[Colonel Burton]

Hi all, my first post here and i`m no guru as you will soon find out ok i`m in need of some advice please i`m in the market for a 36" crt and have been looking at either the Philips 36PW9618 and the Philips 36PW9607 which would be the better choice or do you have something else i should have a look at? many thanks

[Colonel Burton]

Anyone please, could really do with some advice here thanks

[fatbob]

Hi Colonel Burton, and welcome to the forums.

The main thing to keep in mind when considering a Philips tv is whether or not the Pixel Plus processing is to your liking. Pixel Plus produces a picture which is very different to that of other brands of tv. It is a form of processing designed to improve picture quality, but many users of this forum regard the picture as too "processed" or artificial looking. It's something you will either love or hate, so I would try to see the set working with a dvd player connected (with an RGB scart connection) before making a buying decision.

Another thing to consider when buying a 36" tv of any brand is the high fault rate. The problems can range from relatively small problems which will be totally unnoticeable to some viewers (but unbareable to others) to major problems which result in immediate return to the dealer (no small inconvenience with the size and weight of these tv's). There is quite large sample to sample variance in quality between 36" sets, with buyers often having to go through one or more replacements before they find a "good one", even when buying the same model from the same manufacturer.

This link connects you to another thread regarding 36" tv's, and gives you a bit more of an idea of what's available.

Good luck.

[Colonel Burton]

Wow thanks for the great reply fatbob, gee i didn`t know it could be such a hit and miss affair buying a tv would it be worth my while to consider a rpj or even a lcd rpj ?

[fatbob]

Hi,

If your room is big enough to accommodate a rear projection tv, then I would definitely consider one. Most people on these forums that own one are generally very happy with them. Although problems do still occur, they're not on the same scale as normal tube driven tv's.

They do have their limitations, such as limited viewing angles, the convergance needs periodic adjustment and the image is less sharp than a normal tv, but the advantages are big, potentially high quality pictures.

If you do consider one, it's a good idea to try and get a decent demo of one in action with a high quality source (most RPTV's are very badly setup on the shop floor, and the picture shown doesn't do them justice).

LCD rear projection is also worth considering, although these suffer from not being able to resolve black, meaning that dark scenes in a film can look a bit washed out, with parts of the picture that should be black being resolved as a charcoal grey. Other than that, there is quite a lot to recommend about these sets. There is a link here to a thread which discusses the new Sony Grand Wega LCD RPTV.

If you find the disadvantages of RPTV don't bother you, then they are worth shortlisting.

Cheers,

Bob.

[Colonel Burton]

Your a star fatbob, thanks for the advice will be going down the local stores this weekend too have a look see at some of the tv`s on display as i don`t want to go and buy something i`m gonna hate a few days down the line, my living room is about 14 feet by 16 feet and we sit roughly eight or nine feet away from our current set