I want a new TV to replace my 28" Sony Wega that is now 7 years old. It's got to be big (42"?) flat and thin. What do you recommend? Plasma? LCD? Is it time to look at HDTV? Most of my viewing is through a Sky+ box. Specific model recommendations appreciated.
John

Sony LCD Bravia KDL-V40XBR1

Tuan,
That looks like a good choice, do you know how it compares with the Loewe LCDs?
John

Had a look at the Loewe Spheros the other day - awesome picture and that was just off an aerial feed.

quote:

Originally posted by John Channing:
Tuan,
That looks like a good choice, do you know how it compares with the Loewe LCDs?
John

I do not have the chance to compare the two models since I don't see the Loewe in Noth America. However, I compare the above mentioned Sony with models from SHARP, Pioneer (Plasma TV), SAMSUNG, HP at comparable prices, the Sony is a notch better. I purchased one and it looks even better in my bedroom. The Sony picture is beautiful even with all settings below 50%. Combined with a Sony DVD player (HDIM interface, HD upscaling, progressive scan) it is very hard to beat the Sony combo. Here in Canada, I paid 4500 Canadian dollars for the TV and 200 dollars for the DVD (tax included).

Come here for more info:http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=40

I recently bought a Panasonic TX32LXD500 and have been so impressed with it, would recommend it to anyone

John,
How much do you want to watch TV as compared to movies etc.
I went thru this last year and "settled" for a Loewe 32" CRT and a Projecter (to get yet) for the same price of a decent plasma, let alone lcd tv.
Certainly the TV here in NZ is doesn't warrant a large panel except for watching sport!

Pete

John

In this country Panasonic sells a superb high definition( 1080i)plasma in 37, 42, and 50 inch sizes. Model numbers are TH-37PX50U, TH-42PX50U, and TH-50PX50U respectively. Over here they are the sales leaders in Plasmas. They have beautiful pictures in Hi-def and regular broadcast, are reliable, and are,relatively speaking, very reasonably priced . The same sets are also available with picture in picture and a couple other little extras. These sets have the PX 500U rather than PX50U designation. I think you have the same sets available in your market with very similar model numbering.

Good luck
Clay

quote:

Originally posted by PJT:
How much do you want to watch TV as compared to movies etc.

Mostly TV via a Sky+ (digital) box. I have a mid range Sony DVD player, but don't watch a lot of movies on it.
John

I have decided on a Sony LCD Bravia KDL-V40A12U, which can be had for between £2190 and £2400 depending on warrantee (1 year in the former, 5 years in the latter.
John

quote:

Originally posted by Clay Bingham:
John

In this country Panasonic sells a superb high definition( 1080i)plasma in 37, 42, and 50 inch sizes. Model numbers are TH-37PX50U, TH-42PX50U, and TH-50PX50U respectively. Over here they are the sales leaders in Plasmas. They have beautiful pictures in Hi-def and regular broadcast, are reliable, and are,relatively speaking, very reasonably priced . The same sets are also available with picture in picture and a couple other little extras. These sets have the PX 500U rather than PX50U designation. I think you have the same sets available in your market with very similar model numbering.

Good luck
Clay

Clay,

I would agree with you here. My struggle at the moment is deciding between a microdisplay (Mitsubishi's new 52" 1080p DLP - at least so they claim - and the 50" Sony SXRD), LCD (Bravia), or Plasma (Panasonic).

The Panasonic is the cheapest of the three, depending on screen size - I'm eyeing the 37" - and I think I prefer it to the Sony Bravia. The SXRD is a stunner and I was pretty impressed with the Mitsubishi too. The deciding factor may be one of life expentancy, namely which model goes belly up last.

Do you have any knowledge on what I could expect from the Panasonic Plasmas?

Much appreciated,

Aric

Aric

Panasonic claim a screen life of 60,000hrs. If I did my math correctly thats about 20 years at 8hrs./day. Of course, the screen will lose brightness over time, but thats also true of the traditional direct view CRT.

By the way, I think all of your choices will have comparable screen life. Not really an issue any more.

Not familiar with the Mitsubishi, but the others are first rate choices. I had Panasonic and SXRD first with Bravia close behind. At home it wouldn't be a very meaningful difference. All three are in the top 5 or 6 models in US TV sales.

One final thing. Panasonics are not available in Southern California except for 37's. Production on the models above have stopped with replacements due in mid-April.

Good Luck and Enjoy

Clay

Here in the UK the Pansonics are awful. We had one in the shop for a morning and it was washed out with no definition and no contrast. We tried setting it up according to the OSI standard and it didn't even have enough contrast capability to meet the standard. Add to this that the 37" was in such a big chassis it was physically bigger than our favourite 43" display which is the Pioneer PDP436XDE. Ridiculous.

LCD still leaves much to be desired as far as I'm concerned. I spent some time looking at B&O's new 40" telly (£8000 if you please) and all I could see was digital artefacts, ghosting and blocking. Yes, when there was little movement, the picture could clear up beautifully, but that's not what TVs are about...

LCD? No. Plasma? Yes, particularly the Pioneer which appears to be the best on the market at the moment.

Frank, Aric

Frank, I really respect your opinions which is why I think there has got to be something wrong here or an availability issue in the European market. I provided the Panasonic hi def model numbers for the US Market and they are superb period. They also make an enhanced definition plasma which is not in the same ballpark as the High definition versions I noted. Might that be the one you tested? Until the new Pioneers came out, Panasonic had the best black level of any plasma. Now they both kind of run neck and neck. I like the Pioneer as well and have a Elite Pro 930 HD on order. But I honestly feel the Panasonics available in the US are certainly equal for all practical purposes. Also, they are more readily available and generally run several hundred dollars less for equivalent screen sizes. Panasonic chassis is a bit thicker because they have their tuners integrated with the screen. Pioneer uses a seperate box and umbilical. Both styles have their advocates.

As you note, artifacts can be an issue with LCD flatscreens but the Sony Bravia is really quite exceptional in this regard and, in any event, I find most viewers are less critical on this issue than we audio/video types.

Regards
Clay

Clay,

I appreciate where you're coming from and I accept that there may be differences in your part of the world. I only tried the HiDef Panny, not Enhanced Def (which I have not heard of). This retails for a little less than the Pioneer. As to thickness, yes, we understood that this was because of the built-in tuner and we didn't really consider it a problem. No - our problem was that the 37" Panny was actually a couple of inches wider and an inch or so taller than the 43" Pioneer. Anyone looking for a smaller screen is probably looking for a smaller unit...period.

I was going to ask a very sim ilar question myself.

I've seen the Bravia and they seem to be the best of the bunch. I have also seen rear-projectors that seem to do a pretty good job with a fairly wide viewing area, good brightness and slimmer tha expected. Hidef is, IMO, a leap in quality and so must be factored in - the set top box prives are bound to fall.

Mike

quote:

Originally posted by Clay Bingham:
One final thing. Panasonics are not available in Southern California except for 37's. Production on the models above have stopped with replacements due in mid-April.

Good Luck and Enjoy

Clay

Clay,

Ah, that is a good bit of news. I have noticed that the 42" model is no longer for sale at the mass chain stores. I may just wait a few more months and to see the new models.

Aric

I am really struggling to source a Sony Bravia KDL-V40A12U at present. I'm also interested to see the group test in next month's What Hifi Sound and Vision where it will be put up against all of its main rivals.
John

John, even better than reading about it, have a look at the masses of HDTV's playing good HDTV content in Harrods. That's if you live near London. They have Sony there, along with LG and Samsung (who are making fantastic HDTV LCDs). Loads of other makes as well. Great place to compare HDTVs but not if you're looking to pay a good price for one.

Andrew

Thanks Andrew, I can easily get to Harrods so will take a look.
John

Here in Canada the current best from Panasonic are their professional Plasma models. They are one generation newer than the consumer models currently available, they are physically smaller with no built in NTSC tuner or speakers, and they come with no table top stand or wall mount. But! - they are less expensive than the consumer models, and have a stunning picture. As most consumers buying a hi-def screen will either use a satellite receiver or hi-def via cable, there is no need for the built in tuner, and let's hope that people are using something better that the built in speakers. Models are TH42PHD8UK or TH50PHD8UK. These are 1365 x 768 models, we use either a direct feed from our satellite dish or a DVDO scaler to upgrade the appearance of 480 line material like regular DVD or standard def TV signals.
See if you can have a look at any of these models.
Bryan
The Gramophone
Edmonton AB Canada

John,

I would strongly suggest you reconsider getting an LCD display. I have tried quite a few on my travels with the n-Vi and whatever their respective strengths they have all been deeply flawed in two key areas; reproducing movement and reproducing dark scenes. In my view the inability to reproduce a decent black is totally unacceptable. A decent Plasma is a much better bet (Frank mentions the Pioneer or else try the Fujitsu). Best of all though, and by quite some margin (although more expensive), consider the DLP rear projection sets from makers such as SIM. Even the entry-level Dominos have a snesational picture once properly set up.

Richard

Richard,
I haven't spent my money yet and will be at the show in Bristol this weekend where I look forward to a demonstration of the capabilities of the n-Vi.
John

quote:

Originally posted by Richard Dane:
John,

I would strongly suggest you reconsider getting an LCD display. I have tried quite a few on my travels with the n-Vi and whatever their respective strengths they have all been deeply flawed in two key areas; reproducing movement and reproducing dark scenes. In my view the inability to reproduce a decent black is totally unacceptable. A decent Plasma is a much better bet (Frank mentions the Pioneer or else try the Fujitsu). Best of all though, and by quite some margin (although more expensive), consider the DLP rear projection sets from makers such as SIM. Even the entry-level Dominos have a snesational picture once properly set up.

Richard

Richard, as I have said to Frank Abela before, in checking out the TV's in Harrods I was shocked at how good the Samsung LCDs are - streets ahead of everyone else (except for LG who were almost as good). The movement appeared to have no noticable smear and was quite mesmerising.

Andrew

After a bit of investigation at the show I plumped for a Pioneer PDP436RXE. The picture quality with an HDTV feed is absolutely staggering!
John

Hi John

how did you find the n-Vi?

cheers

quote:

Originally posted by Rico:
how did you find the n-Vi?

Very good indeed. I spent a fair bit of time in the room watching a live recording from the Crossroads guitar festival which was very entertaining. The picture quality was good (although HD is in another league...) and there were no obvious nasties to the sound.
John

John -
This sounds a rude intrusive question - but why did you decide to swap your TV.

Valid answers range from - I fancied a larger one, to the previous TV was failing to give a clear picture (ie broken)

Why do I ask - perhaps I am looking for a justification to swap the TV as well <g>

quote:

Originally posted by Derek Wright:
This sounds a rude intrusive question - but why did you decide to swap your TV.

Derek,
My current TV is a 7 year old Sony KV28FX60, which is a widescreen Wega CRT. It's certainly not broken, in fact I'd say the sound and picture are as good as the day I bought it and I intend to give it away to my brother in law. When I bought the TV, I wanted a 32" inch, but it was too big for the room (width and depth). Since then I have moved house, have slightly more space and wanted a larger screen. Buying a flat panel that I can hang on the wall has also allowed me to rearrange the room slightly and fit in a new pair of speakers (Neat Motive 1). I also wanted a high definition TV in anticipation of enjoying of enjoying the World cup in high definition (the Sky service is imminent). But really, I suppose, i