Anyone compaired the Hitachi Plasma to the Toshiba/Panasonic

[Jon Weaver]

I was looking at the Toshiba 42WP16, however have been offered a Hitachi for a very good price from our friends at 'Nexnix'.

Has anyone compared the 2 screens?

Obviously there have been rave reviews about the Toshiba/Panasonic, but I have not read/heard of anything about the Hitachi.

Any info would be appreciated

Jon

 

[markbuffyfan]

home entertainment has a side by side review of the 42's this month inc the models u ask about . the panny /tosh comes pout rather unsurprisngly out top.

 

[jmack]

i have seen the hitachi in a shop, and i have the toshiba, the shops i seen the hitachi did not look as good as my tosh they looked washed out, could be the way they were hooked up though,
when i bought my plasma`s from nexnix they done there best to sell me the hitachi one,
unless its a really good deal i would go for the toshiba
i`m not sure but i think the hitachi comes with a media box for all conections, i dont know how this would work with things like progressive scan,
when i had the philips plasma every thing went through the media box and that weakend the signal.

hope this helps

ps. just noticed you in wales have you been in the new xl dixons in cardiff they have about 7 or 8 plasma`s side by side

 

[Jon Weaver]

When I went to XL on the first saturday they opened, I was impressed that they had a load of sets on display, but at that time, I had little interest in Plasma.

I am away this week, but will definatly head down to Cardiff again to have a look before I buy.

A few weeks ago, I saw the review of the Plasmas in the magazine, but couldn't remmeber which one it was.. I knew that they had reviewed the Tosh (and gave it a good review), but didn't know about the Hitachi.. My wife has just gone to Newport and is picking me a up a copy.

I would never normally consider the Hitachi, but the guys a Nexnix gave it a recommendation.

my only worry about the Tosh is the fact that its now an old model.. I am a bit fussy (no.. I am very fussy) when it comes to Technology and am worried that by opting for older technology, I am asking for trouble!

 

[Jon Weaver]

Just got my hands on the magazine in question.. The Hitachi that they are reviewing (CL42PD2100) is different than the one that Nexnix are selling.

Their model is the CMP4121HDE.

Now I am really confused!

 

[Kirk]

The October issue of Home Cinema Choice reviews the Hitachi CMP4121HDE you mention.

I have not read the review yet, but the outcome is:

Picture: 4 out of 5 Stars
Sound: 5 out of 5 Stars
Features: 4 out of 5 Stars
Overall: 4 out of 5 Stars

Highs: Style, Sound Quality
Lows: Picture leaves choice between slight softness or overt noise.

RRP in article is £4,500 (estimated)........compare that to whatever price you have been offered.

I would pick up the mag if you are interested in knowning more.

Regards,

Kirk

 

[HomeyJay]

Jon,
The Tosh in question is the 'old' Panasonic BUT it's the 'old' one that's the one that everyone wants as I'm sure that the new Panasonic does not do Progressive Scan and the screen is not quite as bright. I'm sure that I will be corrected to death if I'm wrong !!
I found out this from a thread in a US forum and I've been told this by a couple of local (Cardiff) Panasonic dealers. I went for the Tosh because it's the same plasma for a LOT less. Richer Sounds are currently selling it for £2999 inc VAT !! - That's around £300 less than I paid for it a month ago.
Try Premier Projection in Newport (01633 895918) I bought mine from them and they will do you the best deal around.
If I find this thread again, I post it here.

Ravi

 

[HomeyJay]

Jon,
The Tosh in question is the 'old' Panasonic BUT it's the 'old' one that's the one that everyone wants as I'm sure that the new Panasonic does not do Progressive Scan and the screen is not quite as bright. I'm sure that I will be corrected to death if I'm wrong !!
I found out this from a thread in a US forum and I've been told this by a couple of local (Cardiff) Panasonic dealers. I went for the Tosh because it's the same plasma for a LOT less. Richer Sounds are currently selling it for £2999 inc VAT !! - That's around £300 less than I paid for it a month ago.
Try Premier Projection in Newport (01633 895918) I bought mine from them and they will do you the best deal around.
If I find this thread again, I post it here.

Ravi

 

[Kirk]

Ravi....

Consider yourself corected!

The 5th Gen Panny is "on paper" the same brightness, and prog scan is, of course, available.

 

[HomeyJay]

OK I got it.
There is/ was a thread on page 3 of this TV&plasma display forum. Its called 'Panny TH-42pwd5uy' by jorgen poulsen. It gets a bit steamy but I think it outlines what I was trying to say. I spoke to several Panasonic dealers who did not seem to be happy about the spec of the new plasma when compared to the old one.
Anyway, take a look at it, it may help. Then again, it may not

ravi

 

[sceptic]

Originally posted by jmack

ps. just noticed you in wales have you been in the new xl dixons in cardiff they have about 7 or 8 plasma`s side by side

Haven' been.

Where is it

Cheers

 

[markbuffyfan]

Remember if u want an analog tuner the new panasonic one will not work with the series 5 screen !!!! Its a major cock up on panasonics part so much so they are if you push your dealer he can get a subsidised dmr-e-30 dvd recorder with tuner inbuilt for the same price and chucking in a syncblaster lead. I assure you , U need this lead or the lypsync is out on your sat channels .If you do not like the lead ( its a modified sterling gold) get a j simms rgb to vga concerter £140 ish. Either way both screens a re great value for money .The progressive scan thread concluded the new model is single rather than double scan on the series 5 panasonic claim it maintains its brighness and contrast by changing the operating mode but in reality its a cost saving in the manufacturing. Still good though !!!!

 

[foxmeister]

I too am interested in the Hitachi 42 inch which is only £50 more at NexNix than the Toshiba 42 inch at Richer Sounds.
I would also apprecite any opinions on which set is the best all rounder ......

 

Mark,

I apologise, but I'm not comprehending that post about the new Panny Plasma. Are you saying it doesn't use a line doubler? What is the difference in picture quality? Also, what is the problem with this tuner and why do I need a dvd recorder[30 specifically] to get a picture?

 

[markbuffyfan]

Hi stock
The series 5 unit uses a single progressive scan where as the series 4 uses a double line scan which is meant to be better.
Panasonic have changed the software around to try and get similar performance from the single scan in terms of contrast but the popular belief is they have not managed it and it is a cost cutting exercise and they have compromised.

With regard to the tuner .

Panasonics new tuner which replaces the big and bulky ugly one they did before is not compatible with the series 5 screens on 42's or the series 4 on 50's .This was apprently an oversight on panasonics designers part they have also pulled the old tuner from the production lines and cannot make anymore because of tooling costs.Recognising there are still thousandsof screens out there Panasonic have offered up the dvd recorder with built in analog tuner to buyers of the screens at a discounted rate.(the sceptical amongst you would think it was clever ploy on pansonics part to get increased sales on their dvd ram format). They are also providing a synblaster cable to stop the lip scync problems noted on both the plasma section and now on the dvd recorder threads.The syncblaster makes it all work really well.

How do I know this lot ???Well i recently bought a 50 inch from the 3rd biggest panasonic dealer in the country and after failing to get me a tuner it was explained why and then i was offered the deal and as a result i have a dmr 30 at home and its brilliant .

 

fantastic reply,

thanks mark.
Only other question I have is in regards to the "tuner"
I gather this refers to the tv tuner so that the consumer actually gets a picture to go with the plasma display?

I don't know whether it's different internationally compared to here in Australia, but a tuner is usually a bonus feature that has only come with the panny 4 series and no other plasmas. Does that mean, that down here I will have to ask to get a dmr e30 when I choose to purchase the 5 series plasma?

 

[markbuffyfan]

We have to buy the tuner in the uk and they retail for around £500 they are as u say analog tuners the old series <4 tuner was big and bulky the new series 5 and above will take the new tuner if its free its great !!!! and should solve all your connection problems and correct the lip sync from an rgb signal source.

Personally if you had to pay for it I

 

[markbuffyfan]

We have to buy the tuner in the uk and they retail for around £500 they are as u say analog tuners the old series <4 tuner was big and bulky the new series 5 and above will take the new tuner if its free its great !!!! and should solve all your connection problems and correct the lip sync from an rgb signal source.

Personally if you had to pay for it I

 

[markbuffyfan]

We have to buy the tuner in the uk and they retail for around £500 they are as u say analog tuners the old series <4 tuner was big and bulky the new series 5 and above will take the new tuner if its free its great !!!! and should solve all your connection problems and correct the lip sync from an rgb signal source.

Personally if you had to pay for it I would buy the dmr 30 dvd recorder because it is fantastic (so long as you do not want teletext) but you do then need a syncblaster lead or a rgb to vga converter and some quality leads. hope this helps.

 

[YYZ]

There seems to be some confusion over this single scan, double scan issue started in another thread. The guy that started the confusion had his nuts in a twist stating that the new panny was inferior to the old as it only had single scan not double scan. He was getting confused over interlaced and progressive, either way both screens are progressive scan, plasmas are by their nature progressive devices so they convert all incoming signals to progressive scan. Brightness is reduced but from what I've read its not inferior apart from the hi-def panel now has cooling fans

 

[Joe Fernand]

Hello all

Our friends at Panasonic do seem to be confusing us with the technology change on the soon to be released TH-42PWD5BX (UK spec) display.

This new display is as bright as the outgoing display and is progressive scan - the difference is in the technology used to 'illuminate' the display. Panasonic seem to have managed to cut down on how many driver circuits they require - hence the single 'scan' vs. double 'scan' debate - where 'scan' is a bad description as it tends to confuse us all re the interlaced/progressive qualities of the display.

So far I dont think anyone in the UK has seen the D5 range so its not possible to say if this technology change is a backward step or not - I believe you can actually put the displays into a pseudo 100Hz 'double' scan mode if required (you do loose a bit of brightness though).

stockt12 - I would look very carefully at the image produced on any of the displays that use an external TV tuner - the TV tuners tend to degrade the signal if you are looking to use a high quality source. If you are looking at an 'all-in-one' DVD/Amp combo then fine if not I would look at connecting your DVD directly to the display and not use a tuner.

markbuffyfan - (hello Mark) good to hear your system is now 'in-sync'. Have you tried your DVD-2800mk11 wired directly to the display on Component rather than through the tuner?

Best regards

Joe

 

[steve-j]

The consumer version of the new Panasonic 5 series is now available - I was walking past my local Panasonic centre in Reading on Saturday and they had literally just set it up, complete with the new tuner box as well.

The picture looked great although I had nothing to compare it against apart from the older model 50 inch high resolution display (it certainly seemed sharper than the 50 inch display although the resolution was obviously lower). They did have the old 42 inch model hanging on the wall but the wiring hadn't been done at the time so it had no picture so I couldn't do a direct comparison. Hopefully itwill be set-up by this weekend.

Despite the fact that the tuner box (or at least the old one) gets a lot of negative things said about it, I still want one. It certainly looked very smart - very thin, mirror finish etc, just like their new line of DVD players, Amps etc. I was also pleasantly surprised to see it had component inputs as well, something that isn't mentioned on the website or in the new Panasonic brochure.

Unfortunately, from the price I was quoted, I think that Panasonic are still going to continue their strange pricing difference between the consumer and commercial models - for a saving of anything up to £1000 I think I can live with a grey case on the screen rather than a silver one (I beilve this is the only real difference between the 2 apart from a different set of inputs on the panel itself).

-Steve

 

appreciate the replies guys..

unfortunately i still haven't had a chance to see the new 5 model in action down here...nor do i know what tuner is actually comes with...neither does the store salesperson

 

[markbuffyfan]

hello everyone

steve the old tuner is not slimline the new one is and i agree it looks very nice.But the picture on my 50 is indistiguishable from the 42 (but i would say that lol)

Joe Ys i connected the 2800 via the component and it was very good but I have "done in" my 2800 in for the 3800 I got spooked by some of the indiffrent reviews on the mk2 and the "lack of future formats for the money bothered me a bit too. After looking at some of the us sites it would seem the 3800 is getting firmare sorted , so hopefully denon will get there fingers out and do the disc for pal prog and multi region, The local dealer seems to think its imminent. DO YOU KNOW OF ANYTHING ??? sorry for hijacking the thread but to rectify buy the tosh / panny !!!!!

 

[installer09]

Both my local dealers (seven oaks and audio t ) have had an upgrade disk for the 3800 for a couple of weeks , it does multi region and pal prog , they havnt got any 3800 to use it on though ,mines been on order for weeks.