I'm trying decide whether to go with the Pioneer PDP-5070/71HD Plasma or the Sony SXRD KDS-50A2000 and looking for expert feedback from the folks on AVS.

I recognize that the Pioneer is $1,000 or more than the Sony SXRD making the Sony a good value. However, I would be happy to spend that additional sum if it is worth it in terms of picture quality, etc. I also recognize that the Sony has 1080P capability while the Pioneer is limited to 720P (but can accept a 1080P signal). In the end, I'm looking for some real world feed back on the picture qualilty for each set when viewing standard definition material. This is for our family room and the majority of our viewing in that room is SD material via DirectTV. We do watch HD but the SD probably exceeds HD. Thus, a good picture when viewing SD is important. I have seen both sets (showing HD material) at stores but do not have a good feel how these two sets behave in real world (at home) conditions using real world source material.

Thanks for all feedback.

Both nice sets.

I'd go to a store and ask them to put on a SD program. Most are using Dish or DTV and can do this for you.

Good luck

Thanks. I was able to see the Sony using a big box store's SD feed via OTA antenna. I suspect that SD source is not as compressed at DirectTV's SD signals. Even so, it did not seem as sharp to me as even my 42" Panny plasma at home when using DirectTV's SD feed. I wish I could see a side by side between the Pioneer and Sony using SD. Can the Sony's SD picture be improved by ISF calibration? If so, how much improvement?

Thanks