Sony Bravia vs. Sharp Aquos

[Guido Henkel]

I'm thinking about buying a new TV set - I think I mentioned that before - and one of the key features I am looking for is full 1080p24 capability.

As you probably all know I've always been a Sharp Aquos fan but sadly, Sharp has no 50"+ LCD set that has this feature. They currently have it only in their 46" sets and I was not able to confirm any plans that they would add this capability to the bigger sets any time soon. As a result I was looking at Sony's Bravia series and they do have full 1080p24 in their 52" models so I begin to lean in that direction.

Has anyone ever seen these two sets side-by-side? Or in general does anyone have one of the 52" Bravia sets and could comment on it?

Are there any other 50"+ LCD sets out there with 1080p24 capabilities that I should be aware of?

[Jedi]

Hi Guido ,

I have the Sony "Bravia" KLD-40XBR2 , and the picture is amazing , and thats just SD !

HD is really sweet , don`t get me wrong , I still think plasma gives the best overall picture ( better blacks = better color ).

I have yet to see another LCD tv that has the black level that my Sony has.
It is one year old and it just seems to get better , and I use my tv , I mean use my tv !!

It`s not just on for a few hours a day ;)

I have it hooked to a "Mac-Mini" , I watch tons of dvd`s with my DV-79AVi ,
and when football season is here , don`t bother me on Sundays !!

The games in HD , are like being there.

I really can`t say much about Sharp , but this is what I think of the Sony`s.

As far as other sets that are >50" 1080p , heck yah !! there are tons.
Check this out >

http://www.crutchfield.com/App/Product/Group/ProductMenu.aspx?g=146350&tp=161&nvpair=FFScreen_Size%7c%5brank4%5d50%22+and+up&nvpair=AG_General_Features%7cFF1080p_Display

Best of luck in your search and Toshiba TV`s , I hear are worthy as well.

Later :)
Gary 

[Guido Henkel]

Jedi,

Thanks for the info. However, I wasn't inquiring about 1080p sets per se. I was inquiring about 1080p24 sets, which are TV sets that can reproduce a 24fps film transfer without 3:2 pulldown. Only a handful of sets can currently do that.

[Jedi]

Hi Guido ,

Yup !! , thats what I was thinking after I wrote my message.

Your best bet is going to be Sony then , as they will do the 24-fps with or without 3:2 pulldown.

There "DCR Mode" is very good at handling that.

You just have to make sure it has it , I`m not sure if ALL models have the feature that the XBR`s do.

Take care , good luck ! :)

Later,
Gary 

[Guido Henkel]

Yeah, I just ordered a Bravia. The only other set I could find that can do 1080p24 was a Toshiba, and that I didn't want. So, soon we'll see how the Bravia compares to my Aquos, but the 24fps mode alone will certainly make quite a difference as the jittering and tearing from 3:2 pulldown has driven me nuts for years.

Thanks for the help, Jedi.

[Jedi]

Hey Guido,

I think you made a wise choice ! ;)

I think you will be quite happy with it. You bought the XBR with the clear plastic around the bezel , right ?

If so , here is a tip for keeping it looking as scratch free as possible.

1: Don`t touch it , it scratches very easily. When unpacking try to use one hand underneath the set and the other , use your palm at the top of the bezel for balance ( 2 people are needed )

2: To clean the clear plastic , I use a 2 step method 1) using a soft brush to gently clean any loss dust or dirt. 2) using a glass cleaner liberally moisten a soft cloth ( I use a crushed velvet polishing cloth , you can find them at most music stores in the guitar dept. ) don`t rub hard and only go in one direction , the glass cleaner will evaporate and hopefully leave a scratch free and clean clear plastic bezel surround.

3: As for the screen it self , I use a micro-fiber cloth for cleaning eye glasses , but first I vacum the screen with a soft vacum brush , and then I only use warm water and that has kept my set looking like new !! :)

Have fun , and good luck ! :D

Take care,
Gary 

PS:
Link for vacum brush that I use , camel hair and non abrasive, it is great for speaker grills too !

http://www.searspartsdirect.com/partsdirect/displayPartDetailAction.action?partNumber=52641&productGroupId=0020&supplierId=116&backToLink=Return%20to%20Part%20List

[Guido Henkel]

Wow, you're quite ambitious there... ;-)
I usually use a paper towel with Windex.

[Jedi]

Yikes !!!

Don`t use a paper towel , trust me Guido , if you do it will scratch.

Every where you look online , they will say clear glass , but it`s just plastic.
Remember model cars and airplanes ? The exact same clear plastic is used.

Have fun and enjoy your new tv !! :D

Later ,
Gary 

[Jedi]

Hey Guido ,

How do you like your new Sony LCD tv ?

Gary :D



[Guido Henkel]

I do not have it yet. They will deliver it tomorrow afternoon, then we'll see. :)

[Jedi]

Hey Guido , best of luck ! :)

Let me know how you like it , I think you will be very happy , just be careful of the clear plastic. ;)

Later ! :D

Gary 

[Guido Henkel]

Okay, the first impression of the Bravia is exceedingly good I have to admit. The display is pretty deep - which I didn't expect - but other than that the image quality seems to be quite noticeably better than that of my 3-year old Sharp Aquos.

I'll post more later when I had the chance to play around with it a little, but just seeing the display 1080p 24 frames when playing a Blu-Ray disc makes me all giddy. :-))

[Jedi]

Hi Guido ,

Yup , the Bravia`s are better than the Wega`s !!

Like I said , really great blacks for an LCD panel.

I have mine on a stand , so I don`t notice the depth.
Still skinnier than my old 32" XBR tube !! LOL

Best of luck , glad to hear you are happy so far ( it just gets better ! ) :D

Take care , :)

Gary 

[Guido Henkel]

I spent one night calibrating the thing for Blu-Ray. Interesting how off the factory settings are on this TV set. Really complete showroom mode there in its default settings. I was even more surprised to see that there were some general color balance issues - the set had a red push.

But after the calibration it looks really, really nice. The blacks are really amazing and I'm very impressed with the contrast range of this set, giving the image incredible depth. Much better than the Aquos. so much so, in fact, that my wife needs some time to adjust to this wide gamut. Blacks are deeper brightness is higher and contrasts are wider. Very impressive, especially when you watch a top notch Blu-Ray movie in 1080p 24fps.

I need to fiddle a little more with the settings for regular TV programming and my DVD player. But overall I am very, very happy with the set. Now, if only the remote control would do Bluetooth as well so I could use it for the PS3 that would be awesome... but you can't have everything. :-))

[Jedi]

Hi Guido ,

I guess I should have warned you about the red push , I had to do a white balance on mine too. Sony`s always seem to really push the reds.

It is really rare to find a tv that looks good right out of the box anyway.

I will go BD at some point , but for now , I`m very happy with the way my Pioneer DV-79AVi performs. I`m not really taking advantage of the full capabilities of my XBR , at least not yet anyway.
I bet 1080P looks really sweet ! :)

I might get into BD with a PS3 , we`ll see.

I`m glad your happy , for some strange reason , my XBR looks better a year after I bought it , so I`m sure you will be enjoying it for some time to come.

Take care and happy viewing !! :D

Later,
Gary 

[Guido Henkel]

You HAVE TO get into Blu-Ray, dude! Get a PS3, it is one of the best BD players out there and with it's constant firmware upgrade - through wireless LAN - it just keeps getting better and better.

The biggest difference for me is the 24 frame mode. No more jerking in the picture because of the stupid 2:3 pull down. You would not believe how much difference that makes in giving you the impression of watching an actual film.

[Jedi]

Yup! I need a good gaming console , so I might just do that.

If not Sony is releasing a new BD player this fall , the BDP-550 ( I think is the correct mod. # ) , I have been think about that as well.

But with the PS3 doing so well , I would be better off with that I think , can`t play games on the `550 !! LOL

Thanks for the info about the PS3 , (darn , looks like it`s spending money time :D )

Take care :)

Gary 

[Joe Davis]

I know I am a little late Guido but how do you like your LCD? I am on a mission to buy one before Christmas and am doing my research now.

You mentioned 1080p24. I had not heard of that before. Is it like the 120hhz refresh rates in some of the new sets? Aren't they capable of reproducing the true 24fps?

Also, I will be sitting 7' away from the tv. Will a 46" be too big for optimum picture quality?

Thanks

-Joe
(an old member from waaay back)

[Guido Henkel]

Joe,

I have a 3-year old 46" Sharp Aquos and a brand new Bravia 52XBR4 and I love them both. Each for their own reasons.

The Bravia is simply mind-boggling to be honest. It is such an incredible set that I think it is hard for any manufacturer to beat. However there is one feature that I am missing which is a wireless LAN connection. Every consumer electronics device should have that these days in my opinion.

The image is brutal on this set after I had it calibrated. It is also important on that set to check out the countless "Video" and "Screen" settings in the set because by default some of the ones that are enabled should not be. Until recently I had problems that the entire screen would automatically dim when there is footage on the screen that had very little brightness, like closing credits etc. I finally found the setting to correct that and ever since there is nothing I'd change in that set.

It is pretty bulky and heavy, though, probably another thing I'm not too crazy about in that set. Let me see, what else. Well it is just a brutal set, hands-down, that gets my highest recommendations.

As for 1080p24 yes the 24 frames are derived from the 120Hz mode. However, not all 120Hz TV sets can do proper 24 fps displays. Most of them still use the traditional 2:3 pulldown, which drives me nuts. The Bravia XBR series does proper 5:5 pulldown in 120Hz, generating a true 24 fps video. The result is an image that is absolutely perfectly reproducing a film presentation. Just two nights ago I was watching a movie on my HD-DVD player - which cannot do 24fps - and the jerkiness of the image was hair-raising. I did not remember it being so bad, but I guess once you get used to the super-smooth panning of a true 24fps video you can't go back. On the HD-DVD even the slightest camera move resulted in a noticeably jagged presentation.

So if anyone buys a new LCD these days, 1080p24 should be a must-have feature. Sony was the only manufacturer I trusted that could do 24fps in a 52" set so I went with the Bravia and never looked back.

Some of the 42" and 46" Aquos sets also do have that feature but you have to be very careful as only a few of the models support it and because Sharp is not making it a selling point. This means you have to make sure you have the correct model PLUS you have to make sure the set has the proper firmware.

Personally, I think a 46" is absolutely fine from a 7' viewing distance. Depending on your room overall it may even seem a little small.

If you can, get the Bravia XBR4. It rocks!!!!

[Joe Davis]

Thanks Guido. I appreciate it.

[homer1971]

Hi Guido, dumb question but what (or how) did you use to calibrate your tv? I've seen a dvd at work that says it will do it (I can't remember the name) but if I decide to buy a new tv, I would most definitely like to have it calibrated either by myself or a pro (we offer the service at work and I could get a discount) but I would like to do it myself so that I can learn.

julie

[Guido Henkel]

I have the DVD, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray versions of "Video Essentials" that I use for calibration.

http://www.dvdempire.com/Exec/v4_item.asp?userid=99366076183288&item_id=1364210

Fortunately with modern day LCD displays calibration is not nearly as tricky any more as it used to be in the days of CRTs, so give it a try.

[Joe Davis]

I forgot to ask this: do LCD and Plasma sets suffer the same effects of speaker magnetism like tube sets? In other owrds will you get the "green screen" if you place your LCD too close to your unsheilded speakers?

[Guido Henkel]

No, you do not. It's an entirely different technology and magnetism does not influence the image quality. In CRTs this happened because the cathode ray was aimed using a magnetic field.

[Joe Davis]

Just bought the Bravia 52" XBR9. I read about you using the Video Essentials to fine tune it. Do you think it is worth it? The reason I say that is I bought Video Essentials back in the laser disc days and it was quirky. I would get it dialed in for most movies but cable and vhs looked like crap.

I have Dish and PS3 running to the Sony through HDMI. HD looks great but we know how great SD looks :(. So I guess what I am saying is when you got your set dialed in with VE how do other sources like DISH look?

Thanks

[Joe Davis]

WOW. Does anybody come here anymore?

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