Official Panasonic VT50 owners thread - Page 27

Ok, so I've had my 65" VT50 up for 2 days now, and I figured I'd post some initial thoughts. To preface, I've had (or still have) 2 2008 lower-end Panasonics, a Samsung PNB850, a Panasonic V10, and a Panasonic VT25 (which the VT50 is replacing).

PQ: Exceptional so far. Shadow detail (and depth/preservation of black) is the best I've had in my house--by far. It is substantially brighter than the VT25, giving it an extremely dynamic picture. The THX Cinema settings were pretty much spot-on for my room out of the box, with one exception (gamma), so I've moved over to Custom. I've got the basic settings dialed-in pretty well using a gamma setting of 2.6, and it's giving me an extremely exciting image. The greatest thing for me so far, though: NO FLOATING BLACKS!! (which I've been dealing with for the last 2 years). Motion handling, of course, is superb, as long as you turn of the Motion Smoother (which is on Medium by default for some insane reason). The more I watch this TV, the more amazed I am.

Design: The VT50, in my opinion, is the best looking TV in in production. The silver trim is not distracting whatsoever and really adds to the design (again, my opinion). Sometimes, I just stare at it while it's off (which has been a rare occurrence).

Buzzing: It's there, but the only units I've had that buzz less are my 2008 42" Panasonics. The Sammy B850 was WAY louder (even after it was "fixed"), and the VT25 was appreciably louder on similar bright content.

DSE: Faint--I've only noticed it a couple of times, and I am REALLY sensitive to it. My VT25 edges out the 50 in this regard, as it was pretty much non-existent on it (it was the only TV that I don't think I've ever seen DSE on).

SD Performance: well above average, although I avoid it at all costs. Better than my VT25 was.

Overall, the VT50 is spectacular so far. Panasonic has really stepped it up this year, resulting in the conundrum for many where the move up to the VT50 does not seem like it is worth it, given the stellar performance of the ST and GT lines. However, the 96Hz processing and design made it worthwhile for me (also, I want to keep this TV for a few years, so an extra $300 over a few years isn't a big deal, relatively).

Another Q. Would it be bad to use preset THX Bright Room setting for the first 100 hours on my 55VT50?

Thanks for the wonderful review. You are an experienced plasma owner as I can see from your details explained in the rest of your posting which I did not put in quotations. I have been waiting for folks like you to give their honest opinions about this tv set.

One question: You did say to avoid SD content? Any particular reason besides the obvious. I only ask because I sometimes stream netflix and during prime time ie: 6pm-11pm the bandwidth is slow causing the signal to slow down and the picture to degrade to SD quality. I guess that is the kicker with cable internet over Fiber optics.

Yes, I avoid SD for obvious reasons. SD looks better on the VT50 than it did on my VT25, if that's any consolation.

I agree that SD from Netflix cam be unwatchable. I watch DVDs on a regular basis and think that they are fine if the same material isn't available on Blu-ray. My experience is from Netflix when streaming was a free add on. I would never pay for the level of service that was available to our OPPO player and 60" display at that time.

As you point out, peek time bandwidth loads can degrade service even to those players with access to better software than Netflix provides OPPO. I did find Netflix OK with our Windows 7/24" screen combo. Still it's not something I wanted to pay for.

So how far back do you sit from your 65" VT50?

What is your elevation?

You can find it here - http://veloroutes.org/elevation/

I would exchange it for another one.

So this isn't normal on new plasma sets? A tapping sound from the screen "setting in" and it from operating temp change?

No.

According to the link, it's 1344 ft.

UPDATE!
I moved the 55PT50 1/2" forward on the stand and so far the "tapping" sound disappeared. I heard it before I moved it.
Does anyone have explanation for this or ever heard of this? I know i'm not going crazy because the GF heard it too.

Anyone know?

No, it's fine

I have a 55vt50 and I notice line bleed in all kinds of content it's very distracting. I"m seeing blinds through michael scott's face in the office, I'm saw an over the range kitchen light which is a straight white line through kramer's face in seinfeld. I see it all the time in any cartoon when there is a line behind a character, south park, american dad. It's really bad is there any way to reduce this? In the image of cartman I uploaded you can see the road through cartman's eyes when viewing the image on a vt50.

Thanks. Just worried about the Contrast being at 100

I wonder if elevation is playing a role when it comes to buzzing. It would be nice if VT50 owners with buzzing or no buzzing post their elevation. This way we can compare.

url to check is http://veloroutes.org/elevation/

I'm at 19ft. Is that fine?

What picture mode is the TV set to? I noticed excessive line bleed on Standard, which looked awful. Changing it to THX Cinema fixed it. It's not completely gone, but to me it isn't bothersome.

Depends on the content. I would just run it in THX Cinema and vary your content.

Elevation should be irrelevant at anything other than extreme altitudes. If you are hearing buzzing at/near sea level or up to 5000 feet above, your set has an issue (or the model has one).

I always watch tv in THX cinema mode and I still find it very distracting. It's also alot worse with moving images, A still image like I posted isn't quite as bad but is still noticeable. Maybe i can find someone to buy this 55vt50 from me I live near atlanta GA if anyone wants it contact me via PM about buying it.

Can you take pictures of your 65" VT50, please?

This sounds like kuro tech rather than line bleed I think. When I get horizontal banding, it is mostly during scene transitions and it is never on bluray content. It is almost always on SD or poor HD content. Try watching a very good signal or bluray and see if it goes away. If it does, try turning off the motion smoother. That should greatly reduce the issue.

This is a down side of kuro tech that many people seem to either not see or confuse with line bleed. It the lines are like window blinds and seem to span the screen then my theory is correct. It is not a deal breaker for me. I mean we asked for a kuro clone and guess what? We got one.

In some strange way, the fact that the VT50 is starting to show all of the Kuro's flaws is somewhat exciting

Has anyone from Panasonic stated anything about the amount of Kuro tech in the VT50s????

I was thinking the same thing. Now that we have a 9g clone (IMO), now we can look forward to working on its bugs and see what a 10g might have been with the VT60!!!!

Its like 2008 all over again, with the good and the bad.

At least its a start. I believe you are the first to post settings. I wish others had the guts you have shown. Thanks. Are there anymore brave souls?

Can anyone post the dimensions of the actual box the 65" comes in? Our local bb has one and i want to see if i can pick it up

Thanks!