Bit of advice needed: how important is DVD quality when paired with receiver?

[juxebox]

I'm rather clueless about this, except for basic common sense that better construction, materials and the like will make for a better electronic unit.

But beyond that, how expensive should one go on a DVD (not blue ray!) player? I need to buy a new DVD to replace my 11 year old Sony (yes, 11 years old). I have a brand new onkyo sr876 which is a medium to high end receiver. I'm going to HDMI the DVD, Direct TV, and future blue ray to the receiver and out from there to the TV.

What should I look for in the DVD player? If the receiver will decode the source, is it necessary the DVD has the same ability? How cheap is too cheap where the quality of the signal sent to the receiver is degraded?

I know these are subjective questions, so I'm not looking for a specific model. What I need is guidance on what to look for and what features are not needed if my receiver will handle the processing.

For the record, I was looking into the Oppo Digital line of DVDs. They seem to get universally great reviews.

Thank you!

[mantis]

Get a Sony or a Pioneer ELite dvd player. Excellent quality, will last like your old one did and you will love it.
I have a Denon dvd2200 I don't use anymore. 100.00 get's it there. I have the manual and remote. It's also SACD and DVD AUDIO which makes for a nice audio bonus. It's also a fine cd player.

Dan

[WilliamM2]

What should I look for in the DVD player? If the receiver will decode the source, is it necessary the DVD has the same ability? How cheap is too cheap where the quality of the signal sent to the receiver is degraded?

Since your reciever is going to do the audio decoding, they should all sound the same. The 876 has a Reon scaler built in, which is better than most, so I would look for a player that will output standard 480i, and let the Reon do the upscaling and de-interlacing. I also had a Reon scaler, and I chose the Pioneer DV-48AV for it's ability to output 480i, and also it's ability to do direct DSD over HDMI for SACD's. It works flawlessly.

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/486974189/pioneer-dv-48av

[MSALLA]

You said you are going to upgrade to a blue ray soon. Are you going to use the old player for music? If so look for a player with a good DAC. I just got a brand new Sony BDP300 blue ray player for $138. If blue ray is what you want, I would not waste time or money on a regular player just to buy something else later.