Deciding whether to upgrade to a recorder over my existing dvd player + VCR set up. Mostly I would be recording shows off TV while not home. Looking at the panny es10 and sony gx300, based on user reviews through the web. Time slip is key feature for me. Are stand alone players able to do the following?

- record one channel while watching another?
- record digital channels (I have an hdtv and analog Comcast w no cable box)?
- record TV shows (to play back the audio) in surround sound?

Any thoughts on the 2 models (comparison) I listed above, panny & sony? Thanks.

I have a Panny E80 with built in hard drive. Without a hard drive you will have to record everything to disc and play back the disc. Don't know about those models but mine records in Dolby Surround. No 5.1. I also had a E30 and neither had what is comparable to the VCR/TV button on a VCR. So to watch one channel while recording another you will have to split the cable, one to tv, one to recorder. Also, although the recorders have a coaxial input w/tuner for recording, the output is a dummy just to maintain the cable signal while the recorder is off. To watch a disc or tv with the recorder on (through the recorder)you have to be hooked up with S-Video or composite A/V cables.

Correction: there is a TV/VIDEO button so you don't have to split the cable. But you will still need to hook the recorder to the tv with s-Video or A/V cables to watch DVDS or playback what you've recorded.

No DVDR or DVR (unless integrated with a specific cable or sat system) can record 5.1 audio. Only stereo, which can be used for Dolby Pro Logic matrixed surround.

If surround sound is important, you will likely have to upgrade your cable service to digital with the cable DVR.