Nervous anticipation ...

rashomon

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Hi all,

After much researching on this brilliant forum, reading of reviews, traipsing through countless stores, ringing around for competitive prices and plenty of stress later .... I have finally put in an order for a budget widescreen telly.

I was looking to buy a Nicam only JVC AV28T25 initially and then upgrade the sound system with a full 5.1 surround sound set but instead plumped for the JVC AV28R25 (with DPL built in) as I managed to get this model for less than the cost of the standard Nicam one.

John Lewis do not sell the AV28T25 ... but were selling the AV28R25 for 649 GBP but I managed to persuade them to do a price match with RGB in Ilford and got the telly for just 489 GBP with their standard Five year guarantee thrown in ... WHOOHOO !!!

The person I was dealing with at JL informed me that they are now getting stricter with the Price Match promise - apparently they will only match against certain listed competitors and no longer do a price match on the spot.
In my situation, I was told they would make an exception as I had made a trip into the store after someone incorrectly told me over the phone that if I was there in person they would check the competitor's price immediately ... tut tut!

Incidently, Costco are selling the Nicam only AV28T25 for 494 GBP (including VAT) with their three year guarantee.

Anyone, I'm looking forward to next Monday when it is being delivered to chill back with some trouble free viewing (cross fingers) - it was a close call what with the World Cup not too far off !

So thanks to all on the forum that have helped me make a decision and good luck to those out there stlll trying.

Cheers

Rash.

p.s. I'll be back should I have any probs ... please no !!!!l; l;
 
Does RGB have a website? If not, can you give me their address and phone number. Thanks!
 
rashomon,

I hope you read my brief review of the AV28R25 before you placed the order and noted the problem with RGB input! If you are looking for RGB input, then this TV will drive you nuts - the picture is just soooooo dull and dark on RGB and it CAN'T be adjusted in the user menu or the service menu! S-Video was fine, however, and was very close to RGB in quality.
 
Hi Squirrel,

I did read your post ... and was close to not bothering after doing so, but in the end I had to go for it as I have been without a T.V for the last month or so.
The five years prior to that I've been borrowing tellys of my friends etc .... It had to stop somewhere!!

The reasons I went for the JVC in the end:
-----------------------------------------------------
1. I needed a budget flatscreen widescreen telly for under 500 quid

2. The picture had to be good and I did not want the grief some people have had with 100hz boxes. I've seen this box in action and the image was crisp, clear and colourful

3. Was not overly bothered about sound qualityas that can be rectified later

4. Was put off buying the Panny PL1 due to numerous issues reported on this forum and no other telly sets fitted the requirement

5. was going to buy the much lauded JVC WFT1 - but it is now discontinued and I was wary of buying from a 'man on the phone'.

6. The price match/5 yr guarantee offered to me was too good for me to miss - near enough 25% off the list price = a bargain (I think).

7. Peace of mind as I bought if from John Lewis. If I am seriously hacked off with it for whatever reason I can always return it.

Reasons why I almost didn't go for it:
------------------------------------------------
1. Your post re: the dull RGB picture when viewing DVDs - hence the 'nervous anticipation' !

2. No 'official' reviews out there yet



This will be the last CRT TV I ever have to buy I hope - it should see me through a few years and then I'll move on to a bigger toy - lets hope the technology has sorted itself out by then ... ay carrumba!

Cheers.

Rash

p.s. Shez, I'll get the RGB details for you and post them here late. Also, note that PRC Direct are selling the AV28R25 for 495 GBP - check this months What TV+Video.

:)
 
OK Rashomon - yes the price you paid was very good.

Good luck! I hope you get a good one!
 
rashomon

Can you please dig out those RGB details. I also want to price match it at John Lewis. Does the price you quoted iclude delivery?
 
Sorry for the delay Shez,

Here you go:

RGB Hi-Fi & Video
203 Ilford Lane
Ilford, Essex
1G1 2RU

020 8924 7744/7755

And JL give free delivery on goods over £200 provided you live in a 30 mile radius.

Let me know how you get on

Cheers

Rash
 
Thanks Rashomon!

To cut a long story short I ended up buying a Panasonic 28PL1 yesterday. I got it from the Dixons website for £485 delivered. I have read all the negative posts about it but my neighbour has one and it is perfect.

It's only a temp as technically it will be my brothers. He moves out in about 2 months and then I'll get the JVC. Thanks again!
 
Hi all,

i`ve just bought this model, £499+£20 del, from empire direct (despite reading some of the bad threads about them)
ordered it over the phone, so i could check they had it in stock.
it arrived when they said it would!! three days after ordering.

As for the tv...so far so good,(touch wood) no problems found, great picture, brilliant sound, it came with a detatchable subwoofer and stand included.

All in all i would say i`m very happy with this model, you seem to get a lot for your money, when comparing it against other makes with the same features.

just got to get the beer in now, ready for the kick off!!!!
 
Hi all,

i`ve just bought this model, £499+£20 del, from empire direct (despite reading some of the bad threads about them)
ordered it over the phone, so i could check they had it in stock.
it arrived when they said it would!! three days after ordering.

As for the tv...so far so good,(touch wood) no problems found, great picture, brilliant sound, it came with a detatchable subwoofer and stand included.

All in all i would say i`m very happy with this model, you seem to get a lot for your money, when comparing it against other makes with the same features.

just got to get the beer in now, ready for the kick off!!!!
 
Originally posted by thamesider
As for the tv...so far so good,(touch wood) no problems found, great picture, brilliant sound, it came with a detatchable subwoofer and stand included.

Did you try watching anything via RGB input? If so, how did you find it in comparison to the S-Video input?
 
Rashomon

Please post as full a review as you can. I am very eager to know how you are finding this set.

Your list of pros and cons just about matches mine so if you like it that'll probbaly clinch it for me.
 
Okay all,

I’ve had the JVC AV28R25 for a couple of days now and overall, I’m very impressed with the TV and the value for money it offers. Here’s a breakdown - sorry in advance ... as it’s a bit lengthy.

Sharpness 9/10
===========
Very sharp and crisp (as long as the VNR is turned to Auto or better still Min setting).

There is no problem with hard edges (vertical or horizontal) bleeding into the rest of the picture.

Brightness 7.5/10
============
Good. I’m not too technical on TV jargon, but I feel there is a certain ‘oomph’ missing here. It doesn’t look as bright as some the Panny’s I’ve seen in the showrooms … but then I guess that’s because they have the settings all the way up.

Colour 8.5/10
==========
Overall great, though I would like to see finer control over the colour levels – the + / - on the colour bar seem to change the colour a little too much either way for my liking.

There are three ‘Tint’ modes on the TV; Warm is good for viewing movies, Cool I’ve not bothered with too much, and Normal – the most used setting (by me anyway)

Contrast 5/10
==========
Hmmm … well I think it may have been Squirrels’ post but I could not help but notice that the contrast levels do not pick out subtle variations in dark scenes very well … they are rendered black in most cases so detail is often lost. This was certainly the case on DVD playback (see below) but I also notice this problem on normal analogue terrestrial output.

I have to set the Contrast set to max on all colour tint modes I use

On a positive note, black is rendered very well indeed ! :D

Geometry 10/10
===========
Pretty much perfect !

The very top left hand corner in 4:3 format has a very small bend but so minor it’s not worth noting (so I don’t know why I have!)

Sound 9.5/10
==========
Well with 2 x 25w Left and Right speakers and a 40w
subwoofer, power is not a problem!

If turned up too loud though it does get very muddy, but I guess that is to be expected.

Things improved greatly when I turned the Bass setting down

There is depth and clarity on both TV and DVD playback ... excellent stuff

Other
====
There are several display modes – mostly I have the TV set to ‘Auto’. My suspicion is that this mode gives a slightly squashed effect but not so much that you notice it all the time. ‘16:9 Zoom’ is best for filling the frame but you lose the top and bottom edges.

The Remote is a doddle to use – I would like to have a Zoom button that cycled through all available display modes rather than me having to select and then OK the selection … lazy bones!

Build quality is good – I’m still finding it a struggle to get used to having such a huge TV in my tiny lounge … the edges of the TV are wider than most on the market (Speaker housing I guess) so the TV looks even bigger … doh!

DVD Playback 7.5/10
===============
I have a budget DVD player (Wharfedale) and an IXOS 126 AV Scart-Scart cable

Test DVDs: ‘Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon’, ‘The Phantom Menace’

(a) RGB test

My set up => DVD (Scart) -> TV EXT 1 RGB (Scart)

Picture was exceptionally sharp and colour was beautiful (especially on Crouching Tiger) … but there were definate contrast problems whenever dark/shady scenes were shown – it wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t watch the movies and enjoy them but I did find myself wondering what I was missing out on. As Squirrel mentioned in his review, only brightness can be adjusted when using RGB input

(b) S-Video test

My set up => DVD (Scart) -> TV EXT 3 S-Video (Scart)

I’m not sure if this is a true test (I’m still confused about cables but I used my Scart -> Scart cable as I don’t have any with an S-Video connector … is this right?)
Anyway, the picture was still sharp and colour was preserved – However, now I could adjust contrast (whacked it all the way to max), brightness and colour and tweaked these to get a very good picture.

I’m no expert but I couldn’t really tell if there was a great deal of difference between the RGB test and this one in terms of sharpness and colour quality.

Conclusion 8.5/10
=============
I think that this TV give excellent value for money – a lovely sharp picture and thumping sound to boot – and I fully recommend it … but only if you can do without using the RGB input or are not too concerned with the occasional darker than normal images.

Now what?!
=========
Well I think that I’m turning into the equivalent of an Audiophile (Tellyphile?!) … I think this forum is partly responsible (in a good way of course) but I am now at a stage where I expect perfection and am observing faults/shortcomings in a TV rather than sitting back and watching the damn thing – and obviously I expect these things at a price that wont break the bank – impossible!.
So, I’m in a quandry as to what I *personally* should do next – I have a very decent TV bought at a good price with 5 years guarantee thrown in … If I can live with the contrast issue then I’m sorted.
If not, I have an alternative plan of returning this box (if JL will let me – any experience out there on returning goods?) and getting a replacement – perhaps a Sony LS35 or LS60 as I may be able to get one of these at a *very very* good price but with a years guarantee only …. tough decision.


Finally
=====
I'm all done ... off to watch a bit of telly before it's bedtime.

Hope this review has helped.

Cheers,

Rashomon

:clown:
 
A great review Rashomon. Glad to see we agree (I would've given the contrast a bit more than 5 tho - probably a 7 or 7.5).

Having read around a bit, because the RGB is preset, I think it will vary depending on which DVD player is being used as to how bad it actually is. Based on what you've said here, I think I found it much darker and "duller" using my Sony DVD player via RGB than you did with your Wharfdale. However, be wary - the best test is to try S-Video input for your DVD player as well. I didn't notice just how dark the RGB input was until I'd had a few days experience with the telly.

I had another discussion with someone else about this model and he kindly posted some review details from HCC (who reviewed the model this month). The thread is here if you're interested to see how your review compares with the so-called experts!!

http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=37180

Interestingly, they also highlight the "dark shades" problem.

Anyway, you've got a while to make your mind up yet. But certainly you won't get a better flatscreen TV than that at the price that you paid for it!

If you're thinking about the LS60 however, then you can read my review here:
http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=37326. If you do a search, you'll see other people seem to be happy with them so far as well. But you will end up paying more and you did say you were looking to upgrade in about 3 years anyway so......

Anyway, good luck :D
 
Thanks for all of the input on the the JVC AV28T/R/S series. I was looking for a cheap flat widescreen TV and found the JVC to be a good bargain. But, fortunately (or unfortunately) after doing a search on the forums, I was dismayed to find another 28inch TV with problems.

Sigh! :(

Isn't there a cheap flat 28-widescreen TV out there without major problems? BTW, I'm getting it mainly for watching DVDs via RGB and Sky Digital. Drats...... guess I'll have to keep searching.

You know, since JVC churns out new models every so often, I'll just put this off the time being, since I'll be away for the summer. Hopefully by then JVC will rectify this problem, or else I'll have to look at other Panasonic/Philips TVs.

If only Sony models aren't too expensive, I'd go for them. I wonder if they are without major problems.
 
I was pretty much set on buying the JVC AV28T25EKB until I started reading this forum ;-)

It's just about the only black set I can find and , whilst other factors are obviously more important, I have a healthy dislike for the current trend of everything in silver.

I don't have a DVD player, but will probably get one fairly soon, but do use the RGB input for Sky Digital.

Am I likely to have the same constrast problems with the picture sourced from my Sky Digital receiver?

I can get this set for £390 from PRC Direct and this contrast issue is the only thing that stopping me placing an order at the moment.

Matt
 

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