Sony BDP-S550 1080p Blu-ray Player Review

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(More customer reviews)Well, I just got the player a couple of days ago from Amazon, and since nobody has reviewed it, yet, I thought I'd first provide a comparison to the 350 and then my impressions to give a full overview.
COMPARISON
This is the "big brother" of the Sony BDP-S350 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player. What are the differences (Apart from more than $100 at the time of this writing)? One big one (for some) and two minor ones:
- It does 7.1 ANALOG Audio out. (Big deal for some people, like myself.)
- It decodes ALL next-gen audio formats (the 350 does not decode the one that is not used much, and I am reading that they will upgrade that via firmware, so minor difference).
- It is BD 2.0, which is the newest and for now final Blu-Ray format. (The 350 can be upgraded to it by buying and installing a memory card, so also only a minor difference.)
The last two are nice if you want a player that is future proof without you actualy needing to fiddle around with it. Unless you really hate doing things like firmware upgrades, I don't think they are worth the price difference between this unit and the 350, though.
The real difference is that this player does 7.1 ANALOG Audio out (see my experience below). So IF you have a receiver that cannot be connected via HDMI, but that is otherwise so good (was so expensive) that you do not wish to switch it out, and it has 7.1 ANALOG Audio in (often called "External In" or "Pre In"), you can connect this player via 8 (yes, eight, not a typo) analog audio cables to the receiver, and still receive all 7.1 channels of Audio. I, for instance, own a Denon 5805 receiver (original cost several thousand dollars), which I do not want to switch out. By spending the additional money for this player, I can have pretty much the same experience as if I had an hdmi capable (newer) receiver. So mostly, this only applies to people who are willing to spend a lot of money for a perfect audio experience. One thing to note: You can not get the full 7.1 Audio via either optical or normal digital connection. The audio quality will be downgraded to accomodate that those cable formats can't transport the data fast enough for the full quality. Another thing to note: This does not concern the actual picture quality, just the audio.
BOTTOM LINE: IF THIS IS A GOOD UPGRADE OVER THE 350 DEPENDS COMPLETELY ON YOUR RECEIVER, and is more likely if your receiver is older and was expensive. If it wasn't I would get the Sony BDP-S350 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player.
IMPRESSIONS
So, how does it actually work. I have it connected to a 720p TV via hdmi, and a Denon 5805 receiver via 7.1 analog (I have a 7.1 speaker system).
Installation
Installation was pretty hassle free, except for fiddling with the audio to get it to work just like I wanted it to (took about 1-2 hours, which is normal if you add this kind of component to a system like mine). The non-audio setup was only 5-10 minutes (take it out, plug it in, press a few buttons, ready).
For the analog audio, you can tell the unit which speakers (up to 7.1) and speaker sizes (small, large) you have, how far they are from the listener (in feet, fronts and the surround pairs can only be configured in pairs, hard to configure if your sub or surrounds are far away for some reason), and finally speaker level (per each speaker, front and surround pairs can be seperately configured here). It also provides a test tone. Apparently the bass management is done through how you configured the size of the other speakers, and if you tell it small for all you have to have a sub. I am running configured through the unit so far, even though I have a receiver that can redigitalize the analog audio inputs (which I will probably try in the future once I have listened to it like this for a while, so I can compare better). So my impressions below are for having the Sony do all the processing.
Operation
The unit comes on relatively quickly, and starts playing a Blu-Ray disk in about 30 seconds or so, which was a positive surprise after having read the horror stories about waiting times for the last generation of these players. Still noticable slower than a standard DVD player for DVDs. DVDs start faster in this player, though, and can be upconverted. The user interface is mostly graphical, kind of like the PS3s, and you get used to it quickly.
Video / Audio Quality
I was very positively surprised about the video and audio quality produced by the unit, both for Blu-Ray and DVD. The Blu-Ray picture was sharp with great colors and color gradients, and I did not spot any conversion artifacts in 720p (I had the unit do the conversion). In short, the picture is what true HD picture should be. The sound was amazing. Even though right now the movies I played still have no "real" 7.1, but 5.1, I thought localization was fantastic, and the quality crystal clear. The surround was well defined without drowning out the voices. Caveat: I have only played a few movies at this point, so this might be due to fantastic sound engineering. I was not used to the bass management, though, the Denon does that different (it has automatic room correction), so if your receiver does not redigitize the analog signal to apply its own bass management, etc., you might run into a little bit of a problem here (I thought it still sounded great, but then I am not a bass fan). In the end, the unit does not come with automatic room correction, and the bass is one point where that could make quite a difference depending on your setup / room. (This last part applies more to the audio-nut community, for whom it might be a big deal, though, and who are a large part of the target audience for this player as far as i can tell.)
DVD upsampling looks like a "fuzzy" HD picture. I did not spot any abvious artifacts, but then I only took a quick look (I did not buy the unit for DVD playback / upsampling, but for Blu-Ray). Sound was good for DVDs as well.
BOTTOM LINE: Great unit, better than I thought in both picture and audio. If you need 7.1 analog, and can't/don't want to spend 2G on a Denon or Oppo, buy it. You will get 7.1 analog with good basic configuration options, but don't expect automatic room adjustment level results.

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Bring home the future of Blu-ray Disc technology with BD-Live and the BDP-S550 Blu-ray Disc player. The S550 is the step-up model to Sony's BDP-S350. It adds a gigabyte of onboard memory, so you can enjoy expanded Blu-ray capabilities like BD-Live interactive features right out of the box, and dts-HD compatibility for studio-quality sound. BD-Live takes your movie experience to a whole new level. Download and stream bonus content such as additional scenes, shorts, trailers and movie-based games. Equipped with a built-in Ethernet port, the BDP-S550 makes it easy to access specially created BD-Live content and Bonus View features. A USB port that allows you to add more storage to access the growing number of special features that will be available given the immense storage capacity of Blu-ray discs themeselves. This player outputs a Full 1080/24p True Cinema picture and upscales your existing DVD collection to 1080p when using the HDMI connection. Dolby TrueHD/DTS-HD delivers studio master quality audio which is designed specifically for high definition entertainment. Make the most of all of these features with the icon-based Xcross Media Bar, which provides simple navigation of the player's menu system.
Key Features
Slim chassis
True 1080p Output (Learn more)
7.1 Channel Dolby Sound , Dolby TrueHD and dts-HD (Master Audio and High Resolution Audio) (Learn more)
1 Gb of onboard memory and a USB Port Allows More Storage for Access to More Special Features, Like Bonus View (Learn More)
Ethernet connection for BD-Live Compatibility and firmware updates (Learn more)
Higher Bit Rates mean less video compression (Learn more)
Emmy-Award Winning Xross Media Bar Interface (Learn More)
Bravia Sync for Easy Connectivity (Learn More)

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Dolby TrueHD internal decoding and bitstream output via HDMI for the Dolby TrueHD and dts-HD (Master Audio and High Resolution Audio) codes delivers studio quality audio designed specifically for high definition entertainment like Blu-ray Disc movies, with up to 7.1 channels of surround sound that is virtually indistinguishable from the original studio version. 7.1 channel analog output provides connectivity to older receivers, making the player compatible with your existing audio system with 7.1 analog inputs.
The BDP-S550 is compatible with Dolby TrueHD, Dolby\'s next-generation lossless technology developed for high-definition disc-based media. Dolby TrueHD delivers tantalizing sound that is bit-for-bit identical to the studio master, unlocking the true high-definition entertainment experience on next-generation discs. When coupled with high-definition video, Dolby TrueHD offers an unprecedented home theater experience that lets you enjoy sound as stunning as the high-definition picture.
Delivers enthralling studio-master-quality sound that unlocks the true high-definition entertainment experience on next-generation discs.
Offers more discrete channels than ever before for impeccable surround sound.
Compatible with the A/V receivers and home-theaters-in-a-box (HTIBs) of today and tomorrow.
Dialogue normalization maintains the same volume level when you change to other Dolby Digital and Dolby TrueHD programming.
Dynamic range control (Night mode) enables you to customize audio playback to reduce peak volume levels (no loud surprises) while experiencing all the details in the soundtrack, enabling late-night viewing of high-energy surround sound without disturbing others.


Xross Media Bar
BD-Live

More Space

HDMI Features

x.v Color RGB Color Range

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