- Mar 25, 2009
- 6,295
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I've been thinking about upgrading my 10-year-old home cinema setup, which currently includes a Sony VPL-HW40ES 1080p projector and a Panasonic 50VT65 1080p plasma TV. While I recently upgraded my AV receiver to a Denon X6400H—which supports 4K—I’d been holding off on other changes.
A couple of months ago, I replaced my subwoofer with the SVS PB2000 Pro from Richer Sounds. When I asked them about trade-in options, they offered a modest £30 discount instead. That conversation led to a discussion about upgrading to a 4K projector, and I ended up arranging a demo of Optoma and Sony models (there's a separate thread on that).
Our Panasonic plasma has been solid over the years, though it's definitely lost some brightness. At one point, I considered ditching the projector altogether and going for a 98-inch TV. But in the end, we decided to stick with a dual TV/projector setup. That led us to the decision to add a 77-inch OLED to the mix.
Here were my main contenders:
1. Philips 909 – Loved the 4-sided Ambilight and MLA panel, but it doesn't support BBC iPlayer and was pricey (Richer Sounds exclusive, so no chance of a price match).
2. LG G4 – Flagship OLED with MLA. Not a huge fan of WebOS or the pointy remote, but those are minor gripes.
3. LG C4 – Probably the best value/performance combo of the bunch.
4. Samsung S95D – The standout feature is the matte screen, which is crucial since the TV will sit opposite a bay window. My father-in-law already struggles with glare on the current Panasonic, often having to close the curtains.
5. Samsung S90D – Considered this as an outside option if the price was right. Glossy screen like the LG and Philips models.
6. Philips 809 – Three-sided Ambilight doesn’t make much sense for a wall-mounted setup; might work better on a stand.
Initially, I was happy to go with a mid-range OLED like the LG C4, especially since I already have a projector for movie nights. My plan was to get RS to price match the LG website’s £1759 offer. But once I started digging into discounts, I found good deals on most models—except the Philips 909.
I visited the Richer Sounds store yesterday for a casual in-store demo of all the shortlisted models (except the S90D and Philips 909). What really impressed me was the S95D’s anti-glare coating—it was incredibly effective without sacrificing picture quality. I also had access to a great NHS discount via Samsung’s website, bringing the price down to £2309, plus they were throwing in a free portable projector. Richer Sounds agreed to beat that by £20.
So in the end, I ordered both the Sony VPL-XW5000ES projector (ex-demo, with a 6-year RS warranty) and the Samsung 77-inch S95D OLED. Very excited to see how it all comes together!
A couple of months ago, I replaced my subwoofer with the SVS PB2000 Pro from Richer Sounds. When I asked them about trade-in options, they offered a modest £30 discount instead. That conversation led to a discussion about upgrading to a 4K projector, and I ended up arranging a demo of Optoma and Sony models (there's a separate thread on that).
Our Panasonic plasma has been solid over the years, though it's definitely lost some brightness. At one point, I considered ditching the projector altogether and going for a 98-inch TV. But in the end, we decided to stick with a dual TV/projector setup. That led us to the decision to add a 77-inch OLED to the mix.
Here were my main contenders:
1. Philips 909 – Loved the 4-sided Ambilight and MLA panel, but it doesn't support BBC iPlayer and was pricey (Richer Sounds exclusive, so no chance of a price match).
2. LG G4 – Flagship OLED with MLA. Not a huge fan of WebOS or the pointy remote, but those are minor gripes.
3. LG C4 – Probably the best value/performance combo of the bunch.
4. Samsung S95D – The standout feature is the matte screen, which is crucial since the TV will sit opposite a bay window. My father-in-law already struggles with glare on the current Panasonic, often having to close the curtains.
5. Samsung S90D – Considered this as an outside option if the price was right. Glossy screen like the LG and Philips models.
6. Philips 809 – Three-sided Ambilight doesn’t make much sense for a wall-mounted setup; might work better on a stand.
Initially, I was happy to go with a mid-range OLED like the LG C4, especially since I already have a projector for movie nights. My plan was to get RS to price match the LG website’s £1759 offer. But once I started digging into discounts, I found good deals on most models—except the Philips 909.
I visited the Richer Sounds store yesterday for a casual in-store demo of all the shortlisted models (except the S90D and Philips 909). What really impressed me was the S95D’s anti-glare coating—it was incredibly effective without sacrificing picture quality. I also had access to a great NHS discount via Samsung’s website, bringing the price down to £2309, plus they were throwing in a free portable projector. Richer Sounds agreed to beat that by £20.
So in the end, I ordered both the Sony VPL-XW5000ES projector (ex-demo, with a 6-year RS warranty) and the Samsung 77-inch S95D OLED. Very excited to see how it all comes together!
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