Info on Sony BDP-BX2..Sams/BJs ?

[DavidCoppola]

Saw one recently at Sams Club for $178.

Anyone have any info on this one? Thanks.

[Jimbo976]

It is exactly the same as the BDP-S360 but it comes with an HDMI cable in the box and has a backlit remote instead of the non-backlit one that comes with the BDP-S360.

I have the BDP-S360 and am very happy with it. I'd recommend picking up whichever one you can find cheaper. To me the cable and backlit remote are almost worthless so I went for the BDP-S360 which was cheaper around here but that may not be the case everywhere.

[DavidCoppola]

Are they DTS internally decoded?

[Jimbo976]

Yes it decodes all audio formats (including DTS HD MA and True HD) internally. It will also bitstream them if you want that too.

[McBain]

http://esupport.sony.com/CA/perl/mod...l=BDPBX2&LOC=3

[Kryptonic]

The S360 and BX2 do not internally decode DTS-HDMA, but they do bitstream it and TrueHD. I tried a variety of settings - setting the receiver to only accept PCM and the BX2 to Mix and such, and couldn't get it to decode DTS-HDMA. But my receiver decodes everything, so I just bitstream it anyway, which is the preferred method because receivers typically do a better job of decoding than players.

But aside from that the BX2/S360 is a wonderful player. I've had mine for a couple of weeks and it's been great. The HDMI cable and backlit remote are a plus too. The only difference between the BX2 and the S360 is...well...nothing as far as the actual unit goes. They're the exact same machine and use the exact same firmware.

[Jimbo976]

Incorrect.

My BDP-S360 internally decodes DTS HD MA. The BDP-BX2 will behave the same way. You need to choose the Direct setting and not Mix. It does handshaking with the receiver and if the receiver can decode DTS HD MA itself then the BDP-S360 will send it to the receiver to decode. If the receiver is not capable of decoding DTS HD MA then the BDP-S360 does the decoding and sends it to the receiver as PCM which is already decoded. There may not be any way though to get the BDP-S360 or BDP-BX2 to decode it internally if your receiver is also capable of doing the decoding. But in that case you'd likely want the receiver to be doing it anyway.

There is a big thread about the BDP-S360 here and it should all apply to the BDP-BX2 as well...

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...light=bdp-s360

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by Jimbo976

Incorrect.

My BDP-S360 internally decodes DTS HD MA. The BDP-BX2 will behave the same way. You need to choose the Direct setting and not Mix. It does handshaking with the receiver and if the receiver can decode DTS HD MA itself then the BDP-S360 will send it to the receiver to decode. If the receiver is not capable of decoding DTS HD MA then the BDP-S360 does the decoding and sends it to the receiver as PCM which is already decoded. There may not be any way though to get the BDP-S360 or BDP-BX2 to decode it internally if your receiver is also capable of doing the decoding. But in that case you'd likely want the receiver to be doing it anyway.

There is a big thread about the BDP-S360 here and it should all apply to the BDP-BX2 as well...

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...light=bdp-s360

Okay. That makes sense. No matter what, it doesn't decode or send DTS-HDMA when it's set on Mix. Has anyone without a DTS-HDMA decoding receiver verified that it does internally decode DTS-HDMA?

Originally Posted by Sooner_Blu

Now for the DTS-HDMA, and where the fun begins: Put the 360 on Mix, and it will only Mix the secondary audio with the Core DTS that has been decoded. It is not decoding DTS-HDMA into PCM here. Both audios(Core DTS & Secondary) are sent to the receiver. Put the 360 on Direct and one of two things may happen: 1) If the receiver is set to auto, or something to make it decode, then the receiver will decode the the HDMA into PCM. Or 2) put the receiver setting to PCM, or where it will only accept PCM. This will make the player recognize that, and then the player will decode HDMA into PCM and send PCM to the receiver. If your receiver display is showing PCM, but is not decoding, then the player must be decoding the HDMA to PCM.

I did this, setting the receiver to accept only PCM and during off auto surround. I then it on Mix and Direct and both times DTS-HDMA showed up as just regular DTS on the player.

[DoctorFruitloop]

If it's any help I was reading a few bits and bobs on Sony's website the other day about the HT-SS100 and HT-IS100 and they were described as "home theater upgrades to compliment the new Sony BDP-S360".

I'm assuming that Sony have done the usual job of trying to integrate as many of their products together as possible and the situation with player needing to be set to direct to force internal decoding may be a result of this.

Does anyone have a S360 and maybe a HT-SS100 to give us some feedback on how the player handles decoding when linked up, ie does it decode on Mix rather than direct when paired with the kit Sony have intended it to integrate with?

[Jimbo976]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

Okay. That makes sense. No matter what, it doesn't decode or send DTS-HDMA when it's set on Mix.

Yes this is correct - exactly what I see when setting to Mix. If I wanted to use PiP then there would be no way to get DTS HD MA at the same time. From my reading this isn't just a problem with the BDP-S360 but many Blu-ray players. When mixing in PiP audio, it cannot send DTS HD MA at the same time.

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

Has anyone without a DTS-HDMA decoding receiver verified that it does internally decode DTS-HDMA?

Yeah me!

My Sony receiver cannot decode DTS HD MA but the BDP-S360 does and sends it to my receiver as LPCM.

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by Jimbo976

Yes this is correct - exactly what I see when setting to Mix. If I wanted to use PiP then there would be no way to get DTS HD MA at the same time. From my reading this isn't just a problem with the BDP-S360 but many Blu-ray players. When mixing in PiP audio, it cannot send DTS HD MA at the same time.

It seems like one of the few that does send both DTS-HD and PiP audio is the PS3.

Yeah me!

My Sony receiver cannot decode DTS HD MA but the BDP-S360 does and sends it to my receiver as LPCM.

[Tarheel72]

I may be wrong but I don't think the direct or mix setting has anything to do with the ability of the player to decode. the direct setting means that it will play the primary program and mix means it will play the primary and secondary, if there is any. Secondary means the director commentaries, etc. In mix the Sony can not send lossless audio, only the DTS or DD5.1 core. I have both the S550 and the S360. I believe they both work the same. Both decode TrueHD and DTSHDMA internally. If you set it to direct, it will detect if the receiver can decode and if it can, it will bitstream the lossless audio. If the reveiver can not decode, then the player will do it and send the decoded audio over to the receiver.

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by Tarheel72

I may be wrong but I don't think the direct or mix setting has anything to do with the ability of the player to decode. the direct setting means that it will play the primary program and mix means it will play the primary and secondary, if there is any. Secondary means the director commentaries, etc. In mix the Sony can not send lossless audio, only the DTS or DD5.1 core. I have both the S550 and the S360. I believe they both work the same. Both decode TrueHD and DTSHDMA internally. If you set it to direct, it will detect if the receiver can decode and if it can, it will bitstream the lossless audio. If the reveiver can not decode, then the player will do it and send the decoded audio over to the receiver.

When set to Mix, the S360 will send TrueHD, but DTS-HD gets downgraded to the standard DTS core.

[robertc88]

$129 at Sam's so I picked one up for the holidays as a present. They will be blown away considering the rather poor DVD/VHS combo player they have been living even though they have a HDTV.

They will not even have to worry about getting the movies. I have plenty I can lend them or just give them my rental after I'm done watching!

[wiyosaya]

I was on my way to Sam's yesterday to pick up a Philips BDP-5012 for $99.61, however, I know that there are no published region hacks for the Philips.

Then I noticed this thread. I know that there is a published region hack for the S-360, so I decided to get the BDP-BX2 instead of the Philips being the BX2 and the S-360 are the same unit.

Anyway, I have a region 5 DVD, the special director's edition of "Hero," and I decided to try it in the BX2 last night. Much to my surprise, it played without having to apply a region hack.

The only thing that I cannot say that I like about this unit is the fact that if you open the drawer after having stopped a playback, the unit "forgets" where you were. However, I do not use that feature often enough to return this unit and pay probably a much higher price for one that remembers.

[Derreckla]

The sony 360 box says it has dts-hd ma essential and the bx2 box says dts-hd ma advanced digital out? Are these really the same machines? Does the Bx2 really internally decode and send as LPCM? Thanks.

[Kryptonic]

Originally Posted by Derreckla

The sony 360 box says it has dts-hd ma essential and the bx2 box says dts-hd ma advanced digital out? Are these really the same machines? Does the Bx2 really internally decode and send as LPCM? Thanks.

Basically, yes to all of the above. The BX2 is the exact same machine as the S360. The only difference is it says BX2 on the box and on the machine and the BX2 comes with the light up remote and HDMI cable. It uses the same firmware. If your receiver does not decode DTS-HD, when you set the player to "direct" in the audio setup, the player will see that your receiver does not decode DTS-HD and will internally decode DTS-HD and send it as PCM. It will not send DTS-HD when it is set to "mix" however, but it will send TrueHD.

[Derreckla]

You all were right, my bdp-bx2 internally decodes DTS-HD MA! Thanks for the advice, I was actually repackageing it to resell on ebay and then I reread the section here about changing audio setting to direct and WWHHHAAALLLLAA!

You can pick these up as a customer return on e B A Y for about 80-100...not a bad deal!