Beovision 5 HD-worth it?

Hello,

I have a beautiful black Sd Beovision 5 on a motorised stand. I've owned it for a couple of years and love it. To be honest I'm pretty happy with the picture quality but I've damaged the screen by rubbing with a microfibre cloth at a couple of dirty spots. The picture when on isn't affected but it sort of upsets me to see it like that!

Anyway, I have been thinking of  BV11 but I'm not really taken with any of the stand arrangements. I might well go down that route but I think it's still overpriced even at the new bargain level. priorities and all that!

To get to the point, is it worth me upgrading to the HD BV5? I'm assuming the panel is newer so maybe better in that respect. I understand connectivity is limited but how does the dvi connection work with for example a Sky HD box? Would I notice a difference? I currently have a DVD1 connected as well as a Wii which I use for Netflix (new series of Lilyhammer just added!)

Thanks for any suggestions, apart from the inevitable ones telling me to buy suchandsuch instead! It's a BV5HD or nothing at the moment I'm afraid!

Simon

Hi Simon,

I too have a BV5 SD, but I chose to upgrade to a BV9 Mk III which is 1080p. This allows me to watch Freeview HD channels and Blu Rays at full resolution.

Note that the BV5 HD has a native resolution of 720p. So at best you will be able to watch Freeview SD channels and DVDs. All other full-HD content (i.e. 1080p) will be down-scaled if your source device does that, thereby causing a loss of quality.

Others on the forum have posted of issues when playing HDCP-encoded content (e.g. iTunes or Freeview HD channels) through the DVI socket of the 720p capable Beovisions (BV5-HD, BV6-26 with HD upgrade, etc.).

The other thing is, if your source device has only HDMI outputs, you then need an adaptor to go from HDMI to DVI, plus ADDITIONAL cables to get the sound from the source box to the BeoVision. This may require an optical to electrical converter DEPENDING ON YOUR SOURCE.

Think carefully before choosing a non-HDMI BV vs. a full HD one.

I recently saw a BV9 Mk III for 2,700 GBP. A BV5-HD was 1,000 GBP the last time I saw one. It's a big price difference, so I see the attraction. I hope someone else can give you more info about HDCP compatibility.

I love my BV5 and kept it. The sound quality and styling are still top notch to me.

Best regards,

Lawrence

Thanks Lawrence! To be honest I'm not too bothered by the HDness as I'm very happy with the picture quality of my current BV5. I wondered if sky hd would be any better and how involved it is to get it to work properly. More to the point I was also wondering if the panel itself was any better. I had a chat with a B&O shop manager who said he finds it hard to believe that I've damaged the coating on my screen just by wiping with a microfibre cloth but I have and it annoys me! If I could get another SD BV5 cheap I'd certainly consider that option!

p.s I think a BV9 would be overkill in my little cottage!

simon8201:

p.s I think a BV9 would be overkill in my little cottage!

I had a bv 5, had to sell it in order to upgrade my installation. If I had enough space, I would buy one again and would love to find an hd one as the non hd was already very good.

For a standalone tv, what a f.....g sound !!! Specially for the bass reproduction.

at least her in Germany 720p is hd resolution used by a lot of tv stations.

1080i is sky hd only....

720p is hd but not full hd.

Still very good resolution.

Also depends on your distance from the TV.