Sony KV32CS70 32" CRT TV: My own personal review

[Paul Cooksley]

Hi there

I thought I would add this review, as, like others, I have tried to find or read reviews about this particular Sony model before I bought it and found that there are not that many user reviews about! So, this really perhaps is for anyone that is thinking of getting one or is just generally considering the 32" CRT widescreen market and would like an honest review.

Well, as you probably know, this set the KV32CS70 is a 32" widescreen CRT which was released by Sony around June this year. It is a 100hz picture which comes with 'Virtual Dolby Sound'. It replaces the KV32FX68 model which I did manage to find some reviews on (which were mostly pretty favourable) hence why I purchased this model.

Firstly, and perhaps most importantly - the picture. It is a 100hz set. Now, I know a lot of people dislike 100hz sets (I would have previously included myself as well!) but I have to say it is a simply wonderful picture. I mainly use Freeview and I have to say, despite reservations that this might show more "blockiness" on screen, I am very pleased with the results. The only time it is really let down by the digital artiefacts - or smearing - is when extremely fast scrolling text is displayed - this can be a bit of a blur, I have to say. Other than this, as I say, it is a lovely picture - even on pretty fast moving scenes or football matches.

Interestingly enough, I was checking out the CS70 against other 50hz sets and the flicker is noticeable on 50hz sets quite a bit! I honestly didnt think 50hz sets flickered all that much - and I suppose they don't - until you view the pictures side by side. I know people will obviously say "yes but look at the artiefacts with 100hz processing" - but as I say, on this set it doesn't appear to bad at all. I have done hours of research into all this and I have to say (again obviously just my personal opinion) I think the Sony's handle 100hz processing quite well compared to other makes.

I am an extremely fussy person when it comes to tv pictures (especially on "dirty screen" issues or geometery) but I have to say the CS70 copes extremely well with both these potential widescreen issues. The geometery is fantastic - compared to 2 x Panasonics I owned for just a month (both awful purity problems as well as geometery). There is a very, very slight touch of "Dirty screen" (ie patches of static grey on bright/panning images) but it really is hardly noticeable - unlike the Panasonic I bought last month from Currys (model TX32PS500 if you are interested) whereby the dirty screen issues were appalling.

The sound? Well it's supposed to be virtual dolby with something Sony call "BBE" processing - but I would be hard pressed to give you an honest review on this, as I bought a Sony Home Theatre 5.1 kit to use, which of course sounds fantastic. So, I can't honestly comment on the sound itself - I have heard that others say it's a bit of a letdown - but if you can afford a home theatre 5.1 kit, I would get it. I bought the Sony DAV SB100 (which is only an entry level kit but fantastic all the same. It cost me £100.00 exactly with the tv - which is cheaper than ususal - I think Curry's have it for sale at £179)

The actual design of the set is fantastic - it "looks" really good. The only thing I had to get used to was the fact that the stand it goes with is very low (most sony's are these days) compared with the Panny I had a month ago, but once you get used to this, no problem.

Obviously, going back to picturewise for a second, you have the usual modes, ie 4:3, 16:9, 14:9, Wide, Zoom and Smart. I sometimes watch quite a bit of archive tv and still sometimes could not get my head around watching 4:3 with black bars either side. I have to say that the Smart mode (although obviously stretched at the sides) handles 4:3 not too badly - certainly better in my opinion than the Panasonic "Auto" mode - a lot better. Whilst obviously you should really only watch 4:3 as 4:3 (ie black bars) the Smart mode is what I would call "watchable" with 4:3.

What else can I tell you? It's got 3 scart sockets (2 x RGB) and all the usual front connections under a little flap on the side, discreetly tucked away.

The price? Well I paid £799 from a local dealer (I would never ever use Curry's again and would just like to warn anyone who is thinking of using Currys that if you do buy something and it develops a fault then you often have a tough time getting it sorted - believe you me - I know, having dealt with them over my two faulty Panasonics last month which were under 28 days old). However, you can buy online quite a bit cheaper - around £650 I think I saw recently, so it would be worth checking online sites if you don't mind shopping via this method. Personally I am a tad old fashioned and like to deal with a shop directly with face to face contact !!

As I say, I hope someone might find this review useful, as when I was looking around for info/reviews on this model, I couldn't find much at all, so my aim is to help someone in this area who is looking to buy or wants honest advice.

Again, I will say that the opinions expressed are purely just my own beliefs and judgements, but having said that I do feel that it is a worthwhile buy.

Regards

Paul

£799 is a lot of cash for that set I got a KD32DX200 for £50 more
but that was online.
I like buying form shops but not at that price differance the DX200
is 1200 in currys whot a rip off.

[Paul Cooksley]

Yes, I'd agree with you that it was alot of money when you can get it online cheaper -but it is the price you pay in most retail outlets such as Curry's/Argos etc..

I am afraid that nothing would make me buy a major purchase like this online - just my personal preference (!) so yes, if you are like me, you end up paying the price. But for piece of mind I feel it's worth it.

[DJ Mike]

Heya,

I received one of these from John Lewis on Saturday - very much impressed I must say The picture quality is certainly very much what I'd hoped for - in particular the Sony DVD player that came free with it looks very nice indeed through RGB - as do my Dreamcast and PS2 as well.

The flickering issues that existed with the FX68 haven't gone away tho, sadly :-/ My Pioneer multi-region DVD player exihibits this - it tends to happen when you have a sequence on-screen where there's bright light in the top/bottom half of the screen and something dark in the opposite half - the dark half suffers the flickering. However the Sony doesn't do this so it must be something about the Pioneer's RGB output (as has already been discussed I think?)

More annoyingly, though, my Xbox has exactly the same problem with RGB With my Pioneer, I can switch it to S-Video mode via SCART and plug it into the TV's AV3 and everything looks brilliant without the flickering (I'm starting to see that RGB really doesn't hold much at all over S-Video).

Unfortunately the Xbox doesn't support S-Video via SCART, but is it possible that the fact that I am using a third-party Xbox lead rather than official would be the source of my trouble? I'd love to find out but I don't want to splash out on a £20+ official cable only to find the flickering issues still exist.

Moreover, if anyone is looking here for reference, the flickering issues only seem to affect the Xbox in PAL 50/60Hz mode - if you have the ability to switch your Xbox to true NTSC (you'll need it to be modded, alas), then you don't get this problem.

Anyone got any thoughts on these flickering issues?

M;.

[dynamic turtle]

Originally Posted by DJ Mike TJG

Anyone got any thoughts on these flickering issues?

Yes, it's a major pain in the a*se

More to do with the Pioneer in RGB methinks. Thanks for reminding me about the s-video option though - I'd totally forgotten about that.

Maybe its worth watching a dvd in S-video with no flicker and sacrificing some picture sharpness. Especially films with high contrast panoramic shots (CTHD, Larry of Arabia etc. ) . Drives me up the wall

Surprised to hear your xbox causes flickering too. I've never experienced flicker with anything else but a pioneer dvd player. Gamecube/dreamcast/ PS2 etc. - All work fine & dandy.

The FX68 is still a fabulous TV though. Picture quality is just awesome (for a £650 set).

DT

[DJ Mike]

Yeah the Xbox is a mysterious one - like I say, it could be that I'm using a substandard RGB cable - which brand of cable are you using?

I must confess there's negligible difference to my eyes between RGB and S-Video - not enough to be noticeable on a 32" screen anyway. I guess RGB pulls off contrast a little better.

Gamecube, PS2 and Dreamcast look great on the FS70 - infact the DC is the best of the lot to my eyes - kudos to Sega for actually designing a decent machine, even if it did last such a limited time.

I'm hoping I can hack my Sony player with the One-For-All hack - anyone know which brand of One For All remote you need to get, and from where? The player is the DVP NS355.

Cheers,

M;.

[dynamic turtle]

The DC has a superb graphics chip (that Power VR chipset has pure arcade pedigree, and it shows). They also managed to throw in VGA compatability with most games. Guilty gear, soul caliber, Ikaruga and Rez look absolutely stunning in VGA mode

Certainly gets more playtime than my Gamecube......

[bodcod]

Originally Posted by DJ Mike TJG

Yeah the Xbox is a mysterious one - like I say, it could be that I'm using a substandard RGB cable - which brand of cable are you using?

I must confess there's negligible difference to my eyes between RGB and S-Video - not enough to be noticeable on a 32" screen anyway. I guess RGB pulls off contrast a little better.

Gamecube, PS2 and Dreamcast look great on the FS70 - infact the DC is the best of the lot to my eyes - kudos to Sega for actually designing a decent machine, even if it did last such a limited time.

I'm hoping I can hack my Sony player with the One-For-All hack - anyone know which brand of One For All remote you need to get, and from where? The player is the DVP NS355.

Cheers,

M;.

Checkout the link below for hacks
http://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks.ph...&Search=Search

[cypher007]

i have also seen this model in currys and was quite taken by the sharp picture. i asked the so called tv sales man if he knew if it had progressive scan, he said yes and that it had the component inputs at the back. ok i thought check the details when i get home on the net me thinks. well i cant find one sony on the sony uk web site which lists component inputs or progressive scan, its like there trying to ignore it. so maybe you as an owner can clear this up cause i smell bull from currys.

[DJ Mike]

You smell bull quite correctly as is often the case with sales assistants I'm afraid - all trying to get their commission rather than sell you an honest deal. The KV32CS70 does not have progressive scan or component inputs - it has COMPOSITE (+audio) input, which is the worst kind of picture :-) Which is probably what they thought you meant.

M;.