Panasonic Hi Definition Recorder Available August

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Ultimate Geek
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#251744 30-Aug-2009 15:16

b26354, do you still have a 4:3 TV or a 6:9? BTW, your conclusions are similar to what I'm thinking. A Blu-Ray player alone could be $700. Although $2000 seems steep at first, The indivual compnents would add up to more than that when you think about it.

BTW, where did you buy it? Has it arrived at Harvey Norman's then?

b26354

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Wannabe Geek

#251748 30-Aug-2009 15:30

I have a pioneer 43" plasma which has 2 component inputs - or you can switch one of them (by navigating through the menus) to HDMI which is a bit limiting.

I bought the DMR-850 from Noel Leemings Tory St store in Wellington. They only had 2.

RustyViewer

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#252071 31-Aug-2009 22:16

Yeah, I found out on Harvey Narmans on Sunday that they brought in a limited supply to try out the market and they went just like that.

Actually I've FINALLY bought an HD FULL TV. I went in to check out the one (a 42 inch Panasonic Plasma) that I'd been looking up and that so happened to be the one with about $600 off the price. So last night I had a friend's partner come round and help me install it and let him take way the Mitsubishi which they can borrow indefinitely.

Now I can't wait until the big shipment of the recorder arrives in September. The 4:3 recorders ain't looking so good, especially the early Panasonic I got with an 80 MB drive which doesn't have any HDMI upscaling. I think that will be lent to my friends as well.

BTW, is it normal to have all the screen setting to 100 contrast to get the type of picture you want? The "Cinema" setting is great for movies but I needed to put contrast up to maximum so it wouldn't be so dark.

sbiddle

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#252073 31-Aug-2009 22:26

With any big screen TV these days it pays to run a video calibration disc or at least follow some basic setup instructions to get the best picture.

RustyViewer

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#252081 31-Aug-2009 23:05

As well as a panasonic, I have a Pioneer with 400GB. That one has HDMI upscaling and it makes quite a difference! I was concerned that my recordings would be dismal, but, although recording from analogue tuner, it still looks incredible when I use the 14:9 aspect.

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#252084 31-Aug-2009 23:45

sbiddle: With any big screen TV these days it pays to run a video calibration disc or at least follow some basic setup instructions to get the best picture.

Hey SBiddle... Where can someone find such a calibration disc?

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mentalinc

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#252093 1-Sep-2009 07:15

ZollyMonsta:
sbiddle: With any big screen TV these days it pays to run a video calibration disc or at least follow some basic setup instructions to get the best picture.

Hey SBiddle... Where can someone find such a calibration disc?

I haven't used this but read about it recently
http://hometheatermag.com/advicefromtheexperts/spears_and_munsil/

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#252129 1-Sep-2009 09:44

ZollyMonsta:
sbiddle: With any big screen TV these days it pays to run a video calibration disc or at least follow some basic setup instructions to get the best picture.

Hey SBiddle... Where can someone find such a calibration disc?

A bit OT but try DVE (digital video essentials) HD Basics available on DVD and BD (I have the BD version). Got mine from JBHF. Has calibration screens and a good tutorial on the whys and wherefores of HD TV.

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#252140 1-Sep-2009 10:24

I've got the DVD version of DVE - obviously the HD version is a better product when you're wanting to optimise a HD screen!

freitasm

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#252152 1-Sep-2009 11:20

Here is the Panasonic NZ new microsite for this product: Panasonic DMR-BW850.

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smarsden

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#252172 1-Sep-2009 11:51

sbiddle: I've got the DVD version of DVE - obviously the HD version is a better product when you're wanting to optimise a HD screen!

Just ordered mine less than an hour ago from RapalloAV. I don't have a Blu-ray (yet!), so had to go for DVD. I'm sure it'll still improve the picture on the LCD and projector though.

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RustyViewer

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#253302 4-Sep-2009 18:55

I got one. Only freeview recorder (so far as I know) where you can skip ads, edit files, and copy programs to discs.

b26354

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#253842 7-Sep-2009 20:14

After living with one for a week it has only 2 quirks. To get Dolby digital from TV3 you have to press the audio button 2x (every time you change to TV3) as it defaults to HE-AAC. And the progressive setting in DVD playback doesn't always stick. Watching NTSC 4x3 DVDs mastered for television (after downloading the region hack codes into my logitech harmony remote). Setting the progressive mode to "video" eliminates interlacing artifacts - but switch to TV then back to DVD and sometimes the artifacts are back even though the setting is still on "video" - cycling through the settings back to video fixes it.

HDTV playback seems rock solid and FF, REW, pause and skip all work smoothly (although there's a slight delay after a 58 second skip)

Dingbatt

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#253954 8-Sep-2009 08:47

b26354: After living with one for a week it has only 2 quirks. To get Dolby digital from TV3 you have to press the audio button 2x (every time you change to TV3) as it defaults to HE-AAC. And the progressive setting in DVD playback doesn't always stick. Watching NTSC 4x3 DVDs mastered for television (after downloading the region hack codes into my logitech harmony remote). Setting the progressive mode to "video" eliminates interlacing artifacts - but switch to TV then back to DVD and sometimes the artifacts are back even though the setting is still on "video" - cycling through the settings back to video fixes it.

HDTV playback seems rock solid and FF, REW, pause and skip all work smoothly (although there's a slight delay after a 58 second skip)

My PZ850 TV had the same problem when I first got it. According to the Panasonic Technician it was a mix up in the specs provided by Freeview. It was fixed by a firmware update and now defaults to DD. I would suggest you try contacting Panasonic and see if a similar situation has occurred with the new recorder.

“We’ve arranged a society based on science and technology, in which nobody understands anything about science technology. Carl Sagan 1996

Jaxson

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#253961 8-Sep-2009 09:17

A lot of freeview products behave like this. There are pros and cons to which ever option it defaults to.

The Dolby audio appears to be a lot quieter than the basic AAC audio on all the other channels. If it defaults to Dolby you'll be turning up the volume on TV3 and then blasting it out if you change to another channel with AAC. On the flipside though, if it defaults to Dolby then you don't have to do anything else if you want 5.1 sound on certain shows.

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