Pioneer BDP-51FD Blu-Ray Disc Player

 

 

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This is my first Blu-Ray player and I am very impressed and happy with the product. I have previously owned Pioneer DVD recorders and found them to be intuitive, stylish and very good quality. This BR player is just as good, if not better.

The unit is large - much bigger than the Sony and Panasonic players which most chain electronic stores have in stock. Personally, I like the fact it is big and solid - it feels like a quality piece of kit especially with the chrome feet. It also looks very smart - glossy black finish with soft red and blue LEDs.

Build Quality - 5/5
Looks and style - 4/5 (the FD71 has touch sensitive buttons would be lovely to have, but not for an extra £200!)

The unit is fairly user friendly. The controller is big with many buttons - I had to search for some operations, but it is well made and will be easier to use with experience. The instruction guide is, like most Japanese electronic goods, okay but not the most intuitive.

The picture is outstanding. I have a 26" Samsung LCD HD TV and I feared that the BR improvement would be lost on my smaller TV. Not at all. The pictures are sharp as a tack and contrasty, the colours saturated and punchy.

Put it this way - in the film the Goonies (a childhood fave), whilst the kids are in the attic, Brand (Josh Brolin) claps his hand while the others look at a map. I saw the film when it came out in the cinema, I have seen it on TV, I had it on VHS and on DVD and I never knew what Brand was doing. I assumed he was trying to catch a fly. Watching the BR disc you can see a thread float across the screen and Brand try and catch it. I was gobsmacked: the thread was now clearly visible. In other scenes the picture was outstanding - vibrant colours, sharp details and an almost 3D-like quality.

Picture - 5/5

The sound is also impressive, but I am more interested in the picture quality and it is first class. This player comes highly recommended.

----- UPDATE -----

I should add, in response to the other review, that it does take a while to load. Though with more recent firmware changes, it is quicker I understand than it used to be. Also, most blu ray players are slow to load. Finally, patience is an unknown commodity in today's world. I used to wait 20 minutes to load a game on my ZX Spectrum; I think 1-2 minutes to load a disc is okay! And it's certainly worth it.

I have now watched at least a dozen blu-ray discs and each time I am stunned. The Prisoner of Azkaban is simply amazing - so sharp, punchy, saturated, ands smooth.

I have matched the BRD51 with a Pioneer VSX-LX51 receiver and they look very good together (the BRD71 would have matching chrome on/off button but hey) and the sound and picture together are awesome. In fact, the sound can be almost overpowering on films like Die Hard.

I have since looked at a number of other players in the shops and none have the style of Pioneer unless you are looking at something like a Denon.

Definitely worth every penny I spent!

Upgraded from PS3 for my Kuro TV and it was well worth it.

More vibrant, better motion and better sound (2 channel Audio Out) and no sound of an aircraft taking off in your living room...bargain price too!

Of course its not 2.0 but I wont lose any sleep over that.

Just a quick opinion added here.I had this player & paid the best part of £400 for it almost 3yrs ago.If you are interested & can update it if needs be,while getting it at a fair price:Go right ahead,its a lovely built player with pioneers usual S & V quality.AVATAR looked gorgeous when i played it for the first time as it does anyway,but the sound is top class in its peer grade.As long as one can be gotten thats without any major marks,or better again BNIB!Its minor flaws are mainly slow to load and not much else.TBH if i was caught between this and the BDP-320,I would opt for this one,with better build & simular S & V....

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4.0 out of 5 stars Looks classy, excellent performance, with a footnote
I have had this machine since April 2009. I have watched hundreds of blu-rays on this and am just completely thrilled with it except for the slow loading times (the footnote)... Read more

Published on 4 Feb 2010 by Split-Pea Soup

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Brand....
Pioneer is the Best in Video Equipment, don't compare it to Denon or other brands...
And if we mention the Pioneer BDP-LX91 it "Kills" every Blu Ray Player on the market... Read more

Published on 22 Aug 2009 by R. Tomas

5.0 out of 5 stars Pioneer BD51 FD Blue Ray Disc Player
Very pleased with this product. Don't think you can go wrong with a name like Pioneer for quality and excellence.My advice- go for quality -"you get what you pay for" ! Read more

Published on 12 Jun 2009 by Mr. A. G. Gorlick

5.0 out of 5 stars Pioneer at it's best
This must be the best Blu Ray player made at this price. What a great machine. Go for Pioneer every-time - you will not regret it. Thanks again Amazon.

Published on 28 May 2009 by Jimbo

2.0 out of 5 stars Start-up
it takes 'ages' to start up this thing, but once you have finished you cup of tea you can start to enjoy

Published on 9 May 2009 by K. Malkiewicz

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