New LN52A650 owner here. Initial impressions a a couple questions.

New LN52A650 owner here! I had a HL-S5687W that was repaired a few times until CC replaced it under their extended warranty.

Anyway, I did a bit of calibration and the picture is INCREDIBLE. My method is basically using "Just Scan" to get 1:1 pixel ratio and turning off all the extra processing garbage. Then use test patterns to get good contrast, brightness and color. I run a PS3 for games and Blu ray and a Xbox 360 for games. I set the TV's HDMI black level to normal and RGB to Full on the PS3 and Expanded (or whatever it's called) on the 360. Seems to be pretty damn awesome. I also turned the xvYCC on and it seemed to show better definition on the color scale test patterns I ran. I am not really clear on just what the impact of that setting is. An explanation would be appreciated.

Another question: Does the sound suck an all these sets, or is it mine? It's just so damn tinny and thin compared to the speakers in the HL-S5687W. I only use the built in speakers for cable TV viewing, so I don't demand anything amazing, but this thing sounds like crapola.

BTW - I ran the auto channel setup and low and behold, I get like 100 free HD/Digital channels. I don't pay for any digital cable, nor do I have a box. I guess Comcast broadcasts a LOT of unscrambled digital channels. I even get like 40 of those music channels. God bless QAM.

Anyway, I am THRILLED with the set so far. I have no "purple haze", and the few cloudy spots I saw have all but disappeared after calibration.

One last thing: Any of you guys use this company for an extended warranty? http://tapeworkstexas.com/mack_warranty_tv_only_.html

It looks like a pretty good deal and I have read good impressions on other forums. Thanks!

Re: New LN52A650 owner here. Initial impressions a a couple questions.

Short answer: No. You need a system. Of course this is an opinion. You may love the sound. I hate it.

More impressions: The TV is just spectacular. I have it calibrated fairly well. I use the Just Scan picture setting so it's 1:1 pixel ratio. Bluray are stunning, as are games from my 360 and PS3. It's pixel perfect.

ALL of the extra processing is off. I just wanted to start with the purest picture possible, so Dynamic Contrast, AMP, DNIE, and anything else Ic ould turn off is off.

In a dark room the black levels are fair, but with decent backlighting it's great in all but VERY dark scenes.

Regular analog cable signals look really good and the digital / HD signals (that i get for free thanks to the QAM tuner) look AMAZING as long as there's not too much fast motion. And that's Comcast's compression, not the TV.