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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"Unbelievable Picture Quality - Remarkable"
Pros: Black level, Resolution, Color, Contrast, I/O flexibility, price
Cons: Bulk of chassis, mass (got a spare lifting truss you can wear?)
Summary: I just took delivery of this the other day. While I have not completely tweaked all the settings, I have gotten it close (to my eyes) to being ideal - the Video Essentials DVD is next on my list. I have not even had time to look into the cable card options / benefits / drawbacks, so what follows are initial impressions using the DVR and DVD in my home. I have not even connected the cable feed to this TV's tuner yet - just the S-video and component video feeds.
All that I can say is that I have found the picture quality to be stunning - breathtaking even. Granted, this was my first step into HD / widescreen territory, but it is so much better than my 8 year-old 27-inch (4:3) analog Sony XBR, and so much better than anything else that I looked at. This is not to say that this is THE BEST anywhere (there may be something better...), but it IS the best that I have seen, and I did a fair amount of shopping.
I was on the fence between this and one of the Panasonic industrial plasma monitors due to their comparatively lower bulk and weight factors (this set is heavy my friends). I was leaning this way initially as those had gotten very good reviews here on CNET and thought that this might be better from an aesthetic point of view. While I thought the Panasonic displays were very good (and larger to boot - 42" vs. 34"), ultimately this was several hundred dollars cheaper...AND...looked better (to my eyes). Yes, I tweaked each set while in the store(s) away from the nasty "Vivid" modes and tried to get them as close as possible in terms of contrast, color satuation, hue, contrast etc (much to the chagrin of more than one salesperson). Granted, the Panasonic 42" plasma would have made more of an aesthetic 'statement' and been easier to move about, in the end though, what mattered (and matters) most to me was / is picture quality. After all, you don't buy a pair of awful-sounding speakers just because they look good (well...maybe some people do); the same is true here - I couldn't force myself to buy a display device whose picture was not quite as good (at a higher cost) in the interest of cleaner form factor. You may be different and in your TV room / HT setting may very well opt for that instead.
SOURCES: As far as sources are concerend, I am running an old Sony DVD player (component out which now supplants its S-video output that I was using) as well as digital cable (via the Motorola DVR's component outputs). I have yet to go the DVI / HDMI route (patience...) but can say that even with component inputs from the cable box (through my preamp / processor), the picture is amazing. Now, as for the HD signals on the cable, well all I can say is that they are absolutely phenomenal; Discovery HD, HBO HD etc are incredible...I mean...simply incredible; the level of contrast and detail make you think you are looking out of a window rather than watching electronic images.
Do I Really Want to See This?: First, my cable system's lower tier of channels leave a lot to be desired in terms of signal to noise ratio. This was visible on my analog 27" 4:3 XBR, but is now all the more apparent. Of course, blaming this TV for that is akin to grousing about a great set of speakers because they allow you to hear just how poor a given recording may be. in short, this picture is very, very accurate.
OMG...this thing is heavy: Hands down, Plasma / LCD / DLP are better alternatives in terms of mass and small(er) footprints, mounting options etc. However, if you have the room then this is a small drawback and something that should not prevent you from considering this as your main video display. This bad boy tips the scales at 194 lb. On the plus side though, the depth of this is actually within 1 inch of that of my old 27" 4:3 XBR; it is wider (of course), but not so much that it visually dominates the room nor makes putting it in place of the existing TV space-prohibitive. Frankly, I'd like the cabinet around the screen to be thinner than it is, but ...c'est la vie. Anyway, I opted for delivery (something to think about) as I just didn't want to deal with schlepping something like this about (a round trip plane ticket for a Sherpa is pricier than home delivery). I'm glad that I did as we had to move it slightly on the stand (we didn't opt for the Sony stand), and it's at times like those when you realize just how much it weighs.
Sound: I can't say anything about this aspect as I am routing the optical signal(s) from the cable box (as well as my other sources) through a preamp / processor for playback in my 5.1 / 7.1 home theater system. So, if good sound quality is an issue for you (i.e. who will not hook this up to a HT system for audio) then you should probably plan on looking into that aspect. Still, it's worth noting that the audio outputs include (and possibly more) good ol' analog L & R as well as an optical (TOSLINK) output for 5.1 audio interface to a preamp / receiver later on.
In short if you are after a great picture at a reasonable cost (and can live with the disapproval of those who will ask (and you will be asked) why you didn't get a Plasma display instead), lots of features, inputs, outputs etc, and can live with the weight and volume, then give this TV strong consideration. If you are anything like me...you won't be disappointed.
Granted, you CANNOT say that any CRT is better than ANY plasma or any LCD etc; what I can say is that this is the best I have seen, and so far, barring any difficulties, I am and will be very pleased with my selection.
Mark
