Chip718

Hi. I am considering buying a plasma TV. Can someone please tell me what I should by looking for "Specs" wise? TIA

BDB

Contrast Ratio appears to be important.

3000:1 is a good contrast ratio I think. Others here are much more smarterer than I am.

But the important thing is how well it can display blacks.
Other things to look out for DVI Connections.

My Panasonic is pretty damn good for the price
Its the 42-wd6uy its an ED Plasma so not Hi-Def but most people who compared both said that from 8 feet away the difference was negligible.

Retail is around 2799. I got in on a killer deal at Dell in October and got it 2105+tax... Took 3 months to get it delivered but well worth the wait.

gotapex

The single most important thing is contrast. 42" ED plasmas go up to 4000:1 on/off contrast (manufacturer rating). The rest go up to 3000:1.

Shades of gray are important. Some of the better ones have up to 2048 shades (on digital input, 1536 shades on analog), giving you smooth gradation.

Digital processing bits is reasonably important. Look for 10-bit instead of 8.

Resolution is important, but not nearly as much so as one might think. It really depends on the size of the plasma and your viewing distance.

Progressive scan VS Interlaced is important. My preference is for progressive scan.

Inputs are important. It's nice to have the option to use HDMI or at least DVI with HDCP.

Look at the lifespan. The 1/2 brightness mark on some of the latest plasmas is 60,000 hours, which is a LONG LONG time. The longer the better, not only because of the overall lifespan, but because it tells you about the resistance of that plasma to burn-in.

Brightness is important, but not too much so. Plasmas tend to all be pretty bright, more than bright enough for video use, even in areas of very high ambient light.

Price is important (at least to me).

The single most important thing though, is how it looks to your eyes. There's no substitute to actually viewing the panel, seeing how it handles the kind of feed you plan to watch most often, calibrating it, etc.

Chip718

Thanks for your replies. I was considering a Gateway, but their specs are nowhere near what you guys are saying.

gotapex

Gateway's close to the bottom of the barrel, but if you can get one at closeout pricing (ie. store close), then it may be worth it.

Chip718

What is a good brand to look for? TIA

BDB

I think the Pioneer are some of the best
I like the Panasonic's too

gotapex

This is a kind of interesting comparison of the contrast & black levels of the latest panasonic 50PHD6UY and the latest Pioneer PDP-5040HDE, both calibrated units.

The panasonic is on the left:



Another one, with a Samsung in the middle.



Lights on (look at detail near ear):

LasVegasMichael

Very interesting. Thanks for posting those comparisons.

I was debating between Panny 50" ($6400), Maxent 50" ($4800), and Vizio 46" ($3500).

Really leaning toward the 3000:1 Panny, but the cost is a killer ($7200 out the door).

gotapex

Actually, what you mean is the Panny, full consumer model (not cheaper 6UY industrial model) with HDMI, built in tuner, and stand included is $5295.41 plus shipping from a Panasonic Authorized source, right?

TH-50PX20U/P 50" Panny for $5588.74 shipped, no tax in Calif

LasVegasMichael

Thank you very much!

Gotapex, YGM

DaveNinja

thats pretty good for a 50 incher. whats bad about it? i didnt see anything unless it was something with the HDMI (which i dont know what it is)

skyfish

If you're going to order from Onecall, call them and ask if there is any promotions going on. At least they should be able to waive the shipping - that's how I got mine (a different model) from Onecall. They charged ~$300 shipping but gave me $350 coupon discount.

LasVegasMichael

Hopefully nothing as I just ordered one.

I have been researching these for a while, and even though the Sony is more expensive, the Panny always comes out ahead as being a superior product.

All the specs in this model are sound, and beat the hell out of the other two I was looking at.

Can't WAIT until FedEx gets here with my gigantic box!

LasVegasMichael

Regarding HDMI, here is info from the product page:

HDMI / HDCP Interface
HDMI is a new standard digital connection between A/V devices, such as a set-top box, DVD player or A/V receiver, and a digital television. HDMI offers exceptional video and audio quality with a single quick-disconnect connector. It supports multi-channel digital audio transmissions and component video color spacing for true rendering of HD video. HDMI supports the HDCP copy protection standard, allowing transmission of copy-protected digital content to your display. The video portion of HDMI is also backwards-compatible with DVI-HDCP devices using a special cable adapter.

Skyfish: Thanks for the advice! I did speak to them on ordering, but couldn't get too much other then a $60 discount for registering my e-mail address with them. Better then nothing.

bfrank

gotapex- where are the pics from I have some doubt about them. I have done the same in persone and seen the opposite

Setup is everything so the big question swere all settings at nominal. Now I have to warn that I am biased but I will say that I think these photos are not at nominal settings from my experience.

One key thing that is not mentioned is the motion artifacts. Watch some complex video with fast motion on any set before you buy!

bunts

Gotapex: Could you please tell what kind of a/v system do you have in the photo above? It looks kind of sweet sandwitched between the two plasmas displays. Thanks.

gotapex

The pictures above are from a high end AV store, not mine. It looks like they went with an Aragon setup.

http://www.klipsch.com/aragonelectronics/

bfrank: You've seen a lower black level and better shadow detail on the Pioneer than the Panasonic?

I've found the motion artifacts to be very minimal on the latest generation of Panasonic and Pioneer plasmas (along with a few others). Has this not been your experience?

X

It looks to me like the Pioneer's contrast or brightness is turned up too high. The entire picture looks too bright.

gotapex

It could be. The guy said that the units were all calibrated, but I don't believe that was verified by an outside source.

The Panasonic has a black level of between .2 nits and a real world measured ANSI contrast ratio between 550-650:1 or so. The Pioneer has a black level of .7-.8 nits, almost 4x the Panasonic, with an ANSI contrast of, I believe 200-300:1 or so. I'm not positive. The Pro-1100 was measured at 320:1.

Between the huge black level difference, the contrast difference, and the limitations of the digital camera, those could very well be pictures of accurately calibrated plasmas. No way of knowing for sure, I guess.

Kman1011

Going to argue about contrast ratios. They are not near as important as everyone thinks. Right now every manufacturer rates their contrast ratio differently. Until a set standard is set it will not be a fair way to compare sets.

gotapex

Those contrast numbers are measured numbers, not manufacturer rating. They're done by Peter H. Putman, one of the most respected names in the industry.

X

How do those numbers compare to the scale used for computer LCD monitors? I have a very good LCD with a contrast ratio of 600:1 and it's not that good at all with respect to dark images or true blacks.

gotapex

Most calibrated high contrast LCD's will measure in the low to mid 1xx:1 on these full field ANSI tests because of their very high black levels.

bfrank

I was only talking about black level. I have had them side by side and I ahve also looked at them when set up by each company at the CEDIA show in the same room with the same source both are almost identical so this is why I question the pics.