[rodneyremington]

Since there is so much interest in the DLPs on this forum and so many people consult here before making purchases I thought it might be helpful to summarize my experience after 3 months of ownership of my HLN467W. I bought it off Crutchfield after having to return a 50 inch model because it wouldn't fit in my armoire


Firstly, I purchased the Digital Video calibration DVD but found that my own eyeball calibration was basically the same settings as after calibration. I have never entered the Service Menu and don't feel the need to. I'm happy with the picture quality. Very happy actually, when I first got the set my jaw was on the floor. DVDs look spectacular, HDTV look unbelievable, and SD when set up right looks good. I made some adjustments using the Users menu, specifically turning the sharpness and color down, but not much more than that.


I do so a very occasional trend towards green push on a very few DVDs that tend towards green already, but nothing noticable in daily viewing.


I have COmcast and use their 5100 HDTV box-- I had them install a signal booster and that brough up my lower SD channels to pretty good PQ. I think the SD channels are perfectly decent. Nothing like HD of course but what is. I think this tV likes a good strong SD signal so if you use cable, consider having your CC install an amplifier or at least have them measure the signal.


I have had none of the problems that others have mentioned here. I've never seen a rainbow/dithering/internal reflections etc.


NO technical problems or malfunctions at all. The remote sucks big-time, I use a Harmony universal. The built in speakers are not at all bad although I have HT speakers I only use them for films and HDTV and find the built-ins perfectly adequate for most viewing.

 

[digiDave]

I've had mine for a month. Other than the video delay, I love the set. It's getting to the point they are going to have to pry it from my "cold dead hands". It is everything I was looking for. Low reflection, high brightness (actually had to turn it down), fantastic color, DVI etc. Nothing else I looked at came close. A little tweeking of the Tint and Color have yielded a great picture. My Adelphia STB isn't doesn't provide HD yet, but I look forward to it.

 

[rcase13]

Quote:

Originally posted by digiDave My Adelphia STB isn't doesn't provide HD yet, but I look forward to it.

Oh my god wait until you get HD. HD on the DLP will blow you away.

 

[wvudrj]

Great set, had to have my color wheel replaced due to noise but no charge and no hassle from samsung, truly beautiful picture!!!!

 

[ks-man]

Oh man,


I'm already fretting when I need to decide between Samsung DLP and Sony GWIII. I'm going to be purchasing one in a couple of months and everybody I speak to absolutely loves their tv (except those with GWIII and buzz problem). From a PQ point of view though they seem to be neck and neck. Maybe I'll have to wait for the new HD2+ and then make a final decision. Thanks for your input on your experiences. People's oppinions really make the buying process easier.

 

[rcase13]

Quote:

Originally posted by ks-man Maybe I'll have to wait for the new HD2+ and then make a final decision. Thanks for your input on your experiences. People's oppinions really make the buying process easier.

I would wait for the new DLP HD2+. Not sure how long the wait but might as well tough it out.

 

[Lauden]

Quote:

Originally posted by jimfrost This is maybe a bit OT for this thread, but since I have more recent firmware than the poster was asking about I think it answers his question to a degree. I ended up using the service menu again, which I was hoping I wouldn't have to do. Original values were R_GAIN 113, G_GAIN 120, B_GAIN 105. Reasonable (done by eye) values were R_GAIN 104, G_GAIN 110, B_GAIN 110. This is a vast improvement. (I note that my video source is DirecTV via Tivo, not all that great quality to begin with, so YMMV.) I also switched gamma to 5, but I admit to not actually checking to see if this is the one I liked best and just trusted the widespread opinion that that's the one to pick.

I've had my HLN437W for about a week now. This is my first RP tv which is replacing a Sony Wega XBR (at 270lbs!). Since I'm new to Rear Projection, I've been reading this forum like a bible. Currently I'm only able to work with Digital cable (Comcast) and DVD. My HD Motorola 5100 won't arrive until next week.


I also had a problem with the Green/Red Push. After following the above advice (and recording all SM values BEFORE adjusting) , the picture cleared up dramatically. Overall I love the TV's versatility and it does a half decent job on analog signals when tweaked. The real test will be HD, but if the DVD PQ is any indicator it should be a keeper.



~ Lauden

 

[rodneyremington]

Yoe have no worries about how HDTV will look on this set, that's where it shines. Truly like looking out a window. And the amount of HD content has improved noticably even since I got on board in Sept/Oct.


Most of my time is spent watching SD television, though, and for my wife that is about 90% of what she does, and I have to say with a good signal and proper self-adjustment (the TV, not adjusting yourself, ahem) I have no beef with the SD PQ like I have heard mentioned many times. Maybe Comcast gives a better SD signal than the satellites do, in fact I think they DO since Direct and Dish tend to compress their signals. So I would say that the derogative effects of SD signal compression may be more noticable on this set, since my cable signal seems good.

 

[Andrew67]

Rodney... you should post a follow up in 3-4 months. I've had my 467 for 6 months, and am starting to see rainbows where I've never seen them before. I'd be curious to see if my experience is abnormal. Still love the TV for videogames and sports, which is why I purchased it in the first place.