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View Full Version : Confused - I want a 46" LCD but don't know which to buy.

Orange Peel
28-03-2008, 8:37 AM
Relastically I have a budget of £1500 for an LCD and Media PC. I've spec'd up a PC which will cost £300 leaving £1200 for an LCD.

I've seen a friends 46W2000 which I really liked except on SD. My plan will be to use the media for most things (Blueray, DVD, downloaded etc) It will have HDMI out so I'm sorted there. Sky will provide the SD content but I only really watch SkyOne or the Discovery channels.

So currently, which 46"er is my best option. I'm not a brand snob but would like to future proof myself as much as possible. The 24P and 100Hz would be nice plus 1.3HDMI if thats all possible within my budget.

Cheers for any help.
HSR08
28-03-2008, 8:40 AM
I think The Sony KDL-46V3000 is a good tv for your price range aswell
bigndn
28-03-2008, 9:31 AM
Set up my 46v3000 yesterday and it is Fantastic.
I am using the factory set colours and they are spot on. I have normal virgin media and the pq is very good.

highly reccommended.
isayisay
28-03-2008, 9:37 AM
Get a plasma mate better all round for picture quality especially sd content,you can pick up an panasonicpz50 full hd model for about £1200 and youll have change from your budget.Dont be put off but image retention,set it up proper and youll have no problem with a pc on your tv as many panasonic owners will testify.:thumbsup:
Mr-Bananas
28-03-2008, 9:41 AM
This is an LCD thread, and the guy is asking advice on what LCD to buy. :lesson:

The only people who will recommend buying a Plasma, is a Plasma owner.
isayisay
28-03-2008, 9:52 AM
True,but i have an lcd too and just happen to think plasma is a better all round player but if he wants lcd good luck to him just giving my opinion as he already says sd content he saw on his mates tv wasnt very good so whats the point if he is only gonna watching sd content.:)
Orange Peel
28-03-2008, 10:08 AM
I'll mainly be watching HD. SD will just be stuff I can't get from other sources.

I'd have a plasma but I've not see one thats clear when using it to display Windows or other PC based graphics.

I'll have a look into the Sonys :)
eyespy
28-03-2008, 11:20 AM
I can recommend the Sharp LC46XL2E. HD PQ is excellent and SD PQ is also very very good as long as the broadcast is decent - fantastic for PS3 games and makes a brilliant 46" computer monitor.

http://www.pbase.com/eyespy/image/94496086.jpg
Orange Peel
28-03-2008, 11:33 AM
That looks nice. Is it matt black or shiney?

Does it have the 1.3 HDMI and 24P etc?
JDM121
28-03-2008, 11:35 AM
I can recommend the Sharp LC46XL2E. HD PQ is excellent and SD PQ is also very very good as long as the broadcast is decent - fantastic for PS3 games and makes a brilliant 46" computer monitor.




your tv looks great
CHRISGEO
28-03-2008, 12:19 PM
The 46XL2 is an excellent PQ wise tv but the banding issue is very common which leaves the 46V3000 as the best buy
Orange Peel
28-03-2008, 12:22 PM
How bad is the banding?

Some reviews say the HD picture is quite soft. Is this really noticable?

I've seen it online for £1099 in 5 year waranty.
CHRISGEO
28-03-2008, 12:24 PM
Its a serious issue if you get a faulty set(high chances ti get one:()
Orange Peel
28-03-2008, 12:48 PM
How bad is the banding?

Some reviews say the HD picture is quite soft. Is this really noticable?

I've seen it online for £1099 in 5 year waranty.
CHRISGEO
28-03-2008, 12:50 PM
what do yoy mean by how bad?Its a line crossing the screen while you view the tv.
Hitchiker42
28-03-2008, 1:07 PM
Despite it's problems,i'd still recommend the Samsung
LE46F86BDX.It's starting to come down in price now and IMO
is the best value 46" lcd,bearing in mind that it's nearest rival-the Sony KDL46X3000-costs about £400+ more.
Dnaltocs
28-03-2008, 1:32 PM
I can recommend the Sharp LC46XL2E. HD PQ is excellent and SD PQ is also very very good as long as the broadcast is decent - fantastic for PS3 games and makes a brilliant 46" computer monitor.

Agree 110%

My parents were after their first lcd Ocotber/Novemberish last year and they first got the sony 40v3000 from costco in October.However after about a week's use of it they took it back because we were not impressed with it, don't get me wrong it wasn't bad but it wasn't great.

They then seen the sharp 46xl2e in November at makro and bought it and it is superior to the v3000.With the sharp being 10-bit compared to the 8-bit v3000 series the colours are more natural and the motion is far better, zero ghosting on the sharp whilst there is ghosting on the v3000 and the blacks on the sharp are great.

They've had two xl2e's, the price at makro was £1300 with a sharp blu-ray player included but they took it back and wen't for the offer at £1169.00 from 1staudiovisual with a threee year warranty instead of the blu-ray plaer.
http://www.1staudiovisual.co.uk/catalog/sharp-lc46xl2e-inch-plus-free-three-year-warranty-p-2475.html

Neither had any banding problems.
sv2evo
28-03-2008, 3:06 PM
Do yourself a favour and don't buy the Sharp...
Dnaltocs
28-03-2008, 3:14 PM
Do yourself a favour and don't buy the Sharp...


Can you elaborate as to why not ?
CHRISGEO
28-03-2008, 3:29 PM
I suppose an other banding victim
Orange Peel
28-03-2008, 3:46 PM
Do yourself a favour and don't buy the Sharp...

tbh I've read loads of glowing reviews and a few bad ones. Would you care to expand on why I would be doing myself a favour by not buying one?
sv2evo
28-03-2008, 4:10 PM
I have exchanged 3 sets of the 46XL2E, and when I got the 4th, decided to get a refund. That's 4 brand new sets, 4 days I had to escape from work for 2-3 hours at a time, countless phonecalls to empire-direct call centre monkeys, etc etc etc. Save yourself the hassle.

All had a minimum of 2-3 dead pixels iirc. I have posted details on the Sharp thread. Some had banding, some has horizontal black lines across the screen, some had hdmi problems. I haven't had a set that was near "ok", let alone as described.

I would stay well clear unless you want to spend your time arguing with a retailer and Sharp. I don't have a recomendation for you, as I haven't decided on a replacement as yet.

As for loads of good reviews and a few bad, well... I beg to differ! I WILL look for bad pixels, I WILL look for banding and I WILL look for a set that is as advertised. I am not looking for perfection, just a certain level of quality. I fulfill my end of the deal and pay my hard earned, time for the manufacturers/retailers to fulfill their end.

Sharp's Dead Pixel policy never ceases to amaze me. Well, they don't aparently have one. When asked, they will say; "send it back and we will make a decision". Er, no. Either you tell me, or you don't. You don't get to make up the rules as you go along.

Never again!
Yemeth
28-03-2008, 4:14 PM
tbh I've read loads of glowing reviews and a few bad ones. Would you care to expand on why I would be doing myself a favour by not buying one?

Banding is very common in Sharp tvs. Their panels "suck", to put it in an augmentative way. :grin:
Lt. Dang
28-03-2008, 4:57 PM
For a reliable set with excellent build quality and a very low fault rate then you will not do better than the Sony V3000.

Happily the V3000 also provides a good SD picture and superb HD picture quality at 1080/24p from BluRay.

No banding, no judder – just clean, high quality pictures. I also use this set for 360 gaming via VGA and the PQ is fine. Please bear in mind that this set will only do 720p via VGA.

Had this set for nearly 5 months now and very chuffed with its performance.

From the posts in this forum it looks like Samsungs and Sharps both currently have their problems.

Regards,

Lt. Dang