Who has what
 

I am going to be in the market for a TV and Surround sound system. I don't know much about em so I am looking for some recommendations, and advice. What to stay away from, what looks/sounds good. If you got a good hook up or know a good site (besides craigs list) to find a used set let me know! Thanks in advance.

Re: Who has what
 

Best buy thanksgiving, black Friday, or Super Bowl sales have been pretty solid for me. I even got a 'post black Friday' deal the following Saturday once.

I have a 32" and a 40" LCD Samsung. Really they were the best blend of technology, quality an price when I was buying a few years back.

Hughes has bought several in the past few years...toshiba I think? Whatever he got they are damn nice.

With the advent of smart tvs now it may be a whole new ball game, have not researched them lately at all.

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Hey, thanks for the input! I am leaning toward the 40" LCD. It has become quite the new ball game, so thats why I came on here, know I will get good honest opinions from people!

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I have AV123 speakers and a 2-3 year old nicer 7.2 ONKYO receiver. AV123 are no longer built but are amazing! along with there subwoofer I bought. How much money are you looking at spending? That is the real question...

Any of the three big "S" manufacturers make good TV's Sony, Samsung, Sharp. It is also dependent on how much money you are willing to spend. scheides is correct with black friday and super bowl ads being very good deals.

Awhile back some stores used to do A TV/PS3/surround sound deals.... Dunno if they do that still but those are usually a good deal! Not too thrilled about the Sound quality on the pre packaged receivers and speakers though...

-Colin

Re: Who has what
 

True I should have mentioned that haha, but it is something that is still in the air. I want something that will last a while, so quality is important. Plus when I do get out of the Marines, I am plannin on using the set up still. From what I looked at on prices for TVs I will probably be spending about $600 on that, who knows during the sales. And I have no idea on a sound system because the reviews are always high, so who knows if its actually good! Another thing to bring up, if I get it during the big sales, it would have to be online, (deployed currently) so whats the good electronics store to go through! Thanks for your help guys!!!

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Honestly if you want to use it when you get out as well, you should get a nicer set of speakers and a sub, and most TV's will last you a few years. It is all electronics so you have to think of them like cell phones, the best now will be subpar in a few years. Which is why I suggested getting a nice set of speakers since those you wont be replacing as often, due to price decreases in electronics.

-Colin

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I have a 42 Panasonic Plasma....Had it for almost 2 years now and its been great....I have moved at least three times and its survived my two kids so far. When I bought it, it was the best at the time...1080p, 600hz refresh rate, and all the connections I could ever need. lol. I have never had a problem with an burn in...they supposedly fixed all that with this model. And I will admit I have played MW3 for hours on this tv. lol. And no side effects.

Also..I dont have a full surround sound..But I do have a sound bar. Also Panasonic. For my little living room it sounds great. I cant attest to how long it will last yet as I have only had that for a couple months. But it seems to be holding up just fine.

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That is the goal. Its one thing I dont know much about, I an hearing plasma and LED are the ways to go. Plasma is pretty expensive though. What brand of speakers would you recommend? I dont really want to kill the wallet either haha but lets hear what you got lol

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That is the size TV I am actually looking at getting! And sounds like she really is holding up! Hmmm maybe plasma has improved....

How do you like your sound bar? I have never listened to one.

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I have a Samsung 46inch lcd tv. I bought it on sale on black friday 3 years ago, best part is I walked in to bestbuy at noon (yeah for sleeping in) and got one of the very last ones in mn. I got it half off of list price. I love my tv to death its so sleek and pretty (yes I just called a tv pretty). so my suggestions is wait till black friday.

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I think any of the 42-46 inch range should be in your price range. You will want 1080p and either plasma or LCD maybe the LED has gone down in price since I last looked at it... but they tend to be a bit more expensive.. you shouldn't compare contrast ratio's because usually manufacturers use different measuring methods, just go look at how they look first. If you go with Sony/Samsung/Sharp you don't usually have to worry about contrast ratios as they are all pretty similar. I am not too familiar with plasmas but are usually pretty nice if you go with panasonic, I believe Samsung makes a nice one as well?
Plasma has improved a lot and burn in is pretty much non-existent...

It basically comes down to what you want to do and how much money you want to throw at them. I am partial to my speakers but just do some research and stay away from Bose :)

-Colin

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That is the new plan, to be honest, being deployed I completly forgot about that day! Going to have to do it online though. Still should be able to get a good a$$ deal!

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I have a 2 samsung 3D plasmas one 60" and one 51". No burn in had both for a little over a yr with no complaints. Don't remember the price for the 60" but I know I paid $480 w/ 4 glasses for the 51". Both are smart tvs.

I have an older 40" Sony Bravia (bought it new 4 yrs ago) still works great. Also insignia makes a decent tv we have 2 26" for the kids bedrooms.

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Damn! You got some good deals there! Hope to do a same! You have any surround sound?

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We have a TV thread on here somewhere. I think it comes down to what type of room you're putting it in. A darker theater type room or a living room with a big window, etc.

I got my Samsung 50" plasma 2 years ago, it was around $800 but they have come down a lot since then. Anyway, no burn in problems for more than a minute, you are supposed to be careful during the break-in period.

In the bedroom I have a Westinghouse 42" LCD 1080p I got for $200 two years ago on black friday, I rarely use it but it's pretty nice quality. Not nearly as many features as the Samsung but good picture quality.

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For the size of the living room I have the Sound bar is amazing. And seems how it match my tv I could just use one remote to control everything. lol. I use it for gaming and watching netflix all the time. My bro-in-law has a huge surround sound and yeah, my little sound bar dont compare to that. But I like it.

The only reason I went with a plasma was on the recommendation from some friends. The plasma's have come a long way..

However..If I could..I would get an LED next..

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First, like the avatar!!! haha Gonna have to get that from you lol. Back on topic, that is the TV range I am looking at. LCDs are by far the cheapest. Plasma and LED are about the same. Since I seem to use my tv I have now mostly for playing xbox/ps3 and watching movies I will be sticking with one of the two. Thanks for all the input! Really have some good knowledge. I am going to pick out a couple models I like, and then wait for Black Friday! Don't worry, I will be staying away from Bose.

Re: Who has what
 

What type of room is this going in? An LCD or LED will be far more versatile than a plasma when it comes to glare from the sun. Plasmas need a dark room, glare is terrible on them.

Just a heads up!

-Colin

Re: Who has what
 

Toshiba 55" 1080P 240hz LED 3D TV w/Sony soundbar + sub (living room)
Samsung 40" 1080P 60hz LCD TV (bar)
Samsung 40" 1080P 60hz LCD TV (bedroom)
Sony 60" 720P DLP TV (office)

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57" Sony Bravia LED 1080p. I really like it. It's internet ready, so it has netflix, hulu, pandora, blockbuster, etc on it.

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50" HP plasma I got in 2008 is still rockin, love it! Probably going to get a ~30 for the bedroom soon.

Just go check some out, read up on reviews and get whatever looks good to you.

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In my honest opinion the Samsung LCD tv (any of them) is the standard for tv's now a days.

That being said I just got rid of my few year old 52" samsung for a new 55" samsung LED 3D smart tv with all the bells and whistles, their top of the line when I bought it. I love it, awesome tv.

Truthfully there are a lot of awesome tv's out there, from all the research I have always done you usually are looking at Sammy LCD's and panasonic plasma's as the go to brands.

But don't take my word for it, shit changes every few months with technology.

Go to CNET.com and do your own research. As most of us already have tv's posting here, you are going to get a bunch of "this is what I have responses" which I gave myself lol. CNET will give you "unbiased" reviews and rate them too for you. Also Newegg.com has a decent review system on tv's too, I like CNET better.

As for sound, get a really good receiver to start with, speakers aren't nearly as important as the receiver. I have a yamaha for several reasons, and its a very nice unit. It's on my list to upgrade though, had it for 5-6 years now. But it works so well no reason to upgrade.

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I personally think Samsung is over-hyped (just like their phones); I've owned two Toshibas and two Samsungs, and like the Toshibas better. Panasonic is THE choice for plasmas though.

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At least we agree on something ;)

But seriously, this is why I think something like CNET helps. I have seen two identical tv's, meaning model and brands, and sometimes they look better and sometimes worse.

Meaning, a good calibration is HUGE with new tv's and all their settings. I change mine up every once in a while and its like watching a new tv. Oh and don't cheap out on cables. I have tried testing myself, where I use a cheap newegg one vs a good monster one. They are pricing but nice monster ones bring out the best in your tv. Not saying you need that brand, but nice HDMI cables are key.

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This is very true! Current TV's have so many settings and adjustments it's insane, especially the higher-end ones. The individual room and lighting conditions make a huge impact too. I sometimes find myself adjusting the picture on my TV depending on how much daylight is coming into the room (luckily, there are saved custom presets I can switch between). I always use a calibration disc when setting up a TV for the first time.

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Went on CNET last night, did a lot of research! I have decided that I am going to go with a plasma TV. I found some good deals on Samsungs. But I will be waiting till Black Friday before I do buy. Now for the receivers, I found a couple that I like and had good reviews. The speakers and sub. I am thinking of going with a "build my own" set. But I am nervous because as it was stated before, the out of the box sets are already tuned. So the NEW QUESTION haha if I choose my own speakers, I would assume its best to stay with same brand? Is there something I am missing? I really apprecitate all your help guys!!

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I have a Samsung 50" 1080p in the living room and Panasonic 50" 720p in the bedroom. Those are the 2 brands you want to go with for plasma and they are basically equal. My Sammy is about 4 years old and still looks great. At this point I would probably go with an LED tv, the blacks are much closer to a plasma than they used to be.

If you are only going 40" then I would go with a cheaper TV and a better sound system. Then when you get back home you can reuse the sound system even if you end up going with a bigger TV. I got a Denon receiver a year ago and it is amazing, get one with the audyssey system, you can tune every speaker how you want. I run Pold speakers and I am sold on them. I got some cheap from newegg on black friday and I just saw they were on sale again last week. I have had many different kinds of speakers (infinity, JBL, bose) and love the Polks.

You could get these and use them as fronts until you get in a bigger place, then switch them to rears:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...Audio-Speakers

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Some good input. Right now I am looking at a 51" Samsung Plasma
http://reviews.cnet.com/flat-panel-t...-35169617.html

For the speakers, still up in the air. I do want to get something that is going to last and work with bigger, better set ups. For the link you have, could you use them for front and rears? Or how does that work. Here is what I have looked at so far. Not set in stone at all just lookin
Front Speakers
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Sony+-+8...&skuId=8289238
Rear speakers
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Sony+-+8...ustomerreviews
Reciever
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...58854&csid=_21
Sub
???????
Center
???????

Let me know what you think so far!

Re: Who has what
 

TV looks solid for the price, mine is the 650 series, so 1 step up but older.

Speakers I would go with the Polk monitor series, similar in price and they sound better. I think they still have some of the small Polks at best buy that you can listen to. I liked those little things more than any of the others they had in and the big ones are way nicer than that!

Mains:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...Audio-Speakers

Center:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...Audio-Speakers

Rears:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...Audio-Speakers

Sub (continuous power and size are the big things to watch):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...Audio-Speakers

Reciever, I checked out Yamaha but they aren't real compatible with stuff. I did tons of research before I got my receiver on avsforum.com (killer place!).

New version of mine, just came out:
http://shop.retrevo.com/m/search/pro...839&m=24199048


That is basically the same setup I have, if you ever want to hear it just let me know! I have a different sub, a 15" Cerwin Vega with 250w.

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Polk > Sony for speakers

Try not to get a all in one unless it is that PS3+TV+all in one deal.

THD is too high!

-Colin

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Looks good, I like the set up, and seems to be what I am looking for. Going to do some more reseach and check out that website you sent. Looks like it will keep me occupied for a while!!!