HDTV Recommendations

[tkam]

I'm looking to get my first HDTV and right now these two are at the top of my list:

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-4hNQdT9K5AE/cgi-bin/prodview.asp?I=305hls5679&wm=cl

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-3V6SbpYDHGy/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=147350&I=15855A2000

My seating area is about 8 ft away so I'm thinking something in the 50" - 55" range would be just about perfect. The Samsung is about the top of my budget and I'd really prefer to spend less.

[DigiPete]

I would get the Sony. I also heard a rumor the LED Samsung is having problems.

[n_maher]

My seating area is about 8 ft away so I'm thinking something in the 50" - 55" range would be just about perfect. The Samsung is about the top of my budget and I'd really prefer to spend less.

In my experience 50 to 55" is going to look massive if you're less than 15' away. I had a 34" in my living room for a week with a seating position about like yours and even that felt overly large but part of that was the fact that it was a CRT and had a pretty big cabinet with it. I'd think something more along the lines of a 42" would be plenty for the size room you're dealing with not to mention that you'd be able to cut your budget in half. Sony 3LCD (dlp-like) 42"ers were going for $999 on sale last weekend. I almost picked up one as a holdover until I figure out exactly what I'm going to be doing for an HT setup.

[DigiPete]

I sit 9' away from my 52" Toshiba and it is just fine.

Actually my next set will be 56-60" since I will be watching a lot more hi-def

[hirsch]

In my experience 50 to 55" is going to look massive if you're less than 15' away. I had a 34" in my living room for a week with a seating position about like yours and even that felt overly large but part of that was the fact that it was a CRT and had a pretty big cabinet with it. I'd think something more along the lines of a 42" would be plenty for the size room you're dealing with not to mention that you'd be able to cut your budget in half. Sony 3LCD (dlp-like) 42"ers were going for $999 on sale last weekend. I almost picked up one as a holdover until I figure out exactly what I'm going to be doing for an HT setup.

My TV's HD area is about 49" in 16:9 mode (53" in 4:3). I'm happy about eight feet away. However, after watching Dave1's 100" screen from about 20 feet away, my set seems kinda small.

I'd contemplated a larger set (had actually planned to upgrade this year), but I like the picture on my set. I've also noticed that 4:3 sets do 16:9 a lot better than 16:9 sets do 4:3, and I've got a lot of 4:3 source material. My set handles 1080i nicely via component input, which is good enough for now. The move to HDMI means that I can't go to Blue Ray or HD-DVD without upgrading my set or finding a workaround (I actually can do HD-DVD by going through my X-Box 360 if I spend $200 for the outboard player, at least for now, but have no real desire to do so (no telling when a firmware patch will close this loophole)). To this day, I feel that a 4:3 rear projection CRT with 16:9 modes including 480p and 1080i was a great move.

[Grand Enigma]

The SXRDs are amazing! My brotherinlaw just got the 60" or whatever version... the thing is incredible.... it kills me too he got it for $1,500... stupid him working as a buyer for some company...

[en480c4]

From a local hi-fi chain's site:

Q: What TV screen size is best for my room?

A: Here's a good rule of thumb. If you're looking at an HDTV, then take the seating distance to the screen in inches and divide that by 2.5. Let's say your distance is 12 feet, which is 144 inches. Using this formula, your optimum screen size would be 144 ? 2.5 = 57 inches. So a 56-inch size screen would fit your needs best. By the way, this works for any type of TV you're considering.

So 8' = 96"

96" ? 2.5 = 38.4"

So in theory, a 37" would be perfect, and a 40-42" would be on the upper end of things. And this is coming from people who are trying to make money off of you, and they don't recommend anything bigger. Just food for thought.

[DigiPete]

So in theory, a 37" would be perfect, and a 40-42" would be on the upper end of things. And this is coming from people who are trying to make money off of you, and they don't recommend anything bigger. Just food for thought.

Well, that may be true for VHS sources and crappy standard def sources....

For high def sources 720p, 1080I/P something along the lines of 6-7" diagonal screen size, per foot of viewing distance is more rational.

[909]

If you haven't checked out the Audio-Video Forum, you should....

Here's the link:

http://www.avsforum.com/

They might give specifics.

I recently got a 50" Pioneer (5070). Based on my research, it's thought it?s best to sit about 8 to 9 feet from the 50" HDTV otherwise the further back you sit the less you actually can appreciate the HD content. Yet I am not sitting that close, probably around 10 feet. I?ve also read (from more than one source) sitting further back from the sweet spot it?s next to impossible to tell the difference between a true HDTV (1080) and one that?s close or converting up.

I had originally thought I was going to get a Panasonic. It seemed based on my research it was the best choice. But once in the stores and I went to tons to my eye I thought the Pioneer overall was better. I don?t know much about the HDTVs you are considering. But you should really watch them with your own eyes before you make your purchase.

[en480c4]

Well, that may be true for VHS sources and crappy standard def sources....

For high def sources 720p, 1080I/P something along the lines of 6-7" diagonal screen size, per foot of viewing distance is more rational.

I'm pretty sure the distance/2.5 rule would be good for viewing 480p sources, and considering I won't be updating my 350+ DVD's anytime soon, that's the route I'm going to take. HD-DVD & Blu-Ray are great, but there's so much ED material out there that going much bigger than that is asking for disappointment with a good portion of source material out there. Not to mention the standard def stuff that will be hanging around for years.

[n_maher]

Well, that may be true for VHS sources and crappy standard def sources....

At least for me the majority of my viewing is still standard def so I'd rather have a somewhat smaller screen that doesn't make low-def source material look like ass. But as I said the first time, that's just for me. By all means if you want a giant TV go for it. The way I see it the technology is just going to keep progressing and until there's an actual high-def standard paying for the latest and greatest makes no sense. Is 1080P cool, sure, but it's only supported by Blu-Ray. And most of the TV's that support it only support 1080p meaning that they have to upconvert every other signal. I'd rather have a 720p/1080i TV that is able to take the "current standard" high def signal and display it natively, without conversion. The other way that I look at it is if I can get a 42" 720p TV for under a grand that doesn't hurt so bad that if I want to replace it in 5 years I can.

[DigiPete]

Nate,

Your logic is good.

I just got an HD-DVD player and now have seen the holy grail....

By the way HD-DVD does 1080p also, if you get the new higher-end Toshiba unit HD-XA2. But all source material on HD or Blu-ray is 1080/24 or 1080/30 anyway,

so it doesn't matter if you have 1080/i or p, as long as your set properly deinterlaces.

Even my 720p set looks noticably better with hi-def, so I imagine a 1080 set really shines.

I hear the SXRDs are not optimal with SD sources, so that is another consideration.

Pete

[tkam]

I ended up going with the Sony KDS-55A2000 it arrived on Monday and I've been enjoying it ever since. Just waiting on Comcast to come and install their HD box next Friday and I think I'll pick up one of the Toshiba HD-XA2's soon. That should cover the video side of things for now.

[en480c4]

Congrats on the new TV...

I picked up a great deal on the Samsung HLS4266W 42" DLP ($899 @ CC) but a wide-spread issue with the screen (manufacturing issues) that created curved light lines (referred to as "Black Grass" on most forums and in reviews) at the top and bottom of the screen were too much. I had read about it, and it seemed to vary in intensity and how much people were bothered by it. At the price it was selling, I figured it was worth trying. I didn't notice it much watching standard-def stuff, but when watching DVDs, especially darker ones, it became the only thing I could see. So I returned it.

I wanted to pick up the 42" Sony 3-LCD TV because the 42" was damn-near the perfect size for my living room and on my TV stand, but most places didn't sell it, and those that did were charging more than what I ended up paying for the Sony KDF46E2000 46" 3-LCD TV. So I ended up going wtih the 46" and couldn't be happier. It's probably a little too big for my place, but it looks great. And after using the Avia DVD to get it calibrated, the picture is stunning. It's even pretty good with standard-def through TiVo, though I think the video upconversion done by the my HK receiver is probably to thank for this.

Anyway, here's a pic:

[Grand Enigma]

Hurray for Sony 3-LCD

[DigiPete]

Nice!

Is that the SXRD2 ?

[n_maher]

Well, the year-end bonus checks came in today so it looks like I'll be joining the HDTV ranks. I should be ordering a 42" Sony 3-lcd later today, it's back down to $999 again and at that price it's impossible to pass up.

[en480c4]

Well, the year-end bonus checks came in today so it looks like I'll be joining the HDTV ranks. I should be ordering a 42" Sony 3-lcd later today, it's back down to $999 again and at that price it's impossible to pass up.

[n_maher]

There's not a store within 50 miles that has a 42" 3-LCD HDTV in stock. :'( The 46 is too big and I haven't found an LCD that I like that has a price I can live with. I guess I'll be holding off on the purchase for a bit...

[n_maher]

Well, by a stroke of good fortune I happened to stop by my local HiFi store the Friday before New Years to talk to a salesman that I've known for the better part of 10 years. The place had previously told me that the had no 42's in stock and no access to any more but when my boy Gary fired up the computer there was one. It was at another store and still NIB. 10 days later it's mine and looking fantastic in the living room! So as GE said, "Hurray for Sony 3-LCD."

FYI - I guess Sony has disco'd this TV but at $999 it was a deal too good to pass up.

[tkam]

Nice catch, I'm loving my Sony 55A2000.

[HiWire]

My computer is my HDTV right now... courtesy of the ATI TV Wonder 650.