Nec Plasmas Are Underated  

NEC panels are popular among this Forum's participants who own them. What holds back sales of this manufacturer's panels is there are no retail distribution outlets in America where the "average" consumer can go see one before making a purchase decision. Many individuals, myself included, are reluctant to spend thousands :eek: of dollars on a PDP sight-unseen.

Prior generations of NEC PDPs had a reputation for image retention problems. I’m not sure what the current XM4A/XM5A series potential for IR is.

NEC has been owned by Pio for nearly two years I believe. One of the main problems with NEC in the States is it's distribution channel has been a failure, just try and find a local AV store displaying one and not many folks are putting up that kiind of money without seeing what it can offer and audition it. Cleveland Plasma offered theirs up for viewing but I'm just not going to drive 180 miles to view a TV.

Many members here have wanted to audition the NEC but lack of such a resource to consider it firsthand most aren't buying on blind faith. I have dozens of AV stores locally to view Pio, Panny Sharp Samsung and now Hitachi but NEC sits off hundreds of miles away and I live in a high income region in the suburbs of Detroit but cannot even consider the NEC without a roadtrip.

My other issue with NEC from viewing feedback on this forum is TIR and my viewing habits are such that image retention or burn-in could occur as I regularly fall asleep watching my SHarp LCD and game on it without any forethought to such issues and none have ever occurred on my three LCD's. I know the NEC is a big time PQ in Europe with outstanding reviews with German reviewers but heel how can one consider the anel when you have such difficulty getting an audition before forking over that kind of money - perhaps Pio can change the distribution channel and methods and then more fan base here. Pio is in every Best Buy in the US but erhaps they don't want to compete with themselves. :)

Same situation over here in Germany.. Insiders seem to know that NEC panels are good but it is very difficult to see and test one.. Looks like NEC is not really interested to sell their panels to average consumer. Another problem is the price: NEC 50-inchers sell for prices which are far above those of their competitors.

FWIW, as I understand it, Pioneer bought out NEC's plasma division, however NEC started another plasma business which buys the panels from Pioneer OEM style, and markets them under the NEC name. So NEC is no longer in the business of building panels, nor makng plasma technology; NEC is just buys panels OEM from Pioneer, and markets and distributes them.

I do not believe Pioneer has the rights to market under the NEC name. Any plasma that is stamped NEC is a rebadged panel coming out of the Pioneer factory which is being marketed by the (new) NEC plasma corp.

So I think NEC controls the marketing and distribution of NEC panels. But the panels themselves are built by Pioneer, using the factory and staff and know-how that Pioneer acquired by buying out NEC's (former) plasma division.

at least that's my take

Wasn't it the other way round until they got "divorced"..?

Yes, NEC used to sell plasma glass to Pioneer, and to Sony as well. Then Pioneer bought out NEC's plasma operation, so now NEC is buying panels from Pioneer (manufactured in the factory that used to belong to NEC). Meanwhile Sony stopped buying glass from anybody since they are out of the plasma market.

Pioneer used to have their own plasma glass factory (in addition to purchasing glass from NEC), but since the buyout, Pioneer has (to my knowledge) closed their old Pioneer factory since it was inferior, and now everything they make comes from the factory they bought from NEC.

it may not be 100% accurate, but it makes a logical story

Here the nec is priced very nicely considering that the pq equal imo to the pioneer elite.
I was going for the elite but decided to get the nec after reading the great reviews from members here. The ir on this display is negligible, if there is any usually goes away after few minutes, I have been very happy with it the pq, in hd is amazing I am enjoyng the toshiba hddvd :) My next panel will be the pioneer fhd1 1080p for my new espn room ;) but I am definitely holding on to the nec.

There's a review of the NEC vs DVDO vs Key Digital scalers in the July '06 issue of Home Theater. Although the most expensive, they liked the NEC best. They had issues with the DVDO.

Doesn't Plasma Concepts PC promise (or whatever it is called) solve this problem for those who really want to audition it? The most you are going to pay if you aren't satisfied with it is shipping one way. They will accept a return without a restocking fee for any reason. Just a thought for those weary of the online purchase.

I helped a friend of mine install his new 50" NEC last weekend. I have a 42" Panasonic, and I was very impressed with the NEC. We calibrated the NEC and it did not need much adjustment. It was surprisingly close out of the box.

I went home and tried to compare my Panny to the NEC. Although I still really like my Panny, I thought that the NEC had a superior picture. My next plasma will probably be an NEC.

Cheers.

I heard from a good source that NEC doesn't usually do that Torch mode stuff out of the box like other manufacturers. That is probably why you didn't have to adjust it much with the calibration out of the box.

I agree with you, OP. I love my NEC 42XR4.

As others have said, NEC's popularity has suffered due to their limited distribution. Although I must disagree with Westa that their distribution is a "failure". They pick and choose their dealers very carefully, allowing only the cream of the crop to carry their sets - people with the know how to install and set them up optimally.

Or at least that's what NEC says.

I love my set, and it's one of the best values on the market in my opinion. And I haven't run into anybody yet who has been disappointed in their NEC's performance even after buying sight unseen!

A local high end shop carries the NEC. However, the last time I asked (a few months ago, definitely 2006), the asking price for the 50" display was somewhat greater than $7K. Yikes! MSRP on the Pioneer Elite was/is $5500, and the current Fujitsu 50" is $6500. I'm not clear whether the NEC is a TV or monitor (i.e., no tuner) -- the Pio and Fuji are integrated HDTVs. With that pricing and feature set, no wonder you don't see them very much....

To clear up the Pioneer and NEC glass questions: Yes, Pioneer bought the NEC plasma glass factory a few years back. However, you can tell that they (until very recently, i.e., the Pio 5070 series) haven't integrated: the old (i.e., through 5060/Elite 1130) Pio glass is 1280x768, while the NEC glass is 1365x768. The 61" Pioneer panels (pre-6070) have been using NEC glass -- the resolution and that they don't do 72 Hz (for 24 Hz film-based sources) are the giveaways.

The 6th gen Pioneer glass took a huge leap forward in black level. Pioneer appears to have brought this technology to the NEC factory, because the Pio 5070 is 1365x768 resolution, and I can't imagine them going backwards in black level.

I believe the Mitsubishi 50" plasmas use NEC glass as well. On the pricey side (> $5K for a monitor, no tuner), and I haven't been impressed with their black levels to date. Very good colors however, which is usually cited as a NEC strong point. Local dealers seem to be in closeout mode on the Mitsu 5065, and I don't know what's coming next, if anything.

Hope that clears things up a little,
Drew Dean

I am a Canadian owner of a 50XR5. Probably one of a few Canadian owners.

In Canada, NEC has the same problem. Any dealers I have found have esentially been internet retailers - hence auditioning one in person is virtually impossible. Any Canadian buying one is likely going to have to do it based on a leap of faith. I would suspect if I asked 100 people, very few would know the name NEC, and virtually none would likely know they sell plasmas.

All the big box stores here - Future Shop, Best Buy, The Brick etc. as well as the small independents tend to carry the more well known brands like Panasonic, Hitachi, Samsung, LG and Pioneer. They supplement the lower end with brands like "Prima", "Westinghouse" etc.

My 50XR5 ended up costing me slightly less than the 50" Panny PX60 consumer model - but mainly driven by paying less tax, as I purchased it out of province. Better warranty, better aesthetics, and excellent picture. I am pleased with my NEC.