Question Do I go for a Sony KD49XG9005BU?

[dognbones]

Hello all, I'm new to the forum

I was hoping you'd be able to help as I'm in a bit of dilemma (admittedly, a good one). I currently have a 40" Samsung UEES6300, which has served me well over the years, but I'm looking to upgrade to something bigger (49/50") and 4K.

I always like to try and buy the best my budget allows, and I've researched, read, and watched about every video there is to try and make the right decision but I'm still not 100% sure what to do. If money was not object then it'd be an easy decision, the 48" LG OLED. But unfortunately it's out of my budget.

So, my current thoughts are:

• There's an ex-demo Sony KD49XG9005BU in my local Richer Sounds for £700 (which seems like great value), but my reservation is that I've read about a few members who say say that HDR blooming can be quite obvious, and in some cases Dolby Vision produces an inferior picture to SDR (when using the native TV apps). Because I'm used to no blooming at all, I'm worried that it'll bother me, especially now that I know about it.

• or do I go for a something like the Samsung UE50TU8500, which I can get for about £465. I know the HDR performance will be well below the Sony but as I haven't got a HDR TV currently, I'm not sure if I'd miss out.

I've got an appointment booked on Saturday to go and see the Sony, and in my head, I'll get there and be that blown away, it'll make the decision an easy one. But if doesn't, I'm not sure what to do.

I'd really appreciate the forum's opinions – as buying a TV is not something I do regularly.

Cheers

 

[LCDseeker]

Hello all, I'm new to the forum

I was hoping you'd be able to help as I'm in a bit of dilemma (admittedly, a good one). I currently have a 40" Samsung UEES6300, which has served me well over the years, but I'm looking to upgrade to something bigger (49/50") and 4K.

I always like to try and buy the best my budget allows, and I've researched, read, and watched about every video there is to try and make the right decision but I'm still not 100% sure what to do. If money was not object then it'd be an easy decision, the 48" LG OLED. But unfortunately it's out of my budget.

So, my current thoughts are:

• There's an ex-demo Sony KD49XG9005BU in my local Richer Sounds for £700 (which seems like great value), but my reservation is that I've read about a few members who say say that HDR blooming can be quite obvious, and in some cases Dolby Vision produces an inferior picture to SDR (when using the native TV apps). Because I'm used to no blooming at all, I'm worried that it'll bother me, especially now that I know about it.

• or do I go for a something like the Samsung UE50TU8500, which I can get for about £465. I know the HDR performance will be well below the Sony but as I haven't got a HDR TV currently, I'm not sure if I'd miss out.

I've got an appointment booked on Saturday to go and see the Sony, and in my head, I'll get there and be that blown away, it'll make the decision an easy one. But if doesn't, I'm not sure what to do.

I'd really appreciate the forum's opinions – as buying a TV is not something I do regularly.

Cheers

I'm not sure how bright the XG9005 can go but it will be a better set than the Samsung. But if you are sensitive to blooming maybe avoid it.

 

[dognbones]

I'm not sure how bright the XG9005 can go but it will be a better set than the Samsung. But if you are sensitive to blooming maybe avoid it.

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated. I must admit, if I hadn't done any research I wouldn't have even known about blooming, let alone consider it in my purchase. I've only seen blooming from pictures on here and in testing videos, not in person, so I'm only judging if from them. Which probably isn't a good idea.

I'm hoping my mind will be put at ease when I pop in to see the Sony on Saturday. My worry is that I'll now be actively looking for a problem.

 

[LCDseeker]

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated. I must admit, if I hadn't done any research I wouldn't have even known about blooming, let alone consider it in my purchase. I've only seen blooming from pictures on here and in testing videos, not in person, so I'm only judging if from them. Which probably isn't a good idea.

I'm hoping my mind will be put at ease when I pop in to see the Sony on Saturday. My worry is that I'll now be actively looking for a problem.

Even if you do see it some simple bias lighting can really help. It's a great set at that price, I think I would be tempted. Sony KD-49XG9005 review. If you want top notch HDR then this isn't a huge step up in price Sony BRAVIA KD49XH9505BU

 

[dognbones]

Even if you do see it some simple bias lighting can really help. It's a great set at that price, I think I would be tempted. Sony KD-49XG9005 review. If you want top notch HDR then this isn't a huge step up in price Sony BRAVIA KD49XH9505BU

I think I'm overthinking it. I'm sure the possibility of some slight blooming will be outweighed by great HDR capability. I'd never watch it in a pitch-black room in any case.

Yes, I did look (online) at the KD49XH9505BU too but it's a little bit out of my budget. I set a limit of £800.

Would you be tempted to wait for the H9505 to drop in price rather than get the G9005?

 

[Dodgexander]

Definitely overthinking it. The alternative to having no blooming is having entirely raised black levels. Its a side product of local dimming and can't be avoided at this size unless you consider 48" OLEDs like the LG CX or Sony A9.

The very best LCD TV you'll find is a TV like the 49XG9005, or if you can wait for its price to come down, the 49XH9505.

Of course you can buy cheaper, but you will get worse traits that way. Overall raised black levels, edge/patchy light bleed with no way for the TV to separate light bits from dark. A TV like that will be more of a side grade to your current model compared to an upgrade like the 49XG9005.

 

[dognbones]

Definitely overthinking it. The alternative to having no blooming is having entirely raised black levels. Its a side product of local dimming and can't be avoided at this size unless you consider 48" OLEDs like the LG CX or Sony A9.

The very best LCD TV you'll find is a TV like the 49XG9005, or if you can wait for its price to come down, the 49XH9505.

Of course you can buy cheaper, but you will get worse traits that way. Overall raised black levels, edge/patchy light bleed with no way for the TV to separate light bits from dark. A TV like that will be more of a side grade to your current model compared to an upgrade like the 49XG9005.

Thanks Dodgexander, really appreciate your reply, it's really helped make my mind up. If the ex-demo unit is in good condition I think I'll go for it, especially at £700. Otherwise I'll wait for the 49H9505 to drop within my budget, but realise this may be some time.

I'm so glad I posted on here, you and LCDseeker have been so helpful.

 

[FubarKid]

How long is the warranty on the Sony?

 

[dognbones]

How long is the warranty on the Sony?

The said even though it’s ex-demo it would still carry the 6-year warranty

 

[FubarKid]

The said even though it’s ex-demo it would still carry the 6-year warranty

£700 for a demo unit seems a bit much 2 me,since a new one is £789,which I also think is 2 expensive,I got my grade A for £550 with 5 year warranty from centres direct, came like new with original packaging

 

[LCDseeker]

£700 for a demo unit seems a bit much 2 me,since a new one is £789,which I also think is 2 expensive,I got my grade A for £550 with 5 year warranty from centres direct, came like new with original packaging

I bet there will be room go haggle a bit.

 

[dognbones]

I bet there will be room go haggle a bit.

Yeah, I thought the same. They’ll obviously want to make room for the newer stock. From what I know, and I could be wrong, the £789 ones are all display models, not brand-new boxed. Argos have them brand new at £800 but thought £100 saving was worth it, especially with the guarantee.

Wow, you got a fantastic deal on yours - I’ll keep my eye out on centres direct too, good shout

 

[LCDseeker]

Yeah, I thought the same. They’ll obviously want to make room for the newer stock. From what I know, and I could be wrong, the £789 ones are all display models, not brand-new boxed. Argos have them brand new at £800 but thought £100 saving was worth it, especially with the guarantee.

Wow, you got a fantastic deal on yours - I’ll keep my eye out on centres direct too, good shout

I think the stock levels will be quite low now but you might sneak a good Black Friday discount. They should pop up now and again on the refurb site but they sell so quickly on there you've got to be sat with your credit card ready to go! lol

 

[FubarKid]

Yeah, I thought the same. They’ll obviously want to make room for the newer stock. From what I know, and I could be wrong, the £789 ones are all display models, not brand-new boxed. Argos have them brand new at £800 but thought £100 saving was worth it, especially with the guarantee.

Wow, you got a fantastic deal on yours - I’ll keep my eye out on centres direct too, good shout

Stocks of the 49xg9005 are low so I'd wait for black Friday if u can see if u can get at deal on the Xh9505?

 

[dognbones]

Stocks of the 49xg9005 are low so I'd wait for black Friday if u can see if u can get at deal on the Xh9505?

Oh man, I forgot about Black Friday. Do you think there's any chance a XH9505 would drop down to around the £800 mark?

 

[LCDseeker]

Oh man, I forgot about Black Friday. Do you think there's any chance a XH9505 would drop down to around the £800 mark?

Unlikely but you never know.

 

[dognbones]

UPDATE - Picked up a 49xg9005 yesterday and all I can say is ‘wow’. I’m so, so pleased with it, it’s a massive leap in picture performance compared to my previous TV.

Thank you to everyone on here for the advice/opinions

 

[FubarKid]

UPDATE - Picked up a 49xg9005 yesterday and all I can say is ‘wow’. I’m so, so pleased with it, it’s a massive leap in picture performance compared to my previous TV.

Thank you to everyone on here for the advice/opinions

Nice one,where did u purchase in the end & what settings are u using?

 

[dognbones]

Nice one,where did u purchase in the end & what settings are u using?

I went for the ex-demo one from Richer Sounds – I got a tiny bit more off the ticket price (it covered my petrol, lol), so I'm happy. I know there may be a deal on black Friday, or one may come up on Centre Direct, but I'm so pleased with my purchase I don't mind – I'll just avoid looking from now on, lol.

Settings: Boy is there a lot of them . I've set up each source based on @Mallett94 settings he posted. Without that, I wouldn't have known where to start to be honest, so that was a great help. I need to spend a bit of time tweaking them but it's a brilliant starting point. There's just two things I need to try:

• Motion is ever so slightly juddery/blurry. I'm going to experiment with the Motion settings, although I'd rather it be more that way than stray in SOE.
• On normal HD content, the brightness in the evening is too much... we were watching a programme the other night that cuts to interviews with people behind mainly a white background and my daughter said it seemed like 'heaven had opened up'.

What I have noticed is how different programmes can be, even from the same source – I'm guessing this has something to do with how they are encoded/compressed (I don't know the technical terms). For example, a purchased digital movie from the Sky Store is far better quality than a film on Film 4 HD. Not that the Film 4 HD looks bad, it actually looks great, it's just the purchased one looks like a native 4k film.

Overall I couldn't be happier, it's everything I hoped it was going to be.

 

[Dodgexander]

What I have noticed is how different programmes can be, even from the same source – I'm guessing this has something to do with how they are encoded/compressed (I don't know the technical terms). For example, a purchased digital movie from the Sky Store is far better quality than a film on Film 4 HD. Not that the Film 4 HD looks bad, it actually looks great, it's just the purchased one looks like a native 4k film.

You start to notice this more on a 4k TV. Poorer quality HD stuff looks soft compared to higher quality material. It's not so apparent on a HD TV because less upscaling has to happen.