Page 1 of Philips Q50 Vs Sony DVP-NS700

Hi

Narrowed it down to these to players:

Sony DVP-NS700 : £200
Philips Q50 : £250

Would like to see which one everyone thought was the better buy, price doesnt matter as both are within my budget so put that aside.

Also the sites selling them describe them as "Multiregion" so surely that means there multiregion straight out of the box and don`t need a special hack entering as that would be misleading advertising? Or is that not the case?

Thanks for the help.

If the site is saying the Philips is multiregion, then it should be already, even if it is only a remote hack to do it (with, as you point out, a special remote).

Sony players on the other hand cannot be hacked - they need something doing to the electonics - either a chip replaced, or a special piece of equipment used to do the deed. So if you go Sony, make sure it is multiregion when you get it, or you`ll be facing a £50 bill to do it later.

If I were you I`d get down to Richer Sounds and compare the Sony700 and the Marantz 4100OSE - available multiregion from them at £250.

I checked out the Marantz vs the Sony and the Sony got my vote (and cash). It has a better picture than the Marantz and the CD replay is pretty close, although the Marantz maybe just edged it. Difficult to say really as I tried them at different places, through different systems. Otherwise, feature-wise the Sony wailed on the Marantz. Forget the Philips, it`s pretty but that`s about it... The Philips/Marantz menus and controls will drive you crazy after a while.

Just for a laugh I plugged the Sony into my high-end tube based system and it didn`t disgrace itself at all. A little bass light and 2 dimensional compared to a £3000 CD player but no major failings and, most importantly, it was enjoyable to listen to. Just make sure you don`t mess about with the "surround" enhancements and switch off the video circuitry. I was seriously impressed and will be putting the CD player in the family room out to pasture on this showing.

Oh, one last thing. The Sony can play SACD discs and with DVD-A going the way of the Dodo, this is a serious bonus. The sound? Incredible!!! Can`t wait to try out a dedicated SACD player now....

I was originally looking for a dirt-cheap player for the family to play with. I tried a Toshiba but despite a great picture, it didn`t work out very well, refusing to play branching discs like "The Abyss" without problems. I looked at some more expensive alternatives but with the price so low, the Sony was a no-brainer. Thing is, it`s a million miles better than I thought it would be. Nice one Sony, now maybe I`ll buy an DVP-NS900 just for myself...