Buying a new HiFi system now.

[blue-eye-boy]

So this saturday Audio Corporation in Pietersburg has everything in store for half price. So yesterday I was there, checking their hifi's. They have a LG, normal system, 2 speakers, 4200w, can play dvd's and mp3 as well, for R3800. Then I saw a LG, surround sound, all the bells and whistles, also hd upscaling. For R5000. So I was thinking, what will hd upscaling mean to me? DVD quality is fine for me, and I dont whatch much tv too. Is it worth it to get the expensive one for the hd? On the other hand, why buy outdated tech now, while I can get the expensive one too for half the price?

Bottom line, what does hd upscaling mean and will I really need it?

 

[HapticSimian]

1. I wouldn't personally touch an LG HiFi/HT setup with a 10-ft barge pole
2. The upscaling is secondary - you cannot possibly compare the experience offered by a stereo setup to that of a 5.1 surround system

If you're playing a DVD on a fixed-pixel HD display (LCD/Plasma/DLP), scaling is going to happen anyway. An upscaling DVD player merely takes over the scaling from the TV & (theoretically) handles it better and closer to the source. The difference in visual quality with and without upscaling won't be huge though - there's no way to make non-HD sources look like HD...

 

[isie]

So this saturday Audio Corporation in Pietersburg has everything in store for half price. So yesterday I was there, checking their hifi's. They have a LG, normal system, 2 speakers, 4200w, can play dvd's and mp3 as well, for R3800. Then I saw a LG, surround sound, all the bells and whistles, also hd upscaling. For R5000. So I was thinking, what will hd upscaling mean to me? DVD quality is fine for me, and I dont whatch much tv too. Is it worth it to get the expensive one for the hd? On the other hand, why buy outdated tech now, while I can get the expensive one too for half the price?

Bottom line, what does hd upscaling mean and will I really need it?

HD upscaling is just a buzz word - its still in SD quality.
rather comapre the sound 5.1 is better then 2.1 anyday. check if the mor expensive one is an AV reciever i.e allows you to connect other devises and allow other devies to use the 5.1 that way you can connect your DSTV , xbox ps3 and ay other future devecs you may have

 

[Dolby]

And careful of that wattage and marketing

 

[blue-eye-boy]

1. I wouldn't personally touch an LG HiFi/HT setup with a 10-ft barge pole
2. The upscaling is secondary - you cannot possibly compare the experience offered by a stereo setup to that of a 5.1 surround system

If you're playing a DVD on a fixed-pixel HD display (LCD/Plasma/DLP), scaling is going to happen anyway. An upscaling DVD player merely takes over the scaling from the TV & (theoretically) handles it better and closer to the source. The difference in visual quality with and without upscaling won't be huge though - there's no way to make non-HD sources look like HD...

Why not LG? What then, Samsung, JVC?

HD upscaling is just a buzz word - its still in SD quality.
rather comapre the sound 5.1 is better then 2.1 anyday. check if the mor expensive one is an AV reciever i.e allows you to connect other devises and allow other devies to use the 5.1 that way you can connect your DSTV , xbox ps3 and ay other future devecs you may have

So it's not worth it to buy a more expensive one for the upscaling then? The more expensive one has better sound, I mean 5.1 is better. But to pay that much more just for that, dont think it's worth it too. Will check it out tomorrow again.

 

[blue-eye-boy]

And why not check for the watts?

 

[HapticSimian]

Why not LG? What then, Samsung, JVC?

Just personal bad experience relating to both an LCD TV and a DVD recorder. My LG microwave's going strong, though.

So it's not worth it to buy a more expensive one for the upscaling then? The more expensive one has better sound, I mean 5.1 is better. But to pay that much more just for that, dont think it's worth it too. Will check it out tomorrow again.

In a word, no. Don't discount the value of 5.1 sound over stereo, though. Don't stretch your budget unnecessarily, but if you've got the funds and a 5.1 setup is practically viable where you want to set it up, it adds tremendously to the experience...

And why not check for the watts?

Read here. Beyond a marketing blurb, that eleventy brazillion Watt sticker on the front of a HiFi means nothing. The rest of that article should give you an idea as to how amps/HiFis should be compared.

 

[Pegging]

People still buy HiFi's?

 

[blue-eye-boy]

People still buy HiFi's?

I'm about to..