FlyingScot July 8, 2008 22:51
There are plenty on offer in Tottenham Court Road, London for £400. I even managed to tie in a good deal for a discounted HDMI cable.
I'm watching the SD version of The Living Planet at the moment and the upscaled picture quality makes it difficult to justify the cost of the Blu ray edition. The picture isn't as sharp as it would be on Blu Ray but it's not too far off the mark.
Sinc2k July 8, 2008 11:54
OK - I've got it now...
When your disc is playing, find the 'Audio' button in the middle of the remote.
Each press will change the audio track to the next on the disc. On I Am Legend, the initial track selected by the player will be (shown by the Dolby symbol) digital multi. Pressing the Audio button will select the next track which is the main-event 'TrueHD Multi' I have my player connected using the 5.1 sockets now and the difference is quite startling - the jump in dynamic range is obvious as is clarity.
Sinc2k July 8, 2008 11:49
Sinc2k July 7, 2008 13:32
Hmm - interesting.
Regarding the HD sound, the manual does clearly state that the 5.1 sockets output decoded sound, as next to DD+, DTS-HD and D True-HD it says 'decode'
Also, I cant remember where I saw it, but in the set up screen there is the option to choose which of three channels the remote talks to your BD player on.
Hope this helps and check outthe HD sound - don't sell just yet!
Andy Madden July 7, 2008 10:57
Hi Stevie D,
i have just received an e-mail from Panasonic's press office confirming that the BD50 does decode high-def audio internally and output it via PCM, as we said in our review. I hope this helps..
Stevie D July 4, 2008 11:40
READ BEFORE YOU BUY!
I also have an older Denon amp and could not justify replacing it with the new Denon HD amp so have eargerly awaited the release of DMP-BD50 so i could get uncompressed high quality decoded DD True HD + DTS M Audio via the 5.1 phono outputs as i get with my Toshiba HD XE1 HD-DVD player (Great player)
UNFORTUNATLEY the DMP-BD50 only sends decoded DD+, DD True HD and DTS M Audio via PCM through the HDMI only (not the 5.1 phonos)so you still need an amp with HDMI connections but not a decoder to get the best sound. The 5.1 phono outputs (say panasonic) only output normal DD and DTS, Panasonic tell me that they didnt want to go backwards with this unit! The What HIFI review of this is wrong.
Apart from that the player is first class, great picture, quick to load.
One more niggle, the remote code is the same for a panasonic DVD recorder so both units come on, off with trays opening at the same time. (havn't seen anything in the manual to change stop this)
I now have one for sale...
Sinc2k July 2, 2008 16:24
This my first Blu-Ray player after following HD developments for some time (and being a little disappointed by the death of HD-DVD it has to be said)
Anyway, I've been noting the early Blu-Ray players that failed to live up to expectations both in spec and performance, and don't get me started on al the different profile variations.
The DMP-BD50 however had me very exited not least because it will output HD sound from 5.1 sockets (My 1907 Denon is only 8 months old and I can't really justify chopping it in for a newer model yet thanks) but is also profile 2.0 - and not before time!
Well to say that I am impressed is undercutting it somewhat. My first disc in was I Am Legend and the shots of an increasingly derelict, empty New York City are just incredible. The clarity and detail on offer far exceeds any player I've tested in various shops before now by a long way. Shoot 'Em Up was equally mindblowingly gorgeous. There was no trace of smear or judder which is amazing when you consider how much goes on on screen for some (well, most) of the movie.
Start up time is reduced to far more acceptable levels than I've previously seen too. I've not really got any discs that are particularly BD-Java heavy so this may be a false indication, but we'll see I suppose.
Not many tweaks are required out of the box either. As long as your hooked up via HDMI the player simply negotiates with your screen for best performance and away you go; there's very good Dolby Surround to be had too if, like me, your TV is connected to your amp over a twin phono connection for 'standard' duties. In the rush to try out my new toy it's currently connected HDMI to the screen only. I have yet to connect the 5.1 outputs into my amp as I've got to pull all my kit out and reorganise to fit it in.
Overall I couldn't be happier with the DMP-BD50. It's been worth the wait and I can't recommend it highly enough. So why are you still sitting there reading this?
PS. Big Thanks to the guys at Sevenoaks, Witham, for obtaining what is becoming a hard-to-come-by item. Although they did seem a bit reluctant to sell the player to me - apparantly they've got such a high throughput of players that they haven't had the chance to play with one themselves yet!
Matty1973p June 30, 2008 09:57
Can't wait for this one! Can't find an exact release date anywhere! Any news?
mandeep June 19, 2008 05:06
i wonder when will panasonic release even DMP-BD30 in asia...why products are not launched parallelly in asian markets
Mark Ellis June 18, 2008 11:32
Great review. Any news from Panasonic as to when this will actually be released?