try to convince me I'll never get one, and I've been trying to make the case why these players should still exist. All I wanted to know was when I would be able to get one.

The problem arises when you make statements that sound like you have inside information...when it's actually your "logical...make sense to me" statements.

Label your statements a "wish" or "wish list", I don't think you would see so much push back.

I used to own the Panny 900, then an OPPO 203 and now a Panny 820. I'm always interested in what's new and improved...so I would welcome new machines. But, I'm not going to come here (or any thread) and tell members (esp. newbies) that what I wish is a fact (or will happen).

If you are interested in a Panasonic Player, Robert at Value Electronics is a good resource.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Auditor55

I own an LX-500, that's why I'm drawn to this thread, to begin with. However, I can't nor will I refuse to acknowledge what's is clearly evident, which is that UHD Blu Ray and optical disc players, in general, are going out.

I'm just saying that the future isn't bright for Pioneer or any other Consumer Electronic Company. We won't see an updated version of the LX-500.

Owning this fine player does not make your posts any less off topic nor your pessimism any more welcome. You can acknowledge any grim future that you care to imagine without plastering your unwanted predictions here. No one else wants to gaze into your corrupted palantiri.



Post your poisonous prognostications here where they are at least topical:

Digital & Physical: The Future of Home Video Discussion Thread

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...9675&page=1423

[Lee A Stewart]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Post your poisonous prognostications here where they are at least topical:

Digital & Physical: The Future of Home Video Discussion Thread

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...9675&page=1423

Oh goody - just what that thread needs - another Whipping Boy.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Lee A Stewart

Oh goody - just what that thread needs - another Whipping Boy.

It is where his foreboding belongs and its not like he is getting lots of hugs here.



Alchav needs a new friend, too, as his other one is constantly getting into trouble.

[Lee A Stewart]

Originally Posted by Vilya

It is where his foreboding belongs and its not like he is getting lots of hugs here.

Alchav needs a new friend, too, as his other one is constantly getting into trouble.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Lee A Stewart

[Show spoiler]

I wasn't referring to you, silly goose.

[Member-425016]

Originally Posted by Lee A Stewart

Yes - for streaming and gaming. But what about for 4K UHD BD? AFAIK neither do so how can you call them "outstanding 4K BD players."

Well, because they are outstanding players.
If those features are not added with a firmware update, I'm perfectly content with HDR 10 (I actually prefer it to Dolby Vision a lot of times) and Dolby Atmos on the Series X.