Sony KV-27FV100 1st tv? (1 Viewer)

[Paul cbc]

Deat HT forum:
As this is my first post, I would like to thank you all for the many good things I have read here.

I am considering making my first tv purchase as a part of my planned HT plunge. As funds are limited I have been looking at analog sets, specifically the Sony kv-27fv100. This set will be for movies only as I do not watch regular tv. So the 16:9 mode really appeals to me.
Dropped by the local sears today and they had a returned model for $400. Was told the warranty and 30 day return policies were still good.
Thoughts on this tv and possibility of buying a returned set?
Also if I may, any suggestions for a dvd player to purchase to use with this set?
Many thanks for your time/thoughts..
paul

 

[KevinFC]

Paul,
First find out why the set was returned. Make sure that you turn the set on to see if there was any burn in. And get the extended warranty. My best advice is try to haggle the price down on a new set. Do you have an Ultimate in Oregon? Because the lowest I have seen them go for a cutomer on the 27fs100 when I was look looking at the 32FS100 was 449.00. Which isn't that bad a price. What is your price range for a DVD player? The price range depends on what can be recommended. Good luck

 

[Scott Kimball]

It's a good set... but having been returned I'd want to have a look at it before bringing it home. Look for scratches on the case or tube, loose A/V jacks, and have them fire it up with a DVD player if they'll agree to it.

Generally, I disagree about purchasing extended service contracts. These are high profit items for retailers... why? Because most of them never need to be used. It's a gamble, but I pass on these except perhaps in the case of a large screen that would need home service.

I recently bought a 32" Wega. It's a 165 pound bear... but I still chose not to buy an extended warranty.

It's a gamble, and you need to decide for yourself.

People seem to like the Panasonic RP82 DVD player. I have a Toshiba SD3800 (I think that's the number). It has the "chroma bug," but unless you're looking at it on a bigger screen than mine, it's not really noticeable. I like the feature set and picture quality of this DVD player, and it's reasonably priced at around $150. I wouldn't suggest "skimping" by any means, but with a 27" screen you can afford to go with a player like the Toshiba that you might not choose on a 60" screen.

-Scott

 

[Paul cbc]

Kevin and Scott,
Thank you both for your replies.
In regards to the set, I too wondered why it had been returned and was a little wary. Another local retailer has this set for $499 w/ a $50 in store credit. I'm not sure the price difference is worth the "risk". I know that new is no guarentee, but it seems to leave one with more options. We may have Ultimate in Oregon, but I live in a small town and it's not here.
As far as the DVD player goes I suppose my budget is up to $400, or so. I have read about the Phillips 963SA and am intrigued. I am an audio fan and like a number of the SACD titlesI've seen available-jazz, classical, and rock. I would get a RP82, but those seem long gone. I guess my thought is that a decent dvd player and a good sacd player might be more costly than one unit that does both. Or am I way off base?
Your thoughts are appreciated.
My thanks,
paul

 

[KevinFC]

Paul,
I have the JVC XV-FA900BK that does DVD-Audio. But here is a link to a nice Sony that does SACD. Check it out to see if this what your looking for.
Sony DVD Player

 

[Paul cbc]

Kevin,
Thanks for the tip on the Sony NS755P. Do you think this would mate well/provide a good picture on the 27fv100?
Any more thoughts on this tv and a good dvd player are much appreciated.
Take it easy,
paul

 

[Jonathan L]

Paul,

I purchased a 27FS100 (same as the FV, just without PiP, extra s-video input, auto 16:9 squeeze, and the FS has lower power speakers) in December for $499, and I can highly recommend it. I have pretty much no complaints with it.

If you do get that model, you should pick up a calibration disc, but at the very least, turn down the contrast and brightness. Out of the box they are set WAY too high.

-Jon

 

[Paul cbc]

Jonathan L,

Thanks for the feedback on the tv and the calibration tip.
Do you have a dvd player that you can reccomend(are using) with this set?

My thanks,
paul

 

[Mike Danilko]

Paul a word of caution. I have a KV32FS100 that on a white background displays pink streaks down both vertical sides of the screen. On most tv viewing they are not that noticeable but watching hockey which has predominately white backgrounds they are so noticeable as to be distracting for me. Adjusting the picture and brightness hepls but it is hard to completely rid the screen of the pink without making it too dark. The store sent out a service guy who told me after viewing it that some Sonys do that because of the flat screen and there was nothing he could do for it. I have come across a few other people on the net that have experienced the same problem as me so be careful and I would suggest that you take a dvd with you that you know has a scene with a white background in it and check out the tv before purchasing.

 

[Scott Kimball]

I have a minor version of this pink streak defect on my 32" Wega... it's pretty minor though, and as you said is only really noticeable with a flat white picture.

It looks to me like an actual optical defect in the glass face of the tube, where there are some minor changes in the thickness and angle of the tube behind the flat glass face (i.e. the tube isn't exactly flat). You can actually see this in the reflected ambient room light with the set turned off. The white light from inside the tube gets refracted a bit, like looking through a prism, and a minor color cast becomes noticeable under the right circumstances.

Increasing the white level can compensate, but then, that is not usually desirable either.

Even with this minor defect, this set still delivers a fine picture. I imagine that smaller sets would be less likely to have this problem.

-Scott

 

[Paul cbc]

Scott and Mike,

Thanks for the words of caution on the set. I am leaning on getting it due in part to the stores 30 day no hassle return policy. That should be enough time to check out the pink streak defect. Again, only movies on this set.

Thanks again!
paul

 

[Jonathan L]

Paul,

In regards to the pink streak mentioned above, I do not experience that on the 27" model, however, I have noticed a SLIGHT "blob" of uneven brightness at the top left and right corner of the screen...it's only noticable when it switches from a bright image to a completely black image (i.e. in Lord of the Rings, when the entrance to Moria collapses). After a proper calibration, it has almost completely dissapeared.

As for a DVD player, I saw that you want something that plays SACD's, unfortunatley I can't really help you there. However, just for movies, when I bought the TV I picked up a Sony DVP-NS715P to replace my old DVP-530S, and for just movies, I can highly recommend that as well.

Thanks,
Jon

 

[Paul cbc]

Jonathan L,
Thanks for sharing more of your experience with me. As mentioned before I'm leaning towards this set. Hoping the planets align to where I have the dough and the set is on sale. We'll see.
Have a great day!
paul