Quote:
Originally Posted by Dierkdr 
Congrats! Hope you enjoy the set: at its best - Blu-ray or HDDVDs - the 60" ST30 shows a Wonderful picture.
If you are stepping up from a smaller sized panel, and/or sit close enough to the screen (say around 9ft or less...), don't be SHOCKED if you find that a panel this large tends to Show Off ALL of the Inherent Flaws in whatever less-than-ideal program material you view!
Seriously thinking about moving all of our SD DVDs from the (basement) "home theater" to the LR, as our older 50" Pan plasma does a nicer job of Masking their PQ issues. (Our experience is that it takes about a 12 foot viewing distance with the 60" to roughly equal the Apparent PQ at 9 feet with the 50" - GIVEN SD Material....)
We've had 3 60" ST30s in house (plus 1 60" S30 - technically 2, but one had a cracked screen...), and ALL have been bothered by the Green / Pink (Magenta) tinting that characterizes 2011 Pan Plasma sets.
Our current set is a Nov Build 60" ST30, also from CostCo, and while it DOES have both Unwanted Green & Pink, it is still easily the Best of the panels thus far: with MOST programming, MOST viewers probably would not notice the issue, or would assume it is simply part of the material as opposed to a panel flaw. (Unlike the earlier panels, the Green on this one SELDOM tints Faces, instead showing up in background objects, where it is easier to ignore.)
Still, would recommend trying to rack up as many hours on the panel as you reasonably can before your 90-day return policy ends: although Green TENDS to get Better as the panel ages (at least up to 600 - 700 hours - the limit of our experience), you may find that the Pink/Magenta will grow worse over that same time period.
Also, other than Green / Pink issues, all of our panels have seemed to IMPROVE in overall PQ over the course of the first couple of hundred hours of usage or so. We kept the first panel the longest - around 700 hours - and it had noticeably Deeper Blacks and APPARENTLY more "pop" when we sent it back than any of the other panels have had. (IF you look at "letterbox bars" and find them disappointingly "gray" - instead of black - give the panel a while before getting too upset!)
And, while it is probably just common sense, we have also noticed that certain letterboxed material produces "Blacker" bars than other sources: TV - even "HD TV" - tends to be the worse, while MOST (but Not All) Blu-rays tend to be the best...
After 150 -200 hours or so, watch the blu-ray versions of "Dark Knight," the "Star Trek" reboot, "Iron Man 2," or the "LOTR Extended Version" - these should look Pretty Good NOW, but once the panel settles in they ought to look Great!
Best of Luck with your new panel!
Congrats! Hope you enjoy the set: at its best - Blu-ray or HDDVDs - the 60" ST30 shows a Wonderful picture.
If you are stepping up from a smaller sized panel, and/or sit close enough to the screen (say around 9ft or less...), don't be SHOCKED if you find that a panel this large tends to Show Off ALL of the Inherent Flaws in whatever less-than-ideal program material you view!
Seriously thinking about moving all of our SD DVDs from the (basement) "home theater" to the LR, as our older 50" Pan plasma does a nicer job of Masking their PQ issues. (Our experience is that it takes about a 12 foot viewing distance with the 60" to roughly equal the Apparent PQ at 9 feet with the 50" - GIVEN SD Material....)
We've had 3 60" ST30s in house (plus 1 60" S30 - technically 2, but one had a cracked screen...), and ALL have been bothered by the Green / Pink (Magenta) tinting that characterizes 2011 Pan Plasma sets.
Our current set is a Nov Build 60" ST30, also from CostCo, and while it DOES have both Unwanted Green & Pink, it is still easily the Best of the panels thus far: with MOST programming, MOST viewers probably would not notice the issue, or would assume it is simply part of the material as opposed to a panel flaw. (Unlike the earlier panels, the Green on this one SELDOM tints Faces, instead showing up in background objects, where it is easier to ignore.)
Still, would recommend trying to rack up as many hours on the panel as you reasonably can before your 90-day return policy ends: although Green TENDS to get Better as the panel ages (at least up to 600 - 700 hours - the limit of our experience), you may find that the Pink/Magenta will grow worse over that same time period.
Also, other than Green / Pink issues, all of our panels have seemed to IMPROVE in overall PQ over the course of the first couple of hundred hours of usage or so. We kept the first panel the longest - around 700 hours - and it had noticeably Deeper Blacks and APPARENTLY more "pop" when we sent it back than any of the other panels have had. (IF you look at "letterbox bars" and find them disappointingly "gray" - instead of black - give the panel a while before getting too upset!)
And, while it is probably just common sense, we have also noticed that certain letterboxed material produces "Blacker" bars than other sources: TV - even "HD TV" - tends to be the worse, while MOST (but Not All) Blu-rays tend to be the best...
After 150 -200 hours or so, watch the blu-ray versions of "Dark Knight," the "Star Trek" reboot, "Iron Man 2," or the "LOTR Extended Version" - these should look Pretty Good NOW, but once the panel settles in they ought to look Great!
Best of Luck with your new panel!
Thanks for the reply Dierkdr. All seats are between 9.5 and 12 feet from the set. Yea I have read about your and so many others problems with the color (green,pink) on the ST sets. I know it is kind of a crap shoot with these sets. That is why the 90 day return really helped me make my choice on this set easy. I will have a while to decide if I want to keep it or get a ST50 if need be. I hope that is not needed but it is good to know that I have the time to change my mind if need be. I didn't want to waste the money so I bought the ST30, but I will spend the extra to get a ST50 if that needs to be done.
That is good to hear. Still waiting on my tv stand to get here and I will start my break in period.
