I've limited myself down to these three TV's, although I am open to other suggestions if they are beneficial to my uses (HL-S6187W 61-inch, WD-65732, HL-S6188W 61-inch) . The price is pretty close on all three, within a few hundred dollars to be exact. I know two are the same manufacturer, but the one has an optical out port. I know it's not the most important, but I like the option. Too bad most TV's don't have them anymore. I tried doing a search on a topic like this. There is SO much data out there, I've been doing my best to read as much as possible before coming to the group (If there is a thread out there please direct me to it.) Personally they are all pretty close, but they each have their own strong points. If you can provide any information to help with my decision I would REALLY appreciate it. As far as the picture, I 've taken my Xbox into Best Buy, and hooked it up to both TV's. I also threw Miami Vice (HD-DVD) in and watched a little bit of that. I did some VERY basic tweaking, and honestly the pictures looked pretty close to the same, with the exception the Mitsu was bigger.As for viewing distance I'll be approximately 9 feet from the TV as my normal viewing distance. I'm sorry if this is too general, please feel free to ask any questions to clarify if necessary. I looked at the thread on Sammy tweaks, but I didn't see one on the Mitsu. I will be interested in calibration once I have it for a few months as well.

I'll be watching movies, Direct TV, PS3 and XBox 360. I also have the HD-DVD for the 360.

Current Home theater.

Denon 4806CI receiver - http://www.usa.denon.com/ProductDetails/3187.asp
Denon 5910 DVD player - http://usa.denon.com/ProductDetails/3127.asp
Klipsch Reference 7 series speakers
2 - RF 7's - https://www.klipsch.com/products/details/rf-7.aspx
4 - RS 7's - https://www.klipsch.com/products/details/rs-7.aspx
1 RC-7 https://www.klipsch.com/products/details/rc-7.aspx
two SVS Cylinder subs - http://www.svsound.com/products-sub-cyl-pcultra.cfm

Here's my choices for TV's. Eventually I will be getting a projector, once I'm able to set the basement up the way I want it.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7705897&st=HL-S6187W+61-inch&type=product&id=1138085317167

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7963796&st=WD-65732&type=product&id=1158323378315

Some people will vote Samsung and some will vote Mits, so that doesn't really help you. Which looks best to your eyes?

After some real basic tweaks in the menu, the Sammy seemed brighter to me (in the store that is) The black level on both of them was close, again kinda hard to see in the store. I didn't see ay lag on either one of them when I was playing Gears of War, so I was happy there. I didn't try the Halo test, so there could be some, but again I was trying to keep it simple. Sharpness the mitsu was a little better, but I seemed to get good color out of the sammy.

As I said I know they will both be good boxes with some calibration, I guess I'm curious if anyone had any major issues with either one.

You can read more on the Samsung units here (which is what I bought after considering the Mits)

Samsung Tech FAQ/Wiki (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=697413)

Now, does the Mits have a thread dedicated to it like the Samsungs?

Choose the 6188...the overscan off "sticks" after a power cycle (which is good), and has cablecard and PiP options which the 6187 does not.

Cheers,
Doc

If there's a choice get the Mitsubishi, if there's no choice get the Mitsubishi

All the professional calibrators on the forum prefer the Samsung over the Mits, so that's what I would recommend.

All the professional calibrators on the forum prefer the Samsung over the Mits, so that's what I would recommend.

Can you be a little more specific?

When I was researching TVs about 2 years ago, The Mits was so far ahead of the Samsung it wasn't even funny. Samsung had video lag, slow color wheel, a crappy chipset, etc, but I always heard it being recommended because it because one of those self-fulfilling recommendations. "My friend has a Samsung and he likes it" makes you buy a Samsung. Then you enjoy it and you recommend it. You aren't saying that Samsung is better than anything else for any other reason and your opinion could simply be ignorance of other products since your recommendation is in essence made in a vacuum.

I'm not saying Samsung hasn't dramatically improved in 2 years, but "people like Samsung more" doesn't help anyone make an actual informed decision.

Can you be a little more specific?

When I was researching TVs about 2 years ago, The Mits was so far ahead of the Samsung it wasn't even funny. Samsung had video lag, slow color wheel, a crappy chipset, etc, but I always heard it being recommended because it because one of those self-fulfilling recommendations. "My friend has a Samsung and he likes it" makes you buy a Samsung. Then you enjoy it and you recommend it. You aren't saying that Samsung is better than anything else for any other reason and your opinion could simply be ignorance of other products since your recommendation is in essence made in a vacuum.

I'm not saying Samsung hasn't dramatically improved in 2 years, but "people like Samsung more" doesn't help anyone make an actual informed decision.
First of all, 99% of the "opinions" posted in the forum in answer to "which should I buy" are based solely on what the poster bought ("I preferred brand X when I was shopping, so it must be the best"). That is why all these "which is the best" threads, IMO, are not all that helpful. But that's the nature of a forum.

Second, answering your specific question, there are several professional calibrators who frequent the forum, and 100% of them have posted that they prefer Samsung DLP over Mits DLP for PQ (although I am not sure they have checked the very latest Mits models yet) since, with calibration, they can get PQ pretty much perfect (based on their test equipment), which they could not do with Mits (at least up through last year's models). So no, Mits was not ahead of Samsung 2 years ago. Also, I believe all DLPs use the same TI chips, so I don't understand your comment on the chipset.

Third, it sounds like you had a bad experience with a Samsung, but saying it is a worse set than the Mits, based on a single bad experience, is no better than saying brand X is best due to a good experience with one set. Samsung DLPs outsell all other DLPs by a wide margin, and some have also concluded that Samsung reliability is poor due to many problem threads, when the denominator is much larger for Samsung, accounting for the greater # of posts.

Lastly, my post above was more a response to GqMagic's post than anything else (talk about a perfect example of my 1st point).

In the end, PQ with all these top brands is very, very close, and the OP would be happy with any of his choices.

I am no professional calibrator but making a blanket statement regarding 100% of calibrators is more than a little misleading when you further state that you're not sure if that includes the latest Mitsubishi offerings, like the 731, 732, and 831 series. I have helped install a 65" and a 73" 732 series and I thought the PQ was fantastic. I own neither Mitsubishi or Samsung.

I am no professional calibrator but making a blanket statement regarding 100% of calibrators is more than a little misleading when you further state that you're not sure if that includes the latest Mitsubishi offerings, like the 731, 732, and 831 series. I have helped install a 65" and a 73" 732 series and I thought the PQ was fantastic. I own neither Mitsubishi or Samsung.
If you can quote a calibrator's post preferring Mits, then I'll take back my 100% statement. Otherwise, it stands. Since I clearly did provide the caveat regarding the latest Mits models, I don't see how my advice is misleading. I have never said the Mits is not an excellent set. As a matter of fact, I have repeatedly said that both sets are excellent and that the difference is small. Not to mention that my very 1st post in this thread was "Some people will vote Samsung and some will vote Mits, so that doesn't really help you. Which looks best to your eyes?"

I had my eye on the 87 series samsungs and the mitsubishi, but one of the sam 87 series had shading on the side, something wrong with the light engine, when we went back later in the day the other two 87 series sams had light engine problems ( one shading on the top the other on the other side ) and the salesman where pulling new sam units out to replace all 3 sizes of the new 87 series by samsung.

I took a mitsubishi home. wd-52631

I decided to go with the WD-65731 to replace my 55" 1992 Toshiba in the family room. Got it all set up on the 23rd and have loved it so far. I've been enjoying a nice 720P LCD projector in my HT for the past 18 months, so I have become familiar with what to expect from HD as well as the limitations of the transmission medium (Comcast in my case). So far the only bad things I've seen are a result of the compressed signal on the cable. HD-DVD and XBox 360 are awesome and 480P DVD is quite good. SD TV varies a lot from channel to channel, but again, this is not a function of the TV itself.

Samsung and Mitsubishi both make a great DLP. You can't go very wrong with either brand. The samsung in previous years was slightly inferior but this year has passed up Mitsubishi. I was going to buy the big Mits. until I found out that they use inferior de-interlacing from 10801 to 1080p. Not a huge difference but there is some.The largest Mits. doesn't use the same color wheel as the smaller ones. This is a significant factor. They cost more too. I went to Best Buy/Magnolia and FWIW the samsung looked better. The samsung "S" (2006) models all use the same internals. The only difference is the frame design and the features like cable card and PIP (88 model). These are worthless to me.

FWIW Consumer Reports just did a comparison of the midsize (53") models and rated Toshiba best, Samsung second and third who cares. I agree with Bill P that all the expert calibrators that travel the nation tweaking these tvs and contribute to these forums rate the samsungs slightly better picture quality. I place a lot of weight on their opinion. They even give us a good default setting to start from. I'll probably go with this adjustment until I have a HD-DVD player and test pattern disk. The thread on the samsung your looking at is over 400 pages long. Most people are very happy with this set.

I found in this forum that Costco has an exclusive Samsung model HL-S6767. The price just dropped to 3k. Next price drop i'm buying one and if it breaks they have a lifetime money back guarantee. Hard to beat. For mail order look at Vanns.com. Good prices, factory warranty, and great resellerratings.

Is the new Samsung LED DLP worth getting over the traditional models?

Is the new Samsung LED DLP worth getting over the traditional models?
Only if you see rainbows with DLPs.

I found in this forum that Costco has an exclusive Samsung model HL-S6767. The price just dropped to 3k. Next price drop i'm buying one and if it breaks they have a lifetime money back guarantee. Hard to beat. For mail order look at Vanns.com. Good prices, factory warranty, and great resellerratings.


I doubt if its really a Costco exclusive, many manufacturers change the model number to prevent price matching at the request of the sellers. Circuit City is famous for this for the last 20 years that I know of.

I've never seen Mitsubishi do this.

I have recently went with the Mitsu because I have 3 samsung products 50"dlp, HD-940 and a 19" computer monitor and there is something wrong with all 3 of them. Bad luck for me, I know there are plenty of happy people though. The biggest thing for me was the Mitsu had 2 hdmi and a dvi port. The samsung did not have a dvi port. The mitsu has the 6 color wheel instead of the samsung 5 color. I am prety sure that the XX87 sami do not support 24fps. I think the XX88 model sami does but the mitsu that I bought supports 24,30 and 60 hz at 1080p. I also noticed that the inputs on the mitsu on the back seemed much sturdier than my sami. The sami are very flimsy, moving the cable moves the entire connections, on the mitsu they are rock solid. This was good for me because I had the digital board go bad on my 50" sami. Actually the port went bad and not the board so they had to replace it. I want to contribute it to the port being so flimsy. I am more than happy with the mitsu but fyi if I had not got it I was going to get the xx88 sami. Dont think you can go wrong with either, those are just a few points that made me not buy another sami.

I had my eye on the 87 series samsungs and the mitsubishi, but one of the sam 87 series had shading on the side, something wrong with the light engine, when we went back later in the day the other two 87 series sams had light engine problems ( one shading on the top the other on the other side ) and the salesman where pulling new sam units out to replace all 3 sizes of the new 87 series by samsung.

I took a mitsubishi home. wd-52631

It is very true about the light engine problems with many different model series, and two weeks ago it happened to my 7 month old HL-S6187W. If you have not bought you HDTV yet, DO NOT BUY THE SAMSUNG, no matter what these guys are saying. A few feathers might be ruffled with this statement, but I am sure many guys in this forum are dealers, trying to help them sell more sets by posting good comments. I wished now I would have read this thread below, before I had bought my Samsung. :mad:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=758625

I was at Brandsmart yesterday and looked at both Displays although they didn't have the 831 only 731 and 732s from Mitsu. The Samsung reminds me a lot of the SXRD as far as yielding a smooth yet detailed picture. The Mitsus had a sharper picture but it seemed more grainy not as smooth as the Samsung or SXRD, never the less it still had a great picture that didn't dissapoint. The Mitsubishi also seemed to have better black levels and a more 3D feel to it although it could have been the material as the Sammy and Mitsu had different channels. I can see how this is a tough choice, both displays are excellent. It might come down to which is the most reliable! On a side note one of the Samsung displays had a black void of about several inches on the right side of the screen, light engine or convergence issue. The sales rep did say that the Samsungs were prone to this problem although the one that was working looked awesome! Not to say Mitsubishis won't have any problems either! Hopefully their will be a recall and the lightengine problem with the Sammy will be resolved.

I found in this forum that Costco has an exclusive Samsung model HL-S6767.

I doubt if its really a Costco exclusive, many manufacturers change the model number to prevent price matching at the request of the sellers. Circuit City is famous for this for the last 20 years that I know of. I've never seen Mitsubishi do this.

Many products are rebadged to prevent price matching. That is not the case here. Samsung's website has only 1 67" model. Nobody can find this tv anywhere but costco and sam's club. More importantly I now am very concerned about buying a 2006 "S" model samsung dlp due to the light engine failure.

I just want a large hdtv with a great picture and good reliability for a low price. I am starting my research all over. I don't want to be banned from this forum but damnit actual selling price matters! I'm not rich. MSRP is meaningless to me. Where can I discuss true cost including shipping, taxes (CA 8%), warranties etc. without getting in trouble?

Apparently costco is revising their return policy to 30 or 180 days next week. I will soon verify this. Their 67" samsung looks like it has an ununeven base that won't fit a flat shelf properly. Their free shelf is too small for me. I prefer the bottom framework of the 71" and my favorite is speakers behind the side like the 61" (I turn them off).

The biggest mitsubishi at vanns.com is $1000 more than the 71" samsung. Can anybody verify that the 73" mitsubishi doesn't use the same color wheel as the smaller ones? I would think this matters! Side by side the samsung picture looks sharper. I will step back and look at JVC, Sony, and Toshiba more. Maybe even the 60" Pioneer or Panasonic plasmas are becoming affordable. Even Vizio may have a 60" plasma out soon. LCD may be too expensive and grainy looking.

I am prety sure that the XX87 sami do not support 24fps. I think the XX88 model sami does but the mitsu that I bought supports 24,30 and 60 hz at 1080p.

This is all about 3:2 pulldown (scaling 24 or 30 frames per sec. to 60) correct? All the samsungs are the same except for iris settings. I think that setting has a different effect on the picture anyway. It seems the computer users care about this for turning off overscan. In a perfect world everything would be 1080P/60 hz. Especially the sports programming I mostly watch. I don't know of any sources that currently have this. Please verify and explain.

I also noticed that the inputs on the mitsu on the back seemed much sturdier than my sami. The sami are very flimsy, moving the cable moves the entire connections, on the mitsu they are rock solid.

My friend has last years 65" mitsubishi dlp (no 1080p input). His 6'long hdmi cable snapped off the port at the tv. It sounds like they fortified that area this year on your tv. I'm using 10' cables for now on. $6 at monoprice.com. Thanks to everybody for info and informed opinions.

Quote:
Originally Posted by madkaw
I am prety sure that the XX87 sami do not support 24fps. I think the XX88 model sami does but the mitsu that I bought supports 24,30 and 60 hz at 1080p.



This is all about 3:2 pulldown (scaling 24 or 30 frames per sec. to 60) correct? All the samsungs are the same except for iris settings. I think that setting has a different effect on the picture anyway. It seems the computer users care about this for turning off overscan. In a perfect world everything would be 1080P/60 hz. Especially the sports programming I mostly watch. I don't know of any sources that currently have this. Please verify and explain.

Such as if you have the sony or pioneer blu-ray or the Xa2 hddvd you can watch at the intended 1080/24 and not the 1080/60.

Such as if you have the sony or pioneer blu-ray or the Xa2 hddvd you can watch at the intended 1080/24 and not the 1080/60.

Thank You. I don't have hd-dvd yet. I have read that movies in 1080p/60 look too realistic like video whereas 1080p/24 looks like film correct? Does an hd-dvd movie default to 60fps instead of the native or intended 24fps? I actually prefer the video look. Older movies from film watched on hbo-hd seem awful grainy to me.

Where did you hear that the some samsungs will do 24fps and others won't?

What size mitsubishi did you get and can anybody verify the lower quality color wheel in the 73" model? I'm assuming you were unsatisfied with samsung quality before this latest report of faulty light engines. What went wrong with your 50" set?

It is very true about the light engine problems with many different model series, and two weeks ago it happened to my 7 month old HL-S6187W. If you have not bought you HDTV yet, DO NOT BUY THE SAMSUNG, no matter what these guys are saying. A few feathers might be ruffled with this statement, but I am sure many guys in this forum are dealers, trying to help them sell more sets by posting good comments. I wished now I would have read this thread below, before I had bought my Samsung. :mad:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=758625


There is no product on the market that is lemon proof. DLP HDTV's are no exception. I'm sure "many guys" on this forum are dealers as well - dealers that sell both the mitts and samsung - not to mention everyother brand under the sun. You can crap on samsung all you want....
but where you really start ruffling feathers is when you accuse the majority of the samsung lovers; of working for samsung or being liars. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that Eliab is one of this forums most valued and trusted Professional Calibrators. If I'm not mistaken he owns a HL-s5688. Does he own this just so he can say that he owns one - so people will buy samsungs? Or could it be - that was the set he wanted for his own personal enjoyment.

All personal opinions here are valued - more so than on any forum I've ever been. Of course people tend to listen to "proffesionals" a little more cloesly - but everyone is heard and valued. So please, you don't need to smear people who might disagree with you on a television purchase. You might think you're some whistle blowing rebel by doing that - but you're really just insulting a lot of good natured people who invest a lot of time on here simply trying to help people.


All that being said - much like the A2000 vs HLS threads - you can't go WRONG with one of these sets. Unless you buy a lemon. And all of these sets come in lemon flavor to the unlucky few.

And all of these sets come in lemon flavor to the unlucky few.

It seems those unlucky enough to not see all 3 87's fail in one day ? That's more than just bad luck there.

Also ask the repair shops how many samy's vs mits they see. I did and they said samy's get most of there business.

Also ask the repair shops how many samy's vs mits they see. I did and they said samy's get most of there business.
You need to also look at sales. Since Sammy sells way more DLPs than Mits, yes, more are brought in for repairs. You have no idea the frequency of repairs by quoting specific examples of failed sets, or by not taking into account sales numbers, since you have no idea of the denominator. IMO, all these microdisplays need EWs since they can all break down, independent of brand or model.

You need to also look at sales. Since Sammy sells way more DLPs than Mits, yes, more are brought in for repairs. You have no idea the frequency of repairs by quoting specific examples of failed sets, or by not taking into account sales numbers, since you have no idea of the denominator. IMO, all these microdisplays need EWs since they can all break down, independent of brand or model.


GUESS WHAT , went back today and ANOTHER 87 sammy with 6-8" of shade on the right side, way too many failures to be a fluke. I'd avoid the sammy 87's like the plague .

I think that everybody has left one thing out of this equation. the mitsubishi will upscale any input up to 1080p, while the sammy does not. the sets are almost identical, but this was the deciding factor for me. i got the Mitsu WD-57732. HIGHLY recommend it

I think that everybody has left one thing out of this equation. the mitsubishi will upscale any input up to 1080p, while the sammy does not. the sets are almost identical, but this was the deciding factor for me. i got the Mitsu WD-57732. HIGHLY recommend it
What are you talking about? All fixed pixel displays automatically upscale to their native resolution, which is 1080p for both the Mits and the Samsung. They both upscale all inputs to 1080p. Actually, the only difference is that Samsung accepts 1080p over component and HDMI, whereas Mits does so only over HDMI. Otherwise, flip a coin.

If there's a choice get the Mitsubishi, if there's no choice get the Mitsubishi

And do yourself a favor by going to CNET and read their review of the 831. it's the top notch and it's not much different from the 732.

My 7-year old 53" Hitachi took a dive last week, convergence issue.

When the tech repair guys came out lask week, we discussed some replacement brands. I indicated I was actively looking for a new set and would be giving this Hitachi set to a friend of ours.

The liked the Mitsubishi's, LOVED the Sony's because they didn't see many of them, but emphatically warned me about the Samsungs.

I've been checking out sets around my area. On two different occasions at different locations, I've seen two Samsungs on the floor with screen issues. (you'd think they'd pull them off immediately)

My set of choice will be the Mitsubishi WD-57732 or 831. I'm currently price shopping.

BTW, the Sony looked outstanding in-store also.

my .02

And do yourself a favor by going to CNET and read their review of the 831. it's the top notch and it's not much different from the 732.
Home Theater mag just (Feb issue) reviewd six hdtv sets and placed them in this order:
1st samsung hl-s6188
2nd jvc hd-61fn97
3rd toshiba 62mx 196 but does not accept native1080p on any input
4th sony kds r60xbr2
5th mits wd-65731
last olevia 565h

Home Theater mag just (Feb issue) reviewd six hdtv sets and placed them in this order:
1st samsung hl-s6188
2nd jvc hd-61fn97
3rd toshiba 62mx 196 but does not accept native1080p on any input
4th sony kds r60xbr2
5th mits wd-65731
last olevia 565h


BillP
Did you notice you said WD-65731? This is NOT the same model as the WD-65831 which is Mits's top of the line. Again, the 732 line is not far off from the 831 and to some there are no difference in PQ between the 732 and 831.

RudyMeister, those are the sets that were tested in the article. IMO, all these major brands are very similar, and one can't go wrong with any of them.

Can someone tell me the difference between the Mits 731 & 831?

The largest Mits. doesn't use the same color wheel as the smaller ones. This is a significant factor. They cost more too. I went to Best Buy/Magnolia and FWIW the samsung looked better. The samsung "S" (2006) models all use the same internals. The only difference is the frame design and the features like cable card and PIP (88 model). These are worthless to me.

The Mits 73" uses a larger DLP chip to allow for a brighter picture. The Sammy uses the same size chip as the smaller models (and the Mits) so their larger screen TVs are not as bright as the Mits.

The new Mits Diamond 831 series have a 180 watt bulb as compared to the 150 watt in the 732 series. I have seen both side by side and the difference in PQ is quite noticeable. The 731 series does not have a media card reader and also uses a 150 bulb and has a matte black finish as compared to a gloss black on the 831 and 732. The 732 is considered the sweet-spot and the difference in price is a couple hundred dollars between each of the sets. I have a Mitsubishi Authorized Dealer in my town and will buying the 57" 831 with the new styled Mits stand for $2399....

The new Mits Diamond 831 series have a 180 watt bulb as compared to the 150 watt in the 732 series. I have seen both side by side and the difference in PQ is quite noticeable. The 731 series does not have a media card reader and also uses a 150 bulb and has a matte black finish as compared to a gloss black on the 831 and 732. The 732 is considered the sweet-spot and the difference in price is a couple hundred dollars between each of the sets. I have a Mitsubishi Authorized Dealer in my town and will buying the 57" 831 with the new styled Mits stand for $2399....


Will the brightness of the bulb be necessary for my situation? My set will be in a basement with no big windows and when the lights are out...Its almost pitch black.

And thanks for the info. I was going to go with the 731...But, the 732 sounds like a better unit..It's just not that easy to find deals on compared to the 731.

Home Theater mag just (Feb issue) reviewd six hdtv sets and placed them in this order:
1st samsung hl-s6188
2nd jvc hd-61fn97
3rd toshiba 62mx 196 but does not accept native1080p on any input
4th sony kds r60xbr2
5th mits wd-65731
last olevia 565h

The point I'm trying tomake here is that...this review is comparing orange and apple. They used the top of the line sets from each manufacturer execpt when it came to the Mits.

As the above poster stated here, there's quite a bit of PQ diff between the 731 and 831 sets. I know it's difficult to read thru all the pages of a particuler thread but go read the Mits 831/732 owner's thread, toward the beginning. Glance thru them quickly and you'll see discussion on these sets. Many early adopters including myself, spent a lot of times comparing the sets and we agree that there's a quite a bit of diff in PQ.

You can't beat Mitsubishi for a big screen. I don't care who else is in the running. The new XX732 series is simply amazing for the money you will spend. Nobody's better at making big screen tv's than Mitsubishi. Just make sure you get the XX732 or XX831 when you buy :)

Will the brightness of the bulb be necessary for my situation? My set will be in a basement with no big windows and when the lights are out...Its almost pitch black.
I agree with you. Brightness is not the best measure of PQ, and in a controlled viewing room, is not important. Whenever I use a calibration DVD, brightness and contrast are always turned down on my Custom settings comapred with any of the factory presets.

The point I'm trying tomake here is that...this review is comparing orange and apple. They used the top of the line sets from each manufacturer execpt when it came to the Mits.
Rudy, point well taken. I agree that all we can say is that one specific Samsung DLP was thought by one reviewer to be better than one specific Mits DLP, which may or may not be helpful to others, depending on which display they are looking at. Bare in mind also that the professional calibrators who frequent the forum all seem to recommend (and own themselves) Samsung DLPs, and have preferred them over Mits, or at least over some Mits models.

My point is not that one brand is better than the other, but rather to stress that all these displays are excellent, that they all would look great in one's home, and that posts how one specific model is far better than another is nothing more than personal opinions. All that matters is which looks better to the buyer's eyes, which may differ from what you or I think looks best (I increasingly think the "what should I buy" posts are more worthless than helpful since people just push what they themselves bought, which may or may not be what is best for the OP).

When doing my searching for my recent TV purchase, my local Magnolia store had the 73" mitz (which had the 180 watt lamp advertised everywhere on it), and the 71" 7178 Samsung sitting right next to each other, playing the same HD source.

Honestly, it appeared to me that the Samsung 71" was just slightly brighter than the Mitz 73", even with its 180 watt lamp.

I was shocked to see this as I had read all about the 180 watt lamp and had expected the brighter picture to be on the mitz.

Then again, this is Magnolia, and its possible Samsung was in torch mode and Mitz not...who knows.

Alot of this depends on the settings for the TV. Another difference between the Mits 732 and 831 is that the 831 has a better quality screen. Another problem with the Mits is that the colors can seem unnatural at times. I am torn, because I like the Mits, but I think the Sony has a more realistic picture.

Alot of this depends on the settings for the TV. Another difference between the Mits 732 and 831 is that the 831 has a better quality screen. Another problem with the Mits is that the colors can seem unnatural at times. I am torn, because I like the Mits, but I think the Sony has a more realistic picture.

IIRC the screens are actually the same for the 732 and 831 series based upon forum posts that say the service manuals spec the exact same part number. I think that the description of the 831 series screen in the marketing literature was different, but not the screen itself.

Regarding the color, the Mits is amazingly tweak-able via the Perfect Color and Perfect Tint menus. I ended up with the Mits, and I am very satisfied. If I had bought a Samsung, I would have purchsed the 88 series. Both are great sets.

The mitsubishi has 12-bit color processing, the Samsung 10-bit. (Not that 10 or 12 really matters, 14 is the magic number.) The mitsubishi uses a slightly inferior comb filter. The Samsung's iris is a pain to adjust, (service menu only).
I really dont see a wrong choice here, either one is an awesome tv. I own a Samsung HL-s5688 & love it. I was really interested in the Mitsubishi, but they were too much $ when i was ready to buy.
As for the failures, Samsung was the #1 TV manufacturer in 2006. They were slamming these things out the door as fast as possible & could barely keep up with demand. There are many more Sammy dlp's on the street, which inevitably equates to more failures. My light engine was jacked from day one, & i had a local service tech out at my house in less than 3 days. No spare light engines available, so i had a new tv in 10 days from the service tech visit. Excellent customer service in my experience, which should be a factor. Oh & another thing about the tech, yes he was a contractor, but he was trained & used exclusively for samsung tvs. No jack of all trades crap with them.
If the mitsu's would drop in price i would consider getting one, i think they look fantastic. Either tv will be a great choice.
Oh & samsung did have their 2nd generation led dlp tv's @ CES, those might be worth checking out.

Make decisions based on what your eyes tell you and don't get hung up on ancedotal failure stories or specs unless there is something specifically in the spec you need. I went searching this weekend, I had a 4 year old 43" Sammy HLN and was really thinking about trying something else like LCOS. I looked at the specs and thought the JVC looked pretty good and I also wanted to see what Sony and Mits were doing. Well Magnolia had all 4 sets lined up with the same source and time after time my eyes found the Samy 6187 looking the best. My wife who is certainly not a discriminating viewer also picked this set. Now based on that would I say Samsung is the best and all the rest are no good? Nope, but for me the Samsung looked the best. Pick what you like and enjoy it and don't go around bashing other brands or trying to convince others that they are mistaken when a different brand looks better to them.

To start out, this entire thread is nothing but a HUGE pissing contest. It is rediculous.

I am a sammy owner and will recommend them very highly. I am one who believes that calibration is a great thing on TV's and if several professional calibrators from these boards recommend it, i am going to most likely follow that recommendation.

Now for the smack talk on Sammy.... the TV is fine... do they have SOME issues when they are produced, of course who doesnt.

As far as listening to salesman at a store... HUGE HUGE HUE no no... dont do it... 99.9 % of the time they dont know a damn word they are talking about... trust me... i worked at one.... noone else knew a damn thing... it is sad but very true... they are just paycheck searching people with no desire for the industry or technology arising in it.

The mits is probably a great set as well... for me the cheaper price and high recomendations from professional calibrators would seal the deal.

And to the comment about the Sammy not being able to upconvert the signals from other inputs such as S video and such HA HA HA it is its ONLY format to display signals... as with ANY 1080p set.