Panny v20 / vt20 ??????

[admin_exported]

hi does anyone have one of these tv's yet, anyone any reviews about either and is there any spec difference. and anyone any idea of the price of the forth coming 42vt20,

also my main thing i'll be watching is SD through my sky HD box via a HD cable, i here that plasma's are better for SD is this the case?? Thanks

 

[The_Lhc]

The chief difference is that the vt20 is 3d the V20 isn't.

 

[markyd]

Ive got a 42v20

It's great (apart from the banding).

Its got a really good built-in scaler so SD looks lovely. TBH I've not seen a better SD picture on a flat screen TV.

Your picture is still very much dependent on the quality of the source however - some programs look much better than others.

 

[Anonymous]

Markyd

You say 'apart from the banding', which I've read elsewhere. How frequent is this and how bad - how does it spoil your viewing experience?

If it is an annoying occurance, and often, I don't see how this TV can be so highly rated?

Pauled.

 

[Anonymous]

Markyd

thanks for info just one thing, whats banding?? i'm a bit of an ametuer but wanting a quality tv

 

[hifianorak]

Markyd

Your comments about SD on the Panny are really appealing to me. For a matter of interest what preset mode are you watching SD in - THX or normal? I get a great SD picture on my Toshiba CRT and I am loathe to lose that , whilst wanting to embrace the new technologies and slimline aesthetics.

Also, from your point of view does the V20 only perform well in dark conditions only, as like any normal person I watch in bright daylight most of the time? Or at least in the summer.

I have seen the Panny plasmas in bright conditions and they have underwhelemed me and only in the Panasonic dedicated stores have I seen them perform decently. I am favouring LED at the moment, as I appear to like the sharper, brighter picture that I have seen, but obviously with all the stunning reviews that the Panny plasmas are receiving, I am traipsing around the country trying to get a decent demo, so I can judge the Pannys at their best and not discard them too lightly (no pun intended). Especially as the Panny plasmas are reckoned to be so good on SD., which is of vital importance to me.

I am also looking at the Samsung C8000 LED series, LG 8900 and the new Philips 9705 LED. 40 inch would be my ideal size, but I would stretch to 42 with the right TV.

Thanks for any help,

Rod

 

[markyd]

So many questions - so little time!

You might want to read my original post as to how I arrived at the Panasonic

http://community.whathifi.com/forums/post/447592.aspx

Firstly paul - Banding (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colour_banding) occurs on this set during high contrast SD material - such as a spotlight in the dark. I would be lying if I said it didnt bother me, but most importantly, I would not change the set. I still dont think there is anything better at the price. It's highly rated, because most of the time, with most material, it produces an outstanding picture. It's the V20's Achilles heel though.

Rod - If you read my other post, you will see I was in the same position as you. I still think SD is best displayed on a CRT, but Plasma is as close as you are going to get on a progressive display. I watch mostly in lowered light conditions, and the Panasonic is not bright in my preferred THX mode, but for day time viewing you can always switch to a brighter display mode and sacrifice some of the realism.

I too was very tempted by the LED backlight technology promise, but if I could sum up LCD images in a single word it would be 'digital' - and I don't mean that in a positive way. Plasma just seems more organic. And that surprised me as it is a relatively old technology, but I suppose like CRT, it has developed over many generations and is probably very close to the top of it's game - even if it is approaching EOL

 

[Anonymous]

LCD tvs also suffer from banding to varied levels LED backlit or standard backlit some much worse than others I think I read that 10bit and upward panels will stop this but I think I am right in saying every tv has colour banding to some level! Plasma,LCD and LED Lit LCD. Not a great example i know but the lame feed comet and currys use when there is a lot of the same colour onscreen it is clearly visible there on all sets i have seen. A good example is the FORD adverts when the ford logo comes up with an orange background you will see bands of colur moving towards the logo! You can also see it on the ps3 background if you have say a glear green background colour when the clock gets to about 9pm or so the colour gets darker you will see it then!!!

 

[hifianorak]

Hi Markyd,

Many thanks for taking out the time to reply to me. Appreciate that.

I haven't been able to post for a few days for some reason. Looking forward to seeing a proper Panasonic demo asap and keeping an eye on prices, as hopefully post World Cup there might be bargains up for grabs.

Kind regards,

Rod