DVI technical question

I'm not sure about France, but here in the UK I'd say don't buy a Panasonic THxxxx7 or Viera PHxxPE50 type screen as they are not really suited to HDTV due to DVI input frequency limitations. You can get a DVI-D or HDMI board for them, but they will not work with 50Hz (UK PAL) type stuff at HD resolutions 720p or 1080i, only at Standard Definition resolutions 576p (progressive) or 576i (interlaced). I know I have a TH42PW6! The High Definition resolutions only work at 60Hz, which will generally mean NTSC type stuff only or maybe nothing via DVI-D depending on your player.

If you're after a High Definition TV ready type screen and one that will work with a DVD5 with it's up and coming scaler then the best thing is to get the Pioneer PDP-xx5XDE or wait a few weeks for the up and coming and £600 cheaper Panasonic THxxPV500. Hope this helps and does not confuse further!

Thanks for the answer.
So, I have to check for DVI-HDCP or HDMI 50hz frequency but the technical docs don't give much infos about that ?

I am not HD-def interested for the moment because there is no choice and no (?) 1920*1080 native res to run with the futur 1080p Naim scaling upgrade card.
The other point is that numerical TV only comes to my town by march 2006. Initially, I wanted to keep my TV until then and jump directly to a hi-end HD screen with MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 on board digital tuner.
I think, I'll buy a "cheap" Plasma for a year to display 576@50hz only.

The best standard screen I've seen by far is the NEC VR5. In my view it's actually slightly better than the (HD) Pioneer 433! You can find the NEC for £1600 on the internet. The Panasonic 7th series is really not very good, showing that they've reduced quality as well as price.

I think you should consider carefully about the HD situation however. It's true that there isn't any HD out there right now (well, there's a German broadcast), but I believe it will take off when Sky get on board in 2006. And don't forget that the Sony Playstation 3 will be a Bluray machine...!

It may be better than the Pioneer 433, but isn't that a 3 year old model? Have you seen the NEC against the Pioneer 2005 model 435 or the now current Panasonic generation 8 screens?

Sorry I meant the 435...I have not seen the generation 8 Panasonics yet. I knew they were on the way, but I didn't realise they were here yet.

Yes the 8th generation is out in Viera guise. The Standard Definition 42" model TH42PE50 (852x480) is out now and the High Definition 42" model TH42PV500 (1024x768) is out in May. The non Viera type panel (no speakers ro tuner etc) is out later in the year, Sept sort of time I think.

I spent the afternoon watching walls of plasmas and the best image is the Sony XS1 (but it has no DVI or RGBHV input) then the Pioneer 435 range then ... nothing, my TV is better than any of them.

What do you think of the Sagem retro DLP Axium HD 45 (HD ready) 1280 x 720 matrix ? I have seen it with a PCHC displaying a 1080i image and it was bloody good. The only problem is the lenght of life of the lamp.
I have also found a good price for an old Philips 50PF9964 with DVI (HDCP ?) input and 1366 x 768 matrix but I haven't seen it working. Well ... 50" is really really huge ...

I have seen the specs of the Viera, it seems as good as the Pioneer and not that much expensive.
I have also seen that the last "cheap" LG 1024x768 plasmas where HD Ready. I have seen one of them yesterday and they are really not as good as they were supposed to be. The image completly lacks of 3D effect and color quality compared with the Pioneer and Sony ... they are also 30% cheaper.

The problem you have is that most places selling plasmas have them in large well-lit areas supplied by an analogue distributor feed which varies hugely from output to output. The only way to really guarantee fair results is to go around the shop with DVD player in hand and play DVDs. You should also view from the same distance each time and that distance should be at least 9 feet from the screen (also impossible in many cases) since the physical size of a plasma dot is approximately 0.5mm. Anything closer makes for a tiring viewing.

As for specifications, well, we all know that specifications always read as well as the manufacturer who prints them...

Demoing Plasmas is very tricky, as Frank says in most shops the setup is not ideal. I have to say that I have been singularly unimpressed with the Poineer PDP435XDE (despite the almost universal critical acclaim). Even watching "Finding Nemo" on HDMI I thought that the picture was grainy.
I'm leaning towards buying a cheaper, non-HD, screen for just now. The latest LG 42" screen is pretty impressive - especially for the £1300 that you can get them for. In a three or four years time I will probably be able to pick up an HD screen for half what the cost is now (maybe even LCD will be sorted by then) and then the LG can be relegated to bedroom viewing duties.

Personally I would never just demo a plasma with DVD. Some screens look fantastic with DVD, but not so amazing with SKY or Analogue TV. Many people use their plasma just as much, if not more, with TV than with DVD, so SKY or normal TV should also deserve a demo and preferably at home.

quote:

Originally posted by BLT:
Demoing Plasmas is very tricky, as Frank says in most shops the setup is not ideal. I have to say that I have been singularly unimpressed with the Poineer PDP435XDE (despite the almost universal critical acclaim). Even watching "Finding Nemo" on HDMI I thought that the picture was grainy.
I'm leaning towards buying a cheaper, non-HD, screen for just now. The latest LG 42" screen is pretty impressive - especially for the £1300 that you can get them for. In a three or four years time I will probably be able to pick up an HD screen for half what the cost is now (maybe even LCD will be sorted by then) and then the LG can be relegated to bedroom viewing duties.

You have found the LG impressive ?
Which one ? PY10 ? I have seen the PX12 (said to be HD Ready ... hum ), I found that it lacks of sharpness and the image is flat. There was a very important gap with the 435.

I have also discovered that it is a big big mess with the HD caracteristics of the plasmas.
For exemple, the last Hitachi 42PD7200 seems to be pretty good : 1024x1024, HDMI + DVI + YUV : 720 and 1080 @ 50/60 hz but it is not "HD Ready", it is said to be "HDTV Ready" (why ? I don't know) ... it seems that companies willingly introduce confusion with that unoffical "HDTV Ready" !

It was the PX11 that impressed me, especially for £1300. I saw it next to a Philips £2.5K screen with both being fed from an identical source - the difference in PQ was negligible.

I have seen the LG 42PY10 "HD Ready". Pretty good, it appears to be the same that the PX12 (1024*768, same datas but 2 tuners) but the image is much better. Don't know why .
Compared with the Pio 435, it just doesn't have exactly the same 3D/reality effect but it is good and it is really cheaper.
I have also red somewhere that LG should launch an HD res matrix on a plasma in august.

JVC should launch a 42DX6 "HD Ready" and Sony's new range (july) should all be "HD ready".

I hope my TV won't definitely die before september in order to have more choice.

Oh, and I discovered (thanks to a new reset ) that all the video outputs could be switched off one by one (an not only the DVI). Having only the BNC "on" the image is even better than before, I first thought it was because of the disc but no, the image is even more "alive".
Next time I buy something, I read the manual.