Best Blu Ray Demo movie

randytsuch · « **on:** 2 Dec 2008, 05:55 pm »

I thought I would pull this out of of buying a blu ray player thread.

Like a few others, I just bought a blu ray player. It will be a Christmas gift to me.

My HT system will be a Panasonic BD35K blu ray player, feeding HDMI to an Onkyo SR705 receiver, which will feed HDMI to my Sony 52" XBR2 LCD.
System is 7.1, with Ascend Acoustics Sierra's across the fronts, Ascend's small speakers in the back, and an old set of Atlantic Tech surround speakers on the sides. Sub is a DIY Rythmik 12", sealed. Sierra's are driven by an old NAD multichannel amp, which is bridged to 3 channels, around 100W per.
I think I can decode any of the uncompressed formats with my 705.

With the right source, sounds pretty decent.

So, what are some reference Blu Ray movies, worth owning, to show off Blu Ray sound and picture?

Randy

yooper · « **Reply #1 on:** 2 Dec 2008, 06:08 pm »

Lookie here........ http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=858316

Mark

zybar · « **Reply #2 on:** 2 Dec 2008, 06:10 pm »

Here are a couple in no particular order:

Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds Live at Radio City
The Matrix Collection
Band of Brothers Collection
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Blackhawk Down
Kingdom of Heaven
Into the Blue (wow, Jessica looks sooooo damn good)
Pirates of the Caribbean (all of them)
Casino Royale
Hell Boy and Hellboy II

George

Bob in St. Louis · « **Reply #3 on:** 2 Dec 2008, 06:27 pm »

AAAWWW man......

This thread is gonna cost me some serious cash.

Thanks for the link Mark. That will do wonders for my back account too.

Bob

ted_b · « **Reply #4 on:** 2 Dec 2008, 06:29 pm »

Quote from: zybar on 2 Dec 2008, 06:10 pm

Here are a couple in no particular order:

Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds Live at Radio City
The Matrix Collection
Band of Brothers Collection
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Blackhawk Down
Kingdom of Heaven
Into the Blue (wow, Jessica looks sooooo damn good)
Pirates of the Caribbean (all of them)
Casino Royale
Hell Boy and Hellboy II

George

Great list, George. Blackhawk Down sound is unbefreakinglievable and becoming legendary on Blu-Ray circles. The Dave Matthews/Tim Reynolds concert is tremendous 24/96 TrueHD 5.1 sound, too. Band of Brothers looks even better than the original HD broadcast.

randytsuch · « **Reply #5 on:** 2 Dec 2008, 09:20 pm »

I went to Costco and Fry's at lunch today.

I didn't buy anything, but I looked quickly through their Blu Ray's. I was surprised how large their selections are.

I was also going to look for a cheap, on line source, for Blu Ray movies.

Randy

Airborn · « **Reply #6 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 03:23 am »

Yeah this thread is going to cost me plenty! Guess you should be careful what you wish for. Anyway, I've been calibrating the new Sharp Aquos and the HD picture looks amazing. The SD picture is only so-so though, so I can't wait to see the BR discs. I just got my shipping tracking # for the Panny 35; it should arrive in 3 days, just in time for the weekend.

Keep those Blu-Ray recommendations coming!

randytsuch · « **Reply #7 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 03:15 pm »

Seems like ebay has the best prices so far, better then deepdiscountdvd for the Pirates movies, especially if you go through live and get 20% cashback.

I started reading the avsforum blu ray thread, saw recommendations for
I, Robot
Live Free or Die Hard
Incredible Hulk
Casino Royale,
Kung Fu Panda
Cars
Ratatouille

zybar · « **Reply #8 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 03:16 pm »

Quote from: randytsuch on 3 Dec 2008, 03:15 pm

Seems like ebay has the best prices so far, better then deepdiscountdvd for the Pirates movies, especially if you go through live and get 20% cashback.

I started reading the avsforum blu ray thread, saw recommendations for
I, Robot
Live Free or Die Hard
Incredible Hulk
Casino Royale,
Kung Fu Panda
Cars
Ratatouille

Use this launch point to get 25% off via cashback offer:

http://www.fatwallet.com/redirect/bounce.php?afsrc=1&mid=13125247&url=http://search.live.com/results.aspx?q=pink

George

mca · « **Reply #9 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 03:34 pm »

I like reading this for Blu Ray reviews

http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/

ted_b · « **Reply #10 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 03:57 pm »

Kris Deering's reviews are good, too
http://www.hometheatermag.com/moviereviews/

rydenfan · « **Reply #11 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 04:15 pm »

Here is great thread for Blu-Ray audio

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=918734

rydenfan · « **Reply #12 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 04:17 pm »

This is actually one of the most stunning Blu-Rays I have heard

http://www.amazon.com/John-Mayer-Where-Angeles-Blu-ray/dp/B0019HQIFE/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1228321060&sr=8-3

zybar · « **Reply #13 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 04:19 pm »

Quote from: rydenfan on 3 Dec 2008, 04:17 pm

This is actually one of the most stunning Blu-Rays I have heard

http://www.amazon.com/John-Mayer-Where-Angeles-Blu-ray/dp/B0019HQIFE/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1228321060&sr=8-3

Yup, I like that one a lot.

Another great Blu-ray concert is the latest from RUSH:

http://www.amazon.com/RUSH-Snakes-Arrows-Live-Blu-ray/dp/B001GJOL22/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1228321184&sr=1-1

George

ajzepp · « **Reply #14 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 04:41 pm »

Quote from: ted_b on 2 Dec 2008, 06:29 pm

Band of Brothers looks even better than the original HD broadcast.

That makes me happy to hear that...I just placed my order through Amazon for the series...I don't see how I can pass it up for the forty-some bucks they're asking...can't wait!

Bob in St. Louis · « **Reply #15 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 04:47 pm »

Quote from: randytsuch on 3 Dec 2008, 03:15 pm

Seems like ebay has the best prices so far,

I wonder if it was one of you guys that outbid me yesterday afternoon on "The Fifth Element".

I did buy Fantastic Four; Rise of the Silver Surfer the other day (before this thread started).
Glad to see it was fairly high on the AVS list. Have not watched it yet.

Bob

p.s. By the way, I'm using a PS3 as the source, but a 720p Sanyo projector for the display.

So I shouldn't chime in on video quality until I upgrade that last piece of equipment.

rydenfan · « **Reply #16 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 05:00 pm »

Quote from: zybar on 3 Dec 2008, 04:19 pm

Quote from: rydenfan on 3 Dec 2008, 04:17 pm
This is actually one of the most stunning Blu-Rays I have heard

http://www.amazon.com/John-Mayer-Where-Angeles-Blu-ray/dp/B0019HQIFE/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1228321060&sr=8-3

Yup, I like that one a lot.

Another great Blu-ray concert is the latest from RUSH:

http://www.amazon.com/RUSH-Snakes-Arrows-Live-Blu-ray/dp/B001GJOL22/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1228321184&sr=1-1

George

That is on my list to order this week. Both of these are very good as well

http://www.amazon.com/David-Gilmour-Remember-Albert-Blu-ray/dp/B000UD08HW/ref=pd_bbs_sr_5?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1228323482&sr=8-5

http://www.amazon.com/Shine-Light-Blu-ray-Rolling-Stones/dp/B0019L5CNE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1228323537&sr=1-2

and this may be the best concert I have heard yet (certainly for subs):
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8971605&st=the+police+certifiable&lp=3&type=product&cp=1&id=1895078

zybar · « **Reply #17 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 05:05 pm »

Quote from: Bob in St. Louis on 3 Dec 2008, 04:47 pm

Bob

p.s. By the way, I'm using a PS3 as the source, but a 720p Sanyo projector for the display.
So I shouldn't chime in on video quality until I upgrade that last piece of equipment.

Bob,

I am using an older 720p pj in my HT (Panny AE-1000) and it produces an outstanding picture.

1080p will be better, but I bet if I told most people they were watching 1080p on my system, they would never question it. aa

BTW, what will get me to upgrade isn't the move up to 1080p, it is the increased lumen output and contrast that the newest round of pj's have.

George

George

GHM · « **Reply #18 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 11:39 pm »

I'm watching Band of Brothers as I type this. The Blu Ray version of this movie is phenomenal!!
It's as close to watching a live play as I've seen with Blu Ray. This movie is a must watch for die hard video nuts!!

Bob in St. Louis · « **Reply #19 on:** 3 Dec 2008, 11:51 pm »

George, good to know there's "another like me".

(playing 1080i on a 720p display unit.)
Very true about the extra lumen output. I'm curious about what the "p" would look like, but am very happy with my Sanyo PLV-Z2.

Bob