Panasonic TH-37PX80 - What a peach

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Earlier this year I went to a local electrical retailer and viewed a Panasonic 37LZD70 and 37PX70 side-by-side. On balance, the PX70 edged it, but I could not get past the thought that I absolutely had to have Full HD. After all, I have Sky HD, and there are a dozen channels of HD on there, which at 1080i would look awsome on the Full HD set right? Well, not exactly, for there are hundreds of channels that are 'only' SD. Back in September I took delivery of a Pioneer 4280 Kuro, and was disapointed by its SD performance so sent it back. I mentioned this on the forum at the time, and boy was I given hard time! how dare I say such things about a Pioneer.

When Panasonic announced the 37LZD800 LCD, I knew this was the set I had been waiting for. Full HD, 100hz, 4 HDMI's, It was the obvious choice. However, we are back to the hundreds of SD channels issue again. Full HD has an awfull lot of upscalling to do to get a 720x576 pixel picture to fit a 1920x1080 pixel screen. I know Full HD set have come on in leaps and bounds recently, and such worries are to a large extent void. Then I saw one of the new Panasonic 37PX80 sets and oh my God, it was brilliant.

It occured to me that What Hi-Fi have been right all along, On paper, the pixel count looks sexy, but in the real world its how the set handles what's fed into it that counts. The 37PX80 with its 100hz and 3 HDMI's (all on the back I'm glad to see) is even better to my eyes than last years 37PX70. So, having now had the 37PX80 for a week, I am totaly converted to its abilities, and do not regret for one moment that it is merely HD and not Full HD because it simply doesn't matter. Its ability with HD is stunning. I am happy to report it copes with SD very well, even such low res channels as Eurosport (good for Le Mans in June) and Motors TV (good for the Bathurst 1000 in October) are clear and precise.

So my advice to those of you who think your life will not be complete without a Full HD set in the corner is to think again. A good HD ready set (plasma in this case) does everything you need, and does it well. Another point to consider, the best price I've found for the 37LZD800 is around the £1000 mark. I got the 37PX80 for £599! It's your decision, but is Full HD worth to £400 premium? I don't think so.

 

[JSM15]

Hi, could you tell me your impression of the sound as i keep reading about distortion during movies etc.

Also where did you buy it for £599?! Cheapest i can find is £612 at the moment.

I am tossing up between the 37PX80 and the sexy new LG - 42PG6000

Cheers

 

[Anonymous]

Great review, here's hoping the 42" model is as good. Can't wait until Thursday when it gets delivered

The 42" is now available for £700

 

[Anonymous]

Dear JSM15,
Sound is perfectly acceptable for my requirements. You can choose between normal stereo and spacial effect as on most TV's these days. If I'm honest, The sound from the Panasonic TX-32LXD500 which this set replaced was better. but then that was the high end model. The sound of any TV will depend upon its location in a room of course. Check out Totaldigital.biz which is where I got it from. It's in Birmingham, so it depends upon where in the Country you live as to whether it is outside their delivery area. One of my colleges at work is also going to get one of these, while another is about to plump for the 42" model.
One thing I forgot to mention, was most people I talk to seem eager to get the largest screen they can fit into their living room. I approached this from the opposite direction, and decided to go for the smallest screen. To me a TV should not dominate the room as soon as walk in. I like it to be 'understated' - but hey, that's just my opinion. The 32" model this replaced was just a tad undersized for the viewing distance (10 - 12ft depending upon which end of the sofa I'm sprawled across). Also 37" is the smallest plasma screen I believe is available (I'm sure someone will say otherwise), moreover I was struck by the plasmas colours and smoothness. No LCD backlight bleed, and seeing as the previous TV had an 800:1 contrast ratio, this new one being 15000:1 is some step forward!

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the review Troutbridge. You helped confirm my suspicions. I'm in the market for a new 37", and have been dithering in a pathetic manner between the panasonic plasma (px80) and the lcd (lzd85). I too have been seduced by the thought of full 1080p, but after relentless and, to be honest, quite tedious research I think the full 1080p just isn't necessary on a 37" TV, especially when the majority of channels I'll be watching over the next few years will still be SD. Roll on the plasma...

And of course the £300-£400 saved can be frittered away on a decent soundbar - I hear the Yamaha YSPs are pretty good.

 

[Anonymous]

I recently sold my tx-32lxd500 to replace it with a bigger sized screen, i was looking for a 37" panasonic but ended up getting a good deal on the th-42px70(£599), cheaper than i could find the 37" version at the time, this screen size I now know is too big and I am now looking to buy the latest 37" that pany has to offer. Its been great to experiance the sets size, ps3 and blu-ray are well catered for even though not FullHD.

Im sure it is a HD ready set that i need due to mostly watching sky, but there is 2 tv's to chose from. The well acclaimed th-37px80 but the soon to be released th-37lxd85. i cant find any spec of this tv, just wondered what the difference is between the 2

The only prices i have found are £747 (dabs.com) and £900 (amazon.co.uk) for the lxd85 compaired with a very reasonable price of around £600 for the px80.

Both are plasma but the lxd85 comes in a differnet shell, looks more like the lcd lzd80? If anyone has any more info on the th-37lxd85 so that i can compaire the 2(on paper atleast) it would be much appreciated.

 

[Anonymous]

Just been on the Panasonic web site. The TH-37LXD85 is in fact a TX-37LXD85 which means it is an LCD not a plasma. It is a 37" HD ready set not Full HD hence the "LXD" nomenclature as apposed to "LZD". With all due repects to Dabs and amazon, I think they may have got things muddled up.

 

[Anonymous]

I think full HD on less than 40" is not worth the extra. I also think that because most people are watching SD, (HD ready) is a better bet.

Interesting that they can make a profit selling this set at £599. It shows how much Comet and Currys are making on £799. The guy in Comet would not drop a single penny, so I walked away.

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="HMS Troutbridge"]Just been on the Panasonic web site. The TH-37LXD85 is in fact a TX-37LXD85 which means it is an LCD not a plasma. It is a 37" HD ready set not Full HD hence the "LXD" nomenclature as apposed to "LZD". With all due repects to Dabs and amazon, I think they may have got things muddled up.[/quote]

looks like the misstake was mine, i just checked the sites.

so does this mean there is only 1 plasma screen availiable at 37" ?

 

[JSM15]

Panasonic are the only company catering to 37" plasmas and in their new 2008 range are the PX8 - basic model, PX80 - mid range. They are both ofcourse HD Ready not Full HD. You need to go to 42" to get Full HD on a plasma.

Cheers,

JSM

 

[JSM15]

Hi HMS, the £599 was without the £20 delivery charge applied to orders (nothing to do with where i live) so my £612 delivered is still better!

My viewing distance is approx 10ft (small lounge) so 37" was always my preferred size but the 42LG6000 is still trying to seduce me lol.

How do you find the SD picture? I am mainly going to be watching standard Sky Digital and upscaled DVD's at the moment.

Cheers,

JSM

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks JSM, i am looking for a HD Ready plasma, but will wait for a review of the tx-37lzd85, i would like to see how well it handles SD.

I will be sitting from 3m - 4m away from the tv, i read that if i was to goto 42" it would be best having more pixels? i.e. FullHD when doing some price serches i came accross the th-42pz80 for £869.00 inc.del

http://www.discounttv.co.uk/category/Plasma/product/Panasonic_TH-42PZ80_Pedestal_Plasma.html

Spoke to them already and it is in stock, anyone found a better deal? its worth considering.

 

[Andy Clough]

[quote user="LovesChange"]but will wait for a review of the tx-37lzd85[/quote]

Full review of that model already online here.

 

[Anonymous]

Im getting muddled up again, tx-37lxd85 HD Ready lcd. i would like to see a review of this,

 

[JSM15]

Hi Loveschange, thats a very good price for the 42PZ80 - the best i had previously seen was £914 dabs.com

However Panasonic told me as recently as middle of this week that they had not shipped that model yet and that it would be closer to end of April or into May before they do. They have only just shipped the PZ85 model and are deliberately staggering those 2 models.

So be a little wary of anyone saying they have it unless ofcourse the dude at Panny didn't have up-to-date info?!

Your viewing distance is similar to mine and 42" MAY be a little excessive unless you have the option of moving your couch a little further away perhaps? Personally i think 37" would be spot on for 3-4m but 42" gives you a LOT more make & model options to be honest.

Cheers,

JSM

 

[JSM15]

[quote user="Andy Clough"]
[quote user="LovesChange"]but will wait for a review of the tx-37lzd85[/quote]

Full review of that model already online here.

[/quote]

Andy, I know i am bending the thread a little here but are we likely to see a more in-depth review of the PG6000 series? I know you looked at the 50" last month in the mag but i am keen on the 42" version and thinking that the only point causing you not to give the 50" 5 stars (a bit of picture noise) may be less apparent on the 42?

 

[Anonymous]

Hi JSM, Im soon to move into my newly buit flat. the dimensions of the living room are 3.4m x 4.7m. unless i put the tv in the corner i think i will be sitting too close. idealy i would like to mount a tv on the wall . I think my mind is 95% made up that i will purchase the 37px80.

Thanks

Ryan.

 

[bf1]

I recently bought the TH37PX80B and I am very pleased with it.

I have SKY HD and the pictures are outstanding.

The best I have seen it in SD is a program I am watching now - Pushing Daisies. Its a very good picture for SD.

Briefly saw the original The Italian Job on Sky HD and wow what a picture. How do they reproduce that film which is years old into HD?

I have a 2.1 Harman Kardon system which complements the TV perfectly. You can`t compare the set TV sound when you have listened via a home cinema system but if I didn`t have the HK then I could get by with the sound from the set.

Bought mine from JL after getting a Price Match. For piece of mind and the 5yr warranty JL is great.

 

[bf1]

For those with this set and hooked up to Sky HD I would be interested to know what your picture output is set to.

The Sky engineer set mine to 1080i but I see that there is a choice of 576, 720 & Auto.

What`s the best to set it to?

 

[JSM15]

[quote user="bf1"]
For those with this set and hooked up to Sky HD I would be interested to know what your picture output is set to.

The Sky engineer set mine to 1080i but I see that there is a choice of 576, 720 & Auto.

What`s the best to set it to?

[/quote]

Speaking generally (i dont have Sky HD but i do have an upscaling DVD player), 720p is best for a lot of movement and 1080i would be best for quite static stuff such as Sky News and all that daytime tv stuff i.e. Jeremy Kyle, though would suggest 720p for Jerry Springer due to the speed that security move in

Not really sure how AUTO works with regards to what factors determine what the Sky box sets the resolution to etc, so someone else will have to answer that one.

JSM

 

[JSM15]

[quote user="LovesChange"]Hi JSM, Im soon to move into my newly buit flat. the dimensions of the living room are 3.4m x 4.7m. unless i put the tv in the corner i think i will be sitting too close. idealy i would like to mount a tv on the wall . I think my mind is 95% made up that i will purchase the 37px80.

Thanks

Ryan.[/quote]

I don't think you will be disappointed with the PX80 from what i have read and seen - i am 51% PX80 and 49% LG 42PG6000 at the moment lol.

Oh yeah and AJ Electronics have the 37PX80 for £612.00, Sound & Vision for £611.90 - both include delivery. Many people do a John Lewis price match in order to get the 5yr free warranty but unfortunately due to my location i am not in a position to get a price match - seems that JL will price match the best bricks & mortar store prices only, which are around the 650-680 mark at the moment.

Let me know how you go!

JSM

 

[bf1]

[quote user="JSM15"]
[quote user="LovesChange"]Hi JSM, Im soon to move into my newly buit flat. the dimensions of the living room are 3.4m x 4.7m. unless i put the tv in the corner i think i will be sitting too close. idealy i would like to mount a tv on the wall . I think my mind is 95% made up that i will purchase the 37px80.

Thanks

Ryan.[/quote]

I don't think you will be disappointed with the PX80 from what i have read and seen - i am 51% PX80 and 49% LG 42PG6000 at the moment lol.

Oh yeah and AJ Electronics have the 37PX80 for £612.00, Sound & Vision for £611.90 - both include delivery. Many people do a John Lewis price match in order to get the 5yr free warranty but unfortunately due to my location i am not in a position to get a price match - seems that JL will price match the best bricks & mortar store prices only, which are around the 650-680 mark at the moment.

Let me know how you go!

JSM

[/quote]

Location is irrelevant so long as the JL store is in England. You can be in Scotland and still get a JL PM from an English JL. JL won`t PM against AJ Electronics but will PM against Sound & Vision.

 

[JSM15]

Hi BF1 - actually yes i am in Scotland and have read that the JL price match rules are different up here? Doesnt the store have to be within a certain radius of the Glasgow JL store for example?

 

[Anonymous]

Re: SD picture
SD on this set is fine. BBC / ITV / Ch.4 / 5 / Sky News et all from the built in tuner are clear and stable. I'm still playing with the picture settings adjusting contrast, brightness noise filters etc. but overall am more than satisfied. You would think that with all these channels available nowadays, someone would broadcast a testcard!

Re: Sky HD setting
I have the Sky box output set to "automatic". This, via the HDMI allows the TV to adjust the screen size to 4:3 when a SD channel that transmits in 4:3 is selected, switch to 16:9 when SD channel that transmits in that ratio is selected. The SD channels are 576p (shown in the program ident box in the top left corner for a second or two whenever a program is selected). When HD channel is selected, the picture switches to 1080i.

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="JSM15"]

Hi BF1 - actually yes i am in Scotland and have read that the JL price match rules are different up here? Doesnt the store have to be within a certain radius of the Glasgow JL store for example?

[/quote]

Try ringing JL Liverpool for a pricematch and delivery to Scotland. I have seen this mentioned on other forums, so it is possible.