|
 Sony DVPS550d DVD Player The Sony DVP-S550D seems like your standard bare bones player, but it's hiding some pretty wicked extras. First off, like every Sony player coming out now, the DVP-S5550D is DTS compatible. There never seems to be a question about that anymore, so don't fret, it's here. The Sony DVPS550d player key features include:
 The picture quality is super -- this player doesn't have any problems. I played a whole bunch of discs with the DVP-S550D, and no problems were found. All the major studio discs work fine including the smaller producers. The audio features are just as good. DD 5.1 is clear through your high end audio system, through the TVs speakers and through DTS. It's all very fine, very natural and easy to listen to. The Sony DVP-S550D DVD player showcases the standard features that all the new model Sony players have. On the DVP-S550D they work great. You know, there are only so many ways for me to go into Sony line of players -- and the DVP-S550D holds it's own against all of the mid-range Sony players I've seen. That's the best thing I can say about it. Even the remote is basically the same as the rest, which is easy to use, easy to hold and glows in the dark -- always a nice touch with the Sony family of remotes. Okay, now for those wicked extras. The Sony DVP-S550D features what Sony is calling VES (Virtual Enhanced Surround), it's the virtual sound system that a load of players are coming out with now. I like it and it comes in handy. The DVP-S550D also features programming -- which allows the user to put messages on the discs they enjoy. It's neat, but it's gratuitous. One really neat thing -- for those of us who like to find exactly where the layer switch is located on your RSDL dual layer discs, is a layer switch indicator. It notifies the user via the front display which layer is currently in use. I like it, I like it a lot. The DVP-S550D also has the modern age "tracking" system -- DNR (Digital Video Noise Reduction) and Video EQ (Equalizer). Like I said, they both are basically a tracking for DVD, you know, like with VHS, it allows you to fix any apparent problems with noise using the player instead of the television. It works okay, but I find that if a disc is bad, the disc is just bad. Okay, here's the king feature on this player -- simultaneous angle play, which is basically a strip of boxes that show all of the multiple angles of a scene (if this function is featured on your disc). It shows up on the far-left side of the screen, and you can choose which angle to showcase on your screen. That's a toy and a half, man. A similar little thingy on this player is what Sony is calling "Strobe Play". It's seem a lot like a "scene select" on your typical disc, except you personally choose which scenes you can jump to, and they show up on your screen when you call them up. The DVP-S550D is a tripped out player that offers a very superior picture and top notch sound with extras that will make you feel like your money was well spent. It also starts up super quick -- once the disc is put in, it jumps right into playing it. It's one of the fastest players I've seen. The fast forward and reverse are very smooth and easy to stop as well. It's just a really good player to have. If the 7700 scares you price wise, then this is a good player to use as a step down. I had a boat load of fun playing with it, and I know you will too. It's a toy that would make daddy proud. Todd Doogan January 1999 (Tood Doogan also reviews DVD movies for The Digital Bits, if you have any questions regarding this review please e-mail todd.doogan@dvdcity.com . For sales enquiries please e-mail sales@dvdcity.com)
Click here to return to the Hardware Review Index
|
||||||||||||
