astroglide's home theater: what i own, what i would buy today

[jws43yale]

Worst: If you want the best picture at the price point right now, I think the Pioneer PDP-5071 is about $2000 -$2500. It does not have 1080p like Pioneer Elite 50" Plasma, but it is about $2000 cheaper. If you are willing to drop $4500, the the Pioneer PDP-FHD1 is considered the best TV of the size on the market. Since it wil mainly be for TV and movies, 1080p is not a concern for gaming, and unless you are really interested in Blu-Ray or HD-DVD (which I think will not catch on for at least 3-4 more years) I think the 5071 may be your best bet. If you want to read more on all these issues, go to avsforum.com, it is where I do all my research.

As for sound, the SVS home theatre package mentioned earlier in this thread is supposedly very good for speakers. Alot of issues involving sound depends on your ability to run wire, and whether your wife wants small unnoticeable speakers. My recommendage would either be the SVS package or Mirage Omnisats if your wife wants something not too big.

If you have your choice I would recommend a 5.1 system from AV123.com. In their X-series line you can get a pair of the X-sls or X-mtm towers for your front left and right, an X-cs center, X-ls surrounds, and an X-sub. If you call them they will do custom packages and you could probably get this for between $900-$1100. These are all substantial nicely finished speakers, but even the rear surrounds would be big and have to have stands or be mounted.

Then you just need a receiver to push it. For AV123, they would be able to tell you what recievers pair well with the speakers. My choice would be the Harmon Kardon AVR-247 ($500). Onkyo and Denon recievers are also very good.

If you need links to any of these products or any more questions, let me know.

[TheWorstPlayer]

Wow, thanks for all the info. I admit a lot of it kinda went over my head, but I'll check out AV123 and read a bit on avsforum and will come back with further questions if I have any. Probably the next thing to do is just to talk to the future wife about her precise objections to things. Thanks, guys.

[Rick Nebiolo]

[ QUOTE ]
So I just hooked up my new Panasonic 42" and it looks amazing. Thanks to everyone who recommended it, since it seems to be all the rage on 2+2 and everywhere else. I looked at a ton of TVs and spent a couple weeks reading up, and although I considered astro's advice of saving up for a 50"+, I figured that I was too impatient to wait and too poor to splurge for something like that now.

The Vizio was just a bit more washed out and I didn't want to sacrifice quality to save a couple hundred bucks. The LG and Samsungs looked almost as good as the Panasonic, but I went with the consensus choice. Anyway, it looks incredible and will look even better once I get my HD satellite receiver to watch broadcast in hi def.

[/ QUOTE ]

I came close to buying the 50" Vizio for $1400 at Costco but then saw several pallets full of the Panasonic TH-50PX60U 50" Plasma hiding behind a display of giant bags of trail mix. The Costco price was $1750 and I'm paying $60 to get it delivered tomorrow. For some reasons I never saw the 42" version of this model line Panasonic at Costco but they did have the 37" version for about $900.

As I think noted elsewhere in this thread this family of models got very good reviews on CNET and other sites but apparently is being replaced by a new series of Panasonic's at a higher price. The Costco price is being more or less matched by several online sellers but I was wary of buying online for an item this large (one said they ship to the curbside and no further!).

I plan on using it mostly for DVD movies and will try to continue to slide on subscribing to cable or satellite TV. I live in line of sight to Mt. Wilson (all the LA area stations broadcast from there) and get good UHF with an indoor Terk and Phillips antennas on the 25" CRT I now moved to the bedroom. If I have luck getting the main broadcast channels HDTV (which is broadcast over UHF, check out antennaweb.org for your local broadcasts) I'll post my experience.

Costco also had a 52" Mitsubishi 1080p DLP TV with stand for about $1350 but that was just too big for my corner and seems small for a DLP.

Great thread Astro, a pleasure compared to the eye glazing mess on the AVS forums. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

~ Rick

[Josem]

[ QUOTE ]
Hey guys... anyway care to tell me whats better?

Plasma or LCD?

[/ QUOTE ]

plasma = bigger

lcd = smaller


they're not really in competition with each other - the smallest plasmas available are around the same size as the largest lcds.

LCDs are (generally) better at displaying static images (eg, computer games); Plasmas are (generally) better at displaying fast moving images (eg, sport). However, size is a far more influencing factor - figure out how big you want your screen to be, and then purchase whichever technology fits your size.



Also, generally, i think that it would be sub-optimal to spend $4,000 on a display, and $400 on sound - unsurprisingly, for that sort of price ratio, you'll have a vastly better display than sound, and i think you will notice it.

[guids]

Im in the market for a TV, Ive sifted through a bunch of different things, and have an idea of what I want. I have a budget of 2500. My bedroom is about 20x20, but there is a ton of stuff in there, nad not too much room. I can wall mount it, or put it on a stand. My room is pretty bright. I want an LCD. Off the top of your heads what is the best option?

[jws43yale]

[ QUOTE ]
Im in the market for a TV, Ive sifted through a bunch of different things, and have an idea of what I want. I have a budget of 2500. My bedroom is about 20x20, but there is a ton of stuff in there, nad not too much room. I can wall mount it, or put it on a stand. My room is pretty bright. I want an LCD. Off the top of your heads what is the best option?

[/ QUOTE ]

If you are going to sit within 10' or use it as a computer monitor I would get the LNT-4665f or 4661f ($2300 on Amazon). Both are 1080p, only major difference being that the 65f has a glossy screen which produces a more eye-poping picture, but is more prone to glare. The 61f has the standard matte LCD screen. IF you are not as concerned with size and will be sitting further than 6" away, the 40" 720 p Samsung LNT-4053h is only $1400. I would go 46" for sure if you are going to be veiwing from further than 12".

[jws43yale]

[/ QUOTE ]

plasma = bigger
lcd = smaller

they're not really in competition with each other - the smallest plasmas available are around the same size as the largest lcds.

LCDs are (generally) better at displaying static images (eg, computer games); Plasmas are (generally) better at displaying fast moving images (eg, sport). However, size is a far more influencing factor - figure out how big you want your screen to be, and then purchase whichever technology fits your size.

Also, generally, i think that it would be sub-optimal to spend $4,000 on a display, and $400 on sound - unsurprisingly, for that sort of price ratio, you'll have a vastly better display than sound, and i think you will notice it.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is not so much true anymore. LCD's are pretty comprable in price from the 42" to 50" range considering their feature set. Major difference is that smallest plasmas (42") are not 1080p whereas LCD's can be. Smallest 1080p plasmas are 50". LCD's are considered better for bright evnvironments b/c they have less glare. Plasma's currently produce an overall better picture all other things being equal.

But if you want bigger than 50" (or an affordable 50" TV) plasma is the best bet. If you want under 42", you have to do LCD.

Hopefully as LED Backlighting and 120 hz technologies become comonplace over the next year, LCD's will have as good a picture without fast motion problems.

[guids]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Im in the market for a TV, Ive sifted through a bunch of different things, and have an idea of what I want. I have a budget of 2500. My bedroom is about 20x20, but there is a ton of stuff in there, nad not too much room. I can wall mount it, or put it on a stand. My room is pretty bright. I want an LCD. Off the top of your heads what is the best option?

[/ QUOTE ]

If you are going to sit within 10' or use it as a computer monitor I would get the LNT-4665f or 4661f ($2300 on Amazon). Both are 1080p, only major difference being that the 65f has a glossy screen which produces a more eye-poping picture, but is more prone to glare. The 61f has the standard matte LCD screen. IF you are not as concerned with size and will be sitting further than 6" away, the 40" 720 p Samsung LNT-4053h is only $1400. I would go 46" for sure if you are going to be veiwing from further than 12".

[/ QUOTE ]

thanks just ordered the 65f, 2350 including shipping which aint to bad. I went with teh glossy finish because I can always put up curtains I guess.

[Rick Nebiolo]

[ QUOTE ]
I plan on using it mostly for DVD movies and will try to continue to slide on subscribing to cable or satellite TV. I live in line of sight to Mt. Wilson (all the LA area stations broadcast from there) and get good UHF with an indoor Terk and Phillips antennas on the 25" CRT I now moved to the bedroom. If I have luck getting the main broadcast channels HDTV (which is broadcast over UHF, check out antennaweb.org for your local broadcasts) I'll post my experience.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'll post in more detail if anyone shows interest but despite the fact I'm 24 miles out from the broadcast towers on Mount Wilson and am using a $35 or so Terk indoor antenna on my first night I got every HD and digital and high-def station almost perfectly. I also got free stations associated with the local network stations I didn't even know existed (such as the LA's NBC affiliates version of the weather channel, there isn't even weather in LA!)

Also I can't imagine a better 50" Plasma for well under $2000 than this Panasonic.

~ Rick

[Austiger]

Great thread. Can I get some advice?

I have an old Sony receiver STR-DE335, and a DVD player I bought a few years ago for about $125 or something, and a 15-yr old Onkyo CD player. Should I scrap everything for a Home Theatre in a box setup, or should I keep what I have and just get some speakers? My TV is average now, but I will be upgrading to a new one eventually. I live in a duplex with vaulted ceilings but it's only about 900 sq ft.