Need a new DLP 55"-65"

MaxCast · « **on:** 13 Mar 2007, 06:01 pm »

I will be buying a new TV soon and am really leaning toward a DLP.
Room is 21x26 with the TV on the 26' wall.
Bright room with windows facing south (I live in MI).
Only have a regular DVD player (may upgrade to a Oppo) and will be getting Comcast dig cable and HDTV.
I will be using a pio 1014 receiver.

Would like to have
HDMI version?
1080P
I will not be getting a HD-DVD unless prices come down by the time I'm tired of my panny dvd or it breaks.

I have read a little about LED bulbs vs. a regular bulb and it interests me.
Can some one explain up conversion to me please?
Any other suggestions/recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Thanks

ekovalsky · « **Reply #1 on:** 15 Mar 2007, 12:32 am »

I have a 65" Mitsubishi HD-65732 in the master bedroom. Resolution is 1080p. It has a fantastic picture, at least as good as a Sony Qualia 006 we have in another room. Pricing is reasonable too.

MaxCast · « **Reply #2 on:** 15 Mar 2007, 10:58 am »

Thanks, eko.
My friend has a Mits 65 and have watched some standard dig feeds and HD feeds of games during poker night. HD is very impressive...this coming from a 27" standard cable watcher. My wife of all people is actually pushing for a new TV so I will be getting one soon as I get the increase in the cable bill approval

Have you had any issues with the red color being too much?

My leading candidates are Samsung and Sony will check out the Mits as well. I will be visiting a BB this weekend hopefully.

TF1216 · « **Reply #3 on:** 15 Mar 2007, 11:12 am »

If you are willing to consider JVC's rendition of the LCOS technology please check out this guy when you go to Best Buy. I would like to know your impressions if you have the time.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7699092&st=jvc+iris&lp=4&type=product&cp=1&id=1138084694149

MaxCast · « **Reply #4 on:** 15 Mar 2007, 12:29 pm »

I will, actually, when I first saw D-ila I was impressed with the reflection. At that time I had a really bright room with windows across the back. When I saw D=ila I saw much less reflection compared to other projection tvs at BB.

The problem is most BB's have a canned HD signal running and most TV's look good. My guess is that we will be viewing an analogue or digital signal about 70% of the time.

crossroadazn · « **Reply #5 on:** 15 Mar 2007, 01:54 pm »

How about Samsung HLS-6187W for $1608 shipped now on sale at Frysdotcom. Excellent DLP TV I bought 2 for my friends at $3000+tax last year.

ctviggen · « **Reply #6 on:** 15 Mar 2007, 03:08 pm »

I don't think HDMI version is important. I also think if you're going to be watching 4x3 TV, you should test out how the set converts from 4x3 to 16x9. The best conversion is a scaling that fits the entire 4x3 picture in the 16x9 picture. Other conversions will stretch the picture and leave stuff off the bottom and top. Some of the stretching can get to look a little wacky.

MaxCast · « **Reply #7 on:** 15 Mar 2007, 04:40 pm »

Thanks for the tips, guys.

I don't know what set to buy.
I'd rather decipher the difference between 7 9's copper vs. 8 9's copper cables

ekovalsky · « **Reply #8 on:** 16 Mar 2007, 04:32 am »

I have not had a real calibration, just adjusted the settings to my own preferences. The color balance is very pleasing to me. Both my wife and I think the HD picture is fantastic; luckily we get just about everything via cox cable at 720p or 1080i. That said, SD looks about as good as it can.

The Qualia 006 (Sony SXRCD similar to LCOS) took a lot more tweaking to get a picture that may not be any better. It definitely is not as bright, although it is larger at 70".

The 1080p D-ILA technology is very good too. So good that I chose it for my media room front projector (JVD DLA-RS1).

Personally I would not buy a television or projection without HDMI. Not only is it the (evolving) standard, but I like the convenience of having just one cable connecting source and television. Particularly when shoe-horning a 65" set into an armoire or a 70" set into a wall of built-ins!

Quote from: MaxCast on 15 Mar 2007, 10:58 am

Thanks, eko.
My friend has a Mits 65 and have watched some standard dig feeds and HD feeds of games during poker night. HD is very impressive...this coming from a 27" standard cable watcher. My wife of all people is actually pushing for a new TV so I will be getting one soon as I get the increase in the cable bill approval

Have you had any issues with the red color being too much?

My leading candidates are Samsung and Sony will check out the Mits as well. I will be visiting a BB this weekend hopefully.

MaxCast · « **Reply #9 on:** 18 Mar 2007, 06:26 pm »

Went to BB. I have to say I was not impressed with the 61" JVC. The 56" JVC next to it looked better. The BB man said the 56 was brand new and the 61 has been there awhile stating the bulb is old. He said with TV's on 18 hours a day every day they diminish over time.....great.
The Sammy looked good and so did the Mits. However the JVC still handled reflection of light sources better.
Jury still out until I can look some more.

TomS · « **Reply #10 on:** 18 Mar 2007, 06:35 pm »

I have the 61" JVC 1080p and love it (pics in my gallery). You are right about the reflection. I have a rear wall with large windows that we usually have covered for movies, but day to day we have a large translucent pleated blind on them. The JVC doesn't seem as sensitive to this as some others. Oh, and the HDMI input is definitely a must. My set is about 1 year old with no problems at all. I'm using the Arcam DV-79 DVD, but have an Oppo 981 on the way soon. Overall, we're very pleased with it. I compared to the Sony SXRD at the time, but they had the speaker "wings" back then which made it too wide for us. Now they have the SXRD w/o them.

Tom

zybar · « **Reply #11 on:** 18 Mar 2007, 06:46 pm »

Quote from: TomS on 18 Mar 2007, 06:35 pm

I have the 61" JVC 1080p and love it (pics in my gallery). You are right about the reflection. I have a rear wall with large windows that we usually have covered for movies, but day to day we have a large translucent pleated blind on them. The JVC doesn't seem as sensitive to this as some others. Oh, and the HDMI input is definitely a must. My set is about 1 year old with no problems at all. I'm using the Arcam DV-79 DVD, but have an Oppo 981 on the way soon. Overall, we're very pleased with it. I compared to the Sony SXRD at the time, but they had the speaker "wings" back then which made it too wide for us. Now they have the SXRD w/o them.

Tom

If I didn't get a killer deal on 60" Sony SXRD, I would have probably gone with the JVC.

You should also being looking at the Samsung units as they can be calibrated to look breathtakingly real when properly calibrated.

George

byteme · « **Reply #12 on:** 18 Mar 2007, 07:19 pm »

Quote from: MaxCast on 18 Mar 2007, 06:26 pm

Went to BB. I have to say I was not impressed with the 61" JVC. The 56" JVC next to it looked better. The BB man said the 56 was brand new and the 61 has been there awhile stating the bulb is old. He said with TV's on 18 hours a day every day they diminish over time.....great.
The Sammy looked good and so did the Mits. However the JVC still handled reflection of light sources better.
Jury still out until I can look some more.

Don't put any weight on what you see in the store. Someone could have gotten in to the menu and changed all the settings, or they just have it dumped right out of the box with brightness and contrast cranked all the way up. Unless all the TVs are getting the exact same feed and calibrated the same it won't be a legit comparison.

It comes down simply to technology. LCoS is the only technology that has beaten CRT direct view in picture quality. With the new pro version JVCs, the Sony that Zybar is talking about and the newest consumer JVC's they are a set above every other set out there. The new pro series JVC has an adjustable iris so you can really tweak the picture to your surroundings and make it look as good as it can. The reason it doesn't get washed out (reflections) as easy as other TV technologies is that it's the most efficient in transferring light, so it's the brightest. The LCoS technology is very different than the other technologies in many ways, the LCoS panels have no "seam" in them (like the mirrors do for DLP or the wires on LCD panels - both of which cause screen door effect) so you get a smoother more life/film like picture. It's more efficient in passing reflected light because the image is on the top of the LCoS panel substrate rather than the bottom of the substrate (LCD) or having to pass through a color wheel (DLP). There is no possibility of the rainbow effect like DLP has.

The last two RPTVs I've had have been JVC LCoS and I wouldn't own anything else. I do HT installs on the side and typically sell Sammy's because they offer a wider size range and cost a bit less than JVCs. I've calibrated each one using Spyder TV (as I have my JVCs) and regardless if it's Dish, Direct, Cable or DVD no source looks as good as my 70" JVC. The only TV I've seen look better is the Sony LCoS that Zybar has, but that is even a bit more expensive than the JVC. With the new adjustable iris on the latest gen JVC, that gap should be gone. Tiger Direct was closing out the previous version of the JVC Pro sets (1080p upconvert, 2 HDMI inputs) I got mine shipped for $2600 but it looks like they are out of them.

Double Ugly · « **Reply #13 on:** 18 Mar 2007, 07:42 pm »

Quote from: zybar on 18 Mar 2007, 06:46 pm

If I didn't get a killer deal on 60" Sony SXRD, I would have probably gone with the JVC.

I just talked my mother into getting a 60" SXRD (XBR2), and she loves it. Even with analog cable and no tuning, the picture is pretty amazing.

-Jim

MaxCast · « **Reply #14 on:** 18 Mar 2007, 11:53 pm »

I did mess with the remote. The BB dude even set the settings the same between the 56" and 61" set and the 56 was much better. I think I need to see the 61 in a different store. The Mits had the best whites in HD but I didn't play with the remotes on the Mits or the sammy.

I believe you guys, I just don't understand why the 61" JVC was the worst looking of the four TV's in the group that day. I'm stopping by sears tomorrow to see what they carry.

Double Ugly · « **Reply #15 on:** 19 Mar 2007, 01:52 am »

FWIW, I love my 3- or 4-year old Samsung DHLN567W DLP. It isn't state-of-the-art, and I doubt it can hold up to the picture quality of the Sony once the Sony is calibrated, but it does well for what it is. I suspect the Sammy is several hundred dollars less expensive, too.

When Chad Billheimer came by to do his ISF thing to the Sammy, I asked what set he'd recommend, and he blurted out "Sony SXRD" before I could finish the question. Since Chad's the calibration expert, and since his job exposes him to practically every make and model available, his recommendation carries a lot of weight with me.

I realize it's difficult to dismiss what you see in the stores, but I give a lot more credence to what someone like Chad has to say vs. trusting the retail outlets to have each and every set properly adjusted. Here's his response to my recommendation query -

Quote

Hi Jim,

Glad to hear the TV's looking great! I recommended
the Sony SXRD. They come in different models
(different sizes and 2 series- the A2000 and the XBR2
series), and there's not really that much difference
between them. The A2000's are less expensive and do
not have the speakers (ears) on the sides. The XBR2's
have a higher performance scaler and another HDMI
input, I believe. The difference in the scaler is not
big with normal viewing. I would recommend either,
with the A2000 being a better value. I think they
come in sizes ranging from 50--70". For example,
KDS-R60XBR2 would be a model number. Also, I'm not
sure about the first letters, but 55A2000 would be
another.

Chad

If you end up going with the Sony, this place has excellent consumer ratings and offers very competitive pricing. My mother purchased her Sony from them, and was happy with every aspect of the transaction.

-Jim

TF1216 · « **Reply #16 on:** 3 Apr 2007, 02:39 pm »

What's the latest on your search MaxCast?

MaxCast · « **Reply #17 on:** 3 Apr 2007, 04:14 pm »

Thanks for asking. I am leaning toward the JVC and Sony. The Sony is more $$. I am really interested in the LED backlighting but have not spent the time to see what is available, if anything.

TF1216 · « **Reply #18 on:** 18 Apr 2007, 11:22 am »

Did you end up buying anything Maxcast?

MaxCast · « **Reply #19 on:** 18 Apr 2007, 12:42 pm »

No, not yet. Wife now wants a new dresser and a smaller flat pannel in the bedroom. That, being busy and LED tech has kept me idle. I suppose some good deals may be around with new models coming out.