eastcoasthandl's Full Review: Sony Grand WEGA KF-42WE610 42 in. HDTV-Ready LCD T...
Opinion
Review
**********WARNING, READ UPDATE 6-7-04 BELOW. CHECK YOUR TV/DVD/HD RECEIVER'S MANUAL TO VERIFY IF YOUR DVI INPUT & OUTPUT ARE BOTH ENCODING FOR EIA-861 OR, IF THE DVI INPUT/OUTPUT ARE ENCODED FOR HDCP.**********
This Sony KF42WE610 is the best investment to own. Even without HDTV reception it exceptional in the following categories:
4:3 aspect ratio which turns the wide screen into normal 42” screen w/o cutting the top or bottom of the picture off.
PIP Mode allows you to adjust the height of each picture.
I can use my sony memory stick to view my pictures in wide screen or 4:3 mode. This unit displays a crisp, bright, vibrant picture taken from your Sony Camera on a 42" screen! I know of no other T.V. that allows you to do this.
It is very quite, and you cannot hear the fan in the rear. You only hear wind noise when the unit is turned off and only last about 2 minutes.
The screen is cool to the touch after several hours of use. The screen is hard and not spongy like other display units leaving a finger print after you touch it. Some displays are spongy to the touch and will leave a print of your finger embedded inside the TV itself lasting for a second. To me that is flimsy, cheaply made monitor, this is not something that you can wipe off the screen!
Playing a DVD movie is just as good as being in the Movie Theater. Sony DVP-NS725P Standard DVD
The picture's viewing angle in analog mode (non HDTV) from above/below and both sides was a little dark/faded so I adjusted the brightest 3 notches brighter and its virtually undetectable from any angle now. However, in HDTV mode there is no dark/faded picture from any view angle. I tried this with the Panasonic 50” PT-50LC13 (as the store didn’t have a 42”) and it only bleached the picture making blacks gray when viewed from an angle.
I have read that the shelf life of this unit (Rear Projection LCD Monitors) is 75,000 to 80,000 hours. There is not a plasma monitor on this planet that can come close to this.
In HDTV mode this monitor has the
brightest: picture does not give eye strain when viewing details in the fore/back ground
vibrant: the view is crisp and clear. The colors are not to bright or to warm,
Sharpest detail: While watching a golf game or a nature show you can see every stalk of grass (even the tip of the grass) in detail waving in the wind w/o eye strain. This is by far the most noticeable feature of the Sony Grand Wega.
SONY GRAND WEGA 42" KF42WE610 VS. Samsung 43" HLN4365W
Viewed at Bestbuy
When I compared these 3 attributes between Panasonic, Samsung, Toshiba and Mitsubishi. The only one that came close was the Samsung 43" Widescreen HD-Ready DLP-Projection TV Model: HLN4365W, in HDTV mode, It did not fade or get dark when viewed from the sides or top/bottom. However it's detail was not as good as the Sony. The same grass scene had a little eye strain when trying to distinguish one stalk from another. Also it was not as bright as the Sony. However the Samsung look like the twin to Sony as the shape, size and weight appeared to be the same however, it cost a little more then the Sony because of the DLP feature. If you didn't have these two monitors side by side you couldn't tell the difference in picture quality. However, since I was able to view them side by side I would stick with the Sony.
SONY GRAND WEGA 42" KF42WE610 VS. PANASONIC 50" PT-50LC13
Viewed at Bestbuy
I compared the Grand Wega with Panasonic's 50" Widescreen HD-Ready Rear-Projection LCD TV w/DVI Input & 2-Tuner PIP. The store did not sell a 42" Pansonic so I compared with the next best thing, the 50". Both of these units are identical in shape and design. The 50" Panasonic is the same price as Sony's 50" Grand Wega but the Panasonic's picture is clearly darker when viewed from the center. Panasonic’s PT-50LC13 gets darker when viewed from the top/bottom and sides until you can only see a black screen. I attempted to make adjustments to compensate (no TV is perfect right?) although I was able to brighten the picture considerably, the top/bottom and side views were shadows. Although you can see dark colored items like shirts, sweaters, etc. it's not as crisp as the Grand Wega. Sony KF42WE610 has a much better view angle in analog mode (non HDTV) and lets face it, most of us who will buy a HDTV ready TV will experience at least 50% of your view in analog mode. This is why I didn’t go into HDTV that much as there is very few cable channels available to date and HDTV receivers are over $300. However, after experimenting with the 2 units I chose the Sony KF42WE610 over the Panasonic PT-50LC13. The only difference between the 2 is that Panasonic&'s version does come with 4 component outputs to Sony's 2 component outputs.
Here is a tip to improve picture quality for analog cable/antenna viewers:
Use a A/C powered, coaxial, Electroline Drop Amp to improve analog cable reception. The 18 gauged Satellite coax cable runs from the cable co. to the Electroline Drop Amp in my house. The 1 Meter Monster Video 3 coax cable (gray colored wire) will run from the Electroline Drop Amp to the TV thus improving picture quality.
Update 5-11-04
Although double shielded RG-6 coax cable would do better most that I have found do not have a solid copper core. As I was told that the signal travels around the circumference not inside. Regardless if you have solid copper core or not It is extremely important to check your cable connections to make sure the exposed copper wire does not have any marks or nicks around the circumference! If any are found there is a 100% chance you are not receiving the best picture possible. It is a MUST to cut the wire just below the connection, then buy $10-$18 “plastic” 2-Blade rotary coaxial cable stripper to properly strip it, place a coax connector then screw it back on your TV (This is intended for coax cable installed by your cable company. Monster coax cable and such are not part of this side note).
Update 5-15-04 Monster HTS 5000 with Sony 42” Grand Wega
Monster HTS 5000 Voltage Regulator/Cleaner/Conditioner is an excellent choice to improve image and sound quality on your Sony 42" TV! Although I notice the biggest improvement in the TV's speaker volume (deep bass, rich tones and consistent volume levels) I have notice an improvement on analog cable channel 2 and 11 which displayed several moving lines in the past but not any more with the HTS 5000! I now have the coax cable from the Electroline Drop Amp, to the HTS 5000 then to the back of the TV. I have noticed shorter start up times by as much as 10-15 seconds. When the TV is on and you get a solid green light, you have a faint picture that sharpens and gets brighter within 25-30 seconds with sound. I no longer have a black screen with sound when I turn the TV on and obtain a solid green light. This normally happens if the TV is off for more then 10 hours at a time.
Update 6-7-04 *****WARNING, CHECK YOUR OWNERS MANUAL, VERIFY YOUR HD MONITORS DVI & HD DVD PLAYER'S DVI*******
The DVI input on this Sony Grand Wega KF42WE610 42" HD Monitor is called EIA-861. EIA=Electronic Industry Alliance. The industry is replacing it with a new standard called HDCP: High Definition Copy Protection (encoding). HDCP is a standard that is encoded into the video signal to prevent it from being pirated. If a source device is HDCP coded and is connected to a HDTV display or projector without the proper HDCP decoding mechanism, you can either have no picture or 480i picture. In order to see HDTV with HDCP compliance, both the source and display devices must be equipped with DVI connections that can enable HDCP decoding.
If your HD Monitor only has a DVI input with EIA-861 & your dvd player (for example: Samsung DVD-HD931) has a DVI output encoding with HDCP you will experience problems.
This is why so many people had problems with Samsung's HD DVD player "DVD-HD931". No one knew of the encoding standards (built in. However dvd players like LG HD Receiver/HD DVD Player: Model LST-3501A do provide options to off set this requirement by offering both EIA-861 & HDCP encoding.
For a more cheaper solution it is better to go with a HD DVD Player & HD Monitor that produces 720p to 1080i resolution through component outputs which are close to DVI resolution.
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Update 8-7-04
I have noticed when the volt meter on the HTS5000 read 120 volts the sound is on before the picture (3-5 seconds to get instant picture) When there is 100 to 115 volts it takes the picture 10-15secs to warm up. Sound is usually on about the same time as you get a clear picture.
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HTS 5000 with the XBOX
Even the Xbox was able to take advantage of the Monster HTS 5000 by obtaining better color, hue and saturation of colors and visibly seeing colors in the background. Lets uses Project Gotham Racing as an example of what I now see using the HTS 5000:
Darker, richer Black asphalt with graffiti painted on the road
Reflections of objects coming off the cars paint
Rainbows found in the water fountains using the DC track
Controls are more responsive while playing online
Appears that load times decreased by a few seconds
Overall richer colors
HTS 5000 using the Sony DVP NS725P DVD Player
Finding Nemo as an example:
Overall the picture quality is improved slightly
Picture is not white washed (I didn’t notice it was white wash until I used the HTS 5000)
Corel swaying back and forth in the Menu screen of Finding Nemo no longer freezes for 1 second then sways again as if you ran out of memory. This was annoying but this was the only move I noticed this.
More responsive starting a new dvd movie
Features Include:
Improved Contrast
Improved Black Level
High Resolution Panel
Clear Corner Focus
No Flicker
No Phosphor Burning
No Misconvergence
Slim Table Top Design
Increased Longevity
V Chip Parental Control
Sony’s Wega Engine™ system maintains picture in the digital
domain
Sony’s Optical Engine delivers high-resolution picture
corner-to-corner
3.28 million dots resolution delivers stunning detail and
clarity
Fixed pixel display and constant light eliminate flicker
Slim, lightweight design enhances any décor
Images and MP3''s come to life with Enhanced Memory Stick
media
Expand the life of your TV with easily replaceable lamp
Enjoy outstanding picture quality on HDTV monitor
Video Features:
16:9 Aspect Ratio
High Definition Television Monitor
Three Wide XGA LCD Panels: 3.28 Million Dots resolution
(1386 x 788 x 3)
UHP Lamp (100W)
First Surface Mirror
Cinemotion™ Reverse 3-2 Pull Down Technology
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