Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners System upgrade

I'd have to vote TV first as well.. after going from a 27" CRT to a 50" plasma.

Even a 27" no-name CRT from Wallmart($200-$300) or a 32" LCD TV for maybe 500-700 will really change your gaming/movie experience compared to a 19" CRT

+1 for the TV.

Went from a 19" TV to a 50" LCDRP and it was a huge improvement!

I now want a 60-65" 1080p LCD TV but looks like I have to wait until they come down in price!

In August 2005 I paid $4500US for my Samsung, a 61" 1080p (hah! -- only on VGA input) DLP, HLR6178W I think. Comparable units seem to be all of $1500 these days. I've been generally pleased with it, but do find myself wishing they'd had the 67" in stock, or that the 71" hadn't been something like twice the price.

So since everyone seems to suggest tv... if I do go that way would you guys recommend LCD, Plasma, or DLP Rear Projection? Also have considered front projection but to get a proper setup it would probably cost me too much.

I watch a lot of regular tv and movies. Will probably be playing video games and maybe running a PC into it nearly as often.

rear projection units such as DLP or LCDRP have a great cost/size benefit. While the viewing angles on my LCD RP are not as great as a flat panel LCD, the picture is still really good, and I was able to get a 50" for less than the price of a 32" lcd flat panel at the time.

paid about 1700 after tax about 2 years ago for my 1080i LCD rp sony kdfe50a10. at that time, a 40" lcd flat panel from sony was nearly double that price.

I prefer the picture of the plasma over all other comers. To me, it looks more like the tube tvs I grew up watching (which is a good thing). When the picture breaks up (which is it bound to do on occasion, the plasma goes a little "soft" instead of pixelating into a checkerboard mess like I have seen on some LCD and DLP sets. Nowadays, too, there are some really great deals to be had on "off brand" plasmas. Often-times (make sure you do your research before you pull the trigger on this one, though), the plasma medium made for Sony and for Advent, for example, may actually be made by the same manufacturer to the same specs. Processors and other important bits will be better in the Sony, giving you a superior overall picture, but the point is that the off brand stuff can still give you great results - maybe at the cost of some fancy features that you may or may not use very often.

If space behind the set isn't an issue, then you really can't beat your dollar for screen size punch that you get with DLP. Most of the problems associated with screen door and rainbow effect have been minimized to a degree that, unless you're looking for it, you won't have a problem with it.

For me, LCD is a nice compromise if space and sex appeal (i.e. hanging it on the wall) are issues and your budget won't support plasma prices.

Running a PC into any of these sets should not be a problem. Most these days have PC Inputs. Check before you buy if this is a necessity. If you run XP and have an nVidia card, there are some great tools for managing the overscan on your TV so that the windows bars aren't cut off. Also, in the rare chance that you fall in love with a set without a PC input, there are converters that can be purchased for not too much that will allow you to send your laptop or CPU video out onto an HDMI or a component video in on the TV.

It's True, most computers these days have a Digital output (DVI/HDMI) that can be accepted by the HDTV via HDMI or DVI-->HDMI quite easily. In the case of my Macbook to 50" RP LCD avsforum members had gone through and found the right settings to make the computer appear almost pixel to pixel perfect on it. These days that sort of thing isn't a big issue. And if you have a RGB/VGA input on the TV, it's just that much easier.

I agree with the captain, the best bang for the buck, if you have the space, is RP.

I might have considered plasma, except that I spend a lot of time on my computer and, although the risk is greatly reduced from early generations, burn in can still be an issue.

LCD had improved in leaps and bounds. I havn't really looked at current gen, but around last christmas, I coudn't tell much difference in picture quality between the best LCD and the best Plasma. Black levels are still a little better on plasma, but not much.

Ok, and for the same price range.... rear projection vs front projection?

you mean you want to debate between a TV and a projector?

IF you get a projector you are going to have to buy a screen seperate, which can cost you several hundred dollars at the very least.

I'd suggest you look at some RP DLP models.