gmal2003

Im in the market for an HDTV around Thanksgiving and have a few questions about HDs and the 360. Here are my questions:

1) Im leaning toward buying a CRT (50 inch plus) cuz its the cheapest and Ive heard it can give the best picture quality when calibrated. Is this true? What about picture quality when its not calibrated? How is this reflected for video games (I heard the calibrated quality is great when watching movies and TV but never heard anything about for gaming).

2) What is the best and/or highest resolution for 360 games? I think its 10801. The TV Im looking at does everything but 1080p (1080i, 720). I know MS wasnt supporting 1080p until recently but is there a big difference in quality for 360 games (there probably will be for PS3 since its 1080p out the box)?

3)Do I have to switch setting from 720 to 1080i and so forth depending on which games support what and/or what looks best?

4) Are CRTs good for gaming? Which brand of HD is the best (DLP, LCD etc...)?

5) I have the HD cables that came with the premium 360. Do I need anything else to enhance my HD quality?

Lastly, here is the link to the HD Im leaning toward buying
Hitachi 57 in. HD

This is a good HD for gaming. What about watching TV in general (sports, movies, etc...). How will the quality be before and after calibration?

Thanks in advance

DoomsDave

Yes, CRTs have the best picture quality. I use an un-calibrated CRT and it is awesome for HD TV, DVD's, and 360.
360 now supports 1080p, which presumably is the best. Typically, 720p is best for fast moving images, and 1080i for things without a ton of movement. Frankly, I cannot tell a difference between the 2. I've left my 360 at 720p and it looks great.
If you want, but it's not necessary.
CRTs are all around awesome and the best value for the money.
If you intend to use only a component hookup, then you don't need anything else. It's what I use too.
My comments are about CRT (tube) TV's. I'm not positive if all apply for CRT projection TVs.

Save Ferris

The 360 comes with HD component cables.

gmal2003

Thanks for the replies thus far, keep em coming!

Another question I now have based on Daves response. Do these principles of CRT HDs looking great apply to projection CRTs as well or just tubes? Also whats the largest tube CRT out there? (around 35 in. Im guessing).

McHawkson

I have hooked up my 360 to 2007WFP (Dell monitor) and running at 720p, I believe, it looks great.

Mr. Cinema

Whatever the highest resolution your tv accepts is what I would keep it at. And most likely, it's 1080i. I wouldn't switch resolutions.

Drexl

The CRT should be better for games because there would be no issues that could come up with the other technologies like image retention on plasma, ghosting on LCD, or rainbows on DLP. The black levels should be better too.

The Bus

Congrats on going HD, or at least looking into it.

I have a Hitachi CRT projection HDTV, properly calibrated (using the factory menu). I've had it for about 5 years and had to repair it about a year ago (cost: $200). I'm extremely happy with it and it is my main movie and TV display. I now own a similarly-sized, expensive LCD set and I still think for movies and TV shows, the CRT projection set wins out.

However, if it is not properly calibrated (and/or aligned) the quality suffers. You need to have some knowledge of TVs and not be afraid to go into factory service menus. I messed up during a calibration and had to take part of the TV apart to reset something. No big deal.

I'm not a huge fan of it for gaming. Because the CRT projection is a beam of light, anything from a projector will never be as clear or sharp as an LCD screen, where it's always a single pixel wide. Video games and text look a lot better on the LCD. On the projection TV they still look good (and better than regular TV by a mile) but they don't have that same visual accuity to them. The difference is minimal, to my eyes.

The 360 does 720p and 1080i. It now has added support for 1080p although AFAIK no game yet supports that. I had switched mine to 1080p and began to get some weird errors today. Switched it back and they were gone.

All games support 720p and 1080i. For a projection TV, you will probably be using 1080i. For an LCD, you want to use whatever most closely matches your set's resolution (for example, 720p for a 1280 x 768 set).

Yes.

They're not technically "brands", they are technologies. If about $1000 is your price range and you want a big size, CRT is basically the only reasonable option right now. For smaller sets or larger budgets, it might be worthwhile to look into the other technologies.

No. If you are a cable or satellite subscriber, you might want to change to or add HD programming once you have your set. For watching movies, start researching HD DVD and Blu-Ray.

That depends on who is calibrating it. If it's you doing it, once it looks good to you, that's probably good enough. I'd recommend at least investing into something like an Avia or Digital Video Essentials set-up disc. You can get fancy with ISF-certified calibration but that's not worth it since it would eat up about a third of your HDTV budget and IMHO would be better served with an HD DVD player or a bigger/better/newer TV.

Hope this helps.

The Bus

I believe it applies to CRT tubes only. Once that light is projected, then it's a matter of how accurately that light is projected (calibration, getting the beams to align, etc.). This is not something that is an issue on CRT tubes or LCDs.

I would strongly advise against buying a tube CRT television unless it is a small (26" or less) set. They are way too bulky and energy hungry to be worthwhile at the very large sizes, IMHO.

gmal2003

Bus. My budget is about 1500. I penciled in the extra 2-3 for calibration. I figured this would give me the optimal size and picture. Am I better off spending the full 1500 on a better TV? And should I try one of those calibration discs or mess with it myself (no experience BTW) before getting it done professionally?

gimmepilotwings

Depends, do you plan on using it for DVD watching? TV?? If you plan on using it for your main display, I would probably spend the dough on calibration.

The Bus

Calibration can be done by you with the proper tools which is really a $30 DVD. Sure, you can get fancier but if your eyes can't tell the difference, what's the point? I'd recommend using that extra $200-$300 to buy a better or newer TV or getting the Xbox 360 HD DVD addon so you can start seeing movies in HD.

This is not to knock ISF calibration. It's definitely worth the money but it wouldn't be in the first, say, $4000 I'd spend on a home theatre. First, get the display, receiver, speakers, etc. Calibrate them yourself (there's plenty og how-tos). Then calibrate them professionally if you want to go further.

But it's sort of like getting a $500 car wax on a $2000 car. Sure, the car will look nice. But why not get a $2500 car and wash it yourself?

hail2dking

I got a Hitachi 51" 2 years ago and love it.

FYI, Circuit City has the same one for $100 cheaper.

I did not have it professionally calibrated...I used Avia.

gmal2003

Yea its my main display. Im a HUGE sports fan so it'll mainly be for watching it but also movies and gaming. I like the Bus's isea of using that 200 for the HD DVD add on. I dont think there is a 1500 Tv out there that will be better in terms of size and/or picture quality. I'll happily buy the Avia disc.

gmal2003

Ok guys. There are two new deals out from Best Buys black friday. There is one for 700 (51" Hitachi) that I hope is a good set. Here are the links for the three TVs Im interested in and I want you guys feedback on them:

This one will be for $700
Hitachi

Toshiba DLP $1200

Hitachi 57" $1100 (they dont have a Black Friday sale posted yet)

The Bus

I'd go with one of the CRTs, probably the $900 one. Do you have a receiver & surround sound speakers? At $900 + $200 add-on you still have $400 to get a receiver and speakers if you don't have them already.

gmal2003

Quick correction. That 57" one is $1100 at Circuit City. Unless it goes down in price for Black Friday, I think Ill go with the $700 CRT. They are both 1080i and will have the same picture quailty. I know the 6 inches can make a big difference but I dont know about spending an extra 400 for it unless I come across some extra dough.

The Bus

$700 it is. How far away are you sitting? Unless it's like 20', the 6" won't be a huge deal.

gmal2003

Im about 7 or 8 feet away. Looks like $700 it is. that will allow me to get the HD DVD addon, a nice home theater system, blinds,some new video games accessories, the Avia kit, and HD-DVDs. I can then wait to see if I need the pro calibration.

The 51 and 57 offer the same picture quality correct?

Nuff

Whatever technology you are looking at go view it first in person. Different people have different preferences. For example, IMO DLP is the worst of the HD tv technologies and is mostly just clever marketing. I had a friend who wanted a DLP but I convinced him to go look in person and compare and he ended up getting an LCD instead. Personally my HDs are a CRT and a Plasma.

kegman

I had my 360 hooked up to a 46" WS Sony wega but I Just got a 57" WS Mitsuibishi DLP the games look 10 times as good.