i'm a newbie to all of this...and have done a reasonable amount of research but i'm sure i'm haven't considered everything. i've narrowed things down to two LCD tv sets:
1. Sony BRAVIA XBR 46" LCD Television 2. Sharp 52" HDTV AQUOS LCD Flat Panel Television
my questions are:
1. which is a better choice, and why? 2. are there other choices in the same price range that i should be considering? 3. i started my search thinking LCD was a better technology than plasma. am i wrong this assumption? if so, educate me. 4. i need help with the home theater electronics/audio stuff too. i have a budget of about $1000 for that. i'm just setting up a family room not a full HT.
come on...someone has to have an opinion about these two as to which is better and why? i need to make this decision soon and would love some feedback from those who know a ton more about this technology than i do.
I would love to help you out man, but those tvs are too rich for my blood, so I'd really be of no help. However, I can tell you that I was in Circuit City the other day and saw that Sony bad boy up close and personal, and it's mean, man! Real mean. This thing looked great turned off. The whole asthetic and design is slick and the picture quality was quite good as well. It pretty much made the 32 inchers I was looking it seem like crap afterwards. Hope that helps a little.
XBR has better performance although some have questioned long term reliability. Unless you are stuck on LCD, might also consider the new 1080p Panasonic plasmas. Although I have not seen them, my info indicates they are outstanding.
OP- Sharp Aquos as a line has been through several generations- which exact model are you looking at? I have watched the changes each year at CES.
In the right environment, plasma has the more natural reproduction of source signal, largely due to contrast ratio superiority and much better refresh rates. However, in direct light LCD is a better choice becuase they are brighter displays and you can get significant glare on a plasma, even those with " anti'glare" protection.
On the HT audio set up, ya might want to find a receiver with HDMI 1.3 capabilites. Since 1000 is a limit, go with a 3.1 set up. Maybe AScend acoustics across l-C-R, with an HSu STF-2 sub or something like that. Fairly decent for the money.
Actually I read 1000s of posts on audiogon etc and then listen to bunches of speakers. Kinda like sifting for gold I suppose. Gotta start somewhere and with some info if starting from nowhere.