Owners of 40" and above LCD/Plasma TV's.

[gr8fl4porsche]

Looking to purchase a TV to mount on a wall. No fat TV's will work in my redesign of a small house.

Need a 40-46" due to space reasons, really want a 50" but that is another matter.

Anyone have any personal experiences with a large format flat screen in regards to picture quality especially when viewing SDTV and sporting events.

I have found that the LCD's in the stores have very bad pixelation problems when the image is moving. The processers are not keeping up with the image creation. The stores claim the problem is due to splitting the signal so many times with coaxial cable. The Plasma's did not lag as much but did lag a little. The large CRT's had absolutely beautiful pictures and movement. The DLP's were also nice.

The LCD's appeared to have a brighter picture than most plasma's.

Please comment on your picture quality in SD, HD, DVD and HDDVD. Are you unhappy with your purchase?

[Laneco]

Steve bought 50" Vizio Plasma the day after thanksgiving. I do not see any pixilation problems that you mention. On standard definition television signal there is evidence that the screen simply has more capability than the signal does - and the letters have visible gaps in the corners (like a pixel issue). With HD signal, that disappears. With DVD's the signal is also very nice. Colors are rich, you can see the screen from even a steep angle. Produces robust audio from the speakers which are the lower 5" the width of the entire screen. There is zero of the odd pixilation you noted with moving objects so there may be some validity to the "split cable" theory given to you in the store.

This is one "man thing" that I'm REALLY glad he bought!

angela

[rcecale]

Great topic, Randy! I'm actually looking into this as well so will be following this pretty closely. Thanks for starting this.

Originally posted by gr8fl4porsche
I have found that the LCD's in the stores have very bad pixelation problems when the image is moving. The processers are not keeping up with the image creation. The stores claim the problem is due to splitting the signal so many times with coaxial cable.

I noticed this today while checking out some units and asked about it. The salesman said this was called the "screen door effect" ...for obvious reasons. He furthered that this was common with larger units (40" and larger) and that was not noticeable if you watched these screens from the recommended distance. Personally, I thought this was a load, as some of the higher-end units did not have this "feature."

Sony has a few models out currently that looked rreally nice. These units were equipped with their XBR processor. Both the 40" and 46" models had exceptional displays.

Personally, we're looking at a 40" to mount inside the hexagonal trey ceiling, in our bedroom, and a 46" - 50" to mount over the fireplace in the family room. For the 40", we're leaning towards a Philips with the Ambilight feature, just so we can watch tv without the need of having other lights on in the room.

Randy

[Scooter]

43" Pioneer Elite Plasma. Very satisfied with the picture quality in every mode.

[campbellcj]

Everything I've read has indicated that plasma is superior to LCD for rapid action and sports. We have a Samsung 42" plasma in the master bedroom, hooked up to an HD DirecTivo and it is amazing.
Hoping to pull the trigger on a 50"+ unit for the family room in Q1 if my team (at work) actually sells anything and makes me some $$$.

This stuff changes all the time. I would suggest some web searches and maybe read Home Theater mag or something similar to find out about the latest models and technologies.

[Jims5543]

Bought a Zenith 42" Plasma Monitor about 4 years ago, it gets heavy use and I have no issues with quality or lag. I even play GT4 on it all the time and never had issues with burn in. I paid $2400 4 years ago for it at Brandsmart USA when normal stores were charging $5000+.

Wayne is right, put your nose on it and it will not look good, move back about 5-12 feet and it looks great.

[Icemaster]

How timely...

Subscribing.

[Dixie]

I have a Sharp Aquos 46" LCD HDTV. As Wayne says, at 6" you can see a touch of pixlation. At 3 feet it's not noticeable.

Football games look phenomenal.

Here’s a couple considerations you don't mention that you may want to take into account when choosing between an LCD and a plasma.

LCD:

• The screen is mat. It does not reflect objects in your room like plasma.
• The screen adjusts brightness automatically according to room lighting.
• Less prone to burn-in. A fair amount of programming is still in 4/3 format with black banding on the sides.
• Screen brightness does not fall off with age as much as a plasma.

Plasma:

• About one, to one-and-one-half, inch thinner than an LCD.
• Cheaper than an LCD.
• Available in LARGE sizes.

[Jim727]

Originally posted by Capt. Carrera
I have a Sharp Aquos 46" LCD HDTV. As Wayne says, at 6" you can see a touch of pixlation. At 3 feet it's not noticeable.

Football games look phenomenal.

Here’s a couple considerations you don't mention that you may want to take into account when choosing between an LCD and a plasma.

LCD:

• The screen is mat. It does not reflect objects in your room like plasma.
• The screen adjusts brightness automatically according to room lighting.
• Less prone to burn-in. A fair amount of programming is still in 4/3 format with black banding on the sides.
• Screen brightness does not fall off with age as much as a plasma.

Plasma:

• About one, to one-and-one-half, inch thinner than an LCD.
• Cheaper than an LCD.
• Available in LARGE sizes.

Ditto - especially the matte finish. We looked at plasma and lcd. Plasma had a persistence that made viewing very tiring after a very short time; plasma also had a mirror-like screen that was very annoying with reflections. Watch out for stores that mount their plasma sets overhead at an angle as that hides the reflectivity problem.

Finally settled on a Sharp Aquos 42" LCD. Fantastic in every way - we love it. Got it at Magnolia for $2100 out the door including a 3-month upgrade to HD from the cable company.

[jbripps]

Hi,

I recently purchased the 50" Panasonic Plasma, AND I LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT. Fetched it for under 2K as well. Last year, the same set was almost 4K.

I've watched several HD football games, and the picture is just incredible. I agree that LCD's are overpriced, and that the picture lacks in certain respects. I have a very bright room where the set is, and the glare is much less than it was with my older projection and glass tube tv.

Make sure that you upgrade your cable to HD, and on a side note, my picture ended up being better when I connected with component cables, rather than the HDMI setup. I was surprised at that.

I also have the phillips 23" LCD HD set, and it's performance is very weak compared to the plasma. Did I say that I LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT?

Consumer reports ranked the panasonic number 1, and best bang for the buck. If it only lasts 10 years, I don't care, cuz it will be obsolete by then. I think the reason the prices have dropped is because the progressive tv's are the new rage. Mine is interlaced (1080p vs. 1080i).

I learned a lot when I researched these sets on the website below. It's the Pelican site for A/V gurus.

www.avsforum.com

Have fun in your search,

[stevepaa]

I bought a SONY 46 LCD XBR2 and am very pleased. Football in HD is great.

[rcecale]

Steve,

Was that a Bravia unit you bought? My wife and I were looking at one of those yesterday. What a fantastic picture!!!

Randy

[stevepaa]

RANDY,
Yes, the new 46" BRAVIA™ XBR® LCD Flat Panel HDTV KDL-46XBR2.


Wonderful picture and a great looking TV.

[rcecale]

Originally posted by stevepaa
Wonderful picture and a great looking TV.

It really is a beautiful set. I love the floating effect with the glass, and the way the lights at the bottom light up. A bit "gimmicky", but it still looks cool...IMHO.

This is the one we're leaning towards. I've always thought Sony had one of the better displays in their tube televisions. In our family room, we've got a 40" WEGA (KV-40XBR800) and we love it. It's going to have to be something with the quality of yours to replace it. The Bravia is well up to the task.

Randy

[red-beard]

What you are noticing is the limitation of 720p. I purchased 3 HDTVs in 2004 and all of them were 1080i.

I'm in the market for a nice widescreen TV, but it will be 1080i or 1080p.

[DaveE]

We just bought a 40" Sony Bravia and love the picture.

[coldstart]

I got a 42" LCD TV. An offbrand (Olevia by Syntax) but it got great reviews and looks great and cost much less with a 3-year warranty than the name brand equivalents outright. I didn't want a plasma for personal reasons.

The picture is amazing. Sports on HD are a whole new ballgame.

[Halm]

As I learned from my son-in-law over Christmas, a lot has changed over the last 2 years with this technology. My advice would be to go HERE and learn. It is the "Pelican Parts" for audio video enthusisasts.

IMHO, 1080p is the best spec we can hope for. Unfortunately the DVD world is still in a format war and no major broadcasting company has announced (that I have seen or heard) to change to it. XBox and Playstation3 do use 1080p.

[Big Ed]

Originally posted by coldstart
I didn't want a plasma for personal reasons.

Neighbor you don't like has a plasma and you wanted to get LCD so you could tell him he's a putz, nobody is buying plasmas anymore?

[Lothar]

Bought a Sony WEGA Gate 42" LCD rear projection. The picture is great and very adjustable. I am very pleased. I payed quite a bit more back in February, but I've been enjoying it for 10 months now and don't regret jumping in when I did.

The main reason for buying the 42 was that it fit in our entertainment center with about a half inch to spare on each side. Fits like a glove. The speakers are not side mounted so the overall width is about 40 inches.