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In Reply to: RE: Display Selection Help posted by Vic D on March 15, 2008 at 18:02:14
>>So far I'm interested in another XBR or the Pioneer KURO/Elite<<
The Sonys ain't what they used to be. The Sony LCDs are made by S-LCD in Korea, which is a joint venture between Samsung and Sony. The ideal outcome of this JV would have been that Samsung's quality was brought up, but what actually transpired is that it furthered Sony's slide down.
I'm not a Sony-basher - I own quite a few Sony products, including a recently purchased Sony FP, but I would not buy a Sony television.
The Kuro plasmas are nice, but they are soon to be orphaned. Pioneer will be buying Panasonic plasma panels going forward. Although Pioneer may uprate the electronics on the Pioneer-branded sets, the Panasonics are already very good. Given the short market lifespan of digital televisions, it's probably better to save the money and just get a Panasonic.
Speaking of which - I've done a lot of comparisons, and my opinion is that plasma is the way to go in large flat panels. LCD can be quite nice on smaller sets. We have a 32" Toshiba LCD in a second home, and it produces a pleasing picture; however, I've found that when you go larger, the inherent limitations of LCD become more visible.
LCD has made big strides in black level and motion artifacts, but it's still nowhere near plasma (which has yet to reach CRT quality in these areas). A big LCD set clearly shows that the "blacks" are really gray (albeit dark gray), and you still can see some blurring on fast motion, even on the really expensive sets. To me, SD signals look absolutely horrid on an LCD. At this point I would not consider going larger than 32" (maybe 37") on an LCD television.
I guess this is a long-winded way of saying: buy a Panasonic plasma.
Follow Ups:
helping a local guy pick out a new set and suggesting that if he can find room for a 42 inch set, to go with the Panasonic plasma. But I'm delighted with the 32 inch Panasonic LCD in my exercise room and have noticed no artifacts of the type others describe, The blacks seem very black on axis, to charcoal gray way off axis. Meanwhile, I've always been very happy with the CRT projection display on my Sony in the den, and run a Panasonic AE100U 720p LCD projector in my "main" projection room.
Interestingly, I haven't seen any Panasonic LCD sets bigger than 32 inches in the stores, only 26- and 32-inch models. And then everything in panasonic 42 inches and above becomes Plasma. I think if you want a 37 incher you are forced into other brands.
My Panasonic LCD is made in their plant in Mexico, and I suspect the Plasma panels might be as well.
D
You mentioned "SD signals" standard definition signals? Do the plasmas do a better job on typical standard programing than LCD's? Will this still be an issue when the digital mandate takes effect?
Vic
Yes, SD = standard definition. I find SD signals to be more watchable on our plasma TV than on other digital TVs we own. If I have to watch an analog-source channel, and I have a choice, I head for the room that's got my Loewe Aconda CRT direct view TV. It's still the best I've seen in this area.
This will still be an issue when the the "digital mandate" takes effect. The mandate is nothing more than a requirement for analog broadcasters to switch to digital broadcasting. It doesn't force anyone to change anything else in the signal chain, so production facilities that are still using analog video devices can continue to do so.
For comparison purposes - I believe you mentioned you have Comcast cable service. I'm assuming you have their "digital" service. What they do now with analog SD signals is convert them to digital, squeeze the crap out of them to minimize bandwidth, then send them down the wire. Same with digital satellite service. This is and will be the same with digital OTA broadcasting.
It's going to be a long, long time before everything converts to an all-digital chain. Even longer before everything goes HD. Many of us here will not be alive to see it.
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