I bought a flat screen!

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Shooter

Shooter

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I finally took the plunge. After a lot of research, I settled on a Samsung 46 inch LCD with 1080p, 120Hz, and 50,000-to-1 dynamic contrast ratio. The thing is gorgeous. I ended up buying it at B&H in New York City, for the astoundingly low price of $1,545. (It was almost $2,000 at Best Buy).

I also bought a Samsung VCR/DVD player that up-converts regular DVDs to 1080 on the screen, and allows you to duplicate VHS tapes to DVD. Plus a surge protector and two HDMI cables.

Total cost was less than $1,800. A steal. On top of that, B&H charged me no sales tax, since I live in New Jersey. And they are delivering it free to my house.

By Tuesday night, I will be watching the Blazers and Nuggets in big screen glory. Can't wait!!
 
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Nice man, should be fun. Now you can watch Blazer fans get buck wild in high def!
 
Now you need a samsung sound system. I saw one today for about $700 (surely you can find it online cheaper) that had blu ray DVD and 7.1 sound. With all one manufacturer, the universal remote should work everything perfect.

The 120Hz is a big deal, you got a great TV.
 
Jurassic said:
Nice man, should be fun. Now you can watch Blazer fans get buck wild in high def!
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Heh, heh. That part I can do without. But now I can see Roy perform his magic in high def detail--and what could be better than that?!!
 
Denny Crane said:
Now you need a samsung sound system. I saw one today for about $700 (surely you can find it online cheaper) that had blu ray DVD and 7.1 sound. With all one manufacturer, the universal remote should work everything perfect.
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Thanks for the tips. I will probably spring for the sound system at some point, too.

The 120Hz is a big deal, you got a great TV.
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The 50,000-to-1 dynamic contrast ratio is also a big deal. I didn't realize what a difference it made until I saw some sets side by side. A lot of sets have only 20,000-to-1, or 30,000-to-1, but the 50,000-to-1 produces such a sharp, bright, and detailed picture that I knew I couldn't live without it.
 
Shooter said:
Thanks for the tips. I will probably spring for the sound system at some point, too.


The 50,000-to-1 dynamic contrast ratio is also a big deal. I didn't realize what a difference it made until I saw some sets side by side. A lot of sets have only 20,000-to-1, or 30,000-to-1, but the 50,000-to-1 produces such a sharp, bright, and detailed picture that I knew I couldn't live without it.
Click to expand...

With LCD, the contrast ratio is faked or done by a cheat. They turn off pixels when they're black, but when they're near black the contrast is nowhere near the claim. And the 50,000-1 figure is for that one black pixel next to a pure white one...

But you still got a great set!
 
I just got a Samsung 52" LCD two months ago from secondact.com. Bought a 5 yr in home warranty with it - and am LOVING EVERY MINUTE OF IT!!!!!
 
RedHotAndRolling said:
I just got a Samsung 52" LCD two months ago from secondact.com. Bought a 5 yr in home warranty with it - and am LOVING EVERY MINUTE OF IT!!!!!
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Good buy! Consumer Reports gave its highest rating to Samsung in both LCD and Plasma.
 
Shooter said:
Heh, heh. That part I can do without. But now I can see Roy perform his magic in high def detail--and what could be better than that?!!
Click to expand...

I think you have to wait until the Dallas game which is on TNT before you will see high definition.
 
I've resisted buying a TV..because I just watch blazer games, family guy and a few other shows......

dunno...maybe soon.....i got a hand-me down 42" plasma....its sitting on the floor because I couldn't get the brackets off when I stole...er...was given it.

:)
 
Xericx said:
I've resisted buying a TV..because I just watch blazer games, family guy and a few other shows......

dunno...maybe soon.....i got a hand-me down 42" plasma....its sitting on the floor because I couldn't get the brackets off when I stole...er...was given it.

:)
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So it still has chunks of plasterboard attached to the brackets? :tsktsk:
 
doesnt Samsung make the all the tv's etc anyways for the other big brands like Sony ?

I've heard they are the best option for performance vs. cost
 
monoprice.com for mounting brackets for TVs! So cheap!

If you are handy with tools its not hard at all to mount the TV properly. Just make sure you have all the mounting bolts (4) in the studs!
Within the last month Ive mounted a 46 inch and 32 inch HDTV to the wall. The price for the basic wall mount package for a 37-60" tv is about $25 bucks.

Studs are 16inches apart for those who dont know


LINK for their basic bracket (no swivel or stuff like that)
 
DaRizzle said:
monoprice.com for mounting brackets for TVs! So cheap!

If you are handy with tools its not hard at all to mount the TV properly. Just make sure you have all the mounting bolts (4) in the studs!
Within the last month Ive mounted a 46 inch and 32 inch HDTV to the wall. The price for the basic wall mount package for a 37-60" tv is about $25 bucks.

Studs are 16inches apart for those who dont know


LINK for their basic bracket (no swivel or stuff like that)
Click to expand...

this is an old school plasma...one of the first that came out...don't want to wall mount as my wall isn't sturdy enough...might get that one at costco with the TV stand....
 
drexlersdad said:
what the fuck is a VHS?
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I meant to say a VCR. VHS is the type of cassette tape used in VCRs.

I was at BestBuy yesterday, and I see that they have marked down the price of the Samsung I bought to $1,549, the same price I got it for at B&H. If anybody is thinking about getting a flatscreen, this is a great time to do it!!
 
Shooter said:
I meant to say a VCR. VHS is the type of cassette tape used in VCRs.

I was at BestBuy yesterday, and I see that they have marked down the price of the Samsung I bought to $1,549, the same price I got it for at B&H. If anybody is thinking about getting a flatscreen, this is a great time to do it!!
Click to expand...

oh god i was trying to joke around, my bad. i have one right next to my pet rock.
 
Here's a question for some of you HDTV experts . . .

I haven't been able to pick up my HD cable box yet from Comcast. When I do, and everything is hooked up, will regular (non-HD) broadcasts look good? Right now, any channel not being broadcast in HDTV actually looks worse than it did on my old TV, simply because the images are much bigger.

Thanks in advance for your insights.
 
Shooter said:
Here's a question for some of you HDTV experts . . .

I haven't been able to pick up my HD cable box yet from Comcast. When I do, and everything is hooked up, will regular (non-HD) broadcasts look good? Right now, any channel not being broadcast in HDTV actually looks worse than it did on my old TV, simply because the images are much bigger.

Thanks in advance for your insights.
Click to expand...

No point in worrying about it until you get the new box and connect it with an HDMI cable or a well shielded component cable set. You could have a bad box, or old box, or connected with a bad or obsolete cable. If you are connected with coax or RCA that is likely the problem.

After you get the new box - the one you will have for a while, you likely need to adjust you set. Most TV's default settings are HORRIBLE.

Go to a good HD channel for reference. Turn off "Noise Reduction", "Sharpness". Turn down brightness. Tone down color. Adjust other picture settings to get a less bright, harsh, unaturally colored image.

Then look at the non-HD channels, they should be better.

There are plenty of detailed ideas on the net. You could even find specific setting ideas for your exact model if you search for it.
 
Masbee said:
No point in worrying about it until you get the new box and connect it with an HDMI cable or a well shielded component cable set. You could have a bad box, or old box, or connected with a bad or obsolete cable. If you are connected with coax or RCA that is likely the problem.

After you get the new box - the one you will have for a while, you likely need to adjust you set. Most TV's default settings are HORRIBLE.

Go to a good HD channel for reference. Turn off "Noise Reduction", "Sharpness". Turn down brightness. Tone down color. Adjust other picture settings to get a less bright, harsh, unaturally colored image.

Then look at the non-HD channels, they should be better.

There are plenty of detailed ideas on the net. You could even find specific setting ideas for your exact model if you search for it.
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Thanks a bunch, Masbee. Very helpful information. I'm hoping to install the HD cable box on Wednesday, and will follow your tips. I'll let you know how it goes.
 
Shooter said:
Here's a question for some of you HDTV experts . . .

I haven't been able to pick up my HD cable box yet from Comcast. When I do, and everything is hooked up, will regular (non-HD) broadcasts look good? Right now, any channel not being broadcast in HDTV actually looks worse than it did on my old TV, simply because the images are much bigger.

Thanks in advance for your insights.
Click to expand...

Since you don't have the HD box yet, you're looking at SD signal which isn't hi def. SD is like 640x480 pixels, while 720p is like 1200x768 and 1020p/1020i are 1920x1080. So how do you look at 640x480 on a screen with 1920x1080? Zoom in x2 and you get 1280x960 which still doesn't fill the screen, and the pixels are bigger (2x2).

So what the TV manufacturers did is add circuits that give you a handful of choices of how to make the SD picture fill the screen. One way, and the one I suggest with LCD, is to show it 640x480x2 and fill the unused screen with black or grey bars. Another way is to zoom in 4x and crop (cut off) some of the picture on all sides. Another way is to stretch the picture, which makes round things (and heads) look squashed and fat. Another way is a kind of gradual stretch so the center of the screen is 1x1 pixel size and toward the left/right edges it's really stretched.

No matter what you do, you're not going to get full screen without distorting or cutting off the picture.

When you receive a non-HD program on an HD channel, they can use one of those stretching algorithms before broadcasting (like TBS does, ewww, let me choose!), or they broadcast it in pillar mode - bars on the left/right.

You'll quickly find out that the source is what really matters - Blu Ray is the ultimate in picture and sound, providing full 1080p. Most HD cable boxes will do 1080i.
 
I'm pretty happy with my 42' Visio 1080p HD that I bought a year ago for $900.
 
Denny Crane said:
Since you don't have the HD box yet, you're looking at SD signal which isn't hi def. SD is like 640x480 pixels, while 720p is like 1200x768 and 1020p/1020i are 1920x1080. So how do you look at 640x480 on a screen with 1920x1080? Zoom in x2 and you get 1280x960 which still doesn't fill the screen, and the pixels are bigger (2x2).

So what the TV manufacturers did is add circuits that give you a handful of choices of how to make the SD picture fill the screen. One way, and the one I suggest with LCD, is to show it 640x480x2 and fill the unused screen with black or grey bars. Another way is to zoom in 4x and crop (cut off) some of the picture on all sides. Another way is to stretch the picture, which makes round things (and heads) look squashed and fat. Another way is a kind of gradual stretch so the center of the screen is 1x1 pixel size and toward the left/right edges it's really stretched.

No matter what you do, you're not going to get full screen without distorting or cutting off the picture.

When you receive a non-HD program on an HD channel, they can use one of those stretching algorithms before broadcasting (like TBS does, ewww, let me choose!), or they broadcast it in pillar mode - bars on the left/right.

You'll quickly find out that the source is what really matters - Blu Ray is the ultimate in picture and sound, providing full 1080p. Most HD cable boxes will do 1080i.
Click to expand...
Thanks, Denny Crane. I've now got the new HD box installed, but I'm still having problems with the image. It's not that it's too small, or doesn't fill the screen--it's that the image itself is not very sharp. Maybe I need to adjust the internal settings of the TV itself. Aarghh! This is frustrating.
 
Do you guys actually like the 120HZ thing? To me, its super clear, even compared to my Vizio 47inch 1080P, but damn, it makes everything look so fake.... like i'm watching unsolved mystery re-inactments....

true the picture is better with the 120hz, but i cant get over the weird, fakeness of the picture... so real its fake??? does that even make sense... lol
 
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