01 Jun Why You Should Go Blu-Ray
Some fans of high-end audio video and home entertainment systems are always eager to get the latest and greatest new technologies. Others are more cautious, and want to know the benefits and drawbacks of new technology before incorporating it into their systems. We see both types of customers here at PAC-NJ, northern New Jersey’s source for high quality home theater and audio video systems. And the technology many of them have been asking about lately is Blu-Ray, as in, “Should I add Blu-Ray capability to my system, and if so, why?
For the first part of the question, I give them a simple “yes,” and then I tell them what I’m about to tell you.
The current standard for flat screen HD TVs and projectors is 1080P video resolution. But standard DVD movies are only 480P resolution – this is a ten-year-old technology after all, and that’s a lifetime in the digital home entertainment world. Blu-Ray discs, on the other hand, offer 1080P resolution, which allow them to milk every last pixel out of your new flat screen TV. The results translate into incredible picture depth and vivid color rendition.
But the video performance is only just the beginning of the benefits of adding Blu-Ray capability to your home theater installation. The audio performance enhancements are also quite staggering. Two new surround sound codecs are available on Blu-Ray discs: Dolby Digital True HD and DTS Master Audio. Both can offer completely discrete 7.1 home theater surround sound. They also dramatically improve the surround sound field, dynamics, and resolution of movie soundtracks as well as music.
One important point to remember: To take full advantage of the sound and image upgrades available on Blu-Ray discs, your digital surround sound system should have the most up-to-date processing circuits that are compatible with, and that will decode the new surround codecs. And don’t forget to use the right audio video cable. The audio video connections for Blu-Ray machines and 1080P resolution TVs need to be HDMI. So what are HDMI audio video connections? I’m glad you asked – HDMI connections will be the topic of my next blog.