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What I would suggest

Posted by Alex F. (A) on November 24, 2015 at 20:36:23

In Reply to: Is there some kind of integrated gadget that does damn near everything? posted by Rick W on November 22, 2015 at 16:51:56:

What I would suggest to a friend or relative who places ease of use as the top priority is the following: Start with the terrific Sony BDP-S6500 Blu-ray player for great BD playback, superb DVD upscaling, average CD sound quality (relative to today's typical BD players), and responsive wi-fi video streaming of Netflix and other services. Presently the player is about $99 at Crutchfield and Amazon. (We like the 6500 so much I bought two of them, one each for our 65" and 60" plasma televisions.)

I would then recommend purchasing an AV receiver that has the features and inputs desired. Nice receivers are available from Yamaha, Denon, Marantz, Sony, and Pioneer, among a few others. My current favorite is Yamaha due to their neutral to slightly warm and smooth sonics; look at the Aventage line if it fits within the budget.

For maximum convenience, maybe obtain a Sony AV receiver, which would likely have a remote control to operate both the receiver and BD player. (I could not find a photo of the remote nor locate a user manual on Sony's website.) If a universal remote is not a problem, any major brand AV receiver will be fine.

Lastly, buy a decent HDMI cable to connect the BD player to the receiver. Good cables at low prices are available from Blue Jeans Cable, Parts Express, and Monoprice.

PS: The BDP-S6500 is unique among Sony's latest players to have IP Content NR Pro, which makes a very worthwhile improvement in streamed video quality. With IP Content NR Pro engaged, Netflix's finest HD programming now looks better than some of my Blu-ray discs. This Sony feature is the first noise-reduction system I have ever seen that does not blur or artificially sharpen the picture. (I always turn off "enhancers.") The picture just looks clean and natural. I use a setting of Film 2.

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