Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler How big is Yours?

(1) How big is your main HomeTheater TV?

65" Mitsubishi

(2) What kind is it - DLP, CRT, etc....

RPTV / CRT

(3) Are you running HDTV content?

Yes, I pick up all of the local channels including PBS, and some Delaware channels. I also get the same channels plus ESPNHD and a couple of others off of Comcast cable.

(4) Any notable impressions/cautionary tales about big screen that the rest of us should know about?

Yes. If you buy a huge RPTV, do it before you get married. All of my friend's wives love the picture, but hate the box. Girlfriends just shake their heads the first time they see if, but then resign themselves to the fact that it was here before they were.

Also, make sure that you don't need to move it very often if you have carpet. My set weighs 360 lbs.. No way could I move it in or out of the house by myself. Fortunately, it has very nice wheels, and I have hardwood floors. It's easy to move on wood. I'd hate to try it on carpet.

PRODUCTIVITY ENHANCER

If you have a "too big/too heavy" thing you need to move (TV, entertainment center, etc), there is a neat helper available at stores like Home Depot. They are called Magic Gliders or Magic Sliders. Come in various sizes and shapes up to 4" round.

They are made of teflon and, for want of a better description, shaped like small baby moon hubcaps. Stick one under each corner of what you want to move and it is incerdibly easy to slide the unit around. This description is a bit ham-handed, but they work really well. I have a 2" slider on each corner of my TV / component stand and I can easily swing it out to get to alll of the wiring.

(1) How big is your main HomeTheater TV?

I have a 42" Mitsubishi WT-42311 widescreen RPTV.

(2) What kind is it - DLP, CRT, etc....

CRT

(3) Are you running HDTV content?

Yes. I have an HD cable box from Bright House Networks and get ABC, CBS, FOX, PBS, Discovery HD, INHD1, INHD2, HDNet, HDNet Movies and Sunshine (Florida sports channel). I should have ESPN, NBC, WB, and UPN soon. HBO and Showtime are available, but I dropped them.

(4) Any notable impressions/cautionary tales about big screen that the rest of us should know about?

A CRT based RPTV is susceptable to burn-in, so I stretch TV shows that aren't broadcast in widescreen. The best picture you can get from a big TV (not tube based or a projector) is from a CRT based RPTV that has been ISF calibrated. It's also the least expensive. This was the best choice for my conditions (I had to fit it in an existing entertainment center) until I have a dedicated room with a projector. You can see some photos here.

1) 106" 16:9 (92" x 52")
2) LCD FP
3) nothing higher-def than 480p
4) I LOVE the front projection. No regrets at all.

Dave - love your set-up. You have to let me know where one could pick up the speaker cloth to cover the "unsightly" aspects of the TV etc. It really makes your Ent.Cent. look professional and finished!

I'm sure your wife loves it, and mine would probably go 'ga-ga' over hiding stuff in a cabinet like that. She's always preferred table-top options to a closeable cabinet (for bulk/size reasons), but I bet if she saw yours, she have second thoughts.

P.s. do infra-red signals pass through the cloth? If so, it'd be a great way to hide some necessarily exposed components (receiver especially).

p.p.s - How do you attach the cloth? Do you tack it directly to the Ent.cent. or do you construct a frame and place the frame in the center (and how difficult is it to remove, move, etc.?)

Thanks!

Thanks Capn_Pickard! It's not only appealing to my girlfriend, but it makes a big difference watching movies. I have a little cloth left over that I'm going to use to make mattes that will hide everything but the picture from the movie.

I built a frame out of 1x2 wood and had the cloth stretched onto it. The infra-red signals don't pass through, so I was careful to leave it exposed on the TV. I measured to allow only the screen to be exposed. If your entertainment center is a standard color, you can order the grill cloth from here:

http://www.simplyspeakers.com/11speakergrills.htm

I needed a custom color to match the stain on our entertainment center, so I took it to a local place to order the cloth and stretch it on the frame I built. I'll post a picture of the frame in the next couple of days.

OH Yeah! Great job with the panel that surrounds the TV. Really makes it look good!

I have spent close to about 2500.00 int he audio department.
But I bought the tele first. Its a 65" widescreen MITS HI DEF enabled RPTV. I think It looks very nice right now, and have not even had it calibrated yet. I did do some stuff on my own that was discussed over at the SPOT and it def improved the look. When i was looking for a TV, I was told that as long as money is not the deciding factor get the largest one you can, Cuz once you get it home, and set up, you will wish you went 1 or 2 sizes bigger.

I have a HD Phillips 60" RPTV. Available now at Costco in soCal for $1449. It's the old fashioned 4:3 size, but letterboxes the HD/Widescreen format at about 55". We watch fair amounts of TV (especially w/ the baby hear now) so the old shape really appealed to me. PQ is tremendous to my eye, though we haven't tested its 1080p capabilities.

Davehead, burn-in is a myth, isn't it?. Some folks seem to think it only happens when you're tweakin' for days, playing the same video game all day and all night. Other folks said it doesn't happen at all. I've never seen a set that displayed any sort of burned-in artifacts.

(1) How big is your main HomeTheater TV?
-55" Mitsubishi HDTV

(2) What kind is it - DLP, CRT, etc....
-CRT

(3) Are you running HDTV content?
-With the exception of a few XBOX games no. I am waiting until there are alot more channels available on DirecTV. I refuse to pay extra for service and a new receiver just to have a few channels. I'd love to be able to use my set for what it was truely intended for, HDTV, but I can wait.

(4) Any notable impressions/cautionary tales about big screen that the rest of us should know about?
-First thing is shop, read, ask tons of questions and compare. And then shop, read, ask tons of questions and compare some more. And then again and again. I did it for several months when I knew I was serious about buying. Be educated before you ever step foot in any store or they will try their best to take advantage of your big screen ignorance.
-Make sure you buy the right size set. There is such a thing as too big for your viewing distance. And when you go too big you will have not so good impressions of the pq. Also don't go too small or you will have buyers remorse.
-Don't be too paranoid about burn-in. If you are careful, and divide up your viewing sources equally, you will not have a problem.
-Once you finally buy a set make sure to get a good calibration disc. Most sets come out of the box not set very well at all.
-Finally don't buy into the hype. Every place is going to try to sell you a super-duper Plasma. You can get almost as good HD pq on a good CRT as you can a Plasma. Don't believe me?? Shop around and you will see.