Plasma vs. LCD??
 

Ok, our move is fast approaching (we close on both houses on Monday and move this Friday...) and we are starting to look at what we want to do with the new house.

Of course, my first order of business is selecting the TV for the new family room. The room it will be going into is a very high ceiling room with lots of windows on one side. I would like to wall mount the TV above the fireplace, but there is a builtin next to the fireplace that has a TV slot, that would be a fallback option.

The TV is either going to be our primary set or a close secondary set, there is a media room in the house that I plan to finish out and install a large front projection setup in. I think we would go up there to really watch TV, but I can also see us using the set in the living room alot too.

So, I am trying to decide between plasma and LCD, I don't want the TV to dominate the room so I think I am looking at 42" or smaller.

Any A/V gurus want to opine?

Go with Plasma or DLP. Got a Dell 42" plasma 3 years ago still goes strong, got a 72" Panasonic DLP about the same time, love it!! for are 1080p capable (note to self: need to buy Blue Ray or HD-DVD).

Not a fan of LCD's.

YMMV

The low end LCDs have contrast ratios of 1000 to 1600 to 1. That will not work, even though the pricing for that level 42" is now in the $999 range. You need a contrast ratio of 3000:1 for a good theater experience. Plasma has gotten better, but used to be particularly vulnerable to burn-in and burn out (shorter life than LCD).

There is a new technology with 2X the refresh rate that's hitting the stores that makes an observable difference in quality. Worth looking at. I'm pretty sure it's LCD-only.

Whichever technology you choose -- and the differences are much smaller than they used to be -- make sure you watch some standard-signal TV to be sure you can live with the result. All the in-store displays are HD, but what you're getting from your cable or an antenna can look awful on some current HDTVs.

We just bought a flat-panel LCD (42" Aquos 1080p) and love it. One of the major deciding factors for us was the highly-reflective nature of the Plasma screens. Since you mention having lots of windows that may be an issue for you as well. Lots of stores mount screens to minimize reflections or put them in darkened rooms.

IIRC Plasmas that I saw in most big box stores were not 1080p although those are avail. Check carefully before you buy.

LCD's seem sharper to me, but the colors of Plasmas seem more vibrant. If you're interested in energy consumption, I think plasmas are a lot more.

I bought a plasma 4 years ago because it had a much better picture than an LCD. They probably still do, but the LCDs are getting cheaper and they are taking over the market. Just go to Circuit City and you can see that.
The HD picture on the plasma is unbeatable at 1080i. The color and the contrast is the best. But they may not be as reliable--mine picked up some ghosts within the past year on the non-HD--the built-in tuner needs some fixing. I've let it go since the HD thru the cable box is perfect, but will have to fix it eventually.

I'm getting green vertical ghosts and thin red crosslines on non HD channels. It dissipates mostly after the set has warmed up for 30 minutes or so.

Any mechanics out there have any insights into the problem?
I have a built-in tuner and also an HD Comcast cablebox. The ghosts are also there in my DVD player. It's not the cable.

When viewing Plasma TVs, watch the background. Any good busy static background - grass or a forest etc. Is it crawling? In other words, does it appear to move? Many plasmas suffer from this. And watch for a good diagonal line. Is it stair-stepped?

And always check the off-axis view of an LCD. Is the viewing angle wide enough for your sitting area?

Ian

I have yet to see a plasma do a native 1080-anything. (they all interpolated to squeeze into a native 768.) Also Plasma have heavy masking --the black grid between the pixels. THey run hotter and use more juice.

IMO, 1080p (native) is too important. This means LCD or DLP.

I did some research on AVS Forum before I got a Pioneer 50" plasma. In your situation, I believe you'd be better off with LCD because of the light coming in from the windows in the room. Many folks on AVS swear by Roman at Invasion Displays. I found him top-notch in every respect when I bought mine and would recommend you chat with him.

There is a "formula" for recommended screen size for a given viewing distance, and 42" might be too small. You'll lose that "immersed" feeling, but I understand your concern about the screen dominating the room. From what I've read, 1080i is overkill, unless you're extremely close to the screen.

I sit farther away than what "the formula" sez and 1080p still rocks! I can understand if you have poor eyesight, or will be sitting much farther away than "formula" that then going with a lower res is just fine. --But there certainly is little down-side to haveing more pixels. :)

Oops, I meant 1080p is overkill at greater than very close range. That's what I've gathered from perusing the AVS Forum. I'm sure 1080p rocks, but I doubt you can see any difference from 1080i. The downside to 1080p is the extra cost for no perceptible return. Last time my eyes were checked, they were 20/15 & 20/13. That wasn't very recently, though.

Here's a chart that seems useful:
http://www.engadgethd.com/2006/12/09/1080p-charted-viewing-distance-to-screen-size/

Rick- another thing to consider is what kind of TV to get based on what kind of signal you're giving it. Standard cable, digital, high-definition input will influence your choice. A HD screen will look horrible with an analog signal.

First, I HATE flicker. I have been paying a premium for many decades to avoid/minimize screen flicker. Progressive scan LCD's have been my cmptr-screen saviour since 1995. On CRT-types, I can not only see flicker, I can also tell you the scan rate with just a quick glance. --60hz is gawd-awful . ..72hz is annoying, 85 & 90hz are tougher to distiguish...

Now if you are comparing a 1080i to a 1080p signal, on an LCD, it's not so easy, as the 1080i has been converted to be displayed progressively for the LCD. If you are comparing a 1080p LCD to a 1080i plasma there is no contest. (LCD kicks butt) --The 1080i demos always have slow panning or static "flower" shots for a reason. ;)

IMO even 720p is superior to 1080i for anything with motion. --I've seen lots of fights fought on that topic. So, YMMV.

I have a 36" CRT Sony with 1080i. It is heavy (deters theft) and has a very good picture. The thing that impresses me is the detail on nature type programs. In a scene where there is a lot of greenery you swear you can see every individual blade of grass and tree leaf. I know squat about liquid crystal or the other non CRT methids, but next time around I will be forced to learn!!

We got a 42" over Christmas and I thought it was too big when we first got it... now I want a 50"... go BIG!

Thanks for all the great input. To answer a couple questions:

I am not really looking for a "theatre" experience. That will be taken care of (in spades) by my dedicated media room once it is completed. I am going all the way, home theatre seats, overhead front projection, biggest screen I can fit, 7.1 audio, velvet (or whatever they are made out of) blackout curtains over the windows, sconces on the walls, real popcorn machine, playbill over the door...etc.

We are really just looking for a quality set that will work for daily viewing, I will have it set up for 5.1 surround (just because the room is prewired).

Second, the input will be probably a dish system (not sure whether to get DishNetwork or DirecTv yet) with HD channels and DVD. My current system spends about 70% of the time on regular channels and 30% of the time on HD or DVD. I can relate to what Tech is saying about the standard TV, it does not look good on my current 55" widescreen HD RPTV.

I am leaning towards the LCD from what I have read, I had problems with burn in on my current set and don't want to fight that again (even if plasmas are not as susceptible as they used to be). If I can get an LCD set with a good refresh rate and such, I think it will work well, it will use less juice than a plasma and weigh much less which will make a wall mounting much easier than a plasma if we decide to go that route.

You needn't worry about LCDs with a good refresh rate. . .they are all 60fps right now. And, because they don't pulse the pixel, like a plasma, the LCDs don't flicker. :)

Today's LCDs are much better than previous generations. However, contrast is still better on the better plasma units. Like anything else there is a huge difference between brands.

As mentioned on another thread I went with a Maxent 50" plasma from Costco. Long story short I brought it back for a refund (they've since changed their return policy). The 1080i images were not well defined and the background seemed to move, as mentioned above. I invested my $$$ back into a 50" Pioneer ($2650) and the result is night and day compared to other sets...simply amazing.

The reflection on the glass will be noticeable in a bright, windowed room.

The LCDs, especially Sony Bravia, are amazing as well but very pricey in 50".

I agree with getting the biggest set in your budget. You'll get used to the size quickly and it won't seem as large as you initially thought.

42" Sharp Aquous LCD, has 3M proprietary Vikuiti film, hands down the best.

I second BGCarrera32's recommendation. Another thing to look for is the wide color gammet back lights if you want nicer colors (there is greater green output making sports etc look much better). Too bad most stores do not put the TVs in darker rooms so that you can really tell the contrast/picture differences between sets. LCDs look 10x better than plasmas in a dark room. I would go to the store and really pay attention to the quality of the image of the different sets you are interested in. Look for things like brightness, brightness uniformity, viewing angle, contrast, and the screen door effect. Another technology to check out is LCOS if you are not opposed to the micro projection sets. They are very bright, have good contrast and response times.

Thanks for the recommendation, I will definitely look into the Sharp set!