Sony 32V5500, Faulty or an awful TV?

[ewing_82]

I have had a 32v5000 for about 3 months now and it is either faulty or a shocking TV, but I need to figure out which. When I first got the TV I noticed some issues but as I didn’t have Sky HD or A Blu Ray player (which I do now) I could not be sure if the TV was faulty, also we had our first baby just after getting the TV, so time to get to the bottom of this has been limited!

The issue relates to Motion, I have already taken off all advanced settings, sharpness and have Backlight at 3, this removed issues with Judder however I get awful motion blur whenever the camera moves and even when people move, even when it’s a slow scene.

This is most noticeable on Sky HD channels and on Blu Ray. Say if I watch a documentary of the pyramids and there is a slow panning shot, the pyramids will completely blur and then when the camera stops the image is lovely and sharp. I have noticed this on all channels even on near static scenes.

I have the Bourne Trilogy on Blu Ray and they are almost unwatchable and make me feel sick the screen is always blurring. I also have 300 on Blu Ray and although not as noticeable (probably due to the way is was filmed) a good example of Blur is when a close up camera slowly pans the Spartans all locked in together and there is blur as it slowly scrolls over the unit.

Considering the What Hi-Fi comments on motion for this TV and its 5 Star rating you would assume my TV must be faulty? This said, a couple of days ago I went into a Sony centre and compared a V5500 and a W5500 side by side. The V there also seemed to display the same issues with Sky HD, whereas the W5500 series with 100hz handled much better.

I am further confused as many people like myself do not like the 100hz effect and turn it off (hence the reason I bought the V series). The thing is after going to the Sony centre it would seem the V5500 is completely incapable of handling motion and to watch TV you have no choice but to use 100hz.

Sorry for the really long post but the past three months I have become obsessed with getting to the bottom of this to the point of insanity. I am already gutted that I didn’t return within the first 14 days and now potentially stuck with an appalling TV.

Please can anyone feed back their experiences of this TV, I need closure before my head explodes or I take an axe to the TV?

Thank you Scott

 

[aliEnRIK]

I have a 46W5500 with motionflow off and dont get anything like what you describe

Are you SURE everythings switched off?

 

[ewing_82]

Hi thanks for your reply, I belive so, my TV settings are below. Sky output 1080i through QED Performance HDMI. Blu Ray (Sony BDP S360) 1080p through QED Performance HDMI and 24p set to auto for Blu Ray

Backlight 3
Contrast: 85
Brightness: 55
Colour: 50
Colour Temp: Warm 1
Sharpness: 3
NR: Off
MPEG: Off
Film Mode: Auto 1

Advanced Settings:
Black corrector: Off
Adv Con Enhancer: Off
Gamma: Standard
Auto Light Limiter: Off
Clear white: Off
Live colour: Off
White Balance: All 0

 

[Anonymous]

i watched district 9 on blu-ray the other day , on a 360 , on a friends sony 46v4000 , a 2008 model , with no 100hz ,i did notice some judder , and slight blurring on some panning shots , but on the whole it was very watchable , i recently had a samsung 46b650 , with 100hz , and never seen such issues on that , perhaps you should have got the w .....

 

[ewing_82]

mmmm....I'm already at the satge that I regret not buying the W, however I struggle to believe that the V Series could be this bad considering the Whathifi review.

In the November 32" Supertest although they gave the 100hz philips top place they state if your short list is two then it should be the Sony and Philips, this pushing the 50hz Sony ahead of the 100hz LG!

I think the 2008 V was a noticable step down from the 2008 W however the 2009 V was not only the next generation with Bravia 3 engine, the only thing different on the spec between the 2009 V and W is the 100hz motion flow. Also seeing that this TV is only 32" I would have thought any inperfection in picture quality would have been less obvious than on a 40+"....maybe not?

If the TV is poor because it's only 50hz then I cant see why any 50hz could get 5 stars. It would seem that 100hz is the minimun required to get a proper picture?

 

[ewing_82]

I would just like to state that I am no conspiracy theorist and I am not doubting the WHFI review team. Neither am I anti LCD or Sony. I am just trying to figure out if my specific TV (not the whole series) is faulty or maybe my expectations transitioning from CRT to LCD are too high!

If the TV is faulty I can try and get it fixed, but i do not want to be without a TV for however long only to be told that is what the TV should be like.

 

[Sizzers]

I can't say that I'm having such issues with my set-up, although I've only spun a couple of BD's and I don't have Sky (HD or otherwise).

How does it perform with terrestial SD TV and DVD's?

 

[sonycentre]

Hi ewing 82.......try these settings.

backlight 3

contrast 75

brightness 50

colour 50

colour temp natuaral

sharpness 15

nr off

mpeg off

film mode off

advanced settings

black corrector med

black corrector med

adv con med

gamma standard

all off

clear white low

live colour wide

white balance off.

see how you get on with them settings.and let us know how you get on.hope this helps.

 

[Anonymous]

There is frankly nothing wrong with Sony V series TV. Other review articles from Future publcations also testify to the quality of this TV. As a 32 inch there is no need for any motion blur wizardary.

What you may have is TV with a 'Toyota syndrome' - in the case of the TV, a dodgy panel with unacceptable response time and lag.

Is it a fault? You bet. One that got through the net of some wayward QA checks in Sloavia - sleeping on the job??

 

[ewing_82]

Hi, thanks for your replies. Sony Centre, I have tried your settings and I must admit the picture seems (not sure if imagining this it is getting late) more stable with less blur though the issue is still there on both TV and Blu Ray. I am not sure if this is due to the advanced corrector and Enhancer or that the film mode is off? Do you?

Either way, this seems strange as the cinema preset for this TV uses Film Mode 1 and only low contrast corrector. Also when ever talking about callibration, it seems according to forums and sites that you should turn off all advanced features etc, saying that I have always wondered if that's what a Sony professional would do or if they would utilize these advanced features.

I think there is improvement in the picture but need to check some more. Do you think that perhaps this TV is faulty and although improvements from your suggested settings may have been made, it's still only fudging over an underlying fault?

If Maxflintoff is right can this issue be fixed or should I really push for a replacement, even though sales of goods act doesn't give you this right if the product can be repaired?

Thanks for your help

 

[aliEnRIK]

For starters, FILM MODE should be set to 2 for EVERYTHING except blurays (24Hz material) which should have THEATRE mode switched on

Anything else means the frame rates arnt being read correctly

Have you switched off all the ECO settings? You really should

And I have to completely disagree with Sonys settings, most of those are ADDING processing which isnt needed

 

[sonycentre]

Ok then alienRIK,so tell me what do you think the theatre mode is then?.Its another prossesing mode that has been optimized by sony pictures.And the settings i gave were just a regarded set-up.If you really want to get into it,then i change picture modes on thing i watch at home,same as i use diffrent settings for sound set ups.

 

[aliEnRIK]

sonycentre:Ok then alienRIK,so tell me what do you think the theatre mode is then?.Its another prossesing mode that has been optimized by sony pictures.And the settings i gave were just a regarded set-up.If you really want to get into it,then i change picture modes on thing i watch at home,same as i use diffrent settings for sound set ups.

Fascinating, so what exactly does 'theatre' mode do then?

 

[ewing_82]

Alright now, lets share some love! : - P

From what I understand the theatre mode just selects cinema scene and certain audio settings and turns on the bravia synch. Unless you change the cinema scene presets then by pressing theatre you are selecting Film mode auto 1!

What I can't undertand is auto 1 is recomended for standard use, as it 'provides improved picture movement when playing DVD or VCR images taken on film, reducing picture blur and graininess'. What do they mean by film? camera recorded stuff rather than animation?

Also what is the point of Film mode auto 2 as surely the off mode does the same thing? Maybe its to make you feel like you are getting more for your money?

So anyway, regading the blur I get, is my TV likely to be faulty? Its most noticble on normal HD TV but still there on films and Blu Ray. If no one else gets this then I guess I got a dud TV?

 

[Andrew Everard]

You know, there are times when I am glad I'm watching BD movies on a five year old plasma that doesn't seem to exhibit any of these probs...

 

[Sizzers]

Worst blur on mine was the tennis ball during the Australian Open tennis, but then again it is travelling up to 140mph on serve.

 

[aliEnRIK]

ewing_82:

From what I understand the theatre mode just selects cinema scene and certain audio settings and turns on the bravia synch. Unless you change the cinema scene presets then by pressing theatre you are selecting Film mode auto 1!

What I can't undertand is auto 1 is recomended for standard use, as it 'provides improved picture movement when playing DVD or VCR images taken on film, reducing picture blur and graininess'. What do they mean by film? camera recorded stuff rather than animation?

Also what is the point of Film mode auto 2 as surely the off mode does the same thing? Maybe its to make you feel like you are getting more for your money?

Film mode 1 is specifically for 24Hz material (Blurays)

Film mode 2 is for everything else so that the frames are processed in the correct sequence

Film mode off is really not recommended for anything

 

[ewing_82]

Andrew, is this because you think LCD technology is flawed? 'They are more prone to technoloy issues? They don't make them like they use too', especially in a recession as they scrimp on the quality of parts? All three or none?

Alienrik, thanks for the description of Film Modes, its a shame the TV Manual isn't clearer

Sizzers, maybe we could ask the players to hit the ball a little less hard !

 

[Sizzers]

Why not phone your local authorised Sony service centre to ask their advice?

As I've said I don't have such extreme issues with my set, either on the 3 or 4 BD's I've played or on my DVD's so somethings not right.

 

[matthewpiano]

ewing_82:
Andrew, is this because you think LCD technology is flawed? 'They are more prone to technoloy issues? They don't make them like they use too', especially in a recession as they scrimp on the quality of parts? All three or none?

Alienrik, thanks for the description of Film Modes, its a shame the TV Manual isn't clearer

Sizzers, maybe we could ask the players to hit the ball a little less hard !

All the different TV technologies are flawed in one way or another. If they were perfect there would be no need to keep developing new ones!

In terms of motion I was having an interesting conversation with a customer yesterday. He commented that the motion seemed very smooth on camera pans etc. but that he could still detect a little blurring in very fast moving objects. I suggested to him that fast objects blur in real life, so why completely smooth out their movement on TV? It really poses the question, do we want natural pictures and motion on our TV screens or are we looking for an other-worldly perfection where everything is ultra-smooth, ultra-clean and colours never look dull?

 

[aliEnRIK]

ewing_82:

Alienrik, thanks for the description of Film Modes, its a shame the TV Manual isn't clearer

Completely agree with you there mate

 

[ewing_82]

I too do not have a problem with blur on fast movement as its natural and after all I bought a 50hz TV. My issue is blur where the screen pans slowly or some one is moving their head in an interview and there is blur. As it has been suggested I will contact my local Sony service centre. I would be intrested to know which Sony TV your customer liked the smooth panning on?

One last thing, The Sky HD channels that are the worst offenders are Disc HD, NatGeo HD and History HD. Do you think this could have something to do with their original broadcast being 60hz as these are basically all american programmes?

Thanks for all your advice

 

[sonycentre]

Hi ewing-82,Yes those channels will produce a softer picture.The kdl40z5500/5800 gives an outstanding picture,We have 1 50hz/v5500,100hz,w5500,and a z5500 200hz,and we show a blu-ray demo on fast panning shots,and customers do see the diffrence between the tvs,we sell a lot more z5500/5800 then v series tvs,but of course there is a big price diffrence.

 

[ewing_82]

I'm not surprised. I used to think more than 50hz sucked but now after experiencing HDTV and Blu Ray in my own home, I will definately pay more and get a better TV next time. Sadly my current TV just annoys making me which I saved more than £500.

By 'softer picture' is this a nice way of saying losing focus on ANY movement causing blur? The W series I saw in the Sony centre last week seemed the minimum standard you need to watch these channels....shame cause the documentary channels are my most watched channels.

 

[matthewpiano]

The TV my customer was looking at was a 32" V series. Its a very good TV for its price but obviously it isn't going to be as good as the W series, which is, after all, a more expensive set.

To pu it into context I'm still using a KDL32S2510. Motion wise its not quite as good as the V5500 but I find it perfectly enjoyable to watch and it is very rare that I notice any major motion issues.

If your motion problems are as big as they sound contacting the original retailer should be your first port of call. It is their responsibility to ensure that the set is performing to specification. Placing it next to their display model with both TVs on the same settings should show up any differences. The results of this check should then inform your next step.