Help Checking out Tosh 50HDX82 (1 Viewer)

[BarryNS]

OK I am seriously considering this set, appears to have everything I want in an HDTV set included the right size, pricepoint, and local availability. And I'm told the DVI is a "good thing" for the future perhaps , assuming we ever have anything here in Canada that uses it (I won't be seeing OTA high-def from local broadcasters here probably ever - satellite will be my high-def content source).

I have read about a few of the known issues with these sets (some kind of "ghosting" lines on bright images, possible loss of finer detail on DVD's due to the upconversion from 480p, etc.) - what should I be on the lookout for at the store as a first-time RPTV (let alone HDTV) potential purchaser? Obviously I am at the mercy of the settings used on the in-store demo model, and can anyone recommend some good demo material to help spot anything unusual? I plan on giving it a run-through on progressive scan anamorphic DVD, some satellite high-def content, and some regular 4:3 S-video input satellite signal to test out the "stretch" mode for my typical music video viewing and Simpsons episodes (maybe 30% max. of my typical TV viewing time is spent on 4:3 content).

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Barry,

Do not buy the TV from a store that insists you are "at the mercy of the settings used on the in-store demo model". If the store won't give you the remote and a few minutes to recalibrate or at least turn off torch mode, go someplace else and price match if you have to. It would be best if you showed up with a copy of Avia and said "leave me alone and you might sell this TV". Then, do a user menu convergence, calibrate it and run a few reference disks through it. The best advice - do not judge a TV based on the lowest common denominator signal (cable or satellite), if you do, you'll never buy one. I recommend testing the stretch modes, but multi-split cable or satellite feeds in a A/V store will not do the TV justice. Make sure the DVD and HDTV picture is up to snuff and hope for the best with any analog source.

I own a 56H80 and my mom has a 50H82, great TV's and I'll be damned if I can see the 480p/540p difference on the 50H82.

 

[Bill Bird]

I am a new 50hdx82 owner and I have a much better picture at home than I saw in the store, the cable signal in the store was bad in a word and is much better than i had hoped for at home. Get the remote in the store and knock down brightness and contrast by half at least and tweak it from there if they'll let ya. Once I had a chance to go over the settings with AVIA, get it if you don't have it, and make adjustments, the picture was much better on DVD component in with a progressive scan player, mine is a Tosh SD4800. Make the store allow you to play with the settngs or ensure you can return it if you're not happy, but once you get it home, ooohhh aaahhh.....

 

[Neil Campbell]

I've been looking at this TV at Futureshop as well for my first RPTV. Either this one or the 50H82 (cheaper without the DVI which I don't have a foreseeable use for).

Some of the threads on other home theater forums have a lot of horror stories about the flicker/burst issue with the HDX series (but not the H series???). The stories include people that are on their third set that has had the same problem. This doesn't seem like very good odds - one set fail, OK, you return it, but three!!

Having said that there still seems to strong support and reviews for Toshiba in general, and the HDX series, in particular.

Not sure what to do but with these 82 models being cleared out to make way for the new 83's, the prices may become irresistable.

 

[Greg_Ritchie]

I've had my 50HDX82 since last September and I've gone through periods of absolutely loving the set and sometimes wondering if I bought the right set. Most of the issues I've had with the set have been non-related to the actual TV but either bad source material (crappy DVDs) or my own mistakes (not redoing the home calibration after getting a new progressive DVD player). I bought this set solely on opinions I read online and in magazines. I'd seen the set a bunch of times but the source material in the stores always sucked. Here's my thoughts I hope you they help you:

· Ghosting, never been an issue with my set
· Stretch modes are very good, I usually watch DVDs in their native aspect but I use the stretch modes a lot on DIVX movies that I feed the set through the Svideo and 4:3 TV
· 540P upconversion, I don't think I can tell if this taking place but if your really worried you can get a DVI DVD player that will pass it 1080I and avoid the upconversoin problem
· Good DVDs look great on this set, I have some issues with loss of shadow detail in really dark scenes but this should be correctable by someone a little more knowledgable than myself, bad DVDs will look crappy on any set this size
· The Digital Noise reduction seems to work very well on Digital Cable (Non-HD), it seems to me to be visible as you switch it on or off
· HD Material is STUNNING, I have Rogers HD Cable and shows like CSI are absolutely unbelievable. Also Rogers has the Preview station running HD Loops and these really show off what the set can do

You can probably get a much better deal than I did since the sets have dropped about $600 since I bought mine. The Toshiba techs are also pretty good, they sent someone out to do a full service level conversion for me because I had some issues with one corner I couldn't get converged to my satisfaction. If your concerned about the set failing maybe buy the extended warranty? I bought the 2 year extension for $199 at the Bay so my sets covered until Sept 2006 (although it will probably be replaced before then)

 

[BarryNS]

Thanks Greg. Hopefully this week I will get the chance to spend some seat time in front of one of the demo models locally.