JasonJCarney Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 I read that burn in was a thing of the past when I bought mine. I'm not saying your wrong at all and I know there have been improvements in that area. I would just be careful and watch closely at the very least. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Let me preface: I've spent countless hours on this very topic. There's no judgement whatsoever, but every once in a while I find myself stopping and putting myself in check. But it struck me just this morning - what a 1st world problem we are discussing. I'm very glad I don't have to worry about choosing between stagnant water or flowing dirty water as my tough call for the day. Having said that - just buy plasma and be done with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audible Nectar Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 The latest plasmas seem to "improve" regarding image retention after about 500 hours. It IS a good idea to be careful for the first few months, and vary the viewing material somewhat. The new plasmas are MUCH improved in the IR area, but not completely immune, either. Colter: Be careful before assuming LEDs can't give a smooth picture. MANY sets you see - both in random homes as well as in stores - are NOT adjusted properly. I was one who was told over and over that plasma was a superior technology for sports, but find I prefer the better Sony LEDs for that now. Things aren't as "cut and dried" as they used to be, even though I think you WILL appreciate some aspects of plasma. I think plasma shines for typical feature films in dimmer rooms. Cimema people can find issues with LEDs, especially in dim rooms, where more variations in the backlight systems become more evident (and to get this right costs more $$). And YES, GREAT DEALS abound on these machines. I found out very quick that stores really want your big screen business right now, and even being one not well known for "beating up salespeople for prices" was getting lower prices without even asking. I'm not one who worries too much about the detailed price specifics until I figure out which machines I really want, but wowsers it's a buyer's market right now...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich_Guy Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Definitely plasma for me, far superior picture quality. After owning a great plasma for nearly 5 years, when I watch anything else including projection I always see flaws in the picture quality. Personally I hate LCD's picture quality it looks very artificial to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kde Posted November 30, 2011 Author Share Posted November 30, 2011 Many people are mentioning "tuning". What is the best way to have this done? Are you talking about running the AVIA (or whatever) dvd or really having a professional come to the house and make adjustments? I would assume that 99% of the "normal" people take the tv out of the box and simply plug it in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark1101 Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 I have a 26" SONY Bravia 1080P 120Hz. LCD, a 42" Samsung 1080P 120Hz LCD....both very nice.....and a Panasonic Viera 55" 3D 1080P 600hz Plasma. I have them all on Dish network with HD receivers. I love them all. But I have to say I migrate to the plasma most. The plasma is noticeably dimmer for sure. The LCDs are brighter, more brilliant. But the plasma does have that more analog look and is definitely smoother. For movies its cinema mode is very close to a real movie theater IMHO. For sports, it's seamless wherever high speed motion is involved. NASCAR races and football games look spectacular for instance. I have the HT system on the plasma and it definitely is key to the whole experience. All in all............I'm not sure which technology is really the best. I like the plasmas and LCD/LEDs. I would go to Best Buy and find the TV on the wall you like best. That is exactly what we did and came away with the Viera. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JL Sargent Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 All of these TVs are so good now that I don't think you can go terribly wrong. I remember when we had 3 B/W channels and they were all kinda snowy! Then in 1970 dad brought home our first color set. It was an RCA and it was all transistor (except for the picture tube of course). I was the grand ol age of 7 and can remember to this day watching cartoons for the first time in COLOR!!! It was a monumental occasion I tell ya! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dingman Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 I also went for Plasma. Mine is in the basement, so no high levels of light to deal with. The plasma's seem to have a "smoother" image and of course, the colors seem rich and the blacks are black. It was also cheaper than similar LCD's at the time. Mine can get some minor burn in from gaming. Letting it run the "screen refresh" for a few hours gets rid of it tho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audible Nectar Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Many people are mentioning "tuning". What is the best way to have this done? Are you talking about running the AVIA (or whatever) dvd or really having a professional come to the house and make adjustments? I would assume that 99% of the "normal" people take the tv out of the box and simply plug it in. That would be an ISF calibration, which is done using professional equipment. This will ensure your TV has proper color temperature (and yes, colors are measured in degrees Kelvin), white balance, gamma, and so forth. Most of these TVs have settings accessible (theoretically) by authorized service personnel only (in a service menu) and are "global" adjustments beyond the stock adjustments that are up front/user accessible. Trust me - unless you've had an ISF calibration done, you aren't seeing what your TV is really capable of. It's not cheap either - $300+ isn't uncommon, and takes several hours to do.....but it does make a world of difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Wow.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo81 Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 Plasma all the way, been through many tv's......DLP, LCD, LED, PLASMA. Still have all but the DLP and none of them touch the picture quality of my plasma. It's a Samsung PN63c8000........their top of the line plasma last year. Nezff has a point about the buzz, but mine is only audible when the denon is -50 and lower, which Is pretty rare lol. I will say that the isf calibration is well worth the price, I think I paid 349 and the guy was here for almost 4 hours......it really is a night and day difference. To anyone that truly cares about the picture quality, wether its LCD, led, or plasma the calibration will really make you love your tv. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dysmae Posted November 30, 2011 Share Posted November 30, 2011 I've sold TVs and audio in Magnolia at Best Buy for about four years. I own one of the best Samsung LCDs made right before all the LEDs started coming out. It really is all about personal preference. Short observation. Most new people sell LEDs. Most veterans sell plasma. Hence why when I first started I bought an LCD but pray that it blows up under my warranty so I can get a plasma. To me, plasmas are infinetly better. However, unlike most brick stores, Magnolia has real living room lighting, so comparing the two products is much more honest. Don't be fooled by brighter color. Once you surpass a certain brightness, more brightness equals more eye strain. I always tell people to look for richer color, not brighter color. Don't get me wrong. I love my LCD, but the inconsistant black levels and shadow detail drive me nuts. You have to spend more than double on a LED panel to get even close to the level of black on a plasma(the ONLY LED panel I've seen to have as good of black level as a plasma is the new Elite by Sharp). Plasmas also have a more true white. It is definitly not as bright as the white on a LED panel, but if you look closer, most LEDs add a touch of blue to the white which gives it the appearance of brightness. Much of that can be correct with calibration, however. In fact, the hands down best picture in any store right now is the Panasonic VT30 with an ISF calibration. Everyday I work, I pine to have that TV in my living room. I recall someone saying in this forum that LEDs have smoother motion. [:^)] I assume this is a result of LED auto motion or anti judder which some plasmas actually have. The current LCD I have in my home has this as well. When I first started selling TVs, I thought that too. It is an artificial effect also referred as "soap opera" effect. It can often lead to smearing and digital artifacts. Most profesional reviewers turn this mode off when reviewing LEDs because they realize that it makes movies look like it was shot with a home HD camera and not with film. If you end up getting a plasma, make sure you also get a good one. Mid to top model Panasonic and Samsungs are usually great. If Panasonic, I would get the ST, GT, or VT. If Samsung, I would only get 7000 or 8000 series. Whats the difference in models? Black levels. Don't pay attention to 3D, smart apps or anything. It's really all about picture quality. The rest just kinda comes with the upgrade. If you had all the Panasonic plasmas in one room starting with the X3(bottom model) to the VT30(best model) and turned them all off, the glass screen themselves will start with a grey and progressively get darker until you get to the VT which has the darkest screen. Each phosphor in a plasma can control its own lighting, hence the more uniform picture and deepers blacks since in dark areas, the phosphors can get darker since it doesnt have an LED light behind it trying to bleed light through. One more thing. Over the past four years, Panasonic plasmas are probably the TV we get the least amount of returns on, and is easily the TV that comes back from the service center the least. I'm not saying that they never go bad because we have had them come back from service, but definitely the least out of all the major companies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHASLS2 Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 I agree. No Led will touch my Pioneer 9G Kuro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 I have to agree with the plasma sentiments above AND the comment about ISF calibration. I agonized almost a year before I bought my plasma, read every article, spent hours on the AVSforum. Motion sequences and sports are fluid on my panel. If there's any judder at all, it's caused by the signal, not the panel itself. Off axis viewing was important to me also due to my room layout, you can be virtually in the same plane as the panel and still see what's going on. Plasma's excell there. If my room were extremely bright or I did a lot of gaming, I may have gone another route, but it's not and I don't, so I'm plasma spoiled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JL Sargent Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 A buddy of mine installed a big plasma in the bedroom. A couple of weeks go by and I ask him how he likes it. He said that the thing ran them out of the room. That they literally couldn't stand the heat. I had never heard that one before? I knew they used more juice but I didn't realize that one could heat up a room like that! Just like in audio there is always a compromise one way or another! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoman Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 I read that burn in was a thing of the past when I bought mine. I'm not saying your wrong at all and I know there have been improvements in that area. I would just be careful and watch closely at the very least. That's because it's a Samsung. For a Panasonic you have to work pretty hard to really damage your set. I own a 50" Samsung and a 42" Panasonic. I'm careful with the Samsung and borderline abused the Panasonic. My 5 year old Samsung retains image like crazy now and my 3 year old Panny doesn't really flinch. LG's are also pretty bad for it... Same goes for heat. The Panny's are more efficient so they put out way less heat and don't buzz nearly as much. My Samsung can flush you out, but my Panny room is always comfortable. This is coming from years of working as an integrator... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 A buddy of mine installed a big plasma in the bedroom. A couple of weeks go by and I ask him how he likes it. He said that the thing ran them out of the room. That they literally couldn't stand the heat. I had never heard that one before? I knew they used more juice but I didn't realize that one could heat up a room like that! Just like in audio there is always a compromise one way or another! That's true on some models (as stated above). It reminds me of a big tube amp! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themrclean Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 Wow, it's so amazing how many people can have so many different opinions about the same tvs. When it comes right down to the only thing that really matters is that you like your tv no matter what it is. Having said that, you plasma lovers are crazy!! LMAO The only plasma that I have truly watched outside of the store for more than a few minutes is my brothers. He has last years top of the line 58" Samsung and had it professionally calibrated through BestBuy. I have spent hours watching his tv and after calibration his doesn't even look half as good as my 55" LG LED did right out of the box! The motion is so blurry I can hardly watch it and the colors are so dull it looks like a twenty year old tv. I honestly can't imagine how anyone can enjoy plasma after seeing an LED LCD tv with 120HZ or higher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo81 Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 I gotta agree with CHASLS2........... Matter of fact, I have not seen a tv yet, led or plasma that can compete with the kuro 9g. I wish they were still in production........or at the least if someone else could exceed pioneer picture quality. The problem is the Average consumer could care less about the picture as long as it has 3d and Internet LMAO...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 1, 2011 Share Posted December 1, 2011 I have spent hours watching his tv and after calibration his doesn't even look half as good as my 55" LG LED did right out of the box! The motion is so blurry I can hardly watch it and the colors are so dull it looks like a twenty year old tv. Either he's got a defective panel (possible) or the "professional" calibration he got from Best Buy (more likely) wasn't up to snuff. Plasma and "dull" are typically mutually exclusive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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