is it worth it for a Sony DVP-NS999ES

[fahmi]

Hey guys, first off let me say i love this forum. anytime iv been in doubt or had a question everyone around here has been able to help and thanks.

Now on to my question. Im looking to buy a new DVD player for my SP7200. I saw on a local clearence rack at tweeter a Sony ES DVP-NS999ES for 700.00 and found it somewhere else for 300.00. First off is this DVD player worth the investment or will I be dissapointed? The reviews i have read online VIA other sites seem to be pretty good and havent found anything on the forum which gives me some skeptism.

Has anyone heard anything about this player? If this isnt the right one for me then what are some reccomendations. I currenly have a sony and am hapy with it but its begining to die on me. I have searched high and low for the denon 1600 b/c there has been nothing but good marks on that but its hard to find.

Suggestions?

Fahmi

[AKA-Chuck G]

I'd jump on one for $300 in a heartbeat. The 1600 may have DCDi processing and maybe a little better picture but the 999es 5 year warranty and its audio is tough to beat at $300.

Other players to consider would be the Denon 2200 and Yamaha s1500 if it EVER comes out.

[Paul Bigelow]

I wouldn't buy one at $300. It's about to left in the dust with the forthcoming grouping of new DVI upconverting players. There are also better current 480p non-DVI choices: Denon 910, for example.

[fahmi]

thanks guys.....2 conflicting views, but anyone else, i will also look into those players recommended

[AKA-Chuck G]

The build quality of the 910 is not even in the same ballpark as the Sony. Apples and oranges. If audio isn't very important (cd playback, SACD) then the 999 may not buy you much. Also, for $300, if it comes with a full warranty, it is a steal. If not and is a grey market machine with no warranty I'd stay away.

Sure, if you have a DVI capable system there are certainly better other choices. That wasn't stated as a requirement and the original poster said nothing about DVI.

[Paul Bigelow]

Build quality only goes so far -- in this respect it is apples and oranges. Eventually, most people look at the produced picture *as a DVD player*. In this respect, is is not apples and oranges. A thick faceplate eventually won't compensate for not passing black or having CUE.

IMHO

[fahmi]

Picture quality i would say is my most important the comes audio. Will rarly be used for CD playback and when it is quality wont matter there. the $300 one was taken all thats left is the store demo at 749, which i think just droped a little more. At one point i will be using DVI (still a little too pricey for 17 foot run) but within next year will be using DVI.

[cybersoga]

The 999ES produces a better picture than the Denon 2900 with PAL titles imho - the deinterlacer might not be the best with video sourced titles but if you stick it on film preference and mostly watch films it gets it right most of the time. The chroma bug is far more noticable on the 2900 compared with the 999ES with PAL discs. Mine does pass below black and above white. Check out this review of a PAL 999ES. (http://babelfish.altavista.com/babelfish/trurl_pagecontent?lp=de_en&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.cine4home.de%2ftests%2fdvd-player%2fSony_DVP-NS999ES%2fSonyDVPNS999ES.htm)

[benrub]

Do any of you know how the DVP-NS999ES performs when playing 2 channel SACD? I'd like to get a new DVD player that will play SACDs but I've heard the quality can vary.

I read this in a review: "The NS999ES offers one subwoofer crossover point: 120Hz. "

I have a subwoofer, but I do not want to use it when listening to 2 channel audio. Can that crossover setting be disabled so that the full range is sent to my speakers?

I want to send the analog L and R outputs to a 2 channel pre-amp. I don't want any bass information to be cut off.

Thanks!
-Ben

[psujohny]

Ive had the denon 2200, denon 3910 and briefly a panasonic s97 and now a sony 999es.
For audio in my system and imo the sony 999es smokes the 3910 for sacd and is also better for redbook when comparing both using the analog outs. I cant see how in the world a denon 910 could even been in the same stratosphere for audio playback and I know the 2200 isnt.

I bought the panasonic s97 and sony 999es form tweeters at the same time to compare video ( I knew once I heard the audio of the 999es it was at least gonna stay in my system for audio duties ) ..anyway, I have a panasonic ae500 pj at 96 inches I sit 10 ft. back. I hooked up the sony via component at 480p (and i) and hooked up the s97 via hdmi to dvi on my pj. I calibrated both using avia and dve. I cued up the same movies on both (I have two copies of gladiator and air force one) ..I couldnt believe the results ..The sony's 480p looked just as good to me as the panasonic 720p (and my pj is 720 native ) ..I was amazed, I thought going in that the s97 would blow it away .. So I got my wife, my son and his girlfreind and my brother in law to compare the picture while I was flipping back and forth..None of us are videophiles I should mention ..but my wife picked the s97, she said it appears a little sharper ..But my brother in law preferred the sony, he said the colors were a little better ..My son and his girlfriend could not notice any difference whatsoever ..But all of us agreed that the picture seemed almost identical.
Im sure the 999es doesnt pass the secrets tests with as high of a score and there may be things that it technically does incorrectly ..but for me in real world results ..I have decided that hdmi/dvi players will have to improve to at least the point where there is a somewhat noticeable difference before I purchase another one. I already have a 200.00 40 ft ram hdmi cable ran and ready to go ( I really wanted the hdmi connection to be better)
At that point as I said the sony 999es on its audio abilties alone is worth more then the 400.00 I paid (imo).

[psujohny]

I have a subwoofer, but I do not want to use it when listening to 2 channel audio. Can that crossover setting be disabled so that the full range is sent to my speakers?

Ben,
Yes, you can run your speakers full range with no bass management.. not a problem. Also another thing I like about the 999es is that there is a seperate (higher quality) two channel out for stereo playback. I have these ran to a seperate two channel preamp for crictical two channel listening ( full range :) ) ..Then I send the regular 5 channel outs to a ht processor for my mutli-channel listening (again crossovers can be disabled ). Another great thing about the 999es is that it does Time Alignment for sacd, not to many players on the market that can do this.

PS. If you have a Tweeters store around you ( that has one left in stock)and are looking for a good dvd player with excellant audio playback, Please dont let anybody or any review talk you out of at least a home audition of this player ..Tweeters does have a 30 day back gurantee.

[benrub]

Awesome! I'm so glad to hear that this player will do just what I want it to do.

My current DVD player is Sony's original flagship from 1997, the DVP-S7000. I still love it. It's a classic and I feel kind of sad parting with it, since it's run beautifully since I got it. I love telling people that I have Sony's first ever DVD player.

My display is the Sony VPL-HS20 - an LCD video projector. This projector does have HDMI and DVI inputs, which obviously I would not be using with either Sony DVD player. However, experience has taught me that digital does not always mean better. I'm comfortable staying with nice clean 480i output from the player. It looks stunning. Does anyone think I'm making a mistake here?

Thanks for the quick replies!