Top 3 HD RPTV Out of Box Picture? (1 Viewer)

[Gary Tjia]

Hi,

What would you consider the top 3 16X9 HD RPTV out of box picture in the 50-65 inch range?

Gary

 

[FrankL]

I know this is probably against general opinion, but my Mitsubishi looked great out of the box. I would have to say the top three are IMHO
1. Mitsubishi
2. Pioneer
3. Hitachi

 

[MichaelFusick]

Out of the box,

I would say:

#1.) Pioneer ELITE
#2.) Hitachi SWX / XWX
#3.) Mitsubishi
#4.) Sony

Toshiba, Panny, Samsung, and RCA can battle each other for the next four spots.

I would put JVC decidedly last though.

 

[DavidAM]

I would put JVC decidedly last though

Funny, I continue to be impressed how much better my JVC 56wp30 looks compared to the competing Sony/Toshiba/Mitsubishi models right out of the box. Even after basic tweeks, I couldn't get the competition to look better than my JVC. Now if you want to start with professional calibration and red push fixes, etc, then I don't know who would win, but for someone like me who doesn't plan on getting a calibration and wants a good picture at a great price, the JVC was the clear choice. The only TV that looked marginally better was the Hitachi, but not $500 better (the price difference between the 2) and the Hitachi had much worse stretch modes. Tog dog goes to Pioneer. They take the cake of everything available though.

 

[Gary Tjia]

Hi,

I am surprise to see Mits rank so high. From the forums I had seen, Mits does not have good picture right out of the box, but requires ISF calibrations to achieve good picture. Is this not true?

Gary

 

[John Royster]

Gary,

The new x11 sets from Mitsubishi look pretty darn good out of the box. As do the hitachi, sony and Elite.

With those four quality sets it is almost personal opinion as to which ones look nicer.

My opinion...And this is based on friends who own said sets in question so we've been able to compare each brand:

1) Mitsubishi
2) Hitachi
3) Elite
4) Sony (although their new DLP set is intriguing)

-edit- Just re-read my list. Its really to tough to say between the first three. Elite first. No, Hitachi. Wait, Mits.....

 

[Greg Kolinski]

Like DavidAM ,My JVC AV56WP30 looks great out of the box,it has the usual red push that seem to plague all RPTV's.I dragged it out on the floor and compared it against all the other big names,and saw really no better picture than the JVC.Ive done the basic V.E. tweeks, and it looks great on DVD's and great on Satellite.with a pro calibration,I would put it against ant other brand.JVC receivers may be a little low end,but I have Had 3 JVC tv's a 36 tube, a 27 tube ,and this 57 RPTV.Have been very happy with all.

 

[MichaelFusick]

Sorry to offend any JVC owners...

Just I have had a few bad experiences with them myself, so I decidedly put it last. It's just my opinion.

I sell them too... So it's not like I have reason to have a grudge.

Just I have never seen one look great out of the box, and one unlucky fellow took three swaps to get a decent one.

I just see more problems with them, perhaps it's my luck?

I am sure there are great ones out there... Just like there are bad ones of my top three. I have personally seen some.

I well aware of the quality of RPTV's out of the box and how it varies from one identical model set to another.

I should have made that more clear in my post. Sorry.

 

[DavidAM]

No offense was taken....just giving my 2 cents like everyone else

 

[Greg Kolinski]

Same as DAVID,it's actually all a persons perseption of what they like.Since you sell them,what problems HAVE you seen on the JVC AVR56WP30's and the 48 in version?Like I said ,I see no real problems,besides the red push,Im new to HDTV ,but have looked for a while and did a lot of CKing on "audio review"site.

Greg

 

[MichaelFusick]

Sratched screens comming out of the box.

Damaged cabinets.

Poor picture quality every time, poor focus in the corner's.

Poor convergence.

Horrible red push.

One set had blown speakers.

Just three in a row were unacceptable, so it left a sour taste in my mouth.

Like I said, I probably just had bad luck, but I must put them decidely last.

 

[Greg Kolinski]

someone on another site had mentioned that some later models had different convergence screens.Supposedly some had just the cross's ,and later ones had the cross's and rectangular squares in between.Red push.....from what I have read on various home theater sites,pretty much ALL HDTV RPTV's are plagued by this problem,not just JVC's.

 

[Juan_R]

I would ask one of the local calibrators on this forum which set was the best out of the box. After all they are the ones who see the before and after pictures.

 

[MichaelFusick]

GOOD IDEA
Now, how do we get them to answer?

 

[PatrickLG]

I wouldnt know, the Sears delivery guys DROPPED my Hitachi 57swx20B off the truck!!!!!!! Obviously they didnt know there was a power lift gate under the truck.
New one arriving tomorrow!!!!
BTW Sears does match prices, I got mine for $2600.00, and of course they just refunded my $50.00 delivery charge!!!!!

 

[MichaelFusick]

OUCH!

 

[Dan Ponze]

As a Great Indoors employee I apologize for that. Delvery guys are usually quite good and yes we do beat any local competitor price. Getting back to the question at hand I'd say Mitsubishi and Hitachi.

 

[BruceSpielbauer]

My 65" Mits (65819, last year's model) looked so bad, I wondered if I had made a mistake (even though I had been forewarned by others not to judge it too soon). The picture got dramatically better every day for the first week, though. Many sets do this on their own -- and I think this is important to realize, especially when we think of "out of the box." An ISF calibrator sees the set after the settings have settled down, and things have gone through a warmup period, and the solder points have finally absorbed some heat, and things have adjusted accordingly. Some are taking this question as literally out of the box, I think. Others here are taking this question as "pre-ISF calibration."

During the first month, I ran Avia, again and again, and then I eliminated the edge enhancement (SVM) in the service menus, then I improved my source signal, then I flashed the EEPROm to completely eliminate the 25% red push (which I was aware would be necessary before I bought), then I did an electronic focus (which indicated a manual focus was not necessary, and after a bit of tweaking of convergence, I actually wonder if having an ISF set the gray scale would be worth his time, or my money.

These things, of course, added to the quality improvements which I could actually observe during that initial 4 to 6 weeks. There were days when I could actually detect a difference from the previous day. Even my wife (who cannot tell HDNet from the History Channel on analog cable) noticed this twice, in the first week.

Out of the box, my Mits would fail this poll. I would NOT rank it high, at all. A month later, my Mits looked better than any Pioneer Elite (or Hitachi, or Toshiba, or Sony, or any other set) I have seen on a showroom. And, it has not been ISF calibrated.

-Bruce in Chi-Town

 

[PatrickLG]

Well, I just got my replacement Hitachi 57swx20B!!!

Out of the box, I tossed Episode II into my new JVC XV=S500BK connected with component cables from Wickedcables.

MAN it looks fantastic (except for the red push) I just ran the"Magic Focus" then looked at convergence, it was very close!!!!

Ill let it go for 100 or so hours and see if it settles, then tweak it some more.

 

[MichaelFusick]

Glad to hear.

There is a red push thread running here that can help if your brave enough to try it.