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New KV27FS13: Is it a lemon? (1 Viewer)

sang

Auditioning
Joined
Aug 6, 2002
Messages
13
Hi folks,

I just purchased a KV27FS13 and I've been checking it out with the Sound and Vision calibration disk. There are a few things bothering me and I'd like to know if this is normal or signs of a lemon.

1. On the contrast adjustment screen, the two thin white lines that run up and down the screen on either side of the gray scale step is a different width on the top of the screen than the bottom. The bar is fatter at the top and if I get right up to the screen, it's not really white, but separated out slightly into a blue, red, and green bar, which looks like a fat white bar from far away.

2. On the 80IRE, 90IRE screens, the large white box in the centre does not have straight edges. There are a few places where the side juts (horizontally only) producing a jagged edge. Also, this centre square does not appear to be a solid white - I can see flickering in this square.

3. If I look at the screen when the TV is off, it does not appear to be a uniform gray throughout - it seems to be splotchy, with different darknesses of gray. And there are about three or four thin horizontal lines spaced evenly over the tv screen. Are these the wires anchoring the aperture grill as in Trinitron computer monitors?

Other than these problems, there are some minor geometry problems that everyone has posted about.

Under normal TV/DVD viewing, the picture seems OK. However, I can't seem to get the contrast right. I've been fiddling quite a bit and the blacks seem blocked up and to open up the shadows, I have to turn up the brightness way too high. Any suggestions?

So is this TV a lemon or should I live with it, since there seems to have been worse cases with this model and I might just get one of those if I exchange this one?

It's extremely frustrating when you've been looking forward to a new tv with high expectations and it's not quite perfect. But maybe I've just gotten too picky and critical after spending some time in this forum. In the past, I never would have thought about trying to optimize the tv using a calibration DVD and it's only when pushing the tv with this DVD that I see the problems. I don't really notice anything bad (except geometry - straight lines bend inward at the top) when watching normal tv.

Thanks for your help in advance.

Sang
 

Jim FC

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Feb 5, 2001
Messages
211
I don't think your TV is a lemon. What you have is a nice TV, but keep in mind that it's Sony's entry-level 27" Wega. Even the XBRs can suffer from some of the things you described, and the 27FS13 is not an XBR. The things you are describing are pretty common faults in any direct-view set. You can always see if the store will exchange it for you, but as you pointed out, you may get a TV that has the same faults, if not worse ones. I wouldn't worry about it unless these problems detract from your enjoyment of the TV when watching shows or movies.

You could hire a good ISF tech to adjust your TV, and perhaps elimate some, if not all, of these issues, but you'd spend nearly as much on him as you did on the TV. I'd recommend that you adjust the set as close as possible to the calibration disc, and then sit back and enjoy it. You even said you like the picture fine, unless you're analyzing it with the calibration disc. That's the problem with the calibration DVD craze -- they make it tough to see the forest through the trees. The first thing they should say on these discs is that most TVs can't be calibrated to perfectly match the specs on the disc -- getting your TV as close as possible should be the stated goal.
 

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