LCD/Plasma/CRT/DLP - questions

[Lyris]

Dimensions with stand (WxHxD):
1,218 x 814 x 401 mm

[Akira]

ok,think i'm gonna need your help on this lyris.Just bought myself the TX-P42S20.Now this is my first plasma that i've ever had.I have noticed the picture tends to be slightly noisy,like interference.Is this normal? switching to game mode only seems to make it worse.In dark scenes the noise is evident across the whole screen.I found switching it to cinema has lessened the effect.But still,it's rather dissapointing...is there anyway to fix this?

Also,does phosphor trailing diminish over time,or is this something i am just going to have to put up with?

Thanks!

[Lyris]

Yes, on Plasmas the picture will look a little bit noisy if you're up close (the Pioneer KUROs were much noisier actually). The reason Game Mode makes it appear worse is because it uses a different gamma curve to make the picture look "punchier" which seems to bring noise out in shadows.

Make sure you have Brightness set correctly and that will mean that noise in dark areas should be at a minimum. Can you see the noise from your normal sitting position right now?

Phosphor trailing doesn't diminish over time, but everyone I've spoken to finds that they notice it a lot less later.

[Akira]

yea, if i have the picture set to game mode i can see the noise quite evidently, even after adjusting the brightness. But it does'nt seem anywhere near as bad when set to cinema, so i have just left it on that. I did read on your review that you had measured the input lag at 16ms in game mode. Is there any difference in switching to say cinema, or is the input lag not affected?

Hmmm,looks like i'm just going to have to accept the trailing.Hopefully my eyes adjust and it will bother me less Also,what about burn i? How do i prevent this,as already i have noticed some slight image retention?

Sorry bout all the questions. Trying to pick your brains, as i said this is my first plasma so things look a little different after having an lcd for 5 years lol.

Cheers!

[Lyris]

I don't think Cinema mode actually makes a difference to the lag - or if it does it's something like 3-4ms.

Don't worry about burn in. If you're using the Cinema mode, I doubt it will happen - unless you leave it on BBC News 24 or some other channel with permanent, solid graphics for hours and hours at a time. You'd basically have to work hard to burn a Panasonic Plasma (or probably any modern Plasma, for that matter).

[yesteryeargames]

anyone had any experience with a samsung 3d lcd c750 tv? whats it like for gaming picture quality and lag wise? how good is the 3d and do you get much cross talk?

[Lyris]

You probably want to hear from someone other than me by now, but yes, I reviewed one - the review is still on the front page at www.hdtvtest.co.uk. Quick summary is, input lag is noticeable (~40ms or so) and the 3D picture quality isn't great (quite a bit of crosstalk which only the Panasonic Plasma so far avoids). Picture quality in 2D is good.

[Akira]

fantastic help lyris. Thanks alot man!

[MetalJoe]

I'm in the market for a new 42" plasma and I'm waying up as to what to model I should go for? I'll mainly be using it for PS3 games, freeview and HTPC/blu-ray and I have a budget of around £550-£600,

The Panasonic S20 mentioned earlier sounds good but I'm wondering if I really need a 1080p set? I usually sit around 10 foot away from the screen when watching stuff. Would I really notice a difference between 1080p and 720p at that distance (with a TV of that size)?

Cheers.

[Lyris]

You can get good 1080p TVs for cheap, so there's no need to avoid it. If you want it for BD, all the more reason to get all of the available resolution.

At 10 feet and 42", you probably wouldn't notice the resolution, but it doesn't hurt that Full HD panels tend to come on the better displays.

[MetalJoe]

Cheers for the advice Lyris. 1080p it is then.

[anephric]

I can deffo tell the difference between 720p and 1080p even at 42", so I wholeheartedly recommend getting 1080p, considering you're only saving a few quid buying old tech.

[Lyris]

Also, for some reason, it's only the 1080p TVs that let you turn overscan off, so there's another reason to go for one.

[Lyris]

I bought a television for the first time in years. I haven't bothered until now because I normally have a review TV on my desk, but I saw Amazon.co.uk selling the Panasonic TX-P42S20 for only £550 so decided to bite the bullet and get a nice, non-laggy display for when there's gaps in the review schedule.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-TX-P42S20B-42-inch-Widescreen-Freeview/dp/B0039SLYH8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1282936309&sr=8-1

The cheaper Panasonic PDPs have some minor flaws (actually hell, all of them do), but they're fantastic value for money. Since my main display is a high-end projector, I only use a TV for TV and gaming, so this more than fits the bill for what I use TV displays for.

In other words, I didn't want Halo: Reach to come out and be stuck with the ~40ms lagging LCD that's been here all Summer for ongoing analysis.

Feels weird to actually own my own TV again

[ince]

i recently got a Sony KDL32EX301U. i'm trying to get the settings for componant. does anyone have any ideas. hdmi is fine for 360 and PS3 but when using componant for the other 360 the picture isnt great. also i need it so that the Wii uses the same settings