Uisce's Configuration (was: AV Forums)

i wonder if ric romero's station broadcasts news in HD yet.  that toupee must be amazing.

so anyways... i hope you've already at least decided: ummm.. room size, ratio of movies to tv expected, budget, amount of 'futureproofing' etc?   

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not the worst in the world even by modern standards but you'll definitely want to upgrade it . it would 'work' {via downres/downsampling} but you wouldn't get ANY of the hd-audio benefit you get from cable/sat/ota and hd-dvd/blowray

just running 1 wire into the display is nice also hehehehe

fair enough.   

I have to  .  I have FSC, but no Setana on Charter cable.  Cannot bring myself to switch to sat over one channel, even though I would really like to have it.  If you get HDNET you will get some MLS games in very nice 1080i 


Size - bigger is almost always better.  You have the room size to support a larger display (I have a 50" in a slightly smaller room), but if it doesn't fit where you need it...

I already had a stand that was perfect, so I didn't wall mount and have been very happy.  My stand has a rotating top that allows me to angle it if I'm on the loveseat or sofa, even though the viewing angle is quite good (plasma).

Don't splurge on digital cables - its a high or its a low, don't bring old analog concerns about cable into the digital world.

Power protection - I would suggest it.  I'm looking at upgrading mine right now - our local power company has not been kind over the years 


PS - you're gunna want to upgrade the AVR if you get into HD-DVD or Blue-Ray 

18x18 is definitely about right for a 5.1, it could later squeeze 7.1 but it would be tight and probably not necessary.  wall mount saves space but costs more.  how far from the wall is the seating ?  10 feet ?

definitely enough to get started (and an avr  )

dish sucks total balls on hdtv (ultimate downres hd-lite experience).   directv is going to go to mpeg4 which will in theory put them in the lead with the most possible high quality hd channels, but whether they will downres them to hd-lite is yet to be seen  .commiecast doesn't downres, but until they implement SDV they can't offer as many channels yet.

tough call to make based on 'in the store' they're all on 'shop mode' and it depends on what they're playing.  for sports, unless its an 120hz display,  most lcd will motion blur some at fast action even if the signal is great.

if you stay at 46" you'll definitely stay under budget. optimum viewing distance here is 7-10 feet.

good idea. futureproof. and better quality.   however, you won't see the differnece without great great eyesight on 46" past 10 feet.       46" lcd 1080p  shouldn't be more than $2500 (that's now... they'll be $2000 at thanksgiving/xmas) max....     however, to really maximize 1080p at 10 feet you really should probably be 55-65" .  you'll "see" the detail the most.   sometimes bigger is better. this is one time.  assuming you don't mind blocking a window a bit, or rearranging somewhat

not recommended for  plasma with that much SD, kids high color,  and and potential black bar movies 

dlp probably better than lcd  with that much sports desired. (assuming you aren't rainbow sensitive) 

then anything would pretty much work except maybe sitting on the floor from right under it.

logitech 880 suits me well, about $150.  there are cheaper and more expensive models.  depends how big of a screen you want and how many devices to control.  beware, the software may be windows only. i can't remember!

power protection probably a good idea.  $200 at most needed (battery backup, surge, power cleaning)  rest of the cabling can be had for $100 at most total (3-4 sets of video and audio cables)   do not buy a/v cables in the store! ever!

then you definitely don't want a conventional bulk rear projector.  on/off cycling kills the bulb in those units. ($300-$400 every 2 years probably).  either flat panel or slim led microdisplay


gimme $. 


anyways, you could easily , without even going bigger TV, get the tv(plus warranty), hd-dvd player (hda20 , hda35, or xa1 recommended) , onkyo thx hdmi1.3 avr (plus warranty), logitech remote ,  **and** 30-40 (plus 7-9 free with purchase) hd-dvds (to start with on day 1) for $5000 if you did it at buttbuy or circuit*feces*ty you'd also get about $250 worth of reward gift certificates.

one other thing, stay with name brands.  while olevia, vizio, etc  generally work just fine, if something does go wrong, you have to pay to ship it to and back from them (say $300) for repairs if it's even still under warranty. ... whereas name brands will offer house based service calls (probably even in utah!! lol)

again its your $, your decision, take my advice for what it's worth.  once you buy that 46" and sit down, you'll enjoy it.  but then you'll say, i wish it were bigger. keep in mind that viewing area ratio (or screen size) goes as (d1/d2)^2.  for example 50/46 has about a 20% bigger screen and 55/46 has about a 40% bigger screen ... which makes a huge difference....  if you plan to watch a lot of hd-dvds especially. (as most are proper OAR 2.35:1)  your vertical screen height used on a 46" would be ...  a whopping 17"

 

Woah.  Big pic.  It does help.

I didn't answer that question.  For wall mount the seating would be a good 15'.  With a table top stand it'd be closer to 10-13' depending on which end of which piece of furniture you're on.  By the way, the furniture is likely to change down the road too.  It can't be further away than it already is... that's for sure.