Don't tell the wife but i'm tempted to upgrade the TV

[pmanson]

Our 32" Toshiba 32WL66 has given over three years of faithful service (thanks Der) but since that purchase we have moved house and the viewing distance has doubled (now approx 11-11.5 ft away).

As we're not going out as much due to a recent new addition to the family, I am seriously considering battering the credit card early in the new year and purchasing a new TV and blu-ray player.

I think 42" would be perfect as it would need to be wall mounted between the speakers that are mounted on the wall.

I'd also like to get a blu-ray player as that would allow to move the existing dvd player upstairs with the TV.

It would need to be able to work with my Media Centre PC as well (HDMI connection).

Current sources:
Onkyo 605
Virgin V+
Pioneer DVD Player
Media Centre PC

Budget wise all in his a max of £700 but if I could get it for less that would be great.

Edited by pmanson on Monday 14th December 15:39

[LocoBlade]

That wish list seems tailor made for the Panny 42" G10 with free Bluray player at £699 from John Lewis, if the offer's still running.

[pmanson]

LocoBlade said:

That wish list seems tailor made for the Panny 42" G10 with free Bluray player at £699 from John Lewis, if the offer's still running.

I popped down to Richer Sounds at lunchtime as the S10 version would maybe suit my needs slightly better (£599) and leave me some money over to get a Blu-Ray player at a later date.

Dare I say it though the LG screens (both 1080i and 1080p) look very good and I'm wondering that as we sit approx 11ft away would we be better going for the 50"?

Saying that i'm slightly limited by how much space I have between the screen and the speakers - I know a 42" will fit in nicely but a 50" may be pushing it slightly.

Cheers,
Phill

[Rico]

Risky place to discuss this! Last time we visited you, Amy was on PH!!!

[Rico]

pmanson said:

Saying that i'm slightly limited by how much space I have between the screen and the speakers - I know a 42" will fit in nicely but a 50" may be pushing it slightly.

This is the bigger issue I think. You sit a similar distance to us and I found my 42 too small after a few months. Now crave a 50 but it's a dangeous slope of upgrading!

Or you could just destroy a wall again by moving the speakers.

[TonyHetherington]

I view a 42" G10 from 7.5ft away and it's just right -- so 50" from 11ft away will be perfect also.

They do a 50" G10 I believe.

[pmanson]

Rico said:

pmanson said:

Saying that i'm slightly limited by how much space I have between the screen and the speakers - I know a 42" will fit in nicely but a 50" may be pushing it slightly.

This is the bigger issue I think. You sit a similar distance to us and I found my 42 too small after a few months. Now crave a 50 but it's a dangeous slope of upgrading!

Or you could just destroy a wall again by moving the speakers.

I'm not listening! lalala

[LocoBlade]

Ive not had chance to try much HD other than BBC HD via Freesat, but having just upgraded from a 28" widescreen CRT to a 42G10 and watching from a similar distance, I think for the vast majority of my viewing (Sky SD), a 42" is fine.

I know the purists will baulk at that and say you need at least a 60" from 10-12ft and obviously for HD the bigger the better, but IMHO anything bigger would likely mean having to put up with slightly degraded SD picture quality, because if I sit a lot closer I do start to notice the limitations in SD picture quality especially when the transmission bitrate isnt so I suspect the same would occur on a bigger screen, but from a greater distance.

Edited by LocoBlade on Tuesday 15th December 14:18

[PJ S]

There's always the 46G10 as a halfway house.

[pmanson]

The problem is that in the store the 42" looked tiny and the 32" was just lost...

If there is room I might try and get a 50" in. The TV is mounted on the wall so the phyiscal width shouldn't be an issue (it's above a sofa) the only issue will be if there is enough room between the speakers mounted on the wall



Some more pics here to give you an idea of the size of the room.

[TonyHetherington]

So the question is not "do I need a new TV", but instead "What size TV do I need - 42, 46 or 50"?

[pmanson]

TonyHetherington said:

So the question is not "do I need a new TV", but instead "What size TV do I need - 42, 46 or 50"?

Yep!

With advise on how to sneak said purchase past the wife!

[TonyHetherington]

Simply put it up one day, and when she's watching Eastenders and says "has that TV got bigger" just say "no, think you're imagining it".

Perfect!!

[pstruck]

Somewhat bizarrely in our debate whether to get a 46" or a 50" it is actually the wife encouraging me to get the larger of the two.

I've cut two sheets of cardboard accurately representing the size of both sets and the 50 does look huuuge, but then I'm sure we'd get used to it.

I don't know. Women and their obsession with more inches!!!!

[pmanson]

I've just measured the viewing distance and it's 3m (just under 10ft).

A 50" will fit in but I think it may look a bit too big (and will involve lowering the centre speaker)

[Rico]

pmanson said:

A 50" will fit in but I think it may look a bit too big

Be nice for Amy for something to look "too big" in the Manson household.

But seriously, get the 50. The 42 will be fine, but we're blokes and gadgets should always be bigger, more expensive and cooler than is necessary.

[gbbird]

Phill,

being familiar with your house, i honestly believe a 50" will be way too big for the room. A 42 (or maybe a 46 at a stretch) would be ample for you. Plus remember there plenty of other good TVs out there other than Panasonic, which are the only things that get recommended on here nowadays. I would think that if your TV is to be hooked up to your PC/Media centre, a 1080p LCD might be the better option over plasma.

Also remember that the dimensions of sets with the same screen size do differ (sometimes by 2-3 inches), so might be worth getting the exact set measurements and doing what an earlier poster suggested - cutting out some cardboard to the set size and placing it on your wall.

A sensibly priced 1080p LCD TV and a PS3 would be well within your budget

g

Edited by gbbird on Wednesday 16th December 10:04

[TonyHetherington]

pstruck said:

Somewhat bizarrely in our debate whether to get a 46" or a 50" it is actually the wife encouraging me to get the larger of the two.

I've cut two sheets of cardboard accurately representing the size of both sets and the 50 does look huuuge, but then I'm sure we'd get used to it.

I don't know. Women and their obsession with more inches!!!!

Do make sure to draw the screen size on the inside of that carboard too. I did the same thing, and it is slightly misleading if you have 2" of black around the edge of the screen all the way round. So think of both the size of the tele, and the size of the screen.

[pmanson]

gbbird said:

Phill,

being familiar with your house, i honestly believe a 50" will be way too big for the room. A 42 (or maybe a 46 at a stretch) would be ample for you. Plus remember there plenty of other good TVs out there other than Panasonic, which are the only things that get recommended on here nowadays. I would think that if your TV is to be hooked up to your PC/Media centre, a 1080p LCD might be the better option over plasma.

Also remember that the dimensions of sets with the same screen size do differ (sometimes by 2-3 inches), so might be worth getting the exact set measurements and doing what an earlier poster suggested - cutting out some cardboard to the set size and placing it on your wall.

A sensibly priced 1080p LCD TV and a PS3 would be well within your budget

g

Edited by gbbird on Wednesday 16th December 10:04

I think i'm lucky in the fact that the TV is mounted above the sofa so the difference between a 42" and 50" will be negligible.

I might pop up to Richer Sounds again at lunchtime and have another look.

[pstruck]

TonyHetherington said:

pstruck said:

Somewhat bizarrely in our debate whether to get a 46" or a 50" it is actually the wife encouraging me to get the larger of the two.

I've cut two sheets of cardboard accurately representing the size of both sets and the 50 does look huuuge, but then I'm sure we'd get used to it.

I don't know. Women and their obsession with more inches!!!!

Do make sure to draw the screen size on the inside of that carboard too. I did the same thing, and it is slightly misleading if you have 2" of black around the edge of the screen all the way round. So think of both the size of the tele, and the size of the screen.

Did this. It certainly helps. Its easy to say that the 50 is only marginally smaller than the 46, but the overall increase in dimensions is significant and in my case I think it looks too big.

Wish Panasonic made a 46V10, as this would make my own choice sooo much easier.