Cost no issue - which plasma?

[admin_exported]

I'm currently waiting for the 9G sets to hit Australia to make my foray into flat-panel tv. From what I've seen and read the Pioneer LX509 looks to be my choice but having just bought a Panasonic DMR-BW500 BluRay player/recorder with HDD recorder, I'm wondering how much value there is in staying one brand for the Viera link functions and how much difference there is between the newest Pana/Pioneer sets?

 

[Anonymous]

panasonic are great value but the pionneer is in a different league to the competition. Wrth the extra if can afford it.

 

[FuzzyinLondon]

The benefits of the Pioneer LX5090 over the Panasonics picturewise completely outweigh any advantages of Viera-Link functionality. Simple as that.

 

[madeinstein]

Simple.. the latest Pioneer of course.. the only question is do you want 50'' or 60''

And regarding the Panasonic BlueRay player.. if $$$ is not an issue.. replace it with the latest Pioneer BlueRay player..

Enjoy!

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks fellas - seems Pioneer gets the vote which is pretty much what I expected - the 50" as with my room & seat position (about 3.5-4m away), we're borderline on the 50" already - just got to wait for it to arrive in Aus now! As for the BD player - far as I know, no one (including Pioneer) make anything remotely comparable with the Panasonic unit I have - not available in the UK unfortunately for you guys - here's the spec:

BluRay player / recorder - BD1.1 with ALL current HD audio formats - output either Bitstream or LPCM
Twin HD tuners with full electronic programme guide, timer scheduling and editing functions, chase play, pause live tv etc etc
500GB HD
HDMI1.3a
SDHC card slot
More connections than you've ever thought possible

Maybe you should lobby Pana to get them - check it out here: http://panasonic.com.au/products/details.cfm?objectID=4337

If I go up from this at any stage it will be to the Denon BD transport - leaving the Pana with set top box duty.

 

[Anonymous]

Well, to answer your question - the Pioneer. I have just stumped up for the 60" model and will be installed and functioning on August 2nd. I will post my opinion on it after that. However, at this early stage I viewed it by comparing it to the Panasonic. The blacks are deeper without question. The thing to remember is....if it looks that much blacker in a store when all the TVs are in Dynamic mode - you can only imagine how much deeper the blacks would look when it is properly calibrated for your living room which is likely to be less bright than the showroom (black levels are easier to discern the darker the room is). I found the decision even more difficult because cost was no issue and was attracted to having the bigger 65" Panasonic. Despite the screen area being 15% less than the Panasonic - I opted for the Pioneer on picture quality reasons. If I was faced between the 2 at exactly the same screen size - then it would be an absolute no brainer.

 

[Anonymous]

To finish this one up - thanks for everyones advice - due to a (huge) delay in getting the 5090 or 6090 in Australia (Feb 09 earliest apparently), I've plumped for the KRP-600M monitor. Just waiting for it to arrive in country and I'll be set ; )