going crazy... pioneer bdp450 or sony s790???

Keep the Sony. You're unlikely to notice any significant improvement with the Pioneer.

I agree with BB; though if you're looking for a glitch-free BDP, you can pick up a Panasonic DMP-BDT120 for £50 now. For exemplary 3D/2D Blu-ray playback and genuinely excellent DVD upscaling, look no further.

Out of interest, have you experienced issues with the Sony, or have you just read of problems elsewhere? Sony firmware support is usually excellent, so unless you're having problems, I'd say stick and save yourself the hassle.

Thanx for the tip but I had a bdt320.. Wasnt a happy mariage with my sammy 6800 so no more panas for me.
Also i perse want dual hdmi.

Apart from one or two freezer during playback the sony and i have been friends. The main thing that bothers me is that when I pay i €200,,- for a bd player i dont want it to look like a €80,- player.

I own a pioneer vsx 921 and i can get my hands on the bdp450 WITHOUT PAYING EXTRA MONEY. I love its looks and it will look great ontop of the 921. Thats the main reason (probably a silly one).

My only doubt is that its maybe less good picture & audiowise because everbody praised the sony. Some guy even compared it to an oppo 93 and said the sony was giving better images... But then again maybe its better... Noboby on the internet seems to have the clear awnser. So i thought id ask here.

I am leaning towards swapping for the pioneer but just do not want to take a step backwards. I want to keep the same quality (or improve, but not nessesarely).

I think I am correct in saying that it is WHF top dog at present.

You won't lose on quality, although there have been a few reports of playback issues with the Pioneer.

Yes you are, except that the Sony S790 was not part of that test.

Could be worth reading the latest issue of Home Cinema Choice, they have just reviewed the Pioneer - pretty impressive.

Since I've read several reports of glitches, drive noise and poor product support, I find it difficult to recommend the 450.

Yes, it looks nicer; but you'll spend more time staring at the pictures it produces than the player itself; and if you have problems with discs skipping and freezing and little firmware support to address these issues, you may be worse off than you are right now.

Yep, the HCC review does mention the glitches too.

To be honest, I'm losing faith in tech product reviews. I'm not even blaming reviewers.

If you test a BDP and all test discs play OK, there's no reason to report problems, though problems often come to light once people live with the technology for a while. 

As I stated on another thread, HDTV Test reviewers observed discrepancies in performance between review samples and "real word" products, suggesting "golden samples" are often sent out for review.

We live in a climate of ever cheaper pricing, as manufacturers constantly seek to undercut each other. There has to be some performance trade off as a result of cost cutting exercises. 

I have stopped buying HCC now, I still read it in the shops though.    I will renew my WHF subscription though.  I lost a bit of faith in reviews after buying the Philips 40pfl9704 TV, but I still have had a lot more positives over the years.

I think the classic advise applies. Reviews can act as a pointer and help you compile a shortlist, but it pays to research any purchase more thoroughly.

Pioneer's support of older bluray players is shocking. I still cannot play Prometheus 3D on my lx54, the last firmware update was 2011 (my player). Doesn't inspire me with confidence to go for another one of their products. Tomorrow at the Bristol show I will be taking them to task over it.

BDT500 and S790 should be your real dilemma . I have never heard of playback issues with Panasonic or anyone being unhappy.

If its a step forward you want, then consider Oppo, Arcam, Denon and Cambrigde Audio.

Another good review of the 450

http://www.avforums.com/reviews/Pioneer-BDP-450-Universal-3D-DVD-SACD-CD...