boob tubes

danger boy

ok. i really, REALLY want a new TV to replace my current 13 yr old Zenith 27" tv. damn thing won't die.. :rolleyes:

I was at CC a few days ago.. i was very impressed with the Panasonic Tau series of flat screen tube TV's. The Sony Wega and Trinitrons were nice too... great color and hues, and contrast on the Sonys. but i noticed on the Sonys.. i could often times see the scan lines... it was pretty evident most of the times.. whereby on the Panasonic the scan lines weren't so evident.. and they appeared to run up and down instead of left and right.

I've already made up my mind on a few things.. it has to be a 36" tube TV.. flat screen of course... would love it to be HDTV tuner built in as well.. as for 4:3 or widescreen.. not really sure there yet. At this time i won't even consider LCD or RPTV or anything like that.. i'm pretty much sold on a tube display.. and yeah those tubes are monsters in terms of weight. .. but i know a couple big burly sweaty men who can help me hoist the damn thing into the house.

any thoughts on which is the better tube tv? i'm open to any brand out there.. but it must look good.

michael_w

Last Christams we got a toshiba 34HFX82 and its sweet. Now they have an 83. Its a 34" 16:9 (although you said only a 36" lol). Take a look at it on the toshiba site. 34HFX83 Yeah I'm not sure what your budget is because it's a little pricy but its something to consider.

danger boy

michael_w,

that sure is a beauty of a TV set.. i'm sure it looks stunning.. I have had good luck with Toshiba products for many years now.. and I wouldn't hesitate to go with a Toshiba TV either.

unfortunately that one is nearly double of my budget.. i'm looking in the $1200 and under price range. BUt if I had a bigger budget. i'd def want to check out that set. Do you know what that one sells for in the open market? Retail says $2,199. online it's prob a few hundred less. still over my budget i'm sure though.

ken brydson

Check this out. I have last years model and couldn't be happier. You don't see the lines at all on these like the regular Sony flats.
At $1700 it's outside your budget slightly but it's less than I paid for mine last year. Only gripe..... the weight. It was a **** getting it into the house and onto the stand.

http://www.circuitcity.com/detail.jsp?c=1&b=g&catoid=-8043&qp=0332033213336&bookmark=bookmark_8&oid=75499

danger boy

Ken is your tv 16:9 format? if so.. how does 4:3 formatted television signals look? does it have black bars on the left and right sides?

it's a great looking tv.. from what i can tell. yeah a bit out of my price range. I might have to settle for a 32" instead of a 36" within my price range.. i really want a HDTV ready one.

I read that broadcaster only have to provide analog signals till 2006. i wonder if after that they will cease analog signals or it will remain optional? 2006 is not very far away.. i also wonder when they will no longer sell analog TV's?

ken brydson

No, it's 4:3 so it's a no issue with TV signals. If you weren't on the other side of the freakin' mountains you could come by and check it out

jdavy

I like the 34" sony 16x9 tube tv's. You can get last years model for less and get interest free financing for up to 2 years depending on how you deal with. Good luck.

JDOGG

you could check out this website, they have cheap prices.
http://www.reliableaudiovideo.com/

mccarts747

Word of caution on 36" tube sets. I have the Toshiba 36hf72. They are extremely heavy and very awkward to move. 210+lbs.(trust me. i just moved and had to move this beast it took 3 of us and it was still painfull)

I also spoke with a technichian about some common problems that you can find annoying and there are no fixes for them.
1.
There is a power switching board(name may not be correct) which when needing power resonates and creates a dogwhislte like sound from the back of the TV. This happens on all the big sets because of the way they are made. Only temp fix is to possible torque the backa little when you hear the sound and hopefully that wedges the board to stop the vibration. I tried and it didn't work(turning the TV on and off stops it though) This problem is more prevalent when your power is inconsistent. this is a very random occurance, not predictable. I think some of the problem will be alleviated when i upgrade the amps in my house.
2.
There is a slight discoloration in the corners and edges (noticable only when the screen is very light) if you tune to a channel w/snow you can see it move around. Does not affect the picture for the most part and is not noticable in widescreen mode. This happens in all Flat sreen tubes.

Just some things to think about before you lay out that cash.

Over all i am very happy with my set though.