[ferky1]

I will be hanging a 42" plasma over a fireplace. There is a mantel about 52" off the ground, and the bottom of the plasma will be at around 55". Viewing distance is approximately 9 feet.


I have gotten a great deal on a Chief PSM flat wall mount, but now I'm nervous that I'm going to want to tilt the plasma down a bit. I certainly don't need it to tilt down more than a few degrees, but I'm unsure whether I need to tilt it down at all. Does anyone have any words of wisdom?

 

[steuert]

I do not have that particular mount, but you can probably tilt it down easily by inserting small spacers or washers between the top fasteners on the mount and the wall, using longer screws if necessary. When I first fastened my plasma to the wall, there was a large reflection from the dining room lamp smack in the middle of the screen. Tilting the plasma up a couple of degrees and propping it there with a piece of wood solved the problem perfectly.

 

[dswallow]

I have a ceiling mount and have a 50" plasma panel hanging about 10" lower than you're planning. I currently have it tilted down about 5-7 degrees and seem to prefer it that way.


It's probably an issue of reflections that make me prefer it more than any other reason, though there's a certain more comfortable feeling that I'm looking at it "straight on" from my viewing position that I didn't have when I didn't have it tilted at all. I'm just finishing painting the room a much darker color, so haven't yet had a chance to try changing the tilt back to see if I like it.

 

[rogo]

I had mine tilted about 8-10 degrees to help deal with the high mounting above the fireplace.


I could not imagine having watched it without the tilt. It was very valuable.


Mark

 

[mporter]

Being able to adjust the tilt is also helpful for reducing reflections of extraneous light sources for a given viewing location and angle. I have found this very useful with my adjustable table top stand.

 

[dandean]

Quote:

Originally posted by ferky1 I will be hanging a 42" plasma over a fireplace. There is a mantel about 52" off the ground, and the bottom of the plasma will be at around 55". Viewing distance is approximately 9 feet. I have gotten a great deal on a Chief PSM flat wall mount, but now I'm nervous that I'm going to want to tilt the plasma down a bit. I certainly don't need it to tilt down more than a few degrees, but I'm unsure whether I need to tilt it down at all. Does anyone have any words of wisdom?

After initially installing my 503CMX above the fireplace with a tilt mount but without tilting the screeen at all, I went back and decided to try it with a few degrees of tilt. Result: I loved it. Although I prefered the look of the screen flat against the wall, I personally feel the enhanced viewing angle is worth tilting the screen a bit.


You may find tilting the screen completely unimportant in your particular situation, but a bit of experimentation might be worth experimenting with.


Just my opinion.

 

[peebee]

For the few extra bucks that a tilt mount will cost, I'd say go for the tilt. Actually, I give the same recommendation for the articulating mount, too.

 

[slb]

I guess I'll chime in with a dissenting opinion. We have our plasma mounted above the fireplace very similar to what you are proposing (ours is 56" off the floor, viewing distance about 10 feet). We also debated the tilt/no-tilt issue, even used a mock-up made of cardboard to help visualize it. But in the end, we did not like the aesthetics of a tilited display, so we went flat. It took us a few days to get used to having the display located that high, but now it's great and IMHO, I don't think that tilting would have made that much of a difference.


Regards,

Steve

 

[ferky1]

Thanks for the advice.


Steve - I did the exact same thing! I have a cardboard cutout and you better believe that that sucker was made exactly to the dimensions specified on Fuji's website.


Now of course I don't know what to do. I haven't seen too many tilting mounts, aesthetically, how much further does it stick out, especially if the display is being tilted just a few degrees? I have been offered the Chief PSM flat mount for about $200. How much more would a good tilting mount be?

 

[slb]

ferky1,

I bought my Peerless flat mount for $165. The tilt mount goes for $199 at the same vendor. PM me if you want to know who I ordered it from.


Regards,

Steve


Wow! Doug's prices are even better; see below.

 

[dswallow]

A Peerless PLWT series wall mount w/tilt (including the mounting plate for your plasma) can be found for $159 including shipping. The back of the plasma would be 4.5" from the wall. The point of rotation is the middle of the screen.


The Peerless PSWT series wall mount w/tilt (including the mounting plate for your plasma) can be found for $159 including shipping. The back of the plasma screen is 2" from the wall. The point of rotation is near the bottom of the screen.


Both mounts have 8" of horizontal play in order to get it secured to the studs, so it doesn't have to be exactly centered.


The non-tilt versions of the Peerless mounts have the back of the plasma 1.5" from the wall. The non-tilt versions can be found for $135 including shipping.


May as well get the tilt mount. If you don't like it tilted, just leave it set at 0 degrees. It costs you half an inch of space and is cheaper than the mount you're going for.

 

[rogo]

Chief makes a mount that allows you to tilt the plasma by hand (for viewing) and then return it to the wall when done (for cleanliness of appearance).


It's around $200.

 

[ferky1]

Hey Rogo (or anyone else reading), the company that is doing my installation, and whom I trust implicitly, just quoted me $220 for the Chief PRO tilting mount and $350 for the PLP tilting mount. Also, because of the location of the studs, I need to buy a lateral shift bracket for whichever Chief mount I get. This is getting expensive!


Can you tell me, in PM if necessary, if I can do much better than these prices. Also, can anyone tell me what benefits there are in the PLP over the PRO.

 

[dswallow]

The Peerless mount does allow for some adjustment horizontally. I believe it was 8" either way, meaning you can mount the mount 8" off center and still be able to mount the plasma to it such that it's where you wanted it to be. I'll PM you a web site address, but part of your installation is probably accounting for the higher prices, with that being built in to their labor costs. If you were doing it yourself, I'd say go for buying it online; if you're having someone else do it, you're probably better off having them deal with it all.

 

[nospam_online]

Are your studs not 16" on center? I thought the mounts has 8" of play.

 

[R Harkness]

One point might be made here: If you are looking for getting the very best

"experience" out of your plasma viewing, I'd think a tilt would be in order.


Plasmas do retain most of their amazing qualities from off angles. But three-dimensionality of the image is enhanced by viewing the image at as direct an angle as possible. For instance, a close up of an actor, viewed directly in front of the plasma, can really do that neat trick of "he's right there in front of me" realism. But the more off-axis you sit, obviously, the more the image flattens in an unrealistic, artificial manner, ruining the illusion. Same goes for any image on the plasma, really.


Our plasma is mounted on an articulating arm, just above perfect eye-level. I introduced a bit of tilt, barely noticeable aesthetically, that aligns the plasma image with a seated viewer, which I find makes a difference in realism.


Rich H.

 

[rogo]

Ferky, et al: The Chief has no play without the lateral shift accessory.


The PLP is the one that can be hand tilted, IIRC. It's also lower in profile. The hand tilt is super cool and also allows for a forward tilt to attach/detach cables.


The prices are not bad for delivered prices and you could perhaps save $50 or so, but not much more. Make sure the deal seam fair for install.


Mark

 

[ferky1]

Thanks for the responses. It turns out that my installer was insisting on the Chief lateral mount because the studs behind the fireplace mantel are staggered and random. It seems that the peerless and premier don't have enough horizontal play for those crazy studs behind the fireplace.


I have taken the advice gained from this thread and decided on a Chief tilting mount, either the PRO or PLP. I have posted a new thread to try to get some advice on those two mounts.


Rogo - Is there ever a way to know if the installation quote is fair? I used the gag reflex: I didn't gag when I got the quote, so I guess it was fair. Seriously though, I've never done this before so I went with a local company who's work and reputation I know, trust and like. It's a fairly complex over-fireplace install onto randomly-placed studs, some in-wall speakers and all the wires are being run to the components about 8 feet into a closet located on the other side of the wall. I was quoted (I hope I can say this) $800 for 2 guys for the whole day. Fair? I sure don't know.

 

[Gaucho100K]

Great thread. I see most (if not all) posts mention what appear to be 3rd party manufacturers for wall mounts. I have a 42" Panasonic TH-42PWD4 that is still on a table and want to now go wall mount. I was going to get the original Panny wall mount (the tilting version). Am I just going to be taken to the cleaners...? I wonder if these 3rd party mounts can accommodate the original speakers, etc.


Thanks very much.

 

[Gaucho100K]

One follow up question. The instruction manual mentions an optional Terminal cover (accessory part number TY-UPS200). Would such a cover be recommended in a tilt wall mount scenario - ie. would the setup look more tidy with this cover instead of with the exposed terminals...? Im already concerned that a tilt mount will lean out of the wall quite a bit, so anything to make the entire setup as stealthy as possible is something I would definitely consider.