[yngdiego]

What is the absolutely best direct view HDTV set on the market today? I want something that will last for numerous years. I was considering a rear projection, but I hear they don't give as good picture quality as direct view.


I was looking at the Sony 34" FD Wega HDTV. It looks very sweet. Are there any better models out there?

 

[drvais]

I think the Sony KD-34XBR2 is the best available now.

 

[Calabs]

I agree with drvais. The Sony is the best direct view. It is also one of the only direct views with a built in tuner, but at a street price of around $3200, it's also one of the most expensive. The new Zenith coming out in June/July also looks very impressive. At 34" and a built-in tuner, the MSRP of $2500 sounds awefully attractive. Street price is coming in under $2K. Not as many bells and whistles as the Sony though. For over $1200 less, I can do without them! Everyone that saw this set at the CES has been boasting about the picture quality. I'm holding out for this beauty (looks almost exactly like the Sony with speakers on the side).

Good luck,

Ralph

 

[klang]

Check out the Loewe Aconda 38 inch.

 

[ambitin]

Quote:

Originally posted by klang Check out the Loewe Aconda 38 inch.

I have the 38 inch aconda and think it is great.


Good luck,

Justin

 

[vvaidy]

What does this group think about the 30'' 16x9 Aconda? I'm

looking for something in my bedroom and I fear the 38'' may be

a tad large.


I believe their 32'' is 4x3, right?


- VV

 

[hob]

RCA F-38310 is 42 inches in width and 25 inches in depth outside dimensions. Height it is 25.5 inches measured in the center of the set down.



There is 19 inches of vertical height and 33.75 inches of width for your viewing area of inside the screen dimensions. There I measured it in my wheelchair, just for you AVS member.



Go buy it, you will be thrilled when you see how clear, the wide screen picture is line doubled and ready for Direct TV. A HTPC can be put on this 1,382,400 pixel with a component adapter.

 

[vvaidy]

Wow, the 38310 looks good and seems to be priced aggressively, but from

what I can see it has one major problem - it has an integrated

HDTV satellite receiver but no video outputs, which means that I cant

record any satellite programming (or hook it up to my SA Tivo) without

buying an additional satellite receiver. Is that correct? How do you deal with

this problem?


Additional receivers dramatically decrease my WAF, unfortunately.


Any feedback on the 30'' Aconda?


- VV

 

[IUnknown]

I would not buy the Sony 34 XBR BECAUSE of the built in tuner. First you pay a big premium and second its easily outdated. I think this set is in general overpriced.


I would expect that (maybe have read on this) the new Sony's will not have built in tuners.


The Aconda's are so pricey that I would buy a plasma before I would buy an Aconda.

 

[klang]

I've had the 38" Aconda for 6 months, really enjoy it and no problems so far. I've seen the 30" in the store and the picture is great but I didn't spend much time with it.

 

[hob]

Hardly any TVs have an out put, I have a work around by hooking my gear up to the Digital Cable box.



I found out I couldn't get anymore than mono when I was on digital channels. I screwed around with the converter until abracadabra I had Dolby Surround Pro-Logic coming into my ears from my Dolby Surround in headphones. If your using a cable box or a Direct TV, you have to get the signal *before* it goes into the HDTV!

 

[efball]

Make sure you look at the Sony with some poor signal sources, the picture really gets ugly - worse than other brands. The cost is way out of wack, and the colors aren't as good as my Toshiba 34HF81. The Philips models are really nice, but I got a deal on the Toshiba and the Philips would have been $700 more.

 

[Kingston]

I have to add my vote to Panny CT-34wx50.

I've had the set for over two years and have never

been dissapointed in its clarity and colors.

I also have the Philips 34 but think the Panny out classes

the Philips in every way. I'm starting to see price drops on

the CT-34wx50 recently.

 

[tveli]

hi,


here in southern NH

i bought the 34xbr2 after years of research & pining

for a 16:9 screen. $3800 from tweeter and am

very happy with it.


with a poor cable signal yes indeed ntsc looks like

crap on the 34xbr2, and *any* tv i've ever seen.

i think even the cleanest ntsc signal looks like crap

on all tvs. yes, i hate ntsc.


on the rare occasions when i watch ntsc on my 34xbr2,

sometimes i like to watch two channels side-by-side since that

size image is really all the resolution of ntsc is good for. but usually for ntsc material i use the linear

zoom mode and watch that way, unless i want

to read the banner text at the bottom...


i bought

the tv mainly for watching progressive/dvds but as a bonus i discovered that i can get pbs,abc,nbc,cbs,fox DTV

signals out of boston. now i almost never watch ntsc

except for cnn/fox/etc, or if i'm stuck watching my

old panasonic 1st gen 480p TV (32xf55) downstairs, which has no DTV tuner...


i don't see how the dtv tuner in the 34xbr2 will become outdated - i think atsc is here to stay and i am solely

interested in over-the-air reception. but i could be proven wrong if that cofdm yutz "bob" on the usenet is right about how cofdm is going to displace 8vsb, or whatever line of bs he always spouts.


the 34xbr is pricey and possibly orphaned by

the new models this fall which do not have integrated DTV tuner, but do have HDCP/DVI or some such copy-protection handling. i can't imagine that an external dtv tuner would work as seamlessly and awesomely as the 34xbr2 dtv tuner but maybe they will do a nice job with

the new fall models. channel-changing between dtv

channels is pretty quick with the 34xbr2, less than a second.


i looked at the anaconda lowe set but

rejected it due to its nonflat screen , also i think

it was more expensive than the sony.


as for the 34xbr2's color rendering, i find it

very bright and vivid which is good for me;

i can't comment on color accuracy because i am

green-deficient color-blind, dichromatic deuteranopia

is the technical term i think.


this tv does have a video out but i have never tried it.

i don't think it is supposed to work for when the tv

is receiving a dtv signal, but would have to try

it and/or check the manual to be sure about that,

in case any readers give a hoot about that detail.


if that jvc d-vhs vcr had a built-in tuner, i'd buy one

for the many nights when i wanted to watch one HD

program while recording another. the local affiliates

convert ntsc->1080i and their upconverters are fantastic - way better than what is in any hdtv.

 

[mlomker]

I have a Panny 34WX50 and it is a great set but it isn't the cost-is-no-object best. There is little question that the 38" Loewe Aconda is the one to buy.


I was seriously debating between the 30" Aconda and the set that I purchased. The Loewe was more money for a much smaller screen. My Panny looks very good after ISF calibration. It still failed the color decoder tests but most consumer sets do.

 

[vvaidy]

I'm not familiar with "ISF calibration" ... what is it? is it a series

of tests using something like the home theater reference DVD/Laserdisc?


- VV

------

 

[jm_etue]

Is the new Sony KV-34XBR800 the exact same as the 34XBR2 except for the built in DTV tuner and DVI on the 34XBR800?

 

[Jasonkm1]

I'm waiting for the 800 mainly because I read you will be able to control the amount of that Digital Reality Creation thing they use, which to me sometimes makes the picture look awful. Since you might be able to turn it off completely or at least turn it down, which you can't do with the XBR2 i would wait.

 

[Calabs]

And about a grand less!

 

[mlomker]

Quote:

Originally posted by vvaidy I'm not familiar with "ISF calibration" ...

Imaging Science Foundation is a group that certifies technicians that can come out to your home and adjust your television using professional test equipment. They go into the service menus and adjust geometry, grey level, color, etc. as close to the NTSC standard as your set will go.


You can use discs such as Avia or Video Essentials to adjust your set in the user menus but it isn't quite the same as using professional test equipment. The fees for doing this vary but I paid $400 to adjust my direct-view set and it took the fellow about 2.5 hrs.

http://www.imagingscience.com