Philips 28PW9527 Picture Quality

T

tuco_ramirez

Guest
I've had the 9527 for 6 days now and have given it a good test. First impressions were good but I'm now having second thoughts. The tv has a Philips tube as there are no dots on either side of the tube. I'll list all the issues below

1) I have the dark bars problem. This only happens on ext 3 and isnt that big a problem but it probably will be now that i have noticed it.

2) Screen looks out of focus. This is very noticable on teletext. I get eyestrain watching some programs as i am trying to get things in focus. Is this a common problem with 100hz sets? I have got NTL digital and have set it to output in 16:9 and rgb. DVDs look sharp but only in Pixel Plus mode but this is not suited for all films. When they are played in 100hz digital scan mode they are not quite as sharp.

3) Geometry is not the best. The top couple of inches fan out and the image gets a bit compressed on the sides giving a slight fisheye effect. This is noticable when the camera pans. Also if I watch programs in 4:3 mode, the edges seem to distort depending on the contrast of what is being displayed, e.g. if there is a very bright sky and dark ground the edges bow outwards. Is this normal?

Do I have a duffer set or am I being too anal? Are all these problems fixable? I have been researching for months into which tv to buy and end up with this. Such is life. I will be calling comet tomorrow to get an engineer out. At least the dark bars is a definite problem.
 
I have also recently purchased a Philips 28PW9527 based on the excellent reviews it received in T3, Essential Home Cinema and Home Entertainment Magazines.

I am generally happy with the set. The picture quality of an analog or digital signal with Pixel+ is outstanding, although I have found that when watching some DVD's the picture with Pixel+ looks over processed so I turn it off. The teletext is slightly out of focus, but this must be a normal feature of this set as this happens on yours.

As for the geometry, mine also suffers. Vertical objects, such as lamp posts, appear bowed only in the top left and right corners of the screen when on a bright background. Anything in the top centre of the screen is fine. When I select the 4:3 picture format, the two black bars either side of the picture are bowed inwards slightly in the top left and right corners.

I have emailed Philips regarding this who replied today saying to make sure that there is nothing magnetic near the set. If not, then an adjustment in the Service Menu by an engineer would be needed under the warranty. This is something I will look into.

The black bar problem in ext 3. I cannot say I have noticed this on my set. Is it visible on a dark or light background?
 
usually most noticeable on black scenes. also noticeable if you look very carefully at dark colours.
 
I only notice the dark bars when the image is dark. I have noticed that the bars disappear if you set brightness very high or very low but this does not give an acceptable picture. The engineer is coming tomorrow (hopefully) to look at these problems so I shall keep you informed.

Glad to hear that its not just my teletext that looks a bit blurred. It must be how this model is. Teletext also looks too bright. It doesnt seem possible to adjust the brightness. It might be in the service menu though. I'll just have to wait until tomorrow to get some answers.
 
You can adjust the geometry yourself by typing in "062596i" on
the remote to access the service menu.
Keep note of the original setting level numbers in case you make
a pigs ear of things and do your adjustments using some form of
calibration dvd or the THX OPTIMODE menu thats on some dvd's
such as Star Wars episodes 1 and 2.
 
Thanks for the tip! I have thought about fiddling with the settings in the service menu but I'd rather watch someone who knows what they are doing do it first before I start messing around with it. Knowing my luck, I'll ruin everything.

Is it normal that the 'pixels' on the edges of the screen are larger than the rest of the screen as this is the case on my tv?
 
Originally posted by tuco_ramirez
Is it normal that the 'pixels' on the edges of the screen are larger than the rest of the screen as this is the case on my tv?

On nearly all flat-screen TVs, the "dot pitch" at the sides is greater than at the centre.
 
Well, the comet engineer has just been and did bugger all. He said he had not seen the dark bars problem before and was not aware of the ferrite ring fix.

When I showed him the teletext 'problem', he said that it was normal and couldnt do anything in the field to fix it.

He didnt even attempt to mess around with the geometry again saying it was normal for widescreen tvs! He could have at least tried messing with the service settings. Guess I'll have to do it myself!

He told me that if I wanted an exchange I would have to persue the matter with comet.

A total waste of time. I can live with these 'problems' as long as I know its normal but are they normal? If I get another set will they have the same 'features'?

Don't know what to do now.
 
hi engineers are a pain in the arse.i had 2 or 3 out & not once did they do anything to sort the problems out.now i had a philips 32pw9576 & it had the 3 dark bars on the 2nd one (now i know why it was called match line 3:D )anyway on the first tv the engineer said he had seen the ring fix & it worked so. he said to call him if my second tv had the bars.it did so i called them but they got a bit funny saying you have had 2 tosh 32zd26 & 2 32pw9576 so just bring the tv back & get a refund as they were in spec.makeing out i`m too fussy well i left him with the sound of my voice ringing in his ears.so i don`t know if the ring do work or not,
 

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