Pointyskull

I've been trying to convince my wife to agree on a projection tv purchase for a while now, and she has been lukewarm, at best. I've given her a thumbnail education on the diffs between standard issue RPTV (realistically in my price range) and DLP/plasma (slightly out of my price range).

Now I may have gotten lucky...

A couple of weeks ago we were in a bar, and they had a plasma set next to a projection set, both showing the same Cub game - and the picture difference was stunning. The wife was noticeably impressed, much to my surprise...

Last night (7-21) we went to the Barenaked Ladies concert at the Tweeter Center (Tinley Park, IL) and onstage there was some kind of huge plasma-type screen (not sure what it was exactly, but it is really impressive) that was absolutely crystal clear from the lawn seats.

I mean - the picture on this thing was phenonomenal. So good that it made the other projection images on the other bigscreens around the pavillion look comparably pathetic.

So, after a couple of beers - the wife voices a no to projection, and a "yes" to DLP/Plasma... Holy crap!

Cusm

Congrats! I had a similar story. I had been looking at getting a Panasonic or Mitsubishi projo later this year in the $1200-$1800 range. One day in June I was drooling in Best Buy, and she tells me if I want that we can get a tv for father's day. She said get what I want, but to stay under $3k. I was stuck between the 50" Samsung DLP and Panny LCD, the Sammy being a 9.5 and Panny 9.4 in my book. I got a great deal on the Panny so I went this route. It really is amazing the pic on these, especially now that I have my HD box.
Congrats and enjoy, oh and good luck finding a rack/table for whatever you get. I am having one made whenever I finalize my desgin/wants/needs.

Pointyskull

What model Panny did you go with?

gotapex

Congrats!

namlook

I thought I read an article posted in these forums that a properly calibrated rear projection TV still has the best picture quality.

chipmac

It does. CRTs still give the most filmlike image compared to the other technologies if you're willing to take the time to set them up properly.

Sdallnct

And if you have the space (or want to take up that much space) for that big of a TV. Tho no doubt they are an awesome deal right now.

young

just for your own knowledge, here are some pricing at tvauthority.com

http://www.tvauthority.com/avs-forum...mbers-only.asp

i plan to take some of that info to a local circuit city and hope they can price match it, but if they don't, i'll likely go thru tvauthority. i'm still waiting for the new NEW sammy models to be released as well as the sony grand vvega iv LCD rptvs.

--
every technology has it's advantages/disadvantages. right now, my top 3 picks are:

samsung DLPs w/ the new HD2+ chip (to be released soon)
toshiba DLP 62HM84 - HD2+ chip
JVC D-ILA (LCoS) HD61Z575

drmoze

One further consideration (important for me anyway!) is that you can get an even bigger crt rptv for less than a smaller dlp rp (and for *much* less than a smaller plasma!). If you have a decent-sized room, I would definitely go with a crt rptv. Ther eis a huge difference between, say, a 65" screen and a 50" one. (Bigger is better!) And crt rptv's are only about 20-22" deep, bigger than dlp's but still manageable in anaverage-sized living room. And those extra inches really add to the movie & sports experience.

Don't go by the projection set in a bar. It was probably grossly misconverged and had horrible geometry. I've never seen a plasma/dlp yet (in a bar, friend's home, or store display) that looks as clean and natural as my Mitsu crt rp set. (Which I have tweaked, admittedly!)

gotapex

Each technology has its own advantages and disadvantages, as young has stated. There's no one best technology. You have to see what YOUR eyes say is best in YOUR room. For instance, CRT RPTV's have a terrible time competing with high ambient light conditions, so that may not be a good choice in your room if you have a lot of windows. There's no true blanket statement on what is the best.

namlook

You will notice a big difference in how glare and light affects a CRT rear projection when you take off screen protector.

drmoze

I've never kept the glare screen on either of my first 2 rptv's. It does make a difference. ANd my last one was in a very bright living room, with one wall having a window area of about 10' long by 6' high, southern exposure. Nerver had a problem with it as long as I closed the curtains just enough to keep direct sun off the screen.

I still maintain that right now, the crt rptv's have the clear price/performance advantage, if you have enough room for one. There's probably a plasma in my future, when they get cheaper and the pq gets better. (For the bedroom--no desire to replace my Mitsu rp in the forseeable future.)

Cusm

I got the LCD PT-50LC13, for around $2200. It is replaced by the 50LC14 now so you might have a hard time finding it, or you might find it and a better deal than what I got.

el_jer

Get projector on a 100" screen for a real concert-like experience. I had one in my last house and watching concerts was better than being there. Of course, you need the sound system to back that up.

Unfortunately, a PJ is not in the plans at the new house. I will hold out for a 50" LCD.