Plasma, LCD, OLED, LED, best tv for next gen

Speaking of old plasmas, if any GAFer in Norway is interested in a Panasonic 50" VT20 cheap'ish, let me know. No space in the bedroom :)
 
Actually how many TVs other than Sony W8/W9 series use strobing ?
W600A's, W650A's, W680A's and W700B's.

In all seriousness, some professional BVM LCD's which is where it spun of.

And I'm not aware of any other manufacturer currently pulling it so I'm confident saying none. Some might be looking into it though, I wouldn't be surprised to see Panasonic jumping on that bandwagon fast.
 
Strobing is not very useful at the mo. The image is way too dark no matter how much you try to brighten it up. If they can fix that in the future somehow then it'd be truly miraculous tech, despite the yellow trails and the slight flickering.
 
I just got the Sony KDL 55W900a tv I got some good calibrations but I'm having issues with sound and my ps4. I got VIZIO S4251w-B4 5.1 Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer and Satellite Speakers. What is the best way to hook into it? Digital output or hdmi...if HDMI how to set up the tv to do hdmi out? There is not port that says hdmi out...so I guess it's a setting...

More info:

I have a ps4 going into hdmi, then going out digital output. Sony ps4 has 4 sound settings Pcm, dolby and dts what should I use.

Any advice would be great. Or any settings I have to change with the ps4 or tv to get the best sound.
 
The ZT60 is probably the best plasma TV in existence, and that might be the case forever. The difference with the VT60 is not too big apparently though, the biggest thing is less reflections.
If the price difference is not too big for you and you still see the VT60 available, I should take a look at it. If money really is not a problem, definitely go for the ZT60.

Thanks! The VT60 and ZT60 seems to cost nearly the same where I live.

That first thing you said is why I'm tempted to buy now. I could probably live with that set for the rest of this gaming generation.
 
I have a Sony 55 inch 900W. Best TV for gaming I have ever owned. Very little input lag and great colour space. It's a LED TV. If you haven't decided, I highly recommend looking into this TV.
 
I just got the Sony KDL 55W900a tv I got some good calibrations but I'm having issues with sound and my ps4. I got VIZIO S4251w-B4 5.1 Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer and Satellite Speakers. What is the best way to hook into it? Digital output or hdmi...if HDMI how to set up the tv to do hdmi out? There is not port that says hdmi out...so I guess it's a setting...

More info:

I have a ps4 going into hdmi, then going out digital output. Sony ps4 has 4 sound settings Pcm, dolby and dts what should I use.

Any advice would be great. Or any settings I have to change with the ps4 or tv to get the best sound.

The Vizio doesn't have HDMI in, so you need to Optical Out from the W900a into the Surround Sound Bar. From there it can read DTS or Dolby Digital, so choose bitstream.

You are lucky you chose such a great TV as the W900a passes 5.1 through the optical out, 95% of TV's only pass 2.0 through the optical port. Enjoy!

Looking for an LED 50 inch to replace my 40 inch Samsung. Don't want to spend more than $1000. 3D and Smart TV would be nice but not necessary. Looking for decent lag times and 120 hz. Don't know if 240 hz is mandatory or not now days.

Was looking at http://www.abt.com/product/68810/Sony-KDL50R550A.html

That's a good choice for your needs and wants.
 
The Vizio doesn't have HDMI in, so you need to Optical Out from the W900a into the Surround Sound Bar. From there it can read DTS or Dolby Digital, so choose bitstream.

You are lucky you chose such a great TV as the W900a passes 5.1 through the optical out, 95% of TV's only pass 2.0 through the optical port. Enjoy!

Since the PS4 has optical out he should just hook up the PS4 to the soundbar. No need to go trough the TV first.
 
Maybe it is just because in game mode..

Sometimes dark hard edges that move fast make a subtle blue/purple blur when in motion.
What's that about?
 
VT60 is better for gamers. Less input lag than the ZT60.

I didn't know about that. How much is the difference and could you link a source?

They were way out of my price range, so I had not really paid too much attention to that if that is the case, but I am still interested.

It also is a bit weird for me since I thought they barely had any differences. Especially ones that would influence input lag.
 
The TV outputs 5.1 surround sound through the optical, it's better to run everything into the TV and output it all through the optical. You can use the w900a like a receiver in this instance.

It's unlikely that it will pass on the PS4 signal in 5.1, likely only 2.0. That's what most TVs does with HDMI input sound.
 
W900 will pass it as 5.1, I've verified that as fact through my own.

I think alot of sony tv's pass 5.1 sound though optical. I know mine does and it is an old model (40W5500). Most brands didnt at that time when I bought mine. Dont know how it is now though.

This thread actually makes me wanna upgrade my tv, damnit!
 
I see you are correct. No VT60s in the country as far as I can see. Only ZT60 :(

I picked up a VT in the middle of January and a week later they were sold out on Amazon except for 3rd party retailers charging $3k+ for them.

My buddy apparently picked up the last one in the midwest earlier this month. After calling everywhere in the 5 bordering states around us he managed to find an open box model. I think they're pretty much extinct now.
 
The TV outputs 5.1 surround sound through the optical, it's better to run everything into the TV and output it all through the optical. You can use the w900a like a receiver in this instance.

Not necessarily true. Blu rays for instance have sound quality higher than what can be transferred through an optical cable. Hdmi to a receiver capable of accepting it then sending the video to the tv is still the best option.
 
I picked up a VT in the middle of January and a week later they were sold out on Amazon except for 3rd party retailers charging $3k+ for them.

My buddy apparently picked up the last one in the midwest earlier this month. After calling everywhere in the 5 bordering states around us he managed to find an open box model. I think they're pretty much extinct now.

Had the same happen for my buddy. RIP panny plasma. I'll be hanging on to my vt25 for a long time.
 
Not exactly true.
It still kinda is.

There's one extra fan on the back, speakers are back facing on the ZT60 rather than front facing like with the VT60, the usb and hdmi ports are gold plated, the anti-glare filter is different and is applied directly adjacent to the panel nuking the "air box" (the panel though, is the very same, it's just the finishing that varies) and... There's an option to turn off the power LED whilst the TV is on, which is good for absolute darkness et all, but you can pull the same with black tape.

That's it.
 
It still kinda is.

There's one extra fan on the back, speakers are back facing on the ZT60 rather than front facing like with the VT60, the usb and hdmi ports are gold plated, the anti-glare filter is different and is applied directly adjacent to the panel nuking the "air box" (the panel though, is the very same, it's just the finishing that varies) and... There's an option to turn off the power LED whilst the TV is on, which is good for absolute darkness et all, but you can pull the same with black tape.

That's it.

Wait that power led option sounds pretty cool. I hate that thing on my VT60. Should be somewhere in the service menu for the VT60 I reckon. I will hunt it down.

Used some black tape on the VT30 and VT50 I had. That is no option on the VT60 with that glass line though.
 
Used some black tape on the VT30 and VT50 I had. That is no option on the VT60 with that glass line though.
Ah, you're right, the light goes through the glass/acrylic rim thing, which makes it harder to mask it.

Had never thought of that as it doesn't bother me much.

But yeah, on the ZT60 it appears on the menus, and while it doesn't bother me the fact said option is conspicuously absent on every other panny 2013 plasma definitely strikes me as silly, maybe even petty.
 
Hi guys, so I am in the market for a new TV. Looking to spend about 1500 - 2500 dollars on a 60 - 70 inch TV. I just started doing research, but I am not interested in the 3D capabilities whatsoever. Can you guys help me get started with some recommendations? I am open to both Plasma and LED.

Thanks a lot!
 
Ah, you're right, the light goes through the glass/acrylic rim thing, which makes it harder to mask it.

Had never thought of that as it doesn't bother me much.

But yeah, on the ZT60 it appears on the menus, and while it doesn't bother me the fact said option is conspicuously absent on every other panny 2013 plasma definitely strikes me as silly, maybe even petty.

What menu is this in? I looked high and low for it back when it released and it is not there. Which region are you talking about because I'm fairly certain it is not on US region models.
 
What menu is this in? I looked high and low for it back when it released and it is not there. Which region are you talking about because I'm fairly certain it is not on US region models.

HDTVtest.co.uk mentioned it in their review so it should definitely be on the UK model.
 
I got w900a a couple months ago and have noticed the text on my PS4 comes through as fuzzy, much more so compared to my Apple TV or Directv signal. All are connected through a receiver. I've updated both the TV and the PS4 to the newest firmware, which has helped a bit but it's still noticeable. Have others had this issue? Does it sound like a calibration issue? Thanks in advance!
 
Ouch - So much for wanting to wait for OLED :(

Gaming Performance

We measured the input lag at 138ms in the calibrated Expert1 mode and 54ms in the Game mode. We tried renaming the input to PC but this didn't make any difference, so 54ms is the lowest input lag we could measure. Whilst this is undoubtedly too high for the hard core gamers, it's probably fine for most people and it was slightly better than the lag on the Samsung OLED


http://www.avforums.com/review/lg-ea980-55ea980-curved-1080p-oled-tv-review.9969
 
Where did you find that info? Because I still doubt there is a significant difference, if there is any at all. The ZT60 is probably the better choice if prices are the same, it is a good thing.

Several online shops in Norway has them, for some reason. Like here.

But stock is getting lower I see. Last time I checked, the store said 50+ in stock. Now it's 5+.
 
Ouch - So much for wanting to wait for OLED :(

Gaming Performance

We measured the input lag at 138ms in the calibrated Expert1 mode and 54ms in the Game mode. We tried renaming the input to PC but this didn't make any difference, so 54ms is the lowest input lag we could measure. Whilst this is undoubtedly too high for the hard core gamers, it's probably fine for most people and it was slightly better than the lag on the Samsung OLED


http://www.avforums.com/review/lg-ea980-55ea980-curved-1080p-oled-tv-review.9969

So? Just like today there will be good and bad sets for gaming. It's not like every LCD and Plasma is good these days either.

There will be low input lag OLED's. People will still shit their pants though because of burn-in. OLED is really more of a successor to Plasma. Let the masses stick to LCD.
 
So? Just like today there will be good and bad sets for gaming. It's not like every LCD and Plasma is good these days either.

There will be low input lag OLED's. People will still shit their pants though because of burn-in. OLED is really more of a successor to Plasma. Let the masses stick to LCD.

What you mean so? Am I not allowed to air a slight bit of disapointment, I own a decent LG2012 tv, with decent input lag of 16ms, fantastic tv, but still looking forward to a time when I can upgrade, I was hoping a 4k OLED at some point with next to no input lag and motion blur. Kind of looks further away now.

Basically I am stuck between a rock and a hard place. Any TV I buy now has to be future proofed to 4k surely and Plasmas are on their way out.
 
Which is why I went with the VT60. The picture is too similar to give up that 5" difference. I would have paid real monies for the 65ZT60.
I have a 65VT60 as well and I sure wouldn't.

They're pretty much the same thing and I ain't buying a plasma for bright room performance, if I was I'd go Samsung F8500 all over my tits, hence the advantage is null.

I value the front facing speakers and lower price more.


Then again I barely had money for it so it's not like I made a choice, if anything I would have liked to be able to afford a 42GT60 as well for my gaming room (and couldn't).

I don't envision in any circuntance deeming the difference for a ZT60 in europe as worthy. I hear in US it's a different story, but I still think the VT60 is the better model due to said speaker advantage.
(...) I was hoping a 4k OLED at some point with next to no input lag and motion blur. Kind of looks further away now.

(...) Any TV I buy now has to be future proofed to 4k surely and Plasmas are on their way out.
4K is a sham, you don't need a TV to comply for that kind of shit. At the ideal sitting distance all the additional detail will be gone.

Case in point, take a 55" 4K OLED, it's retina/300 dpi @ 5.22 feet or 1.60 meters, if you hit 7.5 feet or 2.30 meters there's no difference between that and a regular 1080p. Now look at actual view distance recommendations (the ones that state ideal viewing distance is 30º of your optical range) and for 55" it's 8.2 Feet or 2.50 meters. I said it and I'll say it again, 4K is a sham even if there's little doubt it's the "future" because of all things public understands more pixels is one of them, the fact they can't take them in is besides the point if they can get close to the apparel in a store and *gasp* see more pixels. They'll won't sit closer from said TV at home though, why? Because it makes no motherfucking sense to do so.

So the only advantage is a bigger color gamut because LCD's are actually limited on that front, specially crappy ones (some TN panels can't even hit 16 bit color). By having more pixels and a look up table they can unleash more colors via dithering and counting on your eyes to mix that detail additively, because there's no way you can take in all that detail without sitting real close, and they're counting on that, which is why 4K proposed video formats are bound to have less macroblock detail than current 2K ones (and still no fucking 4:4:4 support). Why do you think they're marketing them with ultra high definition colourful pictures? precisely. Also why Sharp is promising delivering the very same at ideal sitting distance by adding a 4th subpixel (RGBY, red, green, blue, yellow, plus double brightness per color), because the issue is NOT actual pixel definition - every TV at ideal sitting distance is already Apple "Retina", it's down top motherfucking color gamut.

Buy a 4K receiver that converts signal eventually and stick with a good TV (either something triluminos, quattron OR plasma) now and you're good to go. Screw marketing, seriously.

Not even TV reviewer dudes can tell them apart 95% of the time, including with them running 4K content. And right now despite the fact that for 1080p they only need to splatter a source pixel across 4 of them they either do force undefeatable sharpening (Samsung and LG TV's) or they can't even pull 1080p without using a scretchy "Mastered in 4K" option that means the TV now has limited bandwhich which manifests itself in a totally different manner and it sucks balls. Only Panasonic dodged those bullets so far, but no look up table for extra 2K color reproduction on LCD yet and no H.265 4K support on any of those. It's a trainwreck as of now, but if you want to pay more for something that really is less future proof (and less of a good TV) than some 2K alternatives out there whilst being actually worse at displaying 1080p signal which is for all means and purposes it's intended diet as of now... Well, it's your call.

You're not stuck between a rock and a hard place.
 
^^Major Nelson in the house folks. I wouldn't buy a new TV right now either, but I will get a 50" 4K set someday, and I have a feeling the difference will be pretty obvious between it and my 50" panny plasma.
 
I got w900a a couple months ago and have noticed the text on my PS4 comes through as fuzzy, much more so compared to my Apple TV or Directv signal. All are connected through a receiver. I've updated both the TV and the PS4 to the newest firmware, which has helped a bit but it's still noticeable. Have others had this issue? Does it sound like a calibration issue? Thanks in advance!

I don't have this issue. Have you updated your TV software? Sounds like a setting is wack.
 
Not necessarily true. Blu rays for instance have sound quality higher than what can be transferred through an optical cable. Hdmi to a receiver capable of accepting it then sending the video to the tv is still the best option.
His sound bar doesn't do this. It is always best to run through a receiver if possible but many don't have setups for this. His surround sound bar only accepts optical and the point of the bar is to not have a receiver. The w900 can handle the downscale of HDMI audio to 5.1 optical.
 
It's unlikely that it will pass on the PS4 signal in 5.1, likely only 2.0. That's what most TVs does with HDMI input sound.
I have a w900a and do this. Everything into the TV with HDMI and one optical out to old school HTIB for surround sound in my office. Big reason I love the TV as most TVs only output stereo via optical which you stated.
 
that is a handy feature. I didn't realize any TV's could do this. I've just set up an hdmi 1.4 receiver set up with a new tv for a friend. He uses the netflix app on the tv a lot and wants to use it instead of the PS3 app, so I need to figure out the best way to get sound from the TV back to the receiver. He's basically too lazy to use the PS3 app, even though it runs through the receiver and would have 5.1.
 
Real talk, dudes. I am kicking myself for not jumping on the ZT bandwagon some months ago, even if the set would just live in its box for a year. But I am gonna get a house some time soon I bet and I need another TV that'll be my primary media set and this is the worst timing ever.

So in a post-Panasonic world, what are my options? Samsung plasma? Is that it? For movies, TV, games, the works. I've read so much anti-LCD shit that I can't even think about picking one up. I've always been a Viera junky.

Should I shell out 3K+ for one of the last ZT's on the market and sit on it? Or are there really options out there that won't make me sick to have to settle for?

[Edit] Ugh god it was like 2700 on amazon when I was looking at it shortly after it got discontinued, now it's almost 4k. I can't rationalize this kind of expense at all.

I just cannot believe that "they stopped making great TVs" is even a thing that could even happen.
 
Real talk, dudes. I am kicking myself for not jumping on the ZT bandwagon some months ago, even if the set would just live in its box for a year. But I am gonna get a house some time soon I bet and I need another TV that'll be my primary media set and this is the worst timing ever.

So in a post-Panasonic world, what are my options? Samsung plasma? Is that it? For movies, TV, games, the works. I've read so much anti-LCD shit that I can't even think about picking one up. I've always been a Viera junky.

Should I shell out 3K+ for one of the last ZT's on the market and sit on it? Or are there really options out there that won't make me sick to have to settle for?
Samsung Plasma is next best option if you don't mind the Samsung stink. After that, Sony W900 or X900.
 
Top Bottom