FINALLY: A TV that fits my needs - Sony KV-36XBR400
Written: Apr 26 '01 (Updated May 05 '01)
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Pros: SEE REVIEW
Cons: NO 16:9 format
The Bottom Line: This is a great TV, but you’ll need a DVD player and a satellite dish to get the best picture possible.
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| wutang2364's Full Review: Sony KV-36XBR400 36 inch TV |
I have owned the KV32FS12 and had a terrible time with it. READ REVIEW HERE: http://www.epinions.com/content_9078410884
Went as far as returning the TV and buying a JVC. Yes that worked beautifully, however I wasn't too satisfied with the picture.
And now the review:
PICTURE:
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The 36XBR400 is great. I don't see many of the problems that people reported with previous models. There is no geometry problem (maybe I’m lucky), no black lines or bands, no uneven color, and no scan lines. That’s right, no scan lines even when sitting close to the unit. The only problem that I do see with this unit is that it produces a slightly grainy picture when used with my analog cable TV feed and my regular VHS player. I was initially upset with the grainy picture, but I was informed that this is because of a weak and/or noisy cable signal. I was told that I may be able to correct this by using a signal amplifier, but with no guarantee. To be honest, the grainy picture is not that bad. At times, it makes the picture look sharper, with more detail than a standard TV. At other times, it makes images look a bit blurry. It really depends on what channel that I’m watching. The best setting that I found to eliminate most of the grainy picture is to use the Movie mode (which softens the picture) and then increasing the Brightness and Sharpness controls. I also have set the Color Temp to Warm, the VM to Off, and the DRC-MF to Interlaced.
Because I was a little concerned about the grainy picture, I decided to visit Circuit City to check out the XBR400 on display. I wanted to see if it too had a grainy picture. I’m very glad that I did, because the XBR400 on display was playing a DVD of The Fifth Element and it blew me away. It produced the clearest picture of all the TVs on display, even better than the much more expensive (10 to 16k) plasma TVs. The picture was perfect, crystal clear resolution even sitting only four feet away. I had never seen a better picture on any TV. The TV had no grainy picture whatsoever. This made me feel much better and eased my concern.
I have a Panasonic RV30 DVD player which worked fine but didn't offer the progressive scan, the picture quality was great on the JVC but on this TV I feel it can be better.
I realize also that upgrading to directv will work wonders.
I plan to buy a DVD player next week. After much review, I am considering the Pioneer DV-434 with progressive scan outputs or the Sony DVP-C670 with digital image enhancer and DD decoder, both are reasonably priced less than $500. For the satellite dish, I was told to get a HD dish (oval shaped) with a TV top HD converter. RCA currently makes an inexpensive TV top HD converter that’s less than $650.
SOUND:
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The speakers can sound both good to fair, depending on what you are watching. I was expecting them to sound great. When listening to music channels they sound better when the volume is cranked up, but when listening to other shows they can sound weak (not enough bass or oomph). When watching a variety of shows, I find that I am constantly adjusting the sound Effect from TruSurround (a softer sound) to Simulated (more projection, in your face sound). This will not be an issue for me once I purchase my home theater receiver (Yamaha RX-V995) and speaker system (Def Tech Pro Cinema 80), as I will primarily be watching with the home theater system on and the Wega speakers off.
MISCELLANEOUS:
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The remote, although good and simple to use, lacks back lighting. Instead, it has glow in the dark buttons. I’m considering a Marantz RC5000 (very cool) to replace all of my remotes. This is great for the wife as she has no idea which remote works what, and I won't have to fumble with mutliple remotes.
The TV Guide feature - One thing that I like about my two year old 36” Mitsubishi (they don't make 4:3 TV's any more) is that it has TV Guide. When changing channels, it displays the channel and name of the show you’re watching for about two seconds and then disappears. The Wega has a similar feature, when enabled it displays the information all of the time which I find distracting. I think this feature is not necessary if you have satellite, as it displays the shows.
The manual, although short (this is a good thing because who likes to read manuals), provides enough detail. I was actually surprised as to how short it is. I expected it to be much longer than 52 pages.
And yes, this TV is heavy. The manual reports a weight of 238lbs, while the Sony Web site states 235lbs. Give or take 3lbs, this thing is heavy and may require 3 average size people to lift it. I was told that the previous models had handles on the sides, but this unit does not. Be careful when lifting it.
My recommendations:
I recommend purchasing all the cables that you plan on using ahead of time so that once you install it, you don’t have to move it, unless of course it’s on a TV cart/stand.
Purchase an extended warranty. Although it may cost a few hundred dollars (I paid $375 for a 5 year extended), I believe it is worth the investment, especially with the my history problems with previous models.
The Bottom Line:
This is a great TV, but you’ll need a DVD player and a satellite dish to get the best picture possible. With the proper feeds, this TV is probably the best one available. If you have an analog cable TV feed and standard VHS player, this unit may produce a slightly grainy picture.
After I purchase the rest of my home theater components (DVD player, satellite dish, HD converter, I’ll report back with an update. I can’t wait!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 2399
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Epinions.com ID:
wutang2364
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Member: Wouter Reyniers
Location: Bradenton
Reviews written: 15
Trusted by: 10 members
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