I have had a 563 for about a month. You will find some glowing reports on the 563, and some not-so-glowing ones if you peruse the boards. Most of the negative reports are from "audiophiles" who are comparing (unblinded) the 563 to their "reference player" which is usually a $2,000 Denon.
I don't expect a $179 player to be as good as a $2000 player, so I think some of the dissing of the 563 is justified, but I also think that some of it is audiophile snobbery. After all, if the 563 sounds as good as their $2,000 reference player, it means that they basically wasted over $1800. I saw one post over at the SPOT that said the 563 wasn't worth buying. I couldn't agree less.
The 563 plays everything. It has (albeit rudimentary) bass management. DVD's look good. CD's sound good. DVD-A's and SACD's sound great. Nothing else close to the price of the 563 does what it does.
So, my advice is to pull the trigger on the 563, unless spending $700, $1000, or $2,000 on one of the Denons sounds like a good idea.
Mark
