Samsung vs Sony - HDTV

[Lyenae]

Originally Posted by Burkex

Any help/comments would be appreciated. Thanks.

Magnavox never knew how to make TV's.

[Jozu]

Originally Posted by Lyenae

There's no good sounding TV, they all sound like shit.

Whatever your budget was for your TV, your audio system should have a similar budget.

What the fuck? Really? So i have to spend 900 dollars on a sound system to get something that doesn't sound like "shit"? I got a 40 inch Bravia and it sounds fine, loud or otherwise. I mean, I play games, and watch movies, you know, the normal shit...what kind of activities do you do that REQUIRES you to drop a G on sound?

I live in a small attic apartment and the room the TV is in is small. So I guess sound could be an issue if you live in a Mansion or some shit.

[The Dauntless One]

a G on sound is nothing. You can't really get anything better than a HT in a box but then they are still leagues ahead of the sound on the TV.

[Lyenae]

Originally Posted by Jozu

What the fuck? Really? So i have to spend 900 dollars on a sound system to get something that doesn't sound like "shit"? I got a 40 inch Bravia and it sounds fine, loud or otherwise. I mean, I play games, and watch movies, you know, the normal shit...what kind of activities do you do that REQUIRES you to drop a G on sound?

Do you describe your TV as looking 'fine', or do you tell people it blows your mind?

If you want sound that matches picture, yes, the rule of thumb is 1:1 TV vs Audio in a home theater setup (don't care about bedrooms where you can fly with tv speakers). If you drop a G on a TV, you should drop a G on audio to get audio that matches your picture. If you drop 5k on a 60" Kuro Elite, then yes, you should spend 5k on audio.

Now, you might not care about audio as much as video, it's quite possible all you care about is can you hear 'something.' The reality is audio scales just like video does. A 5k 60" kuro bitch slaps your 900 dollar tv. A $900 dollar sound system bitch slaps your built in 'tv speakers.'

A $1000 toward sound would prob get you a ~$400 receiver, $600 toward speakers and a sub.

Is it required to enjoy a TV? No.
Is it necessary to get the full HT experience which is significantly better than TV speakers? Yes.

[cosmic_cs]

You don't need to spend $5000 on a sound system for it to be good. Diminishing returns in speaker audio start at around $1000 - seriously. After that, you're just kidding yourself.

[Lyenae]

Originally Posted by cosmic_cs

Diminishing returns in speaker audio start at around $1000 - seriously. After that, you're just kidding yourself.

Yes, but that $1000 is per speaker, NOT the entire set.

[Leadsalad]

Rofl, $1k on an entire sound setup is a medium end HT in a box gig, and that's still pretty much shit sound. $3-4K is a good 5.1 system with a receiver. The biggest thing to remember when spending a good chunk of coin on sound is that speakers are a technology that you aren't replacing as quickly as electronics. They're the upgrade you take with you for years or decades.

I'm a Klipsch fan and I have this; RF-62 Home Theater--- Home Theater System,Klipsch Reference Series - Overview and besides the sub being a bit subpar compared to other offerings and the sub amp being something that can wear out, I expect to keep using these speaks for a long time. Keep in mind that this system is also 'low end' for the true home theater nuts who laugh at me spending $3K for an entire system when they spend $1.5K on a single left or right speaker. But I'm a casual compared to them and have no desire to ever really play material at reference levels anyhow.

[XadionDarkborn]

Originally Posted by Leadsalad

Rofl, $1k on an entire sound setup is a medium end HT in a box gig, and that's still pretty much shit sound. $3-4K is a good 5.1 system with a receiver. The biggest thing to remember when spending a good chunk of coin on sound is that speakers are a technology that you aren't replacing as quickly as electronics. They're the upgrade you take with you for years or decades.

True, friend of mine gets recording studio equipment- speakers and shit for his set ups. And he gets the old stuff from the studio when they upgrade every few years to put in his room etc...his 4-6 year old "shit" speakers sound better than 90% of the "elite" set ups youll find in bbuy etc.

Blind guy I know is into computers and ish- his job is to beta software. But he cant see and loves to "watch" movies- he has these four speakers that are rubber cones or something so they cant crack and dont distrort- it is awsome watching movies with him...except they are all in discriptive lol...he also always has a nice TV as he says "I gatta have something for my sighted friends and famialy to enjoy" so yeah this blind dude has a bigger and better TV than I do lol.



Also in the land of sound- it is worth the money and effort to wire your main room if you can, dont skimp on the wire quality here- once you have a nice wired system in the walls etc plug up some exceptional speakers youll never notice them again they will just "be part of the room".

[Darus Grey]

Originally Posted by XadionDarkborn

Also in the land of sound- it is worth the money and effort to wire your main room if you can, dont skimp on the wire quality here- once you have a nice wired system in the walls etc plug up some exceptional speakers youll never notice them again they will just "be part of the room".

What he means, is don't skimp on the gauge of the wire...get 12-16 AWG, not that 24AWG stingy shit that you often see.

Other than that...what kind of wire is best? Copper...definitely Copper. Don't pay more than you need to.

[Ishad]

Originally Posted by Burkex

Sorry in advance because I am not sure if I should make another thread or not, I really don't want to derail this one but I have a TV question too. Basically I have already have a sick 55 inch TV in my living room but in my bedroom I still have a crappy old "tube" TV 30 inches or something and it has been driving me crazy. Anyways, I was in Target today and I saw a cool TV for sale...it looked really nice in the store but you never know. It was a 42 inch 1080p LCD TV on sale for $647.00 here is the link to it:
Magnavox 42" 1080p LCD HD Television (2MF438B/F) : Target

I seriously have no clue if it is a good deal or if the tv is crap. The 42 inch is perfect because I measured it and I can perfectly mount it on my wall in my bedroom, but if it is crap I can look for a different 42 inch tv at Best Buy or something.

Any help/comments would be appreciated. Thanks.

It's a tv for your bedroom, you're in no rush so just check Hot Deals - SlickDeals.net Forums everyday till a decent deal on a 42" TV pops up.

[cosmic_cs]

Originally Posted by Leadsalad

Rofl, $1k on an entire sound setup is a medium end HT in a box gig, and that's still pretty much shit sound. $3-4K is a good 5.1 system with a receiver. The biggest thing to remember when spending a good chunk of coin on sound is that speakers are a technology that you aren't replacing as quickly as electronics. They're the upgrade you take with you for years or decades.

That's great and all until you get blind tested and find out you can't tell the difference.

Get yourself two of these:

Newegg.com - Polk Audio Monitor 70 Cherry Floorstanding loudspeaker Single ($200 each, $400 for pair)

A 12" subwoofer for another $200, an Onkyo receiver for $300-400, and then find some used speakers for your surround on Craigslist.

This IS a decent system. You don't really need more. If you spend more, the differences you'll notice will probably be because it's new and you spent a good chunk of money. Trust me, the way you hear sounds greatly depends on your mood, time of day, whether you're hungry, etc. I don't care if you don't believe me; you'll just find yourself needlessly spending more money on snake oil.

Audiophiles have never passed a good blind test even though they claim to be able to hear "dramatic" differences between cables, amps, etc...

Sorry for the derail!

[Leadsalad]

You just spent $1K on 2.1 and a receiver. Where is the center and the surrounds coming from? You want your front three speakers to be timbre matched, if not, you WILL notice a discrepancy when a sound pans from left to right. Subs don't have timbre issues to worry about since <120hz soundwaves lose directionality and any sound coloration since they're more physical in their representation than musical. And surrounds timbre matching isn't as important, but if I have a choice, I'd make them match.

My point is that a standard HTIB is going to be running <1" tweeters and maybe 3" mid range speakers and a 6-8" sub. You will notice a difference when you start comparing it to a speaker with decent mids >5.25" and a nicer 10"+ sub. There is a point of diminishing returns, no doubt. I aimed for that point with my system, but I won't deny that some of the top end systems I demo'd have physical presence at reference levels that my system will never give me (but I don't ever really get to reference sound levels).

[Lyenae]

Originally Posted by Leadsalad

You just spent $1K on 2.1 and a receiver. Where is the center and the surrounds coming from? You want your front three speakers to be timbre matched, if not, you WILL notice a discrepancy when a sound pans from left to right.

If you intend to get a center, then yes, you should match the fronts with it.

Though, if you, and anyone watching the TV, are sitting directly in front of the TV (and not off to the side,) you can fly without a center. Your front 2 mains will image the center to float between them. This is preferred if you cannot place your center on the same tweeter level as your mains (like placing the center very high or very low.)

[Leadsalad]

Ghost centers are still not real centers. And your brain will move the sound to the image if it's close enough, 2' feet out of alignment won't exist when you actually listen to something.

[Lyenae]

Originally Posted by Leadsalad

Ghost centers are still not real centers. And your brain will move the sound to the image if it's close enough, 2' feet out of alignment won't exist when you actually listen to something.

Not on pans, and it depends on your distance. If you are sitting 15' away, a center under the TV will sound like it's from the TV. Sitting 8' away and you will definitely feel like the sound is localized under (or above) the TV. This is particularly horrid on any movie/track that makes all dialogue come from the center.