# Who Is Going To Buy A 4K Ultra HD BR Player



## jclangston (Oct 19, 2010)

I have noticed that several websites including Amazon and Crutchfield are start to take preorders for the Samsung model that has been announced. I honestly thought the price would be in the $700 range but they are releasing at $399. I think I'm going to order one just to see what my 65" Samsung 4K tv can really look like. I also noticed that you can preorder a few Ultra HD movies on Amazon. The Martian is one that comes to mind. Just curious if anyone else is interested in this stuff....


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Just read _*this very interesting article*_ about this subject. It's from engadget and states that...well, read the article and see what you think. I agree with it. I'd love to just jump on Samsung's new 4K player, but without any 4K disks from NF, I don't see what I'd use it for. I already have a couple of streamers that upscale everything on them to 2160p and I realize that's not the same thing as what we'll see on the new 4K disks, but, it's pretty good. I have no intention of buying hard copies of movies anymore, I've thrown away far too many DVDs and VHS movies to dip back into that market again.

Anyhow, the article is interesting and I agree with it. But, if/when NF starts pumping out disks in 4K, I'll be buying a 4K player. Hopefully, the prices will drop by then.

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

I'm with you, Rich. I just don't buy discs these days.


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## WestDC (Feb 9, 2008)

Where I am - I bought a Sony KDL-70R550A in 7/2014 For $1099 from sony and they thru in a Sony BDP-S5200 & 2 10' 4K sony HDMI Cords (Free) No Extra Charge - I just can't bring myself to throw it on the Burn pile and run out and buy a 4k TV - When no Standards have ever been set on any device protocol before or after 4k going forward - CES just showed 8k and next year 16K so any DIsc's& Movies & Will have to have Camera's to Shoot it other than that everything before that is up scalled to 1920X1080i -even if it was shot in 8mm 

The reason I bought the SONY was because The TV it replaced was DOA - SO until I have another DOA set - I'll be happy with 1920 X 1080i


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## btedford (Mar 10, 2010)

I am buying a 4K UHD player when it comes out. I pre-ordered mine from amazon.


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## jclangston (Oct 19, 2010)

I'm pretty sure I'm going to go ahead and pre-order mine today from Crutchfield so I can save the tax. I live in Tx and Amazon has distribution centers here so unfortunately we have to pay sales tax through Amazon. If the player was $1000 I would probably hold off but for $399 it will be a fun toy. As much as anything I just want to see what the true potential of my tv is and if HDR actually makes a difference. I know you will be able to get "The Martian" and "Scorch Trials" in 4K on March 1st. (already on Amazon) I think I remember reading that Fox Studios will release about 60 movies this year in 4K.

I know articles talk about being able to stream 4K, but thats very limited. Our house uses Netflix a lot but Netflix streaming is a useless tool to watch new movies. For example, the two movies I mentioned above I want to see because I didn't see them in the Theater. The only way to see them is to rent on PPV or rent or buy the BR disk. Maybe I'm a oddity but I still have Nextflix through the mail also, I'm sure they will offer 4K discs as well. (probably at a cost)


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

I probably won't be buying a player right away since I don't have a 4K TV yet (perfectly happy with my 65VT60) but I will probably start buying UHD Blu-Rays instead of regular Blu-Rays for new movies that are coming out since it looks like they will include a regular Blu-Ray with them. If the studios start including the regular Blu-Rays then I might pick up a new player, assuming it can downscale to 1080p for my TV (I haven't heard for sure if that is possible, at one time I hear it wasn't).

Eventually after we buy a new house I will probably be building a dedicated theater room and getting a 4K projector, so I will definitely want a UHD Player at that time, and that is why I want to plan ahead with my disc purchases as well. I'm just in no hurry to jump on the earliest players as I remember how buggy the early HD-DVD and Blu-Ray players were, and how quickly the prices dropped.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Beerstalker said:


> I probably won't be buying a player right away since I don't have a 4K TV yet (perfectly happy with my 65VT60) but I will probably start buying UHD Blu-Rays instead of regular Blu-Rays for new movies that are coming out since it looks like they will include a regular Blu-Ray with them. If the studios start including the regular Blu-Rays then I might pick up a new player, _*assuming it can downscale to 1080p for my TV *_(I haven't heard for sure if that is possible, at one time I hear it wasn't).
> 
> Eventually after we buy a new house I will probably be building a dedicated theater room and getting a 4K projector, so I will definitely want a UHD Player at that time, and that is why I want to plan ahead with my disc purchases as well. I'm just in no hurry to jump on the earliest players as I remember how buggy the early HD-DVD and Blu-Ray players were, and how quickly the prices dropped.


If it helps, and I can't imagine any real differences, my Samsung BD/upscaling 2160p players work very well with my Panny plasma. I can't see why the new player would be any different.

Rich


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## richlife69 (Jan 12, 2016)

No, for me. Too early in the development cycle and too little programming or software. Though I have to deal with a cap, streaming is the way to go, so no disks and no player likely. Lots of strikes in that list aren't there. 

I have no interest in blowing a couple of hundred bucks to see how good my TV can look, when there are streams for that purpose.


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## jclangston (Oct 19, 2010)

I thought it might be fun to follow up on this thread after owning a Ultra HD BR player for a month or so. I currently own 3 movies in 4K: Scorch Trials, The Martian, and The Expendables 3. I'll be honest the Expendables 3 doesn't look 4K to me, I can see no difference compared to 1080P. The other 2 look better, but again I'll be honest on my Samsung 65" that is HDR compatible there is a difference between 4K and 1080P but not as much as I was hoping. The way I see it in my mind is, 1080P to 4K is about half the step that DVD was up to BR. Also another comparison if anyone was wondering, I can see absolutely no PQ difference between Netflix 4K streaming and a Ultra HD 4K disk other than HDR. In Scorch Trials you can tell that bright lights are much brighter than I'm used to seeing in movies. In the end I enjoy the latest tech and I will continue to buy 4K disks if I really like a movie and will continue to stream 4K on Netflix, but on a 65" tv or smaller don't expect to be totally blown away like people were going from SD to HD. There is a difference but not a giant leap, I would like to see what 4K looked like on a 70"-80" screen.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

jclangston said:


> I thought it might be fun to follow up on this thread after owning a Ultra HD BR player for a month or so. I currently own 3 movies in 4K: Scorch Trials, The Martian, and The Expendables 3. I'll be honest the Expendables 3 doesn't look 4K to me, I can see no difference compared to 1080P. The other 2 look better, but again I'll be honest on my Samsung 65" that is HDR compatible there is a difference between 4K and 1080P but not as much as I was hoping. The way I see it in my mind is, 1080P to 4K is about half the step that DVD was up to BR. Also another comparison if anyone was wondering, I can see absolutely no PQ difference between Netflix 4K streaming and a Ultra HD 4K disk other than HDR. In Scorch Trials you can tell that bright lights are much brighter than I'm used to seeing in movies. In the end I enjoy the latest tech and I will continue to buy 4K disks if I really like a movie and will continue to stream 4K on Netflix,_* but on a 65" tv or smaller don't expect to be totally blown away like people were going from SD to HD*_. There is a difference but not a giant leap, I would like to see what 4K looked like on a 70"-80" screen.


Good comment. Been said before, but always good to repeat it. Yeah, the step from 1080p to 4K is not nearly what the step from SD to HD was. That was unarguable. I still see comments about 4K that I disagree with, such as you can't see any difference unless you sit on top of the 4K set. That is pure BS, I think. I saw the difference clearly in a store over a year ago and I kept backing up farther and farther and I still saw a difference.

Anyhow, nice post. Very honest opinions that I agree with.

Rich


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

Rich said:


> If it helps, and I can't imagine any real differences, my Samsung BD/upscaling 2160p players work very well with my Panny plasma. I can't see why the new player would be any different.
> 
> Rich


Sorry, it was a typo. I meant to say if the movie studios stop including regular Blu-Rays in with their 4K Blu-Rays, then I might consider buying a 4K Blu-Ray player. That way I could buy the 4K blu-ray now and watch it on my 1080p TV (assuming the players can downscale, which it sounds like they do from the quick research I just did).

I have pre-ordered my first 4K Blu-Ray the other day (Deadpool), but haven't bought any of the others yet. From what I have seen so far most of the discs released haven't been true 4K sources all the way through production (they had post production, editing, VFX etc done in 1080p and then upscaled). It sounds like Deadpool will be.


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## jclangston (Oct 19, 2010)

Deadpool is one I have pre-ordered too. I agree some of these movies probably are unconverted. The Martian is the best looking movie I have ever seen, I think its 4K all the way. Even the CG graphics like mountains and stuff on Mars look truly amazing.


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

The Martian is a mix. They used the 5K resolutions shots when they could, but all CGI stuff was done at 2K, so that is just upscaled on the 4K Blu-Ray. This review and the comments thread attached to it cover it pretty well.

http://ultrahd.highdefdigest.com/30659/themartian4kultrahdbluray.html


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## mutelight (Oct 6, 2008)

Beerstalker said:


> The Martian is a mix. They used the 5K resolutions shots when they could, but all CGI stuff was done at 2K, so that is just upscaled on the 4K Blu-Ray. This review and the comments thread attached to it cover it pretty well.
> 
> http://ultrahd.highdefdigest.com/30659/themartian4kultrahdbluray.html


I was going to mention the same. The Martian does look stunning and I can see a difference between it being upscaled on my previous player, an Oppo BDP-103 and UHD Blu-ray but is somewhat subtle.

UHD Blu-ray is a bit of a mixed bag currently due the mastering/transfer process but I did watch Kingsmen last weekend and it looked absolutely brilliant.

I haven't made the jump to a HDR panel yet (where is where a lot of IQ gain can be seen) as I am waiting on the next generation of sets but overall I find it highly impressive. Overall it is certainly more subtle than going from DVD to Blu-ray and my Oppo did a phenomenal job upscaling to 4K so it isn't for everyone. However, always wanting to try out the bleeding edge tech, I went for it and am quite happy but wouldn't recommend it for everyone. Another advantage is I can use Amazon and Netflix 4K through the player, which is super fast, rather than dealing with the Smart TV apps and ARC (which loves to misbehave in my system).


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## jclangston (Oct 19, 2010)

Thanks for the heads up about Kingsmen. I own it on BR, but that would make a nice addition to my slowly growing 4K collection. (up to 4 movies lol) I agree with you mutelight 4K discs and players aren't going to be for everyone. The casual tv and movie watcher probably won't even consider upgrading for several years until you can buy a 4K player for under $100. For those of us that truly enjoy technology, A/V equipment, and electronics it sure is fun tho!


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## mutelight (Oct 6, 2008)

jclangston said:


> Thanks for the heads up about Kingsmen. I own it on BR, but that would make a nice addition to my slowly growing 4K collection. (up to 4 movies lol) I agree with you mutelight 4K discs and players aren't going to be for everyone. The casual tv and movie watcher probably won't even consider upgrading for several years until you can buy a 4K player for under $100. For those of us that truly enjoy technology, A/V equipment, and electronics it sure is fun tho!


No problem! Here is a more detailed review on the image quality of Kingsmen if you are interested: http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Kingsman-The-Secret-Service-4K-Blu-ray/140080/

I actually blind bought Kingsmen never having seen it but it was recommended by a few of my friends. Needless to say I was quite pleased to have my first viewing at 4K and with phenomenal audio quality!


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## mutelight (Oct 6, 2008)

Just received The Revenant a day early!

Another blind purchase but I heard the cinematography is fantastic. Here's hoping for an excellent transfer!


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## mutelight (Oct 6, 2008)

Holy moly, if there was a single movie that could convince people to jump in and get a 4K Blu-ray player it would be The Revenant. Easily the most astonishing example of image quality I have ever seen.

Going into the movie intentionally not reading up on it to ruin anything, the first scene made my jaw hit the floor. It is like looking through a window with zero noise, amazing natural light and I later found out it was all shot on Arri Alexa 65mm digital cameras so it was digital all the way.


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## machavez00 (Nov 2, 2006)

I have noticed in the credits, especially older movies that have been restored, "pristine 4K scan done by company X". This was prior to 4K sets. Anyone else notice that? I get the idea that the studios were ahead of the curve for once in doing the newer and restored movie scans at 4K 


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

machavez00 said:


> I have noticed in the credits, especially older movies that have been restored, "pristine 4K scan done by company X". This was prior to 4K sets. Anyone else notice that? I get the idea that the studios were ahead of the curve for once in doing the newer and restored movie scans at 4K


It's more for film preservation than it is for 4K releases. Also, for redistribution into theaters.

As for going 4K.... I'm still debating whether to step into the future with a 4K television, or wait and get a 1080p television. Right now, the challenge is the lack of compelling content. The leap from VHS to DVD was a dramatic because of multiple reasons beyond the image quality. From DVD to BluRay... more of an incremental jump. From BluRay to Ultra... minor. And, for some movies, they just don't justify the repurchase at a higher resolution.

I'd like to say "physical media 4ever!", but unfortunately, even at my local Fry's, they have halved the shelf space they had for DVDs and BluRays.


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## nuzzy (Aug 29, 2004)

I'll get the Oppo when it comes out at the beginning of next year


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

Sounds like Value Electronics is going to get a few of the Panasonic 4K players for it's annual HDTV Shootout. Still no word on actual retail release date yet.

http://forums.highdefdigest.com/home-theater-gear/145020-value-electronics-2016-4k-ultra-hd-tv-shootout-held-during-ce-week-nyc.html


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Seems as if all the 4K disc players cost in the vicinity of $400, while you can get an Xbox one for ~ $300 with a built in 4K player. With the dearth of 4K content and NF not seeming to have any interest in 4K content I can't see buying a player at the moment. Nor can I see buying 4K discs. I'll wait until NF has them and then consider buying one. I get a truly great picture using 1080p BDs and my Samsung upscaling 4K player which I bought a couple years ago for about $200 on a whim. Rarely do my whims pay off, but this one certainly did. 

Rich


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

Yeah, like I said before I plan on holding off on buying a 4K player (and a 4K TV) for a while yet. I have started buying 4K blu-rays though, since most of them come with a regular 1080p Blu-Ray as well. The thing that annoys me though is the movies that are released in 3D. Most of them have a 3D Blu-Ray release, but when you buy the 4K Blu-Ray you don't get the 3D Blu-ray with them, just the 2D Blu-ray. So I'm stuck choosing between 3D, or 4K. Right now I am choosing to stick with 3D and I buy the 3D Blu-ray since I can enjoy it now. If I like the movie enough I'll probably try to pick up the 4K version later on if I can find it cheap enough when I get a 4K player and TV.

The 4K X-box One is tempting though since I haven't bought an X-box One yet. But again if I wait until I buy a 4K TV the X-box One and the stand alone players will probably be a bit cheaper than they are now.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Beerstalker said:


> Yeah, like I said before I plan on holding off on buying a 4K player (and a 4K TV) for a while yet. I have started buying 4K blu-rays though, since most of them come with a regular 1080p Blu-Ray as well. The thing that annoys me though is the movies that are released in 3D. Most of them have a 3D Blu-Ray release, but when you buy the 4K Blu-Ray you don't get the 3D Blu-ray with them, just the 2D Blu-ray. So I'm stuck choosing between 3D, or 4K. Right now I am choosing to stick with 3D and I buy the 3D Blu-ray since I can enjoy it now. If I like the movie enough I'll probably try to pick up the 4K version later on if I can find it cheap enough when I get a 4K player and TV.
> 
> The 4K X-box One is tempting though since I haven't bought an X-box One yet. But again if I wait until I buy a 4K TV the X-box One and the stand alone players will probably be a bit cheaper than they are now.


I'm so glad that plasma went kaput and I was forced to buy a new set. The 4K set is so much better than the plasma and runs so much cooler.

I wouldn't buy an Xbox One yet. Certainly wouldn't just for the 4K player if you don't have a 4K set. MS announced, right on the heels of the announcement about the Xbox One that next year the newest Xbox would be even better. Great marketing strategy, no?

I simply refuse to get into another black hole when it comes to buying discs. I've spent far too much money over the years on pre recorded VHS movies, DVDs and BDs. Ended up giving them all away. NF has everything I want on disc. When NF starts sending out 4K disks that will be the time for me to get player.

Rich


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

Yeah, I've dropped a ridiculous amount of money on movies over the years but I don't mind. I figured everyone has a hobby that is a waste of money to other people. I don't go to concerts, or sporting events, etc, I buy movies and technology. My internet is not very good, so Netflix is not the greatest for me. I've been using it to watch a few TV shows, but don't really enjoy watching movies on it (if you can even find them).

I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for Netflix to start shipping 4K Blu-Rays. They haven't supported 3D Blu-Ray, get special Blu-Rays with no special features and lossy audio, and they have tried splitting off/selling the entire disc rental portion of their business in the past. Wouldn't surprise me if they never support 4K discs, only 4K streaming.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Beerstalker said:


> Yeah, I've dropped a ridiculous amount of money on movies over the years but I don't mind. I figured everyone has a hobby that is a waste of money to other people. I don't go to concerts, or sporting events, etc, I buy movies and technology. My internet is not very good, so Netflix is not the greatest for me. I've been using it to watch a few TV shows, but don't really enjoy watching movies on it (if you can even find them).
> 
> I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for Netflix to start shipping 4K Blu-Rays. They haven't supported 3D Blu-Ray, get special Blu-Rays with no special features and lossy audio, and they have tried splitting off/selling the entire disc rental portion of their business in the past. Wouldn't surprise me if they never support 4K discs, only 4K streaming.


Fortunately, my 4K upscaling BD player puts out a wonderful picture when using a 1080p BD. My Net connection with a hardwired connection is over 100 Mbps and that's plenty for NF. Yeah, the last time (a couple months ago) that I called NF and asked if they were ever gonna ship 4K discs the CSR I talked didn't even know 4K discs were available. Probably not gonna see them until...I dunno. I'm seeing Xbox Ones (used) for sale at ~ $200. That would give me a 4K player for half the price new 4K players are going for. I do think the 4K disc will be carried by NF in the future as long as the 4K sets keep selling.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Just saw a couple announcements from Panasonic today. New 4K player coming out soon. $699. And I was expecting the prices to drop!

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

Yowser!! . I was expecting something less expensive to hit the streets too!




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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

I think I'll just wait until prices come down to the sub $200 range. Until there I'll just build up my UHD disk library and use DIRECTV and streaming services for 4K content.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> Yowser!! . I was expecting something less expensive to hit the streets too!
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


I was too. It appears they're not gonna do that for a while.

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

I saw some KB5800(?) UHD BD players new on EBay for about $260 yesterday.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> I saw some KB5800(?) UHD BD players new on EBay for about $260 yesterday.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


Shouldn't that be "8500"?

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

Rich said:


> Shouldn't that be "8500"?
> 
> Rich


Could be, that's why I had the question mark beside it! 

I was diddling around yesterday with my setup. I had put a new HK AVR3700 in the mix but it is so twitchy, oft times changing inputs on its own.

So since I hadn't put the HK AVR3600 up for sale yet, I put it back in the rack, added an HDMI switch and all was good. No twitchiness and it turns out the 3600 is actually more powerful than the 3700.

At the moment I'm trying to convince myself to quit buying at this lower end of the AVR scale and moving up the chain a bit. Looking seriously at a Denon 4200. But the HK is just so sweet sounding I've managed to hold off so far... 

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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> Could be, that's why I had the question mark beside it!
> 
> I was diddling around yesterday with my setup. I had put a new HK AVR3700 in the mix but it is so twitchy, oft times changing inputs on its own.
> 
> ...


I tried a Denon this year and didn't like it. Didn't really give it much of a chance after I saw the remote which had buttons specifically for the various devices instead of the HDMI1, HDMI2, etc. which I am used to on the Sony AVRs (yeah, the Sony also has specific buttons for the various devices, but they also have the HDMI choices and I'm so very used to them). I couldn't figure out how to label the two HRs I have in that room. After that bit of confusion everything went South quickly and I gave up... :nono2:

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

The 'Denon' way is more common these days in remotes.

I'm also considering an Onkyo, possibly the 757 THX certified one. Local BestBuy carries them so return if not good is easy. I don't care for the Sony AVRs at all, too 'bright' for me and they don't have enough HDMI ports unless I move quite a ways up their food chain.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> The 'Denon' way is more common these days in remotes.
> 
> I'm also considering an Onkyo, possibly the 757 THX certified one. Local BestBuy carries them so return if not good is easy. I don't care for the Sony AVRs at all, too 'bright' for me and _*they don't have enough HDMI ports unless I move quite a ways up their food chain.*_
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


Yeah, I'm looking at ~ $700 for one with a bunch of HDMI ports (several more than the four I have with my present AVR) and I'm not sure I want to spend that much on an AVR that I don't really need.

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

Well I figured since I'm a BestBuy Elite+ member, which means I spend way too much over there... 

Went over and got the Onkyo TX-NR757 since I can take it back within 45 days. 8 HDMI ports and I've got them all filled, sound is great though a bit different than the HK. So far I like it. The two things about the sound that I see are very different from the HK.
1. Dialog is much better and a little more pronounced. That's important to me and my tinnitus...
2. Bass is strong but more defined than the HK. Not quite as sweet but actually nicer for TV/Movies than the HK. The HK really shines with good quality music.

And Rich, remember it is only money and you can't take it with you!! 


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> Well I figured since I'm a BestBuy Elite+ member, which means I spend way too much over there...
> 
> Went over and got the Onkyo TX-NR757 since I can take it back within 45 days. 8 HDMI ports and I've got them all filled, sound is great though a bit different than the HK. So far I like it. The two things about the sound that I see are very different from the HK.
> 1. Dialog is much better and a little more pronounced. That's important to me and my tinnitus...
> ...


I've actually got enough Amex points to use instead of "money". What's holding me up is the awful experience I had with the Denon and the Sony's (the AVR I have) twitchiness when using an optical line. I'm afraid that getting another Sony would result in the same issues. I did have an Onkyo before the Sony and I liked it. I might look at them again.

Rich


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