I need advice on plasma, lcd, dlp, or rear projection purchase.

 

New member
Username: Roboss

Fresno, CA USA

Post Number: 2
Registered: May-06
I'm looking some objective advice(non-salesperson)on a HDtv purchase. I know audio well, but not video. I have a modified Denon 3910 that isn't going anywhere, so HD DVD and BluRay won't be in the picture. I will use the tv for DVD's, sports, and other tv watching.

Thank you.
 

Silver Member
Username: Rysa4

Post Number: 471
Registered: Jul-05
Sports is best displayed in 720P via ESPN and ABC--both of which broadcast in 720P. Other TV watching means SD, or standard Definition, and DVDs through the 3910 are output at 480P.

Given the above viewing material/sources the best display is an extended definition, not a high definition display. SD material looks terrible on an HD display due to massive upscaling.

DLP single color wheel technology is inaccuarte and slowly being replaced in the market place by DLP LED technology such as the displays just coming out from Samsung.

Most rear projection displays arent very gppd and their footprint is too large quite frankly. Rear projection LCD displays are available but lose in picture quality relative to flat displays.

LCDs are bright and have excellent clarity in their pictures. The refresh rate is slow however so motion artifact can occur in sports viewing. Viewing angles are limited relative to plasma and contrast ratios are uniformly poor due to black level issues ( lightbulbs can't display black shades as its an on-off thing, so poor shadow detail.

That being said, the lighting conditions of your room are important. If viewing is in the dark, then Plasma ED is best for you. STick with a Panasonic for this size and resolution, and try and purchase online to save money.

If you view in brightly lit rooms or with the sun over your shoulder on display, then Plasma has too much glare and the contrast ratio advantage disappears, in this instance I'd go with a Samsung LCD or a Sony SXRD display. SXRD is LCos, or Liquid Crystal on Silicon. Sort of like LCD except the light reflection paths are different.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Imustbecrazy

Post Number: 59
Registered: Sep-05
Robert;

We need more infomation. How much space will the tv have i.e. huge rec room or a kitchen counter. Thickness. Light. Your budget.
 

Silver Member
Username: Ncavman

Post Number: 129
Registered: Dec-03
Marc: "SD material looks terrible on an HD display due to massive upscaling. "

That is not exactly true in all cases. SD TV on HD Elite plasmas, using the Pio internal scaler, looks much better than SD TV on other display technologies. I have tried this on HD LCD, HD RPTV, HD CRT, and HD plasma, all using the same SD source (SA8300HD), and SD TV looks better on the HD plasma with more perceived detail than all others.

My point: HD plasma does not necessarily mean SD will look bad. In some cases (Elite for one) the display can make the original SD signal look BETTER.
 

Silver Member
Username: Rysa4

Post Number: 476
Registered: Jul-05
My comment is not comparing one to the other; I havent found SD signals to look good on any HD display. What "looking good" means to me may not be the same as to what others define as looking good.

I'd rather see SD on an SD CRT display anyday. The blacks are better and there is no need for any scaling.
 

Silver Member
Username: Ncavman

Post Number: 130
Registered: Dec-03
Understood. Let's hope more HD is available soon so that we don't need to watch SD as much.
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