I have read in here about the line down the center of screen durring solid color parts in movies...I also have this problem, also mine has an issue where the color is different on either side of screen which comes off looking white in dark scenes sometimes. Its not terrible, but some scenes its very noticible. I dont want to take it back to BB since this was the 2nd one already! Any help on this center line and color bars on either side would be much appreciated, thanks!!!!

thanks. I would love if I had digital in to the mixer, but it is their "big knob" model and I really just want it so I can route the downmixed stereo from the dvd player to my mackie 824 monitors in my edit suite, while still utilizing the hdmi input on the tv. Whats really weird is that the audio that does make it through the mixer is distorted, but at an extremely low level, any thoughts?

I would recommend that you unhook teh RCA cables from teh Mackie and go right into like a pre-amp or something just to check to see if it is the mixer. I would suspect that it is.

http://www.mackie.com/home/showimage.html?u=/products/bigknob/images/rear.jpg

How do you have the RCA connected to the mixer? Which jack do you use. Try hitting the PAD button the -10dB/+4dB button to see if that helps if you are using those inputs.

...So, all in all, very happy with my Samsung SlimFit which has only been here for a couple of months..the LG has been around slightly longer, but did not appeal to me.

I havn't heard any real negative feedback at the moment, but needless to say, people here are catching the drifts of your negative feedbacks, which i think is having some effect on sales of this TV.

Anyway, i hope you all get your problems sorted out one way or another..sorry to hear of your problems. The Samsung SlimFit has all the potential to be an awesome display

Best Wishes

Tony
Like all other manufacturers of crts, Samsung is fully capable of making a lemon, or two. I don't believe Samsung is cranking out more problem sets than any of the other makers, but you certainly wouldn't get that feeling by reading about it on the forum(s). I really don't think the forums are an accurate reflection of the market at large so it's very possible to get an unbalanced view by reading all the negative posts here. What I have learned is that most of the problems encountered on the Samsung sets, and any other hd sets, are fixable one way or another. Many of the problems resolve themselves after a couple of weeks of settling in.

What I do regret are the posts that denigrate a whole line of sets because of a personal disappointment. It's a generalization that's unearned by the manufacturers. But, if one reads all the negative posts here before buying, they assume the whole line is bad if they get a problem set themselves.

It appears that with the newest SlimFits, Samsung has addressed and resolved most of the early complaints. If I were in the market and Samsung offered a set consistent with my requirements I wouldn't hesitate to buy one of their sets. I am a very satisfied customer of an '02 Samsung 27" set and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Cheers!

Only a few of the posts indicate which model Samsung SlimFit they refer to, so it's VERY difficult to ascertain if a particular model or the line in general has any horrific problems. But since most of the posts in general complain about (a) vertical white line in the center, (b) wavy side bars, and (c) curved bottom "ticker tape", let me share this: Yesterday I saw the new TX-S3082WH at CC. Along side it was the new Phillips 30PW9110D, and the Sony KD34XBR970, all 3 showing the same signal. When HD was displayed, ALL 3 had wavy side bars; the Phillips was a bit worse, but NONE was bad enough to convince me not to buy. So I must presume it was basically the SIGNAL causing the waves, not the sets. Oddly, instead of solid sidebars (window box?) which I've frequently seen on sets, these side bars were made up of alternating black and white lines (not solid bars) so that also is reason to be suspect of CC. I am going to try another store (not CC) which has both Samsung and Phillips to see how those signals display. A few comparisons between the Samsung and Phillips: (a) Samsung has 2 HDMI I/Ps; Phillips 1, (b) Samsung has 12/12/24 service/parts/special parts (whatever that is); Phillips 3/12, (c) Samsung $840; Phillips $700, (d) Samsung 35.8" wide; Phillips 33.8", (e) Samsung No QAM or PIP; Phillips QAM and PIP, (f) PQ seemed about equal in both, but will I continue to look for differences.

...Oddly, instead of solid sidebars (window box?) which I've frequently seen on sets, these side bars were made up of alternating black and white lines (not solid bars) so that also is reason to be suspect of CC. I am going to try another store (not CC) which has both Samsung and Phillips to see how those signals display....
It's highly doubtful that the signals were HD. An HD signal will take up the full width of a 30" (widescreen) HD set. Not only should there be no pillarbox bars on either side, but there should be no artifacts at all of any kind. A digital signal is either on or off, there's no noise, snow nor any other kind of artifacts typical of analog signals. It's either on or it's a black screen.

Salespeople will tell you they're piping an HD signal to all the sets when, in fact, they don't know what they're sending out. The only reliable way to evaluate an HD set is to bring in a known good DVD and check it out for yourself on either one of their players or one of your own. HQV puts out the "Benchmark DVD" which will put a tv or a dvd player through a suite of tough video tests. The dvd comes with a scorecard which you can use to tally the "points" scored by any given set or player and see just how well it stand-up to industry standards or against another set. I believe the dvd is selling now for around $30.

I purchased the TX-S2782H last Thursday and all is still good. No adherent problems that I'm aware of but still don't know much about HD and HD/Digital signals to a TV.

I got a chance to play with Avia a little bit at lunch and the set is looking really good. I will admit I do hate the remote but that's not really a factor since hopefully I will be buying a good universal in the near future.

Nazrix, if you have speakers that are not magnetically shielded to close to the TV that will definitely cause coloration on the sides and corners. If you don't have speakers that are close to the TV then I would definitely return it.

Bryguy

I purchased the TX-S2782H last Thursday and all is still good. No adherent problems that I'm aware of but still don't know much about HD and HD/Digital signals to a TV.

I got a chance to play with Avia a little bit at lunch and the set is looking really good. I will admit I do hate the remote but that's not really a factor since hopefully I will be buying a good universal in the near future...

Bryguy
I always like to hear this kind of outcome, regardless of the brand.

Avia can be a bit daunting at first, which I'm sure you've already discovered. The menu system and getting around the video test patterns can be unnerving.

About Remotes - A couple of years ago I purchased a Sony AV2500, a huge beast with a large LCD screen. That was such a waste. The interface was aweful and I finally replaced it with a Harmony 680 (or 688). Check these out when you do your research - they seem to get the best reviews unless you go to the big guns that can retail for almost $1K.

My wife would kill me if I spent $1K on a remote (so would I considering some telescope filters cost more than that and I NEED them. The wife says I don't). I was looking at the newer Harmony (Logitech?) or URC (200 or 300 series).

The Avia screen that was bugging me was the screen for Sharpness. I was trying to pay attention but I also had two greyhounds bugging me for attention at the same time. I played the sharpness from 0-100% but didn't notice a difference. I did notice though that some of the lettering on the far right and left hand side of the screen was off of the screen. The left side has the alphabet and some of the letters were hidden and I think the right side said Avia and stuff.

Bryguy

My wife would kill me if I spent $1K on a remote (so would I considering some telescope filters cost more than that and I NEED them. The wife says I don't). I was looking at the newer Harmony (Logitech?) or URC (200 or 300 series).

The Avia screen that was bugging me was the screen for Sharpness. I was trying to pay attention but I also had two greyhounds bugging me for attention at the same time. I played the sharpness from 0-100% but didn't notice a difference. I did notice though that some of the lettering on the far right and left hand side of the screen was off of the screen. The left side has the alphabet and some of the letters were hidden and I think the right side said Avia and stuff.

Bryguy
Are you adjusting the Sharpness in the user menu or the Service Menu?

In many current HD set (crt) the user Sharpness control is of little help, as it has sometimes been rendered moot in the SM. If you believe there are issues with Sharpness you will have to make adjustments in the SM.

Sharpness controls are also referred to as Edge Enhancement (EE). Which is also affected by Scan Velocity Modulation (VM or SVM). This can be adjusted in the SM. In the user menu, look closely at the edges of the lines in the Sharpness test pattern as you run the control from 05 to 100% and back to 0%. Look specifically for white edges to form around black lines, or black edges to form around white areas (I'm talking about vertical edges only). If these edges appear as you crank up Sharpness then you have gone too far. Of course, if you are not noticing anything wrong with regard to sharpness then just let it be.

Are you adjusting the Sharpness in the user menu or the Service Menu?

In many current HD set (crt) the user Sharpness control is of little help, as it has sometimes been rendered moot in the SM. If you believe there are issues with Sharpness you will have to make adjustments in the SM.

Sharpness controls are also referred to as Edge Enhancement (EE). Which is also affected by Scan Velocity Modulation (VM or SVM). This can be adjusted in the SM. In the user menu, look closely at the edges of the lines in the Sharpness test pattern as you run the control from 05 to 100% and back to 0%. Look specifically for white edges to form around black lines, or black edges to form around white areas (I'm talking about vertical edges only). If these edges appear as you crank up Sharpness then you have gone too far. Of course, if you are not noticing anything wrong with regard to sharpness then just let it be.

I guess I'm using the users menu from the remote. I just press menu and then I scroll down to Input:Picture:Sound and etc. I don't see any other links to get to any other menus. How do I get to the Service Menu? This is one area where the manual that came with the TV sucks. I must admit, most manuals for all electronics today are way to technical or there is nothing in them, no inbetween.

Bryguy

My sony tv has this where you can just go in the menus and turn it off low or high. The sammy doesnt though. You can only do it in the service menu. Its range has 1 more setting than my sony. It has off low medium and high. I set mine at 1. Turn off tv hit mute then 182 and power again. Go under video 2 then look for vm level you can adjust it from 0-3. After your done power off tv then back on.

I guess I'm using the users menu from the remote. I just press menu and then I scroll down to Input:Picture:Sound and etc. I don't see any other links to get to any other menus. How do I get to the Service Menu? This is one area where the manual that came with the TV sucks. I must admit, most manuals for all electronics today are way to technical or there is nothing in them, no inbetween.

Bryguy

My sony tv has this where you can just go in the menus and turn it off low or high. The sammy doesnt though. You can only do it in the service menu. Its range has 1 more setting than my sony. It has off low medium and high. I set mine at 1. Turn off tv hit mute then 182 and power again. Go under video 2 then look for vm level you can adjust it from 0-3. After your done power off tv then back on.
Good advice KoRn.

bryguy,

Also, be very, very careful in the SM. One can really screw-up their set in the SM. record the values of any settings you play with or change, before you muck with them. You'll live to regret it if you fail to do this. I know this sounds harsh but if you'd read as many sob stories as I have about folks ruining their sets playing too casually in the SM and failing to record the default values, you'd be strong on this point as well.

Cheers! ;)

[

Also, be very, very careful in the SM. One can really screw-up their set in the SM. record the values of any settings you play with or change, before you muck with them. You'll live to regret it if you fail to do this. I know this sounds harsh but if you'd read as many sob stories as I have about folks ruining their sets playing too casually in the SM and failing to record the default values, you'd be strong on this point as well.

This is great, I will see what I can do. I'll do even one better than just writing down the original values, I'm going to use a digital camera so I have a perfect permanent record.

On another note, I just returned from BB, looking at OTA antennas for HD, and they said that when viewing a 720p program I should not have pillars on the sides (left/right) and somewhat squeezed/distorted picture. The user's menu will not let me Zoom 1 or Zoom 2. Still, when I press 16:9 I get a small square picture. This small square picture is perfect, but small. They didn't think the antenna would make a difference with the pillars. Also, these right/left pillars are not fully black but gray. 16:9 bars, though, are black. I would hate to have to exchange this set when the rest of the view is good. I'd hate to muck up my luck.

Bryguy

...On another note, I just returned from BB, looking at OTA antennas for HD, and they said that when viewing a 720p program I should not have pillars on the sides (left/right) and somewhat squeezed/distorted picture. The user's menu will not let me Zoom 1 or Zoom 2. Still, when I press 16:9 I get a small square picture. This small square picture is perfect, but small. They didn't think the antenna would make a difference with the pillars. Also, these right/left pillars are not fully black but gray. 16:9 bars, though, are black. I would hate to have to exchange this set when the rest of the view is good. I'd hate to muck up my luck.

Bryguy
This gets a bit complicated.

The black bars you see on top and on bottom when viewing true HD are put there by the tv, and are perfectly black. The bars you're seeing on the sides are put there by the broadcaster. A true HD signal will occupy all of the letterboxed area. The set is using vertical compression to deliver all the lines in a compressed area. This holds true for 1080i and 720p. Sometimes digital stations broadcast SD material, like during weekday programming. The major broadcasters (ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, FOX) usually reserve primetime and weekends (sports) for true HD broadcasts. When a digital channel broadcasts SD material over an HD signal you get the lighter pillar boxes on the sides.

Take a widescreen tv like mine. HD totally fills the screen. When I watch one of these channels at times other than primetime I get pillar boxes on the sides, but no bars on the top and bottom, because a 4:3 signal fills the screen vertically on my set just like yours. If the same digital channel broadcasts an SD (4:3) show that originally had letterboxing, then my tv has bars on all four sides.

Back to you - I believe it's a coincidence that you've run across 720p broadcasts with bars on all four sides, and all 1080i shows with just letterboxing. Try this - go to titantv.com and look for a timeslot when there'll be a true HD broadcast in 720p. TitanTv can show all HD shows that are being broadcast on OTA and Cable, you just have to set it up correctly. FOX, ABC and ESPN all broadcast in 720p. Watch that show and see what happens - I bet the signal will fill your screen horizontally in 16:9 format.

Sources - If you don't yet get HD OTA, how are you getting HD signals? Cable? It shouldn't matter, but I was just wondering.

Please check back with results and good luck! ;)

My signal is definitely over the air with an old pair of rabbit ears with a dish in the middle antenna. The 720p is just pillared, not letter boxed. The 1080i fits the full screen without the letterbox. Dishnetwork is screwing with me to pay too much to upgrade to their HD receivers and programming so free suits me just fine.

I was at BB to see about upgrading the antenna to one that has an amp in it to see if can pull in more stations.

Despite the somewhat confusion on the TV and technology I gotta admit I'm having a lot of fun with it.

Currently, I am jumping back and forth from this forum and the HDTV forum. I'm trying to learn as much as possible within the next couple of weeks as a just incase I need to return the TV.

I've lurked in the audio section of AVS for the last two years (wasn't concerned about video until last week).

Bryguy

My signal is definitely over the air with an old pair of rabbit ears with a dish in the middle antenna. The 720p is just pillared, not letter boxed. The 1080i fits the full screen without the letterbox. Dishnetwork is screwing with me to pay too much to upgrade to their HD receivers and programming so free suits me just fine.

I was at BB to see about upgrading the antenna to one that has an amp in it to see if can pull in more stations.

Despite the somewhat confusion on the TV and technology I gotta admit I'm having a lot of fun with it....

Bryguy
Whoops.

You have a 27" (4:3) HD CRT set and 1080i is filling your screen? That's problematic. HD is widescreen at 16:9. If it is filling your 27" 4:3 screen then you're not seeint thw whole image. If everything is correct to scale (people don't look awkwardly tall or stretched upwards) then the sides of the picture are being cut off. You may have the option of watching a 16:9 signal in "full screen" but you're missing the sides of the picture. If the aspect is vertically stretched than you may be getting the whole 16:9 image on screen but that's difficult for me to enjoy.

The "pillared" 720p - do objects appear stretched at all?

I'm really confused now. :o

And you're right - learning about all this and getting to play is a blast. ;)

The 720p signal that is pillared (all my 720p signals eventhough it is just a couple of them) are squeezed and somewhat tall distorted. The tall distortion disappears when I change screen size to 16:9 and that's when it puts the picture into a perfect non distorted little box. I will have to recheck the 1080i signal later. My wife is telling me we need to go now so I'll be back later. I'll be back in a couple of hours.

Is this what is referred to as a scaling problem or a deciphering problem?

Bryguy

The 720p signal that is pillared (all my 720p signals eventhough it is just a couple of them) are squeezed and somewhat tall distorted. The tall distortion disappears when I change screen size to 16:9 and that's when it puts the picture into a perfect non distorted little box. I will have to recheck the 1080i signal later. My wife is telling me we need to go now so I'll be back later. I'll be back in a couple of hours.

Is this what is referred to as a scaling problem or a deciphering problem?

Bryguy
Does your set have a Normal or Full picture mode. What happens when you use that for the 720p signals?

On 1080i (I just checked) when I hit the 16:9 the picture looks perfect (at least in my sense) with the top and bottom letter box. I'll have to wait for a commercial to re-check the 720p but I think the only settings I have are 4:3 (full - which it stays on unless I'm watching 1080i or 16:19. The Devil's/Hurricanes game looked really good in 16:9).

Bry

I just got one of the 27 slimfits about a week ago and didn't get it hooked up until today-I saw that annoying distortion in straight lines and spent 2 hours in the deflection menu trying to adjust everything that I could-in the end I was only able to get about a 5% improvment. I'm gonna take this thing back to BestBuy and go to a nearby Walmart while they still have the 30" Sanyo and get one of those. Nuts to this darn thing!! I passed on the Sanyo and got the BB house brand 27" Insignia hdtv and I love it. Of course it helps that I work for BB and got it for 250 bucks with my employee discount-for me it was a no brainer to buy it.

I'm at the point of thinking of calling Samsung today or tomorrow to see what they have to say. If they send a tech within the next week and I'm still not satisfied I still have a little time to return it. I'm not that techincally advanced for tweeking in the service menu. I still like the picture, the slim fit design and that the front is BLACK.

I'm also going to slide by an middle/upper scale audio video store later today just to get their opinion. I've bought most of my audio gear from them so they are friendly to oblige when I'm in there.

Bryguy

I took my Samsung slimfit piece of s**t tv back to BB because of the horrible distortion that 2 hours of fooling around in the deflection part of the service menu couldn't cure-stay away from these things at all costs!!

I just received the 082 model today and must say I am impressed, I have not hap the problems with bowing (if I do it's very miniscule to where it's not even noticable). I must say I am overwhelmed, i know squat about HDTV's. I knew the tv I get had to have HDMi and be widescreen and have 720P. I knew most xbox 360 games have 720P, some have 1080i but I wanted to make sure I had all my bases covered. I am def. going to get that Avia dvd because I couldn't calibrate a tv to save my life. It was between this model and a ugly, bulky Sony 30'' widescreen and I must say Samsung really impressed me.

Consider youself extremly lucky-after I knew what to look for I noticed distortion on every slimfit display model I saw in CC and BB. I ended up buying a BB house brand tv (Insignia) for half the price of the Samsung and it's 100% better.

Consider youself extremly lucky-after I knew what to look for I noticed distortion on every slimfit display model I saw in CC and BB. I ended up buying a BB house brand tv (Insignia) for half the price of the Samsung and it's 100% better.

What do you look for for distortion and where do you look (corners, middle, bottom)? Is there something particular? If so, speak up so I can check mine (it's the 4:3 model).

Bryguy

I went to my local mid/high fi dealer yesterday to ask about the grey side pillars while viewing OTA HD. The explanation was it is due to a network broadcast signal. When they show a show that was done in and being broadcast in HD it will fill the screen.

I waited to about 9:00 last night to find a show done in and broadcast in HD and the mid/high fi dealer was correct. So therefore, it is not a tv problem. Thank you all for the help on trying to figure that one out.

Bryguy

I did notice a very minor Geometry issue, it wasn't noticable until I watched tv and had the menu screen up, even then I didn't notice it till today.
I wonder when I put my 360 to 720P in the settings, I press the info button on my Tv and it says 1280x720@60HZ, when I change it to 1080i it displays 1920x1080@60HZ. Is it still upscaling? Or is it actually displaying at 720?

Here's what you do-get a good test image-my favorite is from a disc that has the THX optimizer on it-it has lot of vertical and horizontial lines-look and see if you have any inward or outward bowing of the vertical lines-examine at the lower 1/4 of the screen and look for any buckling of horizontial lines-I can guarantee that you'll see them-if so take you slimfit back to wherever you got it-these can't be adjusted out in 99% of the cases. It's a shame because color and image wise these tvs are very good. The wavy line problem is caused by the much wider than normal angle the electron guns have to shoot and focus through due to the shorter than normal depth of the tube. Hope this helps.

What model # do you have?


I did notice a very minor Geometry issue, it wasn't noticable until I watched tv and had the menu screen up, even then I didn't notice it till today.
I wonder when I put my 360 to 720P in the settings, I press the info button on my Tv and it says 1280x720@60HZ, when I change it to 1080i it displays 1920x1080@60HZ. Is it still upscaling? Or is it actually displaying at 720?

What model # do you have?
TX-S3082WH

Here's what you do-get a good test image-my favorite is from a disc that has the THX optimizer on it-it has lot of vertical and horizontial lines-look and see if you have any inward or outward bowing of the vertical lines-examine at the lower 1/4 of the screen and look for any buckling of horizontial lines-I can guarantee that you'll see them-if so take you slimfit back to wherever you got it-these can't be adjusted out in 99% of the cases. It's a shame because color and image wise these tvs are very good. The wavy line problem is caused by the much wider than normal angle the electron guns have to shoot and focus through due to the shorter than normal depth of the tube. Hope this helps.


Thanks ZRDB,

I'm not sure if the Avia disc has the THX optimizer on it or not. I have not fully played with it yet. If it doesn't, can you name a couple of brands that do so I can hunt them down on Amazon.com. Two and half weeks to go for full refund.

Bryguy

I did notice a very minor Geometry issue, it wasn't noticable until I watched tv and had the menu screen up, even then I didn't notice it till today.
I wonder when I put my 360 to 720P in the settings, I press the info button on my Tv and it says 1280x720@60HZ, when I change it to 1080i it displays 1920x1080@60HZ. Is it still upscaling? Or is it actually displaying at 720?
The info you see on screen is indicating the stats of the imcoming signal, not what is being displayed on the screen. The set will always scale and re-interlace a 720p signal to 1080i.

What do you look for for distortion and where do you look (corners, middle, bottom)? Is there something particular? If so, speak up so I can check mine (it's the 4:3 model).

Bryguy
Try not to be too anxious about locating flaws. I know you want to be sure you have a good set before your return window expires, but try to ease up just a little bit. Here's why - I corresponded with a guy who was absolutely in awe over the beautiful picture quality of his new HD set. Couldn't be happier. Then he read a thread about some anomaly and actually found what he thought was the same thing on his new set. Once that got into his head he could never be happy with that again set because his eyes would automatically latch on to that one small problem. All crt sets will exhibit some kind of flaw(s). There's no way around it as there's no perfect crt. If a "problem" doesn't stand out like a sore thumb, then it's best to leave well-enough alone.

Moral of the story - if it ain't broke don't fix it. ;)

Thanks ZRDB,

I'm not sure if the Avia disc has the THX optimizer on it or not. I have not fully played with it yet. If it doesn't, can you name a couple of brands that do so I can hunt them down on Amazon.com. Two and half weeks to go for full refund.

Bryguy
The THX optimizer is not that great of a tool. It's sole purpose is to set-up one's tv to look accurate with that particular movie. It's totally oriented to what the director wants you to appreciate for that one movie. It's not a tool for a general calibration.

Currently, the last thing I want to do is return this set. I love the picture and ease of use. A little distortion does not bother me (I just like to know what its limits are - its an optics thing with me). My only main concern was those gray side pillars which I found out is ok. It all depends on how the station is broadcasting and how the show was filmed.

So far I have not gotten into the actual Service Menu's because I haven't felt it necessary by the way the set looks.

I am in the same boat as you, if it ain't broke why mess with it. For example, I have a high quality telescope that has almost 9 yrs of dust and stuff on the lens. Why take a chance at scratching the coating to clean it off when it still gives crisp clean images.

Bryon

Currently, the last thing I want to do is return this set. I love the picture and ease of use. A little distortion does not bother me (I just like to know what its limits are - its an optics thing with me). My only main concern was those gray side pillars which I found out is ok. It all depends on how the station is broadcasting and how the show was filmed.

So far I have not gotten into the actual Service Menu's because I haven't felt it necessary by the way the set looks.

I am in the same boat as you, if it ain't broke why mess with it. For example, I have a high quality telescope that has almost 9 yrs of dust and stuff on the lens. Why take a chance at scratching the coating to clean it off when it still gives crisp clean images.

Bryon
Excellent.

I do have a question about the grey sidebars. Are you saying they are only grey sometimes? If so, are they black when they're not grey?

At the risk of opening up a horrible wound and starting a nasty string of insults, has ANYONE figured out the QAM capabilities of the SlimFits?

Here's why I ask:

I have a TX-P2670 (DynaFlat, normal depth) Sammy now, and it needs a new tuner board. Samsung has told me that the part is deeply backordered, and that they're willing to replace it instead of sending a service tech 50+ miles to replace the part when it comes in. They have offered to replace it with a TX-S3082 or TX-R3080. I have a Sony XBR960 as my main set right now, so I'm not worried about waiting.

However, nobody seems to know the QAM capabilites of the 3082 (or 3080, etc). I know for a fact based on other posts that the 2670 is capable of going QAM with a firmware upgrade.

Is it worth giving up a non-SlimFit 26" CRT with QAM for a 30" SlimFit with unknown QAM capabilities? I told the Executive Customer Relations rep that I would have to call her back to let her know if I wanted to wait on the repair or just replace it.

I'm VERY used to having the QAM with my Sony, and I know that my 26" is capable of it, so I'm loathe to give it up just for 4 more inches diagonal, possible geometry issues (which don't bug me too much), and a slightly narrower depth. So, is there ANY word on the QAM on the SlimFits?

Please?

Your TX-P2670 comes from a line of exceptional Samsung tvs. You are correct about this set's QAM capabilities. As I understand it, the most recent firmware upgrade to make QAM work on your set was withdrawn due to problems. And, as far as I know, Samsung has yet to re-release it. This may play into your decision as you may never get this upgrade for your TX-P set.

The QAM capabilities of the newer sets (including 3082, 3080, etc) is unknown. No one that I recall has posted anything concrete on the issue. It just blows my mind how something so simple can become so complicated. I bet this uncertainty has cost Samsung a boatload of sales.

Is it worth giving up the TX-P? If you knew for sure that you'd never see the firmware upgrade for your TX-P then I'd say "yes," it's worth it. If I were you, I'd contact Samsung and try to press for this answer. Since they are awaiting your decision, tell them that as soon as you can get this info you'll be happy to make your decision. Hopefully this will help. I realize how nice this feature is, and so do you with your XBR960.

If you do choose to get a replacement try to get the latest one, as it seems Samsung is succeeding in getting rid of the bugs that plagued the earlier SlimFit sets.

Best of Luck!

At the risk of opening up a horrible wound and starting a nasty string of insults, has ANYONE figured out the QAM capabilities of the SlimFits?

Here's why I ask:

I have a TX-P2670 (DynaFlat, normal depth) Sammy now, and it needs a new tuner board. Samsung has told me that the part is deeply backordered, and that they're willing to replace it instead of sending a service tech 50+ miles to replace the part when it comes in. They have offered to replace it with a TX-S3082 or TX-R3080. I have a Sony XBR960 as my main set right now, so I'm not worried about waiting.

However, nobody seems to know the QAM capabilites of the 3082 (or 3080, etc). I know for a fact based on other posts that the 2670 is capable of going QAM with a firmware upgrade.

Is it worth giving up a non-SlimFit 26" CRT with QAM for a 30" SlimFit with unknown QAM capabilities? I told the Executive Customer Relations rep that I would have to call her back to let her know if I wanted to wait on the repair or just replace it.

I'm VERY used to having the QAM with my Sony, and I know that my 26" is capable of it, so I'm loathe to give it up just for 4 more inches diagonal, possible geometry issues (which don't bug me too much), and a slightly narrower depth. So, is there ANY word on the QAM on the SlimFits?

Please?

See if you can get the latest FW upgrade CD.

Try and get the model numbers that the FW upgrade CD applied to and which ones it had problems with. Perhaps we can get a hold of a CD and flash the models we have that work. None of us has been able to get jack out of Sammsung so PLEASE since you have their ear, ask them these questions.

Also see if you can find out which slimfit models really do have a QAM-clear tuner and see if you can get teh facts. We are all at a loss here.

The info you see on screen is indicating the stats of the imcoming signal, not what is being displayed on the screen. The set will always scale and re-interlace a 720p signal to 1080i.

Awesome. Thanks!

Excellent.

I do have a question about the grey sidebars. Are you saying they are only grey sometimes? If so, are they black when they're not grey?

No, the gray bars completely go away if the network is broadcasting a show that was actually filmed/taped in HD. The picture then fills the screen (4:3) until I hit the picture mode for 16:9 and then I get jet black letter box on the top and bottom. I was told if this wasn't OTA and through the satellite it should always fill the screen. I saw the difference Sunday night so I am happy it is not a TV problem. I hate returning stuff.

Bryguy

I just wanted to give a quick little update. justsc helped me out with something specific in the service menu. I was having trouble with red being pushed way to much on this set. I listened to him and done what I was suppose to. Everythings fine now. But heres the best part. I use to get purple spots on all 4 corners when firing up the tv when its cold. It would go away after 5mins of use. The purple was very faint. I had a little more in the up right hand corner. However. Now that ive adjust the red. Everytime I fire up the tv even when cold the purple is gone and it is at normal color settings now. I even tested it with a red backround and it stays red. There use to be those purple things in all 4 corners. Just thought I would let you guys know. Im very happy this purple stuff has been fixed. Does anyone know what would cause this? Obviously it has something to do with sm and the red color.

I just wanted to give a quick little update. justsc helped me out with something specific in the service menu. I was having trouble with red being pushed way to much on this set. I listened to him and done what I was suppose to. Everythings fine now. But heres the best part. I use to get purple spots on all 4 corners when firing up the tv when its cold. It would go away after 5mins of use. The purple was very faint. I had a little more in the up right hand corner. However. Now that ive adjust the red. Everytime I fire up the tv even when cold the purple is gone and it is at normal color settings now. I even tested it with a red backround and it stays red. There use to be those purple things in all 4 corners. Just thought I would let you guys know. Im very happy this purple stuff has been fixed. Does anyone know what would cause this? Obviously it has something to do with sm and the red color.
This is very good news.

I think the reason for the haphazard purple blotches, here and there, has to do with the analog nature of the phosphor. What I don't understand is why it seems to be pulled to the corners. I've read this from others too and I'd love to know the cause. Luckily for all of us, the SM adjustment for red push seems to do the job for the whole screen.

Nice Work! ;)

I just bought the Samsung TX-3082 WH yesterday, and I thought that the picture quality was great and there weren't any geometry problems....

slowly I'm beginning to wonder... the first thing I noticed is on the right and left sides of the TV the vertical lines are much wider than in the center of the TV... I assume this is a geometry issue. If it's something that can be adjusted... I sure don't know how to.

Then when I really noticed a problem was after downloading several new XBOX 360 game trailers (e3 and all)...

I downloaded a Gears of War TV special thing, and noticed that nearly two thirds of the name was covered! After I noticed this, I went out to the main menu and noted a few other problems.

I have attached 2 photos of what happened in the Gears of War Trailer... What's the deal with that? Should I take this set back and buy the LG (even though it has only 1 HDMI input?).

How do I fix that distortion? Did I just get a terrible set with a factory worker that wanted to play a joke on whoever bought it or what?

this forum is absolutely great! it took me a solid 3 or so hours over the span of 4 days, but i can honestly say now that i have almost no discernible distortion issues on my week-old Samsung TXS2782HX at all. the set came to me with very visible hourglass-ing and overscan issues, and i was very upset until i decided to work on the service menu.

here's a handy hint that might help some of you beginning tweakers - when working from the service menu, the set will reset back to 100 contrast and 50(?) brightness, which will distort everything and make tweaking a pain in the ass.

step one is to find your perfect contrast/brightness ratio (35/40 is a good starting point, and then tailor to your preference), and note what distortion issues you want to rectify. from there go about tweaking one step at a time, restoring your preferred picture settings each time to make sure they're good. for my set, there is noticeable bowing in the service menu, but once i'm back to ~40 contrast and ~40 brightness, the lines straighten out and i have almost zero overscan. tweak for your contrast/brightness range, not for how it looks in the service menu!

for people needing help in their tweaking, earlier on someone posted a PDF (i can't find the post now) to a Samsung Service Manual that shows visually what all the deflection settings do - use it. it helped me out immensely.

...for people needing help in their tweaking, earlier on someone posted a PDF (i can't find the post now) to a Samsung Service Manual that shows visually what all the deflection settings do - use it. it helped me out immensely.
If you run across that pdf file again would you be so kind as to re-post the link?

Component Video connection gives me WAVY lines flowing across the screen like a river of multicolored distortion, it looks awful. When I'm watching a brand new DVD, it looks like my TV is trying to catch an airwave signal in the 1950's or something. I tested my component cables and dvd player on another cheaper tv and no problem, the problem is constant, not just when viewing dvd menu's, satellite (through the dvd), or watching a dvd, it's all the time. Moving the tv around, shielding the wires, and trying both component ports didn't help. What the hell? Bad wiring in the TV?you just reminded me of the one issue i have with this set. i don't have a DVD player hooked up in my room (yet - i mostly use my computer or my living room set for dvd viewing), but i do have an Xbox and gamecube hooked up to the component jacks on my tx-s2782h. when playing a game on either system, either on progressive scan or not, the picture is clear without any distortion. however, when i tried to view a DVD using my xbox for playback, the wavy lines you mentioned appeared. it can't just be a progressive/non-progressive issue (xbox plays back dvds non progressive), since i do not get these wavy lines when playing my games in non-progressive mode over the same component input.

i really hope this isn't a constant.

...slowly I'm beginning to wonder... the first thing I noticed is on the right and left sides of the TV the vertical lines are much wider than in the center of the TV... I assume this is a geometry issue. If it's something that can be adjusted... I sure don't know how to.
This is normal on Samsung widescreen sets employing the SlimFit technology, as it is on most widescreen sets. It's more pronounced on some than on others.

...I downloaded a Gears of War TV special thing, and noticed that nearly two thirds of the name was covered! After I noticed this, I went out to the main menu and noted a few other problems.
This sounds like overscan. It can be adjusted with a calibration disc and use of the service menu.

I have attached 2 photos of what happened in the Gears of War Trailer... What's the deal with that? Should I take this set back and buy the LG (even though it has only 1 HDMI input?).

How do I fix that distortion? Did I just get a terrible set with a factory worker that wanted to play a joke on whoever bought it or what?
This is interesting. I've seen another guy post images very similar to your where the Xbox 360 "edge" was so bowed inward on the right side. Are you certain that is supposed to be prefectly straight? The other guy didn't even mention it was a problem, and that really confused me. And his set was a Sony.

If it is not supposed to bow in like that, then it's exhibiting a pincushion effect. This can also be corrected in the SM.

If I were you I'd place a service call and get them in ASAP, especially if you're still within the 30 day return period. If they can't get to you in enough time for you to work a return, if necessary, then you might think about returning it. Like I said, I believe all these issues can be fixed, but you have to decide if the hassle factor to you is worth it. If not, get another one.

If you run across that pdf file again would you be so kind as to re-post the link?i found the link, but stupid forum restrictions aren't letting me post links until i attain 5 posts.

service manual for overview of settings - http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/SM/200507/20050708154431015_S62A-aadj-3.pdf

5 (sorry again)

here's the service manual - http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/SM/200507/20050708154431015_S62A-aadj-3.pdf

here's the service manual - http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/SM/200507/20050708154431015_S62A-aadj-3.pdf
Thank you VERY MUCH! ;)

Here is an update on the QAM issue: Check out: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/384951-REG/Samsung_TXR3079WH_TX_R3079WH_30_16_9_Digital.html

That is my model but no beans on QAM. However I was playing around with the "+100" button. If you hit "+100" and then punch in a channel number (while viewing analog cable), it tries to go to DTV. It briefly shows 79.0. 79 being the channel I hit after I hit +100. It seems like it sort of can tune in 70.0 but not 70.1, 70.2 etc. Let me know if you guys try this and what the results are.

here's the service manual - http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/SM/200507/20050708154431015_S62A-aadj-3.pdf

Does anybody have the Service Manual for the 3079?

Has anybody played with the DTV option in the Service menu? Could it be that the QAM tuner is simply bypassed by that setting and the new FW simply enabled that Bit?

This is interesting. I've seen another guy post images very similar to your where the Xbox 360 "edge" was so bowed inward on the right side. Are you certain that is supposed to be prefectly straight? The other guy didn't even mention it was a problem, and that really confused me. And his set was a Sony.

If it is not supposed to bow in like that, then it's exhibiting a pincushion effect. This can also be corrected in the SM.

justsc-

I've seen that on all of the XBOX360 pics I've seen posted on the web. However, I think he's talking aobut the rotation of the screen, not the pincushioning. In the shot, the lower left corner is missing more of the text than the lower right hand corner. There's a fairly obvious overscan issue on the set, but the way that bottom row text is displayed leads me to believe that there's a rotation issue as well.

I'm not familiar enough with the SM to know if there's a rotation adjustment, or if it's a physical adjustment only.

Here is an update on the QAM issue: Check out: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/384951-REG/Samsung_TXR3079WH_TX_R3079WH_30_16_9_Digital.html

That is my model but no beans on QAM. However I was playing around with the "+100" button. If you hit "+100" and then punch in a channel number (while viewing analog cable), it tries to go to DTV. It briefly shows 79.0. 79 being the channel I hit after I hit +100. It seems like it sort of can tune in 70.0 but not 70.1, 70.2 etc. Let me know if you guys try this and what the results are.

Actually, that page from B&H really has little bearing on the QAM discussion. The main reason it has no bearing is because Best Buy was in the same situation in the past, where they had QAM listed as part of the package, but later rescinded that and said that they had incorrect data. So, it's quite possible that B&H just has bad information.

Fortunately for owners of the 8082, there's actually a "-" button on the remote, and that button actually functions on the 8082, so it's possible to direct-tune a digital subchannel. I have a remote with the "-" button on it, but it does nothing on my 2670.

One of the only things that I wish my 2670 had that my XBR960 already has is the direct subchannel tuning. I'm starting to think that it's related to the QAM firmware issues, though, since any digital TV worth its salt should be able to direct-tune subchannels, IMHO. Either that, or the same marketing wizards who left out the QAM tuner also left out the subchannel tuning capabilities.

Actually, that page from B&H really has little bearing on the QAM discussion. The main reason it has no bearing is because Best Buy was in the same situation in the past, where they had QAM listed as part of the package, but later rescinded that and said that they had incorrect data. So, it's quite possible that B&H just has bad information.

Fortunately for owners of the 8082, there's actually a "-" button on the remote, and that button actually functions on the 8082, so it's possible to direct-tune a digital subchannel. I have a remote with the "-" button on it, but it does nothing on my 2670.

One of the only things that I wish my 2670 had that my XBR960 already has is the direct subchannel tuning. I'm starting to think that it's related to the QAM firmware issues, though, since any digital TV worth its salt should be able to direct-tune subchannels, IMHO. Either that, or the same marketing wizards who left out the QAM tuner also left out the subchannel tuning capabilities.

So have you messed with the DTV setting in teh SM? Or can you already direct tune QAM-clear channels? Does your auto channel scan pick up QAM clear? What model do you have?

justsc-

I've seen that on all of the XBOX360 pics I've seen posted on the web. However, I think he's talking aobut the rotation of the screen, not the pincushioning. In the shot, the lower left corner is missing more of the text than the lower right hand corner. There's a fairly obvious overscan issue on the set, but the way that bottom row text is displayed leads me to believe that there's a rotation issue as well.

I'm not familiar enough with the SM to know if there's a rotation adjustment, or if it's a physical adjustment only.
I can't speak directly to the most current crop of Samsung sets, but my 2 year-old set has a rotation setting in the user menu, and I had to use it.

This is normal on Samsung widescreen sets employing the SlimFit technology, as it is on most widescreen sets. It's more pronounced on some than on others.


This sounds like overscan. It can be adjusted with a calibration disc and use of the service menu.


This is interesting. I've seen another guy post images very similar to your where the Xbox 360 "edge" was so bowed inward on the right side. Are you certain that is supposed to be prefectly straight? The other guy didn't even mention it was a problem, and that really confused me. And his set was a Sony.

If it is not supposed to bow in like that, then it's exhibiting a pincushion effect. This can also be corrected in the SM.

If I were you I'd place a service call and get them in ASAP, especially if you're still within the 30 day return period. If they can't get to you in enough time for you to work a return, if necessary, then you might think about returning it. Like I said, I believe all these issues can be fixed, but you have to decide if the hassle factor to you is worth it. If not, get another one.

If I get someone from Best Buy to come out, while they even know what they're doing in the service menu?

Perhaps someone could post the exact settings they've used in the service menu of the 3082 WH (I'm not even sure how to get in there). Or are the settings more of on a TV by TV basis? (I'm wondering if I should go with an LCD, but then I'm worried about the refresh rate)

Anyone know how to get into a SM for the 3082 WH? I'm not even sure what overscanning is...

I was thinking on getting a CRT or Projection, until I heard from both Reps of Samsung & Panasonic are going to try to release a working consumer OLED base TV by June of 2006 if all goes well with tests. I heard that Samsung wants to replace the DLPs with them cause of the bulb issuses and wonder why not do the same with CRTs.

I want the Samsung TXR 3079, but I know it has a problem with blue color bleeding from the corners and it does get noticeable after a few weeks.

I want to get TRS 3082, but that is an American model and no new version was release for Canada.

If I get someone from Best Buy to come out, while they even know what they're doing in the service menu?

Perhaps someone could post the exact settings they've used in the service menu of the 3082 WH (I'm not even sure how to get in there). Or are the settings more of on a TV by TV basis? (I'm wondering if I should go with an LCD, but then I'm worried about the refresh rate)

Anyone know how to get into a SM for the 3082 WH? I'm not even sure what overscanning is...
For the most part, as analog devices, crt sets are each unique, with their own set of SM values. But many of the values are the same within the same models. It's always dicey to just input someone else's values, but it can be helpful to try one at a time and see if it works for you.

The SM is no place for the uninitiated. Some folks have wrecked their new hd sets by mucking in their SM without knowing what they were doing.

However, if you follow the "rules," you can make a big difference. The rules are simple: 1) write down ALL values for the settings you intend to change or experiment with BEFORE changing anything 2) change one thing at a time. That's it.

You'll need a calibration dvd (e.g. Avia or DVE) to guide you through the proper adjustment of user menu settings. These dvds also have simple test patterns that can help adjust for overscan, etc. I recommend Avia as I find it easier to navigate the menus and sections and it has a nice introduction on what calibration is all about, and good explanations of what to do with each test pattern.

I was thinking on getting a CRT or Projection, until I heard from both Reps of Samsung & Panasonic are going to try to release a working consumer OLED base TV by June of 2006 if all goes well with tests. I heard that Samsung wants to replace the DLPs with them cause of the bulb issuses and wonder why not do the same with CRTs.

I want the Samsung TXR 3079, but I know it has a problem with blue color bleeding from the corners and it does get noticeable after a few weeks.

I want to get TRS 3082, but that is an American model and no new version was release for Canada.
Unless something has changed dramatically, we're not going to see consumer level OLED sets any time soon. The players are Canon and Toshiba and they are reportedly nowhere near ready for prime time. OLED holds a lot of promise since they are self-illuminating, very thin and are very energy efficient. They are also developing FOLED, which is folded OLED. This will be like electronic paper. Displays will be able to be rolled-up or otherwise made compact and can be attached to a computer or other input and be just like a bright monitor. I read one piece talking about the ability to go to the park with a laptop and a rolled-up FOLED display, unrolling the display and having a 20" 2oz display to work with. Because it's self illuminating and requires little energy it would be bright enough to overcome ambient daylight.

If by chance OLED did make it to the consumer market this year it would only be affordable by the rich and famous.

This is old news, but that is what I was told by the Reps of Sam & Pan. They want to release it first and the price will drop quickly as it is going to replace DLP TVs. I am going to wait later this year and see what they come out with. I want a TV for games and video and the other for TV & Internet. I am hoping that OLED can fill that gap.
SAMSUNG-COM/PressCenter/PressRelease/PressRelease.asp?seq=20050519_0000123644


Degauss the TV? Does anyone know how and what buttons to press to enter that mode?

This is old news, but that is what I was told by the Reps of Sam & Pan. They want to release it first and the price will drop quickly as it is going to replace DLP TVs. I am going to wait later this year and see what they come out with. I want a TV for games and video and the other for TV & Internet. I am hoping that OLED can fill that gap.
SAMSUNG-COM/PressCenter/PressRelease/PressRelease.asp?seq=20050519_0000123644


Degauss the TV? Does anyone know how and what buttons to press to enter that mode?
I believe the degaussing circuit is activated every time you turn on the tv. I don't believe it's necessary to do more than that. Beware of degaussing wands - they can do more harm than good.

I am having a service done and he said he is going to bring a wand? I am going to tell him to do it by remote instead. I was told by the TECHs the TV is sensitive to movement and power sources.

I am having a service done and he said he is going to bring a wand? I am going to tell him to do it by remote instead. I was told by the TECHs the TV is sensitive to movement and power sources.
This is very important.

There's a Display Calibration section on AVS immediately following this one (Direct View) under displays. Try posting your question about the use of wands there. There are calibrators there right now answering questions. I bet they can give you good advice.

Has anyone had any experience with the 3082 WH and a service plan at Best Buy? If I called them up and told them the issues, might they come out and actually know what they're doing and recalibrate the screen etc for me?

Or do they not even have "Avia" (Where can you buy this?)

Would I have any luck just taking back my current set and replacing it with the same thing? I'm kinda bummed.

I was playing Oblivion on XBOX 360 and half of the lower left indicators are cut off.

How do I get into the 3082's service menu? I don't have a calibration disk though... this is freaking lame.

I shouldn't have to deal with buying a brand new set only to find half of the indicators on a game are being cut off. Isn't it just something a consumer should expect? That that TV actually displays things without them being cutoff?

Has anyone had any experience with the 3082 WH and a service plan at Best Buy? If I called them up and told them the issues, might they come out and actually know what they're doing and recalibrate the screen etc for me?

I wouldn't bet my TV on it.

Or do they not even have "Avia" (Where can you buy this?)

They might. Do a Google search on Avia or calibration DVDs to get more information on this. I borrowed my dad's calibration DVD that was last released in 1999, I think.

Would I have any luck just taking back my current set and replacing it with the same thing? I'm kinda bummed.

I was playing Oblivion on XBOX 360 and half of the lower left indicators are cut off.

How do I get into the 3082's service menu? I don't have a calibration disk though... this is freaking lame.

I shouldn't have to deal with buying a brand new set only to find half of the indicators on a game are being cut off. Isn't it just something a consumer should expect? That that TV actually displays things without them being cutoff?

Don't need to get into the service menu to fix it. On Page 26 of the owner's manual, it states: Due to the Earth’s magnetic field there may be some minor image tilt depending on the TV’s location. When this occurs, follow the
steps below.
1. Press the MENU button to display the menu.
Press the Up or Down button to select “Picture”, then press the ENTER button.
2. Press the Up or Down button to select “Tilt”, then press the ENTER button.
Press the Left or Right button to adjust screen tilt.
Press the EXIT button to exit.

No need for the service menu, no need to blame Samsung.

Also, make sure that you're not on one of the Zoom settings, so that you're not losing any of the image. Others have reported that they don't have as many over-scan issues when using some darker settings (darker than the average person might be used to, but actually the correct levels).

Everyone's setup is going to be different. I have a feeling that some TVs will probably look different depending on if they're oriented North/South instead of East/West. It's the nature of CRT technology, and that's why there are user-level adjustments that can be made to correct it, and Service-level adjustments for more refined changes.

This is what I would do (I work for BB)-their so called service plan is a bunch of BS, take your Samsung tv back-don't even think about getting either another Samaung or LG "slimfit" tv, I got one the 27" Samsh*t tvs and had the geometry problems-the a regular crt hd tv-I got the store brand Insignia 27" hdtv-no problems with the geometry and the picture is gorgeous or a Sony 30" 16:9.

This is what I would do (I work for BB)-their so called service plan is a bunch of BS, take your Samsung tv back-don't even think about getting either another Samaung or LG "slimfit" tv, I got one the 27" Samsh*t tvs and had the geometry problems-the a regular crt hd tv-I got the store brand Insignia 27" hdtv-no problems with the geometry and the picture is gorgeous or a Sony 30" 16:9.

Since the Best Buy employee discount is cost-plus based, this is a really specious argument to make. Best Buy's profit margin on an Insignia is higher than on a name-brand, so your employee discount cost on the TV is even lower than the difference that a consumer would pay between a Samsung and an Insignia.

Not sure why all the haters have been coming out to play lately, but not everything that Samsung puts out is total crap. They have consistently had some of the best PQ of any set in their price range, and Samsung has been constantly tweaking the issues of SlimFit designs.

By creating a widescreen tube, and going to a slim-fit form factor, there are going to be more inherent problems than a non-slimfit model. But if someone doesn't have the room for a full-size CRT TV, there's nothing wrong with either LG or Samsung's slimfit models.

Insignia is crap, I looked at the picture yesterday which was right next to the 3082 model and I was in awe how bad the picture was. Now they were all running the same program on all tv's and could be that it wasn't properly calibrated, but avoid it like the plague. I have heard nothing but bad things about that brand. As far as the Geometry issues with Samsung on the 3082 it was very minor and doesn't even ruin the amazing picture that this tv has, the geo issue is only apparent when looking through the menu screen, even then you really have to look in order to spot it.

I don't see any zoom settings, unless they're turned on right out of the box.

The source is coming from component so I can't zoom


Edit: I'm going to take this lame TV back, I should be able to plug my XBOX 360 in, turn on the TV and see all necessary indicators without making adjustments. It just doesn't make sense that most of the bottom half of the screen is cut off. I mean wtf?

I don't see any zoom settings, unless they're turned on right out of the box.

The source is coming from component so I can't zoom


Edit: I'm going to take this lame TV back, I should be able to plug my XBOX 360 in, turn on the TV and see all necessary indicators without making adjustments. It just doesn't make sense that most of the bottom half of the screen is cut off. I mean wtf?

IMNSHO, you're making a mistake. It may be that individual TV has some issues, but it's not a "lame TV". A 9 inch black-and-white analog TV with a cigarette lighter adapter and a dial tuner is a "lame TV". The S3082 is a sophisticated piece of entertainment technology.

But, if you're the kind of person that needs everything to work correctly "out of the box", without ANY minor adjustments (all of which are described in detail in the Owner's Manual), then perhaps an HDTV isn't the way to go right now.

As far as "can't zoom in component", then I again refer to the user's manual. There are distinct images and decriptions of the Zoom modes in both 4:3 and 16:9 modes on Page 25.

I don't see any zoom settings, unless they're turned on right out of the box.

The source is coming from component so I can't zoom


Edit: I'm going to take this lame TV back, I should be able to plug my XBOX 360 in, turn on the TV and see all necessary indicators without making adjustments. It just doesn't make sense that most of the bottom half of the screen is cut off. I mean wtf?
I am sorry you've had this experience. It shouldn't have to be this way. Unfortunately, the hassle factor with new hd sets can be high. But the bottom line is folks shouldn't have to get their new tv's fixed in order to look good.

Good Luck on your return - and better luck next time. ;)

Everyone,

Service Menu access info is being given away like it's a piece of candy.

Every time I see folks get cavalier with the SM people end up getting screwed. I'm just saying don't give out how to get into the SM lightly. It's no place for the uninitiated to be going into and messing with the brains of their tv systems. These hd sets are true systems, not just plain-old tvs. This is complex stuff and the service menu is hard core.

Please always give out warnings to anyone that uses the SM that they must record any and all values for whichever settings they intend to tweak or change.

I've seen so many people totally wreck their sets. They end up with a $600 paperweight. I never give that info out any more. If someone wants to find it they just have to do a search. Do people a favor and recommend calibration discs, tell 'em to give their sets awhile to settle-in, tell them to give their reseller or OEM a call.

Cheers! ;)

Insignia is crap, I looked at the picture yesterday which was right next to the 3082 model and I was in awe how bad the picture was. Now they were all running the same program on all tv's and could be that it wasn't properly calibrated, but avoid it like the plague. I have heard nothing but bad things about that brand. As far as the Geometry issues with Samsung on the 3082 it was very minor and doesn't even ruin the amazing picture that this tv has, the geo issue is only apparent when looking through the menu screen, even then you really have to look in order to spot it.Samsung slimfit tvs are a big piece of s**t as far as I'm concerned. "Minor geometry issues?" You gotta be kidding! My worthless Samsung looked like a fun house mirror. Two hour of adjustments in the deflection menu yielded at most a 2% improvement-and I know what I'm doing when it comes to that as an electronics tech. My Insignia has about a 100% improvment in the picture-to you it may be s**t, to me Samsung's "slimfit" tvs are s**t.

Looking for a 30-34" CRT High Definition tv, I like the Sony, but it's a little too big and too heavy for the space. Any thoughts on the Samsung TX-S3082W? Or anthing else out there?

Not all of them are screwed up. Just because you got a bad one doesnt mean the tv is a pos. Look at this pic I took of my 360 with my crappy 2.0mp camera. Looks pretty damn good imo. Tweaking this tv properly can give you an amazing picture.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a93/korngtl15/100_4187.jpg

Samsung slimfit tvs are a big piece of s**t as far as I'm concerned. "Minor geometry issues?" You gotta be kidding! My worthless Samsung looked like a fun house mirror. Two hour of adjustments in the deflection menu yielded at most a 2% improvement-and I know what I'm doing when it comes to that as an electronics tech. My Insignia has about a 100% improvment in the picture-to you it may be s**t, to me Samsung's "slimfit" tvs are s**t.

Consider youself extremly lucky-after I knew what to look for I noticed distortion on every slimfit display model I saw in CC and BB. I ended up buying a BB house brand tv (Insignia) for half the price of the Samsung and it's 100% better.


Unreal. I don't know what you're looking through, but the Insignia brand of ANYTHING isn't worth the plastic it's made with. Don't buy it. I'm upset, being an employee of Best Buy myself, that a fellow employee would seriously say that Insignia products are good, let alone better than a Samsung. Wow.

Anyway, tomorrow's the big day: Either the Samsung 3082 with the HT-Q70 HTIB, or the LG 30FS4D with LH-T9654S. The old lady signed off on either purchase today, although she wants to buy the Samsung TV and the LG HTIB, but I refuse to mix-n-match, because the room is about aesthetics as much as it is quality. Thoughts or suggestions??? And don't tell me to not buy an HTIB - it's a smaller room, and it's just to hold me over until I have enough stashed away from an HK 445 receiver & an Athena speaker setup. Help me decide, though: SAMSUNG OR LG???

Psssss samsung!

Unreal. I don't know what you're looking through, but the Insignia brand of ANYTHING isn't worth the plastic it's made with. Don't buy it. I'm upset, being an employee of Best Buy myself, that a fellow employee would seriously say that Insignia products are good, let alone better than a Samsung. Wow.

Anyway, tomorrow's the big day: Either the Samsung 3082 with the HT-Q70 HTIB, or the LG 30FS4D with LH-T9654S. The old lady signed off on either purchase today, although she wants to buy the Samsung TV and the LG HTIB, but I refuse to mix-n-match, because the room is about aesthetics as much as it is quality. Thoughts or suggestions??? And don't tell me to not buy an HTIB - it's a smaller room, and it's just to hold me over until I have enough stashed away from an HK 445 receiver & an Athena speaker setup. Help me decide, though: SAMSUNG OR LG???

I just had my TXR 3079 tweaked and is now displaying properly. I just have two places where blue halo bleeding from right top & bottom, but was told that with most tweaking and it should be clear. The picture looks great in HD for a CRT that I got for $700 cnd plus 6yr extra warranty.

IMNSHO, you're making a mistake. It may be that individual TV has some issues, but it's not a "lame TV". A 9 inch black-and-white analog TV with a cigarette lighter adapter and a dial tuner is a "lame TV". The S3082 is a sophisticated piece of entertainment technology.

But, if you're the kind of person that needs everything to work correctly "out of the box", without ANY minor adjustments (all of which are described in detail in the Owner's Manual), then perhaps an HDTV isn't the way to go right now.

As far as "can't zoom in component", then I again refer to the user's manual. There are distinct images and decriptions of the Zoom modes in both 4:3 and 16:9 modes on Page 25.

Yes there are descriptions and when I go to my picture settings while my XBOX 360 is plugged into Component 1 and the Zoom Feature is greyed out... that means its not selectable. Read the manual again.

All I'm saying about "needing everything to work correctly" is stating that out of the box, how cool is it to turn on a game only to find nearly half of the lower left hand corner indicators are cut off? I mean wtf? Seriously that shouldn't be.

Update: I returned the Samsung and reordered a new one... if out of the box the indicators are cut off, I think that will be the way of telling me I shouldn't be spending my money on an HD TV.

Yes there are descriptions and when I go to my picture settings while my XBOX 360 is plugged into Component 1 and the Zoom Feature is greyed out... that means its not selectable. Read the manual again.

All I'm saying about "needing everything to work correctly" is stating that out of the box, how cool is it to turn on a game only to find nearly half of the lower left hand corner indicators are cut off? I mean wtf? Seriously that shouldn't be.

Update: I returned the Samsung and reordered a new one... if out of the box the indicators are cut off, I think that will be the way of telling me I shouldn't be spending my money on an HD TV.
Best of luck with the replacement.

I appreciate what you are saying. Not everyone wants to become a guru on calibration - they just want the tv to work. And that's totally understandable. You may end-up having to save for LCD or Plasma, as they have little to no geometry issues. Out of the box they are typically much better than crt sets.

See if you can get the latest FW upgrade CD.

Try and get the model numbers that the FW upgrade CD applied to and which ones it had problems with. Perhaps we can get a hold of a CD and flash the models we have that work. None of us has been able to get jack out of Sammsung so PLEASE since you have their ear, ask them these questions.

Also see if you can find out which slimfit models really do have a QAM-clear tuner and see if you can get teh facts. We are all at a loss here.

I have bad news, which I'm still trying to wrap my brain around.

I finally asked Executive Customer Relations about the QAM thing today. The rep told me that she was informed by Product Specialists that it is now illegal to build a TV with a clear-QAM tuner built into it, and that they will no longer offer QAM tuning capabilities on ANY of their TVs.

This was a shock to me, as Sony and others are still making QAM-capable TVs, and there are plenty of stand-alone QAM tuners on the market.

The only reason I can see that this would be the case is if there were HDCP issues, and all future QAM tuners needed to go into HDMI connections or have CableCards, but so far I haven't been able to find anything to support this.

I loathe giving up a perfectly good working set, but since they offered me the S3082 to replace my P2670, in light of this news from Samsung, I just opted to replace it.

I'll report more if I can find out anything else.

I have bad news, which I'm still trying to wrap my brain around.

I finally asked Executive Customer Relations about the QAM thing today. The rep told me that she was informed by Product Specialists that it is now illegal to build a TV with a clear-QAM tuner built into it, and that they will no longer offer QAM tuning capabilities on ANY of their TVs.

This was a shock to me, as Sony and others are still making QAM-capable TVs, and there are plenty of stand-alone QAM tuners on the market.

The only reason I can see that this would be the case is if there were HDCP issues, and all future QAM tuners needed to go into HDMI connections or have CableCards, but so far I haven't been able to find anything to support this.

I loathe giving up a perfectly good working set, but since they offered me the S3082 to replace my P2670, in light of this news from Samsung, I just opted to replace it.

I'll report more if I can find out anything else.
There's something about this news that smells strange. Not that I doubt what you were told at all.

I have a contact inside Samsung and I'm going to try and tap him for info on this. I just learned, by the way, that the last avaliable FW upgrade failed to work on TX-P series sets and was withdrawn for that reason. So you had nothing to lose by going to the new set anyway.

I think someone is feeding you a big line of BS, from what I've read in the official FTC rules & regulations one of the requirements is that the ATSC tuner be capable of clear QAM decoding.

I bought the 3082 tonight. Waiting on my HDMI & Optical's to arrive from Monoprice, so I've only been able to hook it up via straight coax and composite video for DVD. Even with that, I'm happy. Very little geometry problems...I haven't been able to notice anything that negative about it without looking hard. I did have to adjust the tilt right off the bat, but it's now fine. Once I get my cables I'll test it more and optimize via the service menu.

I also bought Samsung's HT-Q70 HTiB system to go with it, as my room for this is small, and I'm impressed there as well, even on cheap stereo cables. I'm very happy with the setup for under $1000. More to come.

I think someone is feeding you a big line of BS, from what I've read in the official FTC rules & regulations one of the requirements is that the ATSC tuner be capable of clear QAM decoding.
Absolutely.

I did get some feedback from my buddy inside Samsung and, in response to my posing this question, he wrote"

"No (to the issue of the lagality), we just don't offer QAM anymore. It was an FCC mandate that we make digital tuners available so we are offering an ATSC tuner OTA for our consumers."

I don't believe it's an FTC regulation that QAM Clear be provided automatically alongside ATSC tuners, otherwise Samsung would be handcuffed here. It appears that whomever is offering QAM tuners is doing it as a feature, not as a legal requirement.

Hi, I'm new here, and I really need to find an answer to this problem.

I have a Samsung Slimfit TX-S2782H HDTV (CRT). When I plug audio cables directly from the TV into my little stereo, there is a noticeable delay in the sound. It's only maybe half a second, but if I have the TV volume and the stereo volume up, it sounds like I'm listening to the TV in a cavern. When I had and old Sanyo TV with the audio cables attached, the sound of the TV was in sync, and I could even control the stero sound by adjusting the TV volume. Not so with this Samsung. Is there a way to get it to sync? Is there a way to make the stereo control on the TV also work for the stereo? There's nothing in the user manual or on the Samsung website that is in reference to this.

In a related issue, I recently also got a new digital cable box that is HD, and the instructions said to attach the audio parts of the HD cable to the stereo and the video to the TV, and there is still a delay. Is this a compatibility problem with HD? Have any of you ever heard of this sound delay issue? I've gone through all the possible audio settings on the TV and nothing seems to work. I'm going crazy.

Any help anyone can offer would be greatly appreciated.

Absolutely.

I did get some feedback from my buddy inside Samsung and, in response to my posing this question, he wrote"

"No (to the issue of the lagality), we just don't offer QAM anymore. It was an FCC mandate that we make digital tuners available so we are offering an ATSC tuner OTA for our consumers."

I don't believe it's an FTC regulation that QAM Clear be provided automatically alongside ATSC tuners, otherwise Samsung would be handcuffed here. It appears that whomever is offering QAM tuners is doing it as a feature, not as a legal requirement.Maybe so-the Insignia (sound of snickering in the background) hdtv I just got has an ATSC tuner with qam-I was amazed at all the digitial (unscrambled) channels that are available.

Hi guys I am looking at a tv at target and have heard both positive and negative things about it from the xbox forum.
It is the Samsung 30" Wide SlimFit HDTV - TXS3082. I get another 10% off and free shipping so it is a good deal. Will this have those issues or is it just last years models?

Hi guys I am looking at a tv at target and have heard both positive and negative things about it from the xbox forum.
It is the Samsung 30" Wide SlimFit HDTV - TXS3082. I get another 10% off and free shipping so it is a good deal. Will this have those issues or is it just last years models?
I have that model and yes it will have a slight geometry issue, it is much less than the previous models, I only notice it when checking the tv channel listings. Even with this slight issue I have decided to keep the tv, the picture is amazing and the geometry issue is hardly noticeable and desn't lessen my enjoyment of this tv.

I have that model and yes it will have a slight geometry issue, it is much less than the previous models, I only notice it when checking the tv channel listings. Even with this slight issue I have decided to keep the tv, the picture is amazing and the geometry issue is hardly noticeable and desn't lessen my enjoyment of this tv.
I guess you're one of the lucky few-good going!

Hi guys I am looking at a tv at target and have heard both positive and negative things about it from the xbox forum.
It is the Samsung 30" Wide SlimFit HDTV - TXS3082. I get another 10% off and free shipping so it is a good deal. Will this have those issues or is it just last years models?
IMHO, it's definitely worth the risk especially if you live close to your reseller and they have a good 30 day return policy.

The one nice thing about Samsung sets is, if you get a good one you've got a real gem.

Good Luck! ;) ;)

Maybe so-the Insignia (sound of snickering in the background) hdtv I just got has an ATSC tuner with qam-I was amazed at all the digitial (unscrambled) channels that are available.
Excellent!

It does tend to surprise folks how many unscrambled channels you can pick up. So many people just purchase digital cable and the associated STB w/o ever finding out if what they can get via a QAM tuner might not already be enough. For me, I like Discovery HD Theater, INHD and ESPN HD, so I do pay for digital cable.

Well guys I don't watch much TV except for ESPN and adult swim sometimes. I probably won't even the geometry issues they say. I will mainly play xbox360. I am buying from target com and they have a return policy. $790 shipped to my door.

Well, I had a bad experiance with my slimfit and elected to not to gamble with another one, I got another crt hdtv that everybody says is a piece of junk-I've had nothing but good luck with it-so I guess it's very much an individual experiance. Like you said-make sure that the place you buy your Samsung from has a decent return policy-good luck.

Well guys I don't watch much TV except for ESPN and adult swim sometimes. I probably won't even the geometry issues they say. I will mainly play xbox360. I am buying from target com and they have a return policy. $790 shipped to my door.

You will definately see the geometry issues (if they exist) on ESPN.
The rolling ticker at the bottom will really show it.

I just watched ESPN2-HD for the first time last weekend (or was it 2 weekends ago?), was flipping channels and saw drag racing which I enjoy, and didn't really see any bowing in the ticker on my Samsung 3080, I guess I am one of the rare lucky ones.


Jerry

Hi all.

My Dad has a Slimfit and has asked me to set it up for him. I connected it directly to Comcast's cable line as they have no STB. It scanned for channels from 2-120 and added the ones that it found.

However, the HD channels in Comcast's line up are in the 200's. I absolutely cannot figure out how to get this set to tune to a channel in the 200s to check if the HD channels are coming through - as I suspect they are.

One other question - the auto-scan feature asks you to choose one of 3 cable formats, STD, IHR, or something like that, and another. How do I know which? (I'm a satellite user at home so Comcast is new to me)

Thanks.
---------------------------------------------------
edit, I'm responding to my own question - called Samsung, there is no way to select anything above 120 without a STB.

Absolutely.

I did get some feedback from my buddy inside Samsung and, in response to my posing this question, he wrote"

"No (to the issue of the lagality), we just don't offer QAM anymore. It was an FCC mandate that we make digital tuners available so we are offering an ATSC tuner OTA for our consumers."

I don't believe it's an FTC regulation that QAM Clear be provided automatically alongside ATSC tuners, otherwise Samsung would be handcuffed here. It appears that whomever is offering QAM tuners is doing it as a feature, not as a legal requirement.

So JustC, can you ask your rep if he can provide a list of models that the F/W was intended for, which models it worked on, and which models it failed? Perhaps he can provide a copy of the CD with the upgrade for those of us that have models that work with teh F/W upgrade?

Also BTW I went into the SM on my 3079 and there is not DTV option.

Can he get a copy of the 3079 Service Manual? Thanks much!

So JustC, can you ask your rep if he can provide a list of models that the F/W was intended for, which models it worked on, and which models it failed? Perhaps he can provide a copy of the CD with the upgrade for those of us that have models that work with teh F/W upgrade?

Also BTW I went into the SM on my 3079 and there is not DTV option.

Can he get a copy of the 3079 Service Manual? Thanks much!
The models for which the F/W upgrade was intended was the TX-R line of SlimFit tvs. Because the upgrade was retracted so quickly, there's no way to tell which sets it worked for. And, apparently, Samsung made a decision to discontinue QAM tuners immediately after the F/W snafu. Since Samsung is no longer offering the upgrade, my contact is bound by policy and cannot provide code. I have to be very careful in my relationship with my contact to avoid too many questions and to avoid asking him to provide anything in the way of code, manuals, etc. I feel very fortunate to have made this contact and don't want to mess it up. I know for a fact he's feeling very badly for how things turned-out regarding QAM tuners. He doesn't work on the SlimFit line and has to work pretty hard to get me any info regarding them.

Service Manuals are available via Samsung support. There are also some sites on line that can point you to where to order from (I believe it's Koehi, or something like that).

I hate to beat a dead horse here. Can we please get some replies from some people that have succeesfully upgraded their FW on their slimfits? Can you post the model number that you have and if it had QAM before etc... Thanks and we will figure this out!

I hate to beat a dead horse here. Can we please get some replies from some people that have succeesfully upgraded their FW on their slimfits? Can you post the model number that you have and if it had QAM before etc... Thanks and we will figure this out!
I wholeheartedly second this request for info!

So much of what we have is heresay. I've asked this before but I don't recall ever getting a concrete answer from any affected owner.

Owners who have direct experience with Samsung sets that have been upgraded with firmware to make QAM work, OR direct experience with Samsung sets & working QAM tuners - Please tell us your story. Please limit discussion to actual experience and avoid what's been read or heard about - we've got all of that we need.

This would be a great service to existing owners and those trying to make a purchase decision. ;)

Why don't I see that much of a difference (if at all) between sending my signal via component vs. HDMI? With HDMI being what it is I thought I would see a better picture (the PQ is very good with eithe of these) with HDMI. Any thoughts?

Sorry this is a stupid question, but can anyone tell me how to display the Cross Hatch and Lion patterns in the Service Menu? I have the new 3082, but I have some geometry issues to deal with. Thanks.

Why don't I see that much of a difference (if at all) between sending my signal via component vs. HDMI? With HDMI being what it is I thought I would see a better picture (the PQ is very good with eithe of these) with HDMI. Any thoughts?

HDMI also carries the audio signal, and allows the user to view and listen to media protected under the rules of HDCP.

If you're displaying an HD resolution (720p or 1080i), I don't think it matters too much if you're sending it via HDMI or Component, as the resolution is still the same, and the same amount of information is being sent to the TV.

Why don't I see that much of a difference (if at all) between sending my signal via component vs. HDMI? With HDMI being what it is I thought I would see a better picture (the PQ is very good with eithe of these) with HDMI. Any thoughts?

There are numerous good articles debating this very question. Here is one of them:

http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/122868.html

Bottom line is it depends on a lot of factors such as equipment, quality and length of cables, etc.

There are numerous good articles debating this very question. Here is one of them:

http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/122868.html

Bottom line is it depends on a lot of factors such as equipment, quality and length of cables, etc.
It would seem, based on personal experience and what I've read here from others, that crt hd tv users prefer the picture quality of component versus HDMI. I have no idea why this "seems" to be true.

I wholeheartedly second this request for info!

So much of what we have is heresay. I've asked this before but I don't recall ever getting a concrete answer from any affected owner.

Owners who have direct experience with Samsung sets that have been upgraded with firmware to make QAM work, OR direct experience with Samsung sets & working QAM tuners - Please tell us your story. Please limit discussion to actual experience and avoid what's been read or heard about - we've got all of that we need.

This would be a great service to existing owners and those trying to make a purchase decision. ;)

Bump

OK so Here is some info that I have gotten with regaurds to the QAM tuner issue:

The debate is over the Hight Def TX-R series sets (Dyna flat and Slim Fit).

That narrows it down significantly, but what I don't know is at what point in the life cycle of TX-R series sets the upgrade was introduced and at what point it was pulled.

SO
if any of you guys can please provide either the model that you upgraded and your story that would be great.

Thanks to JustSC for his contribution.

Hey guys! I am new here.
..I just got a Samsung Slimfit, model TX-S2782H, and it is pretty good.
.....However, being new to the HDTV scene, I just want to know if there are any real problems with the TV.
...I really use it to play my Xbox360 on.
I also love the picture quality!
Anyway, anyone else with the same TV, what have you noticed about it?

Well-other than major distortion (geometry) problems that seem to affect about 70% of those who buy these sets-no.

Hey guys! I am new here.
..I just got a Samsung Slimfit, model TX-S2782H, and it is pretty good.
.....However, being new to the HDTV scene, I just want to know if there are any real problems with the TV.
...I really use it to play my Xbox360 on.
I also love the picture quality!
Anyway, anyone else with the same TV, what have you noticed about it?
I recommend that you just take some time to enjoy your new HD set and get a sense of what you like and don't like. I have found that when folks get info on problems, before they ever see them, they end up losing their enjoyment of the set while spending time looking for problems that may not even be there. Then, if you do run across one, even though you had not seen it before, your eyes will constantly be drawn to the problem area, again ruining the experience.

Enjoy the honeymoon experience and let us know what you think. And congrats on your new set! ;)

All I can say is during the brief period that I had my 27" slimfit the distortion stuck out like a sore thumb, and more people than not report the same type of problems-so draw your own conclusion.

What do you mean by distortion? The TV picture looks great to me! :)
..Anyway, I am just trying to understand some of the tech jargin, so what do you guys mean by "bowing?"
Again, Thanks!

The picture bows.

Look at a channel banner or ticker at the bottom of the screen. The bowing is obvious.

Hello all
I'm looking to buy may parents a HD set (I have the sammy DLP) as there 1982 Zenith 27 is about to die and they've decided to take the plung to HD. Due to space issues it appears the Sammy 3082 is about the best bet. They have also decided to switch to a Dish Network DVR (no HD service option due to "fixed" income issues) and add an antenna for HD OTA.

Is there anything I should be aware before pulling the trigger (and I don't mean geometry issues as I've read all of that here - there eyes aren't that detailed)? I downloaded the owners manuel and nothing really jumps out at me, but I won't them to be able to "surf" their favorites b/t OTA and Dish Network. I was also considering getting a Harmony 880 remote (namely b/c I'm tired of calls of "how do I watch a DVD"). It will only need the most basic functions.

Thanks for your input.

Zebras23

Look at a channel banner or ticker at the bottom of the screen. The bowing is obvious.
I agree it's obvious, "if one's set is indeed bowing the picture." But not all sets have this bowing, and on some it's almost imperceptable.

Samsung and other manufacturers are slowly fixing these issues. On the newest Samsung sets the anomalies are getting harder and harder to see.

What do you mean by distortion? The TV picture looks great to me! :)
..Anyway, I am just trying to understand some of the tech jargin, so what do you guys mean by "bowing?"
Again, Thanks!
I'm sure you're familiar with the strip that runs continuously at the bottom of tv screens while watching ESPN or CNN, right? These "tickers" can tend to rise up in the middle of the screen, or sag downward. So, folks refer to it as bowing, like with a bow (and arrow).

On some sets it's pretty bad, on others it's really hard to notice. Many sets don't even have it. On my 4 year-old Samsung 27" set the bowing is so mild I don't even notice it any more. And it has no effect on my viewing pleasure at all.

If you don't notice it - it's a good thing. ;)

Okay, I get it. I don't think it is a problem on my set, because I have never noticed it...
..But thanks again for the info!

So glad I didn't read this thread before buying my 30" widescreen slimfit
samsung. I bought a closeout display model for $500. The picture is
awesome, especially with hd broadcast.

Yes, some of the criticizisms are true, some bowing of letters and minor
distortion on the edge of screen with analog broadcast over my antenna.

They are so minor I rarely notice. Picture is better than some lcds I've looked at.

When viewing dvd, directv, or hd broadcast over antenna I couldn't be happier.

My 2 cents.

Is it possible to change the background solid default colour (light grey) to another colour via SM? My set has an annoying diffuse dark vertical strip of about 1" at the center of the screen. Thanks.

So glad I didn't read this thread before buying my 30" widescreen slimfit
samsung. I bought a closeout display model for $500. The picture is
awesome, especially with hd broadcast.

Yes, some of the criticizisms are true, some bowing of letters and minor
distortion on the edge of screen with analog broadcast over my antenna.

They are so minor I rarely notice. Picture is better than some lcds I've looked at.

When viewing dvd, directv, or hd broadcast over antenna I couldn't be happier.

My 2 cents.Then consider yourself one of the few lucky ones-glad you're happy with it.

Then consider yourself one of the few lucky ones-glad you're happy with it.
There's no way to know the overall success and quality of any given model on a forum like this. Forums only get the hardcore HT types and those researching problems. That hardly represents enough of a demographic from which to judge lucky from unlucky.

I agree with JustSC!

I have the same tv and have zero problems with mine. I have next to no experience about HD though (other than what I have picked up from having HD for about 3 or 4 months now!)

Minor/Major problems will always happen with anything you buy. It's just life. You try and get it fixed, or return it and get something else. :)

There's no way to know the overall success and quality of any given model on a forum like this. Forums only get the hardcore HT types and those researching problems. That hardly represents enough of a demographic from which to judge lucky from unlucky.
Well-yes and no-I'm not exactly hardcore-but I do change my stable of dvd players every 9 or 10 months-asking some of the service guys in the BB service dept I was told that these slimfit tv's do have a much higher rate of return than other brands of crt hdtvs due to the geometry problems.

I bought the 3082 tonight. Waiting on my HDMI & Optical's to arrive from Monoprice, so I've only been able to hook it up via straight coax and composite video for DVD. Even with that, I'm happy. Very little geometry problems...I haven't been able to notice anything that negative about it without looking hard. I did have to adjust the tilt right off the bat, but it's now fine. Once I get my cables I'll test it more and optimize via the service menu.

I also bought Samsung's HT-Q70 HTiB system to go with it, as my room for this is small, and I'm impressed there as well, even on cheap stereo cables. I'm very happy with the setup for under $1000. More to come.


Just thought I'd stop back in and report on the TV/HT setup. Despite all of the problems with last year's sets, I have to say that I'm thrilled with the 3082. Very, very minor bowing along the lefthand side and on the top and bottom, but I rarely notice it. With the upconverting DVD player hooked up via HDMI, movies are great, and HD is stunning. It's a keeper.

A bit of advice to some: this TV does NOT like 1080i. I'm sure it's b/c it's native to 720p, but I'd never seen the problems on other sets. Perhaps it was my cheap Monoprice HDMI cables, but whenever I output 1080i to the 3082, there is continuous although slight jitter that is very apparent in text and becomes almost dizzying after you've watched something for awhile. Make sure you enter your HD source menu and set the output to 720p (and 4:3 override to 480p) and do the same with your upconverting DVD player. My only grip is that the HTIB I bought to go with it (Samsung HT-Q70) resets automatically to 1080i every time I power off the unit, but I'm going to see if I can correct that. Also, if any of you are shopping for that, go instead with the HT-Q80; it features, instead of a component output, an HDMI input, so that you can run your HDTV source through the HTIB receiver. This is what a customer told me, at least. It's not a bad sounding system at all, especially for a smaller room.

Just thought I'd stop back in and report on the TV/HT setup. Despite all of the problems with last year's sets, I have to say that I'm thrilled with the 3082. Very, very minor bowing along the lefthand side and on the top and bottom, but I rarely notice it. With the upconverting DVD player hooked up via HDMI, movies are great, and HD is stunning. It's a keeper.

A bit of advice to some: this TV does NOT like 1080i. I'm sure it's b/c it's native to 720p, but I'd never seen the problems on other sets. Perhaps it was my cheap Monoprice HDMI cables, but whenever I output 1080i to the 3082, there is continuous although slight jitter that is very apparent in text and becomes almost dizzying after you've watched something for awhile. Make sure you enter your HD source menu and set the output to 720p (and 4:3 override to 480p) and do the same with your upconverting DVD player. My only grip is that the HTIB I bought to go with it (Samsung HT-Q70) resets automatically to 1080i every time I power off the unit, but I'm going to see if I can correct that. Also, if any of you are shopping for that, go instead with the HT-Q80; it features, instead of a component output, an HDMI input, so that you can run your HDTV source through the HTIB receiver. This is what a customer told me, at least. It's not a bad sounding system at all, especially for a smaller room.
Glad to see you are enjoying the 3082, I unfortunately had a bad one, and decided to get the Sony KD-30XS955 instead. I just wanted say that the tv's native resolution is 1080i and not 720p, not that it matter's both look great. It does in fact accept 720p but in convert's it to 1080i, it's really confusing and even the CS people at Samsung will tell you the wrong info.

...A bit of advice to some: this TV does NOT like 1080i. I'm sure it's b/c it's native to 720p, but I'd never seen the problems on other sets. Perhaps it was my cheap Monoprice HDMI cables, but whenever I output 1080i to the 3082, there is continuous although slight jitter that is very apparent in text and becomes almost dizzying after you've watched something for awhile. Make sure you enter your HD source menu and set the output to 720p (and 4:3 override to 480p) and do the same with your upconverting DVD player. My only grip is that the HTIB I bought to go with it (Samsung HT-Q70) resets automatically to 1080i every time I power off the unit, but I'm going to see if I can correct that. Also, if any of you are shopping for that, go instead with the HT-Q80; it features, instead of a component output, an HDMI input, so that you can run your HDTV source through the HTIB receiver. This is what a customer told me, at least. It's not a bad sounding system at all, especially for a smaller room.
thalazy is absolutely correct in saying that this set, and all other crt hd sets, do not display 720p, but rather 1080i. These sets do accept 720p, along with all other standard hd resolutions, but everything is processed and displayed on the screen as 1080i.

I just created an account so I could share my horrors with my txr 3079. after 4 tech visits and 3 new deflection modules I have a brick deemed unrepairable on my livingroom coffee table waiting to be hauled off by samsung.. here is the goodthing samsung has excellent customer service, after the second deflection unit they extended my warranty 6 months. Now that they have deemed my 3079 unrepairable they are replacing it beginning of the week with a txr 3082.

anyways point being if you are unhappy with your set CALL SAMSUNG, they want to help

once i recieve my new 3082 ill post thoughts on it

Bumer of an experience - but a good outcome.

Most all reports indicate that the 3082 is a big improvement over previous models.

Do you mind sharing what symptoms you experienced on your 3079?

I just got the TX-S3082WH and so far I love it. I don't seem to be having the issues that other people are, but then again maybe I'm too naive to notice. I do have a little problem that just came up. I was using component cables to connect my Comcast HD-DVR to the TV and didn't have any problems. I then got a DVI-HDMI cable (I wish Comcast would come out with an HDMI box). Since hooking up the DVI-HDMI I get closed captioning on certain channels and have no clue how to turn it off. It's only on certain channels, like ESPN. It also happens TNTHD, but only during basketball games. Anybody have any ideas on what to do. In the TV setup menu it says the closed captioning option isn't available. I guess I could switch back to the component cables, but to me it looks like DVI-HDMI has a better picture.

I just got the TX-S3082WH and so far I love it. I don't seem to be having the issues that other people are, but then again maybe I'm too naive to notice. I do have a little problem that just came up. I was using component cables to connect my Comcast HD-DVR to the TV and didn't have any problems. I then got a DVI-HDMI cable (I wish Comcast would come out with an HDMI box). Since hooking up the DVI-HDMI I get closed captioning on certain channels and have no clue how to turn it off. It's only on certain channels, like ESPN. It also happens TNTHD, but only during basketball games. Anybody have any ideas on what to do. In the TV setup menu it says the closed captioning option isn't available. I guess I could switch back to the component cables, but to me it looks like DVI-HDMI has a better picture.
They do, my hd-dvr box was messed up so they came and replaced it, they said they were going to give me the just released new model since it uses hdmi rather than dvi and is slightly smaller in size.
It's a Motorola DCT3412 I.

Well, I wanted to get my feet wet with HDTV, so I picked the TX-R3079 up at BB on clearance for $649 - 12% - $10 ~ $570 + tax out the door. Was not in the market for a new set until my 15 year old 35" RCA CRT bit it this weekend. So, I really dug the look of the Slimfits and while I could have bought an LCD at a much bigger screen size, I figured for a little under $600 I could buy a future bedroom TV until the larger panels fall after/toward the holidays.

So far, I'm impressed. No image issues as have been described in this thread. Perfect lines on all tickers, etc. Colors look good and I'm following the burn in advice that I've read here. DVD's are amazing.

Regarding HD Cable, I have a question...

My current analog cable signal isn't 'great', but it's pretty good. My digital stations are fantastic. Does HD cable suffer from any coax issues, per se? I mean, they are just 1's and 0's, so as long as they make it to the TV, they should provide a true HD picture, correct?

Well, I wanted to get my feet wet with HDTV, so I picked the TX-R3079 up at BB on clearance for $649 - 12% - $10 ~ $570 + tax out the door. Was not in the market for a new set until my 15 year old 35" RCA CRT bit it this weekend. So, I really dug the look of the Slimfits and while I could have bought an LCD at a much bigger screen size, I figured for a little under $600 I could buy a future bedroom TV until the larger panels fall after/toward the holidays.

So far, I'm impressed. No image issues as have been described in this thread. Perfect lines on all tickers, etc. Colors look good and I'm following the burn in advice that I've read here. DVD's are amazing.

Regarding HD Cable, I have a question...

My current analog cable signal isn't 'great', but it's pretty good. My digital stations are fantastic. Does HD cable suffer from any coax issues, per se? I mean, they are just 1's and 0's, so as long as they make it to the TV, they should provide a true HD picture, correct?
I'm very glad that you got a good slimfit without geometry problems, as to hdtv and cable problems-hdtv signals are digitial-not analog-so you either get reception or not-unlike analog where the reception quality can vary.

Since hooking up the DVI-HDMI I get closed captioning on certain channels and have no clue how to turn it off. It's only on certain channels, like ESPN. It also happens TNTHD, but only during basketball games. Anybody have any ideas on what to do. In the TV setup menu it says the closed captioning option isn't available. I guess I could switch back to the component cables, but to me it looks like DVI-HDMI has a better picture.

I'd bet its a setup in the Comcast STB.

Digital Closed Captioning is a totally different animal then Analog Closed Captioning.

Analog CC was sent as part of the picture (line 21), but Digital CC is sent as part of the stream.

My DirecTV HD reciever has multiple CC setups for both Analog and Digital,
it happens to be in the Video setup portion.


Jerry

I'd bet its a setup in the Comcast STB.

Digital Closed Captioning is a totally different animal then Analog Closed Captioning.

Analog CC was sent as part of the picture (line 21), but Digital CC is sent as part of the stream.

My DirecTV HD reciever has multiple CC setups for both Analog and Digital,
it happens to be in the Video setup portion.


Jerry
Use the Comcast remote to turn off the STB. Then, quickly, press the "Menu" button on the remote. A screen will come up giving you the opportunity to change all kinds of settings. About a third of the way down the screen is the option for CC.

Cheers!

...Regarding HD Cable, I have a question...

My current analog cable signal isn't 'great', but it's pretty good. My digital stations are fantastic. Does HD cable suffer from any coax issues, per se? I mean, they are just 1's and 0's, so as long as they make it to the TV, they should provide a true HD picture, correct?
These cable boxes (STB) have poor analog tuners. What I did was to split the coax before the STB. I sent one split to the tv's analog in port and use the tv to tune the analog channels. I get fantastic PQ that way. Send the other split to the STB for digital reception.

If you do this be sure to get at least a 1GHz splitter. I got mine at Radio Shack.

That's great news. Congratulations.

Would you be so kind as to post the settings you adjusted, along with the initial values and the new values after your successful changes?

I bet it would be an often-referred to post.

Thanks! ;)

Settings, yes, well I will post em, mine was pretty bowed up when i first turned it on, but I was able to get all the edges reasonably strait, then what I did so that I dont notice any little details was I extended the screen 1 pixel too far on every edge (every edge is 1 pixel off the screen) it makes for a crisp, sharp edge, and I dont think im going to be missing those pixels, ALSO this TV has a reset in the service menu, so if you **** up, you can change everything back to defaults. Anyway the point im getting at is that I think all of these TVs are slightly different out of the box, and that my settings will totally do something different than your settings, otherwise why wouldnt they just adjust it to what works great and keep it there? But, if you want to give it a shot, heres my settings. First of all, to get into the service menu, have the tv plugged in but make sure its off, then type in this key config on the remote:

Mute-1-8-2-ON(pwr)

Then select deflection, I have the following values for all of these:

V AMP 27
V Shift 21
H Amp 4
H Shift 35
V Lin 6
Up Lin 3
Low Lin 2
V SC 3
H Par 38
Up Corr 40
low Corr 34
H Tra 52
Bow 31
Angle 27
V position 16
CXA left blk 42
CXA right blk 27
CXA Upper Blk 0
CXA Lower Blk 4
H Comp 4
V Comp 5
Pin Comp 2
Afc Comp 0


Now, there Is one other problem that isnt really bothering me but id like to fix it if i can, but i dont think there's a way, but about 2 inches in on the left, and right sides, its slightly blurry (not a lot, just a little) and I was wondering if there was an adjustment for that.

So yeah, those were my values, took me about an hour to get it right, but once I did, WOW!

Anyone have descriptions of what each of those values controls?

All I've messed with on my set was the V and H amp and shift to lessen the huge overscan my set came with.
Peoples head were getting chopped off on top and half the score tickers were missing on the bottom.

The only thing I notice now is a slight pincussion(?) effect on top of the screen when watching 4x8 material, edges are straight right up to the top of the screen then it veers outside on both edges.

I'm thinking they just adjusted the overscan to move that effect off screen, resulting in the missing portion of the picture in 16x9 mode.


Jerry

In this case each tv's adjustments are unique to that unit-each one has slightly different adjustments from another one-that's why it's important to WRITE DOWN the initial settings so if you screwup you have a point of reference to reset them to.

In this case each tv's adjustments are unique to that unit-each one has slightly different adjustments from another one-that's why it's important to WRITE DOWN the initial settings so if you screwup you have a point of reference to reset them to.

The newest model has a reset so its not ....that important on the 82wh that is

What it does is reset the adjustments to a set of general parameters in the chip-each one is still individually adjusted at the factory-so my advice still goes.

Never bank on a "reset" function to save you. I would encourage anyone going into the SM with that attitude to stay out of the SM altogether.

On Sony sets, the "reset" function takes the tv back to its factory newborn state, essentially zeroing out all SM settings. I've yet to hear of anyone recovering from that.

Record ALL values of ALL settings you intend to adjust in the SM, BEFORE you alter them.

I'd bet its a setup in the Comcast STB.

Digital Closed Captioning is a totally different animal then Analog Closed Captioning.

Analog CC was sent as part of the picture (line 21), but Digital CC is sent as part of the stream.

My DirecTV HD reciever has multiple CC setups for both Analog and Digital,
it happens to be in the Video setup portion.


Jerry

Thank you guys. It looks like the CC is gone. I still think I'm gonna try and get a box from Comcast that has HDMI output. Thanks for letting me know they have one. Which do you guys think looks better, 1080i or 720p?

Thank you guys. It looks like the CC is gone. I still think I'm gonna try and get a box from Comcast that has HDMI output. Thanks for letting me know they have one. Which do you guys think looks better, 1080i or 720p?

1080i is the tv's native resolution, it will upscale any other to 1080i.

If you go that route with hdmi. Route your audio through a digital optical cable or digital coaxil cable. That way you have pure video going in there and not audio as well. This is just a suggestion not a have to if you choose. I never really even looked this up and I could be wrong. Someone feel free to correct me if I am. I chose to go the optical route assuming it would perform better since you arent squeezing in video/audio at the same time through the hdmi port.

Thank you guys. It looks like the CC is gone. I still think I'm gonna try and get a box from Comcast that has HDMI output. Thanks for letting me know they have one. Which do you guys think looks better, 1080i or 720p?

How do you set it up to only send video through the HDMI? I have the HDMI set up with my HDDVD player and i have the audio out through optical in my receiver, but i have to turn the volume down on my tv because the audio is running through the HDMI as well.

Thank you guys. It looks like the CC is gone. I still think I'm gonna try and get a box from Comcast that has HDMI output. Thanks for letting me know they have one. Which do you guys think looks better, 1080i or 720p?
The Comcast boxes with HDMI out are called "Phase III" STB's. The input I've received from users that have crt HD sets is that the HDMI integration has problems. Many have opted to return their Phase III boxes for a Phase II box while they're still available.

You might ask them to put your Phase II box aside while you test out the new one just to be sure you have a fall-back option.

For details you might do a search in one of the other areas here at AVS that deals with cable boxes.

1080i looks best to me.

Make sure your speakers are off from your tv within your tvs options. And there should be some kind of option in your dvd player. Example. The way I had mine set up. I had an upconverting dvd player that went up to 1080i. When it was all said and done. I would get a little message up top at the start of a movie that said "hdmi audio not supported". Of course thats because of the optical cable. So maybe your player will give you a similar message or something. Nonetheless do some poking around with the options in your tv and dvd platyer. Your reciever seems to be ok if your getting sound through it.

How do you set it up to only send video through the HDMI? I have the HDMI set up with my HDDVD player and i have the audio out through optical in my receiver, but i have to turn the volume down on my tv because the audio is running through the HDMI as well.

Well after 48 hours of viewing I'm noticing some little quirks I'd like to get some feedback on. I have the TX-R3079

I notice that on a solid white background there seems to be a little darker area that gives the illusion like there might have been some dirt on the camera lens taking the shot. This isn't noticeable on 95% of scenes, but if there is a scene with a lot of snow, for example, it is noticeable enough to make me want to verify that this is normal/abnormal. If abnormal, is it fixable via settings?

Otherwise I find the colors on this set to be pretty impressive; I did do the splitter setup that someone recommended, didn't notice a huge difference on the image quality, but can now Tivo and change channels without receiver/vcr.

Please advise about the dark 'shadow' I'm seeing on the white background.

Oh, I'm using component for dvd and s-video for STB.

Interesting deal at Best Buy next week (6/4-6/10). They're offering a package called the Best Buy HD Adventure Deal, which includes a TX-S3082WH (BB regularly sells it for $800), Xbox 360 (Premium, $400), an extra wireless controller ($50) and choice of Kameo/Perfect Dark Zero/Project Gotham 3 ($50). All of this totals $1,300+, but they're selling it for $999.96!

Seemed worthy of a post, since so many people in this forum have bought/are buying HDTVs because of the 360. And if you were planning on buying a Slimfit anyways, whether you want the 360 or not, you could take advantage of the deal and sell it for a profit.

Interesting deal at Best Buy next week (6/4-6/10). They're offering a package called the Best Buy HD Adventure Deal, which includes a TX-S3082WH (BB regularly sells it for $800), Xbox 360 (Premium, $400), an extra wireless controller ($50) and choice of Kameo/Perfect Dark Zero/Project Gotham 3 ($50). All of this totals $1,300+, but they're selling it for $999.96!

Seemed worthy of a post, since so many people in this forum have bought/are buying HDTVs because of the 360. And if you were planning on buying a Slimfit anyways, whether you want the 360 or not, you could take advantage of the deal and sell it for a profit.
If I was in the market for Hdtv I wouldnt pass up on this deal

...I notice that on a solid white background there seems to be a little darker area that gives the illusion like there might have been some dirt on the camera lens taking the shot. This isn't noticeable on 95% of scenes, but if there is a scene with a lot of snow, for example, it is noticeable enough to make me want to verify that this is normal/abnormal. If abnormal, is it fixable via settings?

...Please advise about the dark 'shadow' I'm seeing on the white background.

Oh, I'm using component for dvd and s-video for STB.
It's important to know what material you're watching when you see this dark area and which input is involved.

If you are seeing this with true HD material (using component or HDMI/DVI) than I'd say there's reason for concern. If this is only there when watching analog cable or OTA then I wouldn't be concerned.

I don't suppose anyone has a response to my query? I'm still struggling with this maddening echo.

Anyone?

UHOH!!!!! Serious problem with Samsung Model 3082HD TV. while watching the TV last night , allo of a sudden the TV just BLACKSOUT.....no warning or anything. I bought it new only 2 weeks ago. Now it will NOT come back on. Todal darkness and no sound. The only thing still alive is the little red dot on the front. When I do the remote thing the red dot flickers....but no TV. Any ideas....I think this TV is going back to where I got it . Any ideas to start it up?

Just take it back where you got it from.

they have a 10 day return policy......They want to send a service man out...I want a new TV or a different barnd. Very disappointing.

It's getting to be quite warm outside, and people frequently see issues with power levels affecting the health of their TV.

How warm was it in the room when the TV turned off? If you had the A/C going, how warm was it outside, and how cool was it inside? Have you noticed any "brownout" conditions in your house, or lights dimming when refrigerators and A/C turn on?

It's under warranty, so I'd let a tech look at it, but you might want to check and make sure you're getting a clean 110V AC out of your outlet, and that it's not dipping down into the 90V range.

I don't suppose anyone has a response to my query? I'm still struggling with this maddening echo.

Anyone?

If the delay is truly close to a half a second, and you're hearing the same delay on the audio from your TV AND on the audio from your STB (according to your original post), then this sounds like a problem with your RECEIVER, and not with your TV.

There are delay settings on most audio products these days to compensate for sync issues, so I would check the delay settings on your stereo. What type of stereo do you have all of this stuff hooked up to?

UHOH!!!!! Serious problem with Samsung Model 3082HD TV. while watching the TV last night , allo of a sudden the TV just BLACKSOUT.....no warning or anything. I bought it new only 2 weeks ago. Now it will NOT come back on. Todal darkness and no sound. The only thing still alive is the little red dot on the front. When I do the remote thing the red dot flickers....but no TV. Any ideas....I think this TV is going back to where I got it . Any ideas to start it up?
Unplug the set from ALL power sources and ALL other devices. The tv should have NO connection to the wall outlet, power strips or surge supressors. All other devices need to be disconnected as well. Leave it this way for at least an hour. Then try again.

This is not totally uncommon. By all means, stick with the appointment for the technician.

Thanks for the responses. I have talked with HH Gregg and they are allowing me to return the Samsung and exchange it for the Toshiba 32 inch widescreen . I do not like the Toshiba as much but if the Samsung is going to have problems that continue....I don't want that. Thanks

I tried d/c ing all connections with no success. So, tomorrow the Toshiba comes.

There are delay settings on most audio products these days to compensate for sync issues, so I would check the delay settings on your stereo. What type of stereo do you have all of this stuff hooked up to?

Thank you for responding!

It's a small Sony CMT-EP313. There's only one audio input on the rear, and we have the audio cable going from the VCR to it (we've found that it's the only way to control the volume on the stereo with a remote). It's not much of anything, but it worked very well with my previous analog TV, even after we got digital cable. There were never any echoes, and the volume could be controlled by adjusting the TV volume. It wasn't until the TV blew up and we decided to make the leap to an HD TV that this occured.

I got a Samsung tech guy on the phone and he said that HD audio is broadcast at a 5.1 surround but would convert to regular stereo if that's the output device I have. He also told me that the signal was digital but I had to find out if my stereo was analog or digital. But I already had digital cable before I got the HD set and it was okay.

We contacted Sony and they assured us that this model should be able to broadcast the digital signal. But it's not. The user manual even says it's an analog input. Now I wonder if there's such a thing as a digital-to-analog converter that can make the signal work on my stereo. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Is it expensive?

My dad just bought one of these sets and is having some difficulty with screen size. He bought the TX-S2782H, which is not a wide screen model. He is using an antenna, not cable or satellite. Some stations broadcast several signals, and he can choose between them. But others, like channel 2 in his case, only seem to have one signal, designated as 2-1. It shows "DTV AIR 2-1 1080i 16:9". The problem is that the picture has vertical bars. This seems rather odd. If it's a 16:9 signal, I would expect it to have horizontal bars, not vertical ones. Of course, everything is squished.

From the manual, it looks like the P.SIZE button should change the aspect ratio. It does nothing. In fact, he's tried it on every channel, whether digital, analog, full or wide screen and the button does nothing.

The next step was to try the menu. From the screen size menu there are four options, normal, zoom1, zoom2, and 16:9. Well, the zoom modes are ghosted and switching between 16:9 and normal does nothing. The manual actuall states that only the 16:9 and 4:3 modes are available for a DTV signal, so that makes sense, but what doesn't make sense is why the picture doesn't change when you select one or the other.

Are all of these modes only for use with the wide-screen model (the manual is for all of them)? How can he get rid of the vertical bars and get the picture to full screen?

Why does the P.SIZE button do nothing?

He'd even be willing to view the picture in analog mode, but it doesn't show up like some channels to (i.e. 2-1, 2-2, 2-3).

Some stations that broadcast digital signals deliver a mixture of widescreen and non-widescreen material, all in 1080i. If a digital station broadcasts a show originally shot in SD, but in it's HD format, then there will be pillar boxes (side bars), and on your set, top and bottom bars as well. It's called postage stamp. Try to find out when this station will actually be broadcasting pure HD material and look at it then. This happens mostly during primetime. My channel 2, FOX, has a digital equivalent that broadcasts all material in 1080i. But the true HD material is only broadcast after 8:00pm, and sometimes on weekends for sports. When it's not broadcasting HD material then I get side boxes also, even on my widescreen HD set.

From the manual, it looks like the P.SIZE button should change the aspect ratio. It does nothing. In fact, he's tried it on every channel, whether digital, analog, full or wide screen and the button does nothing.

On mine, P.Size is the button that does the zooming (it is a widescreen monitor though)
4x8, 16x9, Zoom 1 and Zoom 2 are the options.
It only works while watching a Standard Definition signal, either through the built in NTSC tuner or the Video or SVideo inputs,
not when watching a Digital station or using the component or HDMI inputs.

Does his TV have a built in ATSC tuner (Digital stations) or is he using an HD Set Top Box hooked to an antenna?

Oh, where is he located, as that will help determine what he has available in Digital or HD.


Jerry

the only problem with my 3082 slimfit is that text is blurrier on the very left and very right of the screen (worst of the left). in the center, middle the text looks fine and crisp. but it gets blurrier the closer it is to the edge. what setting in the service menu should i change to help this? thanks again!

the only problem with my 3082 slimfit is that text is blurrier on the very left and very right of the screen (worst of the left). in the center, middle the text looks fine and crisp. but it gets blurrier the closer it is to the edge. what setting in the service menu should i change to help this? thanks again!
I can tell you from personnel experiance with this tv that making adjustments in the service menu is a waste of time. I had a picture that looked like a funhouse mirror and I spent 2 hours making adjustments-only got about a 5% improvment-I took it back. If you are one of the few lucky ones who has a good picture-don't mess with it-if not-take it back asap.

On mine, P.Size is the button that does the zooming (it is a widescreen monitor though)
4x8, 16x9, Zoom 1 and Zoom 2 are the options.
It only works while watching a Standard Definition signal, either through the built in NTSC tuner or the Video or SVideo inputs,
not when watching a Digital station or using the component or HDMI inputs.

Does his TV have a built in ATSC tuner (Digital stations) or is he using an HD Set Top Box hooked to an antenna?

Oh, where is he located, as that will help determine what he has available in Digital or HD.


Jerry
It is normal for the picture size controls to be inactive when the set is receiving a 1080i signal. The set defaults to 16:9 when this signal is received. Even though the signal is 16:9 that's no guarantee that it's a 16:9 HD show. These digital stations frequently re-broadcast SD material over their 16:9 signal, resulting in pillarbox bars on widescreen sets, and usually postage stamp bars on all sides on 4:3 sets. When the digital station broadcasts a genuine HD show it will fill the widescreen area of an HD set, whether 16:9 or 4:3. It's difficult in this space to explain all the details on this issue, but you should know that what you are seeing is normal. Go to Titan TV dot com to get listings of real HD shows in your area so you can see what a real HD show looks like on your Dad's set. You'll also see that the picture size cannot be changed then either - which is normal.

the only problem with my 3082 slimfit is that text is blurrier on the very left and very right of the screen (worst of the left). in the center, middle the text looks fine and crisp. but it gets blurrier the closer it is to the edge. what setting in the service menu should i change to help this? thanks again!
This is about focus.

It's probably the most annoying anomaly of flat, widescreen hd sets, especially with the newer "slim" tvs. The gun firing the electrons sits directly behind the very center of the set, with a short, straignt line to the set's center. This is where you can expect the best focus. Out on the edges the scanning is much further than it is at the center, leaving you with less focus. On my set it kinda looks like the "pixels" are honeycombed on the sides, but the center appears to have very fine "pixels."

I'm very picky, and it took me little time ot adjust once I learned that there was nothing to be done about it.

Which is why I don't have a slimfit tv any more, I have a regular length crt hdtv now-no more focus problems.

you know, after having the Samsung 3082 for several days and then having it go completelry OUT, I replaced it with the Toshiba 30HF85 and I really think the picture quality is very similar . I don't have a built in HD tuner though....I liked that about the 3082. I have much more confidence in the longevity of the Toshiba....especially after my confidence blow with the Samsung. Cannot understand why it just went blank. I would recommend the Toshiba 30HF85.

you know, after having the Samsung 3082 for several days and then having it go completelry OUT, I replaced it with the Toshiba 30HF85 and I really think the picture quality is very similar . I don't have a built in HD tuner though....I liked that about the 3082. I have much more confidence in the longevity of the Toshiba....especially after my confidence blow with the Samsung. Cannot understand why it just went blank. I would recommend the Toshiba 30HF85.
Congrats on the new tv! ;)

The bottom line is your satisfaction, regardless of the OEM.

I place great value on what I refer to as the "warm fuzzies." And I pay a pretty penny to get that whenever possible.

Best of Luck! :)

I have a quick question. I have a 3079 and I just recently tried to tinker with the service menu again. Geometry wise it is fine, but i had to correct some overscan. So here is the dilemma. If i turn on the built in test pattern, it has the color boxes, plus the red line/frame that i assume needs to be aligned as the viewing image.
However, if i use AVIA through component cables, then the AVIA overscan box is about 3-4 "pixels" too high, so i am losing a little off the top.

Which should i follow, AVIA or the built in pattern. Or just go to a happy medium? In TV watching AVIA setup seems to work better with "ticker" channels such as weather, news, sports... But if i watch a 2.35:1 movie, the black bars on top and bottom are slightly uneven, and adjusting it to TV pattern setup works better.

Why is there a discrepancy? Is my component signal misaligned as it is displayed? Could i fix that?

No worries.

This might seems curt, but, really, go with what looks best. I assume the internal test pattern is for an HD signal, whereas the pattern put up by Avia is for a lesser component source. It would be so nice if this set had independent input memory. You could use the built-in test pattern for your HD source, and the Avia pattern to measure for the component source. I wouldn't try to balance the two - might as well have one fully correct. What do you watch most - tv or dvd? Set it to be right for whichever you watch the most.

Okay, back to my 'shadow' issue on my recently purchased 3079... this is on all channels, via both component and s-video connections with cable and to a degree, w/ dvds. The only way I can describe it is that there are slight vertical bands of phosphors that don't light up as bright as the rest of the screen. These vertical bands are probably dividing the screen in four equal areas and are about an inch wide. They are most noticeable on bright backgrounds giving the illusion/effect that there is a burned in image on the screen. These bands are most noticable on regular stations, on HD they are much less noticeable, but definitely something that is making me wonder if something is wrong with the set. I've read these threads and understand there are inherent issues with these early model slimfits. Would I be better off returning this for a 3082? What was the 'fix' for these later models vs. the early versions of this set?

Also one more thing... when I go through the sources, the menu graphic that pops up in the upper left hand corner has different shades of blue. Shouldn't that be fairly consistent? I mean, Video 1 might have a true blue color, but then Video 2 looks like it's darker, and then Video 3 is bright blue again. Am I being too picky?

Okay, back to my 'shadow' issue on my recently purchased 3079... this is on all channels, via both component and s-video connections with cable and to a degree, w/ dvds. The only way I can describe it is that there are slight vertical bands of phosphors that don't light up as bright as the rest of the screen. These vertical bands are probably dividing the screen in four equal areas and are about an inch wide.

No chane you could get a high-quality picture of this phenomenon, could you? Sounds like an interference pattern, either caused by a bad gun, or possibly a burn-in. But it sounds more like an interference pattern.

Also one more thing... when I go through the sources, the menu graphic that pops up in the upper left hand corner has different shades of blue. Shouldn't that be fairly consistent? I mean, Video 1 might have a true blue color, but then Video 2 looks like it's darker, and then Video 3 is bright blue again. Am I being too picky?

It'll do that if you have the different sources set to different picture modes (Custom, Standard, etc). My 3082 (and my XBR960) does that because I've only bothered to change the modes on TV and the Component inputs. All other inputs are still set to their default, which is noticeable in the OSD when you cycle through them.

No chane you could get a high-quality picture of this phenomenon, could you? Sounds like an interference pattern, either caused by a bad gun, or possibly a burn-in. But it sounds more like an interference pattern.



It'll do that if you have the different sources set to different picture modes (Custom, Standard, etc). My 3082 (and my XBR960) does that because I've only bothered to change the modes on TV and the Component inputs. All other inputs are still set to their default, which is noticeable in the OSD when you cycle through them.

So is the 3082 supposed to have fixed some of the earlier 3079 issues or is it the same tube with different inputs/cabinet? If I'm better off with the 3082, I'm going to go for it. I'll try to take a movie of the issue later tonight.

Hi there,
Have just purchased the Samsung WS32Z419D from Currys on Monday for £499 and will be recieving it Sunday! Instead of the black and white colour this one is all black and I think it looks alot better all black:-). Really looking forward to it but I've seen that you have all these problems with the picture quality? Do you think this model will suffer the same? I would be interested to know.
Thanks

Hi there,
Have just purchased the Samsung WS32Z419D from Currys on Monday for £499 and will be recieving it Sunday! Instead of the black and white colour this one is all black and I think it looks alot better all black:-). Really looking forward to it but I've seen that you have all these problems with the picture quality? Do you think this model will suffer the same? I would be interested to know.
Thanks
You have to keep in mind that those attracted to these forums are either high-level enthusiasts or those with a problem they're trying to solve. That's a very small demographic compared to the buying public at large.

It does seem that the newest models have much fewer problems than earlier models. But being analog, crt sets are prone to anomalies. Regardless of the manufacturer, crt sets commonly have geometry and color purity issues, some worse than others. Most of the issues can be easily resolved.

Congrats on the new set! ;)

since it has now been a while, and a 'second generation' of slimfits is out, i thought i would ask one more time, maybe the answer has been posted and i missed it.

Do these slimfits have QAM tuners?

Any official word? Anyone able to get a response out of Tech Support or some Samsung official?

Anyone have and used the TX-S2779? I searched back to late April in the thread (and way back in the beginning), but I haven't found any comments on this set. I saw it at Sams Club, looked nice, someone plugged the RF cable into the antennae plug and it was receiving both digital and analog local broadcasts. It looked good. I like the way it functioned, too; menus, info, etc...

It this the newest model, I searched for press releases on the Samsung site, but I haven't found anything about the release of this TV. Yeah, I found the product page, but since it doesn't seem to be mentioned here, I don't know if it is a very old model, or a very new model.

Comments.

Well, looks like my 3079 was a dud... yellow and blue coloring in both lower corners, plus the light center vertical line. Took it back to BB for refund. Now this is where I think I got the deal of the year. Got a sweet deal on a 3082 (cheaper than 3079). All issues that were apparent in the 3079 are gone with the exception that this one has a geometry issue that I need to try to tweak. Can someone point me to the .pdf of the service manual specific to the 3082?

Also can the following 'issue' be corrected. It appears that the right hand side of the screen is not as tall as the left hand side of the screen. This isn't really noticeable unless you're 2 feet in front of the screen, but it's noticeable enough at that distance to see that it needs to be adjusted. Tilt correction works to a degree, but not completely. Also one other issue is my Tivo blue menu bar is creating a small vertical band of RGB on various dark backgrounds when changing channels. Is this also something that can be adjusted? It is minor and only happens less than 5% of the time, but I'm thinking that I want that extra 5% fixed.

All advice is appreciated. This tuner seems to be 100% better than what was on the 3079, all cable channels are much clearer and HD is just as good... hoping it will be better if I can square up the CRT. Thanks in advance.

here ya go

http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/SM/200507/20050708154431015_S62A-aadj-3.pdf

as everyone says remember to write down your values before you change anything...

here's how to get into the menu


Mute

1

8

2

Power Button

here ya go

http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/SM/200507/20050708154431015_S62A-aadj-3.pdf

as everyone says remember to write down your values before you change anything...

here's how to get into the menu


Mute

1

8

2

Power Button

thanks for the quick info. I did find that .pdf, but wasn't sure if it was for the 3082 or not. It says to press different buttons to get in, but I will try. Thanks! Oh... how do you get out of the menu?

Just bought 1 a week ago I like it for HD xbox360 looks great. Directv HD over HDMI looks ok. Not as good as some other CRTs. But stiil ok. Although for some reson my directv H20 delays the sound some over hdmi so I have to use componet.


Also why is their not independet audio in for the HDMI. I have to use the video1 in to get audio on my DVI dvd player. (Ill upgrade to HDMI soon)


Also I'd have liked optcail ins on the commponet 1 and 2. My old tv had it on the componet1 and dvi and I miss it a lot. I don't have enough on the amplifer.







Also does any ones set make a slight buzzing noise. Its not bad. Its just nosible in my small room.

Congrats on the new tv! ;)

The bottom line is your satisfaction, regardless of the OEM.

I place great value on what I refer to as the "warm fuzzies." And I pay a pretty penny to get that whenever possible.

Best of Luck! :)

TO
JUSTSC:
UPDATE/REVISION: I checked out the Toshiba 30HF85. I am sorry but I was too quick to judge the 30HF85. The PQ is poor and sound is weak too. I am exchanging it and going back to the Samsung 3082.....which I really liked until it totally went out. Hopefully the total outage was just a fluke....we will see. Sorry about my quick inaccurate judgement about the Toshiba. The Samsung 3082 is superior to the Toshiba. HH GREGG has been VERY cooperative with me too!

TO
JUSTSC:
UPDATE/REVISION: I checked out the Toshiba 30HF85. I am sorry but I was too quick to judge the 30HF85. The PQ is poor and sound is weak too. I am exchanging it and going back to the Samsung 3082.....which I really liked until it totally went out. Hopefully the total outage was just a fluke....we will see. Sorry about my quick inaccurate judgement about the Toshiba. The Samsung 3082 is superior to the Toshiba. HH GREGG has been VERY cooperative with me too!
It's too bad the Toshiba didn't work out for you. I was really hoping this would be the end of your search. :o

From everything I read, the 3082 is the way to go. But like with all other brands, there's still going to be lemons. It's really a good thing that your reseller is treating you well. Once the dust settles and you're satisfied, you might consider taking the time to write a thank you letter to your reseller and maybe even send a letter to the Better Business Bureau and advise them of your good experience.

Good Luck! Please let us know how it goes with the new set. ;)

Hey everyone! Well I just ordered the TX-R3080WH. Anyone else out there have one of these? I am aware of the possible issues with geometry, but I figured I'd give it a shot anyways. So, to those who own one, what can I expect? Thanks!

Hey everyone! Well I just ordered the TX-R3080WH. Anyone else out there have one of these? I am aware of the possible issues with geometry, but I figured I'd give it a shot anyways. So, to those who own one, what can I expect? Thanks!

I have some questions as well. The local Best Buy has one on display, and I turned on the 4:3 mode, and I could see the gemoetry problems right away, especially in the top and bottom corners. I however went to another Best Buy, about 30 miles away, and the one they had on display, while it still had some bowing on the sides in the 4:3 mode, it looked MUCH better. They had an Xbox 360 hooked to it, and when it showed words on the bottom of the screen, they were really easy to read, not blurry at all, and the straight lines in the demos that were running on the Xbox360, didn't look bowed at all.

Now my question is about when you watch the TV in 16:9 mode. Are the geometry problems still present in this mode? I can get LOTS of OTA HD here, and I have an upconvert DVD player I want to use with the TV. The only reason I have to watch the TV in 4:3 mode is when I'm watching some TV shows on DVD, I can get all of the local OTA channels in HD. I REALLY love the picture quality on this thing, and it seems that geometry problems vary from set to set. With this in mind, is the set good for what I want to use it for?

It's real hard finding a tube 30" TV that does 1080i, I've only found 3 at all the local stores, and they are the Samsung, the LG and the Toshiba, all of which seem to have problems according to this board. Help me please!

It's too bad the Toshiba didn't work out for you. I was really hoping this would be the end of your search. :o

From everything I read, the 3082 is the way to go. But like with all other brands, there's still going to be lemons. It's really a good thing that your reseller is treating you well. Once the dust settles and you're satisfied, you might consider taking the time to write a thank you letter to your reseller and maybe even send a letter to the Better Business Bureau and advise them of your good experience.

Good Luck! Please let us know how it goes with the new set. ;)


JustSC, That is a great idea and I will do that after the dust settles.As an aside, what do you think of the Sony 34" KD34XBR970? They are out of the Samsung 3082 and will get them in in about a week. I was looking at this Sony as a possibility. It is more expensive and may be a little large for the room. Thanks again.

Hey everyone! Well I just ordered the TX-R3080WH. Anyone else out there have one of these? I am aware of the possible issues with geometry, but I figured I'd give it a shot anyways. So, to those who own one, what can I expect? Thanks!


KueMan, I had the 3080 and liked it, but when I saw the 3082, I thought it had some other features that I needed that the 3080 did not have.....especially the shift down feature in the zoom mode, which keeps heads from being clipped off. Unless I missed this feature in the 3080, the 3080 didnt have this and this was important for me. Also, the 3082 has a HMDI input...which I won't use initially but might be nice in the future. Also, I didnt notice much geometry problems with the 3082 either. Am I wrong in preferring the 3082 over the 3080??? I'd like to have some input on that too. Thanks.

one more quick question about the 3082. Does the 3082 actually display 1080i? The BestBuy website is unclear, and the Samsung website is even less clear.

Now right at the top of the description, it says, "1920 x 1080 pixel resolution; accepts all major DTV signals, including 1080i, 720p and 480p, plus standard 480i"

Then at the bottom under the product details, it says "Vertical Scanning Lines (Native Mode) 720"


Now maybe it's just me being ignorant on the subject of resolutions, but if the TV has a resolution of 1920x1080 like it says at the top of the webpage, shoulding the "Vertical Scanning Lines" be 1080 and not 720?

Is the TV really only capable of displaying 720p and NOT 1080i?

JustSC, That is a great idea and I will do that after the dust settles.As an aside, what do you think of the Sony 34" KD34XBR970? They are out of the Samsung 3082 and will get them in in about a week. I was looking at this Sony as a possibility. It is more expensive and may be a little large for the room. Thanks again.
Ikabob,

The 970 is an outstanding tv!

I have the precursor, the 34HS420. They took my model, added an ATSC tuner, enhanced the DRC circuitry, added independent input memory and darkened the case to a nice charcoal shade.

It's currently the best crt HD set being manufactured. I've had mine for over a year now and I couldn't be happier. I'm a solid Samsung fan, but they've never made a crt tv to match the 970, or my 34HS420. It may cost a little more, but it's worth every penny.

The 970 gets my highest recommendation. If you can get it from your current reseller, then I can't think of a better opportunity.

Good Luck! ;)

one more quick question about the 3082. Does the 3082 actually display 1080i? The BestBuy website is unclear, and the Samsung website is even less clear.

Now right at the top of the description, it says, "1920 x 1080 pixel resolution; accepts all major DTV signals, including 1080i, 720p and 480p, plus standard 480i"

Then at the bottom under the product details, it says "Vertical Scanning Lines (Native Mode) 720"


Now maybe it's just me being ignorant on the subject of resolutions, but if the TV has a resolution of 1920x1080 like it says at the top of the webpage, shoulding the "Vertical Scanning Lines" be 1080 and not 720?

Is the TV really only capable of displaying 720p and NOT 1080i?
You are correct, the issues on these tv's vary from set to set, regardless of the manufacturer. The best bet is to buy from a reseller with a good return policy, like Ikabob has experienced.

The 3082 is a 1080i set. It displays in both 480p and 1080i. All incoming 480i signals get converted to 480p, and 720p get converted to 1080i - 1080i gets passed through to the screen.

The only better 30" set is the Sony KD-30XS955. It's the best 30" set ever made, but has been discontinued and is in very short supply. If you locate one, buy it. Otherwise, the 3082 is a very fine tv.

well I was all set to purchase the Samsung 3082, I was there at Best Buy, and then I looked jus to the right of that set at the LG SlimFit. In 16:9 mode, the Samsung was cutting off some of the picture at the bottom of the screen, I would say at least a good 1/4 of an inch was gone. It's like the TV expanded the screen size too far below what is visible. Is this something that can be corrected in the service menu, or is this simply how it is?

well I was all set to purchase the Samsung 3082, I was there at Best Buy, and then I looked jus to the right of that set at the LG SlimFit. In 16:9 mode, the Samsung was cutting off some of the picture at the bottom of the screen, I would say at least a good 1/4 of an inch was gone. It's like the TV expanded the screen size too far below what is visible. Is this something that can be corrected in the service menu, or is this simply how it is?
This is usually attributed to overscan. Too little or too much. It is almost always correctable in the SM. However, I would do my best to purchase a set that exhibits as little distortion as possible. Don't purchase a set on a bet that you can fix something that's wrong.

okay, thanks. That's the problem though, I only have 4 options to choose from for a CRT HDTV in my area. Its either the Samsung 3080 Slimfit, the LG Slimfit, a Toshiba (forget the model number) that is $808 at Best But, or the Philips for $645 at Circuit City (which is only 720p).

I'm starting to get pretty annoyed that those are my only CRT HDTVs to choose from. Everything else in my area is either a Standard-def TV, or an LCD/Plasma.

okay, thanks. That's the problem though, I only have 4 options to choose from for a CRT HDTV in my area. Its either the Samsung 3080 Slimfit, the LG Slimfit, a Toshiba (forget the model number) that is $808 at Best But, or the Philips for $645 at Circuit City (which is only 720p).

I'm starting to get pretty annoyed that those are my only CRT HDTVs to choose from. Everything else in my area is either a Standard-def TV, or an LCD/Plasma.
There are a handful of online resellers trusted by many AVS members. Primarily Crutchfield and J&R. You might look them up and see what they're offering. Their shipping and in-house delivery costs are usually very competitive, and oftentimes free.

JustSC, You are v ery helpful to everyone and I, for one, appreciate the time you spend helping us and the expertise that you have . We are lucky to have you monitoring this board. Thank you VERY much! Ron

JustSC, You are v ery helpful to everyone and I, for one, appreciate the time you spend helping us and the expertise that you have . We are lucky to have you monitoring this board. Thank you VERY much! Ron
WOW! ;)

You, and everyone else, are more than welcome.

I feel very, very fortunate to be able to help here. A few years ago I was brand new to HD and home theater. I work in Flight Simulation, specifically displays and image generation, but I was a newbie at home AV.

I got started at the Home Theater Spot and learned so much there. I had a new Samsung 27" EDTV and I just soaked-up everything I read. They were so generous and helpful. Then I came here to AVS when I bought my 34" Sony. And then I got all kinds of help here too. So now in this thread it's all about giving back, and in the process I keep learning more and more.

Thanks so much for the kind words. :)

Hello guys, this is my first post here so I will try not to be a dumb noob :)

Well I was reading this incredibly helpful thread when I bumped into an url with some tips about align and assignment for the ws32z308p(european version number), my question is if there is such a helpful chapter for my model ws32z409p, i ask this because i've tried the factory presets of this model (ws32z308p) on my set and the geometry was badly distorted, so i've figured if there is such a document for my model. Thank you in advance. :)

Hi everyone I just got a new Samsung Slimfit 27' and the picture quality is great and no real geometry issues to speak of but there is one thing bugging me about the TV. I'm having an issue with the far left and right side of the screen being a lot blurrier compared to the text in the screens center, it almost seems like the pixels are more visible. I saw a previous post about this but I was wondering if you anyone could give me an explanation about this in some detail. Is this a fixable/semi-fixable issue that a tech can fix or this just a design flaw with the Slimfit technology? I really like the asthetic design of these Slimfits and really hope that there is something that can fix or at least improve this problem

Any help would be really appreciated.

Another question concerning the TX-R3080WH....

Is there any way I could connect my PC to it? So as to play movies off my computer? I don't believe the televsion has a VGA input (someone please correct me if I'm wrong). So would there be another way to connect to my pc?

It does not have a vga input, I have the same tv (great tv by the way) what I did, was I went to my local computer store (local, not national chain, they will rape you in cables) and I got a DVI to HDMI cable, and it works great for me, no delay or anything, thats also assuming you have a DVI port on your graphics card, if not, A vga to DVI adapter may be Kosher

Killbot, if you have and really like the 3080 (and I liked it too), but how do you fix the problem of having the heads clipped off in the zoom 1 mode? Is it fixable through the SM? The 3082 has a shift down feature but unfortunately you have to reset the shift position every time you change the channel. Thanks.

Hi everyone I just got a new Samsung Slimfit 27' and the picture quality is great and no real geometry issues to speak of but there is one thing bugging me about the TV. I'm having an issue with the far left and right side of the screen being a lot blurrier compared to the text in the screens center, it almost seems like the pixels are more visible. I saw a previous post about this but I was wondering if you anyone could give me an explanation about this in some detail. Is this a fixable/semi-fixable issue that a tech can fix or this just a design flaw with the Slimfit technology? I really like the asthetic design of these Slimfits and really hope that there is something that can fix or at least improve this problem

Any help would be really appreciated.
This has to do with focus, and there's really nothing you can do about it.

This is common to all flat-screen tvs to one degree or another. If you picture the "gun" at the rear of the tube firing electrons at the screen, the closest spot on the face is the very center of the screen. With the older curved screens, the distance to the other parts of the face were equal because of the curvature. With flat screens, there's a disparity in distance between the center and the sides of the screen. The further fron the center the more focus gets degraded. Most users have elected to get used to it and it really doesn't take long before you don't even notice it.

Has anyone had a problem getting the Harmony 880 to change inputs on the 3082? Mine won't do it.

First, great thread. Lots of helpful advice in here.

Now my question: I have the TXR3080 model and I have for the most part been pretty happy with it. A majority of my usage is through a Xbox 360. A couple of issues:

#1. A bit of flicker when watching DVD's. Only noticeable during dark scenes. I've tried changing around the 360 display settings (480p, 720p, 1080i) to little effect.

#2. Shadow detail seems muddy. Dark greens/blues/browns/black are hard to make out. I've tried adjusting the color settings from the Picture menu with little luck.

I did correct some overscan issues before using the service menu (I wrote down my settings!) and tried to adjust the brightness from there as well. Any other suggestions?

I strongly recommend that you invest in a calibration dvd like Avia. This takes the guesswork out of trying to balance contrast, brightness, color, hue and sharpness on your own. These are put together by the pros and walk you through the process easily.

I strongly recommend that you invest in a calibration dvd like Avia. This takes the guesswork out of trying to balance contrast, brightness, color, hue and sharpness on your own. These are put together by the pros and walk you through the process easily.

Thanks, justsc. I did a quick search on Amazon and I see two offerings: the AVIA you mentioned and Digital Video Essentail. From the descriptions, they seem pretty similar except the DVE item is $20 cheaper. Are there big differences between the two packages?

Thanks, justsc. I did a quick search on Amazon and I see two offerings: the AVIA you mentioned and Digital Video Essentail. From the descriptions, they seem pretty similar except the DVE item is $20 cheaper. Are there big differences between the two packages?
The Avia disc is much easier to navigate and use, and it offers helpful insights into the the different settings and why the adjustments are being recommended. The DVE disc is definitely solid, but somewhat dated. I'd say it's more for the hard core calibrators. If all this is old-hat for you then maybe DVE is the way to go. If you're somewhat new to this, then I recommend Avia, or even Sound & Vision's Home Theater Tuneup. It's put out by Sound & Vision magazine and is wonderful for those who've never tried this before. It has all the necessary test patterns but it's more oriented to newbies. It was my first calibration disc and I still use it from time to time - it has the best introduction of all of them.

I am interested in the TX-R3080WH, but reviews on other sites discuss major problems with bowing, blurriness, resolution and stuff. As a result, I am kinda hesitant. Is this bowing significant, or only bothering gamers where walls are most often a perfect 90 degrees? I just want to watch 16:9 content, HD broadcast and movies, no games.

So is it really that bad, what kind of percentages are we talking about here where the bowing rate is severe?

I am interested in the TX-R3080WH, but reviews on other sites discuss major problems with bowing, blurriness, resolution and stuff. As a result, I am kinda hesitant. Is this bowing significant, or only bothering gamers where walls are most often a perfect 90 degrees? I just want to watch 16:9 content, HD broadcast and movies, no games.

So is it really that bad, what kind of percentages are we talking about here where the bowing rate is severe?
If your only option is this model, and your reseller has a good return policy, then you might give it a shot. Since it's an older model (TX-R), is this an open box or refurbed unit? If so, I'd leave it alone.

These units had more than their share of troubles. Bottom Line - don't touch it unless your reseller has a good return policy.

Is it me or is the customer support at Samsung not worth the breath you give them in explaining their downfalls with this TV? They give you the run around and never admit to their shotty televisions.

Is it me or is the customer support at Samsung not worth the breath you give them in explaining their downfalls with this TV? They give you the run around and never admit to their shotty televisions.
Your experience runs counter to my own, and many others that have posted here before. And that's really unfortunate.

I would recommend that you try again to get another support person. You are correct that they can be reluctant to admit problems, but they are usually helpful in getting problems solved.

Try to give them another chance. ;)

Well nobody answered my question so i assume that nobody knows, i thank anyway, however i have another question, my tv is kind of ghosty, nobody notices it with a first look but i've noticed it with time, does anyone know where is the service menu i can fix that?

P.S.: Its not a channel tuning problem since it shows this ghosts thru every video modes. Thanks in advance.

Well nobody answered my question so i assume that nobody knows, i thank anyway, however i have another question, my tv is kind of ghosty, nobody notices it with a first look but i've noticed it with time, does anyone know where is the service menu i can fix that?

P.S.: Its not a channel tuning problem since it shows this ghosts thru every video modes. Thanks in advance.
We know very little about the models you've cited. I never give out advice for SM adjustments on models I'm not familiar with. The SM is just too risky to guess what might work. That's probably why you got no responses. Here in the states the model numbers mean different things than they do internationally. Your model appears to be a 32" tv from the number, but I know that's how they describe a 30" widescreen internationally. But it's confusing enough for me to avoid making recommendations.

Ghosting is usually caused by setting Contrast too high. The first thing to do is avoid using the high contrast setting called Dynamic, or Vivid. The second thing to do is keep Contrast at or below 60%. Then, before going into the SM, I strongly recommend that you invest in a calibration dvd like Avia. Use the disc to give your set a proper calibration and then see if the ghosting has been mitigated. If not, then it might be time to discuss SM adjustments.

Cheers! ;)

I am interested in the TX-R3080WH, but reviews on other sites discuss major problems with bowing, blurriness, resolution and stuff. As a result, I am kinda hesitant. Is this bowing significant, or only bothering gamers where walls are most often a perfect 90 degrees? I just want to watch 16:9 content, HD broadcast and movies, no games.

So is it really that bad, what kind of percentages are we talking about here where the bowing rate is severe?


I'm happy with mine.

No HD gaming, just occasional PS2.
Mainly use the TV for watching TV, both HD and SD content.
There's a little distortion along the top of 4x8 SD content, but you don't notice it unless you focus on it.
Not near bad enough to warrant messing around in the SM.


Jerry

Thanks justsc i will follow your advice :).

Well, after finding out about the samsung slimfit sets, I found this thread and read through some of it. At first I was really disappointed, some people made it sound like this TV was total crap. But since I wanted a Xbox 360, and Best Buy had a package deal, I decided to see for myself. I gotta say, I love it!

I know there were focus and geometry problems with the 3079, and 3080, but my 3082 seems to look great. My thoughts are that this model seems to get such negative backlash because of the niche crowd here and the high standards you have. Don't get me wrong, there's no problem with that, but I think there are a lot of people out there who are pleased with this model that dont say anything. I know as soon as I post this someone will reply with "lucky you", but I think Samsung is finally starting to get some of the kinks out of their TVs. I think this is an awesome entry-level HD set.

Well, after finding out about the samsung slimfit sets, I found this thread and read through some of it. At first I was really disappointed, some people made it sound like this TV was total crap. But since I wanted a Xbox 360, and Best Buy had a package deal, I decided to see for myself. I gotta say, I love it!

I know there were focus and geometry problems with the 3079, and 3080, but my 3082 seems to look great. My thoughts are that this model seems to get such negative backlash because of the niche crowd here and the high standards you have. Don't get me wrong, there's no problem with that, but I think there are a lot of people out there who are pleased with this model that dont say anything. I know as soon as I post this someone will reply with "lucky you", but I think Samsung is finally starting to get some of the kinks out of their TVs. I think this is an awesome entry-level HD set.
Welcome to AVS! ;)

And congrats on your new HD set.

One thing that folks need to remember is that those frequenting forums represent a very small percentage of consumers. Here we get the enthusiasts and those looking for answers. Of course, among those are folks trying to find a solution to a problem television. And again, this constitutes a very small demographic.

So, you are correct. The standards here are very high. But I think lately folks are beginning to see that Samsung has agressively attacked the issues that plagued the early SlimFit models and is now putting out a class HDTV. I submit that earlier versions were exceptional as well, but may have had higher failure rates than we see on the 3082s.

Cheers! :)

Well, after finding out about the samsung slimfit sets, I found this thread and read through some of it. At first I was really disappointed, some people made it sound like this TV was total crap. But since I wanted a Xbox 360, and Best Buy had a package deal, I decided to see for myself. I gotta say, I love it!

I know there were focus and geometry problems with the 3079, and 3080, but my 3082 seems to look great. My thoughts are that this model seems to get such negative backlash because of the niche crowd here and the high standards you have. Don't get me wrong, there's no problem with that, but I think there are a lot of people out there who are pleased with this model that dont say anything. I know as soon as I post this someone will reply with "lucky you", but I think Samsung is finally starting to get some of the kinks out of their TVs. I think this is an awesome entry-level HD set.

Well that is good news. I'm personally thinking about going to pickup ths 3082 tonight myself. As I've stated in this thread, I've seen 2 models on display, one had pretty bad geometry and overscaling problems, and the other looked pretty flawless, though it did have minor geometry issues in the top and bottom corners with a small amount of curving. If I get it tonight, I'll let you know how it works out for me.

Hello guys, this is my first post here so I will try not to be a dumb noob :)

Well I was reading this incredibly helpful thread when I bumped into an url with some tips about align and assignment for the ws32z308p(european version number), my question is if there is such a helpful chapter for my model ws32z409p, i ask this because i've tried the factory presets of this model (ws32z308p) on my set and the geometry was badly distorted, so i've figured if there is such a document for my model. Thank you in advance. :)

Well i've found the correspondent USA model of my tv set TX-S3082WH if anyone has the service manual for this set i would appreciate thanks.

Well nobody answered my question so i assume that nobody knows, i thank anyway, however i have another question, my tv is kind of ghosty, nobody notices it with a first look but i've noticed it with time, does anyone know where is the service menu i can fix that?

P.S.: Its not a channel tuning problem since it shows this ghosts thru every video modes. Thanks in advance.

Concerning this i have found something the "ghosts" increase im hdtv mode. Would appreciate some help, thanks.

oh, and one more quick question, which I hope someone can answer for me before I go to look over this TV again. I have a Media Center PC, which is currently hooked to my TV via S-Video. Now despite the fact that the BestBuy.com website says that the 3082 does have an S-Video input, it does not. Now my PCs graphics card does have a DVI output, and I know I can get DVI to HDMI cables, so getting the video from the computer to the TV shouldn't be a problem. However, when you use the HDMI inputs on the TV, can you also use the RCA audio jacks to input sound as well at the same time, since DVI doesn't transmit audio, and my video card obviously doesn't output audio. I will have to run a cable from my PCs soundcard out to the TVs RCA audio jacks, but will this work when I use the DVI to HDMI cable at the same time?

So glad I found this thread.

We are having the "82" delivered tomorrow, and I couldn't be more excited (our first HD TV!!!). I also purchased the Samsung HD960 upconverting DVD player.

Question: I read somewhere that this TV's "native" resolution is 1080i. Does that mean that if you feed it a 720p signal, it will automatically upconvert to 1080i? i.e. what happens when you hook up an upconverting DVD player via HDMI and have the output set to 720P? Will it simply scale that image up yet again to 1080i? And, if so, does that mean I would be better off sending the 1080i signal out of the DVD Player?

I don't know what the common consensus is, but I feel 720p looks better (maybe because it is not interlaced it feels less "videoy," if that makes any sense).

There seems to be a lot of knowledgeable AV folks here... what setting would you recommend with an upconverting DVD player like the 960 for the best possible image?

Thanks!

Hello all..

I too own a SlimFit and I have two questions...(probably for JUSTSC cuz you seem to know about AV issues)

First off (less important to me): My remote control does not work!? Any suggestions? (yes the batteries work)

Secondly and more importantly: My tv has a real problem displaying dark images or scenes in movies and video games (Xbox 360 playback for both^). Images are too dark/shadowy and they lose a LOT of detail and when i crank up the contrast and/or brightness I get very little improvement in detail and a lot more cloudyness. I thought CRTs were supposed to boast better black levels? Which settings would you suggest?

any help is much appreciated

well I picked up the 3082, and it has a few minor geometry problems, but a major problem I have encountered is hooking up my Upconversion DVD player to it using an HDMI cable. When I play a DVD, the audio is NOT synched to the video when I hook ethe player to the TV with the HDMI cable, but it IS synched up when I use standard RCA cables. Any ideas why? The Sony DVD player I have does have an A/V synch option, which you can set from 0 to 100 ms for delay, but setting this only makes the problem worse, not better. I need to set it to something like -10 or -20, but the player doesn't allow me to set it to a negative number. Is this a player issue or a TV issue?

Hello all..

I too own a SlimFit and I have two questions...(probably for JUSTSC cuz you seem to know about AV issues)

First off (less important to me): My remote control does not work!? Any suggestions? (yes the batteries work)

Secondly and more importantly: My tv has a real problem displaying dark images or scenes in movies and video games (Xbox 360 playback for both^). Images are too dark/shadowy and they lose a LOT of detail and when i crank up the contrast and/or brightness I get very little improvement in detail and a lot more cloudyness. I thought CRTs were supposed to boast better black levels? Which settings would you suggest?

any help is much appreciated

Since you have an xbox360 go to the LIVE marketplace and download the NBALive2006 demo. in the demo under settings --> video settings there is a video calibration screen. You will see two "step ladders" of bricks going from black to white, as well as some color test patterns, you will only need the black to white bricks for setting your brightness and contrast. So, et your contrast first so that the whitest white brick does not bloom, while raising contrast is too high you will see the white brick esentially grow in size slightly as you increase contrast. Set this so that the brick does not bloom but is still a bright white. Next set your brightness so that you can just differentiate the darkest black brick from the next darkest brick. I usually bump my brightness a notch or two above this point. then go back and forth with these two settings, because they affect each other, until you've reached a desireable setting. Make sure to do this with the room lighting set at the point you do your most tv watching.

well I picked up the 3082, and it has a few minor geometry problems, but a major problem I have encountered is hooking up my Upconversion DVD player to it using an HDMI cable. When I play a DVD, the audio is NOT synched to the video when I hook ethe player to the TV with the HDMI cable, but it IS synched up when I use standard RCA cables. Any ideas why? The Sony DVD player I have does have an A/V synch option, which you can set from 0 to 100 ms for delay, but setting this only makes the problem worse, not better. I need to set it to something like -10 or -20, but the player doesn't allow me to set it to a negative number. Is this a player issue or a TV issue?

anyone know?

Matrix_Prime,
(Sorry I would have quoted you, but it wont let me for some reason)

The 3082 does have S-Video, look on the front left side, there is a front panel with s-video and a/v jacks. As for DVI + Audio to HDMI, this seems like it would be a common problem, seems like someone would make a special HDMI cable that takes DVI video and Audio. I googled for it but couldnt find anything. :(

Question: I read somewhere that this TV's "native" resolution is 1080i. Does that mean that if you feed it a 720p signal, it will automatically upconvert to 1080i? i.e. what happens when you hook up an upconverting DVD player via HDMI and have the output set to 720P? Will it simply scale that image up yet again to 1080i? And, if so, does that mean I would be better off sending the 1080i signal out of the DVD Player?

OK, I found a partial answer to the above question, so I thought I'd share. :) It is better off sending the TV its native HD resolution from your upconverting DVD player... so that only leaves one question...

What is the native resolution of the 3082? Sammys specs seem to indicate "1080i" in one place, and then, in the same PDF, it says "1080i/720p." Yikes! Anyone know which it actually is?

Thanks!!!

OK, I found a partial answer to the above question, so I thought I'd share. :) It is better off sending the TV its native HD resolution from your upconverting DVD player... so that only leaves one question...

What is the native resolution of the 3082? Sammys specs seem to indicate "1080i" in one place, and then, in the same PDF, it says "1080i/720p." Yikes! Anyone know which it actually is?

Thanks!!!
Yes and no, regarding native resolutions and upconverting players. Your set's native scanning rate is 1080i, and it also displays 480p (so to speak). In almost all cases it's best to send the signal to the tv that matches its native scanning rate. However, these upconverting players are strange beasts. I have an Oppo player with my Sony 34" crt set. I get much better picture quality if I set my Oppo to 720p. It all has to do with the Genesis/Faroudja chipset on the Oppo's DVI daughtercard, and its greatest strength is in its de-interlacing magic. So, by setting the Oppo to 720p I get all the magic. Even though my 1080i set will scale and re-interlace this signal, the "magic" is still there and the PQ is stunning. If I set my Oppo to 1080i I get jitter in the picture. If memory serves, I believe your upconverting player may have the Faroudja processor. If so, you might give 720p a chance and see what you think. As always, go with what looks best.

Cheers! ;)

Matrix_Prime,
(Sorry I would have quoted you, but it wont let me for some reason)

The 3082 does have S-Video, look on the front left side, there is a front panel with s-video and a/v jacks. As for DVI + Audio to HDMI, this seems like it would be a common problem, seems like someone would make a special HDMI cable that takes DVI video and Audio. I googled for it but couldnt find anything. :(
Matrix_Prime & TravistyOJ,

The HDMI interface has been problematic for many manufacturers. I have read other posts here complaining about the audio challenges with Samsung's HDMI interface. There is no special DVI-HDMI cable that can help here. I recommend you take this question to the "DVD Players (Standard Def)" section of AVS and post this question there. I believe that will give you the best shot at solving this problem. If you do get a satisfactory answer, would you be so kind as to post it back here? This problem keeps cropping up and I don't believe we've ever seen the solution posted in this thread.

Chees! ;)

Since you have an xbox360 go to the LIVE marketplace and download the NBALive2006 demo. in the demo under settings --> video settings there is a video calibration screen. You will see two "step ladders" of bricks going from black to white, as well as some color test patterns, you will only need the black to white bricks for setting your brightness and contrast. So, et your contrast first so that the whitest white brick does not bloom, while raising contrast is too high you will see the white brick esentially grow in size slightly as you increase contrast. Set this so that the brick does not bloom but is still a bright white. Next set your brightness so that you can just differentiate the darkest black brick from the next darkest brick. I usually bump my brightness a notch or two above this point. then go back and forth with these two settings, because they affect each other, until you've reached a desireable setting. Make sure to do this with the room lighting set at the point you do your most tv watching.
A couple of suggestions when calibrating for Contrast & Brightness. I have found it's better to calibrate Brightness first - no real scientific explanation, just experience. When doing so, set Contrast to its mid-point first. Then calibrate Brightness. When calibrating for Contrast, set Brightness to its midpoint and then proceed. When finished, reset Brightness back to its calibrated value. Then go back to Brightness, with Contrast at its new calibrated value and recalibrate Brightness and see if your value is still correct. Do this for both a couple of times until you're satisfied.

Hello all..

I too own a SlimFit and I have two questions...(probably for JUSTSC cuz you seem to know about AV issues)

First off (less important to me): My remote control does not work!? Any suggestions? (yes the batteries work)

Secondly and more importantly: My tv has a real problem displaying dark images or scenes in movies and video games (Xbox 360 playback for both^). Images are too dark/shadowy and they lose a LOT of detail and when i crank up the contrast and/or brightness I get very little improvement in detail and a lot more cloudyness. I thought CRTs were supposed to boast better black levels? Which settings would you suggest?

any help is much appreciated
For brightness and contrast please look to another post of mine this morning where I tried to piggyback on another poster's answer to you.

About the remote - your nest bet is to call Samsung. Sometimes there's a button sequence you can hit to "unlock" a fussy remote. Also, ask them if you have the correct model remote. If not, go to your reseller and demand a working remote.

...Concerning this i have found something the "ghosts" increase im hdtv mode. Would appreciate some help, thanks.
Just try to have patience while waiting for your calibration dvd to arrive. I know it's hard to do. :)

In the meantime, set your tv to the "Custom" picture mode. For HD, set contrast to no more than 45, brightness to 55, color to its midpoint, Tint to its midpoint and sharpness to 30. See how this does. If you get no improvement we can explore turning off velocity scan modulation in the SM.

Good Luck! ;)

Yes and no, regarding native resolutions and upconverting players. Your set's native scanning rate is 1080i, and it also displays 480p (so to speak). In almost all cases it's best to send the signal to the tv that matches its native scanning rate. However, these upconverting players are strange beasts. I have an Oppo player with my Sony 34" crt set. I get much better picture quality if I set my Oppo to 720p. It all has to do with the Genesis/Faroudja chipset on the Oppo's DVI daughtercard, and its greatest strength is in its de-interlacing magic. So, by setting the Oppo to 720p I get all the magic. Even though my 1080i set will scale and re-interlace this signal, the "magic" is still there and the PQ is stunning. If I set my Oppo to 1080i I get jitter in the picture. If memory serves, I believe your upconverting player may have the Faroudja processor. If so, you might give 720p a chance and see what you think. As always, go with what looks best.

Cheers! ;)

Brilliant... thanks for the help Justsc. That unit does in fact have the Faroudja processor on it (I bought it for that reason). I will "A-B" it both ways (720p and let the TV upconvert / send the TV a 1080i) and see... I would love to capture some of that Faroudja processor magic.

Just try to have patience while waiting for your calibration dvd to arrive. I know it's hard to do. :)

In the meantime, set your tv to the "Custom" picture mode. For HD, set contrast to no more than 45, brightness to 55, color to its midpoint, Tint to its midpoint and sharpness to 30. See how this does. If you get no improvement we can explore turning off velocity scan modulation in the SM.

Good Luck! ;)


Thanks a lot for all your help justsc, i really have to wait for the dvd since i cant fix my problems even with your tips. Thanks again :).

pinha_man, is your problems similar to this...

http://www.orntar.net/monitor/fuji_003.jpg (warning - ~1.9 MB)

this is the finish shot after i got done configuring my 3082 with avia.

any one have some insight to this halo/bleed kind of effect? its really noticable in that shot, but in general viewing its tolerable, but stil noticable.

one more quick question, how do you get into the service menu for the 3082, and once you are done, how do you get back out of it?

with set off -

MUTE, 1, 8, 2, POWER

all the settings are committed as you change them, POWER off then on to return to normal viewing. any setting for user brightness, cont, hue, etc, will be lost when you go into the service menu (it is for me anyhow)

with set off -

MUTE, 1, 8, 2, POWER

all the settings are committed as you change them, POWER off then on to return to normal viewing. any setting for user brightness, cont, hue, etc, will be lost when you go into the service menu (it is for me anyhow)
Please note that when you power back up after a stint in the SM, the tv defaults to Dynamic picture mode which has dangerous levels of Contrast. You'll want to go back to your optimal picture mode like Custom for instance. I believe other items get defaulted back to default mode - possibly Audio settings. Just take a look - but you do want to get away from Dynamic as soon as possible.

Matrix_Prime & TravistyOJ,

The HDMI interface has been problematic for many manufacturers. I have read other posts here complaining about the audio challenges with Samsung's HDMI interface. There is no special DVI-HDMI cable that can help here. I recommend you take this question to the "DVD Players (Standard Def)" section of AVS and post this question there. I believe that will give you the best shot at solving this problem. If you do get a satisfactory answer, would you be so kind as to post it back here? This problem keeps cropping up and I don't believe we've ever seen the solution posted in this thread.

Chees! ;)

Well, I actually found the solution to the problem myself. It seems that on the 3082, when you are using one of the HDMI inputs (like I was for my DVD player), and then switch the TV to another source while the HDMI input is still in use, this screws up the HDMI input. After you cycle back through the TV inputs to the HDMI input that the DVD player is connected to, there is an electronic "garble" and then the sound from the DVD can be heard again. It is during this garble that the audio and video become out of synch. This out of synch problem remains until you turn the TV off and then turn it back on.

Since you said this problem keeps cropping up, it doesn't look like it is the DVD player or the cable I'm using, but the HDMI input in the TV itself. I don't know the technical info behind the problem itself, but doing what I outlined above, both caused and solved the problem.

Well, I actually found the solution to the problem myself. It seems that on the 3082, when you are using one of the HDMI inputs (like I was for my DVD player), and then switch the TV to another source while the HDMI input is still in use, this screws up the HDMI input. After you cycle back through the TV inputs to the HDMI input that the DVD player is connected to, there is an electronic "garble" and then the sound from the DVD can be heard again. It is during this garble that the audio and video become out of synch. This out of synch problem remains until you turn the TV off and then turn it back on.

Since you said this problem keeps cropping up, it doesn't look like it is the DVD player or the cable I'm using, but the HDMI input in the TV itself. I don't know the technical info behind the problem itself, but doing what I outlined above, both caused and solved the problem.
This is good stuff.

It may not be the best trechnical solution, but it works, as you've demonstrated. That's what people need - something they can count on.

Nice Job! ;)

Please note that when you power back up after a stint in the SM, the tv defaults to Dynamic picture mode which has dangerous levels of Contrast. You'll want to go back to your optimal picture mode like Custom for instance. I believe other items get defaulted back to default mode - possibly Audio settings. Just take a look - but you do want to get away from Dynamic as soon as possible.

thanks, one more question, when in the service menu, what are people adjusting to help with the curved/bowing edges of the picture when the TV is in 4:3 mode? I see LOTS of options, and don't want to go messing with every thing. Some people on here said they have had some luck in fixing the problem, but just what exactly are they changing?

EDIT: The main problem my TV has, and all of these I have seen on display, is that they flare the picture out at the bottom left and right, with the bottom left being the worst. Is there a setting in the service menu that will help to adjust the bottom corners?

pinha_man, is your problems similar to this...

http://www.orntar.net/monitor/fuji_003.jpg (warning - ~1.9 MB)

this is the finish shot after i got done configuring my 3082 with avia.

any one have some insight to this halo/bleed kind of effect? its really noticable in that shot, but in general viewing its tolerable, but stil noticable.

no, not quite, its like if those letters in your pic showed up with some transparent ones next to them in my case.