Plasma vs. Rear Projection (1 Viewer)

[Brian D B]

I have been doing some research on widescreen tv's lately and have found myself with more questions than answers.

1. Is there a picture quality difference between rear projection CRT, rear projection DLP and Plasma (I can't afford forward projection)? I have done some comparison viewing at the local stores and am of the opinion that the plasma screens look better than most CRT's, however, the higher end projection CRTs are very close, if not better. I have not seen any DLP's but have read that they are inferior to CRT's, is this true?

2. Should I be concerned with the longevity of a plasma screen? I read that pixels can be damaged from constant images (e.g. letterbox).

3. My HT will be in an upstairs game room. Provided that I can fit a large projection tv up the stairs, should I be concerned that some jarring may misallign the guns? How hard are these to calibrate if this does happen?

4. With all of the proprietary gizmos and do-ads of the different brands, what specification is the best to look at when comparing these types of tv's?

5. What does the i or p suffix to 1080 mean?

6. If I get digital cable will this give me HDTV if my tv is "HDTV Upgradeable"?

That's all I can think of for now. Thanks in advance, for helping out a newbie in his quest for HT bliss!

 

[Neil Joseph]

Take a look through this thread ... http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...hreadid=108748
Also, regarding interlace and progressive, check this in the FAQ area... http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...754#post523754

 

[Allan Jayne]

1. CRT has the best dark blacks. LCD maximum black seems to be more grayish in comparison. I don't understand why DLP doesn't have really deep blacks; I haven't seen it but others say DLP blacks are deeper than LCD but not as deep as CRT. The current DLP offerings seem to exhibit rainbow effects during subject motion. It resembles misconvergence of a CRT set. Some people (those who wear glasses?) see this quite often and other people see them rarely if at all. Rainbow effects also vary with make and model.
Many DLP and LCD models have 720 or more rows of pixels, needed for HDTV. But many plasmas are just 480 or 540 rows of pixels which is standard definition TV.
2. Plasma screens, like CRT screens, will suffer "burn" when high brightness subject matter remains in the same places for a long period of time. The same rule applies as for CRT, keep the contrast down. I, too, have heard about concerns regarding the overall longevity of plasma screens, but have no concrete evidence.
3. One appeal of LCD or DLP rear projection is significantly less weight.
Any RPTV can have focus thrown off by being jarred during moving. CRT RPTV is more complicated to re-calibrate because there are three things (three little CRT's) that need to be adjusted as opposed to just one for DLP.
5. 1080i (interlaced)-- The picture is drawn, first the 540 odd scan lines, then the 540 even scan lines, the entire process taking 1/30 second and then repeated.
1080p (non-interlaced; progressive scan)-- All 1080 scan lines are drawn in order, taking 1/60'th second, and then repeated.
The 1080i HDTV broadcast standard is 1080i. Few if any consumer grade TV sets create 1080p electronically (de-interlace the video) before sending it to the picture tube(s) or LCD paneles, etc. which produces a picture that slightly smoother. LCD, DLP, and plasma sets may produce "woven" 1080p defacto, that is, the odd rows of pixels do not change or fade as the even rows are being refreshed etc.
6. Digital cable may or may not have some HDTV channels. Your cable box must be equipped to deliver them as HDTV, usually as 1080i (as opposed as watered down (resolution downconverted; downrezzed) to standard definition TV. HDTV is always component video, not S-video.
Video hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/video.htm

 

[Brian D B]

Thanks to both of you for furthering my education. I still have a lot to learn, but that's part of the fun!