Philips new TVs worth the price?

[TheHomeCinemaCentre]

Welcome to the forum.

Which three shops did you see these screens in? What source were they running? I have just checked ours and there is no colour tinge at all. Let me know the details and I can test it out .

 

[Anonymous]

Haven't seen this particular set but I treated myself to a 7404 for under £900 just before Christmas on the back of the WHF 5 star review and comments made on this forum. I think its a steal.

I set it up using the settings WHF used in the group test which was noted in a very long thread covering issues with the 9664.

All I can say is that I'm chuffed with the picture and now obviously can't rate Phillips TV's highly enough. As Philips said..... you only really need all the picture processing stuff if you're not happy with the picture in the first place. If it aint broke don't fix it.

 

[Anonymous]

Wovian:
Haven't seen this particular set but I treated myself to a 7404 for under £900 just before Christmas on the back of the WHF 5 star review and comments made on this forum. I think its a steal.

I set it up using the settings WHF used in the group test which was noted in a very long thread covering issues with the 9664.

All I can say is that I'm chuffed with the picture and now obviously can't rate Phillips TV's highly enough. As Philips said..... you only really need all the picture processing stuff if you're not happy with the picture in the first place. If it aint broke don't fix it.
but isnt a 7404 with the processing turned off then a 5604 that cost a couple of hundred quid more ??

 

[6th.replicant]

Recently bought a Philips TV - a 47PFL7404 - & must say I'm not convinced re its abilities with fast motion, although all other aspects of its PQ are very impressive.

If anyone is considering a Philips TV, I'd urge them go for an in-store demo using a BD(s) that has lots of panning/zoom shots of fast-motion, preferably Bourne Ultimatum's scooter vs bike chase scene.

 

[Anonymous]

maxflinn:Wovian: but isnt a 7404 with the processing turned off then a 5604 that cost a couple of hundred quid more ??

I know where you're coming from Max but apparently the less processing the better.

I watch a lot of sport and DVD movies with the kids like Star Wars and I haven't had any motion issues. BUT I've yet to see a BD yet

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for warm welcome. Actually those 3 sets are located a bit far from you, namely in Switzerland.

But they were all fed the same HD promo video with a lot of dark and sunny nature feeds. During one particular comparison with 9664 to make a proper conclusion I personally took remote controls for both sets and put them both in the same movie ( cinema) mode and checked that all input parameters were the same. They were. The light in the shop was really dimmed making it much more likely for 9704 to show its prowess. No prowess was visible. No additional shades in the dark were revealed. Actually contrast-wise 9664 looked much better and more natural.

In other shop they fed a lot of different feeds through cable ( digital TVs) and regardless of channels ( HD or SD, I was free to choose channels) 9704 pictures always looked pinkish. During one scene from Eurosport ( SD feed of tramplin jumps focussing on snow) I really saw scintillating pulses. So either the production sets we are getting is drastically different from one you are getting, or our TV feeds is a bit incompatible with Philips high-tech gadgetry. So now we get into country-to-country variations

 

[Deleted member 2457]

maxflinn:gel:

Why don't they just call it something different?

Noise can be very misleading.

i dont care what they say gel , i like you

Maxflinn, thanks for the really nice comments, I appreciated that.

Cheers.

 

[Anonymous]

With regards to the Pink push on the 9704...

Don't have one of these but I have seen what you describe in shops...

What I have read is that the set requires careful calibration of each of the colours... Otherwise you get either a pink or blue push.

 

[Anonymous]

gel:maxflinn:gel:

Why don't they just call it something different?

Noise can be very misleading.

i dont care what they say gel , i like you

Maxflinn, thanks for the really nice comments, I appreciated that.

Cheers.
we all make mistakes , whispers , maybe even andrew , ssshhh....

 

[Andrew Everard]

Sorry, but the signal to noise ratio on these forums is often so low that content gets obscured.

 

[Anonymous]

Andrew Everard:Sorry, but the signal to noise ratio on these forums is often so low that content gets obscured.
i must admit that ive failed to decipher that one andrew ...

 

[Andrew Everard]

Maybe more error correction is needed.

 

[Anonymous]

Andrew Everard:Maybe more error correction is needed.
ah , my crypticity was temporarily eluding me

 

[Anonymous]

I agree with calibration issues. Nobody knows what other internal settings may be present.

Then we do have different light in different shops. What bothers me a bit that to my limited knowledge

even improper calibration of the set should not prevent greater dynamic range (and thats what local dimming do)

of the 9704 to shine through. And for the sake of the argument lets suppose this increased dynamic range is there.

What are the chances for the human eye to actually perceive it during limited time alotted for the single frame. If this TV would be used as photo viewer may be. But in the dynamic film/sport settings chances are close to zero.

 

[Anonymous]

Just got back from abroad so I have just read the WHF review of the Philips 9704. As the owner of this model for over a month now, I heartily concur with the reviewer. The 9704 has the best picture of any LCD TV currently on the market. However, one or two caveats for anyone considering buying this set. For me, the main consideration when buying a TV is the picture, the sound qualiy is immaterial as I always listen through my HiFi system.

I will not deal with the HD picture since with the LED Pro backlighting it is as good as any set on the market. As most users will be viewing the SD content I will try to give my impression of the 9704. The SD picture on Philips TV's has a different appearance to all other makes. At first glance it appears slightly soft and seems to lack the sharpness of say Sony TV's. But closer inspection reveals that in fact the picture is clearer than other models. What it eliminates is the pixel noise around the edges of objects. This lends an almost 3D quality to the picture. Needless to say the colour palette is true to life and together with the HD natural motion even old programmes like Rising Damp take on a new lease of life. Once again the quality of the picture is dependent on what is being broadcast. Programmes destined for the BBC HD channel are an order of magnitude better on SD.

I do most of my viewing using a Humax PVR9300T freeview recorder. The built in Freeview tuner of the 9704 is good but not as good as the Humax. The great weakness of the built in freeview tuner is the TV guide. In all honesty it's pathetic. It's about time Philips design a more user friendly guide perhaps using Humax as their model. The other disappointing feature is the so called "Net TV". In my opinion it is a waste of money incorporating this feature. Navigating sites using the remote is clumsy and slow and after a couple of goes I went back to my computer. Do not buy this model just because it has Net TV.

Finally you must be prepared to spend a bit of time calibrating the set. Do not use the so called "Smart Settings" such as Vivid, Narural, Cinema etc. They all give a false impression of what can be achieved with this TV. You must be prepared to use personal settings for the picture. On other postings forum members have given calibration settings for best results. I agree in the main but differ on contrast, brightness and colour (I ended up with 77,63 and 34 for these settings using the Humax.) One warning. Each input must be independently calibrated for each source, For example my Sony Blueray player has slightly different settings.

So hazarin, is the new Philips model worth the money? If you want a state of the art picture, yes. If you want a TV you can buy, switch on and get perfect results without calibrating, no, If, like me you enjoy the challenge of getting the best out of your electronics, the Philips is the set for you. But remember, if you are preapred to wait 6 months or a year the current price of £1800 will almost certainly fall.

 

[Anonymous]

Harrowman, thanks for your input. Indeed I am currently going back and forth between Sony ( W5500 &Z5800) and Philips (9664 and latest 7674) . What you wrote about calibration just confirmed my feeling that maintenance of Philips 9704 and maybe even others requires constant playing with settings for different channels and or calibration everyone of them. Taking into account that currently we have around 120 channels that could be a bit of the experience I am not willing to spend my time on. Though going astray a bit I also had a feeling that Sonies have a bit better contrast, blacks and colours, while Philips 9664, 9704 in particular are better with sharpness and sound. Though I am not sure that those sharpness would survive SD material, especially considering that one can play with sharpness option on Sony as well. Going to dealer shop and will check it thoroughly today.

 

[Anonymous]

Hazarin I think you misunderstood my explanation about calibration. You only have to calibrate for each input. For example I use HDMI1 for my Humax. Once this is calibrated it is good for every SD channel. If you use HDMI 2 for your Blueray you might have to separately calibrate this input although the changes are minimal. I have finished "playing" with the calibration now and am very happy with the results. Whether you opt for the Sony 5500 or the 9704 is up to you but personally I am pleased with my choice of the Philips. By the way the sharpness settting is irrelevant. I have my sharpness set to zero. As you increase the sharpness you get more pixellation of edges.

 

[Deleted member 2457]

Harrowman:Hazarin I think you misunderstood my explanation about calibration. You only have to calibrate for each input. For example I use HDMI1 for my Humax. Once this is calibrated it is good for every SD channel. If you use HDMI 2 for your Blueray you might have to separately calibrate this input although the changes are minimal. I have finished "playing" with the calibration now and am very happy with the results. Whether you opt for the Sony 5500 or the 9704 is up to you but personally I am pleased with my choice of the Philips. By the way the sharpness settting is irrelevant. I have my sharpness set to zero. As you increase the sharpness you get more pixellation of edges.

Are there any factory settings?

Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

OK, Harrowman, I am a serial TV user mainly interested in sports and whichever movies I can catch on the TV so 1 HDMI is enough for me. I took a look at the couple of sites and would like to share with you some settings calibrated by one guy in Denmark and other in Germany. Could you please take a look and evaluate how far they from what you are using. Cheers.

Danish:

Measurements after calibration:


After calibration Profile: Personal Contrast 50 Lighting: 60 Color: 50 Sharpness: 0 Noise: Off
Hue Hot Perfect Natural Motion Off / On 200 Hz Clear LCD
On/Off
Advanced Sharpness Off Dynamic Contrast Off
Dynamic Backlight Best picture MPEG artefact reduction Off Color Enhancement Off Light Sensor Off

As you see majority of options were turned off to get a nice calibrated picture.


Out-of-Box After calibration Black Level 0.02 cd/m2 0.02 cd/m2 Brightness (Brightness) 196 cd/m2 144 cd/m2 Contrast Ratio 9800:1 7200:1

​

Though blacks and contrast ratio are indeed quite good. Never mind that poor humans could not see a difference in contrast between 1000 and 7000. But this is a separate issue.

 

[Anonymous]

OK Hazarin for what it's worth here are my current settings for HDMI 1

Smart Setting, Personal, Picture Settings: Contrast 77, Brightness, 63, Colour, 34, Hue (Not needed with PAL), Sharpness,0, Noise reduction,off, Tint, Normal, Light Sensor, off, Perfect Pixel Settings: Perfect natural motion, Max, 200Hz Clear LCD, On, Advanced sharpness, Off, Dynamic Contrast, Off, Dynamic Backlight, Best Picture, MPEG Artifact reduction Off, Colour Enhancement Off (Very important this setting)

The settings for my Sony Blueray player are the same except for Contrast, 87, Brightness 50, Colour, 45.

Hope this helps

 

[Anonymous]

I reviewed best settings for 9704 from a couple of other sources and can confirm that the best picture comes with the all advanced options turned off. This begs philosophical question why they are there at all, and whether simple privilege of turning them off justifies additional substantial price tag. Actually I found official reviews from Televisionsdotcom where they also confirm my observation on the pink push. Funny that best picture settings were copied 1 to 1 from german audiovision site. Anyway looks like both Philips and shop owners do not make themselves any favours by putting those supersets before general public without any additional thought to calibrate them properly and get best possible picture. In conclusion looks like before doing proper evaluation of any TV set in the shop one has to find proper settings, bring them to the shop and start playing right there. I think selling personnel will soon evict me for messing with their equipment. Oh well. It is all for the noble cause...