Looking for a nice 70 incher (1 Viewer)

Lately I've been thinking of bumping up from my 53" Pioneer HD-RPTV to a 70" My HDTV still works fine and still has a great picture, but I want a bigger more immersive experience! It also does not have any HDMI inputs. It looks like the cream of the crop is that Sharp that goes for over 6 grand. The wife will never go for that! I've been taking a look at Sharp's other models and reading some Amazon reviews (Yeah, I know). Anyway, I've had a hard time differentiating them from each other. Do the ones with that yellow pixel really make a difference? Are they all Edge lit LEDs now? I thought it was better to have a fully back lit LED model but I don't even know if Sharp makes them anymore.
They even have a cheap model that has gotten good reviews, the LC-70LE640U which one reviewer claims has decent black levels. The 2800.00 LC-70LE632U has also got a lot of nice reviews.
Here's what I would like... Very good black levels. Does anything come close to the Elite? I want spacer to look like SPACE! I also want a decent refresh rate... I don't want to see the streaking and banding we get on our cheap Vizio we bought for upstairs. I could care less about 3D (I cannot see it). Is it possible to get a good TV without it?
Please let me know what you guys think! Are there any good one for under 3 grand? Thanks!

Have you considered keeping the 53" TV, and buy a front projector instead? That will give you a "bigger more immersive experience".

LCD is the last thing you want to buy here...
a good 65" plasma is close in size and will cost less than the worst LCD.
If you really want to save dough...MITS DLP. Those are probably half as thick(off the wall) as your current RPTV...so it will take up a lot less room.

Wow. This is me thinking that the LED LCDs have come a long way. Do they still have major issues? My room is kind of complicated, so a front screen projector is out. I guess maybe I'll start looking at other options!

LCD have come a long way, but plasma is still better. The "issue" is plasma is no bigger than a 65". And yes, there are Panny Professional if you want to spend the coin( http://www.panasonic.com/business/plasma/TH-85PF12U-inch/index.asp ).
DLP is still the reigning king above 60". Besides, if your room is big enough to support 73 inches of glory...
What is 18 inches of real estate?

Ok, starting to get interested in that 73" Mitsi. I have done zero research into dlps. How are the black levels? Viewing off angle? Sell me on it! I already love the price!

Well...
There are no more "horror stories" on DLP. Mits always used the "French made bulb" and all the companies that used the "French made bulb" never had problems.
The bulbs are(last I checked) $100. Take like 10 minutes to change, if you've never done it before. Plan on buying your 2nd bulb somewhere during "year two" and swap it out once the TV makes it into 24-32 months of use. Keep the original bulb "for back up". Bulbs tend to last 3 years-ish. The only other maintenance to a DLP is the color wheel. This "can be" DIY. If you've ever replaced belts on a washer or dryer...or replaced the washer or dryer motor...the color wheel is a similar amount of work. Even "bad" color wheels make it 5 years. I know a few people with pre-HDMI DLP that are still on the original color wheel.
Like "all rear projection", off angle viewing isn't as good as plasma, but plasma is darn near equal to looking out a window to the outside world. DLP is still better than LCD. Although the high dollar LCD have caught up. So, in a sense...DLP at its "worst" in angle viewing is no worse than a LCD.
Black levels are fabulous. Equal to a plasma? No...but again, plasma trumps all. Black levels are created by "turning off the light"...you can't get any darker than that.

Oh yeah. To blow LCD completely away, and come even closer to plasma...
http://www.amazon.com/Mitsubishi-L75-A91-75-Inch-1080p-LaserVue/dp/B003KTN0AK/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1347467091&sr=1-1&keywords=mitsubishi+laservue
Technically, LaserVue is DLP...but it is "DLP", in the same vein as "DLP is projection"...
The leap from RPTV to DLP is big. The leap from DLP to LV isn't quite as big...but it is still impressive.
Think of LV as "DLP on steroids".
Also the "extra cost" of LV over DLP is "not quite saved" by not having to replace bulbs every three years...and there is no color wheel to ever worry about.

Oh yeah...do NOT buy a DLP/LV via the interweb. Buy it from a B&M. These things do not travel well. Not that it is a "horror story" to buy one via, say, Amazon...but if you get one of the 5-9% where the semi trailer hit a few too many potholes...it will be 3-4 weeks before you'll be watching your TV.
One of the stores my clients frequents keeps DLP and LV in stock. It is very common for them to "bring two"* when doing a delivery. A B&M can do that. Amazon can't. There are "just enough" of them not working straight from the box(basically from the box being man-handled in shipping) that a Mits Tech has to come out pop it all back into shape(which costs you nothing but 2-4 weeks of a nice "room ornament" till it works).
*This particular stores "bring two" is the "one you bought" and the "one that sits on the sales floor" 82". So, if the one you bought was man-handled...they leave the 82" there and "bring yours" once they've had a chance to put it back together from "ham-fisted" dock shipment.
By the way, Aaron's sells the "rental" model. It is a common practice for Aaron's to open them up and check functionality before loading it in the truck. Of course you can offer that when you buy it. They'll plug it in before delivery...saving a few steps on your end.
That is the only pratfall to DLP. The every once in a while needs a "Mits chiropractor"...

I bought a 73" from Amazon with no issue at all...

^^^
Just goes to show you can't rely on "review forums" very often. Most of the "purchasing reviews" are "Great TV, too bad I couldn't watch it for 3 weeks"...
That kind of thing doesn't happen very often...but it is all you hear about. Now if the 98 people who bought one said "Mine showed up, no problem"...

Oh yeah, especially forum threads are generally over negative because the folks having a good time arent here complaining lol.

Well looks like I'm sold on a Mitsi. I'm just not sure which one! If I can swing it, I think I'm leaning toward that LaserVue, but I don't think there are any B&Ms in my area that sell it. Walt's is selling it thru Amazon and most folks seem pretty happy with them. Then there is the added cost of a Maintenance agreement, which seems like it might be a wise choice.

Most maintenance agreements cover the bulb(read the fine print, some exclude stuff "customary to maintain", which that would mean they don't cover the bulb). But the bulb is only $100...
On LV, no the light engine ain't cheap(the light engine is pretty much the entire thing)
On finding a place to see a DLP/LV...in your area you have "mom/pop" independent Directv dealers. There are only two sources they can get Dir equipment from. One of those two sources sells Mits directly and those Directv "mom/pop" have access to sell you DLP/LV. Most of the people work from home and use their house as a showroom.
In your area(wherever that is), you'd be surprised how many independents there are...and how many of them sell Mits, Tosh, Onkyo, Yamaha etc...

Wow, what size rooms do you guys have that can handle a TV that size?
I live in a nice, normal sized home for my area, about 1,000 square feet per floor, but if I bought a 73" set, it would be like I was sitting two feet in front of it, constantly moving my head left and right to make sure I saw everything. It would completely take over my living room.
I've got a finished section of my basement that is about 15x30 that could probably fit., but that would be devoting 1/3 of my living space to home theatre. The other half of my basement is utilities, furnace, washer/dryer, etc. so not really a comfy TV environment.
Mathematically isn't there some formula to determine optimum viewing distance? Just guessing, but wouldn't you need to be about 25' away from a 73" set to view it comfortably?
Back in the olden days, I had a friend with a huge rear projection TV that was literally about five feet from his furniture, absolutely impossible to watch without giving myself a major headache.

Our big room, not the theater, is almost 40x40. There is a 65" plasma in the room. Even 12 feet away, you wish for more. Originally there was a 42". That one went to a bedroom.
The basement theater has(depending on aspect) roughly 110" screen. We sit, front row, at 8 feet.
If this is your "cup of tea"...
http://www.amazon.com/Baraka-Remastered-Blu-ray-Ron-Fricke/dp/B001DN7IX0/ref=sr_1_9?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1347546282&sr=1-9&keywords=baraka
I don't think you could sit "too close"...
As far as I'm concerned...still the BD benchmark.

schan1269 said:

Our big room, not the theater, is almost 40x40. There is a 65" plasma in the room. Even 12 feet away, you wish for more. Originally there was a 42". That one went to a bedroom.
The basement theater has(depending on aspect) roughly 110" screen. We sit, front row, at 8 feet.
If this is your "cup of tea"...
http://www.amazon.com/Baraka-Remastered-Blu-ray-Ron-Fricke/dp/B001DN7IX0/ref=sr_1_9?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1347546282&sr=1-9&keywords=baraka
I don't think you could sit "too close"...
As far as I'm concerned...still the BD benchmark.

Click to expand...

The Baraka film sounds interesting, never heard of it but would like to see it.
As for the TV, I guess that old saying of "the grass is always greener on the other side" holds true. If you've got a 42" you want a 47", then a 65", etc. I'm right there, looking for a 47", but even when I get that I'll probably want something bigger.
110" screen, that sounds like it would be fun to watch, but don't you miss things being to close? If something happens on the far right, what if you're focusing on the center and left side of the screen, don't you miss parts of the scene?

Watch this...
http://www.amazon.com/Book-Eli-Blu-ray-Denzel-Washington/dp/B002ZG997M/ref=sr_1_3?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1347555313&sr=1-3&keywords=book+of+eli
On the biggest screen you can imagine...and sit as close as you want...
And you'll never ask that question ever again...
Another one where there is "no way to ever have a big enough screen..."
http://www.amazon.com/Planet-Earth-Complete-BBC-Blu-ray/dp/B000MRAAJM/ref=sr_1_2?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1347555668&sr=1-2&keywords=planet+earth

Stan said:

The Baraka film sounds interesting, never heard of it but would like to see it.
As for the TV, I guess that old saying of "the grass is always greener on the other side" holds true. If you've got a 42" you want a 47", then a 65", etc. I'm right there, looking for a 47", but even when I get that I'll probably want something bigger.
110" screen, that sounds like it would be fun to watch, but don't you miss things being to close? If something happens on the far right, what if you're focusing on the center and left side of the screen, don't you miss parts of the scene?

Click to expand...

You just need the proper seating distance. I recommend the 1.5 rule for most people. Multiply the screen width by 1.5 for your seating distance. EX: 8' wide screen(110" diagonal) X 1.5 = 12' seating distance.

Seating distances are all over the map. I've seen people say 1.4 is the appropriate distance for 3D.
Our screen, roughly, is also 8 feet, and we sit at 8-9 feet.
SMPTE recommends 1.2(roughly what mine is based on) and THX recommends 1.6(or roughly 40degrees from the sides).
It also depends on your content. 16:9 TV is a lot taller than 2.39:1 movie...