TV talk - Reliable TV - Tube, LCD, plasma...

Nothing beats CRT when it comes to picture quality, black levels, reliability, and life span.

however, CRT HDTV's weigh a freaking ton and are usually about 2 feet deep, and just dont look as cool as some of the newers.

DLP's picture kinda sucks on standard programming

Plasma's life is not very long and they buzz at high altitudes and dont have the best black levels

LCD tv's are pretty impressive overall, but still are not as good as CRT's with reliability and black levels

LCD projection are great, but thier blues tend to start degrading after about 20,000 hours. this is pretty recent news, and does not affect all of them, but a majority of them

Slappy, I tend to agree with you, but must correct you on the DLP w/ Standard programming. It depends on your source.... most cable systems suck, go to VOOM or Direct TV and it isn't as you say.

I still am for DLP over LCD as the bulb life is longer on DLP RPTV's, and the LCD's still don't do fast motion well. If you don't beleive me go to your local TV dealers and watch the same channel on the different sets.... FWIW I did this with a friend looking for a new TV three weeks ago and it still is true to my eyes.

CRT still rules unless you can't handle the depth of the cabinet.

Brian, sounds like dega vu. I've been (still am) where you are, but with a different budget. I've eyeballed everything, first hand, and finally decided on a Samsung HPL 43" DLP. Don't know exactly how much it costs. I'm having it installed by a Home Theatre installer. Each has it's drawbacks. Although CRTs are great, the picture size is too small. The Loewe are the best darn monitors these eyes have ever seen. But, and that's a big but, there is no wow factor. The Sammy does it for me. Go to Best Buy. They've got oodles of the whole nine...you'll get an idea what rocks your boat. I believe you may be able to do the Samsung DLP with your budget. peace, warren

I appreciate the replies, they are not what I expected but I like what is said. If I keep my TV in its current position, I have no problem with the size of a tube TV.

With all the buzz on new TV technologies I was expecting to be told that they were the way to go. As stated above, tube TV prices are better, at least it appears that way to me.

Warren, you snuck your post in as I was posting mine. Why do you say the picture is to small on CRT's? Is there something to look for?

Too small for me. Diagnol wise. I'm into a great picture with the wow factor. And that begins at 42" and goes....my bedroom dictates 42. Check that Sammy out. It't ridiculous.....peace, warren

I got the CVC hd-ila w/5 yr.extended. With the advances expected in 5 years I'll want the newest best---then. Most crt's in addition to being big/bulky/heavy aren't converged perfect.---Then an additional 400 for isf. My jvc is right on the money;you can watch in the daytime. Dark shadow detail being the one drawback I just live with. Nothing is perfect.

George, maybe I'm behind the eightball, but I don't have a clue what you're talking about....

Well I am back from town and basically have 3 TV's that have my interest, they are:

Sony KD-34XBR960 (tube) 34" - I can get it for $1979
Mitsubishi WD-52525 (DLP) 52" - Demo that I can get for $3200
Samsung HL-P4663W (DLP) 46" - I can get it for $3000

As you can see I blew by my budget on two of the TV's. The Samsung was at Best Buy and the other two were at the Stereo/Video store.

Let me add that I don't know much about TV's, in fact I just learned today that normal viewing is 4:3 ratio. All my viewing will be via DishNetwork, so these greater aspect ratios will get very little use by me, at least at this point; obviously if Dish starts putting out these signals I will be able to take advantage.

Between the big TV's, the Mitsu, which seemed very nice to me, seems to be the better buy, with my limited knowledge, over the Samsung as they are very close in price.

In talking with my salesman at the stereo shop, he says that with my Dish I will receive the best picture with the Sony (tube), I admit I can get caught up in the wow factor of looking at a bigger picture.

I am really torn between going with the (much lower priced) Sony vs. a bigger (sleeker) TV.

Brian, I'll be getting that Samsung, as well. Acutally the 43" model. At least I think there is a 43" model. anyway, what screen do you want to watch the Gladiator on? 34" Sony, or 46" Samsung? Miami CSI? ER? On a 34"? Maybe. It's a personal thing. I would regret the 34" real fast. A DVD on the Sammy is drop dead amazing. No experience with the Mitsubishi.

Warren, I concede that the 34" of the XBR is the only thing holding me back from ending this short search; I am not saying I wouldn't enjoy it, but I had always planned on going at least slightly bigger than 34" when I made my next purchase. C/Net has a very favorable review of this TV.

I do not have a DVD player in the living room, my wife has one in the basement for workout videos. We do not rent movies so DVD playback is not a priority to me.

I doubt I will be able to tolerate stretched pictures, so I suspect whatever TV I purchase will be run in a mode that does not do this.

Well, if you don't rent DVDs why would you want anything large? Obviously, I'm not a big tv watcher, but I, do, love sports and HD is amazing for that. The few tv series, I watch, luckily, are in HD. So that's cool. Good luck with that Sony. It's a bear to carry...

Hi Tvad,

No doubt my local stereo shop is higher than what I could find pricing for on the 'net. I did watch both their HDTV signals and regulaer sat. feed, though their sat. feed is terrible becuase they can only get one feed and it is split many times sent to many TV.

Your tip on watching in 4:3 is a good one and one that I did but wish I spent more time doing so.

I have the 30 inch version of the Sony for my bedroom. The picture is very, very nice. The stretch modes, which converts 4:3 to 16:9, are excellent. I prefer the wide screen mode to 4:3. If you settle on a 16:9 tv, be sure to check out the stretch modes, as some sets are way better (Sony and Pioneer, for example) than others.

I agree that CRT produces the best picture, for now.

I have heard good things about the Samsung, and would consider purchasing one. Warren, or anyone else who would know, how is the picture quality of the Samsung with cable or over the air tv? How does it compare to CRT? The picture quality with cable would be important for me, because I watch cable 75% of the time, versus 25% for DVDs and VHS. What about the stretch modes? Are they any good?

Gee Warren, a big TV is only good for DVD? Why wouldn't one want a big picture no matter what the source? (I did not say I am purchasing the Sony, reread.)

once my Sammy is in, and I've watched enough boob tube and DVD, I'll give you the scoop.

Brian, a big tv is good for sports, as well. There are some things, here and there on tv, (national geographic stuff, discovery station, nature specials,--that's my kind of tv) that are worth the (for me) big picture. Like I said, I'm not into sitcoms, or any of the crap on tv. A HD signal does make the crap look great, though. Hey Brian, whatever floats your boat. When you go into a Video store, they don't show ER or Miami CSI. I wonder why? Anyway, if you're a tv buff and love that sort of thing, I'd go with the larger picture, as well. It's not like the Sony or the like, blows away plasma, lcd, or DLP. There isn't a perfect anything, yet. Except for my speakers. lol...just fool'n witcha...

Well I didn't seem to waste to much time researching, like I usually do; I purchased the 52" Mitsu, but the 52725 instead of the 52525 listed above. Time will tell how much I like using such a TV, I brought it home today and hooked it up, the DishNetwork channels can leave a bit to be desired sometimes, which will spawn a new thread by me, about the DishNetwork HD receiver.

I am a little upset with myself for not staying at least near our budget. A 52" TV is huge in our room, I may of been just as happy or happier with a 44"; Circuit City had a 44" LG that looked really nice for $2685. Anyway, the next few days will tell me more.

I'm having an audio/video dealer install my Samsung DPL, Denon, DVD, and hook it up to the stereo system I use for my present Sony XBR. The reason? Well, I'm ignorant about video and that breeds insecurity about setting up all this stuff. If there's a problem, I want it to be his problem to solve, plus I want to be able to call someone if I have a problem, that is familiar with my system. Brian, what I'm I getting at? What was it like setting up your Mitsu? Picture aok, right out of the box? Need adjustments? Quirky things with the setup. I'm just wondering, perhaps, that doing this myself may not be as difficult as I'm thinking. Could save oodles of $$, as well. I'd appreciate your feedback. thanks in advance. peace, warren

Wh, you are on the right track and I highly recommend doing exactly what you suggest for several reasons. Like you, I didn't know diddly about video, I am getting a crash course; it would of been nice to have had someone here to do setup, give me a run through on how to use things, the best way to wire things and suggestions on any other things that may make it perform best.

I have learned from reading on the 'net that manufactuturers will make default settings based on making their TV's look best on the show room floors, which are expected to be brightly lit rooms, so these settings may not be optimal for home; so again, having that dealer there to help dial things in would be nice.

Thanks for the feedback, Brian. I feel better, already. I'll post, when I have something.....