What Hi Fi Sound and Vision
19 JUL 2007
Sony RDR-HXD970
Okay, the RDR-HXD970 is not cheap, but the Sony is as fine a fusion of style and substance you can buy in a recorder.
The ’HXD970 is packed with useful specifications: it has dual analogue and Freeview digital tuners (so you can watch one programme while recording another), full upscaling all the way up to 1080p, HDMI output, and a comprehensive array of sockets, including both DV and USB inputs on the front fascia.
That USB input is a nice touch, as on the Sony’s excellent main menu there’s a music-jukebox icon that allows you to instantly rip music stored on any USB device to the Sony’s hard disk and play it through your home cinema system.
Slick menus help operation
But back to those menus: a video recorder is by its nature a fairly complicated device, so a smart, simple and stylish interface is essential – and the Sony’s menus are excellent.
They’re straightforward and intuitive. We found ourselves bouncing around all the unit’s main functions within a few minutes, and were completely au fait with the machine in hours.
Most impressive of all, however, is the Sony’s performance. Off-air pictures are rich, detailed and stable enough to offer real depth, while contrast and black detail are good enough to give programmes a visceral edge that makes some rivals look hazy by comparison.
Sony offers spotless recordings
Recordings are excellent, and are passably good even in the lower-quality recording modes. But we’d still suggest you use the HQ+ mode, in which you can be sure to get utterly pristine recordings.
All in all, this Sony recorder is a triumph. While some of its rivals are extremely good, the Sony’s performance, specification and design achieve a fine feat by being, well, even better.
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