I am opening a bar and I need to purchase 10 tvs for it. I need 6 42" tvs and 4 in the area of 50" to 60". I need advice how to get the best deal on all of these and what kind should I get, LCD or plasma? Plus which manufacturer to go with? Please let me know what you think. Thanks

I think Panasonic and NEC professional series are the most favorable choices for a bar/restaurant. They are VERY resistant to abuse {at least Panasonic is} if you plan to have your business open for long periods of time. If this will be a sports bar, you want to go with High-Resolution sets to offer your patrons the full view on games and other events broadcast on HD.

P.S. I'm neutral with all the manufacturers, but haven't you notice, Panasonic is the number 1 choice by Newsrooms, TV game shows, and high-end department stores when it comes to custom display applications.

I'd go with a commercial set. Those mentioned above are good choices. One caveat, if you'll always have it on ESPN and plan on having any re-sale value, then I'd maybe think LCD. LCD's that size are gonna cost you up front though.

I would suggest plasma, for the same reasons mentioned above. We have sold many models to bars in the past, mainly Panasonic and Samsung models. We did outfit a sports bar with seven Maxent mx-42x3 units with five of them lined up along the back of the bar and the other two across the room. The five along the bar looked awesome and really provide a 'wow' effect when you walk in. The bar owner said he's had his best business since installing the plasmas (this was The Downtown Quarterback in Endicott NY, BTW). You're on the right track for this type of investment.

I would think many sellers would offer volume discounts, and the commercial sets recommended are probably a good idea.

As for LCD vs Plasma, there are two aspects that come immediately to mind, and argue for opposite answers - potential for burn-in, and viewing angle. Both of these problems are more extreme at a bar than in a typical home setup; the burn-in risk favors LCD and the viewing angle favors Plasma. LCD's viewing angle typically doesn't hold up well to the sides or vertically, and in a bar I think you'd get a lot more of this kind of angle than in a home. Of course keeping a set tuned for hours and hours to ESPN or any particular channel vastly increases the chances that burn-in will eventually occur. Which is more of a concern may be a tough decision.

Yes majority of vendors would offer a discount on a purchase like this. I would recommend either Pioneer Professional or Panasonic Pro depending on your price range and a package that is presented to you.

I am opening a bar and I need to purchase 10 tvs for it. I need 6 42" tvs and 4 in the area of 50" to 60". I need advice how to get the best deal on all of these and what kind should I get, LCD or plasma? Plus which manufacturer to go with? Please let me know what you think. Thanks
I am not sure how you plan to distribute the video, e.g. connections. The Panny and NEC commercial are excellent suggestions. I would add one additional, the Pioneer commercial cmx series. Why not give Chris a call at Cleveland Plasma, a sponsor listed at the bottom, as he carries all of these. I would wait as long as I could for the 60" displays as they are still quite pricy but should drop as the year progresses. 50" displays, however, are quite affordable now.

Cheers, :)

Gary

Mattymatt,
What features are most important to you as consumer or business owner? Is having HD important to you? How big is your bar area? What is the seating capicity? How far are each customer's viewing distances? These are some important questions that may help you decide on how big of screen(s) you will need and the type of screens you are looking for? If you want better viewing angles for your customers I would have to give my highest recommendation to plasma TV technology. Plasma's will give you consistent brightness from any angle. LCD's suffer from picture fade while sitting off-axis from your viewing position.

The second row of questions deals with how you would like the TV's mounted. Do you prefer fixed, tilted, or articulating mounts? Articulating mounts give you the most adjustability at any seating position. Flat and fixed mounts are the cheapest of the solution, however, are limited in adjustability. How high are the TV's going on the wall?

Cree