Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater DVD Player/Recoder and Satellite Receiver

I recently decided to take the plunge and start building my home theater around my M60s by ordering a nice preamp/processor and power amp from Outlaw Audio.

Now I really need to make a few decisions pronto on the additional gear I'll need:
* Speakers QS8s and a VP150 should do the trick, and for the sub I've a DIY project underway
* TV upgrade, well I guess its just a matter of how wide I care to open the wallet...
* Now here's where I am floundering: the DVD player/recorder.

I was seriously thinking of one of the new Panasonic or Pioneer DVD recorders with a hard drive to replace TiVo and VCR functionality. Also I could archive all those old VHS tapes and digital stills to DVD. But now I've heard that they're hopeless with Satellite input and have no way to navigate the channels, making it impossible to setup even a simple recording schedule . Further, I am unclear about the whole SACD VS DVD A issue: Should I pony up for a "universal" player that does both?

I'd hate to scrap the whole recording idea but maybe I should just buy a player with good audio/video performance? I could go the TiVo route but then I'd be locked into the subscription service and no creating my own disks. Ideas? Suggestions? Help......

thanks!

Re the SACD vs DVD-A part, in general I think an SACD or univeral player (e.g. Pioneer DV563A) is a good idea if you have a good 5.1 speaker/receiver system. But not primarily due to the higher sample rate SACD/DVD-A use, but because of the often superior remaster job and multichannel mix.

It's true DVD-A discs usually have a Digital Dolby or DTS 5.1 track, playable on any DVD player. In my limited experience this can sometimes sound as good as the true DVD-A track. However there's more SACD material than DVD-A, and regular CD players can't play multichannel SACD stuff. They can play the 2-ch "redbook" compatibility track on hybrid SACDs, but your intent seems multichannel surround, not stereo. Therefore if you want multichannel SACD material, you've got to have at least an SACD player.

I think the most practical step is a universal player or an SACD/DVD player like the Sony DVP-NC685V.

The downside to SACD & DVD-A is current players generally require six analog connections to your receiver/amp, and most receivers are reduced to simple "dumb" power amps. No bass crossover, no speaker distance (aka time arrival), no equalization. These features are typically digitally implemented and for multichannel analog sources (like SACD) most receivers operate like analog passthrough. Players essentially must duplicate these features (if present at all).

That said, if you have a nice surround speaker system and if you like music, even at the current state I think a basic universal player is worthwhile. When multichannel music works well, it's very impressive. Some older albums with recent high quality multichannel releases are Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon (SACD), Elton John Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (SACD), David Bowie Ziggy Stardust (SACD), Eagles Hotel California (DVD-A), and Fleetwood Mac Rumours (DVD-A).

I would point out that Pioneer just released a combo TiVo/DVD-R unit, thereby solving all of your problems. I also recommend just buying the lifetime subscription on the TiVo. It's cheaper in the long run, methinks. Also, it's an expense you only have to deal with once. Yowch, the prices have gone up, though.

My understanding was that the analog pass-through implementation of SACD/DVD-A is a copyright issue? The Outlaw folks have addressed this in two ways. The processor has a simple switch that sums all the analog signals below 80Hz and passes it to the LFE channel. They also have separate hardware piece that allows independent bass management for all channels. This of course doesn't help with the speaker placement issue.

Thanks for the input.

I think the Pioneer unit would work great with digital cable but still is dumb as a stump with satellite, as it doesn't replicate the sat receiver functionality. I think....I'll have to check with Pioneer.

cheers

This is true. You will need to use both together. I own a DirecTV TiVo unit. It doesn't have all the functionality of a stand-alone unit (e.g. I can't change recording quality or install the Home Media Option), but it doubles as a satellite receiver.

Well actually now I think the Pioneer IS able to control the sat reciever. Here's a excerpt from http://www.dvd-recorder-buying-guide.com/pioneer-dvr-810hs-dvd-recorder.html

Serial and IR Outputs: Using the supplied Serial (Data) Control cable, the Serial minijack allows you to connect the DVR-810H to a DirecTV receiver. Once the connection is made, the DVR-810H can change channels and control the receiver. If your receiver does not have a serial port, you can use the IR minijack, which allows you to connect the supplied IR Control cable to control the DirecTV receiver.

Sound nice - but pricey.

that's pretty cool, then. But how would the A/V connections work when using that pass-through control mode?

Same deal as the stand alone TiVos. My friends who intro'd me to TiVo both have satellite. They just use the little IR things. No problem!

OK, now I think I understand the issues. Looks like (surprise) I can't have it all. I'd love to find the truly universal DVD audio/video unit that would support SACD and DVD-A, record to DVDs and an internal hard drive, and of course play all manner of DVD videos. But I don't think this is available - at any price. True?

And because I am not prepared to spring for a DVD recorder and a combo player just to support hi-res audio, here's my plan. For now, just go for the Pioneer DV563A as the current unbeatable value in a combo player, and wait on the recording part. Does this make sense?

thanks